Trial by Battle: Max Hastings Interviewed

The veteran chronicler of war’s latest title delves into the successes and frustrations of the D-Day landings at Sword Beach, for many troops their first taste of war, with our former Editor.

Max, it wasn’t long since we discussed your last book Operation Biting and you’ve already produced this fantastic book, Sword. How do you do it?

I’m an old man in a hurry, but there’s lots of things I still want to say about war and about soldiers. I’m now in my 80th year and you can’t expect to go on forever. I feel this huge sense of excitement when I think of things that one wants to say and one just wants to get them down on paper and get them out there before something terrible happens to me. I also love doing it. I don’t want to play golf. What I really like doing is reading and writing about the history of war.

And why Sword Beach, Max?

I was fascinated by this business of the men who landed there being virgin soldiers, that most of them had done nothing except train and exercise and become incredibly bored in England for four years between Dunkirk and D-Day. And when they landed, this was the first time they’d heard a shot fired in anger.