Churchill and the Montgomery Myth

276 Pages·1968·26.739 MB·English

by  Reginald William Thompson

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£**
CHURCHILL
MONTG
MYTH

Churchill and the Montgomery Myth

Churchill and
The Montgomery
Myth
R.W. Thompson
“Iftheartofwarconsisted
merelyin not takingrisks,
glory would be at the disposal of
verymediocre talent.”
NAPOLEON
Published by M. Evans and Company, Inc., New York,
and distributed in association with
B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia and New York
J.
Copyright ©GeorgeAllen & Unwin,Ltd., 1967
Published inEngland underthe title: TheMontgomeryLegend
LibraryofCongress CatalogCard Number68-18714
Note: The footnotes throughout the text make reference
to the British editions of the books cited.
Manufacturedin the UnitedStates ofAmerica
,
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The extracts from The Mediterranean and Middle East vol. iii by
Major-General I. S. O. Playfair; from GrandStrategy, vol. iii, part
ii, byJ. R. M. Butler; from GrandStrategy,vol. vbyJohn Ehrman,
are quoted by permission of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office;
from: George F. Howe, North West Africa: Seizing the Initiative in
the West, United States Army in World War II (Washington,
1957), published by the Office of the ChiefofMilitary History,
Department ofthe Army, by permission ofthe ChiefofMilitary
History, Washington, D.G.; from The Hinge ofFate and Closing
the Ring, vols. iv and v, The Second World War by Winston S.
Churchill, bypermission of TheDaily Telegraph.
I owe special thanks to Capt Sir Basil Liddell Hart for making
private papers available for me from his archives, and for his
kindness in reading the first four chapters ofthis book in manu-
script before leaving England to take up an appointment in the
usa. Mydebt tovol. ii, The Tanks,The HistoryoftheRoyalTank
Regiment, will be obvious to all who may read this book.
IhaveadebttothelateJohnConnellforhissteadfastencourage-
ment over many years, and for the insights gained from his work,
particularly his biography, Auchinleck. I record with gratitude,
and a deep sense ofmy inadequacy, my thanks to Major-General
and Mrs Eric Dorman O’Gowan for inviting me to work in their
home during part of my long convalescence, and for making
private papers and their military library available to me. I thank
Brigadier John Stephenson for his careful reading of my book,
and for his forthright and valuable criticisms, and the Librarian
of the Royal United Service Institution for making many books
available to me over a long period.
I acknowledge gratefully the works listed in the bibliography,
all ofwhich, whether referred to in the text or not, have added to
my pleasure and knowledge.
None ofwhich is to say that anyone but myselfagrees with or
approves in the smallest degree a single word that I have written.
Finally, without the generous aid ofDr A. Linnell and The
J.
Royal Literary Fund; without the courage of my wife, and the
patience and kindness of my three youngest children, it would
havebeenimpossibletohavewrittenthisbook, ortohavesurvived
as a writer.
R. W. THOMPSON
Belchamp Walter
Suffolk
March ig66

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION page 15
parti: THE INHERITANCE
ONE Churchill'sAgony 23
TWO Redemption 38
THREE Catharsis 52
part n: THE INHERITORS
FOUR The General 75
FIVE Alam Haifa: thegeneral andthe battle 95
SIX The 15th September 107
part hi: ANATOMY OF A LEGEND
SEVEN 2ndAlamein
1 19
EIGHT 2ndAlamein II i37
NINE The TriumphalMarch 156
TEN On to Tunis! i74
part iv: UNDER TWO FLAGS
ELEVEN TheAlliedCommand i97
TWELVE 1Husky' 214
THIRTEEN FortressEurope 229
FOURTEEN A Soldier'sFarewell 245
NOTES 253
READING LIST 263
INDEX 266
WEST
AFRICA
FP
j
^ " EgUATORU
.G. Morton