"German Infantryman at War 1939-1945 tells this story using many unpublished photographs taken by Gerhard Sandmann, a typical infantryman. Born at Vlotho on the River Weser on 25 June, 1918, he joined the German Army at Northeim in September 1939 and served as an infantry soldier until he was captured in 1944. The major difference between him and so many thousands of his compatriots was that he survived and so did his photographic record of the places he went." "Backing up the photographs are reminiscences and battle accounts from individual soldiers and official wartime reports. These examine every aspect of the daily life of a soldier - the bad times and the more fleeting good ones - the moments of sheer terror and those of comradeship. This book is not a tribute to war, but an honest attempt to explain what it was like to be a German infantry soldier during World War II."--BOOK JACKET.

To see the foreword, the introduction, a generous selection of sample pages, and more, visit the website The Wehrmacht website. In this unique volume, expert Tim Ripley introduces the reader to the world of the German army, covering in detail concepts such as mobile defense and the formidable Blitzkrieg, and explains why the Wehrmacht was able to fight so long, with such fearsome effectiveness. Also includes 180 color and black and white maps and illustrations.

On 1 September 1939, when Germany attacked Poland, the Wehrmacht numbered 3,180,000 men. It eventually expanded to 9,500,000, and on 8-9 May 1945, the date of its unconditional surrender on the Western and Eastern Fronts, it still numbered 7,800,000. The Blitzkrieg period, from 1 September 1939 to 25 June 1940, was 10 months of almost total triumph for the Wehrmacht, as it defeated every country, except Great Britain, that took the field against it. In this first of five volumes examining the German Army of World War Two, Nigel Thomas examines the uniforms and insignia of Hitler's Blitzkrieg forces, including an overview of the Blitzkrieg campaign itself. Men-at-Arms 311, 316, 326, 330 and 336 are also available in a single volume special edition titled 'German Army in World War II'.

A visual history of the German soldier, providing a unique insight into how they lived, ate, maintained themselves at the front, and how they behaved when out of line, through a collection of personal items and artifacts they left behind.

Between 1939 and 1945, close to 13 million men served in the German army - das Heer. The bulk of these men were infantrymen, who slogged their way, mostly on foot, from Finisterre to Moscow, Kirkenes to Tripoli. They swore unlimited obedience to Adolf Hitler and were ready to stake their lives for this oath: over 1.6 million men of das Heer were killed during the war and over 4.1 million were wounded.

A groundbreaking history of what drove the Germans to fight -- and keep fighting -- for a lost cause in World War II In The German War, acclaimed historian Nicholas Stargardt draws on an extraordinary range of firsthand testimony -- personal diaries, court records, and military correspondence -- to explore how the German people experienced the Second World War. When war broke out in September 1939, it was deeply unpopular in Germany. Yet without the active participation and commitment of the German people, it could not have continued for almost six years. What, then, was the war the Germans thought they were fighting? How did the changing course of the conflict -- the victories of the Blitzkrieg, the first defeats in the east, the bombing of German cities -- alter their views and expectations? And when did Germans first realize they were fighting a genocidal war? Told from the perspective of those who lived through it -- soldiers, schoolteachers, and housewives; Nazis, Christians, and Jews -- this masterful historical narrative sheds fresh and disturbing light on the beliefs and fears of a people who embarked on and fought to the end a brutal war of conquest and genocide.

A groundbreaking and comprehensive order of battle for German ground troops in WWII, from the invasion of Poland to the final defeat in Berlin. An indispensable reference work for Second World War scholars and enthusiasts, German Ground Forces of World War II captures the continuously changing character of Nazi ground forces throughout the conflict. For the first time, readers can follow the career of every German division, corps, army, and army group as the German armed forces shifted units to and from theaters of war. Organized by sections including Theater Commands, Army Groups, Armies, and Corps Commands, it presents a detailed analysis of each corresponding order of battle for every German field formation above division. This innovative resource also describes the orders of battle of the myriad German and Axis satellite formations assigned to security commands throughout occupied Europe and the combat zones, as well as those attached to fortress commands and to the commanders of German occupation forces across Europe. An accompanying narrative describes the career of each field formation and includes the background and experience of many of their most famous commanding officers.