Caen 1944: Montgomerys break-out attempt
By (Author) Ken Ford
Illustrated by Peter Dennis
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Osprey Publishing
20th August 2004
United Kingdom
General
Non Fiction
Second World War
Modern warfare
Battles and campaigns
940.542142
Paperback
96
Width 184mm, Height 248mm, Spine 8mm
325g
One of the key objectives of British forces on D-Day was the capture of the strategically vital city of Caen. General Montgomery saw Caen as the key to Normandy and the springboard for the Allied breakout, but so did the Germans and the city did not fall. It took three major offensives and more than 30 bloody days of struggle to finally take Caen. In the process the city was controversially devastated and its civilian population decimated. The Allies paid a high price for Caen but the horrific German casualties bled their forces in Normandy white and helped open the way for the American breakout in Operation Cobra.
Ken Ford was born in Hampshire in 1943. He trained as an engineer and spent almost thirty years in the telecommunications industry. He now spends his time as an author and a bookseller specialising in military history books. He has written a number of books on various World War 2 subjects and currently lives in Southampton. Peter Dennis was born in 1950 and, having been inspired by contemporary magazines such as 'Look and Learn', studied illustration at Liverpool Art College. He has since contributed to hundreds of books, predominantly on historical subjects. He is a keen wargamer and modelmaker.