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Author: Willi Gautschi Publisher: ISBN: Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 872
Book Description
During its darkest hour Switzerland was surrounded by aggressive fascist armies, with no allies within reach, its politicians quavering, and its people beginning to lose hope of retaining their freedom. General Henri Guisan stepped into this miasma of growing despair. In July 1940, he assembled the entire Swiss officer corps at the Rutli Meadow, the spot where pike-wielding herdsmen had formed the Swiss Confederation in 1291. Invoking the spirit of their medieval forebears, he informed his officers that Switzerland would fight back against any invader, and if they ran out of ammunition they would use the bayonet. Switzerland, he declared, would never surrender. Guisan lit a torch that would guide the Continent's only remaining democracy until the end of the war. The key to his military strategy was shifting the main strength of the Swiss Army to the Alps. This controversial policy conceded population centers but it also negated German superiority in armor and aircraft. If the Nazis invaded they would only open a bleeding sore that they would not be able to close. Though the Wehrmacht drew up numerous invasion plans, it never took the gamble. As a military man who became the spiritual leader of his country, Guisan was a rarity in the history of democratic nations. His guidance, along with the Swiss system of universal male conscription, meant that the Germans, had they invaded, would have been fighting not just an army but a people. This definitive biography of General Guisan not only describes a man of great complexity and courage, but a fascinating aspect of World War II. WILLI GAUTSCHI is the author of numerous works, including "The National Strike of 1918" and "Lenin as an Emigrant in Switzerland." Having retired from teaching history at the University of Zurich, he currently lives in Baden.
Author: Willi Gautschi Publisher: ISBN: Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 872
Book Description
During its darkest hour Switzerland was surrounded by aggressive fascist armies, with no allies within reach, its politicians quavering, and its people beginning to lose hope of retaining their freedom. General Henri Guisan stepped into this miasma of growing despair. In July 1940, he assembled the entire Swiss officer corps at the Rutli Meadow, the spot where pike-wielding herdsmen had formed the Swiss Confederation in 1291. Invoking the spirit of their medieval forebears, he informed his officers that Switzerland would fight back against any invader, and if they ran out of ammunition they would use the bayonet. Switzerland, he declared, would never surrender. Guisan lit a torch that would guide the Continent's only remaining democracy until the end of the war. The key to his military strategy was shifting the main strength of the Swiss Army to the Alps. This controversial policy conceded population centers but it also negated German superiority in armor and aircraft. If the Nazis invaded they would only open a bleeding sore that they would not be able to close. Though the Wehrmacht drew up numerous invasion plans, it never took the gamble. As a military man who became the spiritual leader of his country, Guisan was a rarity in the history of democratic nations. His guidance, along with the Swiss system of universal male conscription, meant that the Germans, had they invaded, would have been fighting not just an army but a people. This definitive biography of General Guisan not only describes a man of great complexity and courage, but a fascinating aspect of World War II. WILLI GAUTSCHI is the author of numerous works, including "The National Strike of 1918" and "Lenin as an Emigrant in Switzerland." Having retired from teaching history at the University of Zurich, he currently lives in Baden.
Author: Publisher: ISBN: Category : Languages : en Pages :
Book Description
Autographed photograph typed note from secretary Switzerland Henri Guisan (21 October 1874 - 7 April 1960) was a Swiss army officer, and held the office of the General of the Swiss Army during World War II. He was the fourth and the most recent man to be appointed to the rarely used Swiss rank of General, and was possibly Switzerland's most famous soldier. He is best remembered for effectively mobilizing the Swiss army and Swiss people in order to prepare resistance against a possible invasion by Nazi Germany in 1940.
Author: Stephen P. Halbrook Publisher: Da Capo Press ISBN: 0786751185 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 366
Book Description
Countless books have been written on the military history of World War II, however astonishingly little information has appeared about the one country that stared the Nazis down and refused to become an accomplice to the horrors of the Third Reich. This book provides an objective, year-by-year account of Switzerland's military role in World War II, including her defensive strategies, details of Nazi invasion plans, and Switzerland's moral, material and humanitarian links to the Allies. Swiss neutrality in World War II has been criticized in recent years, but the country was entirely surrounded by Axis powers and managed, as revealed here, to render considerable assistance to the Allies.
Author: Georges André Chevallaz Publisher: Lexington Books ISBN: 9780739102749 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 312
Book Description
Prominent historian and former President of the Swiss Confederation Georges-Andr Chevallaz begins his study of Swiss neutrality during World War II with two essential questions: Why, in the face of German imperialism ”with its authoritarian, totalitarian, and racist ideology ”did Switzerland declare neutrality? Why did it not join the "camp of democracies," or the other European nations who resolved to hold firm against the Germans? Chevallaz's provocative and insightful book, presented here for the first time in English, attempts to answer these questions. Chevallaz further offers an even-handed reevaluation of the role of the principal actors in Swiss politics of the time, notably Marcel Pilet-Golaz, head of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and General Henri Guisan.
Author: Georg Kreis Publisher: Psychology Press ISBN: 0714650293 Category : Neutrality Languages : en Pages : 394
Book Description
This collection of essays sheds light on the history of Switzerland during World War II, covering such topics as: trade; financial relations; gold; refugees; defence; and foreign relations. It also touches on official post-war measures to suppress Switzerland's involvement in the war.
Author: Willi Gautschi
Author: Willi Gautschi
Author: Silvio Müller
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Author: Jon Kimche![Général Guisan, 1874-1960, Etc. (Directeur D'édition: A. Guex.) [With Portraits.]. PDF](https://books.google.com/books/content/images/frontcover/ccD5MgEACAAJ?fife=w80-h100)
Author: André Guex
Author: Jean Pierre CHUARD
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Author: Stephen P. Halbrook
Author: Georges André Chevallaz
Author: Georg Kreis