Albert Kesselring: The Background, Strategies, Tactics and Battlefield Experiences of the Greatest Commanders of History
Pier Paolo Battistelli
Language: English
Pages: 66
ISBN: 2:00256517
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Osprey Command Series #27
Although he is mostly remembered for his part in the campaign in Italy from 1943 to 1945, Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring was also chief of staff of the Luftwaffe in 1936-37, playing a crucial role in the shaping of the service for the coming war. As commander of Luftflotte 1 in Poland and Luftflotte 2 in France and the Low Countries, he was responsible for supporting the armoured spearheads of the German Army as they undertook their Blitzkrieg campaigns. With the Fall of France, the Battle of Britain began and Luftlotte 2 was the main force in the air attack against the British air defences, with Kesselring planning many raids. Following the war Kesselring was tried and convicted of war crimes following a number of massacres of civilians in Italy. He was sentenced to death, later commuted to life imprisonment before being released on the grounds of ill health in October 1952. Here Pier Paolo Battistelli provides a detailed study of one of the most famous German commanders of World War II.
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Neither objective was seized, and on 31 January the attack was called off. Early in February the German situation was still critical, but steadily improving. On 24 January the French attack north of Cassino came to a halt, only to be revived 25 January–3 February by the attack on Colle Belvedere. In February the attacks of the British X and of the US II Corps came to a halt respectively on 9 and 12 February, and the first attack by the New Zealand Corps against the city and the hill of Cassino on.
12 September and 10 October gave authority in the operations area (including the coastal areas) to the operational commands, while the rear area fell within the competence of Toussaint. In December 1943 Kesselring’s orders led to a fragmentation of the situation; given the lack of forces, competences on security matters fell into the hands of either the army or the SS, according to the local availability of commanders and forces. Wolff’s organization, that included both security police and.
One of just 12 Luftwaffe officers to receive this award (and the only one, along with General Bernhard Ramcke, who was not a pilot). Although not as famous as other German generals or Luftwaffe officers, Kesselring was easily recognizable: a tall, solid man, with an easy smile that earned him the nickname ‘Smiling Albert’. As a commander, he had a reputation as a paternal figure. And yet Kesselring is not one of those German generals who earned their fame, either as a theorist of warfare or as a.
42, 44–6, 48, 49, 53; and Kesselring 5, 14, 50, 55; and North Africa 11, 29, 30, 32, 33 America 5, 13, 59; see also US Air Force; US Army Anderson, Kenneth 32 Anzio, battle of (1944) 4, 12, 13, 41, 44–5, 53, 56, 58, 62; map 43 Ardeatine Cave massacre 4, 13–14, 57, 58, 60 Arno Line (Italy) 46 awards 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 Axis forces 11, 25, 29 Balkans, the 50, 59 Barbara Line (Italy) 36, 37 Battle of Britain (1940) 4, 8, 20–2, 23 (22), 25, 54, 61 Belgium 9–10, 17, 18, 61 Bernhardt Line (Italy) 36,.
12, 40; Hermann Göring Division 34, 40, 41, 44; Kampfgruppen 30, 31, 46; Panzer divisions 10, 18, 20, 29, 32, 33, 34, 37, 40, 41, 44, 48; Royal Bavarian Army Corps 6, 7; XC Korps 30 German General Staff (OKW) 24, 26, 33, 37, 38, 55, 59, 62 German navy 14, 16 Germany: rehabilitation of 5, 14, 61 Göring, Hermann 8, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 54–5 Gothic Line (Italy) 13, 44, 46, 48–9, 53, 56 Graziani, Rodolfo 46, 57 Great Britain 10, 22, 14, 17, 20, 24, 60; see also Allied forces; British army; Royal.