The next book in the series #The Encyclopedia of World War II# - #Southern Battles# - covers the period from May 1940. From June 1941. The authors talk about the dramatic surrender of France and the Balkan blitzkrieg, the unsuccessful African campaign of Mussolini and the triumph in the same Africa of Rommel, nicknamed # Desert Fox#. Hitler, after a lightning success in Europe, switched to his main goal - the Soviet Union. Preparations for Operation #Barbarossa began#... Triumphal tank breakthrough of 1940 caught German military strategists by surprise They do not have time to develop new orders, while the allies are exhausted by heavy fighting and are practically powerless to withstand a powerful onslaught. What were the reasons for many of Hitler's victories? How could the French army, Fighting During the First World War , fall with such ease in 1940? The book tells of the Belgian surrender and the unconditional defeat of France, Mussolini's failed designs to create a new Roman Empire with Libya and the British victory in East Africa. After success in Poland, Norway, France and the Balkans, Hitler switches to his main target, the Soviet Union, and prepares for Operation Barbarossa... Unique photographs, maps of military operations, testimonies of combatants and diary entries allow you to vividly imagine the intensity of hostilities, cruelty and scale of losses of this period of World War II. Live, exciting material for all who are interested in the history of mankind