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New Release Books on WW2
Another May 2014 release by a well known author. I am sure this book will end up on a few members wish lists!
by Craig L. SymondsDescription:
On June 6, 1944, 160,000 Allied troops landed along 50 miles of French coastline to battle German forces on the beaches of Normandy. D-Day, as it would come to be known, would eventually lead to the liberation of Western Europe, and was a critical step in the road to victory in World War II. Yet the story begins long before the Higgins landing craft opened their doors and men spilled out onto the beaches to face a storm of German bullets. The invasion, and the victories that followed, would not have been possible without the massive naval operation that led up to it: NEPTUNE.
From the moment British forces evacuated the beaches of Dunkirk in 1940, Allied planners began to consider how, when, and where they would re-enter the European continent. Once in the war, the Americans, led by George Marshall, wanted to invade in a year's time. The British were convinced this would be a tragic mistake. Allied forces would be decimated by the Wehrmacht. When Operation Overlord -- the name given to the cross-Channel invasion of Northern France -- was finally planned, it was done so only in concert with the seaborne assault that would bring the men and equipment to the Normandy coast. Symonds traces the central thread of this Olympian event -- involving over six thousand vessels and more than a million military personnel -- from the first talks between British and American officials in the winter of 1941 to the storming of the beaches in the late spring of 1944. He considers Neptune's various components, including the strategic unity, industrial productivity, organizational execution, and cross-cultural exchange on which the Allies depended. Portraits of key American and British figures, from Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Eisenhower to Admiral Ernest J. King and his British counterpart, Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay, combine with an intimate look at men up and down the chain of command.
Neptune was the pinnacle of Allied organization and cooperation. From the suppressing of the U-boat menace in the Battle of the Atlantic, to the establishing of camps and training facilities near the English coast, to the gearing up of the American industrial machine to produce the ships, tanks, and tools of war that would make an invasion possible, Symonds' riveting narrative uncovers the means by which Neptune was brought to fruition, and presents the first comprehensive account of the greatest naval operation in history.
Another very interesting book due out in a few months time. I am sure a number of the groups members will be keen to grab a copy of this book:
by Nigel HamiltonDescription:
Based on years of archival research and interviews with the last surviving aides and Roosevelt family members, Nigel Hamilton offers a definitive account of FDR’s masterful—and underappreciated—command of the Allied war effort. Hamilton takes readers inside FDR’s White House Oval Study—his personal command center—and into the meetings where he battled with Churchill about strategy and tactics and overrode the near mutinies of his own generals and secretary of war.
Time and again, FDR was proven right and his allies and generals were wrong. When the generals wanted to attack the Nazi-fortified coast of France, FDR knew the Allied forces weren’t ready. When Churchill insisted his Far East colonies were loyal and would resist the Japanese, Roosevelt knew it was a fantasy. As Hamilton’s account reaches its climax with the Torch landings in North Africa in late 1942, the tide of war turns in the Allies’ favor and FDR’s genius for psychology and military affairs is clear. This intimate, sweeping look at a great president in history’s greatest conflict is must reading.
Another May release:
by David WraggDescription:
Long-awaited, the Normandy landings were the largest amphibious operation in history. Success was achieved by the advent of specialized landing craft, first seen in the landings in North Africa, heavy naval firepower, and the creation of two artificial harbors, each the size of the port of Dover, and an underwater pipeline. This book tells the story of this incredible feat using eyewitness accounts of the landings and the breaching of Hitler's famed "Atlantic Wall." David Wragg explores the earlier Allied and Axis experiences with amphibious operations and the planning for Neptune and Overlord. He reveals the naval support needed once the armies were ashore and before continental ports could be captured and cleared of mines, with operations such as minesweeping off the Normandy coast which led to one of the worst "friendly fire" incidents of the war.
Good add, thanks Jerome.
Jerome wrote: "Another May release: by David WraggDescription:
Long-awaited, the Normandy landings were the largest amphibious operati..."
Wragg has written a number of good books on Britain's Fleet Air Arm.
Been a while since I have checked out this thread. I am glad I did :) It amazes at the amount of qaulity books that are still coming out about WWII
message 958:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
Hi Michael hope you're well.
Doing well Geevee :) Is it to late to still talk about the ashes.
I am reading the History Buff's Guide to World War II. Structure of book is Top Ten things.
message 961:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
Michael wrote: "Doing well Geevee :) Is it to late to still talk about the ashes."La la la can't hear you.
message 962:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
Kunal wrote: "I am reading the History Buff's Guide to World War II. Structure of book is Top Ten things."Keep us posted on what you think Kunal.
Goodreaders might be interested in this just published book: Marshal of Victory: The Autobiography of General Georgy Zhukov, Pen & Sword Books. This is a new English edition of Zhukov's autobiography and contains previously untranslated memoirs by Zhukov as well as a long introduction - by me - on the history of Zhukov's memoirs and a detailed comparison of their Soviet and post-Soviet versions.Geoffrey Roberts
I think a few of us have got it on our wish list Geoffrey, thanks for keeping us informed though, much appreciated.
I just found this book which is due for release in a few months time. I'm not too sure how others feel about Schiffer titles but I have found them a bit hit & miss sometimes.
by Adrian NisbettDescription:
Crete, May 20, 1941. An amazed world watched as the first great airborne invasion in history began. Among the 8,000 German paratroopers taking part in Operation Mercury were three brothers: Wolfgang, Lebrecht, and Hans Joachim von Blcher. This is their story. Born into one of Germany's best-known military and aristocratic families, the von Blcher brothers were Fallschirmjger, among the elite of the German armed forces. Illustrated throughout with family photographs and many other rare illustrations, Heroes in Death recounts the brothers' lives before the war, their training as paratroopers, the action for which Wolfgang was awarded the coveted Knight's Cross, how they died in the invasion of Crete, and the aftermath of their deaths. Based on family recollections, letters, and documents, and on records from the Fallschirmjger archive, this is the first full and accurate account of a little-known but remarkable story.
I interviewed some German paras in Crete, one was my distant cousin. Max Schmelling was also there, the boxer, great interview with him. Crete was nasty. My book, German Anti-Partisan Warfare as Crete as an example of German retribution, while tough reading it was legal.
The cover of this new book caught my eye but I can't find any details on its content, even at the Osprey site!
by Robert ForczykIt sounds like it could be a good book covering the Crimean campaign between 1941 and 1944.
This new release is not due out till late April 2014 but I have already put a copy away in a shopping basket ready to go:
by Stanley ChristophersonDescription:
From summer camp in Yorkshire in August 1939 all the way to the smouldering ruins of Berlin in 1945, via Palestine, Tobruk, El Alamein, D-Day and Nijmegen, An Englishman at War is a unique first-person account of one man's war.
Christopherson's regiment, The Sherwood Rangers, started as amateurs, equipped with courage but very little else, and ended up one of the most experienced, highly trained and highly decorated tank regiments in the British Army. They were not only the first British troops to enter Paris and the first unit to cross into Germany, but also took part in the last cavalry charge undertaken by the British Army in Palestine in 1940. Over the course of the conflict, the regiment amassed an astonishing thirty battle honours.
Stanley Christopherson himself was to rise from a junior subaltern to become the commanding officer of the regiment after the Normandy invasion. He took part in all thirty battle honours, and collected a Distinguished Service Order, two Military Crosses and a Silver Star, as well as being Mentioned in Despatches four times.
message 969:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
This one looks very interesting:Gordon Welchman: Bletchley Park S Architect of Ultra Intelligence by Joel Greenberg
Description
'A magnificent biography which finally provides recognition to one of Bletchley's and Britain's lost heroes.' Michael Smith The Official Secrets Act and the passing of time have prevented the Bletchley Park story from being told by many of its key participants. Here at last is a book which allows some of them to speak for the first time. Gordon Welchman was one of the Park's most important figures. Like Turing, his pioneering work was fundamental to the success of Bletchley Park and helped pave the way for the birth of the digital age. Yet, his story is largely unknown to many. His book, The Hut Six Story, was the first to reveal not only how they broke the codes, but how it was done on an industrial scale. Its publication created such a stir in GCHQ and the NSA that Welchman was forbidden to discuss the book or his wartime work with the media. In order to finally set the record straight, Bletchley Park historian and tour guide Joel Greenberg has drawn on Welchman's personal papers and correspondence with wartime colleagues which lay undisturbed in his son's loft for many years. Packed with fascinating new insights, including Welchman's thoughts on key Bletchley figures and the development of the Bombe machine, this is essential reading for anyone interested in the clandestine activities at Bletchley Park.
Sounds like a very interesting book Geevee, thanks for sharing the details.
I purchased a copy of this brand new book which holds a lot of interest for me but may have limited availability for those outside of Australia:
by Adrian ThrelfallDescription:
Australians are acknowledged as being among the best, if not the best, jungle fighters in the world. So how did the Australian Army transform itself from a military force totally unprepared for conflict of any kind in 1939 into a professional, experienced and highly skilled jungle warfare force by 1945?
Jungle Warriors examines the extraordinary changes the Australian Army underwent over the course of the Second World War. It explores how the 2nd AIF evolved from fighting European and desert wars, in open country and often with large numbers of troops, to master the very close warfare of jungle combat. It investigates the extraordinary array of changes to weapons, equipment, tactics and training. It also reveals the painful lessons learnt and the inadequate planning that resulted in the unnecessary deaths of so many Australian men.
Following the story from the training camps in Australia on to the battlefields of North Africa and the Mediterranean to Milne Bay, Kokoda, and final victory in Borneo, Bougainville and New Guinea, this is a comprehensive and coherent interrogation of Australia's jungle warfare experience. It also makes significant contribution to our World War II military history.
Here is a new release that is due out in May this year and offers something a little different in regards to D-Day:
by Max ArthurDescription:
On 6 June 1944 Britain woke up to a profound silence. Overnight, 160,000 Allied troops had vanished and an eerie emptiness settled over the country. The majority of those men would never return.
This is the story of that extraordinary 24 hours.
Using a wealth of first person testimonies, renowned historian Max Arthur recounts a remarkable new oral history of D-Day, beginning with the two years leading up to the silent day which saw the UK transformed by the arrival of thousands of American and Canadian troops. We also hear the views of the American troops, who quickly formed strong views of both the British military and civilian populations.
Then, on that June morning, many British people woke up to discover that vast areas of the country, which had throbbed with life only the day before, were now empty and silent. Civilian workers found coffee pots still warm on the stove but not a soul to greet them. Many women - and children - felt bewildered and betrayed.
Then, throughout that day and the days that followed, the whole population gathered around wireless sets, waiting for news. There are powerful testimonies from families of who lost loved ones on the beaches of Normandy, and dramatic personal accounts from young widows who had never had the chance to say goodbye.
The Silent Day is an original and evocative portrait of a key event in world history, and a poignant reminder of the human cost of D-Day.
Also posted in the D-Day & Home Front threads.
This new release (June 2014) book sounds quite interesting and I am sure will attract the attention of a few group members, me included:
by Paddy AshdownDescription:
From best-selling author of ‘A Brilliant Little Operation’, winner of the British Army Military History prize and the Royal marines History prize for 2013, comes the long neglected D-Day story of the Resistance uprising and subsequent massacre on the Vercors massif – the largest action by the French Resistance during the Second World War.
In early 1941, three separate groups of plotters – one military, one political, one intellectual – began to organise and plan on and around the forbidding mountainous plateau near Grenoble – the Vercors. The aims of the groups were the same: to hasten the departure of the German occupiers; to restore the pride of France after its fall and the humiliations of the puppet Vichy government which followed; and to build a new France. The overwhelming desire to get rid of the Germans would unite them. Their different views of the France they hoped for in the future would divide them.
Over the next three years these sparks of resistance would grow to challenge the might of the hated German occupiers. As the Allied troops stormed the D-Day beaches, the Vercors rose up to fight the Nazis in a planned rearguard action. It was to prove not only the largest Resistance action of the entire war but also, in the severity of the German response, the most brutal crushing of resistance forces in Western Europe.
For the men and women of Vercors, aided and abetted by the Free French forces of General de Gaulle and SOE operatives from London, the events on the Vercors took them on a journey from early idealism through hope, misjudgement, folly, despair, sacrifice and slaughter to a kind of cruel victory. The tragedy drew the attention of those at the highest level of the Allied war effort and placed the Vercors deep into the heart of the history of modern France in a way which resonates still in the country’s daily life and politics.
Long overlooked by English language histories, this magnificent book sets the story in the context of D-Day, the muddle of politics and many misjudgements of D-Day planners in both London and Algiers, and – most importantly – it gives voice to the many Maquisards fighters who fought to gain a voice in their country’s future.
Here is another new book, again offering something slightly different on the war in Europe, 1944-45:
by BBCDescription:
WAR REPORT, the landmark BBC radio program, first broadcast after the nine o-clock news on D-Day, 6 June 1944 and provided an almost-daily chronicle to millions of listeneres of the final year of World War II. A team BBC reporters, including Chester Wilmot, Frank Gillard, Wynford Vaughan Thomas and Richard Dimbleby, trained and were embedded with British troops, a first in war reporting: they landed side by side with soldiers, in gliders, by parachute, in assault-craft, talking into portable recording machines to 'tell it as it was'. For eleven months these reporters were in the vanguard, filing over 1,500 dispatches covering the desperate exchanges on the D-Day beaches, the battle for Caen, the advance through Normandy, the liberation of Paris and, finally, the German surrender in 1945.
70 years after the invasion of Normandy, the dispatches of War Report collected here provide a unique and visceral account of Allied efforts to liberate Europe and end the war. It is history direct from the front line, filled with all the horror and excitement of eleven months that changed the world.
message 975:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
A new book from well know publisher Osprey, which I thought would interest many members.
US Marine Corps Fighter Squadrons of World War II by Barrett TillmanDescription
The US Marine Corps has a long and proud heritage of aviation excellence, celebrating its centenary in 2012. While "flying leathernecks" made their mark in both world wars, Korea, Vietnam and more recently throughout the global war on terrorism, it was during World War II that they captured the hearts and minds of the public with their daring exploits.
This is the first book to detail the legendary actions of famous fighter aces such as Medal of Honor winner John L Smith, Greg "Pappy"Boyinton, Marion Carl, Joe Foss, and many more.
Barret Tillman combines expert research into the history and organization of the Marine Fighter Squadrons with dramatic accounts of deadly dogfights.
Should be an interesting book Geevee. I like how Osprey has moved into more substanial volumes on aspects of WW2 history.
Today a review of --
The Bombers and the Bombed: Allied Air War Over Europe, 1940-1945 by Richard Overyappeared in the Washington Post. Here's a link:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinion...
Gotta get that one!
Got it already (UK edition), will have to see up an air campaign theme read one day soon so I can read it!
by Richard Overy
message 980:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
I read this of his and found it a struggle:
The Morbid Age: Britain and the Crisis of Civilisation, 1919 - 1939. My review should you want to risk reading it: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Got it already (UK edition), will have to see up an air campaign theme read one day soon so I can read it!I've got it on very good authority that the UK edition and the US edition are not identical in content. The US edition seems to have several chapters missing.
You might want to check this out further
That's interesting Nick, I've heard that happen with another book once, it might have been one of Max Hastings titles where there was some difference. I will have to wait till someone gets a US edition so I can compare.
Geevee wrote: "A new book from well know publisher Osprey, which I thought would interest many members. [book:US Marine Corps Fighter Squadr..."Barrett and I are comrades, and we both knew the great aces we both wrote about. His book on Marine units should be excellent.
In my Internet browsing, I came across this article in The Daily Mail about a just released book on the chaplain who ministered to the condemned Nazis at Nuremberg. Here's a link to the article:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic...
and this is the book:
Mission at Nuremberg by Tim Townsend.I have read before -- in even greater detail -- about the botched hangings of the Nazi war criminals. I can't say I'm terribly sympathetic. They got better than they deserved. My opinion: we should have hanged more of them.
That one looks interesting to me Manray9, esp having lived in the Nuremberg Military District as a teenager.
message 986:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
Another good book found and another one to the the.
Yep, that one looks like an interesting story. TBR.
Here are few new books covering Japanese forces during WW2. It looks like they won't be released until later in the year but I'm sure a few members will be interested in bookmarking them for later:
by Bill Yenne
by Mark StilleAlso posted in the Pacific Theatre thread.
One of our group members, Alan, mentioned this new release title in another thread and he thought it may interest some of the group:
by Harry ScottDescription:
Ian Robert Hendry Waddell was a bright and gifted 20 year old who joined the Merchant Navy in 1940 after qualifying as a Seagoing Radio Officer. In all he made 14 crossings of the North Atlantic Ocean at a time when German U-boats were sinking a huge amount of Allied shipping. He wrote a series of journals, and wonderfully descriptive and amusing letters, about his life and work at sea. He also captured on film the dramatic events as his ship was bombed during the Allied landings in Norway. Ian also describes the harrowing scenes he and his shipmates witnessed, and the danger they faced, as they became involved in the dramatic rescue of the crew of a Royal Navy ship sunk by a U-boat. His fascinating story is told in the main by reproducing his journals, letters and photographs, as no one could tell it any better.
message 991:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
A new book for May 2014.Caen Controversy: The Battle for Sword Beach 1944 (no cover) by Andrew Stewart
The author:
Andrew Stewart is a Senior Lecturer within the Defence Studies Department, King's College London, the academic component of the United Kingdom's Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC). Currently he is the Land Historian supporting the Higher Command and Staff Course and gives lectures and leads seminars on both conflict-related historical and contemporary issues. As a senior military history teacher he regularly leads European battlefield tours. In December 2001 he was awarded his postgraduate doctorate from the Department of War Studies, King's College London. This examined civil-military and coalition relations within the British Empire during the Second World War. A series of articles for leading academic journals have subsequently been produced and his first two books received favourable reviews. He remains a committed military historian and in addition to this volume he is also currently writing a book on British wartime planning to counter a possible German invasion which will be published in 2016 by Oxford University Press. He also acts as a 'Senior Conflict and Stabilisation Adviser' to the Stabilisation Unit, a specialist UK government body that works with fragile and post-conflict states. Married to Joanne, he lives in Oxford and enjoys watching cricket and beer tasting in his spare time.
Description
On 6 June 1944 British, American, Canadian and French troops landed in Normandy by air and sea. This was one of the key moments of the Second World War, a long anticipated invasion which would, ultimately, lead to the defeat of Nazi Germany. By the day's end a lodgement had been effected and Operation OVERLORD was being hailed as a success. In reality the assault had produced mixed results and at certain points along the French coastline the position was still far from certain. The key Allied objectives had also not been captured during the first day of the fighting and this failure would have long-term consequences. Of the priority targets, the city of Caen was a vital logistical hub with its road and rail networks plus it would also act as a critical axis for launching the anticipated follow-on attacks against the German defenders. As a result an entire brigade of British troops was tasked with attempting its capture but their advance culminated a few miles short. This new book will examine this significant element of the wider D-Day operation. It will do this by examining in some detail the planning, preparation and then the actual attack that was made at Sword beach, the point at which the British brigade landed, but with a specific emphasis attached to the potential for a drive on Caen. To do this it will examine the previously published material whilst also drawing on a wealth of archival sources many of which have been previously overlooked. This study will enable the identification of the key factors behind the failure to capture the city and also consider whether it might have been possible and what consequences this would have had for the subsequent Battle of Normandy. The book is made up of ten chapters: The Plan; The Preparations; The Defenders; The Airborne Prologue; The Landings; The Morning; The Afternoon; The Evening; The Next Day; The Consequences, with a text supported by photographs and, importantly, specially-commissioned colour battle maps. Its publication will coincide with the 70th anniversary of the Allied liberation of France.
Good add Geevee, should make very interesting reading!
Geevee wrote: "A new book for May 2014.Caen Controversy: The Battle for Sword Beach 1944 (no cover) by Andrew Stewart
Looks interesting - I have been to Caen and Normandy area so will add it
You changed your emblem and I am all confused!!??
Mikey B. wrote: " You (GV) changed your emblem and I am all confused!!?? "watch out mikeyB, that's the English
symbol for 'Ask me about the weather.'
message 996:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(last edited Mar 18, 2014 01:43PM)
(new)
Ha Ha Carl - Mikey it is the Irish harp for St. Patrick's Day. Changed again today and back to a more sober subject.
Geevee wrote: "Ha Ha Carl - Mikey it is the Irish harp for St. Patrick's Day. Changed again today and back to a more sober subject."He must not be a Guinness drinker!
message 999:
by
Geevee, Assisting Moderator British & Commonwealth Forces
(new)
More like a Molotov cocktail.
Geevee wrote: "More like a Molotov cocktail."indeed!
i think it would be a cool GR feature if when one
changed their pic, it would not also change for their posts made previous to the change. that way
you'd kinda have an 'era' to one's stay here
on GR.
THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP
Books mentioned in this topic
Empire of Ashes: Truman, Hirohito, and the Descent into Total War (other topics)Empire of Ashes: Truman, Hirohito, and the Descent into Total War (other topics)
1942: Hitler's Gamble for Victory (other topics)
1942: Hitler's Gamble for Victory (other topics)
Greyhounds of the Pacific: U.S. Destroyers in the War Against Japan (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
James M. Scott (other topics)James M. Scott (other topics)
Richard Hargreaves (other topics)
Richard Hargreaves (other topics)
Andrew Faltum (other topics)
More...
Description:
While the Pacific War has been widely studied by military historians and venerated in popular culture through movies and other media, the fighting in the South Pacific theater has, with few exceptions, been remarkably neglected. Worthy of remembrance no less than Wake Island, Leyte Gulf, and Tarawa are the great unsung battlefields of Buna, Shaggy Ridge, and the Driniumor River on New Guinea, as well as the torpedo-infested waters off New Georgia; and the deadly skies over Rabaul and Wewak.
Authoritative, yet written in a highly readable narrative style, South Pacific Cauldron is the first complete history embracing all land, sea and air operations in this critically important sector of that oceanic war. Unlike most other World War II accounts, this work covers the South Pacific operations in detail, including the little-known final Australian campaigns that continued until the Japanese surrender.
Author Alan Rems breathes life into the major figures of the South Pacific campaigns, including brilliant and imperious General Douglas MacArthur, audacious and profane Admiral William "Bull" Halsey, and bibulous and indelicate Australian General Thomas Blamey. No less interesting are others that will be mostly new to readers, including many from the Japanese side, like the indomitable generals Noboru Sasaki and Hatazo Adachi. As for the fighting men, many of their stories are captured in accounts of the actions for which some were awarded the Medal of Honor, Victoria Cross, and other decorations for valor.
South Pacific Cauldron's story is enhanced with 16 maps and 40 photographs, many rarely seen, that were carefully chosen from official American and Australian sources. The book includes a detailed chronology to put the widely separated operations in context and a detailed bibliography for additional reading on the subject.
Description:
This book reveals in detail the events of the Early Carrier Raids against the Japanese in the first half of 1942 in the Pacific War, carried out by the U.S. Pacific Fleet. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, carrier airpower would take on the supreme offensive role against Japanese forces in the first phase of the war. America's fast carrier task forces, with their aircraft squadrons and powerful support warships, took on the challenge, but unfortunately the Pacific Fleet carrier force had only three carriers in the Pacific on December 7th.
The book begins with the Pearl Harbor attack and the actions of Vice Admiral William F. Halsey's Task Force 8 with the USS Enterprise en route to Hawaii after a successful mission delivering F4F fighters to Wake Island. The search for the enemy off Hawaii is fruitless as the naval leaders begin the transition to all-out war. Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, the Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, essentially defies major elements of the Rainbow War Plan for the Pacific, which imposed the British-American policy of "Germany first," by ordering Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the Commander-in-Chief Pacific Fleet, to take his limited carrier task force resources and attack the Japanese using island raids in an effort to slow the advance of the Japanese in the Pacific.
The first carrier raid was on the Marshall and Gilbert Islands on February 1, 1942 carried out by Halsey's Task Force 8 with the Enterprise and Rear Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher of Task Force 17 with the USS Yorktown. It was followed on February 20th with the Rabaul Raid in New Guinea commanded by Vice Admiral Wilson Brown which turned into a successful defensive operation to protect the carrier Lexington. Halsey's Task Force 16 successfully attacked Wake Island on February 24th and Marcus Island on March 4th. The Lae-Salamaua Raid to repel a Japanese invasion occurred on March 10th with Brown (TF 11) on the Lexington and Fletcher(TF 17) on the Yorktown.
The carrier raid with the most dramatic impact was the unorthodox Tokyo (Doolittle) Raid on Japan on April 18th by B-25s launched from the USS Hornet in company with the Enterprise. It was followed by the Tulagi Raid on May 4th commanded by Fletcher's Task Force 17.
Though these U.S. Pacific carrier raids had limited effect on halting the Japanese advances, they kept the action away from Hawaii and the West coast of the U.S., and kept the lines of communications open to Australia. In addition, the raids yielded valuable operational experience for the U.S. Navy carrier forces as the Pacific War continued.