Invasion; The German Invasion of England July 1940

New York, N.Y.: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc, 1980. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Fair. 223, [1] pages. DJ is worn, torn, soiled and chipped. Includes Preface, Historical Notes, Select Bibliography, and Index, as well as 12 black and white maps. Chapters cover A Lion is Born; A Gathering of Forces; The Taking of Western Europe; Britain Against the Wall; The Testing Time; Assumptions and Plans; Days of the Eagle; Assault from the Sky; Assault from the Sea; The Fight for the Bridgehead; Check and Counter-Check; The Trade-Off; The Crunch; The Battle of the GHQ Line; The Hinge of Destiny; and As it Happened. Written by a brilliant military historian who is the author of many books on the Second World war, INVASION is a unique reinvestigation of the forces, resources, and options open to both England and Germany in that fateful summer of 1940. Judging from Germany's overwhelming military power and England's isolation and vulnerability, the author concludes that had Operation Sealion been launched in July, its success would have been a virtual certainty. Indeed, had Hitler accepted Kesselring's advice to invade Britain soon after Dunkirk (during the period considered by British intelligence to be the most dangerous), the events described in this book might well have happened, and the tide of history would have been forever altered. In June 1940, as German troops massed across the Channel, poised for the invasion of Britain, Hitler seemed ready for his greatest gamble. In this compelling alternate history the Germans actually launch the invasion. Landing between Dover and Hythe, German troops push inland, supported by the Luftwaffe and the panzers, and strike toward London. This is a classic and harrowing insight into how Britain's war might have gone. Kenneth John Macksey MC (1 July 1923 - 30 November 2005) was a British author and historian who specialized in military history and military biography, particularly of the Second World War. Macksey was commissioned in the Royal Armoured Corps and served during the Second World War (earning a Military Cross under the command of Percy Hobart). Macksey later wrote the (authoritative) biography of Hobart. Macksey gained a permanent commission in 1946, was transferred to the Royal Tank Regiment in 1947, reached the rank of major in 1957 and retired from the Army in 1968. Amongst many other books, Macksey wrote two volumes of alternate history, one, entitled Invasion, dealt with a successful invasion of England by Germany in 1940 and the other describing a NATO-Warsaw Pact clash in the late 1980s. The latter book, First Clash, was done under contract to the Canadian Forces and focuses on the Canadian role in such a conflict. He was an editor and contributor to Greenhill's Alternate Decisions series since 1995. Excerpts from a review found on-line by Stephen Muehlbauer: There has never been a successful defence of any island in warfare since "modern" aircraft took to the skies and the invader established air superiority or air supremacy over their invasion site. Fleets without air cover are nothing but fish in a barrel...This is the premise behind Kenneth Macksey's book, "Invasion, The Alternate History Of The German Invasion Of England, July 1940. This is a fiction book and this book is a lead up to the "what if" scenarios of the invasion of England by Germany in July, 1940. One can clearly see that once a beach head was established the end result for the British was a forgone conclusion and Macksey using real historical data on the opposing forces drives home this result. Macksey's political estimates of the situation and the probably actions of the respective governments of England, Germany and the world follow the tempo and feelings of the time and his interpretations of their actions are believable. All in all, if you are looking for an alternative history book that gives you a believable version of England could have been successfully invaded by the Germans in 1940 this book would be for you. It is believable and historically accurate as to the forces involved. You will be able to see how the Germans could get a beach head in England and make a successful invasion IF the Germans got air superiority. No air superiority. No invasion.