A detailed examination of one of the most infamous divisions of the Waffen-SSIncludes 120 rare photographs and maps of the divisionAuthoritative text is accompanied by maps and organisation charts

Since the advent of special forces units in World War II, governments and armies have trained small, elite teams of soldiers to perform operations deemed too risky or demanding for regular troops. Training to enter the special forces is harsh in the extreme, and the few who enter the ranks of the elite can expect a life of intense operational danger. Special forces missions include counter-insurgency, hostage rescue, sabotage, spying, covert surveillance and force ambush. Most of these ope...

A groundbreaking study of how war was waged in the far north of Finland, Norway, and the Soviet Union: "Well-illustrated and organized." — WWII HistoryAccording to Lieutenant-General Waldemar Erfurth of the German Army, the General Staff had taken no interest in the military history of the north and east of Europe, failing to imagine that someday German divisions might have to fight through the winter in northern Karelia and on the Murmansk coast. Yet, the ...

This book uses the latest techniques in computer-generated drawings to show the reader exactly how to create an artificial fly, step-by-step.Clearer than photography, more life-like than drawings, the graphic instructions show, by subtle emphasis and exaggeration, precisely what to do.Included are all the basic techniques for applying thread, feather and fur to the hook, and more sophisticated methods such as parachute hackling, using the dubbing loop and hairwinging.

The World War II Secret Operations Handbook lets you in on the skills and tricks used by the British SOE (Special Operations Executive), the US OSS (Office of Strategic Services), the French Maquis, and other special forces in combat in Europe, Africa and Asia between 1939 and 1945. Learn how to rig up a makeshift radio, how to pass undetected in enemy territory, how to live off the land and make shelter, and how to work as a sniper. Learn how operatives blow up bridges, roads, ra...

The 5th SS Division Wiking was the first 'international' – i.e. largely non-German – Waffen-SS division and the only German panzer division comprised largely of foreign troops. Approximately 75 per cent of the division's strength were non-German nationals, all volunteers, and the majority from occupied countries like Belgium, Holland, France, Denmark, and Norway.The Wiking division operated exclusively on the Eastern Front during World War II, where the division quickly earned itsel...

The divisions of the Waffen-SS were the elite of Hitler’s armies in World War II, but the most fanatical of them were not even German. The book offers a comprehensive examination of every foreign Waffen-SS formation, including well-known divisions such as Wiking, Nord, and Prinz Eugen, notoriously brutal units such as the Kaminski Brigade and the British-recruited Britisches Freikorps. Each unit's history, structure and combat record is described in detail. Despite their non-Germanic backg...

Panzer-Division was formed in January 1940 from 4. Leichte-Division. It took part in the campaign in the west fighting in the Netherlands, Belgium and finally France before being transferred to Poland in September 1940. Later it took part in the campaign in the Balkans before fighting on the southern sector during the invasion of the USSR. It then transferred to the central sector in October 1941 and took part in the summer offensive of 1942 and later in the fighting at Kur...

"Compelling prose, abundant tactical detail, lots of maps . . . If you're hungering for a good WWII East Front battle book, look no further." —Russ Lockwood, Magweb.comIn January 1944, around the village of Korsun (near the larger town of Cherkassy on the Dneiper), a disaster happened. Six divisions of Germany's Army Group South became surrounded after sudden attacks by the 1st and 2nd Ukrainian Fronts. The Germans' greatest fear was the prospect of anothe...

How Nazi forces were driven back by the Soviets amid mud and freezing temperatures: "Excellent . . . well researched, fast paced and enjoyable to read." — Military ReviewAt the end of September 1941, more than a million German soldiers lined up along the frontline just 180 miles west of Moscow. They were well-trained, confident, and had good reasons to hope that the war in the East would be over with one last offensive. Facing them was an equally large Sov...

Once I Had a Comrade is the story of the author's German father-in-law, Karl Roth, who grew up during the tumultuous 1930s in the Franconian town of Schweinfurt, located in northern Bavaria, and of his regiment, 36th Panzer Regiment. When the Second World War began, he found himself conscripted into the army and assigned as maintenance private to the headquarters company of Schweinfurt's new branch of service, the 36th Panzer Regiment, assigned to 4th Panzer Division until November 1940, 1...

In July 1943, Hitler launched Operation Zitadelle, the last German offensive on the Eastern Front. It was an attempt to shorten the German lines by eliminating the Kursk salient and was designed to result in the encirclement of the Red Army. In reality, the German tanks came up against impenetrable Russian defences: minefields, artillery and anti-tank emplacements, spread through lines 250km deep and manned by Russian troops whose actions often verged on the suicidal. The ...