War on Wheels ─ The Mechanisation of the British Army in the Second World War

During World War II, the British Army underwent a complete transformation as the number of vehicles grew from 40,000 to 1.5 million, ranging from tanks and giant tank transporters to jeeps, mobile baths and offices, and scout cars. At the same time the way in which the Army was provided with all it needed was transformed, arms and ammunition, radio, clothing, and places to sleep and wash. War on Wheels follows the people who mechanized the British Army from early days at Chilwell factory near Nottingham, through the near disaster of the BEF, desert war and Italian invasion, Ordinance assistance from the US, and preparations for D-Day and war in Japan.

Philip Hamlyn Williams?sourced much of his material for from the papers kept by his father, Major general Sir Leslie Williams, who commanded the RAOC in World War II. These papers have been supplemented by extensive research including at the Royal Logistics Corps Museum, The IWM, the British Library, the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu and the National Archives.