IN the whole history of war, Stalin wrote to Churchill, there had never been such an undertaking.

The invasion, which took place 65 years ago on Saturday, has been as well documented and one wonders what more could be said about it, yet there is one historian’s take that has been keenly awaited – that of Antony Beevor, the author of acclaimed accounts of Stalingrad and Berlin.

Using his uncanny knack of digging out new nuggets from the archives, Beevor covers the D-Day landing through to the liberation of Paris. There are harrowing details of the ferocious fighting, with prisoners often not taken by either side: some Americans even went about collecting the ears of the dead.

The practice when a soldier was killed while crossing a cornfield was to stick his rifle into the ground and place his helmet on it to mark where he had fallen: many fields were described as resembling sprouting fungi. Combat was at such close quarters that one soldier described relieving himself against a bush only to have a dripping German emerge to give himself up.

Many of the Germans had come from the Eastern front and saw no reason not to use the same dirty tricks. The Hitler Youth and SS were the most likely to sacrifice themselves to the cause. One SS soldier who was in need of a blood transfusion demanded to know if it was British blood. When he was told it was, he announced “I die for Hitler”, tore out the drip and did just that.

For all their preparation the Allies’ weapons were outclassed by those of their foe. German 88mm anti-aircraft wreaked havoc on Allied armour, while a Tiger tank could knock out Shermans with impunity.

Civilians suffered enormously, especially in Caen which was bombed to rubble; yet with little impact on the entrenched Germans.

While giving a “bottoms-up”

view of the conflict, Beevor also provides an illuminating insight into the decision-making at the highest level: Montgomery does not come out of it well.

Published to co-incide with the 65th anniversary of D-Day, this book is brilliantly paced and casts fresh light on a well-worn subject.

It’s a fitting tribute to the sacrifice of the many who fell.