The Chief: Field Marshall Lord Wavell, Commander-In-Chief and Viceroy, 1939-1947 (1980) By Ronald Lewin
 
Ronald Lewin is a gifted writer and a very able, articulate, and astute military historian. His biography, The Chief, about Field Marshall Lord Wavell, as the Commander in Chief in the Middle East starting in 1939, and finishing as the Viceroy in India in 1947, covers a critically important time in world history. This book is a thought-provoking and carefully analytical study of an unusual leader and military commander. Lewin looks at Wavell's strategy and strategic military decisions during a very difficult time for Great Britain and the Commonwealth countries. Unusually, Wavell never wrote his own memoirs, as did so many other leading military commanders of the Second World War. He had a great gift in his ability to build confidence and trust within his senior leadership and also the troops in the field. He had the gift of trusting his chosen leaders and giving them the freedom and reign to run their operations at the point of contact with the enemy, and not be second-guessed by him.
 
Removed from his command, and replaced by General Sir Claude Auchinlech, Wavell is transferred to India and posted there as Commander of British Forces in the Southeast Asian theater, with the challenging mission of stopping the Japanese invasion and expansion across the area. Once again, Wavell demonstrates his strong and solid understanding of military strategy and what it takes to be successful, and win a campaign. His absolute commitment and belief in training troops to perform their duties successfully, and also being in excellent physical condition, became a key factor to the ultimate success in stopping the Japanese invasion of India and ultimately in driving them back out of Burma and surrendering in Rangoon in 1945.

A number of key world figures come into Ronald Lewin's excellent historical biography, including Churchill, Roosevelt, Gandhi, Nehru, Jinnah, Generals Dill and Chiang Kia Shek, and Sir Alan Brooke.
 
Hard Cover with Dust Jacket
282 pages
In Good condition