Patton's Last Gamble: The Disastrous Raid on POW Camp Hammelburg in World War II

by Duane P. Schultz

In March 1945, against the advice of his top subordinates, Gen. George Patton created a special task force to venture more than fifty miles behind enemy lines and liberate a POW camp near Hammelburg, Germany. The camp held some 1,500 American prisoners, including Patton’s son-in-law. Hampered by ambushes and a lack of fuel and even maps, the raid was a disaster, one of the worst mistakes of Patton’s legendary career. Out of some 300 men, only three dozen returned. Based on memoirs, diaries, combat reports, and interviews with survivors, Patton’s Last Gamble vividly recounts a mission Gen. Omar Bradley later said “began as a wild goose chase and ended in tragedy.”

Genres: History, Nonfiction, War, World War II

240 pages, Paperback

First published April 3, 2018

Reviews

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book tells the story of a daring raid by American troops in the latter stages of World War II in Europe to rescue American troops held by the Germans. At least, that was the story General Patton put forth. The truth was this mission was designed solely to rescue his son-in-law who had been a prisoner of the Germans for over two years. Conceived in haste, poorly planned and seriously undermanned, the plan called for a group of less than 300 Americans to drive 60 miles into German-occupied territory, liberate a POW camp at Hammelburg, and then make it back to American lines. They didn't have enough gas, so they would have to capture some from the enemy. They had only a handful of maps and compasses, so getting there and back would be very challenging. The amount of prisoners in the camp was over three times what they were told, so capturing enemy vehicles was also going to be necessary. Sounds like long odds, doesn't it? While no plan ever survives contact with the enemy, this was barely a plan at all and pretty much doomed to failure.

The author has woven together a really nice narrative which combines information from previously published sources and from the participants themselves, both on the American side and the German side. The raid and its aftermath are covered in good detail, with actions on both sides being analyzed for the critical part(s) they played. Author Schulz pulls no punches in assigning blame for things which went wrong, and he's definitely harsh in his judgment of Patton. I won't interject my opinion here, so whether or not the judgment is fair will be up to you.

I would have given this book five stars, but there are only two pictures and one small map. I can understand not having a photographer along on the raid to memorialize the event(s), but it would have been nice to have some pictures of some of the men involved in the action, along with some photos of the areas they fought. Another map or two wouldn't have been a bad thing either as the only map give shows the route the Americans took to get to Hammelburg, but not the route they took trying to escape.

Overall, a really good book, which was a pretty fast read. I knew of the raid, but had never read all the details, so this book filled in another small hole in my knowledge of World War II.

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book begins by discussing Patton's personal history. One of his greatest fears was that he would be a coward. In his last gamble he proved his concerns to be valid. After sending hundreds of soldiers on a fool's errand resulting in many deaths he consistently lied about the nature of the mission and blamed others for its failure. This is a mark of a true coward. Patton knew by channels that his son-in-law was a prisoner at Hammelburg. He sent soldiers behind German lines to rescue one man with insufficient fuel, vehicles to transport the POW's, and men. The Americans would have reached the camp withing a few days. Instead many of the soldiers captured and the POW's were not free for weeks. The story of the raid is compelling. The bravery of the individuals involved was tremendous. I have always begrudgingly admired Patton for his military skill, but this gamble and subsequent lies to cover his own ass plus the slapping of soldiers with battle fatigue (PTSD) demonstrate that he may have been a good soldier, but he was not a good man. Kristi & Abby Tabby

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published in 2018, this volume was the most polished of the three Hammelburg books I read. It opens with far more details of Patton’s personal life, his family, privileged upbringing, and early military career and some of the controversy that followed him from Sicily. It also mentions his dyslexia and extramarital affairs (not mentioned in other Hammelburg books). This also benefits from an additional 20+ years of research and revelations as well as the input from several German participants and witnesses, which help give a more complete picture. Post-raid accounts of Patton’s dressing-down and death are more complete. Occasional references and citations from both Whiting’s 1970 (48 Hours to Hammelburg) and 1981’s Raid! by Baum and Baron.
Contains an index and bibliography.