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Tanker Books/Novels


glcanon

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Also Steven Zaloga had a bit of fictional tank battle as an opener in "Tank War Central Front - NATO vs Warsaw Pact" .

Zaloga also published a book titled Red Thrust that contains a series of vignettes regarding different battlefield operating systems. The tank battle you mention might be reproduced in Red Thrust.

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If you can "do" science fiction i would heartily reccomend the Hammers Slammers series by David Drake. The Author is a veteran of Vietnam and this comes accross in his work which is gritty and brutal at times. My Favourite of them is Rolling Hot which is based on the Tet Offensive (obviously in a Sci-Fi guise). The books are predominantly collections of short stories. a couple of the maps i made for Pro were inspired by these books.

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Rommel was quite outspoken against NAZI leadership, so ended up growing foul of Hitler's paranoia and petty dislike of Prussian officers. Look where it got him, the choice between suicide or a sham trial and all his family being shot.

Well after having published Infantrie greift an (wonderful book although it is a shameless bit of self-promotion), Rommel was put in command of the Fuehrer bodyguard battalion. This move considerably advanced his career. He certainly didn't mind rubbing elbows with Nazis when it suited him. I suspect that history's weighing of Rommel might be a tad less if the British hadn't needed a master-strategist of almost super-human dimension to explain away their showing in Africa after having dismissed the Italians.

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...

Rommel was quite outspoken against NAZI leadership, so ended up growing foul of Hitler's paranoia and petty dislike of Prussian officers. ..

.

Every german officer was educated in the spirit of prusian offficers. But Rommels homeland was south-west germany, not prussia.

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Red Thrust was panned by everyone but I loved it. He puts an incredible personal spin on being an infantryman stuck in an BMP or being an artilleryman having to head across the river in his 2S1 during an air attack.

Remember what happens to one of them? Springs a leak and sinks! They have to pick up the crew on the way over. Cool stuff.

I read it primarily to study about Hind crews when I was in Korea (my crew chief loaned it to me) but Zaloga had such incite that I read the whole thing cover to cover.

I checked Amazon and you can get it for like $5 now.

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Not sure if someones already mentioned this, but I always thought that "Red Army" by.....Ralph Peters I think....is a damn fine read, especially since it deals with events at a number of different levels and all from the soviet perspective.

Also, logistics and all the important non-pointy end stuff is covered well.

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Yes, Rommel was Swabian.

Rommel was in the Navy?

; )

Oh yeah, I purchased both RED ARMY and BEYOND BAGHDAD (non-fiction), both by Ralph Peters.

The man knows what he's talking about. He's a 3-time wounded veteran in four combat tours, he's a professor of Intl Security Studies at West Point, a national security analyst for NBC, and has done consulting work for just about every U.S. intelligence service.

As for Rommel's being a Prussian officer, I don't know whether Hitler really thought him a Prussian, but alas, I don't remember my source, and shame on me for not fact-checking. Of course my brethren here would be on top of things. A Swabie, eh..

"In the absence of orders, go find something and kill it." -- FM Erwin Rommel

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Rommel was put in command of the Fuehrer bodyguard battalion. This move considerably advanced his career. He certainly didn't mind rubbing elbows with Nazis when it suited him.

I thought the SS were Hitler's bodyguards? I can't quite picture Rommel, a tanker, giving those black-suited goons orders. Must have been a one-time temporary assignment, or some such?

Speaking of Rommel, he was in the news today:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=469401&in_page_id=1770

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I thought the SS were Hitler's bodyguards? I can't quite picture Rommel, a tanker, giving those black-suited goons orders. Must have been a one-time temporary assignment, or some such?

Speaking of Rommel, he was in the news today:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=469401&in_page_id=1770

Schwaben

In 1938, Rommel, now a colonel, was appointed commandant of the War Academy at Wiener Neustadt (Theresian Military Academy). Here he started his follow-up to Infantry Attacks, Panzer greift an (Tank Attacks, sometimes translated as The Tank In Attack). Rommel was removed after a short time however, to take command of Adolf Hitler's personal protection battalion (FührerBegleitbataillon), assigned to protect him in the special railway train (Führersonderzug) used during his visits to occupied Czechoslovakia and Memel. It was at this period that he met and befriended Joseph Goebbels, the Reich's minister of propaganda. Goebbels became a fervent admirer of Rommel and later ensured that Rommel's exploits were celebrated in the media.

Rommel

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  • 2 weeks later...
If you can "do" science fiction i would heartily reccomend the Hammers Slammers series by David Drake. The Author is a veteran of Vietnam and this comes accross in his work which is gritty and brutal at times. My Favourite of them is Rolling Hot which is based on the Tet Offensive (obviously in a Sci-Fi guise). The books are predominantly collections of short stories. a couple of the maps i made for Pro were inspired by these books.

Great book. I heard that Drake was pretty traumatized by Vietnam, and he was trying to write a book about himself in Vietnam, but found it brought back too many painful memories. Then a friend suggested he fictionalize it and make the setting science fiction. And I guess guys he served with in Vietnam recognize almost all incidents in the book.

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Schwaben

In 1938, Rommel, now a colonel, was appointed commandant of the War Academy at Wiener Neustadt (Theresian Military Academy). Here he started his follow-up to Infantry Attacks, Panzer greift an (Tank Attacks, sometimes translated as The Tank In Attack). Rommel was removed after a short time however, to take command of Adolf Hitler's personal protection battalion (FührerBegleitbataillon), assigned to protect him in the special railway train (Führersonderzug) used during his visits to occupied Czechoslovakia and Memel. It was at this period that he met and befriended Joseph Goebbels, the Reich's minister of propaganda. Goebbels became a fervent admirer of Rommel and later ensured that Rommel's exploits were celebrated in the media.

Rommel

I think Rommel's reputation was also helped by the American and British media. We built up his rep, so when we beat him, it would look all the better for us.

Wasn't Rommel aslo disliked by many of the other German Generals?

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Wasn't Rommel aslo disliked by many of the other German Generals?

I remember at one time hearing a William S. Burroughs remark about Hemingway that went something like, "the only thing worse than a cop-lover is a general-lover." (Although Burroughs may have, I don't intend offense to any cops by that statement.)

It seems that a lot of those guys (WWII German general officers) had a hard time getting along with each other. That would seem to make sense given that the willingness to take risks, an above normal level of self-confidence, and the ability to play politics are all almost prerequisites of getting into the general officer club in the first place.

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My impression was that a lot of the up-and-comers (Rommel, for example) were not of noble stock and were therefore treated with, at best, patronizing disdain.

My impression further opines that quasi-aristocratic attitudes caused even those of noble birth to find themselves in quasi-continuous conflict with others of their ilk. That can't be good for initiative; it can be a full-time job trying to make yourself look good in front of the other princes, which has to hurt your ability to do your job.

von Rundstedt is the exception to this example (if not the only one).

Shot

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Schwaben

In 1938, Rommel, now a colonel, was appointed commandant of the War Academy at Wiener Neustadt (Theresian Military Academy). Here he started his follow-up to Infantry Attacks, Panzer greift an (Tank Attacks, sometimes translated as The Tank In Attack). Rommel was removed after a short time however, to take command of Adolf Hitler's personal protection battalion (FührerBegleitbataillon), assigned to protect him in the special railway train (Führersonderzug) used during his visits to occupied Czechoslovakia and Memel. It was at this period that he met and befriended Joseph Goebbels, the Reich's minister of propaganda. Goebbels became a fervent admirer of Rommel and later ensured that Rommel's exploits were celebrated in the media.

Rommel

Ill think you will find the FuhrerBegleitBatallion was actually Wehrmact, and not SS which was a seperate organistion. I memory serves it eventually became part of the Grossdeutchland formation, which was Wehrmact, and set up specifically as a rival (primarily for resources) to the Waffen SS. I think FBB eventually became a brigade, based on rather shaky memory of playing the wargame Crusade in Europe 20 odd years ago. It may have served in the Ardenne offensive in 1944, but I would have to check on that.

I bought that book 5 years ago (Eyes of Orion) and ive never managed to finish it. It was not well written imho, and it seriously put me off trying to finish it. I think Heights of Courage by Kahlani (Cant be arsed to look the spelling up) is much better, as indeed is the book by the commander of 7th Armoured Brigade during Operation Granby.

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Ill think you will find the FuhrerBegleitBatallion was actually Wehrmact, and not SS which was a seperate organistion. I memory serves it eventually became part of the Grossdeutchland formation, which was Wehrmact, and set up specifically as a rival (primarily for resources) to the Waffen SS. I think FBB eventually became a brigade, based on rather shaky memory of playing the wargame Crusade in Europe 20 odd years ago. It may have served in the Ardenne offensive in 1944, but I would have to check on that.

Rommel was a remarkable fellow, but he has been atributed postwar primarily as an AntiNazi. He didnt like politics much, but he did admire Hitler, and it was his patronage that made his career. its also forgotten that he once shot a French officer (a POW) out of hand, because he didnt clear a road of pows quickly enough for his 7th Panzer division. On the other hand, he was aware of the conspiracy, and whilst he didnt participate, quite clearly didnt report the individuals who did. Probably a better legacy than most German WW2 Generals I guess.

I bought that book 5 years ago (Eyes of Orion) and ive never managed to finish it. It was not well written imho, and it seriously put me off trying to finish it. I think Heights of Courage by Kahlani (Cant be arsed to look the spelling up) is much better, as indeed is the book by the commander of 7th Armoured Brigade during Operation Granby.

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I enjoyed " Steel Inferno" by Michael Reynolds ...it's about the 1st SS Panzer Corp in Normandy

" Panzer Commander " by Hans von Luck really good read takes you from the invasion of Poland the first fire fights, through the invasion of Russia to the end of the war

" The Rommel Papers " is an enjoyable read as well about Erwin Rommel

" Panzerkrieg " by Peter McCarthy and Mike Syron is about the formation and demise of the German Panzer Divisions in WWII

" Panzer Aces " by Franz Kurowski has several good stories of WWII German Commanders in action

" Hells Gate " by Douglas Nash has various stories hour by hour day by day of the Wiking division during the Cherkassy Pocket .

vK ~

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  • 3 weeks later...

Just found and bought a cheap copy of "Proud Legions" by John Antal (my 3rd Antal book in a short while) and from the first look it was worth it. Now with "Red Phoenix" by Larry Bond and the "Armored Corps" trilogy I think my second korean war book collection is complete. :)

Also bought "Iron Fist" by Bryan Perrett, hope it is as good as it sounds.

Oh btw: "Armor Attacks" is a fantastic book, it chilled me so much that I had to get "Infantry Combat" as well.

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