In this month's installment, historian Carlo D'Este examines the lead-up to the greatest amphibious operation in history.
Read MoreThis month's installment will take a look at one of the two greatest challenges that faced Eisenhower as supreme commander of Allied forces for the invasion of Europe in 1944.
Read MoreWith Ike it was all about relationships and none was more important that his association with Winston Churchill. Two more diverse personalities could hardly be imagined, but together, their friendship became the foundation of the alliance, and, with Roosevelt's declining health, the glue that held it together.
Read MoreFamed historian Carlo D'Este, who has recently joined the ACG team as Consulting Historian, provides his analysis of various aspects of World War II in a new monthly feature for the Armchair General website.
Read MoreCarlo D'Este takes a look at Dwight Eisenhower in his newest set of articles for Armchair General. This first part looks at what made him unique.
Read More[Note: This is Part 3 of a scheduled three-part analysis of Montgomery’s leadership and battlefield performance in World War II. The first part of this series can be found here. Part 2 can be found here.] An Armchair General Exclusive by Carlo D’Este. This final installment about Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery examines his generalship during the most crucial battle fought by the Allies since the D-Day landings in France on June 6, 1944, the desperate Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 that is perhaps the least understood of his colorful military career. The ensuing battle of Normandy and the breakout from the so-called Falaise Gap were also controversial and will be the subject of a future article on Patton and Monty. At the end of August 1944 the Normandy campaign came to a sudden and dramatic end with an overwhelming allied victory that left the German army in the West in full retreat toward Germany. So crushing was the allied victory that some began to perceive that...
Read More[Note: This is Part 2 of a scheduled three-part analysis of Montgomery’s leadership and battlefield performance in World War II. Look for Part 3 in September or October 2005. The first part of this series can be found here.] Last month’s article on the generalship of Field-Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery during World War II was aimed at presenting a brief glimpse into a complex character that was nothing like the cardboard stereotype that has been the typical portrayal of the man they called Monty. This essay is part 2 of a three-part examination of Monty’s leadership during the war and his relationship with senior Allied commanders. This essay is a look at his campaigns in the Mediterranean after El Alamein. * * * With Bernard Montgomery what you saw was what you got; there was not the slightest pretense to the man. He spoke his mind, always forcefully and with little thought of whether or not it was, in modern terminology, politically correct. Monty spoke as a soldier whose...
Read MoreHave you ever wondered why Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery (better known as "Monty") often surfaces in debates about World War II generals as both the best and the worst the Allies could muster? Armchair General wanted to cut through as much of the varying opinions and myths as possible and get straight to the facts about this important battlefield leader. We enlisted the help of noted author and historian Carlo D'Este to give us a modern perspective of this controversial man.
Read MoreDo we take D-Day for granted? Has the passage of time made the D-Day landings seem as if they were always destined to succeed? Armchair General Consulting Historian and author Carlo D'Este examines how this important event was no sure thing.
Read MoreFeared by enemies, immortalized in movies, and one of the best generals ever; But one slap almost ended it all! Famed historian Carlo D'Este, who has recently joined the ACG team as Consulting Historian, provides this exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at George S. Patton, Jr.'s infamous "slapping incidents" as his inaugural contribution of what is a new monthly feature.
Read More
HistoryNet