Fortress France (Stackpole Books)

Between the world wars, France constructed a vast and complex array of defences designed to prevent German forces from penetrating the French heartland as they had during World War I. Among these was the famous Maginot Line, the last of the great gun-bearing fortifications, but France also built defences along its coasts and in its territories in North Africa. Fully illustrated with photos, maps, and drawings, "Fortress France" describes the design and construction of these fortifications, discusses French defensive doctrine and strategy, and explains why these efforts proved unable to stop the German attack in the spring of 1940. It includes finely detailed plans, diagrams, and schematics of forts, blockhouses, turrets, artillery pieces, tanks, and more.