Read World War II: The Autobiography Online
Authors: Jon E. Lewis
Tags: #Military, #World War, #World War II, #1939-1945, #History
World War II: The Autobiography
Jon E. Lewis is the author of numerous books in the Autobiography series including
England: The Autobiography, London: The Autobiography
and
The Autobiography of the British Soldier.
Praise for his previous books
England: The Autobiography:
‘A triumph.’
Saul David, author of
Victoria’s Army
The British Solider: The Autobiography:
‘This thoughtful compilation . . . almost unbearably moving.’
Guardian
‘[A] compelling tommy’s eye view of war.’
Daily Telegraph
‘What a book. Five Stars.’
Daily Express
WORLD WAR II
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Edited by JON E. LEWIS
Constable & Robinson Ltd
3 The Lanchesters
162 Fulham Palace Road
London W6 9ER
www.constablerobinson.com
First published in the UK as
The Mammoth Book of How It Happened: World War II,
by Robinson, an imprint of Constable & Robinson, 2002 This revised and updated edition published by Robinson, an imprint of Constable & Robinson Ltd, 2009
Collection and editorial material
copyright © J. Lewis-Stempel, 2002, 2009
The right of J. Lewis-Stempel to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
A copy of the British Library Cataloguing in Publication data is available from the British Library
ISBN: 978-1-84901-003-0
Printed and bound in the EU
First published in the United States in 2009
by Running Press Book Publishers
All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions
No part of this work may be produced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Digit on the right indicates the number of this printing
US Library of Congress Control Number: 2009920967
US ISBN: 978-0-7624-3735-1
Running Press Book Publishers
2300 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-4371
www.runningpress.com
We may be destroyed, but if we are, we shall drag a world with us – a world inflames.
Adolf Hitler, 23 November 1939
For those in my family who fought the good fight:
E.J. Lewis, R.I.J. Stempel, G. Charles, F. Williams, H. Knowles, J. Stempel, M.P. Jessop, A. Jessop, S. Parry, H.A.G. Stempel.
CONTENTS
Part I Blitzkreig: The War in Europe, September 1939-October 1940
HITLER ORDERS WAR, 31 AUGUST 1939
Adolf Hitler
THE HOUSE OF COMMONS DISCUSSES WAR AND PEACE, LONDON, 2 SEPTEMBER 1939
Ralph Glyn, MP
BRITAIN DECLARES WAR ON GERMANY, 3 SEPTEMBER 1939
Neville Chamberlain
HOME FRONT: LONDON AT WAR, 3 SEPTEMBER 1939
Mollie Panter-Downes
POLAND: “WE MARCHED AROUND IN CIRCLES”, 3 SEPTEMBER-5 OCTOBER 1939
Private K.S Karol, Polish Army
FINLAND: GUERILLA WAR IN THE SNOW, 2 FEBRUARY 1940
Virginia Cowles
NORWAY: THE ROUT OF THE BRITISH EXPEDITIONARY FORCE, 14 APRIL-5 MAY, 1940
General Sir Adrian Carton
THE HOME FRONT: THE PROTECTION OF YOUR HOME AGAINST AIR RAIDS
Sir John Anderson
OPERATION YELLOW: THE GERMAN ATTACK ON ROTTERDAM, 10-11 MAY 1940
Dirk van der Heide
OPERATION YELLOW: CROSSING THE MEUSE, FRANCE, 13 MAY 1940
Erwin Rommel 7th Panzer Division
CHURCHILL OFFERS “BLOOD, TOIL, TEARS AND SWEAT”, House of Commons, 13 MAY 1940
Winston Churchill
THE BATTLE OF FRANCE: SERGEANT PEXTON IS TAKEN PRISONER, 20 MAY 1940
Sergeant L.D. Pexton
DUNKIRK: THE VIEW FROM THE BOATS, 1 JUNE 1940
Commander C.H. Lighloller, RNR (Retd)
ONE MAN’S WAR: PRIVATE JACK TOOMEY IN FRANCE, MAY-JUNE 1940
Private Jack Toomey 42nd Postal Unit, British Army
FRANCE SURRENDERS, 21 JUNE 1940
William Shirer, war correspondent
BATTLE OF BRITAIN: A BRITISH FIGHTER PILOT’S DIARY, 19 AUGUST-7 OCTOBER 1940
P/O D.H. Wissler RAF
BATTLE OF BRITAIN: DOGFIGHT OVER SOUTH-EAST ENGLAND, 2 SEPTEMBER 1940
P/O Roger Hall, 152 Sguadron RAF
BATTLE OF BRITAIN: A SPITFIRE PILOT BALES OUT, 3 SEPTEMBER 1940
Richard Hillary 603 Sguadron RAF
THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN: THE BLITZ, LONDON, SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1940
Desmond Flower, Virginia Woolf Edward. R Murrow
Winston S. Churchill MP
Part II The Battle of the Atlantic: 1939-44
THE
ROYAL OAK
IS TORPEDOED, SCAPA FLOW, 13 OCTOBER 1939
Gunther Prien
THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER PLATE, 13 DECEMBER 1939
Lieutenant-Commander R.E. Washbourn RN, HMNZS
Achilles
SURVIVAL, THE ARCTIC, 8-11 JUNE 1940
Ronald Healiss, Royal Marines
U-99 ATTACKS A CONVOY, THE ATLANTIC, 18-19 OCTOBER 1940
Kapitan-Leutnant Otto Kretschmer, U-99
HUNTING U-BOATS, 17 MARCH 1941
Captain Donald Macintyre RN, HMS
Walker
THE PURSUIT OF THE
BISMARCK,
24-27 MAY 1940
Lieutenant Ludovic Kennedy RN, HMS
Tartar
ONE MAN’S WAR: THE DIARY OF AN ASDIC OPERATOR, 19 JANUARY-13 FEBRUARY 1942
Frank Curry RCN, HMCS
Kamsack
VOYAGE TO MURMANSK, SEPTEMBER 1942
Able Seaman Robert Carse, Merchant Navy
A U-BOAT IS DEPTH-CHARGED, MID-ATLANTIC, 1942
Midshipman Heinz Schaefer, U-977
FATAL SIX WEEKS: THE LOG OF A U-BOAT KILLER, 31 JANUARY- 19 FEBRUARY 1944
Commander DEG Wemyss RN, HMS
Wild Goose
Part III The War in the Desert: North Africa, 1940-43
THE ITALIANS SURRENDER AT BEDA FOMM, 7 FEBRUARY 1941
Cyril Joly 7th Armoured Division
ENTER ROMMEL, FEBRUARY-JULY 1941
Leutnant Heinz Werner Schmidt, Afrika Korps, General Erwin Rommel, Afrika Korps, Brigadier James Hargest, 5th New Zealand Infantry Brigade
A TANK IS “BREWED UP”, LIBYA, 15 JUNE 1941
Cyril Joly, 7th Armoured Division
ONE MAN’S WAR: DESERT WEARINESS, OCTOBER 1991
Private R. L. Crimp, 7th Armoured Division
PANZER LIED: “HEISS UBER AFRIKAS BODEN”
OPERATION CRUSADER: TANK BATTLE AT SIDI REZEGH, 28 NOVEMBER 1941
Captain Robert Crisp, 3rd Royal Tank
Regiment, 4th Armoured Brigade
Anonymous British Gunner
TOBRUK: THE CONQUEROR ENTERS, 21 JUNE 1942
General Erwin Rommel, Afrika Korps
MONTGOMERY TAKES OVER AS COMMANDER EIGHTH ARMY, AUGUST 1942
General Bernard Montgomery, Commander Eighth Army
SAS BATTLE REPORT: RAID ON TOBRUK, SEPTEMBER 1942
Anonymous SAS Soldier
ROMMEL’S AILING HEALTH, 26 AUGUST 1942
Leutnant Alfred Berndt, Afrika Korps
EL ALAMEIN: THE PLAN, SEPTEMBER 1942
General Bernard Montgomery, Eighth Army
EL ALAMEIN: THE VIEW FROM THE AFRIKA KORPS, 24-27 OCTOBER 1942
Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, Afrika Korps
EL ALAMEIN: GERMAN PRISONERS, 2 NOVEMBER 1942
Keith Douglas, Eighth Army
EL ALAMEIN: THE DEFEAT OF THE AFRIKA KORPS, 4 NOVEMBER 1942
General Fritz Bayerlain, Afrika Korps
ONE MAN’S WAR: THE DIARY OF A BRITISH SOLDIER AT EL ALAMEIN, 23 0CT0BER-10 NOVEMBER 1942
Corporal John Green, Military Police
A MEETING WITH THE FÜHRER RASTENBURG, 28 NOVEMBER 1942
Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, Afrika Korps
OPERATION TORCH: GI MEALS, NOVEMBER 1941
Ernie Pyle, war correspondents
“FIGHTING LIKE THE THE DEVIL”: THE US 26TH REGIMENT AT EL GUETTAR 23 MARCH 1943
