MontyB

To be honest I read this book and it put me to sleep.
Stalingrad and the Battle of Berlin were excellent books so I picked up Crete and just couldn't finish it as it droned on and on and really never seemed to go anywhere.

Of the entire Antony Beevor collection I thought this was his worst book by far, it has some good bits and I am not doubting his accuracy but it just doesn't have any spark.

Crete should have and could have been held and had it not been for Freyberg's lack luster approach to the defense of the island (basically he believed it should have only been used as an embarkation platform for a retreat to Egypt) in that he was only interested in getting off the island rather than defending it and a bunch of piss poor New Zealand officers Crete could have been held.

I am very much convinced that had they placed the Australian General Morshead in over all command of the battle and sent Freyberg off to Egypt to practice bayonet charges the island would have been held.

---

We are more often treacherous through weakness than through calculation. ~Francois De La Rochefoucauld