Kasserine Pass 1943: Rommel's last victory

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Great book, arrived quickly. I’ve studied Kasserine for years. My father was in Co H, 1st Armored Regiment, 1st Armored Division.

Although titled "Kasserine Pass" this edition of Osprey's Campaign series also covers in equal measure the lesser known battles of Sidi Bou Zid and El Guettar. In fact, the book recounts pretty well the whole of US II Corps operations in Tunisia in 1943, along with those of the supporting British 1st Army units that had landed during Operation Torch and their recently re-acquired French `allies'. Despite its scope the material doesn't feel incomplete or lacking in detail, which can be a problem with Osprey books when they try to do too much with the 96 pages they limit themselves to (e.g. The El Alemien and Stalingrad titles ).As is standard practice for Osprey, the personal testimonies of the combatants' are omitted and the focus is on the operational aspects of planning and execution of the battle. Here Steven Zaloga does his usual polished and informed performance with a clear narrative of events.Two points of note; Firstly, whilst the book is subtitled `Rommel's Last Victory' it should be noted that German success was a much down to von Arnim as to Rommel, however one suspects that Osprey's marketing department determined that the Desert Fox was a better selling point.War film fans might well recall the one of the large set piece battle sequences near the beginning the 1970 film `Patton' which is actually the battle of El Guettar covered here. Although not totally off the mark it is interesting to see how the real thing developed.As far as the Tunisian campaign goes, this book neatly covers one half of it. I do hope that Osprey's editors commission a title to cover 8th Army's operations, particularly the battles around the Mareth Line.Finally, the maps and battle plans are up to standard but the original artwork is a bit of a letdown compared with other titles. Overall though, this is a book I would recommend particularly those only wanting a quick overview of the campaign.

I'm researching the kasserine battle for a wargame. Most other books that cover the Kasserine battle cover it in a handful of pages as part of a wider series of battles in February 1943 and the Tunisian campaign as a whole. This book focuses on the Kasserine battle itself and the immediate events before and after that battle, it includes details of units, strengths and actions I have not found elsewhere, not perfect as I have found details elsewhere not covered in this book. It does give a good account of the battle though.

Das Osprey-Heft über die deutschen Opeerationen in Tunesien 1943 sind gut beschrieben. Es werden wie üblich die Kommandeuere kurz vorgestellt und die beteiligten Armeen dargestellt.Gute Karten und Zeichnungen helfen, die Kämpfe zu verfolgen. Warum das Heft "Rommels last victory" heißt muss man allerdings nicht verstehen, denn am Ende waren die gescheiterten Angriffe mit den deutschen Verlusten der Schlüssen für den schnellen Sieg der Alliierten in Nordafrika. Trotzdem ein gutes Heft der Reihe, wo auch die Probleme der damals noch unerfahrenen US-Einheiten gut beschrieben werden.