The Last Battle (Harding book)

The Last Battle: When U.S. and German Soldiers Joined Forces in the Waning Hours of World War II in Europe is a book by the historian Stephen Harding which tells the story of the World War II Battle for Castle Itter.

The Last Battle
AuthorStephen Harding
LanguageEnglish
GenreHistory
PublisherDa Capo Press
Publication date
2013
Publication placeUnited States
Media typeHardcover
Pages256
ISBN0-3068-2208-3

Published by Da Capo Press,[1] on May 7, 2013,[2] it describes a mixed force of United States Army, German Wehrmacht, and Austrian resistance fighters acting together to prevent the recapture of a number of French VIP prisoners being held at Itter Castle, Austria, by an SS assault party ordered to retake the prison days after Hitler’s suicide.

The fourteen prisoners being held in the facility included two former French Prime Ministers, Paul Reynaud and Édouard Daladier,[3] two former commanders of the French military, the son of famous prime minister Georges Clemenceau, and Marie-Agnès de Gaulle [fr], Resistance member and sister of General Charles de Gaulle.[1][4][5]

The story is based on military records, author interviews, personal memoirs, and official German, American, and French histories.[1][5]

Movie adaptation

edit

It was announced on 7 December 2015 that The Last Battle would be developed into a movie by StudioCanal. The book was adapted by Bryce Zabel who will produce the movie with Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman from The Picture Company. No release date has currently been set.[6]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Thomas E. Nutter (April 23, 2013). "The Last Battle: When U.S. and German Soldiers Joined Forces in the Waning Hours of World War II in Europe". New York Journal of Books. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
  2. ^ Stephen Harding (7 May 2013). The Last Battle: When U. S. and German Soldiers Joined Forces in the Waning Hours of World War II in Europe. Da Capo Press, Incorporated. ISBN 978-0-306-82208-7.
  3. ^ Roberts, Andrew (12 May 2013). "World War II's Strangest Battle: When Americans and Germans Fought Together". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
  4. ^ Andrew Roberts (May 12, 2013). "World War II's Strangest Battle: When Americans and Germans Fought Together". The Daily Beast. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
  5. ^ a b Alan Wallace (May 25, 2013). "Leaders to follow, Course Corrections". Tribune-Review/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Trib Total Media, Inc. 2013.[dead link]
  6. ^ McNary, Dave (December 7, 2015). "StudioCanal Boards World War II Thriller 'The Last Battle'". Variety. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
edit