This WWII history presents an in-depth study of the Battle of Greece and a provocative new analysis of Nazi military tactics.

Every student of the Second World War is familiar with the infamous Nazi military tactics known as blitzkrieg—or “lightning war.” In the early days of the war, these rapid attacks brough about the demise first of Poland and then the Low Countries and France. But were these tactics really as devastating as they seemed? That is the major question Jeffrey Plowman asks in this absorbing new study of the campaign in Greece in 1941.

Within three weeks, the Germans overran the country. However, a close analysis of the campaign reveals that they never gained ascendancy over the token British and Anzac force sent to bolster the Greek defenders. They came close to doing so, but the Anzac troops and their Greek allies put up a spirited defense that sometimes turned the Germans’ own methods against them.

This perceptive new account should prompt a reassessment of the Greek campaign. It also offers a fascinating insight into the weaknesses of the Germans’ all-conquering method of warfare which became increasing apparent during the later stages of the war.