Behind the front line. Memoirs

The former commander of the submarine fleet of Nazi Germany, Werner, introduces the reader in his memoirs to the actions of German submarines in the water area. Atlantic Ocean, in the Bay of Biscay and the English Channel against the British and American fleets during World War II.

Herbert Werner

Foreword

Evaluation of the book by an American war veteran

Who would not be embarrassed by the opportunity to write, as I did, an introduction to a book by a foreigner, and even a soldier of a former hostile state, whose military fate almost exactly repeats the own fate of the author of the preface? We studied in 1939 at the higher naval schools, both completed the training course for submariners and first came to the duty station in 1941. Both of us served throughout the war, from lower ranks to submarine commanders. Each of us heard the bursts of enemy depth charges, although we avoided them, unlike some of our fighting friends. Obviously, however, these explosions sound surprisingly the same whether the bombs are British, American or Japanese. Both of us took part in torpedo attacks on combat and merchant ships. Each of us has seen how large ships sink when torpedoes pierce their bottoms - sometimes majestic, sometimes unsightly. The German submarines used the same tactics as we did. Both Werner and I futilely heaped curses on our adversary just for doing his duty conscientiously.

So, between Herbert Werner and I had a lot in common, although I knew nothing about him before getting acquainted with his book. But, stating all this, it is necessary to avoid two pitfalls. The first is a respect for professionalism, which can obscure important differences between us, stemming from the contrast between the conditions in which we found ourselves and the goals we pursued. The second is that the objective assessment of the past, which we strive for today, can wittingly or unwittingly interfere with the feelings and moods of wartime. By avoiding these traps, we will eventually find the right approach to the problem. Because it is possible to admire the people who fought for Germany, even if we condemn Hitler and the Nazis. For a correct assessment of the book, it is important to keep this in mind and take into account the positions of the parties in each specific case.

In the preface, Werner explains why he found it necessary to write his book. According to him, he thus fulfilled a long-standing commitment and wanted to pay tribute to the thousands of fighting friends who are forever buried in steel coffins in the depths of the sea. Political predilections are completely absent both in his narrative and in the interpretation of professional tasks. Werner does not indulge in sharp attacks against the enemy, although it is clear that at times he, like all of us, is capable of experiencing bouts of irritation. In such cases, Werner's book acquires great dramatic power and the bestial, bestial essence of war comes to the fore. It may sound strange, but think about this: Submariners, regardless of affiliation to any of the warring parties, most of all admired the time when they went out to sea and were in the steel shells of boats, in the cramped confined space of which the noise of working diesel plants did not weaken, and with a lack of oxygen in the stale air, there was a stench from human excrement and rotting food. In such conditions, the crews of submarines in a frenzy attacked the enemy with torpedoes, carried out a grueling search for his sea convoys, or waited in fear for the end of the attack with enemy depth charges.

Font:

100% +

These brilliant memoirs are simply mesmerizing ... This great book great soldier.

Stephen A. Ambrose

Guderian's famous memoirs remain one of the most honest and frank accounts of what happened at the decisive moments of the Second World War at the headquarters of the German High Command. He also describes his role in the creation of the armor. tank troops, which, along with the Luftwaffe aviation, formed the core of the blitzkrieg. This book introduces us to personal qualities Guderian, with his ideas, as well as with the operations of armored forces against superior enemy forces.

Kenneth Maxey, author of Guderian's biography

Foreword

One of the people who made history - on a global scale! - invites us to get acquainted in this book with his idea of ​​​​how his actions influenced the events of history and what results this led to completely unexpected for him. Guderian had a huge impact on the course of the war of his time. Without him, Hitler's bellicose moods could have been very quickly suppressed at the first attempt to start a war. After all, in 1939-1940 the armed forces of Germany were not yet able to defeat the troops of any of the major powers. The triumphant victories with which Germany began the Second World War, were made possible only by the presence of the armored forces that Guderian created and trained, and his bold command of these troops, in spite of the caution of the higher command and the fears of Hitler. Guderian's breakthrough in Sedan and a lightning dash to the English Channel practically decided the outcome of the war with France.

A year later, his onslaught in the east almost led to the defeat of the Russian armies, but again the indecision of higher officials led to a slowdown in the campaign until the onset of winter, which gave the Russians a respite. Stalin was able to bring in new armies and build new military factories to replace those captured. Russia began to gain strength, but Germany was no longer as strong as in the first campaign. Hitler's second attempt, in 1942, although a danger to Russia, had a more limited scope. After the defeat at Stalingrad, it became clear to the whole world that the power of Germany was weakening, and America's entry into the war finally accelerated the outcome of the war.

Thus Guderian's victories did more harm to his country than if he had been defeated. The early blossoms bore bitter fruits.

He himself had tasted this bitter taste, having been dismissed at the end of 1941 for having carried out a temporary retreat, instead of pandering to Hitler's illusions. He was called back to the service only when the situation in Germany was already desperate, and finally became Chief of the General Staff when it turned hopeless. So he drank this bitterness to the dregs.

However, the deplorable consequences of his work in no way detract from her historical significance- the creation of history through a new idea, the spokesman and executor of which he was. Germany did not keep her conquests, but these conquests redrawn the map of Europe and influenced the future of the whole world.

Guderian's book is also of great interest from the point of view of understanding how the brain of a specialist works. Guderian's highly developed imagination worked only within the framework of professional topics, and the strength of his concentration was multiplied by ardent enthusiasm.

Guderian was a professional soldier in the highest sense of the word. He, as befits a master, devoted himself entirely to technological progress. He did not think about career ambitions, nor about the tact required to achieve them, nor about what goals technical innovations would serve. To understand it means to understand the passion for the idea in its purest form. This is the explanation for his attitude towards Hitler - more favorable than that of most generals of the old school. Hitler declared his commitment to new military ideas, including the idea of ​​equipping tank troops, so Guderian could not help but like him. Hitler was in conflict with the General Staff and the existing military system, and Guderian, for his own reasons, too, and this initially brought them closer, although as further relations with the Fuhrer developed, Guderian lost his illusions.

It will become clear to readers of his memoirs that he did not wonder who and what he himself and his soldiers serve. It was enough for him that the country was at war, which means that it was in danger. Doing duty was for him incompatible with doubt. As a disciplined soldier, he tacitly acknowledged that his country had the right to defend itself against potential adversaries. Readers around the world, who are aware of the danger Germany posed to their countries, such a position can, of course, irritate. But Guderian's attitudes are those of any soldier in any country at any time. In the memoirs of British and American commanders of the 19th century, too, there is rarely a shadow of doubt about the participation of their countries in wars on rather controversial issues. Guderian's train of thought and way of expressing it has a rather "Victorian" connotation.

Moreover, soldiers all over the world are accustomed to take it on faith that “offensive is the best defense”, so they consider the difference between attack and defense to be a tactical difference between two alternative actions, and the question of aggression does not arise in this case. Leading experts in the field international law find it difficult to give an unmistakable definition of aggression, and aggressive-minded statesmen always skillfully shift the blame onto the shoulders of their foreign opponents. The clearest cases can always be obscured by appeals to patriotism, and the more people have a sense of duty to their homeland, the easier it is to deceive them and silence them. Soldiers are not taught to investigate who is right in international disputes, and if they allow themselves to get bogged down in this matter, they will be unable to do their duty. There is a place for a military philosopher in developing a strategy for war, but a too thoughtful mind is not suitable for military service itself.

For reasons of practical necessity, the commander on the battlefield must act without reflection, and even if he has time for this, he must not calculate the long-term consequences of the execution of the received order each time, otherwise his actions will be paralyzed. This rule does not apply only to the most senior military leaders (Wellington is an example of this). So while the battle continues, in order to carry out their tasks, the military must limit the scope of their thinking to thinking about how to more effectively carry out the order. “Their business is not to think, but to act and die!” No country that has its own army can afford to disregard this rule. Where soldiers begin to wonder if they are fighting for the right cause, armies suffer a crushing defeat.

It is easy to see Guderian as a stubborn militarist, but it is better to admit that his basic views are necessary settings military. The fact that he does not refuse them when writing his memoirs in order to win the approval of the judges only speaks of his unshakable honesty, which so often brought him into conflict with higher commanders and with Hitler, and even, perhaps, of the militant nature that made him such an outstanding military reformer and commander.

One should not refuse to get acquainted with Guderian's memoirs because of a dislike of his style - this is as unreasonable as if his superior commanders ignored his military proposals because of their dislike for him personally. This book is the most complete factual account of the war by the Germans ever published. The detailed picture, which makes the book a valuable source, is well complemented by energetic and precise commentaries.

The revelations of the first chapters of the book, which testify to the resistance Guderian experienced in introducing the idea of ​​developing armored vehicles and providing the blitzkrieg methodology, may surprise many readers who imagine the German General Staff as a single perspicacious organism, consisting of thinkers who only think, as it were, they better prepare for a new war. (What he tells will not be such a revelation to those who know what the army is and how conservative it is by nature.)

His account of the 1940 campaign not only reveals all the problems of crossing the Meuse at Sedan, but also describes the whole race of the subsequent throw to the English Channel coast. It is as if you are sitting in Guderian's car during this non-stop movement and see how he manages his panzer divisions. For me it was like a dream with a continuation, because before the war I imagined a properly organized tank attack, but then I was assured that I was a dreamer. When Hobart demonstrated the possibility of such a throw in an exercise in 1934, the soldiers of the old school declared that such a thing would not work in a real war.

Guderian's account of the advance into Russia in 1941 gives us the most detailed picture of this invasion that is available at the moment. If it seems that the details slow down the pace of the narrative, then I must say that it is very animated by stories of conflicts in the German command, and his descriptions of the terrible last stage - the winter throw to Moscow through mud and snow - are extremely picturesque. This is followed by a story about his own removal and re-call-up in 1943 to reorganize the tank forces after the defeat at Stalingrad. In the last chapters, he takes a new look at the failure of plans to repel the Allied landings in Normandy.

When the situation became desperate, Guderian was ordered to take over as Chief of the General Staff, a position whose powers were then limited to the Eastern Front and even more limited to Hitler's desire to control everything himself. Such a framework left Guderian little freedom of action, but the new appointment provided him with an excellent opportunity to directly observe the process of thought and emotions of Hitler in the last stages of the war. It is hardly possible to imagine a more depressing picture of the degradation of the sick dictator and his demoralized environment. Guderian completes his memoirs with sketches-descriptions characteristic features personalities of Hitler and other arbiters of the Third Reich's destinies - and this chapter seems to me the most interesting.

The sharpness and objectivity of these descriptions are extremely remarkable. In this chapter, one of the qualities of Guderian himself, which does not appear directly in the book, but strikes everyone who communicated with him personally, is slightly revealed - his sense of humor. Humor is all the more pleasant to note in this case, because for people of his circle this is not a typical phenomenon.

However, Guderian failed to correct the situation, which he himself had previously contributed to, being in lower positions. When it comes to people of action, their place in history is determined by how much they changed history. Guderian's achievements - his influence on the course of World War II and on the way the war was waged in general - speak of him as a military leader of the highest class. He so innovatively and decisively applied the idea he developed of the independent use of armored forces that it brought him incomparable to anything in the annals military history victory.

It is clear that he fully possessed the qualities that distinguish the "great captains" of history - sharp observation, confident intuition, speed of thought and action, which did not leave the enemy a chance to recover, the gift of tactical and strategic thinking, the ability to win the hearts of his soldiers and get them accomplishment of their assigned tasks. It is not clear just to what extent he possessed a classical sense of realism. However, he knew how to make the unreal real.

In addition to these qualities, Guderian also had a creative imagination - main feature genius as in military sphere, as well as in all others. Most of the recognized masters of military affairs used, as a rule, traditional means and methods. Only a few developed something new. Inventions in the field of weapons came, as a rule, from outside, usually from someone from the civilians. Inventions in the field of tactics, as a rule, belonged to one of the military thinkers and gradually spread through the progressive-minded officers of the new generation. Few of the inventors themselves managed to realize the theories they developed. Guderian, however, had the opportunity. And he seized this opportunity with revolutionary results.

Captain B.H. Liddell Hart

Chapter 1
Family, youth

I was born on Sunday morning, June 17, 1888, in the town of Kulm (Chelmno) on the banks of the Vistula. My father, Friedrich Guderian, was at that time a lieutenant in the II Pomeranian Jaeger Battalion. He was born in 1858, on August 3, in Gross Klon, near Tuchel. My mother, nee Klara Kirhoff, was born on February 26, 1865, in Nemchik, near Kulm. Both my grandfathers were landowners. And all my ancestors, about whom I could find out something, were landowners or lawyers and lived either in the Warth, or in East or West Prussia. And only my father, the only one of all close relatives, was an officer in the regular army.

In 1891 my father moved on duty to Colmar, in Alsace. There I went to school when I was six years old, and studied until 1900, when my father was transferred to Lorraine - to St. Avold. Sankt Avold was too small a town and didn't have a high school, so my parents had to send us to a boarding school in another city. Our father's financial constraints and the passionate desire of both his sons to become officers predetermined the choice of an educational institution - and we continued our studies in the cadet corps. On April 1, 1901, my brother and I were sent to the cadet corps in Karlsruhe, in Baden, where I studied until April 1, 1903, when I was sent to the senior cadet corps in Gross-Lichterfeld, near Berlin. And two years later my brother followed me. In February 1907, I passed the final exams - the Reiferprüfung. Until now, when I remember my teachers and mentors of those years, I am overwhelmed with deep gratitude and respect. Our training in cadet corps It was, of course, military-style strict and simple. But it was built on the principles of kindness and justice. The curriculum was based on the subjects of civilian schools of the time. As in a real gymnasium, much attention was paid to languages, mathematics and history. This knowledge was very useful to us in life, and it was given to us in the same volume as to students of civilian educational institutions.

In February 1907, I, at that time a second-year cadet - Fenrich, was assigned to the 10th Hanover Jaeger Battalion, located in Biecz, in Lorraine. Until December 1908, my father commanded the battalion. It was a real gift of fate, because I again had the happy opportunity to live in my parents' family after six years of boarding. After graduating from the military school in Metz (where I was trained from April to December 1907), I was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant on January 27, 1908 - for the length of service, starting from June 22, 1906.

From that moment until the beginning of the First World War, I enjoyed happy life junior officer. On October 1, 1909, our Jaeger battalion was assigned to its native region - the province of Hanover. There we garrisoned Goslar in the Harz mountains. It was there that I became engaged to Marguerite Görne, who became my dear wife. We got married on October 1, 1913, and since then she has been my constant friend, sharing with me all the joys and sorrows of a varied and, of course, difficult military life.

But before we had time to enjoy our happiness, it was rudely interrupted by the war that broke out on August 2, 1914. And for the next four years, I rarely had the lucky chance to be with my family.

On August 23, 1914, God sent us a son, Heinz Günther, and on September 17, 1918, a second son, Kurt. My dear father died at the beginning of the war, a year after a severe operation he underwent in May 1913, which forced him to leave the service for health reasons. This death took away a man who was for me an example of both military and simply human prowess. His mother survived him by 16 years. She passed away in March 1931, ending her life full of love and kindness.

In 1918, when the armistice was signed, I joined the frontier troops in the east, first in Silesia and then in the Baltics. At the end of this book you will find a detailed track record, with the necessary comments about your personal life. It shows that until 1922 I remained an infantry officer and performed either field or staff duties. But my attachment to the 3rd Telegraph Battalion in Koblenz and my work with radio engineering during the first months of the First World War gave me the opportunity to acquire some knowledge of the signaling system, which served me well later, when I became at the forefront of creating a completely new branch of the military.

Chapter 2
The formation of the tank forces of Germany

The entire period from one war to the next, I was busy creating armored forces in Germany. Although I was a Jaeger officer (light infantry) and technical education I didn’t, I had to come to grips with the problem of motorization.

Returning from the Baltic states in the autumn of 1919, I served for some time in the 10th brigade of the Reichswehr in Hannover. In January 1920, I was given command of my native Jaeger battalion in Goslar. At that time, I had not yet thought about returning to work in the General Staff, which I did until January 1920. Firstly, my return from the Baltics was not due to the most pleasant circumstances, and secondly, in such a small army, the entire strength of which was reduced to one hundred thousand people, there was very little hope of making a quick career. Therefore, I was very surprised when, in the fall of 1921, my battalion commander, a man I respected very much, Colonel von Amsberg, inquired about my desire to return to work in the General Staff. I replied that there is such a desire, and this topic was not raised again. It was not until January 1922 that Lieutenant Colonel Joachim von Stülpnagel of the Truppenampt (Army General Staff) of the Ministry of Defense (RWM) suddenly called me and asked why I had not yet arrived in Munich. I learned from him that I was to be transferred to the motorized transport section of the Transport Troops Inspectorate, since the inspector, General von Chischwitz, needed an officer from the General Staff to serve. Officially, I was supposed to take up this position on April 1, but it was decided that before starting staff work, I should gain experience in field work in the automobile troops, for which I was sent to the 7th (Bavarian) motorized transport battalion in Munich, where I had to leave immediately.

The new job interested me, and I immediately hit the road and arrived in Munich, to the battalion commander, Major Lutz. I had to work shoulder to shoulder with this officer for several years, and this kind and sympathetic person always aroused in me a feeling of deep respect. I was ordered to stop in Munich and enroll in the 1st company, which at that time was commanded by Wimmer, a former air force officer who would later return to flying. Major Lutz explained to me upon arrival that I would be in charge of organizing and operating the motorized transport troops in the ministry. The activity to which I devoted myself in Munich became a preparation for the main work in this field. Major Lutz and Captain Wimmer made sure that I learned as much as possible about the characteristics of motorized troops, and I acquired a lot of necessary knowledge.

On April 1, 1922, I came to General von Chischwitz in Berlin, expecting to receive instructions on work in the General Staff. He said that initially he intended to entrust me with the solution of the issues of the operation of the automobile troops. However, the chief of staff, Major Petter, gave a different order: I was instructed to technical support repair stations, equipping with fuel supplies, conducting construction work and caring for technical personnel. In addition, the sphere of my activity included road and other types of communication. I was stunned and answered the general that I studied in a completely different way, that the technical side of the matter was unfamiliar to me and that my knowledge was unlikely to be enough to cope with the duties of working in the ministry. General von Chischwitz replied that he originally wanted to entrust me with the duties that Major Lutz had spoken to me about. But the chief of staff submitted an order on the conduct of affairs drawn up in the Imperial Prussian War Ministry in 1873 - supplemented, of course, with a number of corrections and additions. According to this document, it is the chief of staff, and not the inspector, who has the right to determine the circle official duties officers. The inspector expressed regret that he could not influence the decision of the chief of staff, but promised that he would try to ensure that I could also do what I was originally preparing for. I applied to return to the Jaeger company, but was refused.

In general, I came to grips with the technical side of the matter, with which I had to link my career. Except for a few papers in progress, my predecessor left nothing worthy of note. I could only rely on a few old employees of the ministry who knew the paper side of the matter and the whole process of our work well - they helped me with all their might. This activity turned out to be extremely useful for me in terms of learning - the experience gained in it was very useful to me in the future. The most valuable thing for me was the study of the issue of transporting troops by motor vehicles entrusted by General von Chischwitz. As a result of this work, which I began immediately after a short practice in the Harz, I first learned about the possibilities that the use of motorized troops opened up, and was able to independently judge their features. General von Chischwitz turned out to be a very strict boss. He noticed my slightest mistake and attached great importance to accuracy in my work. Working with him taught me a lot.

The First World War has already given many examples of how motorized equipment was used to move troops. The movements of military units in this way were carried out most often in the rear, behind a more or less fixed front line, and never in the direction of the enemy. Now Germany was defenseless, and it was unlikely that the war would be positional, with a fixed front line. We had to rely on mobile defense in case of war. The problem of transporting motorized troops during mobile warfare eventually came down to the question of vehicle protection. Only armored vehicles could serve as reliable protection. Therefore, I began to study the precedents of what experiments with armored vehicles were carried out earlier. So I got in touch with Lieutenant Volkheim, who collected and studied a few information about the use of armored vehicles by Germany, as well as a richer experience in the use of enemy tank units during the war, which could also be useful to our small army. The lieutenant has provided me with sufficient literature on the subject. The theory in these books was poorly developed, but at least I had something to start from. The English and French had a richer experience, and it was they who wrote the bulk of the books. With these books, I began to study the issue.

I read mainly books and articles by the English - Fuller, Liddell Hart and Martel. They piqued my interest and gave me food for thought. The authors, far-sighted soldiers, already then saw in tanks something more than just auxiliary means for infantry operations. They saw the tank as part of the rapid motorization of our age, thus pioneering a new way of conducting large-scale warfare.

From their books I learned about the concentration of armored vehicles at the Battle of Cambrai. It was Liddell Hart who emphasized the use of armored forces in offensives over long distances, in operations aimed at destroying the communications of the enemy army, and it was he who proposed the formation of armored divisions from a combination of tanks and armored infantry vehicles. Deeply impressed by these ideas, I tried to adapt them for our own army. Therefore, many of the ideas that determined our further development, I am indebted to Captain Liddell Hart.

Among the blind, even the one-eyed is king. Since no one else dealt with this topic, I very soon found myself the only specialist. A few short articles that I wrote for the Militer Wochenblat (Military Weekly) strengthened this reputation for me. The editor of the newspaper, General von Altrock, often visited me and asked me to write more and more. He was a soldier of the highest class, and he was concerned that the newspaper coverage of the latest issues.

In the course of this activity, I met Fritz Heigl, an Austrian, author of the Tank Handbook. I was able to provide him with some information on tactical matters, and he impressed me as a true German.

In the winter of 1923/24, Lieutenant-Colonel von Brauchitsch, who would later become commander-in-chief of the army, arranged maneuvers to test the ability of motorized troops to coordinate their actions with aviation; these exercises attracted the attention of the military training department, and eventually I was offered a position as a teacher of tactics and military history. Having successfully passed the tests, I was sent to the so-called "instructor training". As part of this internship, in the autumn of 1924, I ended up at the headquarters of the 2nd division in Stettin (Szczecin), which was commanded at that time by General von Chischwitz, who again became my direct commander.

However, before I got there, I was responsible, under the command of Chischwitz's successor as Inspector Colonel von Natzmer, for a number of studies, both theoretical and field, the purpose of which was to study the possibilities of using tanks, especially in reconnaissance operations - in cooperation with the cavalry. All we had for this purpose were the "armoured infantry personnel carriers", the clumsy vehicles allowed to us under the Treaty of Versailles. They had an all-wheel drive engine, but due to their large weight, it was problematic to use them off-road. I was satisfied with the results of the training and in my closing speech I expressed the hope that it was in our power to turn the motorized units from auxiliary to combat ones. True, my inspector was of the exact opposite opinion, telling me: “What the hell are combat? They must carry flour!” Yes, it was.

So, I went to Stettin to teach tactics and military history to the officers who were to have staff work. The new position meant a lot of work; the audience was such that you don’t put your finger in your mouth, so all the classes had to be thought out very carefully, making only balanced decisions, and the lecture material had to be clear and precise. With regard to military history, I paid special attention to the Napoleonic campaign of 1806, which is undeservedly ignored in Germany, no doubt only because of the painful defeat of the Germans with which it ended; however, as far as commanding troops in mobile warfare is concerned, it was a very instructive campaign. I also touched on the history of the German and French cavalry in the autumn of 1914. This careful study of cavalry tactics in 1914 proved useful later on in the development of my theories, in which great attention was paid to the tactical and operational aspects of movement.

Since I often had the opportunity to take my ideas to tactical exercises and war games, my immediate commander, Major Höring, mentioned this in my reference. As a result, after three years of work as an instructor, I was transferred back to the Ministry of War, to the transport department of Truppenampt, under the command of Colonel Halm, later Lieutenant Colonels Weger and Kuehne, which at that time was part of the operational department. My position was new: I was responsible for transporting soldiers by trucks. In general, these were all the possibilities of our military vehicles for that period. My work on the topic soon revealed a number of problems arising from this kind of transportation. Yes, indeed, the French, especially during the First World War, achieved great success in this field, for example, in Verdun, but at the same time they carried out the transfer of troops behind the more or less static front line, when the simultaneous transfer of the entire division, including horse transport, was not required and especially artillery. And in a mobile war, when trucks would have to load all the property of the division, including artillery, they would need a huge amount. A lot of heated debate broke out on this topic, and there were more skeptics than those who believed in a reasonable working solution.

In the autumn of 1928, Colonel Shtottmeister from the Motorized Troops Training Department approached me with a request to read something on tank tactics to his people. My superiors did not object to such an additional workload. And I returned to my tanks, albeit in clean theoretical aspect. I really missed practical experience tank handling; at that time I had not seen a single tank from the inside. And now I had to teach. This primarily required me to carefully prepare and study the available materials in detail. Literature about last war was now available in huge quantities, and in foreign armies its material had already been sufficiently developed and reflected in the relevant manuals. This made it easier for me to study the theory of tank business compared to the time when I first got into the War Department. As for practice, we had to rely primarily on training exercises with mock-ups. At first they were rag models on frames that were carried by foot soldiers, but now they were models on wheels, with a motor, made of sheet metal. So we were able to conduct exercises with mock-ups, thanks to Lieutenant Colonels Bush and Lisa and the III (Spandau) Battalion of the 9th infantry regiment which they commanded. It was during such exercises that I met a man with whom I would later work very closely - Wenck, who was then adjutant of the 3rd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment. We began systematic work to study the capabilities of the tank as a separate operating vehicle, the capabilities of a tank platoon, company and battalion.

The English textbook of the time on armored fighting vehicles was translated into German and served as a theoretical guide for the development of our ideas for many years.

Those who are fond of military memoirs often face the question of which literature to give preference to. I myself have made the wrong choice more than once, buying into high-profile book titles and beautiful descriptions. And so that others do not repeat my mistakes, I wrote reviews of a dozen and a half memoirs on the Eastern Front, which I happened to read. The main evaluation criteria for me are the objectivity of memoirs, and, of course, they must be interestingly written. And I especially appreciate it when the author, in addition to describing the course of hostilities and general position affairs at the front, also analyzes these events, indulges in reflection, shares his observations, feelings and experiences with the reader. In general, it is revealed as a writer. If you have the same requirements for memoirs, then my feedback may be useful to you.

1. Hendrik Ferten - In the fire of the Eastern Front. Memories of an SS Volunteer.

It is generally accepted that military memoirs cannot be considered reliable. historical source. Of course, the vision of the author can be extremely subjective. And the facts stated by him may have inaccuracies, and sometimes gross errors. But for a reader who is interested specifically in memoirs, it is not so much the numbers and the exact geography of the battles that are important, but also the story of the participant in those events in the first person, the war through the eyes of a soldier in all its manifestations. And whether to believe what is stated in the memoirs, the reader must decide, guided by his knowledge and critical thinking.

And now we will talk about memoirs, which, in my opinion, are of great historical value. And literary, by the way, too, because I enjoyed the very process of reading. They do not begin with hostilities, but with what moods prevailed in Europe, what events preceded the start of World War II. The author, who is Dutch by nationality, shows, using the example of his family and country, what was the attitude towards Germany among ordinary citizens and politicians. Then he tells how the German army conquered one European country for another. After that, he himself volunteers for the SS troops, undergoes training in army school and sent to the Eastern Front as an infantryman in the ranks of the 5th SS Panzer Division "Viking". Further, Hendrik Ferten describes four long years of a bitter war against the USSR, a significant part of the book is devoted to the heroic defense of Breslau, in which he took part as part of the Dutch SS Regiment "Besslein". The defenders of Breslau lay down their arms only in May 1945. Having surrendered to the will of the victors, the former front-line soldiers and the civilian population were terrorized by the Bolsheviks. The author of these memoirs miraculously escaped being sent to the Soviet camps, and later he managed to escape to the Western Zone of Occupation. And for the long post-war years, Ferten had to wander around Germany, hiding his real name. He could not return to the Netherlands, because all over Europe, former volunteers who fought in the national legions of the SS were waiting for prison or death in their homeland.

2. Biderman Gottlob - In mortal combat. Memoirs of an anti-tank crew commander. 1941-1945.

Memoirs of a German soldier, for whom the war with the USSR began in the southern direction as part of the artillery crew of the 132nd Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht. In the very first battles in Ukraine, Biederman Gottlob learned how easily the Soviet command disposes of the lives of its soldiers, sending thousands of them to certain death. He talks about the friendly relations established with the local population. Describes in detail the capture of Sevastopol. In the autumn of 1942, his division was transferred to the Northern Front near Leningrad, where the Soviets constantly made attempts to break through the blockade of the city. And Gottlob himself goes on vacation to his homeland, where he is sent to a military school to receive an officer's rank. Upon returning to the front, he becomes a platoon commander. Ahead of him are fierce battles on the Volkhov front. Then the Courland Cauldron, where the German soldiers showed extreme stamina, for 7 months repelling the advances of the Red Army, which outnumbered them and in equipment. As a result, the Soviets failed to liquidate the Courland grouping, which laid down its arms only after the surrender of Germany. And now, after four years of war, Gottlob is sent to the East already as a prisoner of war. Three painful years in the camps and the long-awaited return to their homeland.
These are memoirs that you start to like from the very first pages. The author writes interestingly, lively and objectively. He criticizes not only the cannibalistic communist system, but also subjected to reasonable criticism both individual decisions of Hitler and his ambitions, and the entire political elite of the Third Reich.

3. Hans Killian - In the shadow of victories. German surgeon on the eastern front 1941-1943.

Memoirs of a Professor and a Doctor medical sciences Hans Killian, who fought in World War II Eastern Front as a consultant surgeon. If you think that he has nothing to say about the war because he was not on the front line, then you are wrong. He has seen more deaths than any infantryman. In the hospitals that he oversaw, soldiers were lying with torn off, crushed or frostbite limbs, mutilated faces, and intestines falling out of their stomachs. Seriously wounded died on his operating table more than once. He, like other surgeons, often had to operate on one patient after another, without breaks for food and sleep, literally falling down from fatigue. Military and field hospitals had to pass through a huge flow of victims of the severe frosts of the winter of 1941/1942. And I must say that medicine at that time had little idea of ​​how to treat frostbite, so many soldiers lost limbs due to medical errors. The author of the book himself had to find effective and safe methods of treating frostbite, based on the experience and observations of Napoleon's personal surgeon, whose writings he read.

The author of these memoirs also shares his other memories that are not related to medical practice. He witnessed bloody battles, came under fire, and his car, along with parts german army got stuck in the mud of Russian roads. Killian also describes the state of affairs on the fronts, and this is by no means an unfamiliar topic for him, because he himself was a soldier in the First World War.

4. Leon Degrel - Russian campaign 1941-1945.

Memoirs of the commander of the 28th SS Volunteer Division "Wallonia" Leon Degrel. Belgian collaborator, who firmly believed in the need crusade to the East. He showed himself not only as a brave soldier who took part in hand-to-hand combat more than once, but also as a talented commander. The Walloons under his command made daring victorious attacks, held the defense of the most difficult sectors of the front, covered the retreat of the main parts of the Wehrmacht when leaving the encirclement. With his character, courage, stubbornness, disdain for the enemy and devotion to his work, Degrel resembles another hero of that war - Hans-Ulrich Rudel. Both of them remained true to their convictions until the end of their lives and did not repent of anything, they were personally acquainted with the Fuhrer and received high awards from his hands. Hitler said to Degrel: "If I had a son, I would like him to be like you ...". Now, about the book itself. It is quite voluminous, and it describes in detail the preparation, course and consequences of the battles, which for an unprepared reader may seem boring. And for those who are fond of military memoirs, reading should be of interest. In addition, the author is endowed with an outstanding writing talent.

5. Hans-Ulrich Rudel - Pilot of the Stukka.

Memoirs of the famous bomber pilot Hans-Ulrich Rudel, the only holder of the full bow of the Knight's Cross: with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. The only foreigner awarded Hungary's highest honor, the Gold Medal for Valor. A man who is devoted to his work and fatherland to fanaticism. A fearless warrior, whom even the surrender of Germany did not make him bow his head to the victors and give up his beliefs. No remorse, no regret, only contempt for the enemy and bitterness from defeat. A defeat in which, according to Rudel, "the German soldier was not defeated in battle on an equal footing, but simply crushed by the overwhelming masses of military equipment." I think that to finally encourage you to read this book, it will be enough just to give a brief summary of the military exploits of the German ace.

Rudel is famous for having made 2530 sorties. He piloted the Junkers-87 dive bomber, at the end of the war he moved to the helm of the Focke-Wulf 190. During his combat career, he destroyed 519 tanks, 150 self-propelled guns, 4 armored trains, 800 trucks and cars, two cruisers, a destroyer and heavily damaged the battleship Marat. In the air he shot down two Il-2 attack aircraft and seven fighters. He landed six times on enemy territory to save the crews of wrecked Junkers. The Soviet Union placed a reward of 100,000 rubles on the head of Hans-Ulrich Rudel. He was shot down 32 times by return fire from the ground. Toward the end of the war, Rudel's leg was torn off, but he resumed flying as soon as possible.

6. Otto Carius - Tigers in the mud. Memoirs of a German tanker.

To be honest, at first these memoirs did not impress me much, but the further I read, the more interesting it became. All in all, I didn't have to be disappointed. Otto Carius began his combat career on a light tank Pz.Kpfw. 38(t) of Czech production, and in 1943 moved to the "Tiger". Much attention in the book is paid to the course of battles, from which the tank company of Carius often came out victorious, fighting against superior enemy forces. The interaction of infantry with armored vehicles, tactical actions, mistakes that Soviet tankers made are described. And interestingly, there is no bravado and boasting on the pages of memoirs, although Otto Carius is one of the best tank aces of the Third Reich, the owner of the Knight's Cross with oak leaves. A noteworthy episode is when he is seriously wounded, after which he miraculously survives, with this wound his war on the Eastern Front ended. But it continued for him on the Western Front, already as the commander of the Jagdtiger company. And why these memoirs are especially valuable, the author compares both fronts, compares a Soviet soldier with an American one, well, it was not without a comparison of the Tiger with the Jagdtiger either. The book ends with the technical characteristics of the Tigers and detailed battle reports.

7. Josef Olerberg - German sniper on the eastern front. 1942-1945.

These memories contain many bloody, horrifying scenes, all of which are very colorfully described. Serious wounds, terrible mutilations, piles of bodies, cruel tortures, deadly frosts - all this is available in large volume on the pages of this book. But here there is one unpleasant moment. The memoirs tell about the combat path of a sniper from the 2nd battalion of the 144th mountain rifle regiment of the 3rd mountain rifle division, whose real name is Josef Allerberger, and not what is indicated in the title. This was the second most successful Wehrmacht sniper, after Matthias Hetzenaur, who served in the same division and in the same regiment as Josef. But this book was written by small arms specialist Albrecht Wacker based on an interview with Allerberger. This is what confuses that the story is not obtained from the first mouth, and it is quite possible that the author could add something from himself or simply embellish the events. And I must say, sometimes there are reasons to doubt the reliability of the narrative. Doubts in the reader may cause some episodes of the brutal cruelty of the Red Army, and not to say that the author describes some unrealistic situations, similar facts are stated by other participants in those events. The very manner of presentation, the way the author presents it, looks implausible. Well, some details, for example, in two cases, Allerberger accidentally ended up not far from the place where the “bloodthirsty Russians” tortured their victims, watched this, and then left unnoticed. The episode told by the surviving orderlies, who miraculously managed to escape when the Soviet soldiers captured the divisional first aid station and began to kill the medical staff and the wounded, is very indicative. Here it is alarming how the author describes in great detail events that he did not witness. And despite the fact that the text says that only one of the orderlies understood Russian, the remarks released by the Red Army are quite eloquent and sound feigned. In general, this whole situation seems more comical than terrifying. Fortunately, such episodes, which you treat with distrust, can be counted on the fingers of one hand. In all other respects the book is good and full of revelations. Much attention is paid to sniper business, tactics and professional qualities. The attitude towards snipers, both enemies and colleagues, is well shown.

8. Erich Kern - Dance of death. Memoirs of an SS Untersturmführer. 1941 - 1945.

Erich Kern begins his war on the Eastern Front as part of the SS division "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler". He describes in detail the first battles in which he took part, after which the author completely goes into reflection on the eastern occupation policy of the Reich and the crimes of the Soviet regime. He sympathizes with both the German soldier, who had to sacrifice himself because of the short-sightedness of the high command of his country, and the civilian population of the USSR, which found itself between two political regimes, as between an anvil and a hammer. Kern saw how at first the peoples of the occupied territories were friendly towards the Germans, and he saw how this trust turned into enmity due to unjustifiably harsh management by the occupying authorities. And during his first vacation, he drew up a memorandum about the mistakes committed by Germany in the East, which he sent to the highest state echelons of power, and even talked with Goebbels on this subject, but was never heard. These memoirs are full of regrets and disappointments. And in his reasoning, the author often delves into history in order to explain certain phenomena. And what should be noted is that the comments of the editors spoil the impression of the book, this is something incredible, I have not seen anything like it anywhere else. Moreover, half of the comments are not intended to supplement or correct the author, but simply the editor expresses some of his dissatisfaction in the spirit, he would have looked at himself, the damned fascist. All this is so stupid and ridiculous that it only causes irritation. In order not to be verbose, I will even give a few examples.

"The city police, formed from local anti-communists (a more precise definition - collaborators, more precisely - traitors. - Ed.)".

"Russian people have long been distrustful and suspicious of their neighbors (there was a reason. - Ed.)."

“Local residents took the last thing from the prisoners, and those who resisted were beaten with sticks with the full connivance of the escorts (a Russian proverb says: “As it comes around, it will respond!” - Ed.)”.

But in general, I won’t say that these are bad memoirs, but I don’t see any particular reason to admire them either. In some places, even quite interesting, at least I did not regret that I read them.

9. Wigant Wüster - "Damn Stalingrad!" Wehrmacht in hell.

These memoirs can be divided into three parts. The first part for those who love picture books, the narrative is abundantly supplied with photographs taken by the author and his colleagues, all this is accompanied by detailed comments. Much attention is paid to the author's enmity with his commander Balthazar, whose surname appears in the text as many as 65 times. Sometimes there is a feeling that Wigand Wüster wrote this book to take revenge on his offender. As you already understood, it is easy to get bored at this stage of reading. The second part is much more interestingly written, starting with the chapter on vacation, it becomes exciting to read. It is here that the main events unfold - the winter stage of the battle for Stalingrad. Hunger, cold, fierce battles at the limit of strength - all that we associate with the largest battle of the Second World War. The third part has nothing to do with the previous ones. These are small diaries-memoirs of four more artillerymen who fought on the same sector of the front as Wigand Wüster. In my opinion, this final part is also of little interest. To summarize the above - not the worst memoirs, but, in my opinion, one should write about Stalingrad more selectively, without being distracted by some insignificant things.

10. Edelbert Hall - The Agony of Stalingrad. The Volga is bleeding.

From such an epic title you expect something grandiose, but the reader will be completely disappointed. The author devoted most of the book to the autumn period of the Battle of Stalingrad, and to be more precise, he describes in great detail how the preparations for the battle went on, who took what positions. He describes how he several times agreed with his superiors that he would be given assault guns in support. Then again some meaningless dialogues. And then a fleeting battle, a couple of courtyards were recaptured, then there were reports of losses, two people were killed, three were wounded ... Is this the scale of the Battle of Stalingrad? Is this how a memoir about the biggest battle of World War II should look like? And after these long preludes, we move on to the second half of the book, here the events unfold more interestingly, especially towards the end. Edelbert Holl talks about how exhausted, hungry German infantrymen fought against well-fed and well-armed Red Army soldiers, what they had to eat and how they shared food. Talks about the unenviable fate of wounded soldiers. But even here you can get bored, because the author's writing talent is clearly not enough, and the point is not at all in translation. Sometimes daily data is given from the diary of military operations of the army corps, and right there Holl writes the same thing, only in his own words. In general, to write memoirs worse - you have to try hard.

11. Horst Grossman - Rzhev nightmare through the eyes of the Germans.

These memoirs can only be of interest to historians, because in addition to the chronology of events, data on losses and the geography of battles, there is nothing in them. No dialogues, no soldier stories, just a dry report on the state of affairs at the front. The only downside to this book is that it is very short. There is nothing more to say about her.

12. Nikolai Nikulin - Memories of the war.

I think these are the most sincere and valuable memoirs about World War II written by a Soviet author. Harsh front-line truth, seasoned with interesting philosophical reflections. Nikolai Nikulin managed to be at the forefront as a radio operator, infantryman, artilleryman, and, as they say, reached Berlin. He had to experience all the horrors of that war and see all its unsightly sides ... Winter landscapes littered with corpses Soviet soldiers- victims of mediocre cruel, and often drunk, command. Bloody battles on the front line were fought by soldiers exhausted by hunger, cold and sleepless nights, and at this time the rear / staff officers stuffed their bellies in heated huts. The unenviable fate of girls who served in the Red Army. The occupation of Germany - murders, violence against women and children, robberies, looting and vandalism committed by the "liberators". Postwar years- oblivion of front-line soldiers, lies and bravado of former clerks at headquarters. The author told about all this on the pages of his manuscripts, which were not originally intended for publication.

13. Leonid Rabichev - War will write everything off. Memoirs of a communications officer of the 31st army. 1941-1945.

Memoirs of a Soviet communications officer, in which he, without unnecessary sentimentality, patriotic sentiments and a touch of romance, spoke about what he saw and experienced in that war. For which he fell out of favor with the admirers of the feat of grandfathers, who accuse the author of betrayal, venality and other mortal sins. What's with the disrespect for veterans? In general, the author did not show the "army of liberators" in the most favorable light, starting from the rank and file, many of whom had no idea about soldier's honor, nobility and camaraderie, and ending with their commanders, from the younger officers to generals who can also be tried for crimes against humanity. Rabichev talks about the brutal mass rape of German women and girls in East Prussia, about robberies and killings of civilians. He also talks about the fate of Soviet front-line girls who, against their will, became the mistresses of staff officers. The author also interestingly describes what kind of culture shock he himself and his colleagues experienced from how rich ordinary citizens and peasants live in Europe, which was very different from living conditions in the "socialist paradise".

Unfortunately, these memoirs have their shortcomings. The author absolutely does not comply with the time frame, writes about the war and immediately begins a story about his student years, then abruptly switches back to the war and so constantly. Everywhere he inserts his primitive poems and excerpts from front-line letters home. All this greatly spoils the impression of the book, there is no sense of the integrity of the narrative. In addition, Leonid Rabichev does not hesitate to once again tell the reader about his talents, merits and good deeds, which is sometimes annoying.

14. Mikhail Suknev - Notes of the commander of the penal battalion. 1941-1945.

In his memoirs, former Red Army officer Mikhail Suknev speaks of monstrous and unjustified losses on the Volkhov front, he explains this by the fact that most of the sensible officers and generals were destroyed by Stalin before the war, and those that remained were for the most part mediocre and merciless. But the author writes about this, although with regret, but almost without condemnation, emphasizing that the main enemy is the German. So you should not expect any revelations in the spirit of the same Shumilin, Nikulin or Rabichev from him. He even talks about the repressions of 1937 in a detached way. In general, I would say that these are the memoirs of a Soviet patriot. He does not speak badly about soldiers, he only spoke about the Basmachi and women as useless warriors. It was interesting to read about the regimental school, how commanders were trained from cadets, and about the fate of front-line soldiers after the war. A significant part of the book is devoted to pre-war life, or rather, the author's childhood and youth. He constantly and without hesitation praises himself, a typical example: “I am young. Grounded in military affairs, literature. Humanist. The artist is not without talent. Yes, and in his twenty-three years, the battalion major. In my opinion, these memoirs were published with a specific purpose - to tell about the personal merits of the author. But we must pay tribute, they are read easily and with interest, full of vivid soldier stories, in places it even seems that Suknev is lying, at least he is exaggerating for sure.

15. Alexander Shumilin - Vanka-company.

I must admit right away that I have read only a third of this book, but this is quite enough to form an idea about it. It has a large volume - 820 sheets of A4, and despite the fact that the author did not have time to finish it, it ends in April 1944. The excessive detail of the narrative is sometimes annoying, the work is really extremely long, the author can tell on several pages how to properly aim a rifle, or some other minor points. But in general, the memoirs are read at ease, written with talent and in good literary language. But the main value lies in the fact that Alexander Shumilin described the harsh trench truth. The war, shown through the eyes of "Vanka-Company", to whom own example had to raise the soldiers into battle. The author tells about the mess and slovenliness in the Red Army of the 1941 model. He draws a line between the front-line soldiers who shed their blood or remained in the ground, and the rear of all stripes from commanders to staff barbers, who after the war put on orders and medals. Shumilin is psychological picture Russian soldier, talks about his way of thinking and needs. Well, in all colors he describes the death, injuries, pain and suffering that fell to the soldier's lot. In general, the memoirs are worthwhile, if you are not afraid of their volume, which is approximately equal to 6-8 average books.

The diary of Helmut Pabst tells of three winter and two summer periods of fierce battles of Army Group Center, moving east in the direction of Bialystok - Minsk - Smolensk - Moscow. You will learn how the war was perceived not only by a soldier doing his duty, but by a person who sincerely sympathized with the Russians and showed complete disgust for the Nazi ideology.

War Memoirs - Unity 1942-1944 Charles Gaulle

In the second volume of de Gaulle's memoirs, a significant place is given to the relationship of the French Committee of National Liberation with the allies in the anti-Hitler coalition - the USSR, the USA and England. The book contains extensive factual and documentary material, which is of great interest to those interested in the political history of France during the Second World War. Thanks to the efforts of de Gaulle, defeated France became one of the victorious countries in World War II and became one of the five great powers in the post-war world. De Gaulle...

Death through optical sight. New Memoirs… Günter Bauer

This book is the cruel and cynical revelations of a professional killer who went through the most terrible battles of World War II, who knows the true value of a soldier's life on the front line, who saw death a hundred times through the optical sight of his sniper rifle. After the Polish campaign of 1939, where Gunther Bauer proved to be an exceptionally accurate shooter, he was transferred to the elite parachute troops of the Luftwaffe, turning from a simple Feldgrau (infantryman) into a professional Scharfschutze (sniper), and in the first hours of the French campaign, as part of ...

Hitler's last offensive. The defeat of the tank ... Andrey Vasilchenko

In early 1945, Hitler made one last attempt to turn the tide of the war and avoid ultimate disaster on the Eastern Front by ordering a large-scale offensive in Western Hungary to drive the Red Army across the Danube, stabilize the front line, and hold onto the Hungarian oil fields. By the beginning of March, the German command had concentrated almost the entire armored elite of the Third Reich in the Lake Balaton area: the SS Panzer Divisions Leibstandarte, Reich, Totenkopf, Viking, Hohenstaufen, etc. - in total ...

Soldiers Betrayed by Helmut Welz

The author, a former officer of the Wehrmacht, the commander of a sapper battalion, Major Helmut Welz, shares his memories of the fierce battles for Stalingrad, in which he participated, and the fate German soldiers abandoned by Hitler to the mercy of fate for the sake of their military-political interests and ambitions.

The last soldier of the Third Reich Guy Sayer

A German soldier (French by father) Guy Sayer tells in this book about the battles of the Second World War on the Soviet-German front in Russia in 1943-1945. The reader is presented with a picture of the terrible trials of a soldier who was always on the verge of death. Perhaps for the first time the events of the Great Patriotic War are given through the eyes of a German soldier. He had to go through a lot: a shameful retreat, continuous bombing, the death of comrades, the destruction of German cities. Sayer does not understand only one thing: that neither he nor his friends are in Russia...

Military Russia Yakov Krotov

The military state differs from the usual one not by the military, but by civilians. The military state does not recognize the autonomy of the individual, the right (even if in the form of the idea of ​​a police state), according only to the order as an absolute arbitrariness. Russia has often been characterized as a land of slaves and masters. Unfortunately, in reality it is a country of generals and soldiers. There was no slavery in Russia and there is not. A soldier was considered a slave. The mistake is understandable: soldiers, like slaves, have no rights and live not according to their own will and not by right, but by order. However, there is a significant difference: slaves do not fight.…

Soldier of the Three Armies Bruno Winzer

Memoirs of a German officer, in which the author talks about his service in the Reichswehr, the Nazi Wehrmacht and the Bundeswehr. In 1960, Bruno Winzer, a staff officer of the Bundeswehr, secretly left West Germany and moved to the German Democratic Republic, where he published this book - the story of his life.

On both sides of the blockade ring Yuri Lebedev

This book attempts to provide another look at the Leningrad blockade and the fighting around the city through documentary records of people on opposite sides of the front line. About my vision initial period blockade from August 30, 1941 to January 17, 1942 tell: Ritter von Leeb (commander of Army Group North), A. V. Burov (Soviet journalist, officer), E. A. Skryabina (resident besieged Leningrad) and Wolfgang Buff (non-commissioned officer of the 227th German infantry division). Thanks to the efforts of Yuri Lebedev, military translator and chairman ...

The grin of death. 1941 on the Eastern Front Heinrich Haape

Veterans know that in order to see the true face of the war, one has to visit not even the battlefield, but front-line infirmaries and hospitals, where all the pain and all the horror of death appear in an extremely concentrated, condensed form. The author of this book, Oberarzt (senior doctor) of the 6th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht, more than once looked death in the face - in 1941 he marched with his division from the border to the Moscow outskirts, saved hundreds of wounded German soldiers, personally participated in the battles, was awarded The Iron Cross I and II classes, the German Cross in gold, the Assault badge and two stripes ...

Assault on the Brest Fortress Rostislav Aliyev

On June 22, 1941, the Red Army won its first victory in the Great Patriotic War - the assault on the Brest Fortress, which the German command took a few hours to capture, ended in complete failure and heavy losses of the 45th division of the Wehrmacht. Despite the suddenness of the attack and the loss of command and control at the very beginning of the battle, the Red Army soldiers demonstrated miracles of spontaneous self-organization, putting up desperate resistance to the enemy. It took the Germans more than a week to break it, but separate groups of defenders held out until ...

Return attempt Vladislav Konyushevsky

What to do if an ordinary person was completely unexpectedly brought from our enlightened time into the most terrible year Soviet history? Yes, and just a day before hundreds of "Junkers" will begin to unwind the screws of the engines, and millions of German soldiers will receive an order to cross the border with the USSR. Probably just trying to stay alive first. And then, posing as someone who lost his memory due to shell shock, pick up a rifle and, if life turned out like that, fight for his country. But not just to fight, but, having collected all our extremely scanty ...

The armor is strong: The history of the Soviet tank 1919-1937 Mikhail Svirin

A modern tank is the most advanced example of land combat equipment. This is a bunch of energy, the embodiment of combat power, power. When tanks, deployed in battle formation, rush to attack, they are indestructible, like God's punishment ... At the same time, the tank is beautiful and ugly, proportionate and clumsy, perfect and vulnerable. Being installed on a pedestal, the tank is a complete statue that can bewitch ... Soviet tanks have always been a sign of the power of our country. Most of the German soldiers who fought on our soil ...

Armor shield of Stalin. History of the Soviet ... Mikhail Svirin

The war of 1939-1945 became the most difficult test for all mankind, since almost all countries of the world were involved in it. It was the battle of the titans - the most unique period that theorists argued about in the early 1930s and during which tanks were used in large numbers by almost all the warring parties. At this time, a "check for lice" and a deep reform of the first theories of the use of tank troops took place. And it is the Soviet tank troops that are most affected by all this. Most of the German soldiers who fought in the East ...

War as I knew it George Patton

J. S. Patton is one of the brightest figures in the history of World War II. Since 1942, he has been an active participant in the hostilities in North Africa, where he commanded the Western Task Force of the US Army, and then in Sicily, having taken command of the US Third Army in Normandy in July 1944, J. S. Patton meets the end of the war already in Czechoslovakia. Patton's war memoirs can be not only fascinating reading for fans of military history, but also serve as a source for the history of World War II.

Anti-Russian meanness Yuri Mukhin

In order to rally Europe in an armed struggle against the advancing Red Army, Hitler in 1943 ordered to dig up the graves with Polish officers shot by the Germans near Smolensk in 1941 and inform the world that they were allegedly killed in 1940 by the NKVD of the USSR on the orders of "Moscow Jews." The Polish government in exile, sitting in London and betraying its allies, joined this Hitlerite provocation, and as a result of increased bitterness during the Second World War, millions of Soviet, British, American, German were additionally killed on the fronts ...

Sevastopol fortress Yuri Skorikov

The book was written on the basis of the richest collection of archival materials and rare photographic documents. It tells about the history of the emergence and stages of construction of the Sevastopol fortress. The most important events of 349 days of the heroic defense of Sevastopol in 1854-1855 are described in detail. during Crimean War 1853-1856, the unparalleled work of sappers and miners on the defense line, the courage and heroism of the defenders of the fortress - sailors and soldiers who fought under the command of outstanding military leaders - admirals V. A. Kornilov, M. P. Lazarev, P. S. Nakhimov and leader...

Return of Bernhard Schlink

The second novel by Bernhard Schlink "The Return", like the books "The Reader" and "The Other Man" beloved by readers, speaks of love and betrayal, good and evil, justice and justice. But main topic novel - the return of the hero home. What, if not the dream of a home, supports a person during endless wanderings full of dangerous adventures, fantastic reincarnations and clever deception? However, the hero is not allowed to know what awaits him after all the trials at his native doorstep, is his beautiful wife faithful to him, or has his place been occupied by a double impostor for a long time?...

Too many books? You can refine the books on the query "Memoirs of German soldiers" (in brackets the number of books for this refinement is shown)

Switch display style:

Agony of Stalingrad. The Volga is bleeding

Here the earth burned, the sky burned and collapsed, and the Volga flowed with blood. Here the fate of the Great Patriotic War and the fate of Russia were decided. Here the Red Army broke the back of the previously invincible Wehrmacht. The decisive battle of World War II through the eyes of a German officer. Hitler's panzergrenadiers in fire and ...

"Ragnarök" ("Death of the Gods") - under this title, the memoirs of Eric Wallen saw the light immediately after the war, and were soon republished as "Endkampf um Berlin" (" Recent fights in Berlin") and under the pseudonym Viking Yerk. His fate would indeed be the envy of any of the berserker ancestors who once inspired…

The young commander of the reconnaissance squadron, Hans von Luck, was one of the first to take part in the hostilities of World War II and finished it in 1945 at the head of the remnants of the 21st Panzer Division a few days before the surrender of Germany. Poland, France, the Eastern Front, North Africa, the Western Front and the East again...

On the combat account of the author of this book, 257 lives of Soviet soldiers. This is the memoir of one of the best Scharfschutze (snipers) of the Wehrmacht. These are the cynical revelations of a ruthless professional about the horrendous brutality of the war on the Eastern Front, in which there was no place for chivalry or compassion. In July 1943...

“Our entire army is taken in steel tongs. About 300 thousand people were surrounded - more than 20 first-class German divisions. We didn’t even think about the possibility of such a monstrous catastrophe!” – read on the first pages of this book. Being an intelligence officer in the 6th Army of Paulus, the author divided ...

352 downed enemy aircraft (the last victory won on May 8, 1945). 825 air battles. More than 1400 sorties. The highest award of the Reich is the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. Glory best ace not only the Second World War, but of all times and peoples, whose record score is with ...

The diary of Alfred Rosenberg, one of the main ideologists of the NSDAP, who was executed in Nuremberg, was misappropriated after the process by the American prosecutor Kempner and was discovered only in 2013. In this diary, Alfred Rosenberg hoped to perpetuate his statesmanship and insight, but not with ...

Otto Skorzeny, SS Obersturmbannführer, professional intelligence officer who carried out Hitler's secret missions in different countries, is one of the most famous and mysterious personalities of the Second World War. In his memoirs, he talks about participation in the battles on the Eastern Front, about how he became the leader ...

Missing

“The biggest defeat of Zhukov” - this is how both Western historians and Wehrmacht veterans evaluate the Battle of Rzhev. For 15 months of fierce fighting, the Red Army lost up to 2 million people here, “washing itself with blood” and literally “filling up the enemy with corpses”, but never achieving victory - it’s not for nothing that our fighters nicknamed ...

The author of these scandalous memoirs, which were originally titled "Punalentäjien Kiusana" ("How We Beat the Red Pilots"), was recognized as the best Finnish ace of the Second World War and was twice awarded Finland's highest award - the Mannerheim Cross. He has 94 air victories on his combat account (one and a half times more than ...

Corporal and later sergeant major Hans Roth began to keep his diary in the spring of 1941, when the 299th division, in which he fought, as part of the 6th army, was preparing to attack the Soviet Union. In accordance with the plan of Operation Barbarossa, the division advanced south of the Pripyat swamps during stubborn battles. AT …

German military historian, Wehrmacht officer and Major General of the Bundeswehr Eike Middeldorf analyzes the features of the conduct of hostilities of the German and Soviet armies in 1941-1945, the organization and armament of the main branches of the troops of the belligerents and the tactics of subunits and units. The book is full of...

Erich Kubi, a well-known German publicist, participant in the Second World War, analyzes the military and political environment that took shape in the international arena in the spring of 1945, on the eve of the Battle of Berlin. Describes the process of the fall of the capital of the Third Reich and the consequences of these events for Germany and all of Europe…

The author of the memoirs, Hans Jakob Göbeler, served as a minder second class on the German submarine U-505 during World War II. With German thoroughness and accuracy, Goebeler made notes about the structure of the submarine, about his service, about the life of the crew in the limited space of the submarine, ...

Horst Scheibert, a former company commander of the 6th Panzer Division of the Wehrmacht, analyzes the events that took place in the winter of 1942/43 on the Eastern Front as a result of operations to break through significant German forces that were surrounded during the offensive of the Red Army, as well as the participation of German allied formations in them. …

Erwin Bartmann's memoirs are a frank account of a German soldier's participation in World War II as part of a regiment, later the Leibstandarte division. Possessing an undoubted literary gift, the author vividly and vividly describes how he passed a tough selection, after which he enthusiastically joined the ranks ...

Wehrmacht soldier Wilhelm Lübbecke began military service in 1939 as a private and graduated from it as a company commander with the rank of chief lieutenant in 1945. He fought in Poland, France, Belgium, Russia, where he participated in battles on the Volkhov River, in the corridor of the Demyansk boiler, near Novgorod and Ladoga lakes. And in 1944 in ...

In his personal notes, the famous general does not refer to either the ideology or the grandiose plans that were developed by German politicians. In each battle, Manstein found a successful solution to the combat mission, realizing the potential of his military forces and minimizing the enemy's capabilities. In the war about...

NEW BOOK by a leading military historian. Continuation of the super bestseller "I fought on the T-34", which was sold in record numbers. NEW memoirs of tankers of the Great Patriotic War. What was the first thing that Wehrmacht veterans recalled when they talked about the horrors of the Eastern Front? Armada of Soviet tanks. Who brought to…

The author of the memoirs, a veteran of two world wars, began his service as a simple soldier in 1913 in the telegraph battalion in Munich and finished it in Reims with the rank of general, as head of communications ground forces when in May 1945 he was arrested and sent to a prisoner of war camp. Along with the description…

During the years of World War II, Kurt Hohof, serving in the armed forces of Germany, went from an ordinary soldier to an officer. He took part in the actions of the Nazi army in the territories of Poland, France and Soviet Union. The duties of liaison Kurt Hohoff included keeping a combat log of e ...

Missing

“I want to dedicate this edition of my book in Russian to Russian soldiers, living and dead, who sacrificed their lives for their country, which among all peoples and at all times was considered the highest manifestation of nobility!” Rudolf von Ribbentrop The author of this book was not only the son of a foreign minister...

The news that the war was over caught Reinhold Braun during fierce fighting in Czechoslovakia. And from that moment began his long and full of dangers way back to his homeland in Germany. Brown writes about how he went through captivity, about humiliation, hunger, cold, hard work and cruel beatings ...

Missing

The diary of the Chief of the General Staff of the German Land Forces is a unique source of information about the activities of the "think tank" of the Wehrmacht. The book covers the period from June 1941 to September 1942, when F. Halder was dismissed. …

Wehrmacht soldier Wilhelm Prüller carefully recorded in his diary his impressions of the events taking place at the front from the moment he crossed the Polish border until the end of the war. He describes how he fought in Poland, in France, on the Balkan Peninsula, in Russia, and then marched across Europe in a…

The German infantryman describes the path he traveled along the roads of war from the moment the Wehrmacht troops crossed the Western Bug from Poland to the territory of Russia in 1941. The author tells in detail about the heavy battles near Kyiv, Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk, about how, retreating, parts of the German troops burned mos...

Missing

The memoirs of Erich von Manstein are one of the most important works published in Germany on the history of the Second World War, and their author is perhaps the most famous of Hitler's military leaders. The memoirs of the Field Marshal are written in vivid, figurative language and contain not only a list of facts, but also ...

This book is the result of the collective work of the commanders of the SS Panzer-Grenadier Regiment "Der Fuhrer", formed in Austria in the spring of 1938 and ended its journey in Germany on May 12, 1945, when the regiment was announced the end of hostilities and the surrender of the German armed forces in all France. …

US Army colonel and military historian, Professor Alfred Turney conducts a study of the complex problems of the 1941-1942 campaign. on the territory of the USSR, using the military diary of Field Marshal von Bock as the main source of information. The command of Army Group Center, led by ...

The book tells about one of the divisions of hunters-jaegers (commandos), created by the Wehrmacht to fight partisans and abandoned in the area of ​​Belarusian forests. In a long and merciless struggle, each member of the group had his own combat mission, as a result, an unfolded anti-partisan war of a hundred ...

Tank commander Otto Carius fought on the Eastern Front as part of Army Group North in one of the first Tiger crews. The author plunges the reader into the thick of the bloody battle with its smoke and gunpowder burning. He talks about the technical features of the "tiger" and its fighting qualities. The book contains those…

German General Wolfgang Pickert explores the role of anti-aircraft artillery, involved in the 17th Army during the fighting on the Kuban bridgehead from February 1943 until the defeat of the German troops by the Red Army in Sevastopol in May 1944. The author details the introduction of anti-aircraft…

Edelbert Holl, lieutenant of the German army, commander of an infantry company, tells in detail about the military operations of his unit near Stalingrad and then in the city. Here, the soldiers of his company as part of an infantry and then a tank division fought for every street and every house, noting that in these mustaches ...

The NEW book of the leading military historian contains interviews of German tankers, from privates to the famous panzer ace Otto Carius. They had a chance to fight on all types of tanks - from light Pz.II and Pz-38(t) and medium Pz.III and Pz. IV to heavy "Panthers", "Tigers" and "Royal Tigers", as well as self-propelled guns ...

Missing

Before you is a unique essay on the history of the Second World War, prepared by the direct participants in the events - senior officers and generals of the German Wehrmacht. This publication covers in detail the Polish, Norwegian and other major campaigns of the German army, the war with the Soviet Union, before ...

Field Marshal Manstein became famous not only for military victories, but also for numerous war crimes. He was the only leader of the Wehrmacht who was “honored” with a personal trial in Nuremberg, as a result of which he was sentenced to 15 years in prison (of which he served only in ...

In his memoirs of World War II, Wehrmacht General Dietrich von Choltitz describes the battles and operations in which he personally took part: the capture of Rotterdam in 1940, the siege and assault on Sevastopol in 1942, the battles in Normandy in the summer of 1944, where he commanded army corps. Much attention…

In August 1942, fighter pilot Heinrich Einsiedel made an emergency landing on the Messerschmitte, which was shot down in the battle over Stalingrad, and was immediately taken prisoner. Soviet pilots. From that moment on, another life began for him, in which he had to decide which side to fight on. And before A...

Missing

THREE BESTSELLERS IN ONE VOLUME! Shocking memoirs of three German Scharfsch?tzen (snipers), who together account for more than 600 lives of our soldiers. Confessions of professional killers who have seen death hundreds of times through the optics of their sniper rifles. Cynical revelations about the horrors of war on the Eastern Front...

Illustrated chronicle of the "Tigers" on the Eastern Front. Over 350 exclusive front-line photos. A new, supplemented and corrected edition of the bestseller of the German panzer-ace, on the combat account of which 57 wrecked tanks. Alfred Rubbel went through the war "from bell to bell" - from June 22, 1941 to ...

This book is based on the memoirs of German tankers who fought in Guderian's illustrious 2nd Panzer Group. This edition contains testimonies of those who, under the command of "Schnelle Heinz" ("Swift Heinz") carried out Blitzkrieg, participated in the main "Kesselschlacht" (encirclement battles ...

In his memoirs, Heinz Guderian, who stood at the origins of the creation of tank forces and belonged to the elite of the highest military leadership of Nazi Germany, talks about the planning and preparation of major operations at the headquarters of the High Command of the German Land Forces. The book is interesting and...

The 35th tank regiment of the 4th German division is the most famous tank unit of the Wehrmacht, marked by many awards. Its soldiers and officers took part in the bloody battles waged by the Third Reich, capturing the countries of Europe. They fought in Poland, in France, and then on the territory of the Soviet Union ...

Soldier until the last day. Memoirs of a Field Marshal of the Third Reich. 1933-1947