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 The Origins of Surface -To-Air Guided Missile Technology German Flak Rockets and the Onset of the Cold War by James Mills   This is the mos...

The Origins of Surface -To-Air Guided Missile Technology by James Mills The Origins of Surface -To-Air Guided Missile Technology by James Mills

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




 The Origins of Surface -To-Air Guided Missile Technology


German Flak Rockets and the Onset of the Cold War


by


James Mills




  This is the most technical book that I have ever read from Casemate Publishers. It goes through the tentative steps that the UK and the US made toward SAMs (Surface-To-Air Missiles), before and during World War II. The real crux of the book is the Allied and Russian scouring of Germany after the war for technology and designs of the German SAM programs. Much like Operation Paperclip (the US grab for German scientists, whether they were war criminals or not), this is a story of who is able to grab who and what before another country finds it.


 To tell this story, the author takes us back from the end of the war to the German designs and testing that took place before then. As usual, with the German Wunderwaffen programs, it is a tale of too little and too late, which is a tremendous blessing for the Allied and Russian Air Forces. It shows how the Germans were going in so many directions at once. They were working on both guided and unguided munitions. 


 The main part of the book is taken up by the story of the UK and US attempts toward producing a SAM. Then it goes on to show how each of these nations combed Germany for scientists and technology from the German projects. The US Nike SAMs came out of the collaboration between the scientists. The book then shows how France also got into the race to find information. Then the author goes into his conclusions about this hidden part of history (until now). Next, there are an extensive number of Appendices which also includes a look at the Russian attempts to appropriate the knowledge for themselves. 


 This is not an easy book to read. That does not mean that it is not engrossing. It is much more for history readers that are also military tech lovers. This is not just a strict book of who did what and when they did it. There is a tremendous amount of 'how' that are in these pages.


 Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review this deep and interesting book. It tells a tale that needed to be added to the military history of World War II and its direct aftermath.


Robert

Book: The Origins of Surface -To-Air Guided Missile Technology: German Flak Rockets and the Onset of the Cold War

Author: James Mills

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic by Natale Barca   Is it just me or does anyone else get the irony of someone with the la...

Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic by Natale Barca Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic by Natale Barca

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic


by


Natale Barca




 Is it just me or does anyone else get the irony of someone with the last name of Barca writing about the fall of the Roman Republic?


 The book is 342 pages long. It has a full color section of artwork and a few maps in the center of the book. This is from the jacket:

"Before Augustus focuses on the political and military history of this tumultuous period, 60-27 BC."


 This is a truly well written and deep book that focuses on the last few decades of the Roman Republic. It follows in detail the life of the Republic from 60 BC until the rise of Octavian (Augustus) to emperor in all but name. This is one of the best history books that I have read over the last year. This is coming from a reader who is most certainly not a fan of either Caesar or Octavian.


 At the start of the book Caesar is much like all of the other sons of the aristocratic families of Rome. He needs to be famous and to somehow make or come into a very large sum of money. Money pretty much buys votes by this time in the Republic. Pompey and Crassus are older and have already made a name for themselves. Pompey is, at this time, the first man in Rome, due to his various military campaigns. Crassus has made himself one of the richest persons who have ever lived. While Caesar came from a famous family, it was nowhere near the pinnacle of power it had once been. He needed a war to both make a name and to fill his coffers. The three of them enter into an arrangement called the First Triumvirate. This was strictly a back-alley arrangement between the three. It had no basis in law as the Second Triumvirate had.


 The author does an excellent job of showing us all the above and much more. He also shows us all of the other players in the political game called the Roman Republic (its slow decay into this bread and circuses type Republic is for another book). The writer does go into some of the details of how Rome got into the position she was in during the last century of the Republic. However, the main part of the book follows the time of Caesar's rise and fall. 


 This book is a great deep dive into the history of the players and events that it shows. The only thing that I wish is that it was a two-volume set with just one volume starting with the aftermath of Caesar's death. The machinations of both before, during, and after the Civil War are wonderfully laid bare. I see by the bibliography that the author has written other books in Italian. My hope is that we see more of his work in English. It appears that he has another book offered by Casemate Publishers: Rome's Sicilian Slave Wars. I will have to pick this up as soon as possible.


 Thank you so very much Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this excellent volume. It should be required reading for classes about the Roman Republic of the time. I look forward to a book about Marcus Antonius from the author.


Robert

Book: Before Augustus: The Collapse of the Roman Republic

Author: Natale Barca

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

The Onin War 1467-77 by Stephen Turnbull   The author, Stephen Turnbull, has become synonymous with the history of Japan and especially of t...

The Onin War 1467-77 by Stephen Turnbull The Onin War 1467-77 by Stephen Turnbull

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers





The Onin War 1467-77

by

Stephen Turnbull




 The author, Stephen Turnbull, has become synonymous with the history of Japan and especially of the Samurai under the Shogunate. The list of his books is much too long to print here. Having read a good number of his books so far, I had high expectations for this book. I was not to be proven wrong by any means in this regard.

 The Onin War is really the start of the 'Sengoku Jidai' (warring states) period of Japanese history. This is when the power of the Shogun over the country started to wane. The Sengoku Jidai was a time when all of Japan became a battlefield for the various warlords around the nation.


 The Onin War was fought between 1467-77. The author starts the book by going back in time before the Onin War. His story starts with the Emperor G0-Daigo (1288-1339) and his attempts to take back the imperial power from the Shogun. The Shogun was originally a servant of the emperor, mostly as a general. This changed around 300 years earlier and the emperor then became just a cypher with the Shogun holding absolute power. The book continues with the trials and tribulations of Japan as different families, and strangely enough, the poor farmers rose in revolt. This boiling pot was brought to a frenzy by the of the ascension of the 'lottery Shogun' Ashikaga Yoshinori. His brutal reign as Shogun ended with a successful revolt and the loss of his head. 


 The intrigues continued until the new Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa was not really in control of the country at all. The various warlords did as they pleased. This ended up with two factions of the warlords attacking each other in the capital city of Kyoto. The Onin War was fought during the years 1467-77 and was fought mostly in the environs of Kyoto. The city became a burning shell of itself during the early part of the war with each warlord commanding fortified mansions in the city. All of this and more is shown to us by the author. He continues with the story of what happened after the actual fighting in Kyoto spread to the rest of the country. The book is filled to the brim with not only Japanese history but also shows exactly why the different revolts broke out. It also gives you a glimpse into the lives of the numerous characters mentioned and their biographies. You even get to see some of the trials and tribulations that the poorer folk of Japan had to go through during this period.


 The book is from Helion & Company and is part of its excellent 'From Retinue to Regiment 1453-1618' series. The book is only 120 pages but is filled with tons of information. It comes with several pages of full color pictures of places, people, and artwork about the events in the book. The rest of the book is rife with black and white pictures of the same.


 Thank you, Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this great book on a pretty much unknown, outside of Japan, piece of Japanese history.



Robert



Publisher: Helion & Company

Distributor: Casemate Publishers




Rome to the Po River by Heinz Greiner Translated by Linden Lyons  This is another book in the 'Die Wehrmacht Im Kampf' series. This ...

Rome to the Po River by Heinz Greiner translated by Linden Lyons Rome to the Po River by Heinz Greiner translated by Linden Lyons

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




Rome to the Po River


by


Heinz Greiner


Translated by Linden Lyons




 This is another book in the 'Die Wehrmacht Im Kampf' series. This series was originally published in German during the 1950s and 1960s. These books were written by Generals and Chiefs of Staff etc. and not by the German soldiers themselves. Much like the books that were written soon after the war, they glorify the German Army and its resistance to the Allies. They show a very clean war. There is no mention of atrocities or any other items that might tarnish the German Army. They are filled with the meticulous history of the different divisions and higher formations. These versions that are being released by Casemate Publishers are the first appearance of these books in English.

 This book tells the story of the 362nd Infantry Division during the last two years of the war in the Italian Campaign. The division was formed from the wreck of the 268th Infantry Division. The 268th division had fought in most of the German Army's campaigns since 1940. During the summer and fall of 1943 it had fought against the Russians and had suffered large casualties during the Russian offensives. Even while it was being constituted the 362nd division was responsible for over 320 km of the Italian coast.

 Heinz Grenier, the author, was a Generalleutnant in charge of the 268th division. He was also awarded the Knight's Cross and Oak Leaves for his command of both the 268th division and the 362nd. He tells us that the 362nd had to be reformed with both 17- and 18-year-olds. This is in October 1943, two years before the end of the war. Long before the division was ready, it was thrown into the fighting around the Allied invasion at Anzio. 

 The book goes through the various actions and the defensive battles for the Italian peninsula from the Anzio landing until the capitulation of the German forces in Italy in May 1945. It shows us a very different picture of the German forces than we usually see. The 362nd suffered a lack of material and men for its entire life span. The author does not hesitate to find fault for several of the defeats that the Germans suffered during this time. He especially seems rankled by the German loss of Rome to the Allies. 

 If you like reading about the day-to-day management of a division during a campaign, then this book is for you. Just like the other books in the series, this book shines when it comes to understanding the campaigns on a lower level than has normally shown us by authors. The book has numerous maps and other illustrations of the division breakdown etc. The only unfortunate thing about the maps is that they were apparently hand drawn. So, some of them are not as legible as the others. Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review another book in this fine series. 

Robert

Book: Rome to the Po River:

Author: Heinz Greiner:

Casemate Publishers:

 

 

  Dreadnoughts and Super-Dreadnoughts by Chris McNab    In building the Deadnought, the English actually shot themselves in the foot. This o...

Dreadnoughts and Super-Dreadnoughts by Chris McNab Dreadnoughts and Super-Dreadnoughts by Chris McNab

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers

 



Dreadnoughts and Super-Dreadnoughts


by


Chris McNab





   In building the Deadnought, the English actually shot themselves in the foot. This one ship with its 10 x 12" guns was a radical change from the 'Battleships' that came before it. Overnight it made every other ship in the world obsolete. Until then, the armaments on battleships were a hodge podge of different size calibers, with at most four main guns of roughly 12". The Dreadnought's speed of twenty-one knots also made it much faster than all the other battleships in the world. However, just like any other country, all of England's battleships were also made obsolete by the Dreadnought. This meant that every country was now in a race to build their own Dreadnought. It also started a Cold War of sorts between the German and English Navies. Germany saw her chance for her Navy to become just as strong as the British Navy. While this did not happen (England started a massive program of battleship building), it did give the Germans a chance to become a world naval power. 


 All of the above is shown to the reader by the author. The story of the development of the Dreadnought herself and her contemporaries and then onto the Super-Dreadnoughts is all here. The arguments of the type of boilers (coal or oil), and the amount and placement of the main guns, along with their massive increase in gun size, are all shown.


 This book is about an era of a few short years, roughly 1906 until 1918. In twelve years, the naval builders had gone from the Dreadnought to the Hood and Bayern classes. For anyone who is interested in the First World War at sea, or just these mighty ships themselves, this needs to be in your library. It is filled with facts, figures, and photos of all of the world's different capitol ships of that era. Unlike most books of this kind, it does not show the later battleships built during, before, and after World War II. The author does show us the history of the Battlecruisers but does not go into them in the detail that is shown with the Battleships.


 This is a large book, almost what you would consider a coffee table book. Unlike those books which are mostly eye candy, this book is a naval history connoisseurs' version of meat and potatoes. Thank you, Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this very good book.


Robert

Book: Dreadnoughts and Super-Dreadnoughts

Author: Chris McNab

Publisher: Casemate Publishers


  Japanese Tanks and Armored Warfare 1932-45 A Military and Political History by David McCormack  The Japanese tanks and their usage are usu...

Japanese Tanks and Armored Warfare 1932-45: A Military and Political History by David McCormack Japanese Tanks and Armored Warfare 1932-45: A Military and Political History by David McCormack

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




 Japanese Tanks and Armored Warfare 1932-45


A Military and Political History


by


David McCormack




 The Japanese tanks and their usage are usually compared to the Italians in World War II. Both their tank tactics and the tanks themselves seem to be better suited to the 1930s than the 1940s. So, let us see if the author has some new insights on the Japanese tanks and warfare.

 It actually turns out that he does. For a country that had a very limited supply of automobiles and trucks and no home-grown plants to make them, Japan produced the first diesel powered tank in 1936. Using European tanks during the Manchurian incident in 1932, the Japanese had used tanks and trucks to move 320 kilometers in three days. This was by a combined arms ad hoc group of Infantry, tanks and towed guns. While it is true that the resistance they faced was not that great, it did show how some of the Japanese military was able to think in a manner very outside of the box for the time. This was the same as blitzkrieg or deep penetration that was written about in other armies, but just put on paper and never actually used. Britain was the first country to experiment with these units in the 1920s. However, lack of funds stopped all of their training in this direction.

 The author goes onto show how even though the Japanese thinking was very advanced, their manufacturing of tanks was slowed to a crawl. The Japanese Navy and Army were in a struggle for all of the limited manufacturing that Japan had during those years. The Japanese infrastructure was nowhere near the size that it needed to be to fight in World War II. 

 On page eighteen there is what first looks to be a small tidbit of information but in reality, is very significant. The author writes that the Japanese Army had an Achilles heel. This was their looking at logistics as an afterthought if it was thought about at all. I know we have read constantly that "amateurs talk about tactics, but professionals study logistics" (USMC Gen. Robert H. Barrow). On this page we find quotes from Edward J. Drea that shows that the Japanese actually looked down upon the transport and logistic troops. Military academy officers were not demeaned by being placed to such postings. He goes onto say that the troops assigned to logistics were not even eligible for promotion. This one page of the author's book explains away a lot of what happened during the Pacific War. The book has many other interesting points as well to share with us. 

 Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to read this short but very deep book. This book is meant for anyone who has interest in World War II in the Pacific or the Japanese Armed Forces before and during the war.


Robert

Publisher: Fonthill Media
Distributor: Casemate Publishers

  Fight for a Throne The Jacobite '45 Reconsidered by Christopher Duffy  'Bonnie' Prince Charlie and the '45 has always been...

Fight for a Throne: The Jacobite '45 Reconsidered by Christopher Duffy Fight for a Throne: The Jacobite '45 Reconsidered by Christopher Duffy

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers



 Fight for a Throne


The Jacobite '45 Reconsidered


by


Christopher Duffy






 'Bonnie' Prince Charlie and the '45 has always been one of my favorite historical times. Even though, I would have fought on the losing side. It stands to reason, because one of the first songs I was taught as a child in parochial school was the 'Skye boat song'. The first part of the song:


"Speed, bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,

Onward! the sailor's cry.

Carry the lad that's born to be king!

Over the sea to Skye."


 I later grew to like the taste of Drambuie, supposedly a favorite of Prince Charlie. Enough about me; let us head toward the book.


 Prince Charles Edward Stuart landed in Scotland on the 23rd of July 1745. He was called the 'Young Pretender' (his father James Francis Edward Stuart was called the 'Old Pretender'), because his grandfather James II was forcibly removed from the English throne in 1688. The author shows us that the Jacobite (not to be confused with the Jacobins) cause had many adherents in the British Isles and Ireland. This book goes through all of the history of the Jacobites before we get to the '45. 


 The prince landed in Scotland against the wishes of his father and in the company of seven gentlemen. While discussions about him landing had always included a good number of French troops (He and his father lived in France. Louis XV used them as pawns against George II of England), he landed with no troops whatsoever. The sheer lunacy of his act of essentially invading Scotland with a total of eight men should be clear.


 The author goes into all of the twists and turns of Scottish Highlands politics of the time. He shows us how Charlie was able to raise a rag tag army that came much closer than it should have to taking George II's throne. He had even been able to invade England before his Scottish troops and lairds pulled him back to Scotland. The story continues through their retreat to the Highlands. They were being chased by British Regulars and their rotund commander the Duke of Cumberland. He was George II's favorite son and George III's brother. Because of his harshness in the Highlands, he was nicknamed the butcher. The book goes into how the Jacobite cause was virtually wiped out after the last battle on English soil Culloden was fought.


 One thing that the book has enormous amounts of is large wonderfully clear maps. In Appendix II there are thirteen! weather maps corresponding to the major events of the campaign. This book is certainly one of the best books I have read that allows the reader to keep up with where and when by the use of these spectacular maps. I have seen books that have maps that look like the author drew them on a drink napkin in the dark. 


 Thank you, Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this large, 600+, pages work. This is an excellent history of the Jacobites and the '45. Did I mention that it has maps?


Robert

Book: Fight for a Throne: The Jacobite '45 Reconsidered

Author: Christopher Duffy

Publisher: Helion & Company

Distributor: Casemate Publishers



Bohemund of Taranto Crusader and Conqueror by Georgios Theotokis   This is a very informative book on not only the man himself, but also the...

Bohemond of Taranto: Crusader and Conqueror by Georgios Theotokis  Bohemond of Taranto: Crusader and Conqueror by Georgios Theotokis

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers



Bohemund of Taranto


Crusader and Conqueror


by


Georgios Theotokis 






 This is a very informative book on not only the man himself, but also the age he lived in. As far as the man, we do not have many books at all about him in any language. So, this volume is more than welcome.


 The book is filled with information that is not known to many. For example: his birth name was actually Mark. Because of his size at birth, he was given the sobriquet of 'Buamundus Gigas' the name (Gigas means giant) of a mythical giant whose story is lost in the ravages of time, according to the author. He was of Norman extraction (Normannorum being the Latin term for Northmen). Many of the later generations of Normans had sailed for the new and different world of Sicily and Southern Italy. His size had continued to grow apace of his contemporaries, so it was quite easy to pick him out in a medieval crowd. 


 The author goes into great detail of how the Normans ended up in these sunny Mediterranean lands. The book continues with Bohemond's family and how his famous father Robert Guiscard had divorced Bohemund's mother when he was just a child. Even though this made Bohemund technically a 'bastard' it does not seem to have lessened his worth at his father's court. 


 The largest part of the book is dedicated to his different dealings with and invasions of the Byzantine Empire. This may surprise some people because of the large role that he played in the First Crusade. You would think that the Byzantines would want him as far away as possible from their lands, instead of letting him march an army close to their capitol. The author describes in detail what happened during the First Crusade and how in the first years Bohemond's military astuteness was one of the main reasons that the crusaders were successful.


 Most of what we know about him was written down by a Byzantine princess named Anna Komnena. She was the first born of Alexios I Komnenos, the Byzantine Emperor. She does let her venom come through toward him at times. At other times it is plain that she begrudgingly admired him. 


 The author has done a fine job of showing the reader the life of this truly giant man. Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for letting me review this very informative book and shining the light on Bohemond's life. His life and adventures would match or surpass any of his Viking forebearers.


Robert

Book: Bohemond of Taranto: Crusader and Conqueror 

Author: Georgios Theotokis

Publisher : Pen & Sword

Distributor: Casemate Publishers

 Red Army Weapons Of the Second World War by Michael Green    This is a description of problems with a tank from the book: "The five-sp...

Red Army Weapons of the Second World War by Michael Green Red Army Weapons of the Second World War by Michael Green

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




 Red Army Weapons


Of the Second World War


by


Michael Green





 

 This is a description of problems with a tank from the book:


"The five-speed transmission proved to be as unreliable as the four-speed transmission in the early production models. The old-fashioned transmission combined with an understrength clutch and braking steering system caused endless breakdowns of the tank. The tank therefore soon acquired a reputation as mechanically unreliable. Unfortunately, before the German invasion the Red Army failed to organize an adequate repair and support service infrastructure. As a result, the Red Army's repair and support services were not up to the task of recovering the KV-1."


 I tried to make it so you would think you were reading about the German Panther or Tiger tanks, which are always described as being 'mechanically unreliable". According to the author the KV-1 had just as much trouble as the German tanks did in the beginning, but in the KV-1's case the troubles were never fixed.


 This is a book that is a delight for modelers, history buffs, and people who are just interested in weaponry. It comes with over 200 black and white photos of pretty much every weapon that the Red Army used during World War II. It is absolutely filled with information that I have not seen elsewhere. For example, the PPSH-41 submachine gun (which was valued by both armies) was so poorly made that it was not easy to find a magazine that matched up with the actual gun. Tidbits like this abound in the book. The pictures of the Soviet tanks, both inside and out, are amazing in detail. You will understand exactly why some of the tanks were accused of having cramped quarters. According to the book, 300,000 out of 400,000 tankers ended up as casualties. Looking at some of the inside pictures I am bit amazed that anyone was able to make it out.


 The author has gone out of his way to show how each weapon had its own good and bad points. He also does not walk away from calling some of the weapons showed as complete failures. I do wish the author had gone into more depth on 'Stalin's Organs'. However, I totally understand that some weapons could not be as fully written about as others. 


 The book is roughly 250 pages long. In those pages I guarantee that every reader will find some new bit of information that they have never seen, or more than likely plenty of these bits. Thank you, Casemate Publishers, for allowing me to review this excellent book, which is almost a small encyclopedia of the Red Army's weaponry.


Robert

Book: Red Army Weapons of the Second World War

Author: Michael Green

Publisher: Pen & Sword

Distributor: Casemate Publishers  




  World War II Snipers The Men, Their Guns, Their Stories by Gary Yee  This book is about a part of World War II that is not mentioned nearl...

World War II Snipers: The Men, Their Guns, Their Stories by Gary Yee World War II Snipers: The Men, Their Guns, Their Stories by Gary Yee

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers




 World War II Snipers


The Men, Their Guns, Their Stories


by


Gary Yee







 This book is about a part of World War II that is not mentioned nearly enough. To be honest, Hollywood has more examples of snipers than most history books about the conflict. The author Gary Yee and Casemate Publishers have set out to set the record straight. Now onto the book.

 This is a blurb from Casemate Publishers about the book:


"Thousands of volumes have been published about World War II but relatively little attention has been given to the sniper. Drawing from memoirs, government documents and interviews, World War II Snipers incorporates eyewitness accounts to weave a comprehensive narrative of snipers in World War II.

While certain common traits were shared among belligerents, each had its unique methodology for selecting and training snipers and, as casualties were high, their replacements. Drawn from hunters, competitive shooters, natural marksmen, outdoorsmen, city dwellers, farmers and veteran soldiers, they fought to assert local battlefield dominance and instill among their enemy a paralyzing fear."


Mauser ‘BYF’ K98k with Zf41 scope. Dave Roberts collection. Image courtesy Rock Island Auction Company via Casemate.



 To start out with, this is a very large book. It measures roughly 8 1/4" x 10 1/4". Its length is 352 pages. To top it off, it is jam packed with either black & white or color photos. There is at least one photo or inset on every page. This book goes into everything, and I mean everything, about sniping and snipers in World War II. It takes us from the Weapons, to training, to the history, and also has the snipers' personal stories. This is a list of the contents:


Part I: Selection & Training

Chapter 1: Prewar and Early War Years

Chapter 2: Selection

Chapter 3: Training


Part II: Wartime Sniping

Chapter 4: Western Europe, North Africa, and Italy

Chapter 5: Liberation of Northwestern Europe

Chapter 6: To the Rhine and the Elbe

Chapter 7: Drang Nach Osten

Chapter 8: The Stalingrad Kessel

Chapter 9: Nach Berlin!

Chapter 10: Far East

Chapter 11: Southwest Pacific Theater

Chapter 12; The South Pacific Theater and Asia


Part III: The Weapons

Chapter 13: Guns and Equipment


Conclusion

Notes to the text

Glossary

Bibliography

Index



Snow camouflage suit-clad 6th Airborne Division sniper in the Ardennes, January 14, 1945. British Official Image via Casemate.


 This book is one of the most detailed reference books I have ever read. The material it has in it about the guns themselves is worth a book itself. I have used a scoped rifle many times in my life. However, because of this book I have learned so much about scopes that I seem to be a simple tyro in my knowledge regarding them. The information inside the book is almost a training manual for sniping, at least with World War II weapons. The only unfortunate thing about the book is how historically snipers were treated by all major combatants. It seems that even soldiers in the same armies hated snipers so much that it even boiled over onto their own snipers. The author informs us that no country really ever let a sniper surrender. Universally if a sniper was found there was no quarter given. Even possessing a scoped rifle was cause for swift execution. The fear of snipers was also universal in all of the world's armies. Having to worry about getting shot while responding to the call of nature and eating etc. put all of the soldiers on edge. 



German armed with M91/30 with PEM scope mounted on siderail mount. Image courtesy Georg Oberaigner via Casemate.


 Thank you so much Casemate Publishers for letting me review this excellent book. I also want to thank the author, Gary Yee, for writing it. It is certainly a labor of love on his part. If you have any interest in sniping or World War II, you need to have this book in your library. 


Robert

Book: World War II Snipers: The Men Their Guns, Their Stories

Author: Gary Yee

Publisher: Casemate Publishers


 

  General Erich Hoepner A Military Biography by W. Chales de Beaulieu Translated by Linden Lyons  This book is part of the 'Die Wehrmach...

General Erich Hoepner: A Military Biography by W. Chales de Beaulieu translated by Linden Lyons General Erich Hoepner: A Military Biography by W. Chales de Beaulieu translated by Linden Lyons

For your Wargamer, Toy soldier collector, MiniFig collector, military history nut. Reviews, interviews, Model Making, AARs and books!

Casemate Publishers





 General Erich Hoepner


A Military Biography


by


W. Chales de Beaulieu


Translated by Linden Lyons






 This book is part of the 'Die Wehrmacht Im Kampf' series. These were written after World War II by German Officers about the Second World War II. These were used by the Allied armies to study the war through the eyes of the German command.


 As this is strictly a military biography, Hoepner's life is not really touched upon in the book. The author does devote a few pages at the end and the short Introduction touches upon it. Hoepner was involved in the June 20th, 1944, plot against Hitler. For his part in it, which is still debated, he was tortured and sentenced to death. However, we must not fall into the trap that many people do of assuming that the German generals were altruistic in their thinking. Some, if not most, had no problem with Germany attacking other countries. They just felt that Hitler was making a mess of it and wanted to fight the war their way. As long as Hitler was winning, they looked the other way to many other things. Hoepner himself had no problem with Germany attacking the Soviet Union etc.


 The book is separated into five chapters. These are:


The Campaign in Poland 1939

The Campaign in France 1940

The Advance to Leningrad 1941

The Assault on Moscow 1941


 General Hoepner was the commander of XVI Panzer Corps in the Polish Campaign. he also commanded it during the French Campaign. He was commander of Panzer Group 4 during Operation Barbarossa.


 The book was written by Hoepner's First General Staff Officer during the Polish Campaign, who then became his Chief of Staff during the French and Russian Campaigns. So, he had complete knowledge of General Hoepner's actions and thoughts during his service in World War II. 


 This book is unique in that you will usually find only a few lines written about the Polish Campaign. Those will invariably mention that the campaign went off like clockwork. This book shows how the vaunted German Heer was still very much learning from its mistakes in 1939. 


 When writing about the Japanese Military in World War II it is often stated that they suffered from 'victory disease', meaning that everything was going their way far too easily. I think we can see that the German High Command also suffered from this by the time of the invasion of Russia. The author shows how fearful at times the High Command was in 1939 and 1940 about the slightest hitch in any plan. Then he goes on to show us how they completely disregarded the facts and opinions of the German generals and the easily seen reality of the situation in 1941. The starts and stops that the German High Command forced the different commanders to deal with are revealed in the book. It also goes into what actually should have been done in each situation. 


 This is an excellent military biography of one of the chief Panzer commanders of the early part of World War II. The author shows us the thoughts and writings of Hoepner during these campaigns. It is a window into the inner workings of the Panzer forces early in the war.


Robert

Book: General Erich Hoepner: A Military Biography

Auther: W. Chales de Beaulieu

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

  Blue Water War The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean and Middle East 1940 - 1945 by Brian E. Walter  The thinking about the war in th...

Blue Water War: The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean and Middle East 1940 - 1945 by Brian E. Walter Blue Water War: The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean and Middle East 1940 - 1945 by Brian E. Walter

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Casemate Publishers





 Blue Water War


The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean and Middle East 1940 - 1945


by


Brian E. Walter






 The thinking about the war in the Mediterranean is now often colored by hindsight and error really. The threat of the Italian Armed Forces is often thought of as laughable. This was not the case in reality, and most certainly not in 1940 when Italy declared war on Britain and France. Mussolini was afraid that if he did not declare war before France fell, he would not be invited to the peace talks to pick up some scraps from both countries' colonies in Africa. The book shows us just how seriously the British took the Italian threat. The British Admiralty had actually suggested to Churchill to remove all of their naval forces from the Mediterranean. Luckily for Britain, he squashed the idea immediately.


 The author starts out the book by showing us a bit of the previous history of the Mediterranean and what country held what and where. He then goes on to give a complete rundown of all of the Armed Forces of Britain and Italy and Germany in the Mediterranean at the start of the fighting. On paper, the Italian forces look formidable, as do the British. However, both sides had distinct advantages and disadvantages to cope with. Italy's physical location in the middle of the Mediterranean was its greatest asset. British naval training and morale was theirs. The author shows something that I had never known before. The Italian Merchant fleet had almost one third of its tonnage outside of the Mediterranean when Italy declared war. This included most of its largest and newest ships. Most never made it back to Italy. This hogtied the Italian ability to supply their troops throughout North Africa during the war. Italy did not have the manufacturing ability to really fight a war, let alone replace those ships. Italy did have one great advantage in that she had the largest fleet of submarines in the world then (115), either ready or near completion. Unfortunately for them, the Italian Navy did not really use this asset to its best advantage.


 The Mediterranean was after the Normandy Landings seen as a backwater; that thinking continues to this day. The author does a fine job in showing how in 1940 the British Armed Forces were dismayed to find themselves at war in the Mediterranean. He shows how it became a war of defeating the other side's convoys, along with the desperate battles over and around Malta. The book then continues inexorably to the capitulation of Italy and the battles for the Italian mainland. While it is a book about the naval war, the author does a very good job of letting the reader know about the land war operations.


 This is an excellent volume that shines a searchlight on a part of World War II that is often overlooked. The book comes with maps and a large number of tables showing a multitude of pertinent information following the text. The first Appendix is a timeline of the entire events in during World War II. The second Appendix is of biographies of prominent Royal Navy Officers who served in the Mediterranean Theatre. Thank you, Casemate Publishers for not only printing this great book, but also for allowing me to review it.


Robert

Book: Blue Water War: The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean and Middle East 1940 - 1945

Author: Brian E. Walter

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

 


  By Defeating My Enemies Charles XII of Sweden and the Great Northern War 1682-1721 by Michael Glaeser    The Vasa family of Swedish Kings ...

By Defeating My Enemies: Charles XII of Sweden and the Great Northern War 1682-1721 by Michael Glaeser By Defeating My Enemies: Charles XII of Sweden and the Great Northern War 1682-1721 by Michael Glaeser

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 By Defeating My Enemies


Charles XII of Sweden and the Great Northern War 1682-1721


by


Michael Glaeser




 

 The Vasa family of Swedish Kings gave us two military geniuses, Gustavus Adolphus and Charles XII. Gustavus is considered a hero because of the religious undertones to his campaigns in Germany during the Thirty Years War. Charles XII is not so lucky. He is now considered a warmonger at worst, or sometimes derided as a fool. What is not generally known is that Gustavus spent about the same amount of time trapsing through Poland as Charles XII did, before getting Sweden involved with the Thirty Years War. In actuality, Charles XII is much like Henry V of England. He inherited the throne at a young age and was considered a reckless fun-loving teenager. Just like Henry V, once he heard the trumpets of war, he threw all of that aside and became hardnosed general. 


 The author starts us out by going back in time to the time of Gustavus Adolphus. He lived between 1594 - 1632. So, both he and Charles XII lived only thirty-six years. We are shown how small in population and wealth Sweden was and how strange it is that there actually was a Swedish Empire. Charles's father, Charles XI, was the first Swedish King to make Sweden follow the rule of absolutism, meaning that all power derived from the king. The book then goes to Charles's childhood. He was born on June 17th, 1682. His father died in 1697, so he was only fifteen when he was crowned. At this time the Baltic Sea was considered the 'Swedish Lake'. Because of the age of Charles, Denmark, Russia, and Saxony/Poland (the Elector of Saxony Augustus II the Strong was also king of Poland) secretly declared war on Sweden in 1700. The first thing Sweden knew about it was when enemy troops entered their lands. 


 Charles was only eighteen when the Great Northern War started. Denmark was not the inconsequential country she is now in world affairs. So, Charles had three of the great powers of Europe lined up against him. The name of the book comes from a quote of Charles  from Voltaire's biography of him " I have resolved never to start an unjust war, but only to end a legitimate one by defeating my enemies". His three foes were Frederik IV of Denmark, Augustus II, the Strong (French Marshal deSaxe was one of his 350 or so illegitimate children), and Peter I, the Great the Czar of Russia. Charles's sense of chivalry was quite strong. So, we are shown how the idea of defeating all three of these men became a fixation in Charles's mind. Not mind you to come to a peaceful treaty with the above, but to conquer them in open battle and have Charles dictate the terms.


 The author takes us through the tumultuous eighteen remaining years of Charles's life, from the lighting strike on Denmark that prostrated that country in no time flat to the incredible victories of Narva etc. By 1708 Charles had knocked both Saxony/Poland and Denmark out of the War. He had also placed another King on Poland's throne. The only man left to conquer was Peter. Thus, Charles determined to force his ill-fated invasion of Russia, which ended in the great Swedish defeat at Poltava in 1709. The War continued after that in spits and spurts with Charles the unwelcome guest of the Ottoman Sultan. 


 The author continues with his life and the history of the war after Charles made a wild ride to freedom across most of the breadth of Europe in 1714. Even Charles's death was controversial, with many trying to prove that he was killed by someone in his own army while invading Norway in 1718. 


 This book is part of Helion & Company's 'Century of the Soldier 1618 - 1721'. All of the books I have read so far from the series have been serious and well-done histories of their subject. This book is no exception. While the book itself is less than 200 pages, it still gives the reader all of the history of the period. There is no glossing over of any part of Charles's life or the history of The Great Northen War. Thank you, Casemate Publishers for letting me review this great book.


Robert

Book: By Defeating My Enemies: Charles XII of Sweden and The Great Northern War 1682 - 1721

Author: Michael Glaeser

Publisher: Helion & Company

Distributor: Casemate Publishers

 Old Testament Warriors The Clash of Cultures in the Ancient Near East by Simon Elliott    Whether you view the Old Testament as a religious...

Old Testament Warriors by Simon Elliott Old Testament Warriors by Simon Elliott

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 Old Testament Warriors


The Clash of Cultures in the Ancient Near East


by


Simon Elliott





  Whether you view the Old Testament as a religious work, or just as a historical record of the Jewish People, the information inside it is a gold mine for historians. It is filled with tons of places and events that have been verified by archaeologists, and in the written records of the other Near Eastern Peoples of the time. While most people would be aware of the warring between Israel/Judah and the Philistines, the nation of Israel was at the crossroads of the various kingdoms and empires that surrounded it. So unfortunately, it became a battlefield in the seesaw fighting that took place among them. This book shows the reader the history of the warriors and warfare from the earliest times to about 500 BC. 


 This volume is not a large book at around 150 pages. However, it is an excellent primer for the reader who has not delved into the Near Eastern history of this time frame. The books gives us information on these, and other, following Kingdoms/Peoples:

Egypt

Nubia

Cannan

Libya

Minoans 

Mycenaeans

Sea Peoples

Hebrew

Philistine

Hittite

Assyrian

Babylonian

 Given the shortness of the book, it does not go into too much detail. You do however get to read about the 'Genesis of Chariot Warfare', and the armies of the above listed Peoples. The Kings you will see written in its pages may or may not be known to you. Pharaohs such as: Ramesses II, and the Hittite King Suppiluliumas I. The Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, and the Akkadian Sargon the Great. Along with many others are shown to the reader. 


 For someone who is interested in the history, and most especially the warfare, behind the Old Testament, this book is the best first stop for the reader that I can recommend. Thank you, Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this great book. This proves that good things do come in small packages.


Robert


Book: Old Testament Warriors:

Old Testament Warriors (casematepublishers.com)

Author: Simon Elliott:

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Bloody Verrieres: The I SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrieres-Bourguebus Ridges Volume I: Operations Goodwood and Atlantic, 18-22 July 194...

Bloody Verrieres: The I SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrieres-Bourguebus Ridges by Arthur W. Gullachsen Bloody Verrieres: The I SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrieres-Bourguebus Ridges by Arthur W. Gullachsen

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Bloody Verrieres: The I SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrieres-Bourguebus Ridges


Volume I: Operations Goodwood and Atlantic, 18-22 July 1944


by


Arthur W, Gullachsen 






 Here we are again in the fields and hedgerows of Normandy. A ton of ink has been used to describe five battles in particular: Normandy, Kursk, Gettysburg, Waterloo, and the Bulge. It would almost seem like these five campaigns were the only ones to take place in history. On the Normandy campaign you also have two camps: the first by American authors that states that Monty was slow and not a great general, the second by British authors that Monty had planned out the campaign from the start and it all worked according to his plan. The problem with the second is that Monty planned some large-scale attacks on the German lines, as this book shows. The planning for them also included points to be taken far behind the German lines after the breakthrough. I am sorry to say you cannot have it both ways. If all he intended was a meat grinder, then why all the grandiose plans of attacks? The reason it was a meat grinder was because of the desperate defense the German units put up. As I have said before, you can admire their pluck and fighting ability and still wish to see a good lot of them hanged. This book shows the horrific battles that took place for one of the areas around Caen. No matter what Monty's plan, the British and Canadians showed how fierce in battle they could be.


 The two volumes are about five days of battle during the Normandy Campaign around the city of Caen. The author makes three assertions in this book and backs them up with facts. One, that Sepp Dietrich (commander of the I SS Panzer Corps), was not the inept fool that he is almost always described as. Two, that the 1 SS Panzer Division was instrumental in stalling Montgomery's Operation Goodwood. Third, that though the Germans in Normandy made a great defensive battle, it actually turned into a Pyrrhic victory for them. The reason being is that so many reinforcements etc. were sent to this part of the Normandy Campaign that other parts were denuded of the above. So, whether Montgomery planned it or not, the battle did go the way his supporters say he planned it. 


 This is an excellent work that adds to the history of the Normandy Campaign. It also gives the armchair historian points to ponder. Thank you very much Casemate Publishers for letting me review this book. I cannot wait to get my hands on Volume II.


Robert

Book:Bloody Verrieres: The I SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrieres-Bourguebus Ridges, Volume I: Operations Goodwood and Atlantic, 18-22 July 1944 

Author: Arthur W, Gullachsen 

Publisher: Casemate Publishers











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