Kasserine Pass

Everyone knows the story of Kasserine Pass. The record tells a different one. In February 1943, German and Italian armor broke through American positions in central Tunisia, overran Sidi Bou Zid, and forced Kasserine Pass. The popular version stops there: green American troops, a German genius, a rout. But the drive stalled. At Sbiba, at Thala, and on the Tebessa road, American, British, and French troops held, and on February 22 the Axis pulled back. Fuel was not the reason. Kasserine Pass: Battle Behind the Legend walks the battle the way an Army staff ride does. Jim Pitrat starts with the decisions made weeks before the first shot, which left a coalition still learning to command together holding a thin line, facing two Axis armies with no single commander. He follows the fighting phase by phase and ends with an after action review of every army that fought there. With maps, a stand guide, and notes for every fact. After Action Shorts No. 1.