"How strange that the Meuse-Argonne campaign in the last weeks of World War I is not better remembered: to this day it remains the largest and costliest battle American troops ever fought. William Walker's Betrayal at Little Gibraltar should help dispel this national amnesia, for he has given us both a propulsive, closely observed war narrative and an engrossing murder mystery. The victims are thousands of needlessly killed American soldiers, the perpetrator a vain, glory-hungry general whose motives Walker artfully uncovers in a tale of low selfishness and high courage that casts fresh light on the timeless snares of military command while righting a tremendous century-old wrong."
—Richard Snow, author of A Measureless Peril and I Invented the Modern Age
"William Walker's Betrayal at Little Gibraltar provides evidence of a deliberate misinterpretation of orders and of an army cover-up afterward. The cast of characters, from men like Pershing, Bullard, and Kuhn to common soldiers like novelist James A. Cain and Harry Parkin, is compelling. The tale of conspiracy and cover-up, with consequent human suffering on a large scale, makes for an exciting read."
—Edward G. Lengel, author of To Conquer Hell, Thunder and Flames, and General George Washington: A Military Life
"Walker’s reconstruction of the details of the battle is nicely balanced with the stories of individual participants....A military history for all libraries."
—Library Journal
"Fascinating...a detailed, fact-filled history....For the military professional or civilian history buff, this book is an essential addition to a credible collection. Its readability is superb; maps and photos are well-chosen and expertly placed, and arcane terminology is patiently explained....As invaluable an account as Barbara Tuchman's "The Guns of August" and similar seminal works, and certainly a more fast-paced, less intimidating read."
—Virginian-Pilot
“Well-written, impeccably researched, and lavishly illustrated...gripping...compelling...[a] masterful account....Betrayal at Little Gibraltar goes far to right an almost-forgotten wrong that took place almost 100 years ago.”
—Knoxville News Sentinel
"This is one of the best new AEF books I've read. I highly recommend it."
—Peter Belmonte, Roads to the Great War: A Journal of World War I
Betrayal at Little Gibraltar: A German Fortress, a Treacherous American General, and the Battle to End World War I
Narrated by Robertson Dean
William WalkerUnabridged — 11 hours, 54 minutes
Betrayal at Little Gibraltar: A German Fortress, a Treacherous American General, and the Battle to End World War I
Narrated by Robertson Dean
William WalkerUnabridged — 11 hours, 54 minutes
Overview
A vivid, thrilling, and impeccably researched account of America's bloodiest battle ever-World War I's Meuse-Argonne Offensive-and the 100-year-old cover-up at its heart.
The year is 1918. German engineers have fortified Montfaucon, a rocky butte in northern France, with bunkers, tunnels, trenches, and a top-secret observatory capable of directing artillery shells across the battlefield. Following a number of unsuccessful attacks, the French deem Montfaucon impregnable and dub it the Little Gibraltar of the Western Front. Capturing it is a key to success for AEF Commander-in-Chief John J. Pershing's 1.2 million troops. But a betrayal of Americans by Americans results in a bloody debacle. Now William T. Walker tells the full story in his masterful Betrayal at Little Gibraltar.
In the assault on Montfaucon, American forces become bogged down, a delay that cost untold lives as the Germans defended their lofty positions without mercy. Years of archival research demonstrate that the actual cause of the delay was the disobedience of a senior American officer, Major General Robert E. Lee Bullard, who subverted orders to assist the US 79th Division. The result was unnecessary slaughter of American doughboys and preclusion of plans to end the war early. Although several officers learned of the circumstances, Pershing protected Bullard-an old friend and fellow West Point graduate-by covering up the story. The true account of the battle that cost 122,000 American casualties was almost lost to time.
Betrayal at Little Gibraltar tells the vivid human stories of the soldiers who fought to capture the giant fortress and push the American advance. Using unpublished first-person accounts, Walker describes the horrors of World War I combat, the sacrifices of the doughboys, and the determined efforts of two participants to pierce the cover-up and solve the mystery of Montfaucon. Like Stephen Ambrose and S. C. Gwynne, Walker writes compelling popular history.
Editorial Reviews
2016-03-01
An attempt to identify the true culprit behind the excessively bloody taking of a German fortress by green American forces at the tail end of World War I. In his debut history, military historian Walker aims to settle a disputed incident in American military history that took place at the beginning of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in 1918. The 79th Division, which "had completed less than six weeks of the prescribed twelve weeks of combat training," was given the difficult task of taking Montfaucon, a fortified butte serving as a valuable observation post for German artillery and known as "the Little Gibraltar of the Western Front" for its impenetrability. The battle-hardened 4th Division, by contrast, was given a relatively easy sector of the German lines to penetrate. Walker marshals exhaustive evidence suggesting that American planners intended to execute a "turning maneuver": while the inexperienced 79th held the veteran defenders' attention, the 4th would encircle the strong-point and force its surrender. The author argues that Maj. Gen. Robert E. Lee Bullard ignored this order, hoping to win glory by leading his corps, which included the 4th Division, further into German territory than any other American unit. Unfortunately, this "betrayal," while undoubtedly of interest to soldiers of the 79th and military historians, seems insufficiently consequential to interest casual history buffs. Walker never fully demonstrates that capturing Montfaucon was as crucial to the (arguable) failure of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive as other factors mentioned by the author, including the American soldiers' inexperience, sophisticated German defenses, and outdated tactics encouraged by American commanders who "still worshiped the rifle and bayonet." Furthermore, Walker leans too heavily on military history clichés, comparing the combatants to "depleted boxers" and quoting heavily from excellent but well-mined sources such as historian John Keegan. A competent piece of historical detective work that is less satisfying as popular history.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940169576993 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Blackstone Audio, Inc. |
| Publication date: | 05/10/2016 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
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