Featured battle : Vitoria

Part of The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

Date : 21 June 1813

The French were continuing their long retreat largely unaware of whereabouts of the main strength of Wellington's army. The halt of the French at Vitoria 19th June to 21st June was to allow baggage to come up and hopefully for Clausel with 25,000 men to join him. The British surprised the French both by the timing of the attack and the direction of the main force attack. The defeat became a rout in which the French lost all but 2 of their guns, almost all their baggage, the military chest and the baggage of King Joseph and his court. Their losses would have been greater but for the slowness in the divisions assigned to close the trap.

Armoured Warfare in the British Army 1939-1945

Dick Taylor
This is the second book in a three part series on Armoured Warfare by Dick Taylor. Part one has a good review on this site and this book is every bit as good. The enormous amount of research is presented in a easy readable way and would appeal to a large range of readers. The key story is the rapid development of both the hardware and the application of it brought about in the heat of warfare. The many failures including those of the senior commanders in the struggle to catch up with German tank warfare are clearly spelt out. The story is told by following the course of the war through the armoured units involved in the variety of campaigns. There are appendices on some technical aspects and a good and necessary glossary.
This is a book to settle down with for a good read or to use as a reference on armoured actions in World War Two. Roll on the third book of the series.

Pen & Sword Military, 2022