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Viscount Alan Brooke Alanbrooke

War Diaries 1939-1945: Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke Hardcover – 14 May 2001

by Alan Brooke Alanbrooke (Author), Alex Danchev (Editor), Dan Todman (Editor)

4.6 67 ratings

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Alanbrooke was CIGS - Chief of the Imperial General Staff - for the greater part of the Second World War. He acted as mentor to Montgomery and military adviser to Churchill, with whom he clashed. As chairman of the Chiefs of Staff committee he also led for the British side in the bargaining and the brokering of the Grand Alliance, notably during the great conferences with Roosevelt and Stalin and their retinue at Casablanca,Teheran, Malta and elsewhere. As CIGS Alanbrooke was indispensable to the British and the Allied war effort.

The diaries were sanitised by Arthur Bryant for his two books he wrote with Alanbrooke. Unexpurgated, says Danchev, they are explosive. The American generals, in particular, come in for attack. Danchev proposes to centre his edition on the Second World War. Pre and post-war entries are to be reduced to a Prologue and Epilogue). John Keegan says they are the military equivalent of the Colville Diaries (Churchill's private secretary), THE FRINGES OF POWER. These sold 24,000 in hardback at Hodder in 1985.

Print length

763 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Weidenfeld &Nicolson
Publication date

14 May 2001
Dimensions

16.7 x 5.2 x 24.2 cm
ISBN-10

0297607316
ISBN-13

978-0297607311
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Product description

Amazon Review

Already celebrated as the most important war diaries yet to appear, Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke's War Diaries 1939-1945, edited by Alex Danchev and Dan Todman, are full of fascinating and controversial stuff. But Alanbrooke's style should not be confused with that of Alan Clark: he does not set out to be controversial for controversy's own sake and there is little gossip or speculation. The tone is steady and soldierly throughout, which only makes it more impressive and, at times, curiously moving. It is the voice of a man of great self-control and military expertise, weighed down with the tremendous burdens of conducting a global war. The central relationship is inevitably with Winston Churchill, whose cavalier attitudes and short-term enthusiasms for hare-brained schemes that would cost many lives, often infuriated Alanbrooke. And, in private at least, on the pages of his diary, he would say so: Churchill "knows no details, talks absurdities" and is "a public menace". You can see Alanbrooke's point, when he records that Churchill has suggested making aircraft carriers out of ice. But above all, with Alanbrooke, you get balance. He never pretends that Churchill was anything but a genius, as a war leader: genius mixed with an astonishing lack of vision--he is quite the most difficult man to work with that I have ever struck but I should not have missed the chance of working with him for anything on earth! It is also interesting to find how poor relations were between Britain and America at the time, with even Churchill, part-American himself, inveighing against the "evils of Americans". The overwhelming feeling arising from these diaries is that, contrary to what we now think of as the inevitable, historic triumph of the Allies, it was in fact, as Wellington said after Waterloo, "a close run thing, a damn close run thing". The diaries are superbly edited, cut short with fine judgement on the last day of August 1945, with the quiet entry, "I had Paget to lunch, he was in excellent form. In the evening I motored home". All in all, this is a good job well done. --Christopher Hart

Book Description

The first complete and unexpurgated edition of the war diaries of Field Marshall Lord Alanbrooke - the most important and the most controversial military diaries of the modern era.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Weidenfeld &Nicolson (14 May 2001)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 763 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0297607316
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0297607311
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16.7 x 5.2 x 24.2 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 140,428 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 196 in Historic Origins of World War II
- 251 in Biographies about Essays, Journals & Letters
- 569 in World War II Biographies & Memoirs

Customer reviews:
4.6 67 ratings

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Incredibly enlightening

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 October 2014

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Alanbrooke is quite possibly the most significant military officer that most people have never heard of. If you ever watch video footage of Churchill visiting the different theatres of war or at conferences with the other Allied leaders, more often than not you see Alanbrooke at his shoulder. It was not for nothing that he was recognised with a statue outside the Ministry of Defence in London, along with Montgomery and Slim. Yet still his part in World War Two goes unrecognised by the vast majority of the population.

This book is lengthy, and for the most part contains a direct transcription of Alanbrooke's diaries. There are notes added by the man himself when the diaries were published in limited form in collaboration with Arthur Bryant in the late 1950's. This allows, for example, Alanbrooke to express regret for his stinging criticism of Dudley Pound (First Sea Lord) during the war as he had later become aware that Pound was suffering from a brain tumour that eventually killed him. The diaries cover not only Alanbrooke's time as Chief of the Imperial General Staff, but also as commander of II Corps in France and as Commander-in-Chief Home Forces in 1940-41. The diary entries are usually made before Alanbrooke retires to bed, and you can almost feel the tension when he believes that invasion is imminent in September 1940, given he will have been the one tasked to keep the Germans at bay. There are many personal criticisms, with de Gaulle and Eisenhower in particular not faring well. Churchill's strategic vision, particularly his desire to invade Sumatra, is not well regarded by Alanbrooke, but you can tell that Alanbrooke also greatly admires Churchill's leadership and is fond of him on a personal level. All of the major wartime conferences are covered, including major disagreements with the American Chiefs of Staff.

I thought that I understood World War Two pretty well before I read this book, but it was so incredibly enlightening to read the personal thoughts of someone who was so integral to the conduct of the war from the Allied point of view. It left me wondering that if without Alanbrooke's strong desire to concentrate on the Mediterranean (even though he apparently couldn't spell it) first we may have seen the Americans, and to a lesser extent Stalin, successfully argue for a premature invasion of France in 1943 or even 1942. If you wish to understand World War Two and why the Allied leaders came to the decisions that they did, this book is invaluable.

14 people found this helpful

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Kelvin Johnston

Dull Diary of a Briiliant Man

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2018

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It’s a shame Alan Brooke isn’t better remembered these days. As CIGS (Chief of Imperial General Staff) he sat as a kind of chairman of the board at the War Office for most of WWII dealing with hiring, firing, planning and liasing with the Americans. Daily Chief of Staff meetings between the three forces, the Americans and key politicians would be steered and controlled by Brooke - always looking at the bigger picture and trying to smooth over squabbles and fantasy plans.

Unfortunately, It’s also a shame that Brooke wasn’t a more effusive character as much of this diary is very dull indeed and the first half is scatter gunned with more exclamation marks than a teenage diary which the editors would have been wiser to remove. It’s alarming and then wearying that Brooke seems so surprised by almost everything even before the fall of France!!!

Brooke does express some candid frustration with some famous figures. Monty is as egotistical and pompous as other biographies have made clear. Ike is strategically very weak - no good at all as a battlefield general. Churchill, although inspirational as a political leader is an infruriating, often drunk meddler who ‘Brookie’ has to constantly control to avoid stupid flights of fancy costing lives. One example is Churchill’s obsession with securing North Sumatra to retake Singapore. Another Dardanelles in the making.

Having read extensively on this period Brooke’s opinions on Gott, Gort, Alexander and Wilson are confirmed by numerous other sources; Brooke’s astuteness is not in question. But aside from a few short lyrical passages on Morrocco and flying around the Med in an unheated Liberator historical colour and memorable passages are few and very far between. There is no strong descriptive talent at work here. Much of it reads like a basic regimental diary. The most electric passage is Anthony Powell’s description in Danchev’s introduction of Brooke walking down a London street with lower ranks swivelling from window shopping on instinct to salute as he passed - such was his energy. If only such charisma shined from the pages.

This diary caused a storm in first publication - partly for Brooke’s comments on the lack of foresight of the Americans and the volatility of Churchill but it is a very dry read now on a figure who more than most ensured that we won the war but offers almost more insight on bird watching as world events.

One person found this helpful

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David Walker

Alanbooke

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 April 2023

Very good condition

An amazing insight into the military and political tactics of WW2

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 July 2015

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I read so much about 20th century history and on several occasions reference was made to these diaries. I believe he was an incredible wartime officer who gives amazing insight in to all the political machinations involved with fighting a war with allies. However most interesting is his continuous battles with Churchill over military strategy. He clearly had a love/hate relationship with the Prime Minister but recognized the amazing qualities that Churchill possessed. What is clear to me is that as much as Churchill was the best wartime leader available to us and recognized the nature and intent of Stalin (something clearly missed by FDR) but militarily had major shortcomings. Thank goodness a Chief of Staff like Alanbrooke existed and it would seem, reading between the lines, that Churchill recognized his great qualities.
A must for any serious looking to understand the history of WW2.

2 people found this helpful

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G S Bond

The man behind the mask.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 May 2016

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This book gives a true insight not only to how the the political and military leaders worked together but also the steely resolve of Lord Alanbrooke. My admiration of him is all the more profound as it is clear that he was a reluctant soldier and harboured worries which he could only confide to his wife through the diaries. His doubts and concerns which were in his thoughts prove to me that great leadership is that rare combination of self questioning, steely determination, strategic planning and assessment of others to manage them in the right posts. His service to this country is every bit a great as those such as Montgomery and Slim and arguably greater. A remarkable man and an unsung hero. A thoroughly good read.

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War Diaries 1939-1945: Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke Hardcover – 14 May 2001

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