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Ian Baxter

Detailed account of one of the largest operations of World War II—involving almost four million troops stretched along a 900-mile front for months.

Following the destruction of Sixth Army at Stalingrad in February 1943, Army Group South slowly withdrew westwards, using the Dnieper as a fortified position. In late 1943, the Soviet 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Ukrainian Front launched a strategic offensive against the German Army Group South A—one of the largest operations of the war. In May 1944, Red Army troops defeated Army Group South and Army Group A on the Dnieper. Many thousands of German troops evacuated across the Black Sea. In July, troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front launched an operation into the Crimea. The offensive coincided with other Red Army operations further north, including the Lublin-Brest Offensive—part of Operation Bagration. Slowly and inexorably, the powerful Russian attacks forced the tattered German army group to retreat hundreds of miles west, into Eastern Poland and Romania. Here German forces defended their positions and built defenses in Hungary and Austria to try to slow down the overwhelming might of the Red Army. There, the Germans would fight a series of desperate battles until the remnants surrendered in early May 1945. Drawing on rare and previously unpublished images accompanied by detailed captions and text, the book gives a fascinating analysis of the destruction of Army Group South in southern Russia between 1944 and 1945.

Casemate

Casemate Illustrated

The Soviet Destruction of Army Group South: Ukraine and Southern Poland 1943–1945

Raphael Riccio

Massimiliano Afiero

An account of the infamous 12th SS Panzer Division Hiterjugend, from Operation Goodwood through to the end of the war. Packed with over 150 photographs, maps and diagrams.

Formed in 1943 with the express purpose of blocking the forthcoming Allied invasion in the West, the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend carved out a reputation as one of the Wehrmacht’s foremost panzer divisions, as witnessed by its tenacious defense of Caen following the Allied invasion of Normandy. The British Operation Goodwood against Caen in July 1944 was followed by Totalize in August, which bypassed Caen and attacked the Hitlerjugend positions. Within a week thousands of German troops were encircled in the Falaise Pocket. Around ten thousand Hitlerjugend soldiers escaped piecemeal, regrouping to fight in the battles along the Maas and the ill-fated Ardennes offensive of December 1944. Deployed to Hungary in 1945 to stem the Red Army advance, the division fought against overwhelming odds until the final battles in Austria, on Reich soil, in late April 1945. There the soldiers of the Hitlerjugend, despite the desperate situation and the superiority of the enemy, managed to achieve local success and launch desperate counterattacks even into the last weeks of the war. Packed with photographs, maps and profiles, this Casemate Illustrated follows the actions of the 12th SS Panzer Division throughout its existence.

12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, Volume 2: From Operation Goodwood to April 1946

A fully illustrated account of the Soviet offensive in the Baltics and the desperate German attempts to hold back the Red Army.

This is a compelling account of the German defense of the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Against overwhelming Soviet forces the book shows how the German Army Group North was driven across the Baltics from Leningrad and fought a number isolated battles including the defense of Narva, Memel and the Kurland pocket. The book outlines in dramatic detail how Hitler forbade his troops to withdraw, ordering them to follow his Halt Order Decree and fight to the death. However, exhausted and demoralized by continuous Soviet assaults, Army Group North became cut-off and isolated, fighting fanatically to hold the capital cities of Tallin, Vilnius and Riga. What followed were German forces fighting to the death in the last few small pockets of land surrounding three ports: Libau in Kurland, Pillau in East Prussia and Danzig at the mouth of the River Vistula. In the Kurland, German divisions became surrounded and fought a vicious defense until May 1945. Drawing on a host of rare and unpublished photographs accompanied by in-depth captions and text, the book provides an absorbing read of the Red Army’s conquering of the Baltics.

The Soviet Baltic Offensive, 1944–45: German Defense of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania

A fully illustrated account of the infamous 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, from their formation through to the fierce battles for Caen.

The 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend was formed in 1943 from members of the Hitler Youth who had been born in 1926, primarily as an emergency response force in France to repel the expected Allied invasion from the sea. Training was initially haphazard due to lack of equipment, however in March 1944 it was attached to I SS Panzer Corps and transferred to Normandy. Based around Caen, it was intended to repel a possible and expected invasion from the sea. When the invasion came in June, it was one of the two closest panzer divisions to the landing beaches, engaging Allied paratroopers at dawn. Once the Allied bridgehead was established, Hitlerjugend deployed to Caen. The defensive battles that took place in Normandy, particularly the four battles around the city of Caen, saw the young soldiers of the Hitlerjugend demonstrate determined resistance, conceding only due to being greatly outnumbered. Packed with photographs, maps and profiles, this Casemate Illustrated follows the actions of the 12th SS Panzer Division through formation and training to the four battles for Caen.

12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend: From Formation to the Battle of Caen

Philippe Saintes

A fully illustrated overview of the Nazi German Air Force’s victory markings on their day & night fighter aircrafts in World War II.

 This book provides an overview of the victory markings painted on the fins and rudders of the planes of the German day fighter and night fighter aircraft between 1939 and 1945, and demonstrates how these were applied in reality through the profiles of nineteen pilots, including some of the most emblematic pilots of the Luftwaffe: Hans Troitzsch, Johannes Gentzen, Frank Liesendahl, Wilhelm Balthasar, Otto Bertram, Joachim Müncheberg, Karl-Heinz Koch, Kurt “Kuddel” Ubben, Felix-Maria Brandis, “Fiffi” Stahlschmidt, Franz-Josef Beerenbrock, Heinrich Setz, Walter “Gulle" Oesau, Max-Hellmuth Ostermann, Heinrich Bartels, "Fritz" Dinger, Martin Drewes, Egmont zur Lippe-Weissenfeld and Ludwig Meister.

Praise for Luftwaffe Victory Markings 1939–45

 “For any and all who seek out photos of the German WWII victory markings adorning their aircraft, this book is simply a ‘must have’.” —Large Scale Planes

 “Will be of great interest to modelers who want to put victory markings on a Luftwaffe fighter model.” —AMPS Indianapolis

 “Modelers seeking to put a finishing detail on their aircraft will find this book quite useful.” —Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

Luftwaffe Victory Markings 1939–45

Mike Guardia

A photo-packed account of how the tanks of 4th Armored Division defeated two panzer brigades over eleven days of battle at Arracourt: “An enjoyable read.” —AMPS
 
 September 1944: With the Allies closing in on the Rhine, Adolf Hitler orders a counterattack on General Patton’s Third Army in France. Near the small French town of Arracourt, elements of the US 4th Armored Division meet the grizzled veterans of the 5th Panzer Army in combat. Atop their M4 Shermans, American tank crews square off against the technologically superior Mark V Panther tanks of the Wehrmacht. Yet through a combination of superior tactics, leadership, teamwork, and small-unit initiative, the outnumbered American forces win a decisive victory against the 5th Panzer Army.
 
 Indeed, of the 262 tanks and mobile assault guns fielded by German forces at Arracourt, 200 were damaged or destroyed by enemy fire. The Americans, by contrast, lost only 48 tanks. Following the collapse of the German counterattack, Patton’s Third Army found itself within striking distance of the Third Reich’s borderlands.
 
 The battle of Arracourt was the US Army’s largest tank battle until the Ardennes Offensive in December 1944. It helped pave the way for the final Allied assault into Germany, and showed how tactical ingenuity and adaptive leadership can overcome an enemy’s superior size or technological strength. This extensively illustrated book recounts the dramatic story.
 
 “An interesting study of small-unit leadership that emphasizes the importance of tank-crew training, the value of a reliable logistics system and effects of weather on battlefield activities.” —ARMOR Magazine
 
 “This well-written book explains how U.S. forces won this critical battle.” —WWII History Magazine
 
 “Enjoyable . . . includes some nicely done full color profiles of some of the tanks involved.” —ModelingMadness.com

Arracourt 1944: Triumph of American Armor

Jim Winchester

Douglas Webster was a young pilot from Ohio, newly married and with seventeen combat missions under his belt. On December 5, 1965 he strapped into an A-4 Skyhawk bomber for a routine weapons loading drill and simulated mission. After mishandling the maneuver, the plane and its pilot sunk to the bottom of the South China sea, along with a live B43 one-megaton thermonuclear bomb.

A cover-up mission began. The crew was ordered to stay quiet, rumors circulate of sabotage, a damaged weapon, and a troublesome pilot who needed "disposing of". The incident, a "Broken Arrow" in the parlance of the Pentagon, was kept under wraps until twenty-five years later. The details that emerged caused a diplomatic incident, revealing that the US had violated agreements not to bring nuclear weapons into Japan. Family members and the public only learned the truth when researchers discovered archived documents that disclosed the true location of the carrier, hundreds of miles closer to land than admitted.

For the first time, through previously classified documents, never before published photos of the accident aircraft and the recollections of those who were there, the story of carrier aviation's only "Broken Arrow" is told in full.

Shawn Compton

Tantor Media

Broken Arrow: How the U.S. Navy Lost a Nuclear Bomb

A pictorial history of Nazi Germany’s entire air campaign against the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front in World War II.

The Red Air Force versus the Luftwaffe in the skies over Eastern Europe. June 1941: Having conquered most of Western Europe, Adolf Hitler turned his attention to the vast Soviet Union. Disregarding his Non-Aggression Pact with Joseph Stalin, Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa, a full-scale invasion of the Soviet homeland . . . aimed squarely at Moscow.

In the skies over Russia, the battle-hardened airmen of the Luftwaffe made short work of the Red Air Force during opening days of Barbarossa. To make matters worse, Stalin had executed many of his best pilots during the perennial “purges” of the 1930s. Thus, much of the Red Air Force was destroyed on the ground before meeting the Luftwaffe in the skies. By 1944, however, the Soviet airmen had regained the initiative and fervently wrested air superiority from the now-ailing Axis Powers.

“Will be of great interest to both modelers and aircraft historians alike.” —AMPS Indianapolis

“This slim survey provides a quick, convenient intro to the deadly totalitarian duel. Make it a launchpad to further study of Eastern Front air combat in WWII.” —Cybermodeler

“The prose is smooth and provides a top-level look at WWII German and Soviet air warfare.” —Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

Air War on the Eastern Front

Yves Béraud

A pictorial history of the Nazi military’s elite Gebirgstruppen during World War II.

Fifteen elite mountain divisions and a multitude of small units fought for the Wehrmacht during World War II. They fought on all fronts, operating in hostile environments ranging from the far north to Libya, the Atlantic to the Caucasus—serving in all the “hot spots.” This book, the culmination of some four decades of research and the support of many veterans and collectors, describes the life, operations and equipment of these specialist units.

“A very illuminating study on some of WWII Germany’s finest combat troops in their most successful actions of the early war period.” —AMPS

“Supported by a great collection of colour and monochrome photographs - one with the men wearing patterned tablecloths to stave off the cold in Norway is my favourite. . . . It will appeal to readers interested in the German army in the early phases of World War II.” —Wargames Illustrated

German Mountain Troops, 1939–42

Neil Page

The second volume of this “excellent” overview of Germany’s World War II fighter pilots, filled with photos, maps, and aircraft profiles (Air Power History).

This volume of Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe traces the story of the Luftwaffe’s day fighter arm from 1942 through to the end of the war in Europe, covering missions over Russia in 1943, over the West and the Reich, the Eastern Front and the Mediterranean. Organized campaign by campaign, this chronological account interweaves brief biographical details, newly translated personal accounts, and key moments in the careers of a host of notable and lesser known Luftwaffe aces. 

Fully illustrated with 200 contemporary photographs, maps, and profiles of the aircraft flown by these aces, this is a visual delight for anyone with an interest in the day fighter aces of the Luftwaffe.

Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe 1943–45

A pictorial history of Hitler’s fighter pilots that “will be of great interest to aircraft modelers and aviation historians alike” (AMPS Indianapolis).

Military and aviation history enthusiasts have always been interested in the fighter pilots of Hitler’s Luftwaffe. Around five hundred Luftwaffe fighter pilots were awarded the Knight’s Cross, accumulating huge numbers of missions flown. A similar number achieved more than forty victories—more than the two leading USAF and RAF fighter pilots. Indeed, some of their stories are extraordinary. Fighting from the Arctic Circle to the North African deserts, from the Caucasus in the East to Normandy in the West, the German fighter pilot flew and fought until he was shot down, “flown out,” wounded, or killed in action. A handful survived from “first to last.”

This first volume of Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe traces the story of the Luftwaffe’s day fighter arm (der Tagjagd) from its inception to 1942. Organized campaign by campaign, this chronological account interweaves brief biographical details, newly translated personal accounts, and key moments in the careers of a host of notable and lesser-known Luftwaffe aces.

Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe 1939–42

Pierre Tiquet

“A fascinating look into the experiences of the men of an elite armored unit that fought on the Eastern Front, written essentially in their own words.” —AMPS

The 3rd SS Panzer Regiment was part of the Totenkopf Division—one of the thirty-eight Waffen-SS divisions active during World War II. Notorious for its brutality, most notably a mass execution of British prisoners in the Battle of France, Totenkopf had a fearsome reputation. The 3rd SS Panzer Regiment was formed in France in late 1942, and transferred to the Eastern Front in early 1943, where it fought for the rest of the war.

The regiment participated in a number of battles, and would be reduced and rebuilt a number of times. The panzers of 3rd SS Panzer Regiment fought at Kharkov, took part in Operation Citadel, fought in the battle of Krivoi Rog, and the relief of the Korsun Pocket. The regiment then retreated over the Dniester. They fought in Poland against the Russian advance, before being moved to Hungary where they participated in the attempt to relieve Budapest. They eventually surrendered in Czechoslovakia to the 11th US Armored Division.

This book tells the story of the 3rd SS Panzer Regiment through the words of the veterans themselves. Among the veterans whose accounts are included are Walter Weber, a member of a tank crew in 5. Kompanie who recounts their optimism and high spirits at the start of Operation Citadel as the Germans made initial advances, followed by retreat as winter set in and the Russians began to push them back. Unterscharführer Stettner recalls the fierce tank battles and the difficulties advancing across minefields and evading an often well-concealed foe. Corporal Fritz Edelmann records the attempts to relieve Budapest in 1945 that Totenkopf took part in, which ended in encirclement, defeat and surrender to the Americans on May 9, 1945. In addition, it is illustrated with a wealth of contemporary photographs, original documents, and artifacts.

The 3rd SS Panzer Regiment: 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf

An illustrated history of the American tanks deployed to the Pacific theater during World War II and the conflicts they faced there.

This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series explores American armor during the Pacific Campaign of the Second World War, from 1942 to 1945. In this period, there were over twenty major tank battles and operations in which tanks provided heavy support to infantry units. These operations included the Battle of Tarawa and the Bougainville Campaign. American Armor in the Pacific also features the strategies and tactics of the opposing forces, relying heavily on first-person accounts.

This book examines the Pacific theater and how American armor was employed with great success in that theater of war. It also offers detailed information on American and Japanese armored forces, including development, equipment, capabilities, organization, and order of battle.

Praise for American Armor in the Pacific

“Packed with over 100 images … exactly what a reader interested in the armored battles fought between the Imperial Japanese war machine and U. S. military would want to see. ” —Globe at War

American Armor in the Pacific

An illustrated history of World War II’s largest tank battle that went down near the Russian city.
 
 In the summer of 1943, Nazi Germany launched Operation Zitadelle (Citadel), aimed at cutting off Soviet forces in the Kursk salient. This offensive resulted in the Battle of Kursk.
 
 Kursk quickly became a fierce contest of attrition, as Wehrmacht and elite Waffen-SS Panzer-Divisions with their powerful Tiger and Panther tanks unsuccessfully tried to hammer their way through the intricate lines of strong Soviet defensive positions. What followed was unabated fighting for two weeks as German units were slowly and systematically ground down in a series of brutal armored battles.
 
 During this ferocious fighting the Red Army savagely contested every foot of ground, finally ending German invincibility forever. For the first time in its short history, the blitzkrieg concept had failed. The reverberations caused by the defeat at Kursk were immense, and never again did the German war machine go on the offensive in the East. Stiff defensive action was now the stratagem placed upon the dwindling Panzerwaffe right to the gates of Berlin.
 
 With comprehensive captions and text, Kursk 1943 tells the story of this dramatic battle using rare and unpublished photographs, maps, and highly detailed artist profiles. The book reveals the events leading up to the battle in the first half of 1943 and the buildup of forces by both sides before their climatic showdown at Kursk.

Kursk 1943: Last German Offensive in the East

Jean-Charles Stasi

An illustrated history of the World War II British amphibious attack on a dry dock in the German-occupied French town.

At the beginning of 1942, the prospect of Germany’s Tirpitz, the heaviest battleship ever built by a European navy, patrolling the Atlantic posed a huge threat to the convoys that were the lifeline for Britain. Bombing raids to destroy the ship failed. A more radical plan was conceived to destroy the dry-dock facility at St Nazaire on the French Atlantic coast. Without the use of the only suitable base for the ship, the threat would be neutralized.

The plan was to ram the entrance gates with a ship packed with explosives on a delayed fuse. A motorboat armed with torpedoes would fire at the inner gate causing further damage to submarine pens. The troops and crew would then destroy as many dockyard targets as they could and withdraw in fast motor launches that had followed them in. All this was to be achieved under cover of an air raid. HMS Campbeltown, a U. S. lend-lease destroyer, was chosen for the task.

On the night of March 27, the raid commenced. The Campbeltown succeeded in lodging its bows in the outer gates. The fuses detonated the explosives in its hold the following day. The dock gates were destroyed. The cost to the Allies was high, but the Tirpitz was never able to leave Norwegian waters.

This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series gives a clear overview of the planning and execution of the raid and its aftermath, accompanied by 125 photographs and images, including color profiles and maps.

Operation Chariot: The St Nazaire Raid, 1942

Jean-Louis Roba

This WWII history examines Nazi air force operations in Egypt and Libya with more than 100 rare wartime photographs.
 
 When Mussolini’s army was defeated on the Libyan-Egyptian border at the beginning of 1941, Adolph Hitler had no choice but to send reinforcements to help his ally. The Luftwaffe deployed an air detachment, first to Sicily, then to North Africa. This volume examines the small expeditionary force, solely devoted to protecting Italian possessions in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern theater.
 
 When General Erwin Rommel launched his Afrika Korps to the east, the Luftwaffe had to go on the offensive to cover the advance. As British air forces were strengthened, German High Command was obliged to send more aerial units into what it had initially considered a peripheral arena of the war. Losses in bombers and fighters were high on both sides. By the time the Allies landed in Morocco and Algeria at the end of 1942, the Wehrmacht’s fate was sealed. The last German units capitulated in Tunisia in May 1943.

Luftwaffe in Africa, 1941–1943

Yves Buffetaut

This WWII military history explores the dramatic turning point of the Battle of Normandy—illustrated throughout with archival photos and maps.

On June 6th, 1944, the Allied forces embarked on Operation Overlord with the first wave of Normandy landings. But it wasn’t until August of that year that the tide of the battle—and the entire war—began to turn. The decisive moment came at the Battle of the Falaise Pocket. 

The German Army had managed to hold back the Allies for months, but its resources were running out, and the Allies ruled the skies. As the Allies began to push South and East, Hitler refused to permit Field Marshal von Kluge, the commander of Army Group B, to withdraw. General Montgomery ordered the Allied armies to converge on the Falaise area on August 8th, and by August 21st they had some 50,000 Germans surrounded.

While many German soldiers did escape the encirclement, the losses were catastrophic. By the end of the month, Army Group B had retreated across the Seine, ending the battle of Normandy. This illustrated account examines the battle from the failed offensive at Mortain, looking at both German and Allied perspectives, using maps, diagrams and profiles to complete the story.

The Falaise Pocket: Normandy, August 1944

Marcus A. Nannini

This WWII biography chronicles an American paratrooper’s harrowing role in Operation Market Garden and his heroic survival as a POW.

During World War II, Gene Metcalfe served in the 82nd Airborne. After his recruitment into the military at Camp Grant, he trained with the 501st Paratroop Infantry Regiment at Camp Toccoa. It wasn’t until D-Day that he first arrived in England to join the 508th PIR.

On September 17th, 1944, the 508th PIR embarked on Operation Market Garden to establish a salient in the Netherlands. Flying over Groesbeek Heights, just outside of Nijmegen, Holland, Metcalfe was among the first to jump into what swas thought to be an empty meadow. Instead, it was defended by German antiaircraft cannons.

As he jumped into a hail of bullets he watched his plane roll over and plummet into the ground. Badly injured by a shell explosion, Gene was listed as Killed In Action and left for dead by his patrol. He became a POW held outside Munich, moved between various dieses-ridden camps. After a nearly successful escape attempt—he was captured within sight of the Swiss mountains—Gene was liberated by American troops in 1945.

Left for Dead at Nijmegen: The True Story of an American Paratrooper in World War II

An examination of how the Waffen-SS fared in Normandy in June 1944 and whether they deserve their reputation of being the ultimate fighting soldiers.
 
 One of the greatest paradoxes of the Battle of Normandy is that the German divisions found it much harder to reach the front line than the Allies, who had to cross the sea and then deploy in a cramped bridgehead until the American breakthrough of late July 1944. The Waffen-SS were no better off than the Heer units and German high command never quite got on top of operations, as the divisions were thrown into the melee one by one.
 
 During the month of June 1944, the Panzer divisions present succeeded in containing the Allies in a small bridgehead. In July, the arrival of more SS divisions should have finally allowed the Germans to counterattack decisively. This was not the reality. The Allies had also strengthened in number and kept the blows coming, one after another. Each SS-Panzer division had a different experience of the fighting in July.
 
 This Casemate Illustrated looks at the divisions one by one throughout Operations Goodwood and Cobra which saw large tank battles and the collapse of the German front in Normandy. It includes over 100 photographs, alongside biographies of the commanders and color profiles of trucks and tanks which played a key role in operations as the Americans succeeded in breaking through the German line of defense.
 
“A superb series.” —Miniature Wargames

The Waffen-SS in Normandy: July 1944, Operations Goodwood and Cobra

Philippe Naud

A visual look at the Nazi assault on the Soviet capital in the series that’s “a welcome addition … targeted at the general World War II enthusiast” (Globe at War).

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 matchup in Germany’s favor, 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 Gen. Zhukov, were beginning to be better supplied with reinforcements and were prepared to defend to the death.

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 allowed the Soviets time to regroup, 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, this book 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.

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Casemate Illustrated - Bogserien

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