Knight's Cross: A Life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel [Hardcover]

David Fraser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1994

A British general and historian recreates Erwin Rommel's brilliant military career, investigates his possible involvement in the plot against Hitler, and examines the circumstances of his death.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Erwin Rommel (1891-1944) was the most celebrated German general of WW II, in large part because of his campaigns against the British but also because of his personal magnetism. Relying on speed and shock, his style of maneuver is a standard subject of study in most war colleges. Fraser, a historian and retired British officer, shows that Rommel's uncanny aptitude for maneuver warfare was evident even when he was a junior infantry officer in WW I. Promoted to field marshal in 1944, Rommel commanded German troops defending the coast of France against the Allied invasion, abandoning the proven precepts of mobile warfare for an uncharacteristically rigid defense, a change in tactics which Fraser explores. Implicated in the July 20, 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler, Rommel was given the choice of suicide or facing a people's court. Fraser explains why he took a fatal poison draught, though his only crime was to question Hitler's leadership. Fraser's superb biography reveals Rommel not only as a warrior who ranks with Napoleon and Lee, but also as an unpretentious man who found much contentment in the company of his wife and son. Photos.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The paradox of a great general serving an evil cause looms over the reputation of the Desert Fox, bridged somewhat by Rommel's forced suicide after the anti-Hitler plot in July_ 1944. Would that he had survived to write his memoirs, for his influence on military thought to this day (his 1937 book Infantry Attacks is still in print) would certainly be felt in doctrines on armored maneuver. In lieu of such, Fraser presents what definitely will become the standard biography (only the second since 1950), as the author astutely traces the qualities of leadership which Rommel embodied. A retired British general himself, Fraser brings a cerebral tone to his analysis, noting Rommel's almost animalistic warrior quality--his zest for war and ability to master its fears, tempered by knowledge of its art and the critical necessity of independent decisions to attain victory. He was thrice wounded in World War I, in actions here meticulously described, and spent the interwar period training new officers. Essentially a patriot, he was ostensibly apolitical but rose meteorically as commandant of Hitler's personal guard, then of a division in France and of the Afrikakorps in the desert. The question of whether his tactical brillance carried over into strategy divides military opinions, but opinion in general--or rather Fraser's convincing work might mold it so--is that he was brilliant, brave, even chivalrous. Technical text in places, but engaging throughout for the library readership. Gilbert Taylor

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; 1St Edition edition (February 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060182229
• ISBN-13: 978-0060182229
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.6 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,141,223 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Brilliant General, A Great Read!, October 13, 2000

By 

Cody Carlson (Salt Lake City, UT United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knight's Cross : A Life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Paperback)

David Fraser's biography of Erwin Rommel, 'Knight's Cross,' is subtitled, 'A Life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.' It should be subtitled, 'A Career of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.' While the great General's skillful campaigns in France, North Africa, and France again are nothing short of brilliant, quite a bit is left out of the overall picture of the man. Rommel's years before World War I and during the Weimar era are barely examined. Instead, author Fraser focuses on the general history of the time, leaving the portrait of Rommel somewhat incomplete. That said, Fraser also gives us a first rate look at the battlefield genius and basic goodness of the man that was Erwin Rommel. Fraser spends much of the work successfully dispelling the myth of Rommel's lack of strategic consideration by showing his constant worry over the battles in Russia and his own precarious situations in Tunisia and Normandy. Also brought to light are the circumstances surrounding Rommel's part in the July 20th bomb plot and his forced suicide. For anyone interested in World War Two or the methods of great leadership in general, Fraser's biography is sure to entertain and enlighten.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent biography of a Great General, June 27, 1998

By 

Aussie Reader ""Rick"" (Canberra, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Knight's Cross : A Life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Paperback)

There is not much one can add to the other reviews of this very interesting book. The author, David Fraser, offers the reader a well researched and honest account on the life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in 562 pages (hardback version). This has been one of the better biographies on Rommel I have read in some time and one of the best military biographies I have read in the last couple of years. I don't think that too many people would not enjoy this account, the author certianly portrays Rommel with his faults as well as his great points and I believe he has tried to present his subject as honestly as possible. A very enjoyable book to read and well researched and presented.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good narrative, but...., June 28, 2000

By 

"smucci" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Knight's Cross : A Life of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Paperback)

This book is something of a hodgepodge on Rommel's career with the author jumping and skipping about a little more than one would normally like. The book is a relatively good straightforward recounting of Rommel's military career with most of the emphasis on the two great wars. Unfortunately, there is very little of Rommel's personal side included in this book -- a few pages on his childhood and parents, a paragraph here or there about is wife Lucy and his son Manfred, etc. The book is laid out as a chronological narrative which offers relatively few insights into Rommel's character which, themselves, are quite often unsubstantiated or not cross referenced with any other source. Plus the sidetracks into German history (i.e. Hitler's rise to power) are wholly incomplete and somewhat inappropriate for this book. I realize the author was trying to set a background, but given the volume of information required to have a decent understanding of the political ins and outs of 1930s Germany requires far more than a chapter or two. The result is the right conclusions for the wrong reasons which may be confusing or unintentionally misleading to some.

Otherwise it is a decent, fairly readable, overview of Rommel the military commander, but I would recommend the following for deeper reading: Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer, Achtung-Panzer! by Guderain, The Rommel Papers edited by B.H. Liddell-Hart or Rommel's own Attacks: Rommel.