Tactical Wargamer Posted February 15, 2006 Share Posted February 15, 2006 Well title says it! Anything you recommend for accurate descriptions of eastern front battles? Nice Maps of course would be a bonus! Just received a $150 gift card for amazon......any suggestions gents? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 15, 2006 Share Posted February 15, 2006 RCMP, For maps: THE WEST POINT ATLAS OF WORLD WAR II For the Eastern Front in context: Weinberg, A WORLD IN ARMS For the history of the War in the East: John Erickson's classic two volume study, THE ROAD TO STALINGRAD THE ROAD TO BERLIN plus his EASTERN FRONT 1941-45 Glantz, STUMBLING COLOSSUS and COLOSSUS REBORN (Red Army) Zaloga, RED ARMY HANDBOOK 1939-45 For the battles: Glantz--big time! Many titles. ENEMY AT THE GATES (Stalingrad) Kerr, THE SECRETS OF STALINGRAD Seaton, THE BATTLE OF MOSCOW Salisbury, THE 900 DAYS (Leningrad) Guderian, PANZER LEADER Von Mellenthin, PANZER BATTLES Leonov, BLOOD ON THE SHORES (naval commandos) Axell, RUSSIA'S HEROES (maps & individual accounts) Kornish, IMAGES OF KURSK Osprey Campaign Series Even rudimentary digging should produce dozens more. Sidebars at Amazon.com have multiple lists of Eastern Front books. Happy reading! Regards, John Kettler [ February 16, 2006, 05:35 PM: Message edited by: John Kettler ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sivodsi Posted February 15, 2006 Share Posted February 15, 2006 I've just been reading 'Clash of Titans' by Glantz and House. It's very good at an operational level, especially since it was one of the first to use Russian sources extensively. Doesn't get down to the dirt though, don't buy it if you want eye-witness accounts. Also makes a couple of niggly errors like "new Mark V Panther and Mark VI Tiger tanks both armed with the deadly 88mm gun" and I think the section on Kursk is a little dated in the light of more current accounts of it (but am not sure on this point). I'm also looking for history books on a lower level than "on March 7 the two tank armies approached Proskurov, where they were halted by redeploying German III and XXXXVIII Panzer Corps", so I'll be following this thread with interest. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
76mm Posted February 15, 2006 Share Posted February 15, 2006 Assuming that you're most interested in sources at the CMBB-level of combat (company/battalion), I recommend the following: Tigers in the Mud by Otto Carius: Excellent account of Tiger companies/battalions in action, mainly on the Eastern Front. The History of the Panzerkorps Grossdeutschland, Vol. 2 (Hardcover) by Helmuth Spaeter: I found this book to be rather poorly written and dense overall, because it is kind of a strange hodge-podge of detailed operational history and personal acccounts. That said, the numerous personal accounts are some of the best first-hand descriptions of tactical combat on the Eastern Front that I have found. Panzer Operations: The Eastern Front Memoir of General Raus, 1941-1945 -- by Erhard Raus, Steven H. Newton (Compiler)--If you're after tactical, small-scale operational accounts, the first half of this book is pretty good--Raus starts as a regimental (?) commander and ends the war as an army commander. I lost interest about the time he became a corps commander, maybe halfway through the book. Panzer Aces by Franz Kurowski. While this book is kind of fun and interesting, it mainly focuses on what the individual crew/tank are doing rather than the platoon/company, so not very interesting from a tactical perspective; kind of like reading about a tank-centric FPS. Finally, a book to avoid if you're looking for military history: Ivan's War by Catherine Merridale. I'm half-way through this book now; while it is a good, well-written book, it is NOT a military history--rather it is a kind of sociological history of Russians during WWII. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 15, 2006 Share Posted February 15, 2006 Hi Here is a small (!) selection of stuff I've found useful in preparing a series of scenarios Charlie Meconis and did for CMBB. It's by no means exhaustive - thei lost is slanted towards the LSSAH actions around the Kharkov winter fighting in 1943, with some of their actions during Kursk in 1943. I'm busy moving house and have just been shocked by how much my library has grown the past few years. Here goes... Jochen Peiper by Patrick Agte After the Battle: The Four Battles for Kharkov No112 Red Army Tank Commanders: The Armored Guards by Richard N. Armstrong Last Victory in Russia: the SS Panzerkorps and Manstein's Kharkov Counteroffensive by George M. Nipe Jr The Leibstandarte Vol III by Rudolf Lehmann From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations December '42-August '43 by David Glantz Panzer Aces I by Franz Kurowski (Panzer Aces II OK as well) Grenadiers by Kurt Meyer Armour Battles of the Waffen SS, 1943 – 45 by Will Fey Chronicle of the 7. Panzer Kompanie 1st SS Panzer Division “Leibstandarte” by Ralf Tiemann The SS Panzer Artillery Regiment 1 Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler by Thomas Fisher Soviet Armour Tactics in World War II by Charles C. Sharp Battle Group! by James Lucas The Battle of Kharkov by Jean Restayn Platz der Leibstandarte by George Nipe Jr & Remy Spezzano Slaughterhouse: The Handbook of the Eastern Front, David Glantz, et al. The Red Army Order of Battle in the Great Patriotic War by Robert Poirer and Albert Conner Colossus Reborn and Colossus Companion by David Glantz The Battle of Kursk by Glantz and House Operation “Zitadelle” July 1943: The Decisive Battle of World War II by Franz Kurowski The Battle of Kursk by Robin Cross Steel Storm: Waffen SS Panzer Battles of the Eastern Front 1943 - 1945 by Tim Ripley Panzertaktic by Wolfgang Schneider 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Sivodsi, I don't own and haven't read that one, but what did you think of the Glantz and House Kursk book? I found it to be a tough, turgid read--made worse by eye test maps. Granted, it had all kinds of previously unavailable material, but it wasn't even remotely user friendly. Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tactical Wargamer Posted February 16, 2006 Author Share Posted February 16, 2006 Thanks A million I think I will need more than $150 buck as many of these suggestions are a must. Really interested in the tactical level ie Divisional/regimental detailed battle accounts. Some nice sources...... Cheers! [ February 16, 2006, 06:52 AM: Message edited by: RCMP ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sivodsi Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Hi John, Can't comment on the Kursk book as I only have CofT, which is dry enough. Unfortunate, but it seems to be a characteristic of their work (most of the reviews on Amazon make passing references to it). The good thing about CofT is that it gives you an indication of where interesting things happened. It's made me interested in the Battles of Kharkov as there was a lot of maneuvre. I see George Mc listed Restayn's book: anybody know how if its more readable than Glantz & House? Does it give more tactical CM level detail? Edited to answer my own question: checked Amazon to find its a photo book at 94 clams. Arrrgg! Not the kind of book I'm after. Anybody know of good books about the Kharkov battles? Cheers 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Hi Sivodsi Check out: Last Victory in Russia: the SS Panzerkorps and Manstein's Kharkov Counteroffensive by George M. Nipe Jr This book is very readable and gives an accurate account of the Kharkov fighting in the winter of 1943 - lot's of CMBB stuff for scenarios in it - or check out the Peiper's Blowtorch scenarios which are based on incidents detailed in the book (with supporting stuff from others). 94 clams - pounds or dollars - yippee looks like I have a collection now worth something Cheers fur noo George 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Sivodsi, Jean Restayn is a top notch armor illustrator whose work routinely graces a French armor modeling mag called STEEL something or other. It and several other pubs (RAIDS, MILITARIA) from the same firm used to have English editions, but alas, these were discontinued in the mid 90s. Has two books out that I know of, one covering the armor on the Eastern Front and the other armor in Normandy. Regards, John Kettler [ February 16, 2006, 06:49 PM: Message edited by: John Kettler ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 I'd echo John's comments regrading Restayn's work. I have found the book very useful, from a CMBB perspective, to get the 'feel' of the landscapes around Kharkov correct. As an aside if pennies are tight, "After the Battle" issue 112 has a superb account of the fighting in Kharkov itself. Most of Kharkov survived the fighting intact so it was possible to compare photos taken during the fighting with their same location in the present day. It's a an excellent peice of work and only a few quid. Cheers fur noo George 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sivodsi Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Cheers guys, Well, the pennies are not that tight, but I'd hesitate to spend 94 dollars on any book. Thanks, George, for the word about Nipe's book. I'm a bit concerned about things I've read about Nipe, doesn't he come down on the German apologist's side a bit? <being careful not to take finger off lid of box of very angry bees> John: Restayn's an illustrator? No wonder its a big book. At this point (and not trying to hijack a thread) I'm more interested in good written histories with a preference for those that make use of soviet sources. Cheers 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Sivodsi, You bet! His books are awash with big, beautiful color plates. Real treadhead eye candy! Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Sivodsi Re I know what you mean. There is a strong pro-German slant, although the book is well written and has some good first person accounts of the fighting. Overall though I've found from all the research I've done into the Eastern Front fighting that no matter who you read, with a few exceptions, tends to have a bias one way or the other. It appears to be the nature of the writing, and perhaps the conflict, that it generates such possible distaste. I guess it is up to the individual to read and make their own mind as to what slant the writer is taking. I have found that first hand accounts of any fighting on the Eastern Front from the Soviet perspective are few and far between, at least in English. One Soviet account of the fighting, albeit latter in the war is "Tank Rider" (the name of the writer eludes me just now as all my books are packed away prior to a house flit)- well worth reading, a real gem I think. Glantz's books make great use of Soviet sources, although his stuff does tend to be dry. If you like, read Nipe's book and cross reference what he writes, with the overall account given by Glantz in his account of the action in "From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations December '42-August '43" Enjoy the book reading when it comes Cheers fur noo George 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Here's is a sampling of Monsieur Restayn's work. I believe it speaks for itself. http://www.alanhamby.com/paint.html Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sivodsi Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Ohhhhhhh... ohhh... oh oh. Yeah, that's one great link. Can we get this guy interested in CM? George - well put. Those two books will be on my shopping list. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Sivodsi, Thought you'd be impressed. Remember, though, this a family Forum. Control yourself! Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Russian Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 Originally posted by John Kettler: Sivodsi, I don't own and haven't read that one, but what did you think of the Glantz and House Kursk book? I found it to be a tough, turgid read--made worse by eye test maps. Granted, it had all kinds of previously unavailable material, but it wasn't even remotely user friendly. Regards, John Kettler The saving grace for all Glantz books is the index. If you are looking for something specific you can find it. His books are histories and as such are "dry reading". 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Russian Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 Originally posted by George Mc: Hi Sivodsi Check out: Last Victory in Russia: the SS Panzerkorps and Manstein's Kharkov Counteroffensive by George M. Nipe Jr This book is very readable and gives an accurate account of the Kharkov fighting in the winter of 1943 - lot's of CMBB stuff for scenarios in it - or check out the Peiper's Blowtorch scenarios which are based on incidents detailed in the book (with supporting stuff from others). 94 clams - pounds or dollars - yippee looks like I have a collection now worth something Cheers fur noo George There are 3 CMBB scenarios on every page of this book!! It's a must for those interested in reading "in the turret" accounts. It's only worth about 65 clams though... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 Whats a clam - come on boys tell me? Cheers fur noo George 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philippe Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 One clam = 1.15 loons = 0.574 quid. And I'm old enough to remember when one would get you one. Your compatriots kept muttering something about their cousins being overpaid, oversexed, and over here. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George MC Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 Hi Philippe Ahh you must be talking about Aberdonians... he! he! I know loonies I spent a rather inebriated night in Calgary after and ice climbing trip throwing loons at... oops family forum... Cheers fur noo George 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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