Lieutenant General Hans Speidel s Invasion 1944 tells the story from the German viewpoint of one of the most critical periods of World War II Indeed to most Americans the summer months of 1944 highlighted by the battles on the Normandy beaches represent the climax of the world convulsion Every detail of this epic struggle is today of interest not only to those Americans who participated personally in the battles on the beaches and in the Normandy countryside but to that still greater number who sweated and bled in Italy on South Pacific isles or in the Philippines or were forced to stay at home For the Norman beaches have now become a keystone in the arch of American military tradition worthy to stand alongside Chancellorsville Appomattox Chateau Thierry and the Meuse Argonne Our curiosity therefore cannot but be piqued as to what went on in the Chateau La Roche Guyon the headquarters of the German Army Group opposing the Allied Normandy armies as day by day