Hitler's Commanders
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
As absolute as Hitler's control over the German war machine was, it depended on the ability, judgment and unquestioning loyalty of the senior officers charged with putting his ideas, however difficult, into effect.Top military historian James Lucas examines the stories of fourteen of these men: all of different rank, from varied backgrounds, and highly awarded, they exemplify German military prowess at its most dangerous. Among his subjects are Eduard Dietl, the commander of German forces in Norway and Eastern Europe; Werner Kampf, one of the most successful Panzer commanders of the war; and Kurt Meyer, commander of the Hitler Youth Division and one of Germany's youngest general officers.The author, one of the leading experts on all aspects of German military conduct of the Second World War, offers the reader a rare look into the nature of the German Army a curious mix of individual strength, petty officialdom and pragmatic action.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The authors take a brief but probing look into the lives and careers of little-known officers of the Third Reich. The emphasis is more on personalities than on battlefield accomplishments, and Mitcham and Mueller go deeper than the usual Prussian-gentleman-or-Nazi-beast categorization. Friedrich Paulus is cited as an example of the Wehrmacht general who followed Hitler's orders blindly. Hans Hube, on the other hand, exemplifies the rare general who stood up to the Fuhrer. Not all of the officers discussed are of the higher echelon. The authors pay detailed tribute to Hans Marseilles, a lieutenant who shot down 158 Allied aircraft from his Messerschmitt fighter plane, and Michael Wittmann, also a lieutenant, who destroyed 138 enemy tanks with his 88-mm gun. Mitcham is the author of Rommel's Last Battle ; Mueller wrote The Forgotten Field Marshal: Wilhelm Keitel. Photos.
