Sherman Firefly vs Tiger: Normandy 1944 [Paperback]

Sherman Firefly vs Tiger: Normandy 1944, by Dr. Stephen A. Hart, is the second volume in Osprey's new Duel series. This volume seeks to compare and assess the relative merits of the German Tiger I tank against the British Sherman `Firefly' tank in the context of the Normandy campaign in 1944. However, rather than looking at the tank vs tank battles in Normandy as a whole, Dr. Hart focuses most of the volume on a single famous action on 8 August 1944, that resulted in the death of the famous German Tiger `ace,' Michael Wittmann. This methodology has its advantages, in that it offers a more intimate account of a particular engagement and allows for a blow-by-blow explanation, but it also suffers from trying to extrapolate too many technical and tactical lessons from a brief battlefield `snapshot.' Overall, Sherman Firefly vs Tiger: Normandy 1944 is well-written and engaging, although the argument that it advances that this particular action demonstrated the Firefly's `moment of triumph' is a bit of an over-stretch.

The opening sections of the volume on design and development and technical specifications are decent, but tend to summarize information on these two tanks that are already readily available. On the plus side, these sections provide a good introduction and would be useful for readers who want to know a bit more about these famous weapons, but without drowning in technical detail. Graphically, the volume provides color profiles of each tank, with ammunition. The author provides three sidebars on individual tankers: Michael Wittmann, Otto Carius and Sergeant Wilfred Harris.

The next section, Strategic Situation, lays out an overview of the Normandy campaign up to early August 1944 and then discusses Operation Totalize and the British efforts to trap the German army around Falaise. Beginning in this section, readers will note just a twinge of British chauvinism emerging to color this account, which seeks to downplay not just American but other Commonwealth and Allied participants. The only really sloppy section in this volume is that on Combatants, which has several errors and misconceptions. The author writes that in Germany, "each military district [Wehrkreis] had at least one tank training school and panzer training units." Actually, most of the individual panzer training in Germany was centralized at just two schools, with several others such as Putlos for advanced gunnery training (which the author mis-labels as a `maneuver area.'). Each Wehrkreis that was home to a panzer division had a panzer replacement battalion that did some unit training, but very few of the Tiger units belonged to a division - they were corps assets. Indeed, throughout the volume, the author does not seem to appreciate the distinction - the Firefly was organic to British tank divisions but the Tiger was not organic to any German panzer divisions in Normandy except some of the SS ones (not Hitler Jugend). Finally, it is also clear that the author is a bit hazy on the life of a tanker, since he writes that cleaning gun barrels "had to be carried out on a daily basis" and infers that this was quite arduous. Actually, punching the gun tube is normally only required after firing the main gun, only you are in some very wet, muddy climate like Burma. Track maintenance is far more of a grind, requiring constant attention and many bruised fingers.

The main action, the duel between a British tank squadron and Wittmann's four Tigers on 8 August 1944, is the centerpiece of the volume. In a nutshell, Wittmann's Tigers launched a counterattack across open farmland and were ambushed by British tanks in an orchard that hit them with flank shots from about 800 meters. Three of Wittman's Tigers were destroyed and the author writes, "in the space of just 12 minutes, Gordon's Firefly had dispatched three Tigers with just five rounds." This section is accompanied by a color battlescene depicting the destruction of Wittmann's Tiger, as well as a sequence of gunner's views of the same event. Most readers (except perhaps Wittmann's next-of-kin) will enjoy this section greatly. However, the author notes that "the Firefly emerged Triumphant" in this last great clash of Tiger versus Firefly, which is a bit over the top. This action was an ambush, pure and simple, and if the roles had been reversed (as they often were in Normandy), Wittmann's Tigers would have brewed up a bunch of Fireflys in the open. Earlier, the author notes that one British unit lost 21 out of 34 of its Fireflys in one day in July 1944, so it is unclear how the situation was really changed by Wittmann's death. In short, the Tiger still had superior protection, while the Firefly still had better maneuverability and numerical superiority, and each had guns powerful enough to destroy the other. The author never addresses mechanical reliability, but the Firefly also had an edge in that category, which further amplified its numerical superiority.

The author provides several charts at the end of the volume, but these only provide numbers for the fighting on 7-8 August. The key question, such as how many Fireflys were destroyed by Tigers in Normandy and vice versa is never addressed. Based on known information, it is likely that the Tigers enjoyed a healthy `kill-ratio' in their favor, at least on the order of 3-1 or better, although they were outnumbered by at least that. The author also makes little effort to discuss opposing tank tactics and avoids gruesome moments for the British like Operation Goodwood, but the evidence indicates that the British generally didn't handle their tanks too well in Normandy. Even the famed 7th Armored Division was sub-par for much of Normandy and was badly shot-up by Wittmann at Villers-Bocage. In short, this duel was decided by attrition, not technical or tactical factors.

When I first saw this book listed in Amazon I bought it right away. I was not disappointed. Though it is brief (77 pages of text), Stephen Hart does a commendable job of tracing the history and development of both the Sherman Firefly and the Tiger 1 tank. He also provides the armor penetration stats for the 17 pounder gun (Firefly) and the 88mmm cannon (Tiger). What I enjoyed reading the most was the combat performance of the Firefly against the Tiger tank in Normandy in 1944. Hart goes into detail how Wittmann's Tiger tank decimated the whole armoured battalion of the British. Hart describes in detail the combat engagements of the Firefly in battles such as the advance to St. Aig-nan (where Wittmann's Tiger met its destruction at the hand of British Fireflies) and the Battle for Le Petit Ravin (where the Firefly engaged Panzer IVs and the Panther). At the end of the book, Hart provides chart analyses of the battles involving the Firefly and Tiger tanks, specifying the tank losses. There is a bibliography that points the reader to more resources for further reading. Interspersed throughout the text are beautiful colored plates of both tanks (done by Jim Laurier and Howard Gerrard).

Hart gives tank buffs some great info that is not featured in other Osprey books. He gives a brief synopsis of tank aces for the Tiger (e.g. Michael Wittmann, Otto Carius) and for the Firefly (e.g. Wilfred Harris).

The contents of this book are as follows:

Introduction
Chronology
Design and Development
Technical Specifications
The Strategic Situation
The Combatants
The Action
Analysis of the battle
The Aftermath
Bibliography
Index

This book is a welcome addition to any tank buff's and military historian's library, since there are so few books written on the Sherman Firefly in such detail. I highly recommend it.

The "Sherman Firefly VS Tiger", by Stephen A Hart, is a must read for military historians and students alike. The German Panzer tank commanders were used to having a field day, as their Panthers, and tigers would cut through the M4 Sherman tanks like swiss cheese. The german tanks were by far superior in armour protection and firepower. The American Sherman tank was no match for the tanks of the axis powers, but what it did have going for it was a vast majority in numbers built, and a better track record for reliability. The Sherman proved to be a more adaptable tank when changes were needed for every occasion. The British, in the summer of 1944 rolled out its first sherman firefly variation, equipped with a seveteen pounder main gun. For the first time, German tankers in their massive lumbering Tiger tanks, had something to fear about the Sherman Tank. The Sherman was much more agile, and usually did well in city limits, as opposed to the Tigers which were better suited for the open field. The 17 pound main gun finally made the tiger vulnerable, and the moral of the British tankers increased dramitically, as reports of Firefly's destroying Tigers was filtering through. Legendary Tiger tank Commander Michael Wittman eventually met his demise at the hand of the Sherman Firefly, during a fierce battle, that is well documented in this book. The firefly became the envy of every American Sherman Tanker, who still had to do battle with 75/76mm shermans. This book proves to be a captivating read, that is full of great rare photo's and paintings, as well as thoughtful insight by the author. I highly recommend this book as a must for anyones military library.

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