After the initial successes of Operation Barbarossa, at the end of September 1941 Hitler turned his focus to Moscow, with the unshakeable belief that capturing the capital would knock the Soviets out of the war. On the face of it, it was an unequal struggle; Field Marshall Fedor von Bock had at his command disposal 1 million men, 1,700 tanks, 19,500 artillery guns and 950 combat aircraft – 50% of all the German men in Russia, 75% of all the tanks and 33% of all the planes. To defend Moscow, the Russians had under 500,000 men, fewer than 900 tanks and just over 300 combat planes. But the picture was in fact a great deal more complex; the Germans had suffered very significant losses since the invasion of Russia had begun, and had issues with logistics and air support. The Soviets, under the command of General Zhukov, were beginning to be better supplied with re-enforcements, and were prepared to defend to the death.Nevertheless Moscow was in a perilous situation. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series concentrates on the main German assault of October 1941. Guderian’s panzer divisions at first made sweeping gains as they had done so many times before and large parts of the Red Army were encircled at Vyazma and Bryansk. These successes in fact allowed the Soviets time to re-group as the encircled armies did not surrender and had to be dealt with. Then three engagements followed at Mtsensk, Maloyaroslavets and the Mojaisk defense line that proved that the war in the East was not entering its final days as German high command believed.Illustrated with over 150 photographs, plus profile drawings of tanks, vehicles and aircraft, it gives a vivid impression of the situation for both protagonists, and a detailed analysis of the critical days as the fate of Moscow and perhaps the whole war hung in the balance.

For many, the Waffen-SS soldier represents the archetype of the combatant, if not the warrior: well-armed, well-trained, possessing intelligence in combat, imbued with political and ideological fanaticism, he is an elite soldier par excellence, even if a lack of scruples casts a long shadow. However, is this picture true? In the case of the Battle of Normandy, opinions diverged, not only among today's historians, but also amongst the German generals at the time. In all, the Waffen-SS fielded six divisions during the Battle of Normandy, as well as two heavy battalions of Tiger tanks. But they were by no means a single homogenous entity, for with the exception of II. SS-Panzerkorps, the divisions arrived at the front one after another and were immediately thrown into battle. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series examines the Waffen-SS in Normandy during the fierce fighting of June 1944, when they struggled to hold back the Allied advance on Caen, though the picture was by no means one-sided. Extensively illustrated with photographs, tank profiles, maps, and accompanied by biographies of key personnel and explanatory text boxes, this volume gives a clear and accessible account of events, challenging some popular perceptions along the way.

For the very first time, the Battle of Primosole Bridge is brought to life in a well-researched narrative solely dedicated to one of the bloodiest and hardest fought battles for British airborne troops of World War Two.Primosole Bridge in Sicily (13-16 July 1943) provided the stage for the first instance of opposing elite paratroopers parachuting into battle and then fighting each other in a see-saw battle raging under the blazing Mediterranean sky. It’s a story of courage and determination. A story of legendary military units and their commanders. A story that now, on the eve of its 75th Anniversary, finally needs to be told.The British paratroopers of the famed Parachute Regiment’s 1st Parachute Brigade, known as the ‘Red Devils’, fought their equally esteemed German paratrooper opponents, known as the ‘Green Devils’, in a battle of attrition central to the entire success of the Allies’ first invasion of Hitler’s Fortress Europe. These two sets of elite Devils fought each other to a stand-still in Hellish conditions. The paratroopers found themselves cut-off behind enemy lines with dwindling ammunition and ever-growing enemy forces encircling. Their courage and determination in standing up to overwhelming odds allowed the ground forces to arrive and capture the bridge in the nick of time before it was destroyed. The hard-won experience gained by the 1st Parachute Brigade was again tested only a year later at the Battle of Arnhem, the battle christened a bridge too far. It was in fact an almost identical battle, but on a larger scale, to the ferocious fight that the British paratroopers had faced only months previously. The Battle of Arnhem is well documented. The Battle of Primosole Bridge, which provided the foundations for the men and planning for the legendary events at Arnhem, is virtually unheard of and needs to be told at last in order to honour the sacrifice of the Britain’s unsung war heroes.

The path from Moscow to Stalingrad was littered with successes and losses for both the Red Army and the Wehrmacht, with tensions remaining high and culminating in one of the harshest battles of the Second World War. Part of the Casemate Illustrated series, this volume outlines how it was that, less than a year after their defeat at Moscow, the German army had found a way to make the Soviet troops waver in their defence, with their persistence eventually leading to the Battle of Stalingrad. The successful expulsion of the German troops from Moscow in the winter of 1941 came at a cost for the Red Army. Weaknesses in the Soviet camp inspired the Wehrmacht, under Adolf Hitler’s close supervision, to make preparations for offensives along the Eastern Front to push the Russians further and further back into their territory. With a complex set of new tactics and the crucial aid of the Luftwaffe, the German army began to formulate a deadly two-pronged attack on Stalingrad to reduce the city to rubble. Initially only on the periphery of operations, bit by bit German ambitions focused on Stalingrad. In the lead up to this, Timoshenko’s failed attack on Kharkov followed by the Battle of Sebastopol in June 1942 prompted Operation Blue, the German campaign to advance east on their prized objective. This volume includes numerous photographs of the ships, planes, tanks, trucks, and weaponry used by both sides in battle, alongside detailed maps and text outlining the constantly changing strategies of the armies as events unfolded.

This new photo album, one of first in the MMP/Stratus "Camera On" series, contains 140+ photos of the Sd.Kfz. 10 Leichter Zugkraftwagen 1. t.The Sd.

More than seventy-five years after wards, “Chariot” is still thought of as the most daring and most spectacular commando operation of the whole of WWII, called on the other side of the Channel “the greatest raid of all time”. Indeed you had to be mad or British to go up the estuary of the River Loire at night, into Saint-Nazaire in order to ram an old destroyer full of explosives on a time fuse against the Joubert docks. And all this was done to make the only dry-dock vast enough to take the super cruiser Tirpitz, the terror of all the Allied navies, totally unusable. This raid had as tremendous an impact in France as it did in Britain, proving to the Allies and to all of occupied Europe that the Third Reich was not invulnerable. To tell the story of this extraordinary coup de main, Jean-Charles Stasi has consulted the German, British and French archives, interviewed former commandoes as well as the inhabitants of Saint-Nazaire who witnessed the raid. His tale is lively and alert and is illustrated with a lot of period photographs, as well as maps, drawings and boat profiles, to plunge the reader into the heart of the action and to allow him relive the preparations for this extraordinary operation. Text in French.

This exceptional book highlights the role and difficulties of the crews who served this mythical tank. The technical pitfalls and solutions by the designers are explained and the different combat methods developed by the allies are detailed. This book exhaustively lists the equipment, the engines and the generated models. Includes an exceptional iconography, including color plates, materials and markings.Cet ouvrage d’exception met en avant le rôle et les difficultés des équipages qui ont servi ce char mythique. Les écueils techniques et les solutions trouvées par les concepteurs sont expliquées, les différentes méthodes de combat mises au point par les alliés sont détaillées. L’ouvrage liste de façon exhaustive les équipements, les motorisations et les modèles engendrés. Une iconographie exceptionnelle, dont des planches couleurs, des matériels et marquages.

These three volumes represent the most complete and detailed study of the uniforms and equipment of the German Paras of WWII (Fallschimjäger). Practically each element of the uniform if presented in minute detail, and covers all the different models, parachutists (Knochensack), and the equipment used by the Luftwaffe from the middle of the 1930s to the fall of the Third Reich. Also included are badges of the Fallschimjäger and numerous previously unpublished first-hand accounts. Furthermore will be included detailed descriptions of operations by the ‘Green Devils’ such as the invasion of Norway, the attack on Eben Emael, the Dutch campaign, Crete and North Africa campaigns, Russia, Italy, Normandy, the Ardennes and also included. With the help of collectors and museums from across the world, the author and he German editor have collaborated to produce an unprecedented collections. The Three volumes amount to over 1,000 pages with thousands of photos and collectors’ items including many never seen before.

James Gee was fresh out of college at the University of Texas and making plans for his future when World War II interrupted these happy pursuits. He and his friends joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1940 and after training he was posted to the U.

101st Airborne Division was activated in August 1942 in Louisiana, and its first combat mission was Operation Overlord. On D-Day—June 6, 1944—101st and 82nd Airborne dropped onto the Cotentin peninsula hours before the landings, tasked with capturing bridges and positions, taking out German strongpoints and batteries, and securing the exits from Utah and Omaha Beaches. Things did not initially go smoothly for 101st Airborne, with cloud and antiaircraft fire disrupting the drops resulting in some units landing scattered over a large area outside their designated drop zones and having to waste time assembling—stymied by lost or damaged radio equipment—or trying to achieve their objectives with severely reduced numbers. Casualties were high in some areas due to heavy pre-registered German fire. Nevertheless, the paratroopers fought on and they did manage to secure the crucial beach exits, even if they only achieved a tenuous hold on some other positions. A few days later, 101st Airborne were tasked with attacking the German-held city of Carentan as part of the consolidation of the US beachheads and establishment of a defensive line against the anticipated German counteroffensive. The 101st forced their way into Carentan on 10 and 11 June. The Germans withdrew the following day, and a counteroffensive was put down by elements of the 2nd Armored Division. This fully illustrated book details the planning of the airborne element of D-Day, and the execution of the plans until the troops were withdrawn to prepare for the next big airborne operation, Market Garden.

Four years before the Normandy landings, the French coast was the scene of another major episode in the Second World War. This was Operation Dynamo, much less well known than D-Day. And yet you only have to look at the statistics to see how important this part of the story of the Campaign of France was: between 27 May and 4 June, almost 340 000 French and British troops were evacuated from the Dunkirk pocket by a miscellaneous fleet of 850 boats, among which hundreds of fishing vessels, pleasure boats, lifeboats or Merchant Navy vessels. Thanks to the sailors’ courage but also the RAF pilots’ skill, this operation without precedent was a success which enabled the British to continue to fight the Germans, even though they had to leave behind most of their equipment and weapons. Replaced in its context, Operation Dynamo is here narrated in detail with numerous period photos, maps, aircraft profiles and uniform plates. This military operation and human adventure without precedent breathes again, 77 years later thanks to the film director Christopher Nolan, the author of the Batman trilogy and Interstellar which, with Dunkirk, has become an international blockbuster, to which a chapter of this book is devoted

During WW2, the German armed forces were the greatest user of half-track vehicles. Such vehicles were used in the Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and Waffen-SS, where they served as personnel carriers, tractors, combat engineering vehicles, as well as self-propelled carriage of anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns.One of them was the Sd. Kfz. 6 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 6) Mittlerer Zugkraftwagen 5 t (middle half-track vehicle 5 tons). It was designed to be used as the main towing vehicle for the 10.5 cm le.FH 18 howitzer. Sd.Kfz. and was manufactured mainly by Büssing-NAG, with about 3,800 units being produced.The book presents a collection of photographs of different versions of the tractor from the private archives of German soldiers. The photographs depict vehicles serving on all fronts and in a wide variety of roles.This profusely illustrated photo album includes a large number of previously unseen pictures, many from private sources in Germany. Whatever the rules might have said, German soldiers took many photos, and these are the basis for this book.Photos of the all the main production versions are shown, including self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, artillery tractors and pioneer vehicles.Book contains about 120 period photos.

In recent years the public has become aware of the Filthy Thirteen, the most notorious squad of fighting men in the 101st Airborne Division, and the true-life inspiration for the movie “The Dirty Dozen”. They became singular within the Screaming Eagles for their hard drinking, and savage fighting skill - and that was only in training. Just prior to the invasion of Normandy, a "Stars and Stripes" photographer caught U. S. paratroopers with heads shaved into Mohawks, applying war paint to their faces. Unknown to the public at the time, these men were the Filthy 13.In this long awaited work one of the squad's integral members—and probably its best soldier—reveals his own inside account of fighting as a spearhead of the Screaming Eagles in Normandy, Market Garden, and the Battle of the Bulge.Jack Womer was originally a member of the 29th Infantry Division and was selected to be part of its elite Ranger battalion. But after a year of grueling training under the eyes of British Commando instructors, the 29th Rangers were suddenly dissolved. Bitterly disappointed, Womer asked for transfer to another elite unit, the Screaming Eagles, where room was found for him among the division's most miscreant squad of brawlers, drunkards, and misfits.Beginning on June 6, 1944, however, the Filthy Thirteen began proving themselves more a menace to the German Army than they had been to their own officers and the good people of England, embarking on a year-of ferocious combat at the very tip of the Allied advance in Europe. From parachuting behind German lines on D-Day to the gritty defense of Bastogne, Womer fought beyond the breaking point of the soldiers around him.In this work, with the help of Stephen DeVito, Jack provides an amazingly frank look at close-quarters combat in Europe, as well as the almost surreal experience of dust-bowl-era GI's entering country after country in their grapple with the Wehrmacht, finally ending up in Hitler's mountaintop lair in Germany itself. Throughout his fights, Jack Womer credited his Ranger/Commando training for helping him to survive, even though most of the rest of the Filthy Thirteen did not.

During WW2, the German armed forces were the greatest user of half-track vehicles. Such vehicles were used in the Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and Waffen-SS, where they served as personnel carriers, tractors, combat engineering vehicles, as well as self-propelled carriages for anti-aircraft guns.Sd. Kfz. 7, Mittlerer Zugkraftwagen 8t (middle half-track vehicle 8 tons) was designed in 1932 by Krauss Maffei and by 1937, the ultimate Km m 11 model was introduced.Approximately 13,600 units were produced until production ceased in 1945, including about 200 built under license by BREDA in Italy and even a copy by Vauxhall in the UK.The book presents a collection of photographs of different versions of the tractor from the private archives of German soldiers. The photographs depict vehicles serving on different fronts and being utilized in several roles.Photos of most production versions are shown, Including self-propelled anti-aircraft guns and artillery tractors.This profusely illustrated photo albums includes mainly previously unseen pictures, many from private sources in Germany. Whatever the rules might have said, German soldiers took many photos, and these are the basis for this book.Book contains about 140 period photos.

The Frantic operations were conceived in late 1943 as Soviet advances made Soviet airfields accessible to Allied long-range aircraft. American aircraft could hit targets in central Europe, refuel and rearm at Soviet bases, then fly back to bomb additional targets. In addition to hitting Nazi war industries, the political objectives of Frantic were to build closer cooperation with the Red Army as the end of the war drew nearer. For the first two weeks of the Warsaw Uprising, Soviet forces stood outside the city, and Stalin refused to let the RAF land at Soviet bases after dropping supplies to the Polish freedom fighters. But eventually the United States persuaded him to let them use Frantic to supply the Poles. On 18 September 1944, American B-17 Flying Fortresses dropped arms, ammunition, medical supplies, and food over the city of Warsaw. The assistance came too late for the Polish freedom fighters. For many, Frantic 7 remains a mere gesture to placate Western public opinion, but the events of that day, and the courage of 1,220 airmen who risked their lives to bring them aid, are still remembered by the Poles of Warsaw. This book gives a full narrative of Frantic 7, using the first-hand accounts of those on the ground in Warsaw to tell the stories of the young aircrew. It puts Frantic 7 in context, and explains how the diplomatic wrangling set the stage for the breakdown in relations between the Soviet Union and the United States.

So little is known about the weapons, uniforms and living conditions of World War II Japanese soldiers (Heitai), these almost undisputed conquerors who operated throughout East Asia during the conflict. Through this magnificently illustrated book, the reader can finally have a glimpse into the personal possessions of the soldiers of the Imperial Army. Drawing upon an impressive collection – carefully preserved through the decades – every aspect of an Heitai’s daily existence is detailed with beautiful photos accompanied by a description. All items are classified, from weapons to clothes (tropical and polar) through to food, communication equipment, decorations, helmets, badges, devices of vision, gas masks, water bottles, cameras, tents and shoes. Also included are Propaganda posters and readings provided to the Heitai during long quiet periods of service, isolated on the Pacific islands. By studying the equipment of Japanese soldiers – from the dagger to the toothbrush, and from the grenade to underwear – we can uncover the history of these soldiers in a more in depth and evocative way than the cinema or a text could ever achieve. At the same time, it is interesting to note the differences and similarities between the equipment of an Imperial Army fighter and that of a GI. “Heitai” is an exceptional work on the Imperial Army that provides unique insights of the Japanese fighters, formerly America’s most formidable enemy.