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Summary
Summary
Prize-winning and bestselling historian Jean Edward Smith tells the "rousing" (Jay Winik, author of 1944 ) story of the liberation of Paris during World War II--a triumph achieved only through the remarkable efforts of Americans, French, and Germans, racing to save the city from destruction.
Following their breakout from Normandy in late June 1944, the Allies swept across northern France in pursuit of the German army. The Allies intended to bypass Paris and cross the Rhine into Germany, ending the war before winter set in. But as they advanced, local forces in Paris began their own liberation, defying the occupying German troops.
Charles de Gaulle, the leading figure of the Free French government, urged General Dwight Eisenhower to divert forces to liberate Paris. Eisenhower's advisers recommended otherwise, but Ike wanted to help position de Gaulle to lead France after the war. And both men were concerned about partisan conflict in Paris that could leave the communists in control of the city and the national government. Neither man knew that the German commandant, Dietrich von Choltitz, convinced that the war was lost, schemed to surrender the city to the Allies intact, defying Hitler's orders to leave it a burning ruin.
In The Liberation of Paris , Jean Edward Smith puts "one of the most moving moments in the history of the Second World War" (Michael Korda) in context, showing how the decision to free the city came at a heavy price: it slowed the Allied momentum and allowed the Germans to regroup. After the war German generals argued that Eisenhower's decision to enter Paris prolonged the war for another six months. Was Paris worth this price? Smith answers this question in a "brisk new recounting" that is "terse, authoritative, [and] unsentimental" ( The Washington Post ).
Author Notes
Jean Edward Smith was born on October 13, 1932. He received an A.B. from Princeton University in 1954. He then went on to serve in the military from 1954-1961. In 1964, he obtained his Ph.D. from the Department of Public Law and Government of Columbia University. He is a well known biographer of several works inlcuding those featuring Franklin D. Rooselvelt and Ulysses S. Grant. He is the John Marshall Professor of Political Science at Marshall University and professor emeritus at the University of Toronto.
In 2002 Jean Smith was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography and in 2008 he won the Francis Parkman Prize. His title's inlcude: Bush, Eisenhower in War and Peace, FDR, Grant, and The Face of Justice: Portraits of John Marshall.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Historian and biographer Smith (Eisenhower in War and Peace) dishes up an outstanding concise history of one of the most dramatic moments of WWII: the liberation of the City of Light in August 1944. Drawing on extensive primary source research, Smith examines the liberation process and the events that led up to it through the eyes of the three leaders whose decisions minimized violence and destruction: the German general Dietrich von Choltitz, American general Dwight Eisenhower, and French general Charles De Gaulle. Smith recounts how von Choltitz turned from enthusiastically supporting Hitler to determined to disobey Hitler's order to turn Paris into rubble, despite the threat to punish his wife and family. And he gives a fresh take on the relationship between Eisenhower and De Gaulle, attributing much of the liberation's success to Eisenhower's understanding of French language, culture, history, and domestic politics, which he acquired while serving on the Battle Monuments Commission in France in the 1920s. This, Smith maintains, enabled Eisenhower to work well with De Gaulle and understand the unique complexities of French domestic politics, which greatly influenced the way the liberation was conducted. Smith is an outstanding historian and tells a dramatic story well. This is a solid contribution to the history of WWII that both the general reader and the expert will find enjoyable and informative. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
The seventy-fifth anniversary of D-Day has already prompted a spate of new books and will generate many more as June 6 approaches. Smith, a WWII expert, examines the fascinating circumstances surrounding the liberation of Paris, which took place with no destruction to the city. The conflict between political decision-making and military necessity made the question of invading Paris a tricky one, but, fortunately, as Smith shows, all the countries involved, including Germany, recognized the uniqueness and unrivaled beauty of the City of Light. Still, there were strong personalities and competing agendas involved in the negotiations FDR, Churchill (in a minor role here), Eisenhower, de Gaulle, and, of course, Hitler. Eisenhower's decision to tilt toward de Gaulle's wishes, despite FDR's distrust of the man, forms the centerpiece of Smith's moving account, but the text makes clear in fascinating detail that the real hero of the story is German General Dietrich von Choltitz, whose realization of Hitler's growing instability led him to ignore or countermand the dictator's orders to destroy Paris, thus saving the great city. A fascinating chapter in the larger of story of the Allied victory in Europe.--Mark Levine Copyright 2019 Booklist
Choice Review
The liberation of Paris in August 1944 does not generate much enthusiasm among current readers, many of whom were born after the war's end. But for another generation, it remains an inspiration: American troops marched down the Champs-Élysées and right into combat with the Wehrmacht after receiving the adulation of the Parisian public. Now, 75 years later, Smith (Marshall Univ.), a leading Eisenhower scholar, provides a vivid glimpse into that chapter of the war. Smith's rendition of the liberation involves three men: Dwight Eisenhower, the supreme allied commander, who sought to restore France despite opposition from Washington; Charles de Gaulle, the head of the French resistance, who contended with fractured opposition groups in Paris; and Dietrich von Choltitz, the German garrison commander, who realized that the war was lost and sought to save the City of Light from Hitler's madness. All three played key roles, but Choltitz's position was most perilous. Although Hitler held his family hostage, he refused to turn Paris into "a field of ruins." Smith provides a historical masterpiece, recalling a momentous event that should never be forgotten. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. --Christopher C. Lovett, Emporia State University