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The Panzer Lehr Division was one of the most élite German armoured formations in existence in early 1944. Its baptism of fire was in the deadly Normandy bocage. Although suffering heavy losses in Normandy, the Division continued to fight in North-West Europe until the end of the war, seeing particularly notable service during the Ardennes Offensive and in the Ruhr. The first volume in the new Helion series WWII German Military Studies prints an extensive number of reports written by former officers of the Division, principally its commander Fritz Bayerlein. Virtually all of these reports have remained unpublished since they were written soon after the end of WWII. They cover all aspects of the Division's history, although with particular emphasis upon events in Normandy, the Ardennes and Germany. A number of the reports include detailed order-of-battle and other organisational data. A very large number of situation maps are also featured. Important though the reprinting of these documents is, this book is made doubly important thanks to the linking text and expert annotations from editor Fred Steinhardt. In effect, this book provides an extremely detailed chronological history of the Division's activities, in greater detail than has yet appeared in print before. / This new series is designed at bringing into print previously unavailable archival material covering all aspects of the German Armed Forces during the 1933-45 period. / Volume 1 contains an extensive series of previously unpublished reports covering all aspects of Panzer Lehr Division's combat history, especially in Normandy, the Ardennes and Germany 1944-45. / Many reports feature detailed order-of-battle data and are supported by a large number of situation maps. / Extensive linking commentary and annotations from the editor mean the book as a whole provides an extremely detailed narrative of the Division's activities 1944-45. / Publication marks a major contribution to the history of the Panzertruppen during the final year of WWII.
The Panzer Lehr Division, a German armoured division during World War II, was one of the most Elite units in the entire German Wehrmacht Heer. It was formed in 1943 from various units of elite training and demonstration troops stationed in Germany, to provide additional armoured strength for resisting the anticipated Allied invasion of western Europe. Its great weakness was that it concentrated the cream of Germany's tank commanders and instructors in a single unit. Due to its elite status it was lavishly equipped in comparison to the ordinary Panzer divisions, though on several occasions it fought almost to destruction, in particular during Operation Cobra. For the first time in English, this book follows the division from Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge to the end of the war, showing how Germans fought Americans at St. Lô and Bastogne. Written in Kurowski's trademark you-are-there style, this includes numerous firsthand accounts based on interviews with veterans.
Jonathan Fennell captures for the first time the true wartime experience of the ordinary soldiers from across the empire who made up the British and Commonwealth armies. He analyses why the great battles were won and lost and how the men that fought went on to change the world.
The prizewinning historian and bestselling author of D-Day, Stalingrad, and The Battle of Arnhem reconstructs the Battle of the Bulge in this riveting new account On December 16, 1944, Hitler launched his ‘last gamble’ in the snow-covered forests and gorges of the Ardennes in Belgium, believing he could split the Allies by driving all the way to Antwerp and forcing the Canadians and the British out of the war. Although his generals were doubtful of success, younger officers and NCOs were desperate to believe that their homes and families could be saved from the vengeful Red Army approaching from the east. Many were exultant at the prospect of striking back. The allies, taken by surprise, found themselves fighting two panzer armies. Belgian civilians abandoned their homes, justifiably afraid of German revenge. Panic spread even to Paris. While some American soldiers, overwhelmed by the German onslaught, fled or surrendered, others held on heroically, creating breakwaters which slowed the German advance. The harsh winter conditions and the savagery of the battle became comparable to the Eastern Front. In fact the Ardennes became the Western Front’s counterpart to Stalingrad. There was terrible ferocity on both sides, driven by desperation and revenge, in which the normal rules of combat were breached. The Ardennes—involving more than a million men—would prove to be the battle which finally broke the back of the Wehrmacht. In this deeply researched work, with striking insights into the major players on both sides, Antony Beevor gives us the definitive account of the Ardennes offensive which was to become the greatest battle of World War II.
A German historian’s account of the Nazi retreat from France in the summer of 1944: “An important book [about] a surprisingly under-examined phase of WWII” (Anthony Beevor, Wall Street Journal). The Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, marked a critical turning point in the European theater of World War II. The massive landing on France's coast had been meticulously planned for three years, and the Allies anticipated a quick and decisive defeat of the German forces. Many of the planners were surprised, however, by the length of time it ultimately took to defeat the Germans. While much has been written about D-Day, very little has been written about the crucial period from August to September, immediately after the invasion. In Rückzug, Joachim Ludewig draws on military records from both sides to show that a quick defeat of the Germans was hindered by excessive caution and a lack of strategic boldness on the part of the Allies, as well as by the Germans' tactical skill and energy. This intriguing study, translated from German, not only examines a significant and often overlooked phase of the war, but also offers a valuable account of the conflict from the perspective of the German forces.