Sand and Steel

The most comprehensive and authoritative history of D-Day ever published‘Extraordinary’ Andrew Roberts‘Fascinating’ Daily Mail‘Magisterial’ James Holland6 June 1944, 4 a.m. Hundreds of boats assemble off the coast of France. By nightfall, thousands of the men they carry will be dead.This was D-Day, the most important day of the twentieth century.In Sand and Steel, one of Britain’s leading military historians offers a panoramic new account of the Allied invasion of France. Drawing on a decade of new research, Peter Caddick-Adams masterfully recreates what it was like to wade out onto the carnage of Omaha Beach, or parachute behind enemy lines in Normandy. He explores the year-long preparations that went into the invasion, overturning decades-old assumptions about Allied strategy. And he pays tribute to the remarkable individuals who made D-Day possible – not just soldiers on the beaches, but also paratroopers, sailors, aircrews, and women on the Home Front.The result is a compulsively readable account of the greatest battle of the Second World War. It will be the definitive work on D-Day for years to come.‘A hugely impressive book which makes full use of a lifetime of learning and experience.’ Herald‘Peter Caddick-Adams’ D-Day must surely go down as the definitive narrative of that pivotal moment in the history of the war.’ James Holland‘This is a warts-and-all forensic examination of the Allied invasion, offering stacks of insight based on a decade of research.’ Soldier

Whether you are a visitor to the Normandy battlefields, a general reader interested in the greatest amphibious assault in the history of warfare, or just someone who appreciates extremely well-written military history . . . this truly extraordinary book is undoubtedly the one for you., Following his excellent study of the Battle of the Bulge, Caddick-Adams does it again by explaining, as opposed to simply describing, the Allies’ victory., Peter Caddick-Adams is unquestionably one of the very finest historians of the Second World War . . . His D-Day must surely go down as the definitive narrative of that pivotal moment in the history of the war., Fascinating . . . Reveals the full horror Allied troops suffered as they prepared to overwhelm the Nazis, examining the facts behind the historic assault., This is a hugely impressive book which makes full use of a lifetime of learning and experience. It is also rich in unexpected detail . . . Such an entertaining and engaging account.

Peter Caddick-Adams is a writer and broadcaster who specialises in military history, defence and security issues. He previously lectured in Military and Security Studies at the UK Defence Academy for twenty years, and in Air Power for the Royal Air Force. A Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Royal Geographical Society, he also spent thirty-five years as an officer in the UK Regular and Reserve Forces, and has extensive experience of various war zones, including the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. He was educated at Shrewsbury School, Sandhurst and Wolverhampton University, where he gained first class honours in War Studies; he received his PhD from Cranfield University. His previous works include Monty and Rommel: Parallel Lives (2011), Monte Cassino: Ten Armies in Hell (2012), and Snow and Steel: Battle of the Bulge 1944–45 (2014).