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Given this relentless call for their services, it is small wonder that Holland engages with the topic of exhaustion and battle-fatigue within the SRY as early as Chapter 13: a chapter, I may add, which is still set in June 1944, with eleven months of fighting yet to come. Bingham, Keith (27 September 2007). "TOUR TIME CAPSULE FOUND IN ATTIC". Cycling Weekly . Retrieved 2 August 2019. when winter ended the Sherwood Rangers easily pushed into Germany albeit still at the expense of many lives. I had previouly no idea just how much trouble Panzerfausts caused the allied tanks right up into the end of war, they were essentially just an anti-tank gun fired by one soldier but they inflicted huge casualties to tank crews. despite this they pushed on even though the war was all but over the German command Continued to defend fanatically blowing up bridges and laying minefields all across their country. even in April, people in the Regiment were still being killed, I found it especially sad when one of the most popular soldiers, Denis Elmore was killed with just a few weeks to go in the war. after the war, the Sherwood Rangers were dispanded and Holland dedicates a chapter at the end to all the major participants post-war lives.
December 2019). The Pacific War 1941-1943. illus. Keith Burns. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-7181-8652-4. The heroic exploits of the British Army’s Sherwood Rangers tank unit over the last 11 months of WWII are richly documented in this sweeping chronicle from historian Holland . . . Vivid eyewitness accounts, colorful character sketches, and lucid tactical discussions make this a must-read for military history buffs.”— Publishers Weekly Aviation History magazine called his 2013 history, Dam Busters: The True Story of the Inventors and Airmen Who Led the Devastating Raid to Smash the German Dams in 1943 "painstakingly researched and splendidly told" and said that it was "the definitive book on the subject, deserving a place in the library of any student of the famous raid". [9] In August 2014, he was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue. [33] The War in the West - A New History, Volume 1: Germany Ascendant 1939-1941. London: Corgi. ISBN 978-0552169202.What I also liked is that Hollland tells us what happend to a lot of the men mentioned in the book after the war. I always appreciate and author doing this. From the best-selling author of Normandy '44 and Sicily '43 comes the untold story of the Sherwood Rangers. This was my first book by James Holland and I must say it will not be my last. The author does a great job by taking the reader along, inside and outside of the tanks, to show what it was all about. He captures the horrors of war and the claustrophobic nature of tank warfare. But also the camaraderie between the men of the unit and the individual crews. It also shows the problems that they encountered when they had to support infantry on the chaotic battlefield. But it is also the other way around, the infantry supporting the tanks. Lessons had to be learned and relearned, Normandy being a very different type of battlefield compared to their earlier one in North Africa. Holland lives in Wiltshire with his wife and two children. [36] Books [ edit ] Non-fiction for adults [ edit ]
Inspired by Stephen Ambrose’s Band of Brothers, acclaimed WWII historian James Holland memorably profiles an extraordinary group of citizen soldiers constantly in harm’s way. The American-made Sherman tanks the Rangers fought in were as deadly as the shells they fired; their casualties were horrific, but their ranks immediately refilled. Informed by never-before-seen documents, letters, photographs, and other artifacts from Rangers’ families—an ongoing fraternity—and by his own deep knowledge of the war and personal experience driving a Sherman tank, Holland offers a uniquely intimate portrait of the war at ground level, introducing heretofore unknowns such as Commander Stanley Christopherson, squadron leader John Semken, and Sergeant George Dring. He weaves the Rangers’ exploits into the larger narrative and strategy of the war, and also brings to life the German forces against whom the Rangers struggled. This raises a second point. As a military history, Brothers in Arms benefits from having a first-rate historian like Holland penning the story. Having dealt sympathetically with dozens of characters, Holland shows his expertise in the military sphere. There is an excellent appendix listing the exact make-up of the regiment, which is useful for readers unfamiliar with the intricacies of A and B echelon, or so-called ‘soft-skin vehicles’, or the LAD. Using diaries and memoirs from dozens of men from across a broad range of ranks and roles within the 686-strong regiment, Holland gives the reader a chance to see the impact of war on individuals. In the case of George Dring – who is, with the exception of Stanley Christopherson, probably the only member of the SRY to be widely known – it is a fascinating read. Holland (and the reader) benefit from the fact that a few of the original tankers (including the commander) survived the entire war (some wounded) and left accounts, or, in some cases 1:1 interviews with the author. This provides continuity. Were it not for the cost of staging innumerable battle scenes with tanks, the story of the Sherwood Rangers would make for an equally compelling multi-part TV drama such as HBO's Band of Brothers.
In 2019 Holland appeared in the two-part BBC documentary series Lost home movies of Nazi Germany, where he was recorded reacting to personal footage captured in Germany and its occupied territories shortly before and during the Second World War. [29] Personal life [ edit ] What this means is that other tank units, grouped into armoured divisions, only joined the battle after the crust of German resistance had been broken and exploitation of the gap was required. ‘Mind your paint, sir, as you go through,’ the SRY men would call, as the tanks of the less bloodied armoured divisions came past. The eyewitness accounts really 'take you there'. You feel the fear, see the tension, experience the grief when a tank brews up. Some of it is really gruesome to read, but war is no fun. War is dirty, miserable, cruel. The winter of '44-'45 saw the NW European theater experience some of the worst, wettest and coldest weather in years. All this is portrayed really well.
Holland writes entries in the Ladybird Expert Series of books for children, with each focused on a particular battle or aspect of World War II. He has said that he plans to write a total of twelve books for the series. [14] He is an occasional contributor to Britain at War magazine. while in Normandy the Sherwood Rangers came up against a considerable amount of defence as they advanced south with many of the Germans best tanks being brought into the region. I particularly enjoyed the one encounter they had early when a lone Tiger tank entered a village they had just captured Holland describes very well the Terror the men felt coming across that monster of a tank for the first time.
About James Holland
Hastings, Max (28 May 2006). "A fine account of a triumphant defeat". Telegraph . Retrieved 21 May 2019.
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