The Concise Encyclopedia of World War II 2 volumes (Greenwood Encyclopedias of Modern World Wars)

1476 Pages·2010·8.82 MB·English

by  Cathal J. Nolan

THE CONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA
OF WORLD WAR II
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THE CONCISE
ENCYCLOPEDIA
OF WORLD WAR II
Two Volumes
Cathal J. Nolan
Copyright 2010 by Cathal J. Nolan
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, except for
the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without prior permission
in writing from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Nolan, Cathal J.
The Concise Encyclopedia of World War II / Cathal J. Nolan.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-313-33050-6 (set : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-313-36527-0
(set : ebook)
1. World War, 1939–1945—Encyclopedias. I. Title. II. Title: Encyclopedia of World War Two,
1937–1945. III. Title: Encyclopedia of World War 2, 1937–1945.
D740.N65 2010
940.5303—dc22 2009036965
14 13 12 11 10 1 2 3 4 5
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But what I want is annihilation!
—Adolf Hitler in 1944, upon learning that the V-2 rocket
would not be as destructive as he hoped.
Victors are not judged.
—One of the favorite sayings of Joseph Stalin, repeated in his
major postwar speech commemorating the “Great Fatherland War,” 1945.
I f you are cursed with any imagination at all, you have at least one horrid
glimpse of a child in bed with a ton of masonry tumbling down on top
of him, or a three-year-old girl crying “ Mutter, Mutter,” because she has
been burned. You have to turn away from that picture if you intend to
retain your sanity and do the work your nation expects of you.
—General Curtis LeMay, USAAF, writing in 1965 on the bombing of Germany.
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CONTENTS
List of Entries ix
Preface xlv
Acknowledgments xlix
Author’s Note li
Maps lv
THE CONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD WAR II 1
Select Bibliography 1217
Index 1251
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LIST OF ENTRIES
A-2 ADSEC
A-10 AEAF
AA AEF
Aachen Aegean Islands
AAF Afghanistan
ABC-1 Plan AFHQ
ABDA Command African-Americans
Absolute National Defense Sphere African troops
Abteilung(en) Afrika Korps
Abwehr AFV
Abyssinia Agency Africa
Abyssinian War (1935–1936) A-Gˉo
ace AIF (Second)
ACHSE air army
ack-ack airborne
Action Françaises Air Commando
Aden air corps
Adige Line Air Corps Ferrying Service
ADLERANGRIFF aircraft
Adlerhorst aircraft carriers
Adlertag (August 13, 1940) Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB)
Admin Box, Battle of air defense
(February 5–23, 1944) Air Defense Force (PVO)
Admiralty air division
Admiralty Islands airdrop