Hitler's Raid to Save Mussolini: The Most Infamous Commando Operation of World War II

By: Greg Annussek

Sign Up Now! Already a Member? Log In
You must be logged into Bookshare to access this title. Learn about membership options, or view our freely available titles.

Synopsis: Springing Mussolini from the mountaintop hotel in which his king and country had imprisoned him was the easy part. Sorting out who did what and when is the tricky bit. Working from an array of primary sources, independent scholar Annussek sorts the self-serving statements from the outright lies to describe the nazi raid that sprung Mussolini, complete with its gliders, paratroopers, ranks of commandos blasting through what were in fact their ally's ranks, open bragging by the victors and, on the part of the general public, confusion about how and why Hitler decided Mussolini was safer on the loose than he was bricked up. Annussek describes how the war in Italy factored in the Berlin-Rome alliance, how saving Mussolini temporarily worked in terms of German morale, and how the very odd relationship between Hitler and Mussolini complicated the motives for the raid even more. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc. , Portland, OR (booknews. com)