German Field Fortifications on the Eastern Front. Album of Drawings

[George MC]

Some interesting sketches - worth checking out if you have an interest in fortifications. 

http://www.militarystory.org/german-field-fortifications-on-the-eastern-front-album-of-drawings/

[BletchleyGeek]

Thanks for sharing @George MC it is the most comprehensive collection I have seen online.

[Aragorn2002]

Great stuff. Would be nice to have more variety in fortifications for CM.

[kevinkin]

Thanks George for the link. I think I saw a few of the diagrams before but never in one place or described with context.

[Bulletpoint]

16 hours ago, Aragorn2002 said:

Great stuff. Would be nice to have more variety in fortifications for CM.

Yes, definitely. It's high on my wishlist too.

[womble]

Steve has said in the past that expanding on the combat engineering game is something he'd like to try and do. Hopefully that will extend to fortifications (as in "preparation for combat engineering).

[Warts 'n' all]

No. 38 ....   Looks almost identical to the 75mm position uncovered in Normandy by the British TV show "Time Team". Which goes to show that at least sometimes, practice matched theory. 

[Aragorn2002]

Talking about fortifications.

Last night I watched Peter Barton's documentary 'The Somme 1916 - From both sides of the wire'. Apart from being one of the BEST war documentaires I've ever seen, it also shows how the Germans used their engineering skills to build excellent fortifications to be able to survive the British barrages and stop or delay the following assaults by masses of British infantry. I've noticed that a lot of things we know from WW2 were in fact developed in WW1, such as the German tactic of Verteidigung in der Tiefe, the system of rapid Gegenstosse and leaving the trenches before the bombardment and occupying them again before the enemy infantry could follow up . Mr. Barton studied the German archives and throws a new light on many aspects of that terrible battle. Although I went to bed with a heavy heart about all those men who suffered and died, I really enjoyed this series.

Apart from that it was very interesting to see how the British air force had air superiority in the first half of the battle and the Germans could hardly move without being bombed or straffed (Normandy!), how well the Germans treated their POW's and that way got more information out of them than the British did by bullying their German POW's and lots and lots more of great information, much of it based on German archives, seldom researched by other historians. Recommended for everyone interested in WW1 and especially the Somme tragedy.

 

 

 

[George MC]

Hi @Aragorn2002 I'd echo your comments on this series - it was superbly done with Peter Barton going back to primary sources in the archive.

Whilst bringing some new insight into the battle of the Somme and balancing the viewpoints it also underscored the sheer scale of the slaughter and the impact on those who survived.

[Bulletpoint]

3 hours ago, Aragorn2002 said:

Apart from that it was very interesting to see how the British air force had air superiority in the first half of the battle and the Germans could hardly move without being bombed or straffed

It's interesting to see how history repeats itself. Germany getting into a war on two fronts, losing air superiority, then losing the war.

[Warts 'n' all]

3 hours ago, Aragorn2002 said:

Talking about fortifications.

Last night I watched Peter Barton's documentary 'The Somme 1916 - From both sides of the wire'. Apart from being one of the BEST war documentaires I've ever seen, it also shows how the Germans used their engineering skills to build excellent fortifications to be able to survive the British barrages and stop or delay the following assaults by masses of British infantry. I've noticed that a lot of things we know from WW2 were in fact developed in WW1, such as the German tactic of Verteidigung in der Tiefe, the system of rapid Gegenstosse and leaving the trenches before the bombardment and occupying them again before the enemy infantry could follow up . Mr. Barton studied the German archives and throws a new light on many aspects of that terrible battle. Although I went to bed with a heavy heart about all those men who suffered and died, I really enjoyed this series.

Apart from that it was very interesting to see how the British air force had air superiority in the first half of the battle and the Germans could hardly move without being bombed or straffed (Normandy!), how well the Germans treated their POW's and that way got more information out of them than the British did by bullying their German POW's and lots and lots more of great information, much of it based on German archives, seldom researched by other historians. Recommended for everyone interested in WW1 and especially the Somme tragedy.

 

 

 

I'd go so far as to say that it was easily the best thing that Aunty Beeb put out to mark the 100th Anniversary.  

[Aragorn2002]

Absolutely. The ceremony was moving too, but in a different way.

[Macisle]

Thanks for posting the link, George MC!

[John Kettler]

George MC,

Good stuff! There was a CM thread I started in 2008 on German and Russian field fortifications in which a ton of material was provided. Not only did and does grog fest AllWorldWars.com have the drawings you provided, but a wealth of other Eastern front material as well. Should you still be sane after that, try HistoryofWar.org, which has a mere 5600+ articles on military history. Found it while trying to recall the other site. Could keep Steve occupied for at least a week!

Regards,

John Kettler