Osprey Campaign 74 : Rhineland 1945 : The Last Killing Ground in the West

Details the battle to clear the Rhineland in February and March 1945 by 1st Canadian Army, 2nd British Army and 9th US Army, the last great 'stand-up fight' of the Second World War. The objective was to seize the west bank of the Rhine in preparation for the great Allied push into Germany. The Germans opened the Roer dams and the battle was characterised by amphibious assaults on the fortified villages of the flooded Rhine lowlands, frontal assaults on the much vaunted Siegfried Line and the grim fighting for the Reichswald Forest in 'the last great killing ground in the west'. Text by Ken Ford with illustrations by Tony Bryan.

Contents

• Origins of the Battle
• Opposing Commanders
• Opposing Armies
• Opposing Plans
• Operation 'Veritable'
• Operation 'Grenade'
• The Final Battle
• Aftermath
• The Battlefield Today
• Chronology
• Wargaming the Rhineland battles
• Select bibliography