§ Mr. A. R. W. Lowasked the Secretary of State for War if he will give a list of those battles in the 1939–45 war about which official accounts have been written or are being written, whether for training or other purposes; and how much money has been spent in compiling such accounts since 1945.
§ Mr. ShinwellOfficial accounts of battles in the 1939–45 war figure in so many different kinds of document that it would not be possible without undue labour to furnish the information for which the hon. Member asks. If he has any particular kind of account in mind, perhaps he would let me know.
§ Mr. Lowasked the Secretary of State for War if he will give a list of the authors who are compiling semi-official histories of the various campaigns in the 1939–45 war; and what progress has, so far, been made by each.
§ Mr. ShinwellThe following semiofficial histories of campaigns in the 1939. 45 war are in preparation:
- (a) Arms and the Men, 1939–45 (the growth and development of the Army during the war), by Major-General Beith (Ian Hay).
- (b) The Italian Campaign, by Eric Linklater.
- (c) The African Campaign, by Captain E. J. Simpson (Evan John).
- (d) The Subsidiary Campaigns. by Christopher Buckley.
- (e) The Campaign in North Western Europe, by John North.
- (f) The Burma Campaign, by Frank Owen.
- (a) and (b) are in type and proofs are now being read.
220 - (c) and (d) manuscripts are complete and are being finally checked before being sent to the printer.
- (e) and (f) have not yet been completed, by the authors.
The above list includes only the semi official histories sponsored by my Department; other histories sponsored by the Admiralty and Air Ministry are also being prepared.