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Troop Leader: A Tank Commander's Story
Bill Bellamy was a regular officer with the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars from 1943 until 1955. He witnessed many of his contemporaries killed in action. This work offers an account of one man's experience of the battle for Europe in 1944 and 1945.
280 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
January 29, 2017
I've been reading a number of WWII autobiographies from German soldiers. When I saw this, and a string of similar ones for just 99p, I decided to take a punt. And I'm glad I did - it turns out this was a book I'd chased after before. However, previously it was only available as a very expensive paperback.
The account overall is interesting and contains some wonderful anecdotes - Lindybeige quotes a couple in one of his videos, which was why I'd originally hunted it down in the first place.
However, as a WWII campaign account it begins somewhat limited, as much of it is basically "truck driver in Normandy, after the landings". But once Bellamy starts leading a tank squadron the account becomes rich, enjoyable, and far more entertaining, especially for a WWII memoir.
Definitely a recommended read.
The account overall is interesting and contains some wonderful anecdotes - Lindybeige quotes a couple in one of his videos, which was why I'd originally hunted it down in the first place.
However, as a WWII campaign account it begins somewhat limited, as much of it is basically "truck driver in Normandy, after the landings". But once Bellamy starts leading a tank squadron the account becomes rich, enjoyable, and far more entertaining, especially for a WWII memoir.
Definitely a recommended read.
May 18, 2019
Following Bellamy from joining the Royal Armoured Corps fresh out of school in 1941 through to the end of the war, this memoir sees Bellamy participating in fighting across Europe, first in command of a group of supply vehicles in Normandy before being given command of the tank troop which he leads for the bulk of the book.
It's very much a personal tale and he gives very little time to explaining the larger military or historical context of what his unit is engaged in, assuming the reader has at least a rough idea of the way the war in Europe played out, and instead focussed on what it was like to be there in the thick of it. A good chunk of the book is made up of combat stories, including the one which won him the Military Cross, and these are uniformly fantastic. Stuff that you could put onto the screen in a Hollywood action film without a second thought. The rest gives a really interesting glimpse into the downtime between the action, which is something that is often glossed over in historical accounts.
It's also interesting to see Bellamy mature over the course of the book, too. He says himself that much of the writing was done at or near the time it took place, and that he has edited it as little as possible when compiling the book, and that's clear as his schoolboy eagerness to get into combat and win glory gives way to a deep affection for the men under his command and a desire to see them through the war safely.
I doubt it'll do anything for you if you've not got an interest in the subject already, and while he's certainly not bad, Bellamy isn't an unusually good storyteller (the strength of the stories are in the events themselves), but on the whole I found it to be a really engaging read.
It's very much a personal tale and he gives very little time to explaining the larger military or historical context of what his unit is engaged in, assuming the reader has at least a rough idea of the way the war in Europe played out, and instead focussed on what it was like to be there in the thick of it. A good chunk of the book is made up of combat stories, including the one which won him the Military Cross, and these are uniformly fantastic. Stuff that you could put onto the screen in a Hollywood action film without a second thought. The rest gives a really interesting glimpse into the downtime between the action, which is something that is often glossed over in historical accounts.
It's also interesting to see Bellamy mature over the course of the book, too. He says himself that much of the writing was done at or near the time it took place, and that he has edited it as little as possible when compiling the book, and that's clear as his schoolboy eagerness to get into combat and win glory gives way to a deep affection for the men under his command and a desire to see them through the war safely.
I doubt it'll do anything for you if you've not got an interest in the subject already, and while he's certainly not bad, Bellamy isn't an unusually good storyteller (the strength of the stories are in the events themselves), but on the whole I found it to be a really engaging read.
May 1, 2016
This book is a very good memoir of a 21 year old lieutenant in the second world war. It shows a real human perspective of the war with its high bits and low bits. A Great style of writing. however, could be confusing in the opening chapters. a Great read
June 13, 2023
Educational read.
This book is Mr. Bellamy's memoir or diary I suppose. At least that's how it reads. Which is a good thing really. It is very easy to read and makes you feel like you are there right beside him. Which I found to be exciting during the tank combat portions but somewhat tedious otherwise. All in all for someone like me who didn't know that much about tank warfare in World War 2 this book was very informative and educational.
This book is Mr. Bellamy's memoir or diary I suppose. At least that's how it reads. Which is a good thing really. It is very easy to read and makes you feel like you are there right beside him. Which I found to be exciting during the tank combat portions but somewhat tedious otherwise. All in all for someone like me who didn't know that much about tank warfare in World War 2 this book was very informative and educational.
August 12, 2009
A run-of-the-mill memoir. There's nothing spectacular here, nor is there anything which can be criticized. A solid tale of a Cromwell platoon leader who later moves into a Chaffee light tank as the 8th Kings Royal Irish Hussars fight their way out of Normandy, across France, and into Germany.
June 28, 2024
What a brilliant re-read. Again another book bought back in 2007 or 08 when I was down in Devon. I’d, understandably, forgotten lots about this book and picked it up to read whilst in Normandy this year for the 80th Anniversary of D-Day.
The author’s descriptive writing is spell binding. We are taken quickly to the beaches of Normandy (after a few turns in the sick bay) then the fighting through the bocage before the break out towards Holland.
Those hedgerow fights were tense and lonely, which is odd considering he’s in a tank formation of 3 with numerous crew members with him, but the sense of isolation for him and his crew is well described. One particular event where they simply can’t move all day and report back on the constant Nazi movements all around them, just hoping they aren’t seen.
Some real near misses for him and some painfully descriptive passages of friends and fellow crewmen who lost their lives.
I had completely forgotten his brutal assessment of the Communist Red Army in Berlin, how disgusting their behaviour was, how rough and ready, and outright villainous their soldiers were. It is a true contrast and anyone silly enough to hark back at the Soviet Union with rose tinted glasses whilst defaming the British needs to read those last few chapters objectively. Perhaps university faculty and students need to be shown them to give them some perspective. The Communist Red Army’s behaviour was nothing short of barbaric. The author even admits the chivalry that Rommel showed his father when he was captured in the desert and when the tables had turned the author made sure captured Germans under his command were treated similarly as repayment for his fathers treatment. Clearly he has no love for the Germans but he openly admits after seeing all the raping and murdering the Communists do in Berlin his mind changes and he softens towards those left over from the Third Reich and how they were forced to suffer for the Nazi’s crimes. There are some horrible passages contained about old women being systematically raped and how women were selected at random from the streets by the communists and forced to serve in the Russian mess’s then whatever else needed happening afterwards. Those poor women.
Apart from the graphic ending depicting the suffering of the Berlin women at the hands of the Communists, the book is a ‘good war read’. The author can put you right in the turret storming across Normandy and the Low Countries, we are with him during the rain, on the sunny relaxing days, during the shattering first few days in June 1944. It is excellently written, kept me engrossed, and has a layer of humility throughout it where you get the sense that the author was all for his men, his crew came first and nothing else, even if it meant him hot headly shouting at his Commanding Officer whose ill thought out ‘stroll’ to their position resulted in motar fire. Well done that leader.
A solid 5 star recommend.
The author’s descriptive writing is spell binding. We are taken quickly to the beaches of Normandy (after a few turns in the sick bay) then the fighting through the bocage before the break out towards Holland.
Those hedgerow fights were tense and lonely, which is odd considering he’s in a tank formation of 3 with numerous crew members with him, but the sense of isolation for him and his crew is well described. One particular event where they simply can’t move all day and report back on the constant Nazi movements all around them, just hoping they aren’t seen.
Some real near misses for him and some painfully descriptive passages of friends and fellow crewmen who lost their lives.
I had completely forgotten his brutal assessment of the Communist Red Army in Berlin, how disgusting their behaviour was, how rough and ready, and outright villainous their soldiers were. It is a true contrast and anyone silly enough to hark back at the Soviet Union with rose tinted glasses whilst defaming the British needs to read those last few chapters objectively. Perhaps university faculty and students need to be shown them to give them some perspective. The Communist Red Army’s behaviour was nothing short of barbaric. The author even admits the chivalry that Rommel showed his father when he was captured in the desert and when the tables had turned the author made sure captured Germans under his command were treated similarly as repayment for his fathers treatment. Clearly he has no love for the Germans but he openly admits after seeing all the raping and murdering the Communists do in Berlin his mind changes and he softens towards those left over from the Third Reich and how they were forced to suffer for the Nazi’s crimes. There are some horrible passages contained about old women being systematically raped and how women were selected at random from the streets by the communists and forced to serve in the Russian mess’s then whatever else needed happening afterwards. Those poor women.
Apart from the graphic ending depicting the suffering of the Berlin women at the hands of the Communists, the book is a ‘good war read’. The author can put you right in the turret storming across Normandy and the Low Countries, we are with him during the rain, on the sunny relaxing days, during the shattering first few days in June 1944. It is excellently written, kept me engrossed, and has a layer of humility throughout it where you get the sense that the author was all for his men, his crew came first and nothing else, even if it meant him hot headly shouting at his Commanding Officer whose ill thought out ‘stroll’ to their position resulted in motar fire. Well done that leader.
A solid 5 star recommend.
June 7, 2023
First published in 2005, 'Troop Leader - A Tank Commander's Story' is a biographical account of Bill Bellamy's experiences as a British Army tank commander, mainly in the period from just after D-Day until the period shortly after the end of WW2 in Europe. There are errors in detail, and caption errors on some of the supporting photos, but this is pretty irrelevant to the main emphasis of the book, which is telling Bellamy's personal experiences of events with little regard for the grandiose strategies being enacted around him. Reasonably well written, and very enjoyable.
February 23, 2018
Wonderful, very simple story of anecdotal mishaps and lucks, which provides completely different point of view than we are accustomed to, as it focuses on daily routines and personal notes, instead of strategical movements or propaganda material that is abundant in documentaries.
Warmly recommend to anyone interested in tank warfare, as it provides healthy break from highly technical books about the topic.
Warmly recommend to anyone interested in tank warfare, as it provides healthy break from highly technical books about the topic.
November 1, 2018
The book and story i think was very good i will definitely be reading this again and experience the war in great detail from the point of view of a soldier. The story in some parts is very exciting and others are boring and long like when the soldiers are waiting to be deployed, and the exciting parts are when they are in the action. All and all it is a very good read for if you are into world war 2 and when you want to see it from the point of view of a tank commander.
March 31, 2019
Excellent book, starts off slow and with, for the casual reader, too much detail of army travel and organisation.
Shows you the power of camaraderie in war, how opposing sides can still act humanised to each other, and gives a vivid image of the horror of war and what men can do
Shows you the power of camaraderie in war, how opposing sides can still act humanised to each other, and gives a vivid image of the horror of war and what men can do
January 1, 2020
My uncle was a tank commander in North Africa and Italy and wanted to get an idea of what life must have been like for him, and in this book with its real-life day to day records of events I found that.
February 6, 2022
Interesting combat memoir. Gives the reader a solid impression of the fog and logistical realities of war. Bellamy's anecdotes reinforce the idea that the "lines" in a combat area are fluid and constantly changing, leading to many chance encounters.
February 24, 2017
If you like war stories combined with British humor, this is the book you're looking for.
January 5, 2018
Little heavy on unexplained jargon.
November 11, 2019
Had to write something
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Ffggg bhgfhg ghbfd ghhft fdyhh he's hjjhgf hhjjjd fgtttf. Yhyheegv tytgff. Tyygyv. Yyyytrrrbh vjdryhg yytttfv huyyrrh hhyreeu gv gg. Gh
September 17, 2025
This was a delightful find
December 18, 2025
Good read and well written.
Good account of tank actions after D Day in France, Belgium and Holland. No heroics, just a sensible account of the actions that Bellamy was involved in.
Good account of tank actions after D Day in France, Belgium and Holland. No heroics, just a sensible account of the actions that Bellamy was involved in.
January 30, 2017
A competent journal of the commander of a British tank group at the end of the WW2. The author gives a good description of the actions of a small troop of tanks (three) as the participate in the landing in France and the Advance up to the border of Germany and into it. It is told in a quaint English language of "jolly good show chaps" style, not to be unexpected in a book of this vintage.
June 18, 2018
Real Life Comic Book
I read this book after first reading the Darkhorse Comics World of tanks series. This is where they got their story of the snakebite tank that was faster than all the others but discover to their dismay was made out of soft steel as a training tank. The comic book characters, just like they’re real life inspiration, voted to keep their tank.
I read this book after first reading the Darkhorse Comics World of tanks series. This is where they got their story of the snakebite tank that was faster than all the others but discover to their dismay was made out of soft steel as a training tank. The comic book characters, just like they’re real life inspiration, voted to keep their tank.
August 18, 2020
Insightful account of a dangerous time. Bellamy’s matter of fact prose often hides the true desperation of the situations in which he found himself.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews