Hitler's rapid triumph over the Allies was not planned as a Blitzkrieg. The German leadership had anticipated battles that would last years like in World War I and had adapted its economic and military planning accordingly. The author questions the prevailing theory of Hitler's Blitzkrieg strategy and reveals the secret to success that was actually behind the 1940 war.

Karl-Heinz Frieser, Oberst a. D. and military historian, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.