Assignment To Catastrophe

by Edward Spears

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Germany, World War II, War

638 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1954

Reviews

[Awk78 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memoir of General Spears who was the liaison between Churchill and Reynaud, the French Prime Minister during the battle of France. Was written after the war and you can tell that the memoir is colored by Spears feelings on the French capitulation. That being said it is a fascinating look into the inner workings of the French government during this period. No one can really understand what went wrong in the battle for France without reading this in my opinion. It is not the easiest book to read, it's a little sad to read about France falling apart, especially knowing how things turned out, and the writing style is pretty dry. I don't think I'd recommend this for the casual history reader, but for real WW2 buffs or for historians studying the period this should be a must read.

[David Leroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic. This is a book written shortly after WW2, and the perspective it gives of the war, and the relationship between England and France is very revealing and honest. The book is full of details which have long been forgotten, or are simply ignored in other books. It is the details that really bring this time period to life. What I like about this book is that it does not have the political reflection, or historical reflection of 20 or 30 years. It basically was published shortly after the war. Must read if you are researching this period of history.

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an important historical work. It records the high politics of the fall of France in 1940 from the perspective of a military officer assigned to liaise between Winston Churchill and Paul Reynaud, the French premier. Edward Spears, who was also a British MP, had served alongside the French army during the First World War and wrote a much acclaimed account of his work during the 1914 campaigns. From a more senior position, Spears chronicled the disaster of 1940.

To be honest, reading this was a bit of a slog. Spears records in great detail the debates and discussions in the French political and military high commands. While historically important, these accounts are rather turgid. Reynaud seems well-meaning but totally out of his depth, while Weygand, the French C-in-C in the latter stages, comes across as a bit of a villain. Most interesting is Spears' view of Marshal Petain which was quite sympathetic under the circumstances.
The book ends somewhat abruptly with the flight of de Gaulle from France in mid-June.

I recommend this book for its observations of the way in which the French political class seemed to collapse in 1940. Thus it is an important work in the historiography of this disaster for France and the Allies.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

In terms of clarity of account and ability to write clearly and engagingly Spears stands out amongst senior military officers. This is the most complete and polished first hand account of the confusion of the fall of France and the development of the catastrophe of Vichy and the occupation.