tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52975493091331245112024-03-04T09:25:40.360+01:00Lars Gyllenhaal<em>blogging about military history from a Nordic angle</em>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.comBlogger378125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-7430862756857407252021-08-25T15:06:00.013+02:002021-08-26T11:39:45.270+02:00"She was not just difficult with the Gestapo"<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9VmUVM-2qMwhZTcsFA1_2DhE99oPxuGvKxr2PZA2TslP1C8gXaXzT-0RrZguKSnavW3NhsIcp7FViB6-vzi8_RM-0RNhnk52mTGz0M4fRC1cDchq-HPIfziZLvutoGq3NyvWayQHxu6QC/s2048/IMG_9420+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1516" data-original-width="2048" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9VmUVM-2qMwhZTcsFA1_2DhE99oPxuGvKxr2PZA2TslP1C8gXaXzT-0RrZguKSnavW3NhsIcp7FViB6-vzi8_RM-0RNhnk52mTGz0M4fRC1cDchq-HPIfziZLvutoGq3NyvWayQHxu6QC/w400-h296/IMG_9420+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b>Never before have I read such a rich, moving but also critical portrait of a WWII heroine. <i>Lindell´s List</i> delivers more than the title and subtitle promise.</b><p></p><p>A large part of the book deals with the escape and evasion organization for Allied airmen in France that the very British Mary Lindell founded and led. Looking only at this part there are several strong scenes that should inspire not least filmmakers. Let me immediately say that I am aware of the 1991 movie "One Against the Wind" based on Mary Lindell´s WWII experiences. But even though I have yet to see it I feel certain that modern filmmakers should take a close look at Peter Hore´s book <i>Lindell´s List</i>. </p><p>Having gone through the First World War in France as a Red Cross nurse, Mary Lindell in 1940 decided to resist the German occupiers in France long before there was any large resistance movement. Her immediate and stubborn will to resist against the odds is, the reader soon understands, a consequence of her strong, controversial, character. Few books I have read have made me sense a person´s character as much as this one. It is clear that she could stand her ground as few others. Perhaps her brother summed her up best: "She was not just difficult with the Gestapo, she was difficult with everyone!"</p><p>Lindell´s focus was always on the war task at hand, often a supremely difficult or dangerous task that no one had given her, but that she still saw as something she herself had to solve. Not seldom her own children had to pay a hefty price for her decisions. To quote her son Maurice: "She wasn't´t a mother anymore; she was an officer doing a job which she considered was to be done." </p><p>This tremendous devotion to duty led to Lindell´s death, or so it seemed. When her death certificate was about to be signed she came back from the dead, and more resistance work. </p><p>One might think that in a book like this the Germans are mostly minor, evil types. But several Germans come across as friendly and some truly helpful. The half-English SS-<i>Obersturmführer</i> Percival Treite is very much part of <i>Lindell´s List</i>, and one of the book´s most puzzling figures. </p><p>The women on Lindell´s secret Ravensbrück concentration camp list were taken to freedom and, eventually, health in Sweden by hastily painted Swedish Red Cross buses driven by Swedish Army soldiers. The Swedes part of this book, not least in the "Tuesday Club" (<i>Tisdagsklubben</i>) make it required reading for those with a special interest in Sweden during WWII. But <i>Lindell´s List</i> ought to be appreciated by anyone with an interest in occupied France and resistance work.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-16484906386005616082021-07-27T14:18:00.002+02:002021-07-27T14:20:31.253+02:00 Bletchley Park's Secret Source <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqMMH4WkPAg533e3ZL-F7BAkalU5djo-rQWVLGPZYXMEVOBy9A8FFLeQsHJeXF6SBQQxpCRwPrP9c_nmUFS6Xy2tFFb0h6cmUHq8vx2ErajA28U9UrqtTJspn_CnDYW_PhvSYasJ5l8hjm/s2048/BPSSFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqMMH4WkPAg533e3ZL-F7BAkalU5djo-rQWVLGPZYXMEVOBy9A8FFLeQsHJeXF6SBQQxpCRwPrP9c_nmUFS6Xy2tFFb0h6cmUHq8vx2ErajA28U9UrqtTJspn_CnDYW_PhvSYasJ5l8hjm/w400-h300/BPSSFC.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b>Having read and watched several books/films/TV productions about Bletchley Park (BP) my interest was aroused when I learnt that there was a new book about the little-known network behind the information supplied to Station X (BP). The Swedish Navy is also part of the story.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Let it be said immediately that <i>Bletchley Park´s Secret Source</i> focuses on the very secret Y service that ran a global chain of wireless intercept stations. This new book by Peter Hore, former Head of Defence Studies for the Royal Navy, especially illuminates the Y service Wrens – the operators from the Women´s Royal Naval Service. Thus the subtitle of this book: <i>Churchill´s Wrens and the Y service in World War II</i>. My main reason for reading this book was my interest in the German-speaking Wrens who listened to German radio chatter, but for those of you who are interested in the monitoring of Japanese signals this book is also for you. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">While many Wrens of the Y service had zero military experience there were also some really experienced ladies, such as Violetta Thurstan. Not only had she won the Military Medal for her bravery as a nurse in the First World War, she had been decorated by Russia and Serbia as well, had served in the RAF and the Spanish Civil War and therefore spoke several languages and had a good grasp of many military matters – key Y service skills. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Several Y service Wrens had been to Germany before the war and some had spent years there and even seen Hitler himself up close. Such a Wren was Elizabeth Agar, who didn´t know much about the Wrens but as soon as she met a smartly dressed one was intrigued and got a “[…] burning desire to join […] even though my only knowledge of the sea was that it made me seasick”. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">In the chaos of 1940 there sometimes was not even time for any training course, not even an issue of uniform! Those times also meant not only listening to the enemy but also observing Luftwaffe aircraft over Britain, sometimes close: “The girls became rather blasé, so they were surprised during a visit by a superintendent from London, when their visitor suddenly jumped into a ditch to take shelter.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">In the book´s chapter “Winning The Big Battles” the Swedish cruiser <i>Gotland</i>´s sighting of the German battleship <i>Bismarck</i> plays a vital role for the British naval attaché in Stockholm, Captain Henry Denham. The part that Denham´s report to London played in sinking the <i>Bismarck</i> is made clear by a personal signal from the First Sea Lord to Denham. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The author writes that “At the height of the war, the Y stations sent more than 3,000 messages a day to Bletchley Park” and it seems natural to agree that this volume must have been a major contribution to the success of BP. The Y service Wrens in Colombo on Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) even helped prevent a second Pearl Harbor. <i>Bletchley Park´s Secret Source</i> highlights a small group of women, often in miserable working conditions, that indeed had a real effect on the war.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-49163141903537900972021-07-15T10:41:00.003+02:002023-11-05T14:41:25.225+01:00Russian Military Vehicle Encyclopedia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWoJcMoKDlobGo8Jmr7fXakkhtJpLC0LpgCriCoUs2aPDj9XW33MavbqHXfVUm6Ki0FzUaxQuqx4W0OhhpPW9TjAipsHDCFux1CanRvrWz_3e3DOlUtRjQ5qEOZqB0crcDmupuRuTiRAE/s2048/IMG_8612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWoJcMoKDlobGo8Jmr7fXakkhtJpLC0LpgCriCoUs2aPDj9XW33MavbqHXfVUm6Ki0FzUaxQuqx4W0OhhpPW9TjAipsHDCFux1CanRvrWz_3e3DOlUtRjQ5qEOZqB0crcDmupuRuTiRAE/s320/IMG_8612.jpg" /></a></div><p><b>With <i>The Russian Army On Parade 1992-2017</i> James Kinnear has, with the help of several Russians and a Swedish publisher, produced an impressive three volume encyclopedia of Soviet and Russian military "tekhnika". </b></p><p>Military vehicle (MV) buffs and scale modelers have something to wish for, or treat themselves with. This sequel to <i><a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-soviet-army-on-parade-1946-1991.html">The Soviet Army On Parade 1946-1991</a></i> of course focuses on the post-Soviet parades on Red Square but also contains a great deal of information and photos of parades in other places, also with restored Soviet WWII vehicles. In addition, it has the best photo documentation I have ever seen of the most serious "demonstration of Russian armour" that occurred in Moscow 1993, when the Russian Federation was on the brink of civil war and the Russian parliament building was destroyed by tank gun fire. No wonder that this part is so captivating, the author was at the time living beside the parliament and a stray 7.62 round came through the author´s elder daughter´s bedroom window.</p><p>Thus this is a book not only about glorious parades but actually, especially in the introduction, provides a summary of recent Russian history - that has been more harsh and violent (the wars in Chechnya) than most readers outside Russia realize. The book has some good summaries of actions now largely forgotten, not least involving the VDV, the Russian airborne forces. The post-Soviet rise of the VDV can also be observed in the official parades. </p><p>In the most recent years other very interesting themes have become highly visible through parades, such as the growing importance of the Arctic, the Rosgvardia and remote control combat vehicles like the "Uran-9". </p><p>Like in the previous two volumes, this volume includes a photo guide and glossary of Russian military vehicle terms, that ensure the lasting value of these books. Like with volume two of this series, I totally or partially disagree with the author about certain passages, not least about Ukraine. But those paragraphs do not concern the main focus of the book. Although I have been a rather fanatic MV buff since the 1980s I learnt a lot from it. To check out several armour books from Sweden in English, visit the publisher <a href="https://canfora.se">Canfora</a>.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-71644640485985660772021-07-08T12:07:00.016+02:002021-07-14T08:45:51.116+02:00Sepals Base Investigation<p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqRs3_UVec5arB8lu42fUPo1KoO9fyOgnTtKbXuFLu1QYt3WHLqm-6_MX99hsdczhz2cxUhe0GJ0TaRzp6_d93y1IBudlLRbATOGn9kVbVh7C0yE2wUgWCyIZ0MWQzk_iRRTpknDvbCJRa/s2048/SFHQ+vingar.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1463" data-original-width="2048" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqRs3_UVec5arB8lu42fUPo1KoO9fyOgnTtKbXuFLu1QYt3WHLqm-6_MX99hsdczhz2cxUhe0GJ0TaRzp6_d93y1IBudlLRbATOGn9kVbVh7C0yE2wUgWCyIZ0MWQzk_iRRTpknDvbCJRa/w400-h286/SFHQ+vingar.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b>The most secret WWII Allied bases on Swedish territory are now being investigated by proper field research. Last week I had the privilege to take part in the investigation of an until now in modern Sweden basically unknown base under the Special Force HQ (insignia above with the standard British wings worn by many SFHQ </b><b>operators).</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-family: -webkit-standard;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The location of this Sepals base under SFHQ (and perhaps also the Norwegian XU) and most of the artifacts that we found can at this time not be shown, as the place and most artifacts are still under investigation by Swedish archaeologists. What I now can reveal is that a number of issues of the newspaper <i>Stockholms-Tidningen</i> found their way to this remote mountain location. Given the rarity of that paper above the Arctic Circle it is probable that these papers came to this place as part of the flow of weapons, ammunition, food etc between Allied embassies in Stockholm and the resistance groups in the Norwegian county of Nordland. It is known from Norwegian WWII literature that the place we searched was an important point in the secret supply chain to German-occupied Norway. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Among the newspapers we found there were several articles that really bring home how the reader back then learnt of the major events as they unfolded. The headlines with Stalingrad and 10,000 destroyed Soviet tanks, see below, remind of the scale and connect the base to the larger picture. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDVLNbCUOOIU5BqON31f7QgXQXaEnFjWfsGEU3Ehz_EVsha6Dmwgbnoihwzdlk468OndQbFQ07zkqrxHUskSnxSNxg_mu1-gm_pATqChd7zijPAkqNGT1zSZ0WrLTk997Z14niDhyphenhyphenzgQj/s1574/IMG_8549.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="1574" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDVLNbCUOOIU5BqON31f7QgXQXaEnFjWfsGEU3Ehz_EVsha6Dmwgbnoihwzdlk468OndQbFQ07zkqrxHUskSnxSNxg_mu1-gm_pATqChd7zijPAkqNGT1zSZ0WrLTk997Z14niDhyphenhyphenzgQj/w400-h286/IMG_8549.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ0z7LexU_XU6upOd9odnZuVl31FVkpn-5B2_0W2ahqPovMeFg5gMJY6znavH7PbCwSSPIMzwtZ5ZZT8FpEuBUJH-Cr-l2sKQHDNkE_xLmXWKEYTgwT_ZvVAvNmARnk16ew02ngxBtLVEx/s2048/IMG_8552.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1463" data-original-width="2048" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ0z7LexU_XU6upOd9odnZuVl31FVkpn-5B2_0W2ahqPovMeFg5gMJY6znavH7PbCwSSPIMzwtZ5ZZT8FpEuBUJH-Cr-l2sKQHDNkE_xLmXWKEYTgwT_ZvVAvNmARnk16ew02ngxBtLVEx/w400-h286/IMG_8552.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">I could not help being rather amused by finding the below article entitled “Invasion In Western Europe Excluded”, that explains how the German fortifications there had become so numerous that successfully invading Western Europe was now impossible.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyy4jntwEAEjn6KVbL-bWo5P7_qU9WbpBIxlOUC7h1vsLkf6dtWmXu5JjeAa5pRDnmKfo2kz4uuRjtlJyoUlhlfmI3hw4NLjso4H3Ept0eUO6KUNL6I4zQAxBiz_BiLJS59wYST4pHJRWW/s2048/IMG_8545.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1463" data-original-width="2048" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyy4jntwEAEjn6KVbL-bWo5P7_qU9WbpBIxlOUC7h1vsLkf6dtWmXu5JjeAa5pRDnmKfo2kz4uuRjtlJyoUlhlfmI3hw4NLjso4H3Ept0eUO6KUNL6I4zQAxBiz_BiLJS59wYST4pHJRWW/w400-h286/IMG_8545.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">We were also reminded by the civilian history of the place by several finds. Again, most are waiting to be properly identified, but below is one artifact identified as the foundation for making traditional Sami shoes.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjxE8q6QHsgjyd_jTbocmPXKJ1d4553eoMhvQbeEi6_s2FzBXVVshsDezVGHObop3aq_LFA01_UMHGvghT1op44lJAOe4ej_2YXLyOzEYK7ijUdGYFFtdXWA1Px0QG42ByEIgNHcgr9X2/s2048/IMG_8505.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjxE8q6QHsgjyd_jTbocmPXKJ1d4553eoMhvQbeEi6_s2FzBXVVshsDezVGHObop3aq_LFA01_UMHGvghT1op44lJAOe4ej_2YXLyOzEYK7ijUdGYFFtdXWA1Px0QG42ByEIgNHcgr9X2/w300-h400/IMG_8505.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><br /></span></div>Finally, I wish to thank all those involved in this trip for making it happen, and for good company in a most beautiful area of the mountains shared by Sweden and Norway. For those of you not familiar with the Sepals bases, check out the books by Roger Albrigtsen and myself. </span></div></div>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-60499534571754322452021-03-26T14:49:00.003+01:002021-03-26T16:11:56.357+01:00 Guarding Hitler<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRoelDuJd3ZXI_1a04Uuh2XwBKNW4_kPRe-XiS7Uhk6dWVuRCqq3aAQ-3I7sngC3Yw_a02mrQEym3JYY_nOrooubcPzllGZzi2jrYFS1PQ0rbjc23SgLw6FMUfABgnFIF6m1PGC50juJ1G/s648/Guarding+Hitler+FC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="450" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRoelDuJd3ZXI_1a04Uuh2XwBKNW4_kPRe-XiS7Uhk6dWVuRCqq3aAQ-3I7sngC3Yw_a02mrQEym3JYY_nOrooubcPzllGZzi2jrYFS1PQ0rbjc23SgLw6FMUfABgnFIF6m1PGC50juJ1G/w444-h640/Guarding+Hitler+FC.jpg" width="444" /></a></div><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><b>A 22-year-old Swiss student decided to kill Adolf Hitler and got very close to succeeding. The capture of two unusual Waffen-SS soldiers in Normandy resulted in another of the many close calls with death that the Nazi leader had. If you are keen to learn about the close protection around Hitler, his body guards and their vehicles, then this book by Dr. Mark Felton should be of great interest to you.</b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Mark Felton has become a familiar name to many WWII buffs thanks to YouTube. By January 2021 his main YouTube channel reached one million subscribers. But with books like <i>Guarding Hitler</i> he has shown that he is much more than a talented YouTuber. In <i>Guarding Hitler</i> he tells the story of the SS forces directly responsible for the personal safety of Hitler and while doing so makes it clear how complicated the SS empire was. The number of similar (competing) branches within the SS is quite baffling and reflects a basic feature of the whole German state under National Socialism. The <i>Sicherheitsdienst</i> (SD), the intelligence agency of the SS and NSDAP (Nazi Party), has become well known, but <i>Guarding Hitler</i> instead acquaints the reader more with the two SS forces responsible for Hitler´s close personal security, the rather confusingly named <i>Reichssicherheitsdienst</i> (RSD) that was not part of the SD, and the <i>Führerbegleitkommando</i> (FBK). To not complicate life too much I here only use the last names that these groups had.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><i>Guarding Hitler</i> is not least about the many attempts to kill Hitler – I found the Swiss student´s to be the most fascinating one. Although this subject has been covered in previous books and documentaries, Felton manages to make also these sections of his book highly readable. He presents own archive finds about the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) assassination plan called Operation Foxley. The plan, focused on sending a sniper team to Obersalzberg, was created due to the capture of two very special Waffen-SS soldiers in Normandy in June 1944 – soldiers that made the SOE realize that the security at Hitler´s Obersalzberg complex was not perfect. The prisoners opened up a window of opportunity for the SOE. In my opinion <i>Guarding Hitler</i> has all the ingredients to form the basis for a really strong documentary about Operation Foxley, that of course could be followed by a WWII “what if” movie. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Nordic readers may be surprised to learn from <i>Guarding Hitler</i> how RSD body guards protected also the <i>Reichskommissars</i> in Norway and Denmark. The RSD came to protect not only Hitler but many leaders of the Third Reich. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Aviation buffs will no doubt be most interested in what Felton has written about Hitler´s private air force including the “parachute seat” that was added to the personal Condor aircraft of Hitler. To quote from the relevant chapter: “Air travel was dangerous, particularly during wartime, yet Hitler seemed to prefer the risks rather than using his train for most long-distance journeys.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Hitler´s train is of course also present, the <i>Führersonderzug </i>and what I found particularly interesting in that part was what happened to it after the war, how it was used by different states and that Hitler´s saloon coach (dining carriage) was taken out of service only in 1990 (!) and is now on display in a Bavarian steam locomotive museum.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Well then, <i>Guarding Hitler</i> should be of interest to both the average WWII buff, WWII researchers and close protection specialists.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-56232858136140740222021-03-05T10:16:00.008+01:002021-03-29T08:18:37.507+02:00The Americans and Germans at Bastogne<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDamOhC8IDaQAmJAo9sOkvSat0lhQxWeVv2IHgsD6q7SSVk0uerjxu8bIi_uLabK1YWOPdvgwiCvtCTJ5u1iGs_GEbXrYiqErPS7eAk9nzGuF510xuMOHi2iJuOGo5K9H5b_VMsojeKi2o/s580/18973.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="404" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDamOhC8IDaQAmJAo9sOkvSat0lhQxWeVv2IHgsD6q7SSVk0uerjxu8bIi_uLabK1YWOPdvgwiCvtCTJ5u1iGs_GEbXrYiqErPS7eAk9nzGuF510xuMOHi2iJuOGo5K9H5b_VMsojeKi2o/w446-h640/18973.jpg" width="446" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-family: arial;"><b>Can anything more and also of interest be said about the Battle of the Bulge? This new book by Gary Sterne shows that it is still possible. This is a book of particular interest to wargamers and others who want to get into details of the fighting in December 1944</b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-family: arial;">The British author Gary Sterne is rather famous for his Normandy research, not least concerning the Maisy Battery (check it out!). To produce <i>The Americans and Germans at Bastogne</i> he located the early postwar interviews with several German commanders who took part. He then matched them with US Army reports and selected a large number of wartime and postwar maps. The result is a source that should be very useful for those intending to visit the areas in question, and for wargamers. Also, anyone wishing to research the most involved German generals should have this book. Waffen-SS <i>Oberstgruppenführer</i> (<i>Generaloberst</i>) Josef “Sepp” Dietrich is of course among the quoted generals but there are more pages with <i>Generalleutnant</i> Fritz Bayerlein and <i>Generalmajor</i> Heinz Kokott and others. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-family: arial;">Given that most featured German officers are generals the perspective is mostly on larger units, mainly the involved divisions. But from time to time you get to read about smaller units and even individual tanks. My impression of the <i>Volksgrenadiers</i> seems to be in need of revision as I understand from this book that their quality was very varied.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-family: arial;">The clash in thick fog between US Army Staff Sergeant Michael Lesniak´s Sherman tank and a German Tiger is memorable. From the explosive account of the fighting around the village of Marvie I conclude that if I have the opportunity to again go there by car I would like to see what the place looks like today. Perhaps some buildings still show signs of the fighting? I have found scars from WWII before, many times.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-family: arial;">If you are not into visiting battlefields I believe you will find that the most interesting part of <i>The Americans and Germans at Bastogne</i> is the chapter “German Commanders Assess the Reasons for Failure”. From it I note that “the failure to take St. Vith in time” is <i>Generalfeldmarschall</i> Gerd von Rundstedt´s number one reason. This was written down shortly after the war, without all the hindsight.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; text-align: start;"><span style="color: white; font-family: arial;"><span lang="EN-US">The book’s many maps should be of great interest, even though the image quality is not always the best. The photos are not that many but mostly good. </span><span>This is a book that one gets for the text and maps, there are already plenty of photo books out there. If only this 291 page book would have had an index, and there are spelling mistakes (names). But hopefully there will be more editions, and then an index can be added.</span></span></p></div>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-53552030474645608582021-03-01T13:02:00.003+01:002021-03-01T13:02:42.072+01:00 Total Undersea War<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV4SSO4Sdxo3rRzDy2KaCp-KCGGCfdk-mfsYY4TtoH2iT9nAeo43NxiyFXmlHPLVAZ2DPklSGYJWxCUrksM2JhfGeLbLisRd21HEort_Pcz-vRjp3TsPM67cLr6moqcAzZ2jcDuA7uFqge/s605/19411.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="605" data-original-width="404" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV4SSO4Sdxo3rRzDy2KaCp-KCGGCfdk-mfsYY4TtoH2iT9nAeo43NxiyFXmlHPLVAZ2DPklSGYJWxCUrksM2JhfGeLbLisRd21HEort_Pcz-vRjp3TsPM67cLr6moqcAzZ2jcDuA7uFqge/w428-h640/19411.jpg" width="428" /></a></div><p></p><p><b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Were the German U-boats in the Atlantic defeated in May 1943? Not only is that an illusion but submarine historian Aaron S. Hamilton proves that some of the last German sub operations, shortly before the big German surrender and right beside the North American coastline, are among the most amazing.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The book title, <i>Total Undersea War</i>, at first seemed a bit vague. But once you get into the book it becomes logical, as Mr. Hamilton is able to show how largely surface-bound submarine warfare was transformed by the introduction of an air mast, or “snorkel”, opening up a new era under the surface of the sea. Thus this book is both about submarine design, late U-boat operations and postwar submarine design. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Submarine buffs, and especially those that are residents of North America, will be richly rewarded by Hamilton´s research. If you are not already a buff you might have problems believing the Germans cruised so close to your shores even when the war was about to end. There is no doubt, however, that Hamilton´s book is based on hard facts. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">More U-boats departed for the East Coast in the spring of 1945 than at any point since 1942. Let that sink in. The US Navy took this German underwater offensive very seriously, and more than most people now realize. This was not least because of the possibility that a U-boat might launch a V-weapon against a US city or base. Why this V-rocket scare must have been especially troublesome can be understood by taking into consideration how Allied intelligence, in spite of all its resources, had failed to predict the massive German offensive in the Ardennes in late 1944. Hitler there proved that he could still deliver large and unpleasant surprises.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">In fact, in January 1945, the German Minister of Armaments Albert Speer made a radio broadcast in which he said V-rockets would fall on New York “by February 1”. We all know that this didn´t happen, but it is amazing enough to learn how despite a tight US naval barrier, German U-boats still managed to slip through, reach the East Coast and remain undetected to the end. To quote Hamilton: “[…] a submarine that didn´t surface and didn´t transmit by radio was almost impossible to track, find and destroy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">This brings us to the final chapter of the book, about the mystery of U-869. Here the author has gone to very great lengths to provide a credible solution, and any future expeditions to the wreck ought to use <i>Total Undersea War</i> as the starting point.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">This 416-page book contains plenty of fine photographs that I have never seen before, plus several interesting appendices.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-66429729047828406862021-02-22T11:16:00.015+01:002021-02-24T09:30:02.505+01:00Commando<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHYgCu_ppID6YgxWK0OxF0HteWrIEoY88d5XS2CM3yyd-C8DAo4ug3M0KTnbIbAVBeb032-SsX45GE4r0CbIIvS1oT8oJcCv6w0Xm8hCl4mSG6kdA8g4vwyY1oUZ6aqvzczVPwq-oUyzCP/s630/CommandoFCLG.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="404" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHYgCu_ppID6YgxWK0OxF0HteWrIEoY88d5XS2CM3yyd-C8DAo4ug3M0KTnbIbAVBeb032-SsX45GE4r0CbIIvS1oT8oJcCv6w0Xm8hCl4mSG6kdA8g4vwyY1oUZ6aqvzczVPwq-oUyzCP/w410-h640/CommandoFCLG.jpg" width="410" /></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">You may have read several books about the Special Air Service, but what about the soldiers that are instantly recognized worldwide by a single word, commando? Leaving aside the Boer origin, it was the British WWII adoption of the term that eventually led to global recognition of the word. A great place to start reading up on the early Commandos is a book from 1953 (!) that is now again available. </span></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The first reason to pick up this book is its charming personal style, secondly because it provides good details of events like the raids on Guernsey and the Lofoten Islands. The name of the book is simply <i>Commando</i> and it was written by Brigadier John Durnford-Slater DSO and bar, the man credited with establishing the first British Army Commando unit.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">I just loved reading how Durnford-Slater went about to find his “troops of the hunter class” to create a “self-contained, thoroughly equipped raiding unit” (quoting Winston Churchill). Here is an excerpt from the author: “I wanted cheerful officers, not groaners. A good physique was important, but size was not. I looked for intelligence and keenness.” You may have read something similar to that before, but then he goes on to describe accommodations and I was surprised to learn how, according to the first “Commando system”, there simply were no barracks. Instead, Durnford-Slater gave every officer and man of No. 3 Commando, established on 5 July 1940, a subsistence allowance and the man was then required to find his own accommodation and food. To directly quote the author about this idea: “It increased a man´s self-reliance and self-respect, developed his initiative and made him available for training at any time of the day or night.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">There was only one punishment, the order “RTU” meaning a man had to Return To his (previous) Unit. But as the selected personnel were all keen volunteers this was a very dreaded punishment. R</span>eading about the characters that passed through the training is in itself a pleasure and then we get to the first operation, Guernsey. As I do not wish to spoil your reading, suffice to say that Guernsey was a lesson how <i>not</i> to do things.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The Lofoten Islands chapter provides what none of the previous books I have read on the subject have been able to do. It very clearly explains the motives for the raid and then paints a lively portrait of it. Of special interest for us Scandinavians is how Martin Linge, founder of the Norwegian Linge (SOE) Company, comes to life thanks to John Durnford-Slater. Also splendid to get confirmation from the author that one of his officers while on Lofoten visited a post office and sent off a telegram addressed to A. Hitler. However, I still have read no report of how it was received at the highest level. I suppose it was never delivered to <i>him</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">It was just after Lofoten that the American Embassy in London sent forty US Marines to live and train with the Commandos. I had heard of this episode before but not read any details. Good to get some from Durnford-Slater, as well as his memories of Vaagso (the actual name is Vågsøy). </span>I learnt that the Germans even had a tank there, an older type but it could still have wreaked havoc among the Commandos. It was blown up while still in its garage. Perhaps some Norwegian reader of this blog could inform what type it was and exactly what became of it. This incident is pretty unusual plus, being a former tanker, I am extremely interested in tank-related actions here in Scandinavia. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">For me the 1942 Dieppe raid chapter provided another insight into early, and largely unknown, US involvement in European WWII combat. A party from the 1<sup>st</sup>US Rangers were made an integral part of No. 3 Commando for the period of the Dieppe operation. Three of these Americans were killed during the raid.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Simply put, this book is both a nice read and an important source for understanding the early Commandos and their fighting methods. It was great idea of Greenhill Books to again print <i>Commando</i>. I only wish the final operations in Germany had been covered a bit more. <o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-68879018090756847522021-02-05T18:00:00.001+01:002021-02-05T18:25:23.849+01:00 Marching From Defeat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePdTdpaTFtnhu5QEIJuU038CjQgN-GSA0RZ2BhyphenhyphenB1F_sNQlzXUsC0RAFS-FyGKSN2tCmDhHMgx4EtnVIWj4ncsxMtbKaVZNTbTfqDHzL0pA4FPWTmQLyuGBKxK148vv7XAxVbO-axBHru/s2048/MFDFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1380" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePdTdpaTFtnhu5QEIJuU038CjQgN-GSA0RZ2BhyphenhyphenB1F_sNQlzXUsC0RAFS-FyGKSN2tCmDhHMgx4EtnVIWj4ncsxMtbKaVZNTbTfqDHzL0pA4FPWTmQLyuGBKxK148vv7XAxVbO-axBHru/w432-h640/MFDFC.jpg" width="432" /></a></div><div><br /></div><b>A lot of people have seen “As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me”, a 2001 WWII movie based on a book by Josef Martin Bauer. Both can be summed up as an exciting escape story: a German soldier, Clemens Forell, is sent to a very remote Soviet camp and walks to freedom against all odds. However, it has turned out that very little in that film/book can have come from the actual life of the real Forell, Cornelius Rost. Well, is the new book <i>Marching From Defeat</i> by Claus Neuber better than Bauer´s book? </b><br /><br /><i>Marching From Defeat</i> is a book from 2020 in English but was published in German seven years ago, as <i>Marsch aus dem Untergang</i>. Simply put it is an autobiographical escape account by Claus Neuber, who was a German Army artillery lieutenant on the 1944 Eastern Front, serving in the 18th <i>Panzergrenadier</i> Division. Like thousands of other German soldiers he finds himself caught up in Operation Bagration, the huge Red Army offensive in the summer of 1944. He is then on the run behind Soviet lines for more than two months and during that time he is captured by the Soviets but manages to escape from his first camp. <br /><br />Neuber recorded his experiences of escaping from Soviet captivity in a report soon afterwards, and later expanded his account. But it was not published in Germany until 2014. To tell you what I think of his book I will start with the credibility and then what it was like reading it.<br /><br />Basically I wish Claus Neuber had met a more objective and professional German publisher/editor. Because his account has many signs of being authentic and therefore it should have been “left alone”, i.e. not been mixed with a lot of postwar thoughts. Of course the book could still have included postwar insights and comments. Actually, it could well have had some more postwar comments – from different historians of the Eastern Front. But the postwar insights and comments should have been in chapters separate from the wartime experiences. So, I object to how Neuber´s 1944 memories have been “developed”, because that process has not improved the book.<br /><br />Still, especially once you get to the start of the long trek towards the new German lines, <i>Marching From Defeat</i> is often an amazing read. One gets the feeling that these are indeed the thoughts, experiences and conversations of German soldiers on the run. Surprisingly often they are helped by locals and some of the most moving scenes in the book are the encounters between the author´s group and villagers that often had no reason to help Germans - but still did so because they recognized the human beings behind the remains of German uniform.<br /><br />I do not wish to spoil your reading experience but think the following quote from the author gives an idea of the challenges he encountered, without revealing too much: “Had I known about the ordeal that lay ahead of me, I would have given up all hope, but luckily I didn´t know and none of us knew because it was unimaginable.”<br /><br />Neuber encountered countless setbacks of all kinds but also learnt repeatedly how a setback can turn out to be for the best. Sometimes it is almost beyond belief how he could carry on walking.<br /><br />So, if you are into WWII escape & survival stories and/or have been intrigued by <i>As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me</i>, then <i>Marching From Defeat</i> should interest you. Hopefully some future book will examine Claus Neuber´s account in more detail, comparing it with wartime documents and also with similar fates.Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-63191790901855219352020-12-29T16:05:00.011+01:002020-12-30T09:36:40.787+01:00German Special Operations Book Of The Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNfbe4F3N_5193xI4Mp8aTJV8gOEC0Tigeeu7rWvp-odpWp3DPNJaNgHY-sD3azrGcsRoresr4IsUZG70iQO-aTs9XGXkDiX7QEcCzDMB6rXiCVlfNQLGjqRc2D6sogEsC7LeWhkw8APfV/s2048/TLSWWIIMFC+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1419" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNfbe4F3N_5193xI4Mp8aTJV8gOEC0Tigeeu7rWvp-odpWp3DPNJaNgHY-sD3azrGcsRoresr4IsUZG70iQO-aTs9XGXkDiX7QEcCzDMB6rXiCVlfNQLGjqRc2D6sogEsC7LeWhkw8APfV/w444-h640/TLSWWIIMFC+2.jpg" width="444" /></a></div><p><b>Prewar missions over the UK and Poland; German airfields behind Soviet lines and a "Tatzelwurm" mission against Stalin himself - there is so much amazing stuff in this book, and not just about the Luftwaffe´s most secret missions. Some spectacular photos are also in the book.</b></p><p>The two Russian authors Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov shed light on several German top secret missions with the help of both Russian archives and previous books only available in Russian. I reckon very few people in the West have seen most of the info and photos presented in this book. It starts with naming Luftwaffe officers involved in prewar reconnaissance missions over Poland, the Soviet Union and the UK. These missions were done mainly by using Deutsche Lufthansa aircraft and the first mission over the UK seems to have taken place in 1937. There are several exact officer and aircraft details in the text but here, like in other places in the book, one would have liked to have seen original documents and/or archival details - because the information is of such great interest. However, later on in the book some original wartime documents are shown, regarding other missions.</p><p>The invasion of Norway was of course preceded by secret Luftwaffe reconnaissance flights but nowhere before have I read about the exact aircraft used, and other details. There is also a Swedish connection as the reconnaissance aircraft mostly then used were Fw 200 Condors and part of the trip to and from Norway was a route over Sweden already frequented by civilian Fw 200s from Deutsche Lufthansa.</p><p>Most of the book is of course devoted to the Eastern Front and from these pages I believe almost every reader will learn new things about German spies, their equipment, the aircraft used and several secret German airfields behind the Soviet lines. The latter can be explained by very few radar stations, no Soviet night fighters as such and vast uninhabited areas. The many spy missions launched by the Germans over the Soviets, and much increased in numbers after the first German defeats, caused the Soviets to form two new formations: destroyer (anti-sabotage) battalions and a new type of security police, SMERSH, an abbreviation for "Death to spies". But, as the authors also note, quite often the Soviet security organs arrested people who had nothing to do with the Luftwaffe, Abwehr (German military intelligence) or SD (the SS intelligence service). These three German organs came to work together on the Eastern Front to such a degree that the title of the book might as well have contained the words "German special operations". </p><p>Having an interest in the Arctic I was especially keen to read the sections about German insertions in the Arkhangelsk and Komi regions. Even though I have read some about these missions in Finnish books I found lots of new details in <i>The Luftwaffe´s Secret WWII Missions</i>. There are also some to me new details about German operations in Iraq and Iran, even illustrated with a Luftwaffe aerial photograph of an airfield near Teheran. But even more spectacular are the often illustrated pages of the special ops with the rare and futuristic Ar 232 "Tatzelwurm". It had a distinct advantage for special ops: "When taking off and landing on rough ground, eleven additional pairs of small wheels under the lower fuselage came into play, to which special rubber caterpillar tracks could be fitted if necessary."</p><p>The highlight of the book is in my opinion the description of Peter Tavrin´s failed but still most amazing Kremlin mission, that includes both German and Soviet photographs and Soviet documents that highlight the role of a "Tatzelwurm" in this desperate 007-type mission to assassinate Stalin. These pages could quite easily be transformed into a blockbuster or a TV series (isn't there already a Russian movie?).</p><p>The book ends with psychological portraits of Hitler and the Abwehr´s Wilhelm Canaris, which might seem a bit odd given the Luftwaffe title. But after having read these portraits I think I see the point of the authors. With men like Hitler and Canaris at the top, no secret mission could have altered the final outcome.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-70449146246096241192020-12-23T17:39:00.003+01:002020-12-23T17:41:53.435+01:00Das Book<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizAUzLbKWtx8yIHY6YtXfSPnWY9FYaLW8cpUYhogAS3vuTfMkSaFzQvpsinkCh4xOtN8YMHKKCf9SODMLAOQl-6uQipkJTMhAln4vZ-dQmHHP4rNeZpYA2EcW9j8osLEXjTdtzlHB0DdPt/s2025/UAWin100FC+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2025" data-original-width="1513" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizAUzLbKWtx8yIHY6YtXfSPnWY9FYaLW8cpUYhogAS3vuTfMkSaFzQvpsinkCh4xOtN8YMHKKCf9SODMLAOQl-6uQipkJTMhAln4vZ-dQmHHP4rNeZpYA2EcW9j8osLEXjTdtzlHB0DdPt/w478-h640/UAWin100FC+2.jpg" width="478" /></a></div><br /><b>OK, you have seen "Das Boot" and want to know more about the U-boat arm, its submarine types, bunkers, missions, special insignia, awards, aces and downfall. You are also keen to see original artifacts up close. Well, in that case this new book is what you are looking for.</b> <p></p><p><i>U-Boats At War In 100 Objects 1939-1945</i> is written by Gordon Williamson and the name will probably ring a bell with many reading these words, as he has written more than 40 books - many about German WWII armed forces. Because of his long experience and not least several visits in Germany he has been able to produce a simply stunning book with 100 short but still rich chapters. Each chapter is illustrated with at least one high quality photograph, often more than one and quite often in colour.</p><p>Here are just a few of the chapter titles/subjects: The Snorkel; Enigma; Air Support; The U-Boat War Badge; Award Documents; Clocks; Toilet Facilities; The Atlantic Bunkers; The Visor Cap; Propaganda; Hygiene; U-Bootsfrontspange.</p><p>For Nordic readers there are two parts of particular interest: The Norwegian Bases and the Type XXI Elektroboot. The latter is the very advanced submarine type featured on the cover of one of my Swedish language books, as one of these submarines was salvaged by the Swedish Navy and affected Swedish submarine design a great deal. Well, that is not unique, German submarines in one way or another affected all postwar navies.</p><p>It is no wonder that the recently taken photos are in high quality colour, but it is quite amazing how Gordon Williamson has been able to find several wartime colour photos that I have not seen before. </p><p>Directors of future "Das Boot" films/episodes would do well to purchase a copy of this book, that I will call "Das Book". They should read it carefully and have it handy during filming.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-23088220529654187192020-12-19T10:13:00.008+01:002020-12-22T10:59:32.414+01:00Finest Aviation Book I Have Seen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZg85yB77gArORAxWxi-XCMU7GXRavk2H5BV7ZUJrAQHOIshIRSR_5I2rb0mHiJaMXQnsKZ5_HbX7gUD4JKqjrB4fVgluT_Shnds-MpDaXGyfkK84roDHdatNPdpznFJfUJaRJY2oEHLhq/s1299/SBCFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1299" data-original-width="961" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZg85yB77gArORAxWxi-XCMU7GXRavk2H5BV7ZUJrAQHOIshIRSR_5I2rb0mHiJaMXQnsKZ5_HbX7gUD4JKqjrB4fVgluT_Shnds-MpDaXGyfkK84roDHdatNPdpznFJfUJaRJY2oEHLhq/w474-h640/SBCFC.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>I have previously been impressed by Mikael Forslund´s work, but his latest book, about the American, British, German, Italian and SAAB bombers in the Swedish Air Force 1924-58, is so stunning it is doubtless the finest aviation book I have yet come across. But there is one annoying thing about it.</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This superbly illustrated 296 page aircraft book in A4 format has a title that I find a bit misleading: <i>Swedish Bomber Colours 1924-1958</i>. Given the narrow focus of the title and the rather high price of the book I reckon more than a few aviation buffs will wonder if this book is really worth the money. Well, the camouflage and markings of the aircraft in question are certainly covered in the best possible way both by spectacular photographs, several in colour, and many exclusive colour profiles. But the thing is that this book provides so much background and detailed history about the aircraft types and their use that it is more of a bomber aircraft encyclopedia than just a book about paint and markings. In other words the book delivers more than the title promises. Of course, that is better than the other way around, but it may also make some people refrain from getting this book. Now, hopefully some of you who have doubts are reading these words. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here are the aircraft types featured in this book, first I list the Swedish Air Force designation and then the international name:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 1 - FIAT BR</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 2 - FIAT BR 1</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 3 - Junkers Ju 86</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 4 - Hawker Hart</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 5 - Norhrop 8A-1</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 6 - Republic 2-PA Guardsman</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 7 - Fokker G.1 (not delivered but still featured on one page)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 16A - Caproni Ca 313</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 17 - SAAB 17</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">B 18 - SAAB 18</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Let me add that all variants are featured. Then there are the wonderful sections about Swedish bombers in foreign service, mainly Danish SAAB B 17 bombers in 1945 and the SAAB B 17s in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian photos and interview are incredible and I was very surprised to learn that two former Ethiopian B 17As in 2020 were being restored in Lithuania, of all places.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If you are into building scale models of Swedish bomber aircraft and want to find good photos and colour profiles this book will be like Eldorado for you. But again, this book is much more than a book for scale model enthusiasts, it will delight any Swedish Air Force buff and it also constitutes a great source for researchers and writers. Well done, Mr. Forslund, very well done!</div>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-71006675677142445732020-12-11T22:30:00.007+01:002020-12-12T12:58:46.808+01:00P-51 Mustang <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiBJGcSRB8v7QipXhFsoBBULdA_a4EtxzitmSKJ3vCsJNd7Zvnn_v4Lgqu_frrcOOzEGe7M0cB9fVk7ysm2nDSMYmCvNIB57z9tno-O25jDdNBUfqYiwR2WaypG8zY70lWGtBIQuJtvHTZ/s573/P51+RJ+FC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="400" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiBJGcSRB8v7QipXhFsoBBULdA_a4EtxzitmSKJ3vCsJNd7Zvnn_v4Lgqu_frrcOOzEGe7M0cB9fVk7ysm2nDSMYmCvNIB57z9tno-O25jDdNBUfqYiwR2WaypG8zY70lWGtBIQuJtvHTZ/w446-h640/P51+RJ+FC.jpg" width="446" /></a></div><p></p><p><b>The P-51 Mustang was first flown operationally not by the USAAF but by the Royal Air Force (RAF). This is reflected in this new book that should please both warbird buffs in general and especially modellers - here you will find sharp reviews of P-51 kits in all scales.</b></p><p>This book combines facts about the various Mustangs produced for the RAF and USAAF; text about how they performed (not least against the German Me 262); splendid b/w and color photos from WWII and the Korean War; superb color profiles; some photos of the plane in smaller air forces (including Sweden´s) plus a beautiful section about the plane in model form. </p><p>The chosen photographs are excellent and I have to mention one in particular, of Major James H. Howard - seeing the photo of him and his plane marked for six victories over German aircraft and six victories over Japanese immediately inspired me to build his particular plane. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for a single-handed battle against over 30 enemy fighters.</p><p>Before opening this book I was just vaguely aware of the last Mustang, the Twin Mustang, basically two Mustang fuselages joined together. Weird design - I didn't think it had seen any service. But I was wrong, during the Korean War Twin Mustangs were among the first US aircraft to fight over Korea and they soon, as well as normal Mustangs, showed that they were not obsolete. In my mind the Korean War was a jet fighter war, so the book´s section about Mustangs over Korea held several surprises for me.</p><p>Of the book´s 96 large size pages, 37 are devoted to the Mustang in model form, starting with the Academy Mustangs in 1/72 scale and then covering the different 1/48 and 1/32 scale models by various manufacturers. I was surprised at the large number of different kits and appreciate very much how the authors describe the pros and cons of them. It is also in the model section that one finds two photos of Clarence "Bud" Anderson´s "Old Crow". Considering both his Swedish roots and ace status I plan to build his plane in the near future and while doing so will no doubt have good use of this fine aircraft study produced by Robert Jackson and Lynn Ritger. "Bud" is still alive (!) and I hope he will soon be reading these words.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-28904122743740578552020-12-09T17:41:00.010+01:002020-12-10T10:36:28.285+01:00The LRDG In Action 1940-1943<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiixXJqgmFDzM30fxB2WavZgdZYmBg2qPu5iBKaI8IN_JRxyH-wFpDnxUF7ub9k8ij4buGNb7ERQUsmd7f0wTqm1t8tqz7mE6ikUjCiexnq0NHXGBiFq4uiBAyXMbsqCXOGXgRmUs6BEjnq/s2048/IMG_5212+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1463" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiixXJqgmFDzM30fxB2WavZgdZYmBg2qPu5iBKaI8IN_JRxyH-wFpDnxUF7ub9k8ij4buGNb7ERQUsmd7f0wTqm1t8tqz7mE6ikUjCiexnq0NHXGBiFq4uiBAyXMbsqCXOGXgRmUs6BEjnq/w458-h640/IMG_5212+2.jpg" width="458" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">This book is different from most books about the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) as it contains a great deal of rare or never before published photographs. It includes a lot of details of special interest to military vehicle buffs, special forces insignia collectors and scale modelers.</span></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The New Zealander and LRDG buff Brendan O´Carroll has made this book in the series “Images of War” truly stand out. To start with, most books in this series are thinner. This one is 215 pages long and largely photographs but also some really good text. Sure, it does contain some photos I have seen before – but as Mr. O´Carroll is a true expert who knows how to write informative captions he has added new value to those photos. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The many images in </span><i>The Long Range Desert Group In Action 1940-1943 </i>were taken both by official photographers and the LRDG men themselves, many come from private photo albums, drawers etc. The quality of the photos from personal cameras is not seldom poor (some have been enhanced), but this can both be forgiven, as they can still reveal a lot, and be explained – the films were often developed in Cairo photo shops with unclean water. The resulting images thus could show not only specks of dust but also hairs and parts of insects. Still, there are also plenty of photos in Brendan O´Carroll´s new book that are clear and sharp. Being Swedish I was particularly happy to find a new and crisp photo of a Bofors (made in Sweden) mounted on an LRDG Ford.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Uniforms and insignia of patrolmen are featured in some superb photographs I have never seen before. LRDG members could certainly look very strange and exotic! <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Several images ought to constitute strong inspiration for dioramas, and some of these also feature non-LRDG vehicles and I here have to make special mention of an Afrika Korps <i>Panzerfunkwagen</i> and a Marmon Herrington armoured car of the King´s Dragoon Guards. Simply stunning photos.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Those of you who have read the LRDG book I wrote with Karl-Gunnar Norén may recall the story of Nick Wilder, the LRDG captain who performed a miracle for Montgomery nor far from Tataouine, the town that later became Tatooine in the Star Wars films. Well, sadly we could not locate any good enough photos of Captain Wilder. But Brendan O´Carroll has succeeded in finding some photos of Wilder in preparation for the attack on the Barce airfield. It is just incredible to see these photos. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">You might think that the book ends with the LRDG operations in Tunisia – but this it does not! Instead, it follows the desert veterans to their next assignment as part of the Raiding Forces, Middle East, made up of around 200 LRDG patrolmen and 150 men of the Special Boat Squadron (SBS) and No. 30 Commando. In other words the book ends with some photos from Greek Islands. As soon as I saw them I started thinking about visiting these islands in a year or two. The vaccinations have started folks, so let us start planning to visit LRDG sites again – yet another reason to purchase <i>The Long Range Desert Group In Action 1940-1943</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-37569928370671184922020-11-21T15:38:00.009+01:002020-11-21T17:22:22.346+01:00SAS Jeep Operations in Germany and Norway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMAvb72CrO7Wd5cOOjmdzf5cj9ttmVXdrzvNPhKF3nv5DOumzOWo-axt5DpNMV6tXoVsdStFZHc9Ux4wqfkDdZ6RImtsiEeYZ0wabBHhs5PfkNzUqxMXUxv6q3vZp5S2geNKQwKI8EBxG/s2048/IMG_5100+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1462" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMAvb72CrO7Wd5cOOjmdzf5cj9ttmVXdrzvNPhKF3nv5DOumzOWo-axt5DpNMV6tXoVsdStFZHc9Ux4wqfkDdZ6RImtsiEeYZ0wabBHhs5PfkNzUqxMXUxv6q3vZp5S2geNKQwKI8EBxG/w456-h640/IMG_5100+2.jpg" width="456" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b>It´s not every day that you find a new book about the SAS in Norway and discover one more Nordic in the ranks of the SAS. Well, <i>With the SAS Across the Rhine</i> is mainly about final operations on German soil. Still, it is well worth getting and now for some details.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Unlike some SAS books this one by the late (he died in 2002) Colonel Ian Wellsted OBE, MA, is very personal, it has plenty of details about his love life. This may put off some readers, but should not – because Wellsted´s memoir highlights something probably quite common – how a turbulent emotional conflict at home can follow a soldier to the battlefield and affect his behaviour a lot. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">In January 1945 Ian Wellsted is trained in the French alps for operations in Norway together with a Danish SAS member I had never heard of before. No, I am not talking about Anders Lassen VC. Every Nordic reader into SAS history knows about Lassen. Wellsted writes about Paul Jensen, a former Spanish Civil War volunteer who after the German invasion of his homeland had become active in a Danish resistance organization until he had to flee to the UK, where he joined the SAS. No year for this is given but Wellsted writes about the man on several pages and Danish history buffs should thus be able to track him down. Would love to find out more about Paul Jensen, or perhaps that was not his actual name? Let me know, dear Danish readers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">To get into the right shape for Norway the SAS men are helped by French alpine rangers, <i>chasseurs alpins</i>, and the part about them was for me extra enjoyable as I have had the pleasure of observing them on an exercise. To be precise I was skiing with the 27<sup>th</sup>Alpine Ranger Battalion. I thus relate to Ian Wellsted´s warm feelings for his cool French hosts. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">After about a month in the alps the SAS skiers were told Norway was no longer a top priority (but Norway will come back on the agenda) and they were instead sent to Germany to there constitute an advance party with armoured jeeps. So, all you SAS jeep fans, here is a book you will definitely want to read. Wellsted´s jeep battle accounts are supported by 16 photos, not always top quality but none of which I have seen before, and some tactical maps. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">In Germany the author confronts not only German snipers but also a most tense situation with one of his own that obviously is suffering from extreme battle fatigue. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Once Germany has fallen Norway returns on the SAS agenda. Of course, we now all know that this also broke the German will to fight on in Norway. But at the time things were not so evident, and Wellsted paints a vivid picture of what Norway was like just after the general German surrender. One only wishes this part had been a bit longer and that there had been more photos from it. But the one photo that there is, is of particular interest, with many nice jeep details.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><i>With the SAS Across the Rhine</i> (155 pages) ends with a very modern take on what the WWII SAS was all about and lessons to be learnt from them. This part has been written by one of New Zealand´s greatest SAS history buffs, Terence Gardiner, a retired air commodore, and is in itself worth your time. <o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-36159732162054842012020-11-12T11:00:00.003+01:002020-11-12T11:44:13.666+01:00Hitler´s V-weapons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd6evqdu9qsr90tcQ6DbSZ5G19jh6B6aXT7oDXKFuuJEAkRDYN0wc9bWh6_0PfHd1UlT2ThR7r-ztCKnOPjgeijzTRmAxXjLBnQNHHAChjlRWUtakVZTjkZuEHMusL9-1ZK2N2ImdwLe72/s2048/HVWFCLG.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1535" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd6evqdu9qsr90tcQ6DbSZ5G19jh6B6aXT7oDXKFuuJEAkRDYN0wc9bWh6_0PfHd1UlT2ThR7r-ztCKnOPjgeijzTRmAxXjLBnQNHHAChjlRWUtakVZTjkZuEHMusL9-1ZK2N2ImdwLe72/w480-h640/HVWFCLG.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p><b>The story of the battle against the German V-1 flying bomb and V-2 rocket is more fascinating than I thought. The official history of this battle, recently compiled by John Grehan, reminds of how the unmanned aerial vehicle made its debut long ago and includes Norwegian and Swedish aspects.</b> </p><p>The very secret war against the V-1 and V-2 actually began in Norway already in November 1939, most unexpectedly. This was several months before the country was invaded and became a battleground. What happened was that the British Embassy in Oslo then received two letters from an anonymous German scientist whose name turned out to be Hans Ferdinand Mayer. The embassy staff passed on his letters to the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS/MI6) HQ in London for further analysis. The letters turned out to be a leak from the heart of German high tech weapons research, or as the official history puts it: "the first serious evidence to fall into British hands that the Germans were developing rockets for military purposes". </p><p>It is almost beyond belief how much the Germans poured into the V-1 and V-2 projects and this new book brings home both the scale of the German efforts and how the British analysts and leaders learnt of them and tried to prepare themselves for what was to come, and then acted. What the rocket threat more exactly consisted of became a lot clearer thanks to a V-2 that accidentally flew to Sweden on the 13th of June 1944. It was an incredible moment to stand by this rocket´s crater - it is still well preserved in a dark forest not too far from Kalmar in south Sweden. In fact, this crater is one of the highlights in <a href="https://www.lindco.se/bocker/200-svenska-sevardheter-fran-andra-varldskriget/">my latest book</a>. </p><p>Having recently researched the V-2 that ended in Sweden I can say that I know of no previous book that mentions the following aspect of what happened once the Swedish authorities had become aware of the cause of the explosion. Basically all relevant previous books report that debris from the exploded V-2 was collected and brought to Swedish technical experts and then the debris was sent on to the Allies, to British experts in Farnborough. However, <i>Hitler´s V-weapons </i>also states that two British technical intelligence officers were allowed to enter Sweden soon after the explosion, and here immediately made some important discoveries. In other words the first Allied examination of a V-2 took place not in Farnborough but in Sweden.</p><p>There is also an exciting "what if" scenario in <i>Hitler´s V-weapons</i> - the Special Operations Executive (SOE) selected a German technician for capture, a key person for the V-weapons. But the man turned out to be so closely guarded that the SOE deemed it impossible to get him alive. </p><p>Well, this 328 page book with 16 photographs (some quite moving) should please both V-weapon and UAV buffs, as well as civil defense and London historians.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-43275814854600931522020-11-10T17:49:00.003+01:002020-11-10T19:05:15.830+01:00The Battle for Norway 1940-1942<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieZdelp0nwTDNFExqPEmXgkyEBdRp_MBOiDAtVdIDJtl8HSRiHn1LFS9bn6HqZHhJJrHE92hXwPuZcG8DQVlb1V01xajCqaQSJreiHD9zZY8RYtF3ujNu95_IXKNVvOf1kqt82R_1qvy4a/s2029/TBFNFC+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2029" data-original-width="1521" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieZdelp0nwTDNFExqPEmXgkyEBdRp_MBOiDAtVdIDJtl8HSRiHn1LFS9bn6HqZHhJJrHE92hXwPuZcG8DQVlb1V01xajCqaQSJreiHD9zZY8RYtF3ujNu95_IXKNVvOf1kqt82R_1qvy4a/w480-h640/TBFNFC+2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>If you are researching or wargaming Norway 1940 and/or Operation Claymore 1941, this book will be of great interest to you. Because in <i>The Battle for Norway 1940-1942</i> you will find the original words of the commanding British officers. Written not with hindsight, but as they saw things at the time.</b><p></p><p>This 174 page book is mainly a collection of wartime despatches and is very ably introduced by the men who have compiled them, John Grehan and Martin Mace. They correctly point out the crucial factor for the Norwegian campaign of 1940, air superiority. As the Allies never achieved air superiority over Norway their attempts at contesting the German invasion forces were doomed. </p><p>From a Swedish perspective it is of special interest to see how clearly the value of the Swedish port of Luleå is stated. "To interfere with ore supplies to Germany from Luleå" is the second priority of the British forces. After that came preserving "a part of Norway as a seat of Government for the Norwegian King and Government". I incorrectly supposed that Luleå came after that. </p><p>On the other hand, the despatches and reports from Operation Claymore, the March 1941 raid on the Norwegian Lofoten Islands, are full of successful action. It was time for Hitler to taste some of his own medicine - the element of surprise. To attain this the Royal Navy first had to reach an exactness of timing, and so it did. The list of shipping and factories (fish oil plants) destroyed is impressive.</p><p>From a Norwegian perspective it is pleasant to read how highly the Norwegian detachment commanded by Captain Martin Linge was praised. In the relevant passage it becomes clear why Martin Linge became the founder of the most celebrated Norwegian WWII unit, the Linge Company of the Special Operations Executive. </p><p>For researchers the index of persons is great. There are not that many illustrations (16) but the book still gets a high score as it constitutes a source of great historical value.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-87803592840038844012020-10-30T14:36:00.010+01:002020-11-10T15:12:33.782+01:00The Most Amazing Tank Destroyer Ever<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXgnI3ZFouK12rxeXRIwvHe4MKCZLeVVVf1g4uKWx9Jnbw_Squ0grNYQuQ6IXPBp1ll274l4wYvtgEYIAAiT8mvinHXzWTyLiyy8bzYIK3t2yO9qDCKzB05UOAiZKqYU9ROBFiA4t0sHb1/s1200/SU100FC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="883" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXgnI3ZFouK12rxeXRIwvHe4MKCZLeVVVf1g4uKWx9Jnbw_Squ0grNYQuQ6IXPBp1ll274l4wYvtgEYIAAiT8mvinHXzWTyLiyy8bzYIK3t2yO9qDCKzB05UOAiZKqYU9ROBFiA4t0sHb1/w470-h640/SU100FC.jpg" width="470" /></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b>Which tank destroyer can be called the most effective? We could probably debate that forever. However, I find one tank destroyer a bit more fascinating than the rest. Not least because after 76 years it is still in service. There is now a brilliant book in English about it.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Both the Third Reich and the Soviet Union produced some larger and deadlier tank destroyers than the Soviet SU-100. But in the Red Army the SU-100 was the most powerful medium tank destroyer. At medium ranges it could take out both Panthers and Tigers, even King Tigers. So, why has not that much been written about the SU-100 in English? Well one reason is that it entered service only in the fall of 1944. Another being that you basically have to be Russian and work in Russia many years to produce a book like this. Well, half of the pair behind <i>SU-100 Self-Propelled Gun</i> is Nikolai Polikarpov, chief editor of <i>M-Hobby</i>, a Russian modelling magazine which has been in publication since 1993. I read several of the first issues and still have them. </span>Mr. Polikarpov´s research is one reason this new book is a dream come true for Soviet era AFV modellers. But it is also rich in details for military vehicle buffs. There is no detail of the SU-100 that is not featured, also in splendid colour photographs. The other author of the book, James Kinnear, has brought with him long experience of writing on military subjects, e.g. for IHS Jane´s defence yearbooks and Osprey Vanguard. In addition, the Swedish publisher, <a href="https://canfora.se">Canfora</a>, has done a splendid job presenting the work of the authors. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The combat debut of the SU-100 took place in Hungary in the first days of 1945. Here one of the few problems with the vehicle instantly became obvious, it lacked secondary armament, i.e. machine guns. This of course meant that to defend the vehicle against German infantry the crew would largely have to rely on personal small arms (SMGs) and hand grenades. The passage about the German documents about SU-100 employment in Hungary is sobering, evidently both combatants misidentified each others AFVs. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The pages about SU-100s in post-1945 service are amazing if one is also a Cold War history buff. In Soviet service the type was formally taken out of service in 1968. But that was not the end, as it then entered “strategic reserve storage” and was at least returned to some active service during the 1980s. The Soviet forces in Afghanistan used SU-100s to knock out resistance fortifications. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">There are amazing sections about the SU-100 in Czechoslovak and Cuban service. In 1961 both SU-100s and T-34-85s were in combat against the American sponsored landings on Cuba. The photos from Cuba should also inspire any Cold War modeler, a great deal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Then there is the story of the SD-100 (Czech-made SU-100) on display in the UKs fabulous Tank Museum at Bovington. I had no idea that it is one of several SD-100s knocked out by British paras in Egypt during the 1956 Suez Crisis. In general, the info and photos about preserved SU-100s and SD-100s is one of my favourite parts of the book.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The most remarkable thing, in my view, is the fact that several SU-100 again entered combat in 2014, when several companies of SU-100s were employed in the Yemeni Civil War. Accordingly, the last of the excellent colour profiles in the book shows a SU-100 in 2017, captured by Houthi rebels from government forces. During the Yemeni Civil War a number of SU-100s have of course been destroyed, but in 2020 at least one SU-100 remained in operation. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The photographs in the book showing the SU-100 in operational WWII service are not that many, but on the other hand they are mostly of very high quality. I am especially fascinated by the image from Berlin April 1945 with two officers in British or Polish uniforms – the perfect subject for a small diorama. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">This book is so new it even contains photographs from the 75<sup>th</sup>anniversary Victory Parade in Moscow 2020, when no less than seven working SU-100s paraded across Red Square. <i>SU-100 Self-Propelled Gun</i> is the second in the series “Red Machines” from <a href="https://canfora.se">Canfora</a>. The first was <i><a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2017/10/attention-tank-airborne-buffs.html">T-60 Small Tank & Variants</a></i>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">To sum things up, this is the way.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-19251039975410746222020-10-26T17:29:00.004+01:002020-10-26T18:11:14.030+01:00Surprisingly Good German Special Forces Memoir<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU727c_0AzHfYodLXezkyznYvNPKP8lIfl84KDUvhjhoRtzu2lL1xUoMO7D1pmxP9r_iyoo6-FkC80ORsuWgG4gCC3HCfXWrUpcX7x9pkRW4XGk4Gd7MGwN6mZVhwBdJlDZoImqWqN3llD/s927/BaSFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="927" data-original-width="675" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU727c_0AzHfYodLXezkyznYvNPKP8lIfl84KDUvhjhoRtzu2lL1xUoMO7D1pmxP9r_iyoo6-FkC80ORsuWgG4gCC3HCfXWrUpcX7x9pkRW4XGk4Gd7MGwN6mZVhwBdJlDZoImqWqN3llD/w466-h640/BaSFC.jpg" width="466" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="text-align: left;"><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><b style="text-align: left;">The special forces of German WWII military intelligence, the Brandenburgers, are not as well known as the British SAS, but just as interesting. However, I have to confess that the title of this book made me think that it would not be as well-written and credible as it turned out to be. </b></div><p>To me the title <i>Blood and Soil</i> somehow signalled propaganda. Still, I was very curious to read this book as the sources about the Brandenburgers are not that many, especially the good books are few. There are many misunderstandings about the Brandenburgers. Indeed, as Lawrence Paterson writes in his introduction: "What wartime records remain are often fragmentary or cloaked in cover names, leading to frequent misdirection and confusion. Many operations attributed to the Brandenburgers were either non-existent, or in fact carried out by other units of the Abwehr [German military intelligence service] or SS."</p><p>The name of the author of <i>Blood and Soil</i>, Sepp de Giampietro, sounds Italian and this is because he came from the German ethnic group in South Tyrol, Italy. One learns a great deal from this book how this group viewed both Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. The punitive measures that Italy directed against the ethnic Germans proved to be very counterproductive.</p><p>Initially the author thinks he has joined the German mountain infantry/rangers, the <i>Gebirgsjägers</i>, and is satisfied with that. But after a while his unit is attached to German military intelligence and quite a few South Tyroleans thus became Brandenburgers. The first period of the author´s military training is described with some nostalgia, in spite of what followed. </p><p>The key element of the special forces period of Brandenburger history (their status changed) was the wearing of foreign uniforms and use of captured vehicles, to enable complete surprise at bridges and other crucial objectives. The author very seriously discusses how he and others felt at the time about wearing different foreign uniforms. He also explains how the most important fighting unit was not the company but the commando, an unusually large and autonomous platoon.</p><p>The details are rich and fascinating about the German campaign in Greece 1941, the author was among the very first to reach the flagpole of the Acropolis. Then one gets to follow the author in the Soviet Union, up to the Caucasus mountains. The author writes well and not without humour. He is able to give a vivid idea of how things then appeared, how he viewed events at the time. But also shows in several passages how he came to change his views, not least regarding the policies of the Third Reich. </p><p>There are 30 photographs in the book and most of them are of great interest although not all are sharp. I would have liked more pages about 1943-45 but that does not really affect my verdict - this memoir is of great interest to all with an interest in special forces and especially in the history of the Brandenburgers.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-8800654713974259172020-10-21T22:10:00.011+02:002020-10-22T09:43:36.616+02:00The Last 1945 Battle in Northwest Europe<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwB8-IEtnjvFMak9YP4KzH1pNiqbRM9L1PWdinKB6QlYxS_TJSvQtC1VWYiu-K_KTzgpA7F10iVq_kdkcStwrWtc2Vd0opHP9bWu48zTR1rkQ5Jknd__kuwoduMIoABOLrbxP7pKIGmUqA/s500/NOBFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="355" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwB8-IEtnjvFMak9YP4KzH1pNiqbRM9L1PWdinKB6QlYxS_TJSvQtC1VWYiu-K_KTzgpA7F10iVq_kdkcStwrWtc2Vd0opHP9bWu48zTR1rkQ5Jknd__kuwoduMIoABOLrbxP7pKIGmUqA/w454-h640/NOBFC.jpg" width="454" /></a></div><p></p><p><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">The general public might think mostly of Nordics when hearing “foreign troops in German uniform”, while in fact the typical foreigner from Western Europe was from Spain and if one looks also eastwards the typical foreigner was from one of the Soviet republics. Thus <i>Night of the Bayonets</i>, is mainly about a very underreported group of soldiers.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">This new book by historian and journalist Eric Lee should be on your WWII reading list not only for focusing on Eastern European soldiers in German service. It is above all a surprising and well-written account of the last fighting to take place in 20<sup>th</sup>century Northwest Europe. Then there is a deeper reason for learning more about the homeland of the main characters, Georgia. By any measure a man from that part of the world was one of the most influential men of the 20<sup>th</sup>century, Joseph Stalin (born Dzhugashvili). Georgia has played and will play a large role in the fate of both Caucasia and Russia. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">It was in Oslo in the 1980s that I first heard about a strange and bloody battle in which Georgian troops in German uniform fought against much better armed German troops. This battle took place on Texel, a Dutch island, and ended only several days after the formal end of WWII in Europe. Ever since I have been keen to learn more about the fighting on Texel, what initiated it and what the underlying motives were. Sure, there have been some books and articles mentioning the battle for Texel. But until I read <i>Night of the Bayonets</i> I had only a rough idea of what happened. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Eric Lee wisely begins his book by showing how the Georgian Legion in German WWII service was a revival – there had been such a legion during the First World War. Of course, that first legion had no National Socialist profile, and it gained a good reputation in Georgia, from which the second legion could benefit. Georgian history in this respect is similar to Finland´s – during WWII the phenomenon of Finnish volunteers in German uniform was to a great extent a consequence of the battalion of Finnish <i>Jaegers</i> in German service between 1915 and 1918.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Just like the Finnish <i>Jaeger</i> Battalion veterans, men who had served in the first Georgian Legion played an important role in the formation of a new national army. The Soviet authorities did their best to erase the memory of that army and most parts of Georgia´s independent period 1918 to 1921. But Eric Lee summarizes those years well and lets the reader glimpse into an amazing alternative to what happened in Lenin´s Russia. German troops arrived in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi just two weeks after Georgia had proclaimed independence in 1918. Knowing that is fundamental to understanding the relationship between Germany and Georgia. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Likewise it is fundamental to Georgian history that there was a nationwide rebellion after the Soviet conquest. It took place in August 1924 and led to both thousands of deaths and a great career boost to a local Soviet secret police officer, Lavrenty Beria – later second only to Stalin and actually described as “our Himmler” by Stalin during the Yalta summit in 1945. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">During his invasion of the Soviet Union, Hitler´s forces never made it far beyond the Georgian frontier, although they somehow found the energy and time to climb Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in the Caucasus. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">While German WWII troops never were able to hold any sizeable Georgian town they did manage to take a number of Georgian prisoners, who were joined by Georgian deserters and Georgians in German and French exile. At first, while Germany was basically on the offensive, there could be no new Georgian Legion, due to Nazi optimism and racism. But long before the new legion was formed, German military intelligence set up a largely Georgian unit within the Brandenburg Regiment (Wehrmacht special forces). This unit was the <i>Sonderverband</i> Bergmann and by the spring of 1943 it was itself of regimental size. But, rather tellingly, all the officers in it were German. The Germans, especially Hitler, just didn´t really trust former Red Army soldiers. This somewhat changed, initially, with the advent of the Georgian Legion.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The low trust was quite rational, as very many Georgians (and other nationalities) had “volunteered” to serve in German uniform mainly to avoid starvation. Especially during the first year of the great invasion the conditions for Soviet prisoners of war were incredibly grim. The Germans realized that it would be much harder for their Georgian troops to desert on another front than the Eastern one. So, Georgians were sent to Northwest Europe, even to the Channel Islands (Guernsey etc). Still, even in France some managed to desert also in groups, and Eric Lee´s account of what happened in Hirson is remarkable – a Georgian group there managed to join the French resistance. There is also an amazing passage about a similar mutiny by Ukrainian troops in France.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Until April 1945 one of the most peaceful places to end up in as a Georgian was the Dutch island of Texel. Although it did have a large amount of bunkers, some 500, it was also a haven for children from the Dutch mainland. Why the Georgians rebelled there in April 1945 and not just waited calmly for the war to end has puzzled me ever since that day I learnt about the very bloody Texel mutiny. Well, to avoid spoilers I will here just say that Mr. Lee provides credible motives for this seemingly irrational course of action. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The Germans, of course, counter-attacked, not least with an impressive amount of artillery rounds. Texel, the peaceful oasis, was shot to pieces while the war in Europe was largely winding down. The reader learns about these events both through accounts of Georgians, Germans, Dutchmen and Canadians. Mr. Lee has found some fantastic quotes. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><i>Night of the Bayonets</i> also deals with the many misunderstandings and remains of Soviet era propaganda that still surround “the Russian War”, as the uprising on Texel is to this day called among the Dutch. More than 3,000 people died in the battle, mostly Germans. No Russians, but the name has stuck.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The photographs are not that many (20) but they are very interesting and some of the WWII photos of the Germans on Texel are even in colour.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">So, <i>Night of the Bayonets</i> is a great book, a real must if you are into the last WWII fighting in Europe or Soviet/Georgian history. <o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-76784143711441382792020-10-08T10:33:00.004+02:002020-10-08T17:29:40.135+02:00 From Averting Another Armageddon To Losing Norway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0ZU9UV-Jby6gK7diS_JuTqNMM9Ew7JGqxTf-sJJYGUGR8ZQnv6YltF4SE9Evyi8unnJzFESG0TCfoIIur5023qIZoL8kEHR2nG9-diNanFJjuUpfHHmF2So41XbO7n9YXAgVZpUAKsCn/s2048/NCLFC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1463" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk0ZU9UV-Jby6gK7diS_JuTqNMM9Ew7JGqxTf-sJJYGUGR8ZQnv6YltF4SE9Evyi8unnJzFESG0TCfoIIur5023qIZoL8kEHR2nG9-diNanFJjuUpfHHmF2So41XbO7n9YXAgVZpUAKsCn/w458-h640/NCLFC.jpg" width="458" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><b>You probably have read a number of books about Winston Churchill, and seen several films about him. There is now even a decent Churchill biography in comic book format - that <a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2020/04/churchill-graphic-biography.html">I have previously reviewed</a>. But Churchill was not ”the man who averted another Armageddon”. Those words were about the man most associated with appeasement policy, Neville Chamberlain.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Military and natural historian Nicholas Milton has written a very readable biography about “the architect of appeasement”, <i>Neville Chamberlain´s Legacy</i>, and not far into the book I started thinking of it as a good foundation for a TV series. Like no other book, Milton´s book (his first!) captures the incredible and genuine popularity that Chamberlain experienced following the signing of the Munich peace agreement on 30 September 1938. The prime minister who sincerely believed he had thus secured “peace for our time” soon thereafter received 20,000 letters and telegrams from a grateful public. To say that he was greeted like a rock star just after Munich is something of an understatement. More precise would be to say that he was treated like the Beatles. Even the royal family showed him unprecedented respect, also in public.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Nicholas Milton has found such a wonderful illustration that says a lot about the immense enthusiasm for Chamberlain and his policy – a photo of a Chamberlain doll that was actually produced, to cash in on the general mood in 1938. The name of the product was “Chamberlain the Peacemaker”. I believed that such dolls, mainly of Hollywood/TV stars, only appeared in the 1950s. I was wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">But Milton also lets the reader sense the completely different mood in the state that was sacrificed at Munich. The prime minister of Czechoslovakia even called his new task “a duty which is worse than dying”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">The British media was during these days almost totally focused on the peace that a large chunk of the world thought had been secured by Chamberlain. Especially in the UK Chamberlain was the man who had averted another huge war in Europe. Here is what Nicholas Milton writes about one of the few British newspapers that contained a different take, the Manchester Guardian: “Their diplomatic correspondent presciently reported, `[Hitler] will be master of Czechoslovakia´s main defences, and there is nothing to stop him from making himself master of all Czechoslovakia in the course of time´.” <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">How did Chamberlain then handle the outbreak of war in Europe, less than a year after Munich? This is where the book gets most interesting for us readers in Norway and Sweden. Nicholas Milton shows how Chamberlain viewed the Norway campaign, how especially impressive the German air component seemed to be. Here, as a reader in Scandinavia, one would have wished for some more pages. Still, this is an important source to better understand how the “strategic withdrawal” from Norway for most members of parliament was more of a “humiliating defeat”, and how this perception very much put an end to Chamberlain´s career. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US">Two major surprises in the book that I also feel I should mention are Chamberlain´s fanatical birdwatching, and how – as one of his last acts as a statesman – he was crucial for the creation of the Special Operations Executive (SOE). An international movement for German-occupied countries that was a total contrast to regular armies, and to the image of Neville Chamberlain. There really is a lot more to him than his, at the time, extremely popular policy of appeasement. Historical TV drama producers ought to contact Nicholas Milton as soon as possible.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-16747335909348544182020-10-06T14:48:00.009+02:002020-10-06T16:33:41.021+02:00 Essential Study of Foreign Volunteers in the Waffen-SS & Wehrmacht <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTIs-m9wAkrjnSOjMyRbiUjTpt3qkJzX-IOfOTvppwCzjVufaziJwURHLFHoJHc_rw8pcHWFA-kEX_KMZR878otSfIueJdWVfplB6Hs6nDQ9IpdX2NVp-eFk-7DmL0BvB1xb6oIxqpUmCS/s2048/IMG_2510+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTIs-m9wAkrjnSOjMyRbiUjTpt3qkJzX-IOfOTvppwCzjVufaziJwURHLFHoJHc_rw8pcHWFA-kEX_KMZR878otSfIueJdWVfplB6Hs6nDQ9IpdX2NVp-eFk-7DmL0BvB1xb6oIxqpUmCS/w480-h640/IMG_2510+2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><b><span>There are lots of books about foreign volunteers in the Waffen-SS and not as many about the foreigners in the Wehrmacht. What makes <i>A European Anabasis</i> unusual is that it looks at both categories, and contains a lot of credible military analysis.</span></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Last year a paperback version of <i>A European Anabasis: Western European Volunteers in the German Army and SS, 1940-45</i> by Kenneth W. Estes was published by Helion & Company and it is this version of the book that I shall now review. Unlike many books about foreign volunteers in German formations I would say it treats Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS volunteers with equal attention and the author´s background as a marine, tanker (lieutenant colonel) and professor of history has made possible a convincing evaluation of how the different volunteer groups actually performed. The volunteers from Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Denmark and Norway (I have placed them in the order of contingent size) are the main focus, and this is a good choice by Estes, in my opinion. Sure, there were also groups from several other Western European states, like Switzerland and Sweden, but as these groups never reached anything even close to the number of Spaniards and Dutchmen etc their significance for the battles of WWII was, basically, microscopic. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Well then, two-thirds of the West European volunteers in German formations came from Spain and the Netherlands. Kenneth W. Estes does, however, on occasion mention both Swiss and Swedish volunteers and in one case highlights a Swiss national, Dr. Franz Riedweg, as he was a key figure in the Waffen-SS recruitment program aimed at Germanic populations. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The author in no way hides the fact that <i>Volksdeutsche</i> from Eastern and Southern Europe played the major role in alleviating the mostly unsuccessful recruiting in Western Europe, especially in Scandinavia. Here the author could have inserted a quote from my co-author Lennart Westberg about how dissatisfied Hitler was with the low Swedish turnout, barely 200 men. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">In the Netherlands the recruiting drive had a rather different level of support. Even the former Dutch Army Chief of Staff, General Hendrik Seyffardt, lent his prestige for a Dutch national “legion” under German SS command. However, it should be noted (as Estes does) that Anton Mussert, leader of the Dutch collaborationist NSB, was too optimistic about Dutch willingness to volunteer for German frontline formations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Speaking of the frontline, the Wehrmacht´s Spanish Division experienced over three thousand (!) casualties in the fighting at Krasny Bor and the Izhora alone. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Although Estes has concentrated on understanding the fate of contingents and units, he also presents fascinating details about individual volunteers - men that mostly went down with the Third Reich but in some cases also became rather successful, like the first commander of the Spanish Division, General Augustin Munoz Grandes. In fact, Munoz Grandes became the second-ranking man in the postwar Franco regime. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Of the book´s 50 photos and paintings most are interesting and often depict Spaniards and Belgians (Walloons). In addition there are 15 useful maps. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-US"><i>A European Anabasis</i> remains an essential study to better understand the complicated German use of foreign volunteers from Western Europe</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-US">, and their actual military/political value.</span></span>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-46504745469110648342020-09-30T20:24:00.007+02:002020-09-30T23:30:16.863+02:00Hitler´s Hangmen: The Secret German Plot to Kill Churchill<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoLt2rOjy-VLQs5g0WLYaaLDPzLRnomqRObwGZygwAnAJK9Sg9x4i4wGquvT5pQP43qxVhj6Wo6kMwHV4poxEgKEAgl8iu-zMZBVl1SrnBG1Oh31aqSdZiL8zSEn_dnYzklkpEb80OcuU/s2048/IMG_1791+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1457" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQoLt2rOjy-VLQs5g0WLYaaLDPzLRnomqRObwGZygwAnAJK9Sg9x4i4wGquvT5pQP43qxVhj6Wo6kMwHV4poxEgKEAgl8iu-zMZBVl1SrnBG1Oh31aqSdZiL8zSEn_dnYzklkpEb80OcuU/w456-h640/IMG_1791+2.jpg" width="456" /></a></div><i>German prisoners of war in the UK had ambitious plans for December 1944.</i><div><br /></div><div><div><b>Years of research by retired Queen´s Counsel Brian Lett has led him to present spectacular conclusions about German plans for the UK connected to the German 1944 Ardennes campaign. This book is of special interest both to those into late German plans and fans of exploring WWII places. </b></div><div><br /></div><div>Recently I have reviewed two other books by Brian Lett that have expanded my knowledge of WWII special operations, see my blog posts <a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2020/03/a-deniable-operation-under-swedish-flag.html">"A Deniable Operation Under the Swedish Flag"</a> and <a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2020/09/soes-mastermind.html">"SOE:s Mastermind"</a>. Here I will review <i>Hitler´s Hangmen: The Secret German Plot to Kill Churchill</i>, a 2019 book by Lett about British fascists, Axis POWs in the UK and how these, possibly even working together, might have affected world history during the German 1944 Ardennes offensive.</div><div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>Having practiced law for almost half a century it is no wonder that Brian Lett begins his book with a thorough explanation of the Vehmic court, a German punishment court with medieval origins. This vigilante court system was revived among German POWs, also in Britain. Vehmic "justice" seems to have made many German POWs feel that the Third Reich was present also in very small and rural British locations. Lett has visited and photographed a number of these German POW places, and the book will surely inspire several readers to themselves visit them. Few camps are as unchanged as Camp 21 in Scottish Comrie ("British Colditz"), but I must say that even the rather small traces that remain of Camp 17 in Lodge Moor, Sheffield, hold a strange attraction (I confess to being a bit fascinated by WWII-related sites, my latest book is about visiting <a href="https://www.lindco.se/bocker/200-svenska-sevardheter-fran-andra-varldskriget/">200 WWII sites in Sweden</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div>Now, most readers will be aware of the British Union of Fascists (BUF) under Oswald Mosley - and the BUF certainly is part of this book - but Brian Lett shows that Mosley at the time was only one of several influential fascists in British society. Lett paints portraits also of British fascists like Arnold Leese and his Imperial Fascist League, and MP Jock Ramsay and his Right Club. The latter seems to have had special opportunities to cause serious damage. </div><div><br /></div><div>Considering the information that Brian Lett has provided about British fascists I would say that most (or even all?) authors outside Britain have underestimated the original British fascist groups and are largely ignorant of the Right Club.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another reason to read Brian Lett´s latest book is that he writes eloquently about characters like the head of Churchill´s personal security, Detective Inspector Walter Thompson, and the officer of the German Army who became the head of the London Interrogation Centre (London Cage), Colonel Alexander Scotland. </div></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Well, what evidence does the author present to justify the sensational subtitle of this book, <i>The Secret German Plot to Kill Churchill</i>? Quite a lot hangs on the plans developed in the Devizes Camp in Wiltshire and I would like to know more about the interrogation team from the US XVIII Airborne Corps that discovered the Devizes plan. To begin with I will read the whole book one more time, not least for the sheer pleasure, but then I hope to some day get more details both about the interrogators and the interrogated.</div>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-78283319268213674542020-09-28T20:18:00.007+02:002020-09-30T23:33:23.327+02:00SOE´s Mastermind<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmoH0xG57XCV485-zu7CTUuMLORBLPqmpOUBDquS08okC5iRH4n7_mV5ZumxLrNNtewPBkdyaYMBujTJro9wPneH0FqNlX4EVbe4nGoEeYHHmoy47NV8zBe7a0uqiKBof0ZyZ2SouqGFl/s2011/SMFCWW.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2011" data-original-width="1374" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmoH0xG57XCV485-zu7CTUuMLORBLPqmpOUBDquS08okC5iRH4n7_mV5ZumxLrNNtewPBkdyaYMBujTJro9wPneH0FqNlX4EVbe4nGoEeYHHmoy47NV8zBe7a0uqiKBof0ZyZ2SouqGFl/w438-h640/SMFCWW.jpg" width="438" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">A great read about one of the most influential special operations officers of all time.</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><b>His codename was actually “M” as Operations and Training Director of the Special Operations Executive (SOE). He was one of the leading British officers on the ground in Arctic Norway 1940. Long before that he had served in Arctic Russia.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Thus I kick myself for not sooner having read this terrific book about Sir Colin Gubbins. <i>SOE´s Mastermind</i> was first published in 2016 and reviews ought not to appear so long afterwards. But, better late than never. Lawyer and SOE expert Brian Lett starts his book perfectly with the escape from Germany in 1914 that was one of the most fundamental learning experiences of young Colin. Then follow years of extreme hardship as a gunner in the First World War and immediately afterwards, in 1919, on the Russian Archangel front. There he had to adapt not only to the Arctic but also to Soviet fighting methods.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">On Ireland and in India Colin Gubbins, initially a very conventional warrior, had to learn even more about irregular fighting methods. The Irish Republican Volunteers became his best “teachers” in how to undermine a conventional army, the British Army. The Army realized that Gubbins had learnt a thing or two about irregular warfare and thus he came to write three handbooks for a planned British resistance movement, the first being <i>The Art of Guerilla Warfare</i>, then <i>A Partisan Leader´s Handbook</i> and finally <i>How to Use High Explosives</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">But Lieutenant Colonel Gubbins was not to become an armchair general - due to various mishaps he had to assume the role of Temporary Brigadier not far from the Arctic Circle in Norway. In spite of very little relevant training and unfavourable geographical conditions he managed to put up a rather good fight against the Germans, until ordered to evacuate his brigade. In spite of being under attack he managed quite well, earning the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). Many of the men he had led in Norway were recruited into the newly formed Commandos. Gubbins himself was needed elsewhere, to form the British guerrilla army called “Auxiliary Units” or “Auxies” that were never employed but would no doubt have made life difficult for the Germans in an occupied United Kingdom.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Well, then follow the years as SOE´s mastermind, from 1943 also formal overall boss at SOE. Author Brian Lett refrained from writing another history of SOE, instead he mainly focused on what leading an organization for sabotage in several countries entailed. This being a Nordic-focused blog I will here only mention some Scandinavian aspects. It turns out that SOE from Stockholm launched a number of non-violent sabotage operations directly against the Germans in Norway. For example, capsules with utterly evil smelling fluid were smuggled into Norway and there were smeared on German greatcoats. The terrible smell made the garments impossible to wear and, like broken German windows, caused serious discomfort during the winter. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><h3 style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">In my blog post <a href="https://larsgyllenhaal.blogspot.com/2020/03/a-deniable-operation-under-swedish-flag.html">"A Deniable Operation Under the Swedish Flag"</a> I wrote about Brian Lett´s wonderful book <i>Ian Fleming & SOE´s Operation Postmaster</i>. Well, in <i>SOE´s Mastermind</i> one learns of what became of the “Swedes”, among them not least the Danish volunteer Anders Lassen, who later was awarded a Victoria Cross.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></h3><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Operation Gunnerside, the operation against the German atomic project in Norway, has been covered in many books. Still, the Gunnerside chapter in <i>SOE´s Mastermind</i> does not fail to keep me interested and it makes perfectly clear that Gunnerside became an immediate milestone. To quote Lett: “After Operation Gunnerside Colin found it much easier to obtain cooperation of the regular services for SOE´s operations.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-align: start;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Finally, there is a very personal link between Colin Gubbins and the Swedish-British SOE operator Malcolm Munthe. His own son Michael served in the SOE together with Munthe. What happened next to Michael was a major blow to the Gubbins family but I shall here only say: do not miss this book and specially not if you are curious about what became of the SOE networks after 1945 - to quote the last chapter´s title “Did SOE Refuse to Die?”.</span></p></div>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5297549309133124511.post-42397828543663750372020-08-13T22:42:00.003+02:002020-08-13T22:48:49.288+02:00Axis Armour You Never Knew Existed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSYcqy8PosAF6jg7pMe1bHLIIvnNUI8CKX1Grduv2bolLMyGKKDV6Hz2M-mER_eP20KBgQwgKep5hd0gvMMkUlgpw-GQ1YMkS3QsKCxfLRm36PerRRThivJRlFX_QIFALn38Th5Ixv1NM-/s525/17894.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSYcqy8PosAF6jg7pMe1bHLIIvnNUI8CKX1Grduv2bolLMyGKKDV6Hz2M-mER_eP20KBgQwgKep5hd0gvMMkUlgpw-GQ1YMkS3QsKCxfLRm36PerRRThivJRlFX_QIFALn38Th5Ixv1NM-/s0/17894.jpg" /></a></div></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><i><i style="text-align: left;">Panzer IVs, Panthers and even Tigers served in the WWII Hungarian Army.</i></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><i style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;"><br /></i></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><b style="text-align: left;">Quite many Axis tankers were Hungarians, which is why also several German Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) were in Hungarian service. A new book looks closer at these, and also the Hungarian vehicles with Swedish roots.</b><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><p>An amazing number of rare photos and quite a lot of information has been assembled in the new book <i>Hungarian Armoured Fighting Vehicles in the Second World War</i> by Eduardo Manuel Gil Martinez. Being Swedish I was initially mainly interested in the Swedish aspects of his book, but it turned out that the German AFV presence in the Hungarian Army was greater than I thought, and also more interesting than I had imagined. If you are a modeller and you feel like you have run out of Panzer subjects - well, this book will provide you with some extra years of modelling challenges.</p><p>Most Swedish armor buffs will know that the Hungarian Toldis and Nimrods were to a large extent Landsverk vehicles, i.e. they were designs from the Landsverk factory in Landskrona in southernmost Sweden. But from this book I learnt something I had no idea of. Not only were the Toldis designed in Sweden, they also contained some components from Sweden, because the Hungarian industry was not able to supply all necessary parts.</p><p>Much to my surprise I also learnt from this book that there was even a Toldi converted to a tank destroyer, armed with a German PaK 40. Yes, the book has a photo of it. I can divulge that the result is very similar to a Marder II. Another good reason to release the Toldi also in scale 1/35 - or is there already such a kit and I have just missed it?</p><p>Many of the 111 pages of this book are of course devoted to AFVs that were mostly the result of Hungary´s own AFV design efforts. I am talking not least about the Turan tanks and Zrinyi "StuGs". Especially the latter should appeal to modellers. </p><p>Generally speaking this book is a treasure chest for modellers and also provides some insights into the role that Hungary played for the Axis during WWII. The translation at times has some issues but that does not diminish the value of this book. Every tank buff, at least outside Hungary, ought to check out this one.</p>Lars Gyllenhaalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17851097994709218280noreply@blogger.com0