Kenneth Macksey

Kenneth John MackseyMC(1 July 1923 – 30 November 2005) was a British author and historian who specialized inmilitary historyand militarybiography,particularly of theSecond World War.

Life

After serving in theRoyal Armoured Corpsfrom 1941 as a Driver Mechanic,^[1]Macksey was commissioned in 1944.^[2]He served during the rest ofSecond World Warin the79th Armoured Divisionunder the command ofPercy Hobart,^[3]earning aMilitary Cross;^[4]he later wrote a biography of Hobart. Macksey gained a permanent commission in 1946,^[5]was transferred to theRoyal Tank Regimentin 1947,^[6]reached the rank of major in 1957 and retired from the Army in 1968.^[7]^[8]

Amongst many other books, Macksey wrote a volume ofalternate historyentitledInvasion,which dealt with a successfulinvasion of Englandby Germany in 1940.^[9]He also wrote the novelFirst Clashthat describes aNATO–Warsaw Pactclash in the late 1980s and which seems in retrospect to be alternate history, but it was published in 1985 before the purported events of the conflict.^[10]First Clashwas written under contract to theCanadian Forcesand focuses on theCanadianrole in such a conflict. Macksey also editedThe Hitler Options,the first volume of a series of "alternate decisions" alternate history anthologies fromGreenhill Books,in 1995.^[11]

In Macksey'sGuderian:Panzer General,he debunked the view of historian SirBasil Liddell-Hartregarding Hart's influence on the development ofGerman tank theorybefore 1939.

Publications

The Shadow of Vimy Ridge.London: W. Kimber. 1965.OCLC 1601233.
Armoured Crusader: A Biography of Major-General SirPercy Hobart.London:Hutchinson.1967.ISBN 0-09-084950-7.
Africa Korps.New York: Ballantine Books. 1968.ISBN 0-345-21687-3.
Panzer Division,the Mailed Fist.New York: Ballantine Books. 1968.ISBN 0-345-24992-5.
Crucible of Power: The Fighting for Tunisia, 1942-1943.London:Hutchinson.1969.
Tank:A History of the Armoured Fighting Vehicle.London: Macdonald & Co. 1970.ISBN 0-356-03461-5.
Beda Fomm:Classic Victory.New York:Ballantine Books.1971.ISBN 0-345-02434-6.
Anatomy of a Battle.New York:Stein and Day.1974.ISBN 0-8128-1650-1– via Archive Foundation.
Guderian:Panzer General.London: Jane's Publishing. 1975.(Published in the US asGuderian: Creator of the Blitzkrieg.New York: Stein and Day. 1976.OCLC 3100080.;re-published asGuderian: Panzer General.London and Novato: Greenhill Books and Presidio Press. 1992.ISBN 1-85367-059-6.)
Kesselring:The Making of the Luftwaffe.New York: David McKay Company. 1978.;re-published asKesselring: German Master Strategist of the Second World War.London: Greenhill Books. 2000.ISBN 1-85367-422-2.
Rommel:Battles and Campaigns.London: Arms and Armour Press. 1979.ISBN 0-85368-232-1.
The Tanks: a History of the Royal Tank Regiment, 1945–1975.London: Arms and Armour Press. 1979.ISBN 978-0-85368-293-6.
The Tank Pioneers.London, New York: Jane's Publishing. 1981.ISBN 0-531-03734-7.
A History of the Royal Armoured Corps, 1914–1975.Beaminster: Newtown Publications. 1983.ISBN 0-950853-60-7.
Invasion: The Alternate History of the German Invasion of England July 1940.Ashcroft: Wren's Park Publishing. 2001 [1980].ISBN 0-905778-79-0.
First Clash: Combat close-up in World War Three.New York:Sterling Publishing.1985.ISBN 978-0-7737-2060-2.
Military Errors of World War II.London: Arms and Armour Press. 1987.ISBN 0-85368-830-3– via Archive Foundation.
with William Woodhouse (1991).The Penguin Encyclopedia of Modern Warfare: 1850 to the Present Day.London:Viking Books.ISBN 0-670-82698-7.
The Hitler Options: Alternate Decisions of World War II.London: Greenhill Books. 1995.ISBN 978-1-84832-780-1.
Why the Germans Lose at War: The Myth of German Military Superiority.London: Greenhill Books. 1999 [1996].ISBN 1-85367-383-8– via Archive Foundation.
Without Enigma: The Ultra and Fellgiebel Riddles.London: Sharpe Books. 2018 [2000].ISBN 978-0-7110-2766-4.
The Searchers: Radio Intercept in the Two World Wars.London: Sharpe Books. 2018 [2003].ISBN 978-1-09-535843-6.

Notes

^A History of the Royal Armoured Corps(1983), biography on the rear dust-jacket flap
^"Commissioning date 23 April 1944".^{[dead link]}
^Armoured Crusader(1967), biography on the rear dust-jacket flap
^"MC awarded 21 December 1944".^{[dead link]}
^"Dated 5 October 1946".^{[dead link]}
^"Dated 3 January 1947".^{[dead link]}
^"Promotion date 1 July 1957".^{[dead link]}
^"Retirement date 3 August 1968".^{[dead link]}
^Invasion(1980)
^First Clash(1985)
^Schmunk, Robert B.Tsouras, Peter G.;Kenneth Macksey; Jonathan North (eds.). (eds.)."Greenhill's Alternate Decisions".Uchronia: The Alternate History List.Retrieved20 December2012.

[1] A History of the Royal Armoured Corps(1983), biography on the rear dust-jacket flap

[2] "Commissioning date 23 April 1944".^{[dead link]}

[3] Armoured Crusader(1967), biography on the rear dust-jacket flap

[4] "MC awarded 21 December 1944".^{[dead link]}

[5] "Dated 5 October 1946".^{[dead link]}

[6] "Dated 3 January 1947".^{[dead link]}

[7] "Promotion date 1 July 1957".^{[dead link]}

[8] "Retirement date 3 August 1968".^{[dead link]}

[9] Invasion(1980)

[10] First Clash(1985)

[11] Schmunk, Robert B.Tsouras, Peter G.;Kenneth Macksey; Jonathan North (eds.). (eds.)."Greenhill's Alternate Decisions".Uchronia: The Alternate History List.Retrieved20 December2012.

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