Desert Training Center/California-Arizona Maneuver Area, 1942-1944 Historical and Archaeological Contexts

With the German Afrika Korps driving across the North African desert with impunity in 1941 and 1942, the U.S. Army realized that it might be called upon to assist its British ally in the fight against the Germans and Italians. Egypt, along with the strategic Suez Canal and the Middle East in general, was in danger of being lost to the Axis powers. It became imperative that the Axis be expelled from North Africa. The U.S. Army, however, had never fought a large-scale war in a desert environment. As a result, the Army Ground Forces designated more than 18,000 square miles of the Arizona and California desert as an armored training facility. Maj. Gen. George S. Patton. Jr., was placed in charge of establishing this facility and served as its first commanding officer. The facility would thereafter reflect his tough image and relentless training doctrines.Bischoff, Matt C. is the author of 'Desert Training Center/California-Arizona Maneuver Area, 1942-1944 Historical and Archaeological Contexts' with ISBN 9781879442757 and ISBN 1879442752.