With Utmost Spirit: Allied Naval Operations in the Mediterranean, 1942-1945

by Barbara Brooks Tomblin

Overview

Nineteen months before the D-day invasion of Normandy, Allied assault forces landed in North Africa in Operation TORCH, the first major amphibious operation of the war in Europe. Under the direction of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, AUS, Adm. Andrew B. Cunningham, RN, Admiral H. Kent Hewitt, USN, and others, the Allies kept pressure on the Axis by attacking what Winston Churchill dubbed "the soft underbelly of Europe." The Allies seized the island of Sicily, landed at Salerno and Anzio, and established a presence along the coast of southern France. With Utmost Spirit takes a fresh look at this crucial naval theater of the Second World War. Barbara Brooks Tomblin tells of the U.S. Navy's and the Royal Navy's struggles to wrest control of the Mediterranean Sea from Axis submarines and aircraft, to lift the siege of Malta, and to open a through convoy route to Suez while providing ships, carrier air support, and landing craft for five successful amphibious operations. Examining official action reports, diaries, interviews, and oral histories, Tomblin describes each of these operations in terms of ship to shore movements, air and naval gunfire support, logistics, countermine measures, antisubmarine warfare, and the establishment of ports and training bases in the Mediterranean. Firsthand accounts from the young officers and men who manned the ships provide essential details about Mediterranean operations and draw a vivid picture of the war at sea and off the beaches. Barbara Brooks Tomblin taught military history at Rutgers University and is the author of several articles and G.I. Nightingales: The Army Nurse Corps in World War II. She lives in California.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813137681
Publisher:	University Press of Kentucky
Publication date:	10/08/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	608
File size:	4 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Barbara Brooks Tomblin taught military history at Rutgers University and is the author of several articles and books.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction ix

Chapter 1 A New Chapter in the Struggle for the Mediterranean 1

Chapter 2 Operation Torch: The Landings in French Morocco 23

Chapter 3 Operation Torch: The Mediterranean Landings 55

Chapter 4 The Race to Tunis 81

Chapter 5 The Tunisian Campaign 101

Chapter 6 Gearing up for Operation Husky 125

Chapter 7 Operation Husky 147

Chapter 8 The Sicilian Campaign 195

Chapter 9 The Race to Messina 217

Chapter 10 Operation Avalanche: D-day at Salerno 241

Chapter 11 The Battle for Salerno 269

Chapter 12 Supporting the Italian Campaign 295

Chapter 13 Operation Shingle: The Anzio Landings 315

Chapter 14 The Anzio Campaign: "A Second Tobruk"? 339

Chapter 15 Breakbout: Operations Diadem and Buffalo 359

Chapter 16 Preliminaries to Operation Dragoon 379

Chapter 17 Operation Dragoon: The Landing in Southern France 401

Chapter 18 Operation Dragoon: Final Phase 429

Chapter 19 Mopping Up in the Med 447

Conclusion 469

Notes 491

Bibliography 545

Index 557

Photos follow pages 146 and 314.

Editorial Reviews

Tomblin's lifetime study of the naval war in the Mediterranean culminates in this definitive account of an important World War II campaign the tends to be neglected.

Dean C. Allard

The eyewitness descriptions can be vivid, and the accounts frequently make for exciting reading.... The author is to be congratulated on reviving interest in aspects of the naval war that have tended to be overshadowed.

H-Net Reviews

Offers a detailed account of Allied Naval forces' struggles in the Mediterranean during World War II. This is not a well-known subject and its study is long overdue.

Military Review

An important, well-researched, and beautifully written chronicle of amphibious operations in the Middle Sea.

International History Review

Will probably be the definitive book on naval operations in the Mediterranean.

Books-On-Line

A masterful history of the Allied naval war in the theater Winston Churchill called 'the soft underbelly of Europe.'

Military Trader

Tomblin portrays the strategy and execution of each operation with a combination of vividness and accuracy that C.S. Forester would have admired.

SirReadalot.org

Outstanding! An extraordinary account of WWII naval history in Europe. Tomblin's judicious scholarship, dogged attention to detail, and thoughtful analysis provide an impressive and straightforward narrative.

Robert Love

Almost encyclopedic in detail and carefully researched, With Utmost Spirit is the most comprehensive study of Allied naval operations in the Mediterranean to date.

Bowling Green (KY) Daily News

Tomblin's passionate and involved writing style guides the reader through what feels like an oral history in order to address an important theater of World War II often neglected by historians.

Sea Power

Outstanding! An extraordinary account of WWII naval history in Europe. Tomblin's judicious scholarship, dogged attention to detail, and thoughtful analysis provide an impressive and straightforward narrative.

U.S. Naval Academy Robert Love

"Will probably be the definitive book on naval operations in the Mediterranean." — Books-On-Line

"Almost encyclopedic in detail and carefully researched, With Utmost Spirit is the most comprehensive study of Allied naval operations in the Mediterranean to date." — Bowling Green (KY) Daily News

"Tomblin's lifetime study of the naval war in the Mediterranean culminates in this definitive account of an important World War II campaign the tends to be neglected." — Dean C. Allard, Former Director of Naval History, U.S. Navy

"The eyewitness descriptions can be vivid, and the accounts frequently make for exciting reading.... The author is to be congratulated on reviving interest in aspects of the naval war that have tended to be overshadowed." — H-Net Reviews

"An important, well-researched, and beautifully written chronicle of amphibious operations in the Middle Sea." — International History Review

"Offers a detailed account of Allied Naval forces' struggles in the Mediterranean during World War II. This is not a well-known subject and its study is long overdue." — Military Review

"A masterful history of the Allied naval war in the theater Winston Churchill called 'the soft underbelly of Europe.'" — Military Trader

"Outstanding! An extraordinary account of WWII naval history in Europe. Tomblin's judicious scholarship, dogged attention to detail, and thoughtful analysis provide an impressive and straightforward narrative." — Robert Love, U.S. Naval Academy

"Tomblin's passionate and involved writing style guides the reader through what feels like an oral history in order to address an important theater of World War II often neglected by historians." — Sea Power

"Tomblin portrays the strategy and execution of each operation with a combination of vividness and accuracy that C.S. Forester would have admired" — SirReadalot.org

From the Publisher