Reviews for France and the Second World War: Resistance,Occupation and Liberation

The average rating for France and the Second World War: Resistance,Occupation and Liberation based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-05-04 00:00:00 Susan Purnell This brief Osprey volume treats Napoleon's campaign against Russian and Prussian forces in 1813. It is amazing, in one sense, that this campaign occurred at all. After the disastrous invasion of Russia, much of Napoleon's forces had ceased to exist. Yet, in a short period of time, he remobilized and was able to engage Prussian and Russian forces on a pretty even basis (he actually could claim having won the final battlefield). I do not claim to be an expert on Napoleonic warfare, but I do review this as an interested amateur. Some general comments: (a) Sometimes there is so much detail in what brigade did what that one can get lost on the detail; (b) the maps, sometimes, are not as illuminating as would be desired. The volume examines the two battles at issue--Lutzen and Bautzen. Problems facing Napoleon? A substantial number of his troops were raw and not well trained. Also, he lacked the quality (and quantity) of cavalry that he had often had. While he had numerical superiority over his opponents, he did not have thew quality that he normally possessed. As such, it is telling that, despite these issues, he did win (tactically) the campaign. In the long run, his forces' performance did suggest problems. But the end result would become manifest only later--at Leipzig. Overall, a useful volume, albeit with some issues.

Review # 2 was written on 2016-02-01 00:00:00 Cristina Gracia Chivite So, I'm more than half-way through the 700 pages. This is definitely an important work. While it assumes a vast knowledge of French history--both the Ancien Regime and the Revolution--it is meticulously detailed and essential to understanding the background of the Enlightenment. A couple of comments though... 1)While the Enlightenment is "officially" dated as starting in the mid-18thc, I think that the background of Louis XIV's reign is critical to understanding what started all of this in motion. Roche gives little time to XIV and starts right in with XV; 2) This one is a biggie for me. I'm 400 pages into this and he's mentioned "women"... not even a specific person, but just the word "women" about 3 times. Seeing as my niche is studying women in 17th and 18thc France, I'm a bit puzzled by this. To me, women were a critical component of the Enlightenment. Certainly, they were not at the forefront like Diderot or Voltaire, but they provided the means for these men to express themselves... they coaxed the Enlightenment out of the men, so to speak. Looking at the index I see that some of this will be discussed in the upcoming pages, but just as passing stories...