Operation Jedburgh: D-Day and America's First Shadow War
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A fascinating look into the origins of the C.I.A., the D-Day invasion and its aftermath.
I heard the author on a late-night talk show while traveling and wasn't dissapointed in the book.
It tells the story of how the allies organized and armed the French Resistance in anticipation of the Normandy D-Day invasion and how that became the basis for the post-war establishment of the C.I.A.
He has a personal connection to the operation - his grandfather was one of its originators and a C.I.A. founder - unbeknownst to the author until shortly before his death when his past was shared.
This book is a terrific read for anyone interested in military or intelligence service history, or anyone who's family has ever held a secret.
One sentence that just jumped out at me was on p. 278 concerning the “purification’ after the German surrender where the resistance fighters turned the weapons supplied by the O.S.S. on the collaborators in their own country. “Thirty thousand people died in “the purification” of France, almost exactly the same number shot and executed by the Germans during their four years as occupiers.” He goes on to point out that the CIA’s experience with similar schemes in the succeeding decades nearly mirrors that experience.
Not that it’s a pacifist screed of any sort. The description of the Nazi atrocities directed at the townspeople during the invasion will certainly make you hate their guts more than you do now.
A terrific read.
I have also found out that there is a former Jedburgh living in our town. It’s hard to imagine one of these fatalistic daredevil outcasts living the quiet life of an ordinary small town physician, but that’s what he is. I guess it’s sort of like my Dad, whose war record I discovered after his death, having been a ranking officer at Gen. MacArthur’s side during the Pacific campaign. He told me he got those medals for teaching and refused to talk about anything that happened to him, aside from the sketchiest details.
In this book, you’re an eyewitness behind the lines of one of the most crucial battles of WWII.
Enjoy.
Good Luck and Best Wishes.
I heard the author on a late-night talk show while traveling and wasn't dissapointed in the book.
It tells the story of how the allies organized and armed the French Resistance in anticipation of the Normandy D-Day invasion and how that became the basis for the post-war establishment of the C.I.A.
He has a personal connection to the operation - his grandfather was one of its originators and a C.I.A. founder - unbeknownst to the author until shortly before his death when his past was shared.
This book is a terrific read for anyone interested in military or intelligence service history, or anyone who's family has ever held a secret.
One sentence that just jumped out at me was on p. 278 concerning the “purification’ after the German surrender where the resistance fighters turned the weapons supplied by the O.S.S. on the collaborators in their own country. “Thirty thousand people died in “the purification” of France, almost exactly the same number shot and executed by the Germans during their four years as occupiers.” He goes on to point out that the CIA’s experience with similar schemes in the succeeding decades nearly mirrors that experience.
Not that it’s a pacifist screed of any sort. The description of the Nazi atrocities directed at the townspeople during the invasion will certainly make you hate their guts more than you do now.
A terrific read.
I have also found out that there is a former Jedburgh living in our town. It’s hard to imagine one of these fatalistic daredevil outcasts living the quiet life of an ordinary small town physician, but that’s what he is. I guess it’s sort of like my Dad, whose war record I discovered after his death, having been a ranking officer at Gen. MacArthur’s side during the Pacific campaign. He told me he got those medals for teaching and refused to talk about anything that happened to him, aside from the sketchiest details.
In this book, you’re an eyewitness behind the lines of one of the most crucial battles of WWII.
Enjoy.
Good Luck and Best Wishes.
Carl,
I hope you enjoy this book.
I hope you enjoy this book.
