The Atlantic Wall Volume 3 ― The Sudwall

Following on from two previous volumes covering the Atlantic Wall, this book completes the story of one of the most formidable defensive lines in Europe in World War II, looking at the lesser known Mediterranean extension and describing how it was conceived of, built and used. After the alarming collapse of Italy in 1943, the Germans launched a crash building program and the 'Sudwall,' (South Wall) sprang up quickly along the French Mediterranean coast and the neighbouring Italian coast around Genoa. The new defences were bolstered by existing French fortifications of key port towns such as Marseilles and Toulon - many of them bristling with heavy artillery. Whilst describing the wall's physical design features, this book also recounts the defences' role in the Allied invasion of Southern France; Operation Dragoon - 'The Second D-Day'. As the Germans' worst fears became a reality, the southern Atlantic Wall would face its ultimate test.

Steven J. Zaloga received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has worked as an analyst in the aerospace industry for over two decades, covering missile systems and the international arms trade, and has served with the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think tank. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and military history, with an accent on the US Army in World War II as well as Russia and the former Soviet Union. The author lives in Abingdon, MD.