Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning." General Erwin Rommel A fascinating account of a deadly combination: the supreme German weapon of war in the hands of the finest military tacticians of last century. Illustrated throughout with full coverage of all the tank battles and campaigns in the Second World from the Polish Blitzkrieg to Rommel's final defeat in the African desert, along with commanders, strategy, tactics and technical details. This book is part of 'The Hitler's War Machine' series, a new military history range compiled and edited by Emmy Award winning author and historian Bob Carruthers. The series draws on primary sources and contemporary documents to provide a new insight into the true nature of Hitler's Wehrmacht. The series consultant is David McWhinnie creator of the award winning PBS series 'Battlefield'.
This is the history of the Luftwaffe through the eyes of those who served in combat. The rise of the Luftwaffe from the ashes of the Great War is traced through recollections of Luftwaffe personnel who manned the gliders and perpetuated the charade that this was a civilian undertaking. The heady optimism generated by the stunning successes of the Blitzkrieg era are soon overturned by the grim experiences of the Battle of Britain and the life or death fight for the skies over Germany as the road leads ever downwards to defeat and Hitler's promised Gotterdammerung. The book is illustrated throughout with extensive selections from Der Adler, the wartime Luftwaffe propaganda magazine. This book is part of the 'Hitler's War Machine' series, a new military history range compiled and edited by Emmy Award winning author and historian Bob Carruthers. The series draws on primary sources and contemporary documents to provide a new insight into the true nature of Hitler's Wehrmacht. The series consultant is David Mcwhinnie creator of the award winning PBS series 'Battlefield'.
This is the complete wartime translation by the U.S. Navy of the 1943 edition of the official handbook given to all U-boat commanders. The original handbook was compiled from combat reports and was regularly updated throughout the war. The handbook was an invaluable reference for every operational U-boat commander. Simply written and highly accessible for a wider audience, the U-boat handbook attempted to anticipate every possible situation and to advise on suitable tactics. This superb war-time primary source is enhanced by a rare series of photographs taken on an actual combat patrol and published during the time of the Third Reich in the book "U-Boot Auf Feindfahrt". Together the handbook and these rare photographs provide a fascinating glimpse into the world of the U-boats from a first hand perspective, and is essential reading for anyone interested in World War II from primary sources.
This photographic journal was originally published in the spring of 1941. It was edited by and carried a forward by Hauptsturmfuhrer Gunter d'Alquen, commander of the SS Propaganda Kompanie and editor of the official SS paper, Das Schwarze Korps. Many of the pictures taken in this book feature the men of Waffen SS Standarte "Germania". In 1940 the men who bore the word Germania on their cuff bands were fighting as a motorised regiment under the command of SS-Standartenfuhrer Karl-Maria Demelhuber. This is a unique account of the Waffen SS on campaign in the west from a primary source, edited by, and with an introduction by Emmy award winning author Bob Carruthers.
The Panther V evidenced a number of problems in combat, and this was the proof of the rushed development programme that was made obvious from the events at Kursk. However, despite its disappointing battlefield debut, the Panther is frequently hailed as the best all round tank of the war. This fascinating study by Emmy award winning author and historian Bob Carruthers draws on a wide variety of combat reports and unique primary sources to weigh up the facts in order to produce the definitive single volume overview of a legendary fighting machine. Included are numerous examples of wartime combat reports from both Allied and German sources,additionally there are a large selection of extracts from the Pantherfibel, the original crew training manual. This superb book is essential reading for anyone interested in tank warfare during World War II.
With the onset of the Cold War the pool of hard won knowledge gained by the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front was invaluable and had to be collected and systematically recycled to the US and British forces as quickly and as thoroughly as possible. The extensive interview programme eventually appeared as the German Report Series and today they represent a fascinating glimpse from the operational and tactical viewpoint of the war in the east at the sharp end. Featured is a detailed report on the principles of Russian and German night combat tactics, and an in-depth training manual written from the German point of view. Combining contemporary reports of the key characteristics of night combat with more obscure aspects, including how to use your eyes at night, driving equipment and evasive tactics, this excellent survey of sources builds into an absorbing account of night combat methods drawn exclusively from original wartime reports. This new compilation is essential reading for anyone interested in discovering rare and vital information on the combat experience on the Eastern Front from primary sources.