In August 1914 the mobilization of Imperial Germany's 800,000-strong army ushered in the first great war of the modern age a war which still stands as the greatest slaughter of soldiers in history. That German Army is also the best example of a particular period of military thought, when virtually the whole manpower of the European nations was integrated into mass conscript armies, supported by several age categories of reservists and by dedicated industrial and transport systems. In this first of three volumes the author offers an extraordinary mass of information, in text and tables, illustrated by photographs and colour plates.

This new addition to Brassey's History of Uniforms series covers the German Army at war from 1914-1918 and is the partner volume to the title World War One: British Army. The author analyses the uniforms, equipment, and weapons used by the German army on the Western Front. Many classic German items of equipment were created in this period and those innovations in equipment assisted their successes on the battlefield. Lavishly illustrated and includes not only details of service dress and regimental distinctions but also information on the Pickelhaube, steel helmet, personal equipment, and weapons.

Kraus Jürgen, Verlag Militaria , Austria , 2004 (English) Massive and wonderful, this 640 page tome in English is not just a helmet book. Everything from uniforms, hats, ammo pouches to mess tins are covered. The photographs are simply outstanding and the text goes where no text has gone before. The sheer breadth of topics is overwhelming. The approach is museum like and the proof is there. The English language version is just fine. The translation works it is not like babelfish. Much of the photo lexicon is based around "Probe" tagged items. These were examples placed in the Army museum at Rastatt. By having the example a standard could be made for that specific producer of that item. The pictures in the book mainly come from Rastatt and the Bavarian Army Museum. This is a look at the field uniform and equipment. The author envisions several volumes to deal with other parts of the Imperial German army. There are tons of period photos backing up the artifacts. This is 1914-1918 so wartime. Ersatz and wartime helmets are shown in a detail offered no where else. There are 4 main sections to the book 1. Development of the field gray uniform 2. The basic items of uniform 3. Uniforms and insignia of branches of service. Biggest part not based on regiment but branch. 4. Equipment. There is never enough in the write ups but the author admits there is too much subject. I will continue to read but this is amazing. There is a qualitative difference between the books published by Verlag Militaria and other publishers. Verlag Militaria books are so much higher quality. The books by Schiffers are attractive but do not contain the quality in the narration, pictures, or research provided by Verlag Militaria. This is wartime unlike some of the other books from by Verlag Militaria which cover the prewar only.

This third volume of a mini-series covering the German forces in World War I examines the troops that fought during the climax of the war on all fronts: the last great battles of attrition in the West (Arras, Messines, 3rd Ypres Passchendaele/Langemarck and Cambrai, 1917) and the collapse of Russia in the East. The 'Kaiserschlacht' campaign is covered, as are the German operations in Italy, the Balkans, and in support of Turkey in the Middle East. Uniform changes during this period reflected the introduction of new tactics and weapons and new types of troops, such as tanks and assault battalions.

Throughout 1943, the German army, heirs to a military tradition that demanded and perfected relentless offensive operations, succumbed to the realities of its own overreach and the demands of twentieth-century industrialized warfare. In his new study, prizewinning author Robert Citino chronicles this weakening Wehrmacht, now fighting desperately on the defensive but still remarkably dangerous and lethal. Drawing on his impeccable command of German-language sources, Citino offers fresh, vivid, and detailed treatments of key campaigns during this fateful year: the Allied landings in North Africa, General von Manstein's great counterstroke in front of Kharkov, the German attack at Kasserine Pass, the titanic engagement of tanks and men at Kursk, the Soviet counteroffensives at Orel and Belgorod, and the Allied landings in Sicily and Italy. Through these events, he reveals how a military establishment historically configured for violent aggression reacted when the tables were turned; how German commanders viewed their newest enemy, the U.S. Army, after brutal fighting against the British and Soviets; and why, despite their superiority in materiel and manpower, the Allies were unable to turn 1943 into a much more decisive year. Applying the keen operational analysis for which he is so highly regarded, Citino contends that virtually every flawed German decision-to defend Tunis, to attack at Kursk and then call off the offensive, to abandon Sicily, to defend Italy high up the boot and then down much closer to the toe-had strong supporters among the army's officer corps. He looks at all of these engagements from the perspective of each combatant nation and also establishes beyond a shadow of a doubt the synergistic interplay between the fronts. Ultimately, Citino produces a grim portrait of the German officer corps, dispelling the longstanding tendency to blame every bad decision on Hitler. Filled with telling vignettes and sharp portraits and copiously documented, The Wehrmacht Retreats is a dramatic and fast-paced narrative that will engage military historians and general readers alike.

Immediately after the armistice was signed in November, 1918, an American journalist asked Paul von Hindenburg who won the war against Germany. He was the chief of the German General Staff, co-architect with Erich Ludendorff of Germany’s Eastern Front victories and its nearly war-winning Western Front offensives, and he did not hesitate in his answer. “The American infantry,” he said. He made it even more specific, telling the reporter that the final death blow for Germany was delivered by “the American infantry in the Argonne.” The British and the French often denigrated the American contribution to the war, but they had begged for US entry into the conflict, and their stake in America’s victory was, if anything, even greater than that of the United States itself. But How America Won WWI will not litigate the points of view of Britain and France. The book will accepts as gospel the assessment of the top German leader whose job it had been to oppose the Americans directly - that the American infantry won the war - and this book will tell how the American infantry did it.

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.