Focusing on a pivotal World War II battle, this book delves into the strategies and leadership of two renowned generals. The author, a leading historian, provides an in-depth analysis enriched with detailed illustrations and supplementary facts, offering readers a comprehensive understanding of the conflict's significance and its impact on the war's outcome.
A Study through Field Marshals Kesselring, Rommel and Model
The book delves into the lives and careers of three distinguished German field marshals during World War II: Kesselring, Rommel, and Model. Kesselring, known as "Smiling Albert," was a skilled defensive strategist in Italy but was later convicted as a war criminal. Rommel, often shrouded in myth, displayed remarkable leadership but struggled with ambition and self-criticism. Model, a master of defensive battles, was less recognized due to his tough demeanor and challenges to Hitler's authority. Together, they illustrate the complexities of military leadership amid the war's chaos.
The first Italian armored cars were used in the war in Libya in 1911-12 against the Ottoman Empire. With few tanks being developed during World War I, the Italians relied instead on the development of more mobile armored cars like the Ansaldo Lancia 1 Z. After the war, the army focused on the Alpine battlegrounds of Italy's northern borders, and did not consider armored cars suitable for reconnaissance duties
Niemieckie siły zbrojne były relatywnie nowicjuszem na polu taktyki i sztuki operacyjnej wojsk pancernych, ich dywizje pancerne stanowiły fundamentalną część w latach Blitzkriegu 1939-1940, kiedy w Europie toczyła się 'wojna błyskawiczna'. Bez dywizji pancernych niemieckie zwycięstwo nad Polską w roku 1939 i majowa ofensywa roku 1940 na p�łnocno-zachodnią Europę, kt�ra w miesiąc p�źniej zakończyła się klęską Francji, byłoby nie do pomyślenia.�Ta książka opisuje narodziny i ewolucję jednostek Panzerwaffe, skupiając się na ich organizacji, taktyce, uzbrojeniu i systemie dowodzenia, kt�ry umożliwił niemieckim dywizjom pancernym stanie się najgroźniejszym ofensywnym ramieniem Wehrmachtu.
22 czerwca 1941 roku Niemcy zaatakowały ZSRR, zadając wyprzedzające uderzenie. Rozpoczęły się działania na froncie, na kt�rym już wkr�tce wykrwawić się miały niemieckie siły zbrojne. Niemieckie Panzerdivisionen toczyły na froncie wschodnim ciężkie walki już od pierwszego dnia tej wojny, do kt�rej rzucono 17 z 21 dywizji pancernych. Straty wojsk ZSRR były przerażające; w przeciągu czterech miesięcy poległy prawie trzy miliony radzieckich żołnierzy, zniszczonych zostało 20 000 radzieckich czołg�w i dział samobieżnych. Jednak pomimo pr�b podtrzymania tempa tego triumfalnego marszu niemieckie wojska po niespełna roku zostaną zatrzymane i pokonane.
This book gives a focused, military biography of Heinz Guderian, perhaps the most highly respected German tank commander of World War II. Guderian was a typical product of the Prussian military elite; the son of a general in the army, there was little doubt that he would follow in his father's footsteps. Some consider Guderian to be the founding father of blitzkrieg warfare, and he certainly brought the whole concept to public attention and prominence, chiefly through the publication of his book Achtung Panzer in 1937. He commanded the XIX Motorized) Army Corps in the 1939 Polish campaign, and Panzergruppe Guderian during Operation Barbarossa. In March 1943 he became chief inspector of the Panzer forces, but even the great tank commander could achieve little more than to delay the inevitable defeat of Germany.
Focusing on the Italian Army in North Africa during World War II, which fought alongside the Afrikakorps under Rommel versus Montgomery and Patton, this title combines with the previous Warrior series books on the subject (and other Osprey titles) to complete the picture of the War in the Desert. Despite the attention paid to the Afrikakorps over the years, it was the numerically far superior forces of the Italian Army that held the line and formed the bulk of the fighting power available to the Axis powers during the War in the Desert from 1941 through to 1943. Their performance has been unfairly criticized over the years - the best units of the Italian Army were equal to those of the British and Germans - but they suffered from a lack of mobility and poor equipment that made it impossible for them to meet mobile British forces on anywhere near equal terms. Despite this, the Italian Army went through many changes through the period, with the introduction of a variety of elite units - armoured, mechanised and parachute divisions that did much to restore the fighting reputation of the Italian soldier in the Desert War. Their German allies belatedly acknowledged this with the redesignation of Panzerarmee Afrika as 1st Italian Army in February 1943. This title details recruitment, organisation and experience of the Italian forces in this theatre, casting new light on a force whose fighting power and capabilities have been unfairly ignored and maligned for too long