tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35156761113541574502024-03-12T04:50:23.779+00:00A Question Of Scale: A Wargaming Work In ProgressAfter a break of more than 20 years I'm returning to one of the chief hobbies of my childhood, wargaming. This blog is about how, starting from scratch and faced with a bewildering array of choices, I'm trying to navigate my way. I hope it might be of some interest or use!Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.comBlogger518125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-75634569292402060462023-05-03T22:30:00.003+01:002023-05-03T22:30:55.090+01:00BOOK REVIEW: Richard Eager, A Pilot’s Story<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8h5N_ao7FzyxZuiIJr3eg6kPWefIZIyLCBOyg-LH-snhtKFLEVd924Ur7vJcPf9XKFAZuYmhw3e65r-RrCX8txv_z-LHmy61f8H3ekbb4l7aKX1tMkytu9dGhRZTJxWJOgPg-k7KuP6oNqYVvU7x8vl1_0FH2DsuI9K0VJhcuO1HIc7ArCILkZgz9aQ/s500/4FA4CBCA-E48A-4593-84AA-5CFFFCCDA440.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8h5N_ao7FzyxZuiIJr3eg6kPWefIZIyLCBOyg-LH-snhtKFLEVd924Ur7vJcPf9XKFAZuYmhw3e65r-RrCX8txv_z-LHmy61f8H3ekbb4l7aKX1tMkytu9dGhRZTJxWJOgPg-k7KuP6oNqYVvU7x8vl1_0FH2DsuI9K0VJhcuO1HIc7ArCILkZgz9aQ/s320/4FA4CBCA-E48A-4593-84AA-5CFFFCCDA440.jpeg" width="256" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNOaGatojsg7rgHEKxf_TCutLE4ch2Qv7LiW_UjDh7dz519bj7sY-0Jx6VCLK1SPjO4Mx-1td8qchO6nD-vnjrKjnSorCJ2aoyrfqCfsBT44SqNbrW5mDGNahPGa7wElx_uHEF2B6p3k5SeD9xueFLsR6zEUFpKLgc_HmOo--6zctLJemQfVZ89VbkNw/s155/1315C7D5-DCBE-482E-95DF-2FD8C0A4CAB9.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNOaGatojsg7rgHEKxf_TCutLE4ch2Qv7LiW_UjDh7dz519bj7sY-0Jx6VCLK1SPjO4Mx-1td8qchO6nD-vnjrKjnSorCJ2aoyrfqCfsBT44SqNbrW5mDGNahPGa7wElx_uHEF2B6p3k5SeD9xueFLsR6zEUFpKLgc_HmOo--6zctLJemQfVZ89VbkNw/s1600/1315C7D5-DCBE-482E-95DF-2FD8C0A4CAB9.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I was lucky enough to be sent a free review copy of this excellent book. I’ve actually had it quite a while now. I was initially somewhat chary of reading it, as it has the look of a self-published work. </div><div><br /></div><div>And so, I believe, it is. Either that or it’s published by a small specialty publisher. Whatever the case may be, it is sometimes a bit like one might expect such works to be; a bit amateurish, and would’ve benefited from some firm but fair editing. </div><div><br /></div><div>Having said all of that, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it. Truth be told, it’s very well written, esp’ so for someone who isn’t primarily an author or writer, but a good ol’ U.S. of A. ‘flyboy’! </div><div><br /></div><div>Many chapters start with Eager’s poems. And whilst they’re not Shakespeare or Longfellow, I think they’re a good inclusion, showing another facet to a military man many might’ve assumed could be lacking in sensitivity or artistic leanings. </div><div><br /></div><div>Occasionally it’s a tad repetitive. And when renders conversation, he does so - especially regarding his own ‘voice’ - in a somewhat stiffly formal manner. One suspects recorded transcripts of these moments might’ve been slightly less stuffy, or expository. </div><div><br /></div><div>Having said that, Eager was the son of a high school principal, a good Boy Scout, and a military man, through and through. So there’s a slim chance, I suppose, that he really did talk as he renders himself here. But I really suspect not. His character comes across as too human. And sometimes his speech here is almost robotically leaden!</div><div><br /></div><div>But the thing is, he lead a very interesting life. And he was, by the sounds of it (admittedly his own self-portrait) a pretty ‘good egg’, as we Brits might say.* The book itself was written at the urging of friends and family. And they also helped bring it completion in its current form. </div><div><br /></div><div>How much it owes its interesting back and forth structure - it jumps around from youth to adulthood in a very engaging way - to Eager, and how much to later editorial interventions, I’m not sure. It’s a clever way to make the book more compelling, and works a treat. </div><div><br /></div><div>We learn about what seems to have been a pretty idyllic all-American childhood, with trips to a cottage in the mountains (built by his father and others). And then how he managed to get himself enrolled on a unique flying course, before the war brought America into the fight. </div><div><br /></div><div>We learn about his family. And early romances. There’s even a very funny bit about a teacher he’s fond of and a fart in her classroom that she mis attributes to poor young Dick! And then there’s a really touching and moving bit about his dog, Judge. </div><div><br /></div><div>All of this is woven into the more ‘officially’ significant story of how he wound up becoming Monty’s pilot, flying the victor of El Alamein around in a U.S. B-17 bomber converted into an airborne office-cum-taxi. But Richard Ernest (earnest and eager!) Evans’ life is ultimately fascinating for both his civilian and military experiences.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s supplemented by lots of pertinent photos, some very personal to Eager, some stock WWII ref, but still very relevant to the story this book tells. There’s also detailed ‘chronology’, lots of his correspondence, and a very useful glossary. </div><div><br /></div><div>This truly excellent book tells the story of a very interesting and seemingly very decent man, living through extraordinary times. I’m not a military man myself (although I love military history). But nevertheless, Richard Evans, I salute you!</div><div><br /></div><div>I’m writing this review as I near the end of the book. The vast majority of which is given over to childhood and young adulthood (I haven’t yet read the epilogue, which I suspect summarises some of the rest of his life). I’ve really enjoyed the read, and would definitely recommend it. </div><div><br /></div><div>* He often refers to the various form of national linguistic peculiarities he encounters, serving in WWII alongside Canadians, Australian, Brits and his own fellow Americans.</div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-24518136850993723322022-08-31T19:45:00.001+01:002022-08-31T19:45:51.044+01:00Book Review: The Hitler Assassination Attempts, John Grehan<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLND82UXt_ZoLpPGIjQGSkHH2jXPdydyEpN_fJraR5HRCjcDide_11nUWUbDPWQOhftqlrbouIiePLS58Yynty2jUqtXZvkRLRi-0LfdlyS6FRwwoFd0rhM9Y4O83-4xj6ozWXraD2233ph3nbxnWCZ6qrvZHshZEgSeWn1C_8tLqtP493OQLTaDQ2uQ/s597/6E35C09E-9AF0-4D8E-BEA1-A60814CFFB99.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLND82UXt_ZoLpPGIjQGSkHH2jXPdydyEpN_fJraR5HRCjcDide_11nUWUbDPWQOhftqlrbouIiePLS58Yynty2jUqtXZvkRLRi-0LfdlyS6FRwwoFd0rhM9Y4O83-4xj6ozWXraD2233ph3nbxnWCZ6qrvZHshZEgSeWn1C_8tLqtP493OQLTaDQ2uQ/s320/6E35C09E-9AF0-4D8E-BEA1-A60814CFFB99.jpeg" width="214" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">****1/2</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I thoroughly enjoyed this pithy account of the many attempts made on Hitler’s life. In all about 60 or so are covered. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Some of these were carried through - Elser, Stauffenberg - many were attempted, only to be aborted, and a great many were never put into action, for a whole host of reasons. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Grehan’s writing style is solid: in fact he covers a great deal in a very succinct manner, and he seems suitably circumspect where evidence is scant, concluding that some of these alleged ‘plots’ are most likely false. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The many attempts on Hitler’s life span almost his whole political career - 1921 to 1945 - meaning that this book not only tells the fascinating stories of the many plans to be rid of him, but also the broader history of his rise to power, international brinksmanship, with initial success both in peace and war, and finally his eventual apocalyptic downfall. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">If, like me, you’re fascinated with this era of recent history, I’d recommend this. I really enjoyed it. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-21595931806749163742022-08-22T20:03:00.001+01:002022-08-31T19:49:05.314+01:00Book Review: Napoleon's Infantry, Gabrielle Esposito<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjjGuSB8mqsljs0bsLJNT88hcQZYBitVlxljdtCoZjoHNsYmxZlEnob6Qn_CuWkXQJUuEncN6tjSFtssg_6zlB-6Ex8ZpS9tqeictZFRT951l_Cm8lPUnEJDQj8FQBz0cVWjZ7UKj5UplUUL4MXLgYMWOaBzlIjfye0SIXD-YcoaBtnLbrem1C2D7BYg/s500/D7B97BEC-298A-496E-B831-70A944E57A02.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="351" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjjGuSB8mqsljs0bsLJNT88hcQZYBitVlxljdtCoZjoHNsYmxZlEnob6Qn_CuWkXQJUuEncN6tjSFtssg_6zlB-6Ex8ZpS9tqeictZFRT951l_Cm8lPUnEJDQj8FQBz0cVWjZ7UKj5UplUUL4MXLgYMWOaBzlIjfye0SIXD-YcoaBtnLbrem1C2D7BYg/s320/D7B97BEC-298A-496E-B831-70A944E57A02.jpeg" width="225" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>***1/2</p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">This follows the form and style of Esposito's very similar book on Wellington's infantry. I enjoyed both books and learned a good deal from them. So that's good! </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">But there are some less good things: the plentiful 'uniform plates' (as they used to be called) bear too little relation, in terms of placement in the book, to the text, are all public domain, and are sometimes, effectively speaking, repeated (the same unit being depicted by differing artists, for example). </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Also some of the information would've been better conveyed via tables or lists rather than long form text (e.g. enumerating all the minutiae of uniform and/or equipment details), esp' as in long form the frequent repetition of certain stuff gets a bit monotonous.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">But overall the information conveyed is pretty comprehensive, wide-ranging and thorough. The evolution of the French infantry from royal, via revolutionary, to full blown 'Napoleonic' is, to a nerdy buff like me, fascinating. And Esposito covers everything from internal auxiliary type French troops to the many foreign so,divers that France employed. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Not perfect, but an attractive, informative and enjoyable addition to the Nappy buff's uniformology library. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-87048758244099165802022-08-12T23:38:00.010+01:002022-08-12T23:42:15.353+01:00Book Review: Hill 112, Tim Saunders<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNxToBrYx1CnrqZTYNbmdI-YewOhjsCgx3DEgZlv-gYxpuceWJGqPo713pzQtLXdlAm-X6NAv5czvoKdCxRIuLclPcoGg7U17l9wXCflGwGHEzkiJGOS7r5XpE6M0amwoECzLs9lMHtUr45sh2epTrBrZ8lQyv9WOtRC6cIEBd3ubV2nNylqbfTp5tvA/s876/61C3C22D-B463-4DA4-80AC-040101AA691E.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="876" data-original-width="590" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNxToBrYx1CnrqZTYNbmdI-YewOhjsCgx3DEgZlv-gYxpuceWJGqPo713pzQtLXdlAm-X6NAv5czvoKdCxRIuLclPcoGg7U17l9wXCflGwGHEzkiJGOS7r5XpE6M0amwoECzLs9lMHtUr45sh2epTrBrZ8lQyv9WOtRC6cIEBd3ubV2nNylqbfTp5tvA/s320/61C3C22D-B463-4DA4-80AC-040101AA691E.jpeg" width="216" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF7W8G0H9qItqnEMO7S612ocGOLoH3Ji-mkiC6lS9gqL36wXdKUyD3TeB8XKu9_RjFwZzIGCBMv1z9H_cMv29SAjBsxDlVzRMRAdnZL6ghcTQaVpePhOp2ssLSCK8c_hOiEX0p0oRHoSn93u4Z8ZEtJXiegTjW8FhMO_9OPtFY7QTPCfycF3n45erHJQ/s155/6BF645E4-5966-4EFB-BC70-618633927BFA.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF7W8G0H9qItqnEMO7S612ocGOLoH3Ji-mkiC6lS9gqL36wXdKUyD3TeB8XKu9_RjFwZzIGCBMv1z9H_cMv29SAjBsxDlVzRMRAdnZL6ghcTQaVpePhOp2ssLSCK8c_hOiEX0p0oRHoSn93u4Z8ZEtJXiegTjW8FhMO_9OPtFY7QTPCfycF3n45erHJQ/s1600/6BF645E4-5966-4EFB-BC70-618633927BFA.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><p>Another very enjoyable book by Tim Saunders, on the post-D-Day Normandy campaign (I’ve read a couple of others by him, on similar territory!. </p><p>I’m always worried, esp’ at the outset of, that the sheer detail in a book such as this is going to overwhelm me (and in all honesty I think I retain very little of the densely packed info’ presented). But, in the end, I’m very often carried along. Such is the case here. So Saunders must be doing something right!</p><p>Hill 112 is a piece of high ground Monty’s forces battled the Germans - many of the latter being SS units - for, both sides ranting and needing the commanding position it gave. So it became a hotly contested and bloody battleground. We have Tiger-phobia, massed artillery, air superiority (Allied, of course), naval bombardments. All sorts!</p><p>I feel like I’ve read about this Hill 112 action before? Poss in another book by Saunders? Or perhaps in a book by another author? Either way, the story of the back and forth action seems quite familiar! But I don’t mind reading about the same thing multiple times. In fact I like it. That way one can gradually accrue knowledge on a subject. </p><p>This account is detailed, well written, and liberally illustrated with both wartime photos, some more recent images of the terrain as it is now, and quite a few maps. There’s also a glossary of acronyms and initialisms. Despite this latter feature there are still instances of abbreviated terms used in the body of the text that are missing from the glossary! </p><p>I enjoy the use Saunders makes of primary sources. They help make the action more vivid. But I also enjoyed the higher level ‘command and control’ aspects. Reading this has made me want to learn more about Monty’s D-Day and Normandy campaign. He’s often criticised (perhaps mostly because of Arnhem?), but his plan of pinning German forces in place so the Americans could break out was very successfully and effective. </p><p>Anyway, if you have a strong interest in the Normandy campaign, as I certainly do, then this is definitely worth reading. </p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-81987572570143790442022-06-19T08:01:00.004+01:002022-06-19T08:06:17.234+01:00Misc: ACW in Nat Geog (again!)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpM2JTclDdNEQ8FhGCjTOmaNucpW1SnjN5BGCMb6aB8VflPNM2GXJnJMBS9CxB4l5YZ9s1qZ32DNxObVcVkqzdMFDGzc6ohrc1450yid-weSVA668WNtszBBAvDKtyxThrt-qKYLrrkYS-wulo3_wtLXYROd7qKFVSXMjJfzba8Gb-7kIwo03Q-2vWFA/s500/138A6E4F-2196-45F8-97B9-97A65204FD84.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="342" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpM2JTclDdNEQ8FhGCjTOmaNucpW1SnjN5BGCMb6aB8VflPNM2GXJnJMBS9CxB4l5YZ9s1qZ32DNxObVcVkqzdMFDGzc6ohrc1450yid-weSVA668WNtszBBAvDKtyxThrt-qKYLrrkYS-wulo3_wtLXYROd7qKFVSXMjJfzba8Gb-7kIwo03Q-2vWFA/s320/138A6E4F-2196-45F8-97B9-97A65204FD84.jpeg" width="219" /></a></div><br /><p>I recently got a(nother) whole bunch of National Geographic magazines (150 issues!). Something I occasionally do. We have tons more, boxed up in our attic!</p><p>And I posted on here, back in (I think?) 2014-‘ish, about a quest to find several specific issues. Those particular editions dealt with the ACW - around the centenary, so mid-1960s - and featured artwork that had haunted me for decades. </p><p>But in researching and tracking down those issues, and finding out who that elusive artiste was (David Greenspan), I became fascinated by the other forms of artwork as well. In particular that of the ‘Specials’, or special correspondents, what we would now call war artists. </p><p>Frank Vizetelly became a particular fascination. Partly because articles about him, and even a book, were available. But anyway, I mention all this because, amongst all the Nat Geog’s in this latest haul, there’s a May 2012 one with a couple of ACW themed pieces. </p><p>One of these concerns re-enactors. And that’s interesting in its own right. But the one that really caught my eye was about the ‘Specials’. It’s kind of funny to think that around the same time I was obsessively searching for the old ‘60s issues, NG themselves were also fondly remembering similar aspects of the history of that conflict. </p><p>There a kind of pleasing low-level synchronicity to it all!</p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-75348380555233756482022-05-24T10:03:00.006+01:002022-05-24T11:15:01.369+01:00Kit Build/Review: 1/72 Ho-229, Pt 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHj0ZJSP78qbwIMWO4UdaK4KdfwsdJrEpBGIV9NuBbRfrVnOd6DljaKVUSlPpijzjGHQ0tlsAqLarQgPXVBWQCLXVwgA62emFdcVPtrliJ-7VRbH3kXCZ_squTW9ypHy3ffl57QpvbKSv_EASR3mYx87RcCcIBTUde-HJeEt_ImA3Uo08GwE_0XzX86A/s1280/88700724-BCCA-4280-B9CE-3F1E5A721193.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHj0ZJSP78qbwIMWO4UdaK4KdfwsdJrEpBGIV9NuBbRfrVnOd6DljaKVUSlPpijzjGHQ0tlsAqLarQgPXVBWQCLXVwgA62emFdcVPtrliJ-7VRbH3kXCZ_squTW9ypHy3ffl57QpvbKSv_EASR3mYx87RcCcIBTUde-HJeEt_ImA3Uo08GwE_0XzX86A/s320/88700724-BCCA-4280-B9CE-3F1E5A721193.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Wow! My first model build in absolutely aeons. And this is actually already old news. As I did this several months ago now. Just didn’t get round to posting it. </p><p>One might’ve thought with Covid and lockdowns and all that that I might be doing <i>more</i> mini-military stuff. But the opposite has been the case. What came to pass instead was mostly either home DIY type stuff, or pure ‘r’n’r’. And then work, as things slowly returned to normal . It’s all been kind of weird, frankly!</p><p>Most of my more recent if infrequent posts have been book reviews, but even the reading has tailed off somewhat. And I really do want to get back into building models and painting and basing wargaming armies. </p><p>I ‘recently’ made a pilgrimage - I actually forget when this happened now - to a newly opened model shop in Hinckley, Leicestershire. It was a pretty major disappointment, to be honest. 1/72 WWII is my thing, and land warfare more than planes. The shop, MCC, had an incredibly small selection of 1/72. And what little WWII stuff they had I have already bought/built. </p><p>But I didn’t want the nigh on four hours travelling, esp’ with the hyper-inflated cost of the fuel, to be a total waste. So I wound up buying some PM 1/72 aeroplane kits. PM are Turkish. I’m not sure I’ve seen, never mind built, a PM kit afore? They’re cheap, and rather basic! </p><p>Like many interested in WWII from a military history buff type perspective, I find the Horten brothers’ jet projects utterly fascinating. So it was great - having wanted to buy but not feeling I could afford the super/detailed Houkai-Morai kit (see this post!) - to find two PM variants I <i>could</i> afford. </p><p>I was a bit confused initially, by the misnomer of the packaging, which names these airframes Gotha Go-229. It’s a bit anoraky, but the proper designation is Horten Ho-229. Gotha we’re simply a firm with a bigger manufacturing capacity than the cottage industry of the Hortens and their crew. </p><p>Anyway, I’ve been building this model. And, as mentioned above. It’s super basic! I was tempted to leave it as is. But after looking into it, I realised that this particular kit, a V7 variant, is a type that was never even actually built; a two-seater trainer. </p><p>As I looked into it, and thought about getting some reference material - Valiant Wings do what looks to be an excellent title on it (I reckon I’ll get that!) - I decided I had to detail the cockpit interior. I’ll do one or two other very minor things as well, such as holes on the ‘nose cones’ of the rocket, and possibly turbine fans or slats, or whatever they are…</p><p>Not sure if I’ll do the landing gear up or down!? But one of the chief attractions of these flying machines is their sleek looks. So whichever I choose, I’m looking forward to doing the painting and decals, etc. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjroXmb86b77mmsLkXV5q4FaghDeC_agz0tTKCpj86_NCgA5gezzV3MbSsLNriPXAQ6dEv3aM-pEbZBB6VoFWWXmx3sJos_8ZCUgri6q_QNZ-NPxb6lUoAo8CqPFEHFeeNNfJwRE0tb-JZq1mIK3dY6HewEqBhQZRWbRcCjupNjJ4cU3DhNKVe1DEk_lg/s1280/6DFC39D7-A28D-46F7-89C8-2998D87F8927.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjroXmb86b77mmsLkXV5q4FaghDeC_agz0tTKCpj86_NCgA5gezzV3MbSsLNriPXAQ6dEv3aM-pEbZBB6VoFWWXmx3sJos_8ZCUgri6q_QNZ-NPxb6lUoAo8CqPFEHFeeNNfJwRE0tb-JZq1mIK3dY6HewEqBhQZRWbRcCjupNjJ4cU3DhNKVe1DEk_lg/s320/6DFC39D7-A28D-46F7-89C8-2998D87F8927.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A pretty minimal kit!</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7aN2naR5mG1SHKOFzq38ij4vnH2eXGyz-7Tch_tS4_IUmHawFEgL7GvA304lhr56nL3AQfncbS0lxklLndK5diuy9cGKWPjOaGgwoJjIIiZDC7sMbZBInmf6Iwgcrdl5uypVOSXyYRatdX8QrasIBJdcLHXd1qpf9nG7r58jCOof41Y_0OLV2JOONQ/s1280/B3E9613A-CC8A-4513-8254-67433A161B1E.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7aN2naR5mG1SHKOFzq38ij4vnH2eXGyz-7Tch_tS4_IUmHawFEgL7GvA304lhr56nL3AQfncbS0lxklLndK5diuy9cGKWPjOaGgwoJjIIiZDC7sMbZBInmf6Iwgcrdl5uypVOSXyYRatdX8QrasIBJdcLHXd1qpf9nG7r58jCOof41Y_0OLV2JOONQ/s320/B3E9613A-CC8A-4513-8254-67433A161B1E.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The decals.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NCYZGEH4YoyEF-1GUj6R-alz5GAO3SLc4LSEZ6YxJnqpQy6uKBQmCg89WP9pCMP5bYmCu42s0pMQ6ndUNDTDYX1Z6yBsymHdgh8TPyhUzQ_zzNgqaolBihPaqtJHbmg7_AMybHRJ6xj1DwQK4ac0bw8XIgMwIg_86E-nBvDYcUMiF1aY0GaSiH9Tnw/s1280/87FB74E2-E8DA-4B80-9882-010B4EAF5917.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NCYZGEH4YoyEF-1GUj6R-alz5GAO3SLc4LSEZ6YxJnqpQy6uKBQmCg89WP9pCMP5bYmCu42s0pMQ6ndUNDTDYX1Z6yBsymHdgh8TPyhUzQ_zzNgqaolBihPaqtJHbmg7_AMybHRJ6xj1DwQK4ac0bw8XIgMwIg_86E-nBvDYcUMiF1aY0GaSiH9Tnw/s320/87FB74E2-E8DA-4B80-9882-010B4EAF5917.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Getting started.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvshtmBG6ssjTCwy1F6BF0hxMWfMbM0lQU_p2ynhWIz9VcHP-Fu6kRr197asOIRplD36UZRWgu6IPQab9o_GfVlna9xwsaXMAHSJFLQfNgJFafxHDcCmjHAJ95dK49fThTNdkYibOBNOPyNGKnFTA1KyNNAc5JWP8x0aDgv3hN4Q9ypaaHKtVTzaOsWg/s1280/E66DCCEE-C194-4661-A2D0-1F4F14B31BE1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvshtmBG6ssjTCwy1F6BF0hxMWfMbM0lQU_p2ynhWIz9VcHP-Fu6kRr197asOIRplD36UZRWgu6IPQab9o_GfVlna9xwsaXMAHSJFLQfNgJFafxHDcCmjHAJ95dK49fThTNdkYibOBNOPyNGKnFTA1KyNNAc5JWP8x0aDgv3hN4Q9ypaaHKtVTzaOsWg/s320/E66DCCEE-C194-4661-A2D0-1F4F14B31BE1.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">As you can see, super basic!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">As these pics attest, this is a very basic kit. Hence deciding to jazz up the cockpit interior. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-aGpjfsJJzvntufH3ZFlvXgSXuYSMp3mThX14-bgDCRdc-97ro9lo5svrTYQc5lX0Pkfa-GhwyFcFMOYw3VCnPtiqErZ0xd20wdOlCW9kMI6N9U-MWcmfDviozJui8S_Cib_vgkDuS3jJtVwZy-UiJq4bAm0m2isUt5SdBW3_QVuTVCpTyj2PkhzRRQ/s1280/F1833A82-CC4A-463D-8544-50309ED9D5E8.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-aGpjfsJJzvntufH3ZFlvXgSXuYSMp3mThX14-bgDCRdc-97ro9lo5svrTYQc5lX0Pkfa-GhwyFcFMOYw3VCnPtiqErZ0xd20wdOlCW9kMI6N9U-MWcmfDviozJui8S_Cib_vgkDuS3jJtVwZy-UiJq4bAm0m2isUt5SdBW3_QVuTVCpTyj2PkhzRRQ/s320/F1833A82-CC4A-463D-8544-50309ED9D5E8.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The instructions.</div><br /><p>I’ll leave this post here for now. As a ‘part one’ of a little series. I’ve already done enough to do a ‘part two’ post. And then the build stalled! Partly due to other stuff taking over, partly due to a bout of illness. </p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-56052602616690924762022-05-23T21:09:00.005+01:002022-05-24T10:51:29.561+01:00Book Review: Pz IV, Normandy Campaign Summer 1944, Dennis Oliver (Tank Craft 35)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikio8mIhEqA8wryzjJoFRBAoqk8dsTozozxzOV9WsE1VheOSOzcy7KUZd1x4Q45UgnJoLwTn_9EyCGlKtAiqQIeqYTuFo38aY1rez7vo7UJb_FgmRTi4deVAiaEBw5hhw7YoCb3ng4EJrjOgsy19DM81wjXIIuxdrfTNxu4ak5_r7Gqr9DHxL6XZA2-A/s875/C17C8FDD-9D29-4CAD-92FB-82A2434E7FE4.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="875" data-original-width="619" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikio8mIhEqA8wryzjJoFRBAoqk8dsTozozxzOV9WsE1VheOSOzcy7KUZd1x4Q45UgnJoLwTn_9EyCGlKtAiqQIeqYTuFo38aY1rez7vo7UJb_FgmRTi4deVAiaEBw5hhw7YoCb3ng4EJrjOgsy19DM81wjXIIuxdrfTNxu4ak5_r7Gqr9DHxL6XZA2-A/s320/C17C8FDD-9D29-4CAD-92FB-82A2434E7FE4.jpeg" width="226" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKly_2JcjuZb73K2sNI6sKNk06v3M6_rF0qyCoD8wonYUd7S71sTF16yIouvyBUzGtsD4O-_ABMryOO-Fi041quOiW1nrPzAKQT-189Va-NguZrAuRQmx97DxY-9_t2HuS2Ln91Zrsf90UUE0oApGR8PI8Cwq57HSbnm7Oogd8FWTyNd-UDyFo19pEXQ/s155/67ADD2B9-BB5E-4DFE-8D00-081817A0C714.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKly_2JcjuZb73K2sNI6sKNk06v3M6_rF0qyCoD8wonYUd7S71sTF16yIouvyBUzGtsD4O-_ABMryOO-Fi041quOiW1nrPzAKQT-189Va-NguZrAuRQmx97DxY-9_t2HuS2Ln91Zrsf90UUE0oApGR8PI8Cwq57HSbnm7Oogd8FWTyNd-UDyFo19pEXQ/s1600/67ADD2B9-BB5E-4DFE-8D00-081817A0C714.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 19px; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 19px; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 19px; text-align: left;">Yet another excellent entry into Dennis Oliver’s growing library of works for the Tank Craft series in WWII German armour.</span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">This time it’s that workhorse, the Pz IV, all too often overshadowed by it’s more glam’ brothers, the Panthers and Tigers. Specifically we have here the Pz IV, Normandy ‘44. Which, as Oliver enlightens us, mostly means the ausf. H. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Interestingly, the Tank Craft series did previously publish a title on the Pz IV, covering the whole 1939-45 conflict. I haven’t seen that title. But it gets a few pretty critical reviews online. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">However, back to this more specialist offering. As usual with Oliver we get a comprehensive and thorough treatment: starting with a brief intro, we get the familiar maps and timelines. </span><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Then we get the unit histories, followed by the colour profiles - 10 pages with 20 profiles plus lots of other little pics/details - and model showcase. then info on models and after market stuff, wrapping up with Technical Details and Modifications. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The unit composition diagrams are given, in a slightly different manner from other Oliver books, right at the end, after two pages of tables detailing the production and allocation of these AFVs. </span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I’m always somewhat dumbfounded by the degree of detail Oliver goes into. It’s all a bit much for my ageing noggin to really take in. But I do find it fascinating. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">So far Panzers III and IV are very under represented un the Tank Craft series, compared to the Panthers and Tigers. So not only is this a great addition to this series, but I hope it’s the first in a series that redresses that imbalance! </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Great stuff!</span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-58094849274425822472022-05-23T21:03:00.006+01:002022-05-24T10:01:54.466+01:00Book Review: Panther, Eastern Front Summer 1943, Dennis Oliver (Tank Craft 34)<p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGWloRlgONBcABUv8PYOWW6wXfICtt0fLH4GuRcz3-bjBui5UNeDtLpqPymQKZRMlYp3MIAAgmHGQ2nPndd7pHWgDKg1wKAIkgqC0_QE3URE_0NKrC1aIdK5L2uztuZsc6mpl0zgrKO61jFAkB650OhhkOpUXvju76jQH4t-ItWkg_GGSF5tLCn13Ttw/s1500/1BA43C3D-70E4-4A9A-90F9-F432B971E190.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1071" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGWloRlgONBcABUv8PYOWW6wXfICtt0fLH4GuRcz3-bjBui5UNeDtLpqPymQKZRMlYp3MIAAgmHGQ2nPndd7pHWgDKg1wKAIkgqC0_QE3URE_0NKrC1aIdK5L2uztuZsc6mpl0zgrKO61jFAkB650OhhkOpUXvju76jQH4t-ItWkg_GGSF5tLCn13Ttw/s320/1BA43C3D-70E4-4A9A-90F9-F432B971E190.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6mkvgKWRzmWIcfZiXcfNhk49aeEmhvgEddJ4brRyV9AttnZOnS5qd1tWDD-Pn0JC3r6keZ2SIiH9wwMNlC0ZqZRTPsmFm1UlgmJNlk2NvTxNz6No78kVnzix0SoTnK6ZjbW6hMQNU9Beer9J0GBvGE6zzXGmDkPGOxRBnRvck-R1a7oz93aKhPh12g/s155/9B86F44A-FC0F-45B4-A686-098FB6B459E4.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6mkvgKWRzmWIcfZiXcfNhk49aeEmhvgEddJ4brRyV9AttnZOnS5qd1tWDD-Pn0JC3r6keZ2SIiH9wwMNlC0ZqZRTPsmFm1UlgmJNlk2NvTxNz6No78kVnzix0SoTnK6ZjbW6hMQNU9Beer9J0GBvGE6zzXGmDkPGOxRBnRvck-R1a7oz93aKhPh12g/s1600/9B86F44A-FC0F-45B4-A686-098FB6B459E4.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I’m extremely lucky, inasmuch as I’ve got this as a free review copy. I mention this mainly because if I had to buy all these books, their sheer quantity would most likely exclude me from being able to do so.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">This is, as Oliver himself says, the </span><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic;">fifth</span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"> title on Panther tanks in the ever-growing Tank Craft series. For me, in Dennis Oliver, P&S have found a very capable and impressive contributor. He’s very thorough, and systematic, which gives his titles a kind of consistency lacking in some of the books in these series by other authors/experts. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Anyway, to the particular book in hand. After a brief Introduction to his subject, Oliver presents the overall situation, in a chapter titled The Eastern Front 1943, via a map and a four page timeline style synopsis. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Then there’s a larger chunk devoted to the units, 12 in all, issued with Panthers, on the Ostfront. As well as giving concise unit histories for the period this section includes a two-page diagram giving a visual representation of Panzer Abteilungs 51 and 52. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Then we have the colour-profiles, aka Camouflage and Markings, and a selection of beautifully built models, in </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">the Model Showcase section. 24 Panthers are profiled in the Camouflage and Markings section, 16 in full side views, and eight via turret only views. There are three 1/35 and one 1/48 models in the Showcase chapter (I always want to see a 1/72, example, as that’s my favoured scale!). These are the two most colourful and visually beguiling chapters.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Modelling Products gives a pretty thorough overview of many of the available kits and a good deal of after-market stuff (inevitably not </span><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style: italic;">all</span><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">, as there’s a huge amount of stuff out there!). </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Technical Details returns to the AFV itself, and devotes a decent chunk of the book - 15 heavily illustrated pages; roughly quarter of the 64 page title - to all the nuts and bolts type stuff. And then there’s a single page devoted to Product Contact Details. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Throughout the book contemporary black and photos are liberally deployed - I counted roughly 45-ish - illustrating the subject. These range from crisp full page images to some small and rather poor quality pictures. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">This is another excellent and impressively thorough addition by Oliver to what is a very useful series for the WWIII German armour buff. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-76590214127539996232022-03-01T20:45:00.005+00:002022-05-24T10:00:57.918+01:00Book Review: Hetzer, Western Front 1944-5, Dennis Oliver (Tank Craft 31)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqvA3_ibct4sRrB4tOA-vDnXnXu4fq-2x4iBZnhSuxNTahqFlvOgXONini4UacOCkFElntK1Xf0A2kHQw2oYtK-HDXAnNVQ4BQYTfyZh1W2I-EB4CbImYdWCnnrKTZYq2xS79FHQPYG7KH4PEqz1i2dv1U8rLuTe7H-UOEmeIykd6HkvUYQbKVapD5Q/s1200/347B3685-5229-42FF-B9EC-792A21A3B2CF.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="849" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqvA3_ibct4sRrB4tOA-vDnXnXu4fq-2x4iBZnhSuxNTahqFlvOgXONini4UacOCkFElntK1Xf0A2kHQw2oYtK-HDXAnNVQ4BQYTfyZh1W2I-EB4CbImYdWCnnrKTZYq2xS79FHQPYG7KH4PEqz1i2dv1U8rLuTe7H-UOEmeIykd6HkvUYQbKVapD5Q/s320/347B3685-5229-42FF-B9EC-792A21A3B2CF.jpeg" width="226" /></a></div><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggWMDial8Mb6dvMD4hTtmVHKUfSwyEQYzh7UVYpoz8eHBG8OWHEycLt5O7WlNO-eB7VDdGOZlsQg0wkcujxI3Esgy6QMLq9BPVwlZtbsDA7aeXeqG3jG0SWBQjfIZr_UAwDc5pQNZB1p07Eu0NYAwedGOFvMi8Qcs0GJ7m4Nedux95-QiEh3J_XGc6Ew/s155/A1C7D8DC-5BC0-4E25-8730-A5D6B6115C17.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggWMDial8Mb6dvMD4hTtmVHKUfSwyEQYzh7UVYpoz8eHBG8OWHEycLt5O7WlNO-eB7VDdGOZlsQg0wkcujxI3Esgy6QMLq9BPVwlZtbsDA7aeXeqG3jG0SWBQjfIZr_UAwDc5pQNZB1p07Eu0NYAwedGOFvMi8Qcs0GJ7m4Nedux95-QiEh3J_XGc6Ew/s1600/A1C7D8DC-5BC0-4E25-8730-A5D6B6115C17.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The Hetzer tank destroyer is one of my favourite WWII German AFVs, and certainly one of the coolest and funkiest of the many variants based on the Czech Pz 38 sub-assembly. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">In yet another excellent instalment from the prolific Dennis Oliver Pen & Sword’s Tank Craft series continues to grow apace. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">This one’s a little different from may of Oliver’s other contributions to this ever expanding series. After an introduction to the introduction (eh?) of the Hetzer, as a better more mobile and armoured form of tank-hunting artillery, we get brief unit histories for the many Heer units issued with this machine. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The colour profiles reveal this AFV to have been painted in many striking and attractive variations of the German late-war tri-colour scheme - Rotbrun, Dunkekgelb and Olivgrun - and is followed by a good selection of superbly made models (two 1/48 and two 1/35). </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I always wish for at least one model in my own favoured scale, of 1/72. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>But it’d be churlish to dock any stars on that account, as this a solid and informative volume. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">As well as the usual modelling products section, and technical details/modifications, there’s a bit about the non-Heer (SS and other) units. Plenty of pictures, from wartime black and white stuff to the colourful profiles and models, this an attractive publication. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 24px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"></span><br /></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 19px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s2" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Definitely recommended. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-3868167616372281952021-07-28T16:11:00.004+01:002021-11-03T23:39:15.822+00:00Book Review: Favourite of Fortune, Bond, Cowin, Lambert<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWdhF5pjX9wap2BsoV_MXU_pirkk09piumOQlqt2x2_idLOoJlYE286L6LTsQG2dgbxV0BuVSpatXgxr4YG3A6aNYh8ois1uQgzQzsecjChxN2YcQXIdhzutd0lT4UPshcoJXx1XtBQjT/s2048/B4F50C24-D7D2-4012-97F0-F7DB8FAE888D.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1357" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWdhF5pjX9wap2BsoV_MXU_pirkk09piumOQlqt2x2_idLOoJlYE286L6LTsQG2dgbxV0BuVSpatXgxr4YG3A6aNYh8ois1uQgzQzsecjChxN2YcQXIdhzutd0lT4UPshcoJXx1XtBQjT/s320/B4F50C24-D7D2-4012-97F0-F7DB8FAE888D.jpeg" width="212" /></a></div><br /><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwfKkkKRrQAc9fW0uqqspn8IQNKyDhYzxgyneXptqdW7pgH8M-wKSe7Tu0fax0y2tVfFdlMOs2QGXVVu2lafufT5bCWWZzSleOuTMghtI9aLaeTi86CQEjyPw-0DxmMzCogW3Nmv8Jn2r/s155/C9E4A496-B615-4B9F-9363-F683FDD4FB89.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" height="30" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwfKkkKRrQAc9fW0uqqspn8IQNKyDhYzxgyneXptqdW7pgH8M-wKSe7Tu0fax0y2tVfFdlMOs2QGXVVu2lafufT5bCWWZzSleOuTMghtI9aLaeTi86CQEjyPw-0DxmMzCogW3Nmv8Jn2r/s0/C9E4A496-B615-4B9F-9363-F683FDD4FB89.jpeg" width="155" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px;">Fascinating</span></p><div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px;"><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1">As ‘one of the most important men on the Quarterdeck of HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar’, it might seem odd that we’ve had to wait till now for this fascinating portrait of a hitherto less well-known sailor of the Nelsonian/Napoleonic era. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1">This is as much a study of the colourful period as its chief subject, thanks to the latter’s presence at three key battles, Camperdown, Copenhagen and Trafalgar, and his experiences of the many aspects/theatres - from China and the Mediterranean, to the Caribbean tropics, the frozen seas of the Baltic, or the iceberg strewn North Atlantic coast of Canada - at a time when the Royal Navy, thanks to men like Quilliam, helped Great Britain achieve global superpower status, via maritime dominance. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1">The narrative part of the book is just shy of 150 pages, and is augmented by two sections of illustrations, plus several maps (and, always useful for us landlubbers, a glossary!). It’s a quick, easy, gripping and exciting read. And it’s a great credit to the three - yes, three! - authors that it reads very smoothly, like the work of one mind/hand. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1">Worried that this was possibly a bit too specialist or obscure, I was very pleasantly surprised by this excellent book. If you find the ‘age of sail’ fascinating, as I do, I’d thoroughly recommend <i>Favourite of Fortune</i>.</span></p></div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-14417130827984213232021-05-19T06:15:00.004+01:002021-05-19T11:37:12.477+01:00Book Review: Hitler's Panther Tank Battalions, Ian Baxter (IoW)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjURZLRfDTdbNIuUFHoBVQPWtpTk3N7and1svxuPyH44lCq-8VmpMxNDllTYm-wH3OiMWGIy8EzVXmlTitSqpBS-QAjotxKT2S_L5bLIg-MPPedxToa6xFunLqRJzperrU6SwXwYxoqDENW/s1184/3D689A3A-F7E7-4137-A95F-887EE1267836.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1184" data-original-width="1184" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjURZLRfDTdbNIuUFHoBVQPWtpTk3N7and1svxuPyH44lCq-8VmpMxNDllTYm-wH3OiMWGIy8EzVXmlTitSqpBS-QAjotxKT2S_L5bLIg-MPPedxToa6xFunLqRJzperrU6SwXwYxoqDENW/s320/3D689A3A-F7E7-4137-A95F-887EE1267836.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBjVQcQ6FwgqEEESvvinOK4v1fHD3mc_ZABQZMknn8EdRxuJmSzYfQ_idEWqvQ7tIum_vNTVfEYwIz02DsyhuQZnvA5rGswdk5XJQ1hzJD5tlfSAMMcQxaB8BIdhi3nYzlBya7JfM2_3u3/s155/4-Balkankreuz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBjVQcQ6FwgqEEESvvinOK4v1fHD3mc_ZABQZMknn8EdRxuJmSzYfQ_idEWqvQ7tIum_vNTVfEYwIz02DsyhuQZnvA5rGswdk5XJQ1hzJD5tlfSAMMcQxaB8BIdhi3nYzlBya7JfM2_3u3/s0/4-Balkankreuz.jpg" /></a></div><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">In this slim but well illustrated volume, Ian Baxter outlines the history of the Panther tanks' service in WWII, from its over-hasty introduction in 1943 to its demise, along with the inevitable fall of the vastly outnumbered and outgunned Third Reich that spawned it.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">The Panther has to be one of the best looking tanks of WWII, and Germany produced a lot of the funkiest looking AFVs in this period to compete for that position, many of which, the Panther included, remain iconic in the history of armoured warfare to this day. But, as Baxter points out, there were never enough, and rushed to the front as they so often were, either they themselves or their crews were often unready.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">In respect of that last point, as the tank itself got better, despite having entered service too soon, and consequently suffering many teething issues, especially perhaps at the legendary tank-ageddon that was Kursk, the overall position and make up of the German forces steadily deteriorated, as experienced crews were irretrievably lost, to be replaced by green under-trained youths and/or the older men of 'ear and stomach' battalions.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">This interesting and very useful addition to the ever growing <i>Images of War</i> series arrived in a wonderfully timely fashion for me, as my next modelling project at that point was abother of those hoary old Airfix 1/76 Panthers ('twas this ol' kit that was my first build, or re-introduction to the hobby, on returning to the model-making, etc!). As anyone who's built this model will know, it's a kit that needs some modifications, as it's pretty poor in certain respects. This book proved to be the perfect resource to help me do just that. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">After a brief intro, the chapter titles map out the narrative:</span></p><ol class="ol1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-size-adjust: auto;"><li class="li3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s2">Eastern Front Battles, 1943 - the Panther is introduced, fights at Kursk, and like the whole German force, is pushed back and ground down.</span></li><li class="li3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s2">Italian Warfare, 1943-44 - deployed defensively in less than ideal terrain, Panthers struggle, but, as usual, acquit themselves well. </span></li><li class="li3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s2">Eastern Front, 1944 - despite improvements and Herculean production efforts, replenished Panther units are simply ground to nothing by the Russian juggernaut.</span></li><li class="li3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s2">The Last Year of the War, 1955/45 - D-Day opens the Panthers' western war, and despite brave fighting on all front, from France and Belgium to Italy, Hungary and the Eastern front, the end is inevitable.</span></li></ol><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Three appendices flesh out further info: specs; variants; unit composition.*</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">All of this is amply illustrated with period black and white photographs. Mostly of Panthers, as you'd expect, but also occasionally of other vehicles that were found in Panther units, like Pz IV, half-tracks and numerous other vehicles, from cars and trucks to armoured cars. Many of the pics will be familiar to grizzled armour buffs, but many aren't.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">All in all a solid entry in this series. Well worth having.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">*Specifically of a 'Typical Pz Rec. Grenadier Battalion, 1943-44.'</span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-48058319741556166942021-05-18T21:13:00.008+01:002021-05-18T21:14:45.351+01:00Book Review: Pictorial History of the US 3rd Armored Division in WWII, Darren Neely<p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10DcFBv-6QEaFqYngEmmP_UNMvKB54zWD1Xu29OxRoaj0JeZ-qy4xXuOKfDcHiaAToQjwMuQDKX0eC-a1cI83BeXwKnBH52so3uC_bLGIQE7MqUQ3VKbq3hF7wDaLbXdT90GMINrOd7wo/s2048/US3rdArmorWWII_Neely.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1583" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10DcFBv-6QEaFqYngEmmP_UNMvKB54zWD1Xu29OxRoaj0JeZ-qy4xXuOKfDcHiaAToQjwMuQDKX0eC-a1cI83BeXwKnBH52so3uC_bLGIQE7MqUQ3VKbq3hF7wDaLbXdT90GMINrOd7wo/s320/US3rdArmorWWII_Neely.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3p8PXhInZidaHlmAxB4NNFNqfmBj7FG2krJPtJLnO1cR_JbOsUpSzEAPZrvO8TYiy7l0nbmF7S-THX09ple7q8EBjkJUDe8m6yhqLmGovWApNXfzsz2TZ3JtOXWPNqajrCyd_km9hXFce/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3p8PXhInZidaHlmAxB4NNFNqfmBj7FG2krJPtJLnO1cR_JbOsUpSzEAPZrvO8TYiy7l0nbmF7S-THX09ple7q8EBjkJUDe8m6yhqLmGovWApNXfzsz2TZ3JtOXWPNqajrCyd_km9hXFce/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 17px;"><p style="text-align: justify;">Having just read a text based account of the 12th SS Hitlerjugend in Normandy, this pictorial history from the Allied side of the same Western European theatre was a welcome change of pace.</p></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1">The US 3rd Armrd Div arrived in Europe about a fortnight after D-Day, and from then onwards was at the sharp end - as befits a unit also named ‘Spearhead’ - from France to Belgium and in into Germany and wars end. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1">The huge number of black and white photographs gathered together here are a terrifically rich and evocative resource, perfect for the history buff, modeller or wargamer. Split into four chapters, each begins with a short summary of the operations the Div took part in during a given period, and then fleshes this out with loads of captioned photos. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1">Some of the darker photos could perhaps have been filtered and tweaked a bit for better clarity. And, a pet peeve of mine, it’s deuced hard to relate numerous ‘note such and such’ textual admonitions to the corresponding images, due to them being smaller, cropped, insufficiently clear, or whatever. Hence docking half a star. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1">Most of the pics depict US troops and materiel, naturally. But there’s also a lot of imagery showing knocked out German stuff. So, all in all a fascinating and useful resource, bringing to life this units crucial part in the post-Normandy Western Front campaign. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-9962050951152269512021-05-17T07:00:00.005+01:002021-05-18T21:40:55.238+01:00Book Review: Pz Gren, 1942-5 (IoW), Ian Baxter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW30wM-daY2Vmw0X2FaS8Za3Ews24jDUZbmIWC_NztNggCNH9afrkCf0F-gFkNXijoR93111XxdC1GnZitMe0cMLiOkOsRr-VYsTfEtwJh_RdWIAyCm7sUIYQE49V3oUc78FVKMq8Xjq_g/s347/PzGren1942-5_Baxter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="347" data-original-width="268" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW30wM-daY2Vmw0X2FaS8Za3Ews24jDUZbmIWC_NztNggCNH9afrkCf0F-gFkNXijoR93111XxdC1GnZitMe0cMLiOkOsRr-VYsTfEtwJh_RdWIAyCm7sUIYQE49V3oUc78FVKMq8Xjq_g/s320/PzGren1942-5_Baxter.jpg" /></a></div><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><br /></p><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU8yZ_JGxly3sZNBe07GMpimMPIPrN4zwwq_D7f6T8KBnax3L1QzEu9V-0ENO3bLXN3HkrDReAA88za6BxrNO69NbkQ5_EHX6L9Rht6xUE1PV62hkf0duyXxjXQYwUpmbM7RBWxIU9KSv/s155/Kreuz_07_Three%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU8yZ_JGxly3sZNBe07GMpimMPIPrN4zwwq_D7f6T8KBnax3L1QzEu9V-0ENO3bLXN3HkrDReAA88za6BxrNO69NbkQ5_EHX6L9Rht6xUE1PV62hkf0duyXxjXQYwUpmbM7RBWxIU9KSv/s0/Kreuz_07_Three%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Another entry in the <i>Images of War</i> series covering WWII German forces from Ian Baxter. This one dealing with the Panzer-Grenadier Divisions. I’d give the pictorial content four kreuz, or stars, the text three, so three and a half over all. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">As with pretty much all the Baxter titles that I've encountered the text is a bit sloppy and repetitive (partic' so in the latter respect via the captions, which frequently repeat stuff from the body text). And sometimes things that are not visible in the image - that are too small, cropped, or just indistinct - are remarked upon, or there’s even an outright mistake as to content, such as when a Stug is misidentified as a train!</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Nevertheless, there’s a good deal of useful info on the history of these units: how they came into being, where they fought, what became of them, etc. Appendices at the rear of the book also list all the units referred to in the text, giving more of this same basic info again. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">But it’s the pictures that are the main attraction, naturally. All black and white; some I’ve seen before, but many, indeed most, are new to me, which is always nice and refreshing. Most of the images are of a decent quality. All told, another useful reference work for the WWII military history buff. </span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-64346947619864167052021-05-16T23:54:00.007+01:002021-05-18T21:18:02.877+01:00Book Review: Napoleon & the Invasion of England, Wheeler & Broadley<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8mAfGB2kuYXYssCXtInyqX9t1SwkIimaZay0Y2evCkvo1_ePhzFsMOWBzsBMb_qSm0jNyVoxbBN6B3PHPg-uo5I65AXUactOChAbUX2-fE8h0FhK5ACyoLBlqBzqj-yW7ax84NkRtgPZp/s400/NapoleonInvasionEngland_WheelerBroadley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="265" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8mAfGB2kuYXYssCXtInyqX9t1SwkIimaZay0Y2evCkvo1_ePhzFsMOWBzsBMb_qSm0jNyVoxbBN6B3PHPg-uo5I65AXUactOChAbUX2-fE8h0FhK5ACyoLBlqBzqj-yW7ax84NkRtgPZp/s320/NapoleonInvasionEngland_WheelerBroadley.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhULL4URL8Kr8Gpqpdl95b6ovM2B4YJUFnBu_Hf9of4woL40LfEeNVd6jsoY2yrremCnNfuNL6eLrpPRfXVwZqa7WVzgi7WQVV3H4WJyKYUtNGVGJoT4Gfod09JrB8sAnzSKJhhgN9HXoup/s155/4-Boney_Hats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhULL4URL8Kr8Gpqpdl95b6ovM2B4YJUFnBu_Hf9of4woL40LfEeNVd6jsoY2yrremCnNfuNL6eLrpPRfXVwZqa7WVzgi7WQVV3H4WJyKYUtNGVGJoT4Gfod09JrB8sAnzSKJhhgN9HXoup/s0/4-Boney_Hats.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><i style="caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); color: #0f1111; font-size: 15px;">NB - Another of my forays into archival material. I read this book a number of years ago, and wrote and posted a review on Amazon’s UK website, also some years back. This is a slightly amended version of that. I was prompted to revisit it as I’m currently reading the superb </i><span style="caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); color: #0f1111; font-size: 15px;">Coastal Defences of the British Empire</span><i style="caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); color: #0f1111; font-size: 15px;">, by Daniel MacCannell.</i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); color: #0f1111; font-size: 15px;">Napoleon's mooted invasion of England - actually a task set for him by the Directory that he didn't seem to have his heart in (the fact that he hoped initially he might be allowed to live out his exile in England is interesting and revealing) - is a fascinating subject, and I'm quite surprised there aren't a lot more books on the subject than there appear to be.</span></p><span class="cr-original-truncatable-content" face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111;"><div style="caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); font-size: 15px; text-align: justify;">This book is a reprint of a work written in the early years of the 20th century, and it's age does show a little in two respects: the tone of the writing can occasionally feel a tad dated, and the level of detail reflects an obsessiveness that seems almost Victorian in its zeal. I'm writing this not quite having finished the book, which I started several years ago, and eventually lost impetus with.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: 15px;"><div style="text-align: justify;">This said, the first two thirds of the book were, I felt, fascinating and engaging. Although Boney never seemed to quite believe in it, as a project, yet he threw himself into it with what was to become known as his trademark vigour, endlessly commissioning huge lists of highly detailed jobs for his subordinates, always demanding the next to impossible. As well as a decent if occasionally stodgy and perhaps over long text, there's an abundance of illustrative material, much of which is quite charming, such as the images of invasion via tunnels, floating castles, or even a fleet of dirigibles!</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 15px;"><div style="text-align: justify;">No source is left unvisited, so we are treated to commemorative medals, songs and poems, cartoons, pamphlets, extracts from personal letters, public announcements and military correspondence. No proverbial stone is left unturned. Given that almost every aspect of Napoleon's career is exhaustively written about, it's a little odd to me that, and especially what with our penchant for an overly Anglocentric reading of the era bearing the name of the man many here liked to call the 'Corsican upstart', we're not more interested in his plans to invade our shores.</div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: 15px;"><div style="text-align: justify;">So, for all that this isn't perfect, at least it's a solid and comprehensive treatment of a fascinating subject. Even though I’m still yet to finish it, I did (and still do) like it. But this is certainly more a book for the devoted Napoleonic history buff than the casual reader.</div></span></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="cr-original-truncatable-content" face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(15, 17, 17); color: #0f1111; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-4422175095923255042021-05-10T10:20:00.005+01:002021-05-10T10:24:14.322+01:00Book Review: Hitlerjugend, 12th SS Pz Div, Normandy, Saunders/Hone.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-njIiOMeiLpz2rcDWGnKPKtV8HPozBbpe7gFpscvcwh7CHRl_pPHY9bs3HMIuAwLM18K5YL9ppYqNxf-ttk5UCP86htSaeEDvBV2g59WqhsxxJp92WCTncf6lIMvyvXyDY3SznvEl-T-a/s602/12thSSDivNormandy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-njIiOMeiLpz2rcDWGnKPKtV8HPozBbpe7gFpscvcwh7CHRl_pPHY9bs3HMIuAwLM18K5YL9ppYqNxf-ttk5UCP86htSaeEDvBV2g59WqhsxxJp92WCTncf6lIMvyvXyDY3SznvEl-T-a/s320/12thSSDivNormandy.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnqr2U2jIB1Uw_a_wdJkaf3HHm65LU1ao4sWcWAFCOK8TP9ObrG01p-Awb-TfWtckeVb6u9twpqtrJbq1CG7l0AdK1Ct6SjWalLmlU6wwyTXVdasNZPkRW7o3HuhVY4Wbgcy266JI-Kck/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWnqr2U2jIB1Uw_a_wdJkaf3HHm65LU1ao4sWcWAFCOK8TP9ObrG01p-Awb-TfWtckeVb6u9twpqtrJbq1CG7l0AdK1Ct6SjWalLmlU6wwyTXVdasNZPkRW7o3HuhVY4Wbgcy266JI-Kck/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Superb! A thoroughly gripping account of the role of the SS Hitlerjugend’s role in the Normandy ‘44 campaign. From the units creation, to its deployment and combat, opposite British and Canadian forces in the battle for Caen and beyond. Well illustrated with maps and photographs, and enlivened with firsthand accounts, I found this a terrifically engaging and informative read. Highly recommended.</p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-21631838543360703692021-05-09T22:13:00.002+01:002021-05-09T22:46:19.726+01:00Book Reviews: Anthony Tucker Jones<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-kBly5-PFk6jX6TfnnFH3qvSUMYMClKIQXSC0jeEZdLGL-lte9-PlwgnwVInQkoMwHZRwg3Rvev81xwSLfqiFOTDDxSRu0SXhRyhLr65iBTWUoX_9PtG4Xgu1yXawIFsstfjRhQJ4yNJ/s2016/AlliStalHitlArmour_ATJhoriz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1512" data-original-width="2016" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-kBly5-PFk6jX6TfnnFH3qvSUMYMClKIQXSC0jeEZdLGL-lte9-PlwgnwVInQkoMwHZRwg3Rvev81xwSLfqiFOTDDxSRu0SXhRyhLr65iBTWUoX_9PtG4Xgu1yXawIFsstfjRhQJ4yNJ/s320/AlliStalHitlArmour_ATJhoriz.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Today’s post is another of my occasional ‘trinity’ or trilogy reviews. On this occasion under review we have three titles, all on WWII armour, by author Anthony Tucker-Jones: Allied Armour, Stalin’s Armour and Hitler’s Armour. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyeTjiTj-122vSXK3Jr2vzhF2ZPHypRtOyMiQ27Nr47Op4BFexiM-6Sr26_1b_FEx5VK3VFpp1j1w4QX9u5nnewRrKBwDIAhUQLc57_QC0NEwOZOXlR5f4Q8UvUr3JPhVsecm787jKfDsK/s2016/AlliedArmour_ATJ.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyeTjiTj-122vSXK3Jr2vzhF2ZPHypRtOyMiQ27Nr47Op4BFexiM-6Sr26_1b_FEx5VK3VFpp1j1w4QX9u5nnewRrKBwDIAhUQLc57_QC0NEwOZOXlR5f4Q8UvUr3JPhVsecm787jKfDsK/s320/AlliedArmour_ATJ.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><b><u>Allied Armour, 1939-45</u></b><br /><p><b></b></p><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKhNOWbY3MvYonJcbn_1koK681cGizfY8ebj8bR3HjUMQEAMlLuSJ1nFm_Q_LDm_UCXoU4AQy2OwRyzebYXgFpIHoK3seOjxKknEty6lBxALiMAF27DZrlPVxCuuJeHKDyqkE8doE8dDM/s155/Kreuz_07_Three%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKhNOWbY3MvYonJcbn_1koK681cGizfY8ebj8bR3HjUMQEAMlLuSJ1nFm_Q_LDm_UCXoU4AQy2OwRyzebYXgFpIHoK3seOjxKknEty6lBxALiMAF27DZrlPVxCuuJeHKDyqkE8doE8dDM/s0/Kreuz_07_Three%2526Half.jpg" /></a></b></div><p></p><p>Whilst well enough written, Allied Armour - and by Allied what’s really meant is British and American - is, to a very great extent, rather cloyingly data-rich and dry, mostly comprising recitations of the many campaigns in which its subject was involved, with a lot of commander’s names, unit numbers and place names, but - unusually and, it must be said, unhelpfully - no maps. </p><p>I can see why some might be critical of such books, as they are neither deep dives into the tanks themselves, nor any of the particular campaigns. Rather what we have is a series of succinct synopses of the various campaigns as a whole, with a focus on the armoured warfare aspects. Still, I think having works of this type provides a kind of mid-level matrix, knowledge of which is very useful. This can then be deepened by works of more detail on specific armour or actions. </p><p>From Matildas at Arras, via Faliase to the Rhine, 16 chapters cover not only the entire war in the west - including the North African and Mediterranean campaigns - but also the Australasian and Pacific theatres. And in the final 17th chapter, Industrial Muscle, we learn the true scale of armour production for each of the various combatant powers. For example, British and German tank production was roughly equal in quantity, if not quality. But against the combined industrial output of Uncles Sam and Joe, the Axis were doomed. Sherman tank production alone being more or less equal to all British and German tank manufacture combined!</p><p>Two appendices list all the Allied armoured divisions and, crucially, there's an alphabetical list of tank types. This last section is as important to the book as the foregoing chapters, as it's where a lot of the more specific vehicle related info' is. Despite the text veering, in places, perilously close to being rather dry and info-heavy, and in danger of falling between the stools of detail and generality, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Enough to read it all the way through, with enthusiasm, and still look forward to following it up with the Russian companion. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQZRljJ1VoRga5onrZ3Fk8RmZu5X4s5u-4jmJYYtvvQZYXjAdylCFKEhRCLJlmIgCIRP0smcMwvy0GAfaUZXrBEFuoNZrKvaIoBC8OYffm5ZolEi1lhhdQzA_M5R9hkdg4g0dQRctmCveL/s2016/StalinArmour_ATJ.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQZRljJ1VoRga5onrZ3Fk8RmZu5X4s5u-4jmJYYtvvQZYXjAdylCFKEhRCLJlmIgCIRP0smcMwvy0GAfaUZXrBEFuoNZrKvaIoBC8OYffm5ZolEi1lhhdQzA_M5R9hkdg4g0dQRctmCveL/s320/StalinArmour_ATJ.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><b><u>Stalin’s Armour, 1941-45</u></b></p><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QvCY61NMPvjZ5ny7_CJRdaqWD1FWbyYNzqNWSJWbQgdCTHGMseKCI9-RjESlp7wF1pR2QlIK42gblh2pM859k6DRU8Sl65ks2_NYr3PSDgtcbEbj2CyVpSd8ZrBtbqF2nG-rrPKH8ly6/s155/Kreuz_08_Four.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QvCY61NMPvjZ5ny7_CJRdaqWD1FWbyYNzqNWSJWbQgdCTHGMseKCI9-RjESlp7wF1pR2QlIK42gblh2pM859k6DRU8Sl65ks2_NYr3PSDgtcbEbj2CyVpSd8ZrBtbqF2nG-rrPKH8ly6/s0/Kreuz_08_Four.jpg" /></a></div><p>Having just read the Allied Armour volume of what one might regard as a ‘tank trilogy’, and thoroughly enjoyed it, I’ve dived straight into Stalin’s Armour, 1941-1945. Thank goodness Anthony Tucker-Jones is a good writer! In less capable hands the data-rich material could induce a coma. </p><p>Fortunately the maelstrom of commander’s names, unit titles, and place names is leavened somewhat by, on the one hand, more general descriptive history, such as on the development of Soviet armour - Kotin’s KVs or Koshkin’s T-34? - and on the other, more specific anecdotal reminiscences.</p><p>The total absence of maps is an issue with all the volumes in this tank series, leading me to dock a star/kreuz. And it is, for me, even more of an issue in this particular volume, given the scale of operations on the Ostfront. </p><p>Anyone familiar with Hitler’s costly misadventures on the Eastern Front will almost certainly already know that, as a German talking head (ex-soldier) says in, the superb ITV series, <i>The World At War</i>... eventually millions of ant will overcomne even the elepohant (or words to that effect!*). Echoing this, Tucker-Jones concludes ‘Faced by this crude arithmetic the T-34 carried all before it.’</p><p>* I've been unable to locate the exact quote!</p><p>As with the other companion volumes, there’s a section of black and white photos. Rather oddly most the images in this volume are of damaged, destroyed or captured Soviet materiel, often being inspected by German troops. There are also two appendices, the first listing the many ‘Red Army Tank Units 1941-45’, the second comprising brief descriptions of ‘Soviet Tanks and Tracked AFVs 1941-45’.</p><p>For me, with each volume I read, it seems the three titles in this little trilogy are forming a useful ‘matrix’; the more one reads on these subject and campaigns the better and more detailed a picture one develops. The material here does occasionally veer towards the info-heavy side. But all told this a compelling enough read for me to happily and heartily recommend it.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWj0q7t-rvIdwrF4O1mdwdFPNXlNOp6nZ_U69wVRnyg_vodyflVVHR27Pn-o57_7fmmr24ca-KWKPi3-PeFVx8RnvbZlub5c-RDOr-nYF6ODtbYiZjXp-7wLMNfx5jZTv9LzEZuTqqzzyx/s2016/HitlerArmour_ATJ.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWj0q7t-rvIdwrF4O1mdwdFPNXlNOp6nZ_U69wVRnyg_vodyflVVHR27Pn-o57_7fmmr24ca-KWKPi3-PeFVx8RnvbZlub5c-RDOr-nYF6ODtbYiZjXp-7wLMNfx5jZTv9LzEZuTqqzzyx/s320/HitlerArmour_ATJ.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><b><u>Hitler’s Armour, ...</u></b></p><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLr3DPjQD1Yr-7LuNU7uRzQvf1gcdhGVVC435712mkDigHznrni9t7RRPIGENbPmb_jae83EZqVk4rK2MsdATpVBMA-DVZj_CyGWjFaZzqBUWkR1Rs6sEDLv3W-ql_jfRWJAIPf0z8_VCB/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLr3DPjQD1Yr-7LuNU7uRzQvf1gcdhGVVC435712mkDigHznrni9t7RRPIGENbPmb_jae83EZqVk4rK2MsdATpVBMA-DVZj_CyGWjFaZzqBUWkR1Rs6sEDLv3W-ql_jfRWJAIPf0z8_VCB/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p>And so I come last to the one of these three books that most excites my interest, Hitler’s Panzers, The Complete History, 1933-45. This third title in the AFV trilogy by AT-J is organised somewhat differently from the others. Split into four sections, and with larger appendices, 18 chapters tell the fascinating story of Germany’s legendary WWII Panzerwaffe.</p><p>Part I, ‘Designing Tractors’ looks at the development of the various main tank types, from the Versailles-busting but otherwise fairly innocuous Pz I through to the awesome but over-engineered and under-produced Tiger II. This is one of the best and most interesting parts of the trilogy, for my money. </p><p>Parts II, III and IV - Off To War, Sturmgeschütz Not Panzers and Wasted Opportunities - cover the war itself. The balance of bigger picture, and close-up detail, is better here, for my money, than in the Allied or Russian titles, in both of which the maelstrom of campaign info’ can be overwhelming (and without maps hard to make sense of). </p><p>Guderian is referred to more than any other Panzer enthusiast, the theme of his tug of war with Hitler - the latter obsessed with both his idea of the ‘triumph of the will’ and size (big guns, big tanks!) - being something of a theme throughout the book. There are those who feel Guderian overstates his own role and importance in all of this. ATJ doesn't raise this issue.</p><p>Whereas the Allied volume ranges across Europe, bridging to North Africa via the Med’, and even the conflict with Japan in the further flung Pacific theatre, and the Russian volume has an early Eastern episode in the Russo-Japanese conflict on the edges of Northern China, this German themed volume kind of ties them all together, via the two Eastern and Western Fronts on which all three of these combatant powers fought. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HTRED_rmmUY" width="320" youtube-src-id="HTRED_rmmUY"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">David Willey's terrific Tank Chat on the Pz IV.</div><p>To those familiar with WWII, Germany’s issues of over-engineering, too much diversity, and insufficient levels of production will all be familiar themes. And, as in other areas, these issues bedevilled tank and AFV development and deployment. But these are also amongst the things that make WWII German tanks the most fascinating. And it doesn’t hurt that they also looked so damn cool! </p><p>Anthony Tucker-Jones ultimately concludes that of all the Panzers Germany produced and fielded during WWII, the best, in terms of efficacy, reliability and sheer weight of numbers, was the Pz IV. Germany built approx’ 8,500 Pz IV, according to T-J, whilst Russia’s factories churned out 55,000 T-34s. And Sherman output totalled about 50,000, all told. The more celebrated Panthers and Tigers are critiqued for being rushed into service (and therefore plagues with technical issues), and their impact dissipated, never being built or deployed in large enough numbers to have a decisive impact. </p><p>Hitler’s Panzers also benefits from more picture sections, and more extensive appendices. The latter include production figures, Panzer and Panzergrenadier Division lists, and individual appendices for each of the Pz I-VI, listing and describing variants. Rather oddly these go I, II III IV, and then VI (Tigers) precedes V (Panthers). A bit odd!? There are, regrettably, no maps or glossary. </p><p><u><b>CONCLUSIONS</b></u></p><p>I’d say that, together or separately, these books are a worthwhile additions to the library of any self-respecting WWII history enthusiast. I read them all, one after another, without losing enthusiasm. In fact the interest and excitement mounted with each new volume. I also think they get better progressively (I don’t know what order the author wrote them in?), the Allied book being pretty good, the Russian one a little better, and the German one the best of the three. </p><p>Their best points are that they cover all the major theatres of war, and do so in a readable manner, albeit occasionally being somewhat dizzyingly data-rich. There are one of two things that might be improved on future editions, such as remedying the complete absence of maps. The picture selections could also be better and more diverse. Maps would help the reader follow the actions described, and the picture segments could do a better job of covering the many AFVs mentioned in the text. </p><p>I can see why for some, these might in places fall between the stools of generality and detail. Taken as a whole, however, I think they form an excellent core of information on the development and combat histories of these mighty brutal metal beasts of war. All told, I really enjoyed reading them, and would definitely recommend them. </p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-17221383936351949362021-04-25T16:52:00.008+01:002021-05-05T12:55:34.828+01:00Kit Build/Review: 1/72 Roden SdKfz 234/4, pt. I.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3LJcT_mdbR_6TB4TRvyUKmlGzWqLT6Y1y1cgjIp47_ob6EXgg0eEx1_81weYeVeDB98Sg_SWeedP60pFj0hQ_3P6U6Iue1vsNPA4cxnJUMET2zHEzz8ICSjAHuYW6UxyomwCq8QYGppV2/s1920/IMG_2374.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3LJcT_mdbR_6TB4TRvyUKmlGzWqLT6Y1y1cgjIp47_ob6EXgg0eEx1_81weYeVeDB98Sg_SWeedP60pFj0hQ_3P6U6Iue1vsNPA4cxnJUMET2zHEzz8ICSjAHuYW6UxyomwCq8QYGppV2/s320/IMG_2374.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5fPqqaVi_InQbR2QMZLCQVetQ373e81cvJIdV5b2zVi-GlnYuHA-wyJGrOlswoesBxOg3w_3yxCl5dw9nnZD5-HGdLZQgazGBsBjk4m_SNvi1eyWNzZLjvYePUm8YloYL2t0fRqCREfay/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5fPqqaVi_InQbR2QMZLCQVetQ373e81cvJIdV5b2zVi-GlnYuHA-wyJGrOlswoesBxOg3w_3yxCl5dw9nnZD5-HGdLZQgazGBsBjk4m_SNvi1eyWNzZLjvYePUm8YloYL2t0fRqCREfay/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">Despite the Coronavirus lockdown, I’ve hardly done any mini-military stuff for ages. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I thought being forced to stay home would mean a massive bonanza of model making and figure painting. But no, instead I’ve been either resting, reading, working (from home) or doing household stuff, from the quotidian chores, to building a shed and a greenhouse. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">And as a result, I’ve not had the time or energy to model or paint. I even had a bit of a break from the reading. But now I’m making a conscious effort to get back in the saddle. And in that vein, here’s my first 1/72 kit build and review since, well... poss before Xmas!?</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The latest kit to go on the production line is this lovely Roden 1/72 SdKfz 234/4. I do love Roden’s box art! Very colourful and evocative. David Willey of Tank Museum curatorial fame does a great Tank Chat on the German 8-rad’ line of AFVs. I include a link to it here, for reference/interest. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D-HPtLPK-Ts" width="320" youtube-src-id="D-HPtLPK-Ts"></iframe></div><p style="text-align: justify;">I started the build out of sequence, with the Pak-40 type gun. It’s a very detailed little sub-construction. Very fiddly and intricate, but great. Unfortunately I didn't photograph the building of the gun. So construction pics start with the running-gear.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSR8CnxYuqK_hftcNMcVgOyTVWkgdewFDrUF3vc-xaodqrHxicKvfBLY1nXEeHJJVs6R3m2k4TAWwBcneCPv8z3gRqiWr5ZRn9MNa29TQJrDGzPhDYB4tJz0ss-VsvH-Pb9gYeJwLkfmKD/s4032/IMG_2025.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSR8CnxYuqK_hftcNMcVgOyTVWkgdewFDrUF3vc-xaodqrHxicKvfBLY1nXEeHJJVs6R3m2k4TAWwBcneCPv8z3gRqiWr5ZRn9MNa29TQJrDGzPhDYB4tJz0ss-VsvH-Pb9gYeJwLkfmKD/s320/IMG_2025.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8XiD48b4C5K0CqhwncxhlA9S4wuE_gvGQ2YV2IL-R9v3jNu0oakkgl7nDeTi0n1KHi1wdzyvg_6KP8yrtmZsnr8Cbt8nenrjQhK5JrcP6eJMt296oFihUbHCsdXnOl-ZTB-htAbQslZoh/s4032/IMG_2027.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8XiD48b4C5K0CqhwncxhlA9S4wuE_gvGQ2YV2IL-R9v3jNu0oakkgl7nDeTi0n1KHi1wdzyvg_6KP8yrtmZsnr8Cbt8nenrjQhK5JrcP6eJMt296oFihUbHCsdXnOl-ZTB-htAbQslZoh/s320/IMG_2027.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4IO5wHvHGC7Q3Ep_kZgQisp6IfC5lyqq0aFva7iittlMCRyQ9Y_1xax00yFaUeLKEvHP3k5WacW1tuCAqRQiTsTVsRq1ID7VhrkeQUnxcy0SfNeaXDIak7L7ji8nDrK33ukN-Ovz262xV/s4032/IMG_2028.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4IO5wHvHGC7Q3Ep_kZgQisp6IfC5lyqq0aFva7iittlMCRyQ9Y_1xax00yFaUeLKEvHP3k5WacW1tuCAqRQiTsTVsRq1ID7VhrkeQUnxcy0SfNeaXDIak7L7ji8nDrK33ukN-Ovz262xV/s320/IMG_2028.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;">The somewhat open cab design of this vehicle also required that I paint the interior. Willey notes in his chat how the Bovington example is painted incorrectly, the vehicle itself only came into series production in the later part of the war, the <i>dunkelgelb</i> as opposed to <i>dunkelgrau</i> era! The interior is also similarly incorrect. I decided to give mine an <i>elfenbein</i> interior, such as was sported by German tanks.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">After I’d built the gun, I went back to the ‘proper order of things’, which meant running-gear. And boy is the Roden’s 234 style eight-wheeler assembly complex and fiddly! I think it’s designed such that, in theory, the wheels can be aligned at differing angles, and even, possibly, rotate! But in reality this doesn’t work. Or at least it didn’t for me. This is my second Roden 234. My first was a Puma variant (see the build of that <a href="https://aquestionofscale.blogspot.com/2016/04/172-wwii-roden-sdkfz-2342-puma.html" target="_blank">here</a>). And it was the same story, re the wheels. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHq31KvMlviNphDs14cLyYqNk6O8EKX-qT9rPSnicSHojrv_SUuX-HQjKYFgDgfiPQRiI7z91Y4ihPwqk32eWjLG1ZUiZkSVYifsNNysO9wu7paZvn7NU5a_340vXG6Ks9PZLaVK1vINwW/s2592/IMG_5341.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1936" data-original-width="2592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHq31KvMlviNphDs14cLyYqNk6O8EKX-qT9rPSnicSHojrv_SUuX-HQjKYFgDgfiPQRiI7z91Y4ihPwqk32eWjLG1ZUiZkSVYifsNNysO9wu7paZvn7NU5a_340vXG6Ks9PZLaVK1vINwW/s320/IMG_5341.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My version of an <i>elfenbein</i> interior, blocked in.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7VYVqkeOx9yB4ruEsaGr_A6CNJ8i7RCN2Sj4qM5tzOkMBlC5btgg6BjvffPHoHiL9SUDhVa-_5nGXtZgVw55tqv-s0ZqZetUsMtC71-kwi6NQaazBpLKRrA2zpXYU_KlTYUZ6IB15MXH/s2592/IMG_5343.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1936" data-original-width="2592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7VYVqkeOx9yB4ruEsaGr_A6CNJ8i7RCN2Sj4qM5tzOkMBlC5btgg6BjvffPHoHiL9SUDhVa-_5nGXtZgVw55tqv-s0ZqZetUsMtC71-kwi6NQaazBpLKRrA2zpXYU_KlTYUZ6IB15MXH/s320/IMG_5343.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Washes and weathering, early stages.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2OhA5QiKLHKXE1qjaet9pb_V_na8y1ri23XTfkvnvsuGzkFGvl9ieW5T7eWVbH9oGUUdu0kys7fx6Q4ZtOGGQtbJmpW9HTigG3bxiCH5xQ61g9B8LpTkj2U1pj-TXbCHmL7USdcS8_1q9/s2592/IMG_5345.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1936" data-original-width="2592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2OhA5QiKLHKXE1qjaet9pb_V_na8y1ri23XTfkvnvsuGzkFGvl9ieW5T7eWVbH9oGUUdu0kys7fx6Q4ZtOGGQtbJmpW9HTigG3bxiCH5xQ61g9B8LpTkj2U1pj-TXbCHmL7USdcS8_1q9/s320/IMG_5345.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Washes and weathering, pretty much done.</div><div><span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Painting and weathering the interior, and the gun, which I decided to attach (another out of sequence improvisation of my own choosing) was kind of fun, and yet also kind of frustrating. I’ve learned that I’m really bad at the ‘pin-wash’/panel line type stuff.</div><div><p style="text-align: justify;">Anyway, I did the best I could, and after a while, I achieved a result I decided was good enough. I was thinking of putting driver figures into the fore and aft driving seats. But I haven’t. I definitely will on the next 234 with a similarly open fighting compartment. </p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrDn4gWtwOSdDDXC1m4mMP1In8h3_p-yQBMgf-lWT1Zd2laqsM3g8gUYomyfqQwpnBMGMbzgn_9BikfK9jw3gyZq3yC_JM9p4PJ-u8IhD3Tos1ztYntX4wcYZZvZ0yJ3m0WanEyearx4c/s2592/IMG_5346.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1936" data-original-width="2592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrDn4gWtwOSdDDXC1m4mMP1In8h3_p-yQBMgf-lWT1Zd2laqsM3g8gUYomyfqQwpnBMGMbzgn_9BikfK9jw3gyZq3yC_JM9p4PJ-u8IhD3Tos1ztYntX4wcYZZvZ0yJ3m0WanEyearx4c/s320/IMG_5346.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Basically finished, assembly wise.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ZdFVlhlRpD0u9-GvZLkNfGDJe7EQDv2eXHMnPfg-i9U3f6d-NXNMJbmJH4j7toENiMzc77ZO8p4OxAdvlKm6TEfD64P7GAHrjA_0jQYxWCUZqdW1VzeMu9jZsM08TLM9UMDRvIkDHyQ7/s2592/IMG_5347.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1936" data-original-width="2592" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ZdFVlhlRpD0u9-GvZLkNfGDJe7EQDv2eXHMnPfg-i9U3f6d-NXNMJbmJH4j7toENiMzc77ZO8p4OxAdvlKm6TEfD64P7GAHrjA_0jQYxWCUZqdW1VzeMu9jZsM08TLM9UMDRvIkDHyQ7/s320/IMG_5347.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I'll prob' add a few bits of extra stowage. But not much.</div><p style="text-align: justify;">At the time of posting, this 234/4 variant is now basically built. But before I paint the exterior, some gaps need filling. And I’ll probably add a little detailing, such as stowage. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I noticed in many wartime images online that there appear to be rods - barrel-cleaning stuff, perhaps? - on the left side of the vehicle, that are not a feature included in this kit. They should be a fun and easy scratch-build addition!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Part two will be painting and decals. To follow soon, I hope!</p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-16845283216087664792021-03-02T14:29:00.000+00:002021-03-02T14:29:10.840+00:00Book Review: SdKfz 251/9 & 22, Kanonenwagen, Dennis Oliver (Land Craft)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlfZjtQTnrMWq-T3LiRtf98W0XsC8Aon_RKSZdCCfcqehyVbaRwNvsuUm7r6cGq1WY7indmAvfH3d00miu7KcePbcNLKhe3Tunc0WptKGiLUf3qyr3rKRLZV9e0ia-tPDVvBq0_SDkf8t/s696/SdKfz251_DOliver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="696" data-original-width="501" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlfZjtQTnrMWq-T3LiRtf98W0XsC8Aon_RKSZdCCfcqehyVbaRwNvsuUm7r6cGq1WY7indmAvfH3d00miu7KcePbcNLKhe3Tunc0WptKGiLUf3qyr3rKRLZV9e0ia-tPDVvBq0_SDkf8t/s320/SdKfz251_DOliver.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIA2v0_Dq4HLazB6UdpPx0d_78SPTbU1emt94bGebzvtP1p34lNb0LaxZyvLxsxSO4AZR07RJHJrofzsPjfUBpjnrDlQer2ZoV-zcMDGJTZp84i4EB9RSLztgBKhaH0OrjCrt-hYZMghdv/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIA2v0_Dq4HLazB6UdpPx0d_78SPTbU1emt94bGebzvtP1p34lNb0LaxZyvLxsxSO4AZR07RJHJrofzsPjfUBpjnrDlQer2ZoV-zcMDGJTZp84i4EB9RSLztgBKhaH0OrjCrt-hYZMghdv/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p>Another excellent instalment in the ever-growing Dennis Oliver section of the WWII German Tank/Land Cradt series. This time on kanonenwagen variants of the German half-track workhorse that was the SdKfz 251.</p><p>All the usual elements are in place: a brief history of the design and manufacture; unit histories; the ever inspiring colour profiles segment; model showcase/products; unit composition (under the official German 'kreigsstarkenweisung' heading!): technical details, etc. </p><p>Terrifically illustrated on all fronts, from contemporary black and white photos to the colour profiles and beautifully built models. One of the nicest builds, by Juanjo Domingez, is in my favourite/chosen 1/72, and, despite its tiny size, is the chosen and favoured 'cover girl', so to speak. </p><p>Perusing this inspires me to possibly try converting one of my extant 251s into a long-barrelled kanonenwagen! And I would, unhesitatingly, recommend this to those interested in the AFVs and suchlike of this fascinating era. Excellent!</p><div><br /></div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-60792044843496920752021-01-12T07:21:00.000+00:002021-05-20T23:45:54.640+01:00Book Review: Strabokran, Volker Ruff<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_qcFKmivtnITqVkLaKrV9ez2O4uEj58MAvRgoto3ReHH8NAHOlFSHPVBMH9VY3nLzNNKKo_VDeJBHt5nJsQz7Ba7bmDAJ0KU1Dqybce9D0TusyamnCmxzIK9llxzbBk6WAxv8MFEGKKOa/s400/1D307E50-2B8F-48B0-B4BB-DCFFB490D903.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="335" data-original-width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_qcFKmivtnITqVkLaKrV9ez2O4uEj58MAvRgoto3ReHH8NAHOlFSHPVBMH9VY3nLzNNKKo_VDeJBHt5nJsQz7Ba7bmDAJ0KU1Dqybce9D0TusyamnCmxzIK9llxzbBk6WAxv8MFEGKKOa/s320/1D307E50-2B8F-48B0-B4BB-DCFFB490D903.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8uC7dxGQ8o9JeE4auLstdnsa37ycQgXJxuKgmdVb4Q4fOwYui1FPX1ubQzZKiV4k-GWP-ULydS3o0SXSq29MnNov1ShxdX4i6UIcIu9bbwvT2_21iJfP50iFvxIlwMs09wTOvED61wqk/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8uC7dxGQ8o9JeE4auLstdnsa37ycQgXJxuKgmdVb4Q4fOwYui1FPX1ubQzZKiV4k-GWP-ULydS3o0SXSq29MnNov1ShxdX4i6UIcIu9bbwvT2_21iJfP50iFvxIlwMs09wTOvED61wqk/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #454545; text-align: justify;">Got myself this for Xmas, 2020. I have a yen to scratch-build one or two of these cranes, in 1/72. The few kits of the Strabokran I found in 1/72 seem to be about £30-40+. I managed to get my copy of this book for a little over £20. That seemed, to me, better use of my limited funds; this way I can build my own models, for the cost of a few bits of plastic profile, plus I get this plush reference work, for about the same cost, or poss’ even less, as buying an off the shelf kit.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;">Of the several similar format books I've bought in the last few years, this isn't the best, or my favourite. The minimal bi-lingual text (in English and German) isn't terrific, and the quality of the images is quite patchy. But, nevertheless, overall it's still excellent reference, gathering together plentiful contemporary photographic imagery - albeit of very mixed quality - and supplemented by numerous line diagrams. <span class="s2"></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;">The latter include 1/35 scale plans, which will be very useful for me, once all the dimensions are halved. Another of my minor gripes, however, relates to the overall clarity of all the info', both textual and graphic. I'm well past my third, fourth and now even fifth perusal of the book, and I still find it all very confusing, what with all the differing variants, and issues around the quality of the translation from German, and clarity of images, etc.<span class="s2"></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">---------</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Still, despite these several caveats, I'd like to add my 'amen' to the 'hallelujah chorus' of approval that this book has received elsewhere online. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Momentarily returning to the translation from the author's German into English, it almost feels like it’s been arrived at by simply running the German text through Google Translate, or something of that ilk. The resulting combo of strangely Germanic lumpen prose and editorial slips make the text heavier going than I'd like. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">And, despite the huge number of illustrations, which are - unusually for books in this line on similar subjects - split between mostly WWII archival photographs, and more recent line diagrams, I don't feel that there's as great a degree of visual clarity here as one might wish for. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">I bought this book partly simply because I'm a WWII/Panzer nut, and partly because, following on from the former, I wish to build models of these cranes. Repeated intensive perusal of the masses of material presented here still leaves me uncertain on several details of these fascinating machines.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">However, having returned throughout this review to certain critical points, I'll end by conceding that it'd be pretty churlish to score this much less than five kreuz stars. As, after all, it does indeed gather together an immense amount of reference on its subject. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">The following short recitation of certain section headings (and contents) gives an idea of the level of detail:</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">After a brief intro, there's a potted history of the company that made the cranes.</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Then we have info on the 15t, 16t, 20t variants, plus other stuff (inc. postwar production).</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Parts of an Allied report, Operation Backfire, are reproduced, which includes illustrated descriptions of deployment.</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">'Strabokran in Action' shows them in use with Tigers, Panthers, Elefant and V2 rockets.</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">Further sections on rarities (other cranes used when Strabokran weren't available), survivors, patent applications (!), and unit formations/allocations add detail.</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">But best of all, for the modeller like me, there’s both a detailed photographic 'walk around’, and lots of 1/35 scale drawings.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">And, whilst not perfectly rendered, nearly all the textual content is presented in both English and German. </span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">All in all, then, whilst admittedly not perfect, this certainly is a fascinatingly interesting and very useful resource, if - like me - you're a dedicated 'beyond hope' Panzer nut.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.3px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"></span><br /></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2">----------</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s3" style="text-decoration: underline;">Volker Ruff's strabokran website</span></p><p class="p3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s2"><a href="https://www.strabokran.de/index.php?seite=strabokran">https://www.strabokran.de/index.php?seite=strabokran</a></span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-69817451511181003432020-11-19T17:31:00.001+00:002020-11-19T17:31:26.686+00:00Book Review: The Ghettos of Nazi-Occupied Poland, Ian Baxter (Images of War)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuOT-MBF75kYZlyiU97n9Tr1C0nHWe87_TEIufdEq-L4TIxrzlTUHOAezcMOmOFMxKrX2jqFse_Jpjmh18flOHlXT8dlhCK5-b-sVc4xAsC8fQzMT05uJJl4aVOZjsMbXPKogrSSefTysi/s2048/GhettosNaziPoland.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1581" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuOT-MBF75kYZlyiU97n9Tr1C0nHWe87_TEIufdEq-L4TIxrzlTUHOAezcMOmOFMxKrX2jqFse_Jpjmh18flOHlXT8dlhCK5-b-sVc4xAsC8fQzMT05uJJl4aVOZjsMbXPKogrSSefTysi/s320/GhettosNaziPoland.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijeI474brDmB98JnU5sMZC9bGrKMKR2GCwweKR9j-nds9HLJDEPacAFLkL_R7gFibuzM-AVXCI_0Xdtk9Sz_Gn0sAtSzUCVmszZt-wuSCUF2YqSUB6uXg61Qr1cFdJz7RpoBM3aSMN74iG/s155/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijeI474brDmB98JnU5sMZC9bGrKMKR2GCwweKR9j-nds9HLJDEPacAFLkL_R7gFibuzM-AVXCI_0Xdtk9Sz_Gn0sAtSzUCVmszZt-wuSCUF2YqSUB6uXg61Qr1cFdJz7RpoBM3aSMN74iG/s0/Kreuz_09_Four%2526Half.jpg" /></a></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As someone who literally loves the uniforms, equipment, materiel, and quite often even the combatants and their stories, the whole racist/fascist aspects of the Nazi regime are anathema to me. It would be beyond churlish, in my view, to even attempt to downplay, ignore or worse still deny or support those aspects of what was an appalling ideology.</div><p style="text-align: justify;">Having said that, for the most part I <i>do</i> separate the two aspects: the fascinating military machine/history, and the contemptible visions it was employed in furthering. In the same way I could happily assemble both sides of American Civil War forces, or, for that matter, English Civil War armies, without declaring allegiance to any of the views espoused (or not) by the combatants.*</p><p style="text-align: justify;">With those thoughts in mind, what of this book? Well, thus far I haven't read much of the textual content. Instead I've just studied the many interesting images and read the captions for them, and occasional parts of the text, like the short intro/aftermath segments. In some ways, whilst the underlying segregationist concept is, to me, awful - if not as unusual historically as some might suggest - what strikes one most, at first glance, is the ordinary everyday banality of much of it, street scenes and people milling about, even markets, policemen, firemen, postal workers, people working in factories, etc.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaQFweS-lzVqCMzfsa41JDwo48rQKiWNretCHX0_74AWjXHytMDo9UFUHBG_ngYDMTltE8qR7-bUAOOX639FyIRmYRWpQ2zncUXpH0H6SUttDJZ7BRPvzn8JhojP1p2YdUI2AILYrm_Yx-/s1800/Lodz_ShoeFactory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1165" data-original-width="1800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaQFweS-lzVqCMzfsa41JDwo48rQKiWNretCHX0_74AWjXHytMDo9UFUHBG_ngYDMTltE8qR7-bUAOOX639FyIRmYRWpQ2zncUXpH0H6SUttDJZ7BRPvzn8JhojP1p2YdUI2AILYrm_Yx-/s320/Lodz_ShoeFactory.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />Ghetto residents working in a shoe-factory, Lodz.</div><p style="text-align: justify;">But this disguises, now as it did for the Germans back then, including perhaps those who took most of these photos, who might've look at some of these images and fooled themselves they weren't being all that bad, several key things: first and foremost these weren't ghettos 'naturally' formed, so to speak, by ethnic groups choosing to congregate, as many around the world to this day remain. They were government enforced relocations, and part of the more sinister so called 'cleansing', i.e. institutionalised genocide. Aka the infamous 'final solution' to 'the Jewish problem'. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">And whilst the Germans, lovers of bureaucracy and form filling, list-making and so on, did create the semblance of normal institutions within ghettos, these were token gestures, beneath which racist contempt saw them utilise the Jewish population as a disposable low-maintenance workforce. Those who weren't dying of starvation, or diseases like cholera, typhus, and so on, would be working in German industries, mostly towards the war effort</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This photographic study concentrates mainly on the ghettos as photographed, on the whole, by a number of German servicemen. Some of these collections of photos only surfaced in fairly recent years. And, unusually for a WWII Images of war title they include a segment of colour photographs. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfgPbGmmG3rNE9iM69RkzhpUCh39LmDqxjspm56mbbUPh0doAso0EJyjJGIMZ7LOVtiK9kE9N-jZsI8oqC6NMUmcCynTDflVLQI_1MmGjyE9LNasWU5svKwMRDH9WhrGRPT37ETNXhW8ah/s1800/Biebow_Lodz_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1183" data-original-width="1800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfgPbGmmG3rNE9iM69RkzhpUCh39LmDqxjspm56mbbUPh0doAso0EJyjJGIMZ7LOVtiK9kE9N-jZsI8oqC6NMUmcCynTDflVLQI_1MmGjyE9LNasWU5svKwMRDH9WhrGRPT37ETNXhW8ah/s320/Biebow_Lodz_01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">One of a number of colour images. Biebow visits Lodz.</div><p style="text-align: justify;">The main chapter headings convey the content:</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Ghettoisation - Jews** are removed from their homes and relocated, mostly by train, but also on foot. This section also has numerous pictures of german 'brass' and functionaries, like Hans Biebow, a businessman turned Ghetto administrator.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Life in the Ghettos - This is, at first glance, the most apparently humdrum chapter. But the banality belies the underlying brutality, as the casual littering of corpses occasionally reminds the viewer</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Liquidation of the Ghettos - as ominous as it sounds; this is the segment that, inevitably, depicts - even if only in a few shocking images - the most brutal part of the Nazi war crimes process, the wholesale butchery of unarmed non-combatants.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The Warsaw Uprising - Another brutally bleak chapter in this sad story sees the largest of the ghettos rise up, only to be mercilessly crushed.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">The book ends with The Aftermath and two appendices. The first lists major Polish ghettos (but by no means all of them), many illustrated by single photos, and the second and last says a brief word on the infamous Reserve Police Battalion 101, who were instrumental in facilitating Nazi policy in these tragic times.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Personally I think it's very salutory to remind oneself of the reality and the enormity of these crimes against humanity. Their scale beggars belief, and their proximity in time should be a warning against complacency. On a European tour with a band I was once in, our Dutch tour bus driver took us to a transit camp in, I think, Belgium. To stand in a place of that type - not even an extermination camp - and think how whole categories of humans were treated as disposable trash, was a very powerful experience.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><u>Note on photos</u>: the two colour photos I've used here - so washed out they almost look black and white - are, like a number in the book, from the USHMM, or United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.</p><hr /><p style="text-align: justify;">* It's worth remembering that many soldiers are not primarily fighting for the causes their leaders say they stand for. Many just fight for their nation, homes and families, each other, or simply to stay alive.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">** And, let's not forget, other so called 'undesirables', such as leftists, gypsys, homosexuals, and so on. But obviously, as per the title, this book concentrates on the Jewish aspect of Nazi persecution, it being the largest and primary 'out group'.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-3043487649442269982020-11-18T09:08:00.002+00:002020-11-18T09:16:26.994+00:00Book Reviews: The French at Waterloo; Eyewitness Accounts, vols I & II, Andrew Field<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbEgotRNFMsFdMsuLhVzfAExxG_uyXISSVHKb8T2MdV2q-2Fr254ho2UG8fXl6p7RZeoWabaCo9KXDwx4g3ZSNs-loj4-CNINyjLKfYpja8k7SZAbA5nCkgl1Srxij1jgJafpZRnqXeGf-/s2048/Waterloo.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1282" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbEgotRNFMsFdMsuLhVzfAExxG_uyXISSVHKb8T2MdV2q-2Fr254ho2UG8fXl6p7RZeoWabaCo9KXDwx4g3ZSNs-loj4-CNINyjLKfYpja8k7SZAbA5nCkgl1Srxij1jgJafpZRnqXeGf-/s320/Waterloo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">One might be forgiven for wondering why, instead of two fairly slim volumes, at £20 each, these two books weren't instead published as a single fatter book, at say £25-30. But setting aside that brief attack of penny-pinching cynicism, the actual content of these two books, both reviewed here, is superb. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAnQmmSKl76XNbAapJ87mko7hUu503cbLw8MzyyBeookPsDVIGvuDlRva3AkjRCb7IeeVFxDYMqS1Ez4jpaQjfFL5xDNmhcwywltk1BYWeqoRp3Bb_RxjhiqDALUUSUhXVVSX2Fxhrfnpu/s918/FrenchWaterlooEyewitness_VolI.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="918" data-original-width="609" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAnQmmSKl76XNbAapJ87mko7hUu503cbLw8MzyyBeookPsDVIGvuDlRva3AkjRCb7IeeVFxDYMqS1Ez4jpaQjfFL5xDNmhcwywltk1BYWeqoRp3Bb_RxjhiqDALUUSUhXVVSX2Fxhrfnpu/s320/FrenchWaterlooEyewitness_VolI.png" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvW3NjvKQ8PkRgIDUit4bhbgJNw0jq1tOuYhJF7m793tl9P9T1wNTrBpLcjN9OgOouocd5aUb_VvIl0TPisiUvW1ybepChcQzYO2DeAjQW3vYUBikLjfEsfvfO1yvqiJTsMjgtF9Q_UlVo/s155/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvW3NjvKQ8PkRgIDUit4bhbgJNw0jq1tOuYhJF7m793tl9P9T1wNTrBpLcjN9OgOouocd5aUb_VvIl0TPisiUvW1ybepChcQzYO2DeAjQW3vYUBikLjfEsfvfO1yvqiJTsMjgtF9Q_UlVo/s0/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><b style="font-family: times;">Vol I - Napoleon, Imperial HQ & Ist Corps</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;"><i>"I cannot get over our defeat. We were manoeuvred like so many pumpkins."</i> Col. Marbot.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">After an opening chapter on the usage/reliability of eyewitness accounts, volume one begins with three descriptions from Napoleon: the official post battle report, as dictated to Fleury de Chabalon, which appeared soon after the battle in <i>le Moniteur</i>, then Gorgaud's and Bertrand's accounts. All three are widely accepted as being Napoleon's own versions of events, and each one is a successively larger and more detailed reiteration of the same basic themes.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">The accounts that follow, from Napleon's Household and then the Imperial HQ, unsurprisingly perhaps, largely follow their leaders' version of events. Except that is where his subordinates have incurred his blame, and then they might seek to excuse of justify themselves. All of this makes the first half or two thirds of this first volume somewhat repetitive, especially as the numerous accounts frequently recapitulate the same lists of unit dispositions and the major sequences of events.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3PVkaEtvWQ2MI0p1u4QrsONlGJMaSM6M7BUVAhNqp2Us-EXdX_HzmwXjNtqu48VKC1L9Eor_niZka7RljFwq5CJeiM93fn39_NWT0L-fwSTEP1h20H8SrsN39GTgDDiCF3QyUYEzsK2H2/s896/Marcellin_Marbot.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="896" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3PVkaEtvWQ2MI0p1u4QrsONlGJMaSM6M7BUVAhNqp2Us-EXdX_HzmwXjNtqu48VKC1L9Eor_niZka7RljFwq5CJeiM93fn39_NWT0L-fwSTEP1h20H8SrsN39GTgDDiCF3QyUYEzsK2H2/s320/Marcellin_Marbot.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Marcellin Marbot, in his 7th Hussar togs, c. 1815.*</div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">Where volume one really comes to life, for me at any rate - and what makes it five bicornes, not four, or four and a half - is in the Ist Corps accounts. Especially so in those from the middling and lower ranks, whose colourful and lively narratives generally focus more closely on events the individuals concerned actually witnessed or took part in. The 'big hats', with eyes on posterity (and higher social standing to fall from) tend to give overviews coloured by hindsight, later/wider reading, and post-war politicking. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">Napoleon's own influence on the French readings of events, unsurprisingly, casts a long shadow. And yet despite this, the natural 'fog of war', and the blame games - around Ney and Grouchy in particular, but also bearing on the actions of others, like d'Erlon, Marcognet, etc. - reveal how widely the same events can be perceived or understood, not just by the antagonist nations, but within the same nation's own armies.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">An excellent and fascinating collection. Essential reading for the Napoleonic/Waterloo enthusiast.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">* Acc. to Wikipedia!</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3huTIsraoMPquAlEq3_ojqqfkmL3At67N72T-n2WyWybPmiZoaonEVOT0fVf-TZcyDeKC2JicKE9hYTKZzK1meCBx8oEevZes-xtkiH_RXSHUa3zxIe7DXCZ1LhwlSGkXAhIpxP0KSDs/s601/FrenchWaterlooEyewitness_VolII.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3huTIsraoMPquAlEq3_ojqqfkmL3At67N72T-n2WyWybPmiZoaonEVOT0fVf-TZcyDeKC2JicKE9hYTKZzK1meCBx8oEevZes-xtkiH_RXSHUa3zxIe7DXCZ1LhwlSGkXAhIpxP0KSDs/s320/FrenchWaterlooEyewitness_VolII.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxbWlxSnlARZYOs-XSkpcStDGk1F2w7PesdA65ZyCTfji_8QTFwI1JHUo8Yq8bXX3tDA47OCC68Pns75iyduK-BhsdC7bIft63jmmfIT4qOK2bO4MTZhhUbPMoIGZfdmBXniDCWHllkCG/s155/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxbWlxSnlARZYOs-XSkpcStDGk1F2w7PesdA65ZyCTfji_8QTFwI1JHUo8Yq8bXX3tDA47OCC68Pns75iyduK-BhsdC7bIft63jmmfIT4qOK2bO4MTZhhUbPMoIGZfdmBXniDCWHllkCG/s0/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;"><b>Vol II - IInd & VIth Corps, Cavalry, Artillery, Imperial Guard & Medical Services</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;"><i>"(T)his immortal slaughter." </i>Larreguy de Civrieux.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">The same standard of excellence is observed here as elsewhere in Field's terrific work on the whole French experience of the Waterloo campaign. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">A brief introduction recapitulates things he said in volume one, in particular addressing the reliability of the types of material that make up these fascinating books. He then moves through the various military bodies already listed above, citing numerous extracts from the memoirs of participants, mostly from the upper echelons - i.e. officers - with, as per volume one, brief biographical notes about the person concerned followed by their recollections of these momentous events and their parts in them.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">First of all it's terrific that we are gradually getting access to more of this French material, after two centuries in which the English tradition of Waterloo historiography has been pretty one sided. There is something of an irony in this respect, re the fate of Capt. Siborne and his researches, which occurred so soon after the battle, and which sought to include accounts from all sides. There are several interesting books on Siborne, his dioramas, and the research he undertook in order to build them, as well as Siborne's own writings (which I have, but as yet haven't read; they're reputedly rather tough going!). [1]</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn1x5R3q2HZCrE8Gf2HhPmkSXyTl5TP9jQlbKpYoCg_cPBCeXw5dKwqakQO2dPqU9IxFC6TX4whfR6Mq2QEpRV4R2uQV8odwwrC5AiFb7v8X2DfwpLq4x1AvqUgw7sELpncQCIDEQmRr89/s344/SylvainLarreguy.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="343" data-original-width="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn1x5R3q2HZCrE8Gf2HhPmkSXyTl5TP9jQlbKpYoCg_cPBCeXw5dKwqakQO2dPqU9IxFC6TX4whfR6Mq2QEpRV4R2uQV8odwwrC5AiFb7v8X2DfwpLq4x1AvqUgw7sELpncQCIDEQmRr89/s320/SylvainLarreguy.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sylvain Larreguy, c. 1828.</div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">But returning to the accounts in hand themselves, they are great, adding a lot of colour and interest to this much written about (most written about?) of epoch-ending/making battles. I won't go into great detail about any specific accounts contained herein. But it is interesting to note how they differ from traditional Anglo-centric accounts, on things ranging from relatively minor actions that don't appear in English histories, to more controversial claims, such as the frequently repeated claim that the French took and even held Hougoumont for a while at some point.</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">But in the end, whatever the veracity of some of these interesting claims/differences, it all adds up to more interesting and useful reference on this most compelling of battles. I'd even go so far as to say that Field's entire oeuvre on this subject is all essential to the genuine Napoleonic/Waterloo buff. In a word, brilliant.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivyIoDsb9nbDgImg-qjMed7jnkoOpfiAN0ZL4tBqvBhQ3thGjdGJNcV9wq0lrg6DNtq9yE3wIBAORk6x2G4IO-EAwttaHI8kC3T45GXenHNmonELenXdSEdCY2dkIiboZIyfougr-ihuWx/s300/AndrewFieldMBE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivyIoDsb9nbDgImg-qjMed7jnkoOpfiAN0ZL4tBqvBhQ3thGjdGJNcV9wq0lrg6DNtq9yE3wIBAORk6x2G4IO-EAwttaHI8kC3T45GXenHNmonELenXdSEdCY2dkIiboZIyfougr-ihuWx/s0/AndrewFieldMBE.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The author (found this pic in an online Wilts news article!).</div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;">[1] In both volumes Siborne is, if my memory serves, only mentioned the once: on p. 106 of vol II Field laments how the French Guard officers, unlike Siborne's English correspondents, only told of their own local experiences. I think the mention he gets in volume I is on a similar theme, re sources and their limitations, but I can't pinpoint it (no indexes!?).</span></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-4727693453173880882020-11-18T08:18:00.002+00:002020-11-18T08:18:22.461+00:00Book Review: Dark Valley, Piers Brendon<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VR7O0raNDaE9InHgqt0LKWveocQor4uWGStIcJU-n7v19YtGTQxQAHB5Bfk2gxYsAUwQSxTiFaKyUqb2Q1RfDg2r2sHApHdY8M0kB-MZoPW0OVkgi4JdrKj5xfOVdbKTqe5QVsbvC1Ws/s664/DarkValley_Brendon.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="664" data-original-width="431" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VR7O0raNDaE9InHgqt0LKWveocQor4uWGStIcJU-n7v19YtGTQxQAHB5Bfk2gxYsAUwQSxTiFaKyUqb2Q1RfDg2r2sHApHdY8M0kB-MZoPW0OVkgi4JdrKj5xfOVdbKTqe5QVsbvC1Ws/s320/DarkValley_Brendon.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTBJegG_9DNw0OKwU0z9B5hYHveoSAdhdHuxBGSTa6DEHimGD8GRrxF0w4uIgPOJq8cohfIkFwQgN4-_9QTEip_fvRKeNHVcjs7yhLkbHhOLyFZFmcm38oaHT8g_u54CbBkUcXSuJzKvhP/s155/Stars_10_Five.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTBJegG_9DNw0OKwU0z9B5hYHveoSAdhdHuxBGSTa6DEHimGD8GRrxF0w4uIgPOJq8cohfIkFwQgN4-_9QTEip_fvRKeNHVcjs7yhLkbHhOLyFZFmcm38oaHT8g_u54CbBkUcXSuJzKvhP/s0/Stars_10_Five.jpg" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>NB: This is one of my occasional archival posts, regarding a book I read and reviewed years ago, but haven't posted here, that I thought might be of interest.</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A small departure here in that this not strictly a book about WWII, as such, but the dark decade of the 1930s, that prepared the way. </span><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I won't go into any detail regarding the contents. There are lots of decent reviews and synopses to be found online. I simply want to add my voice to the general chorus of acclaim this book has deservedly garnered. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Like William Shirer's </span><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rise-And-Fall-Of-The-Third-Reich/dp/0099421763/ref=cm_cr_getr_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Rise And Fall Of The Third Reich</a><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> this is sweeping, compelling history that really draws you in. The kind of thing that'll threaten to end your fiction reading. Why read fiction when real world events are so massively interesting? The 1930s are a particularly fascinating decade, with totalitarian regimes, be they fascist or communist, gaining a worldwide foothold unparalleled before or since.</span></div>
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As others elsewhere have observed, Brendon has an excellent writing style, and is truly masterful at weaving together complex narrative and small anecdotal details. What a period the first half of the C20th was, and - leaving aside WWI - what a period the 1930s were. With Stalin, Franco, Hitler, Mussolini, the Hawkish Japanese military, the latter already at war in China, and more besides, all sandwiched between the cataclysms of two world wars! </div>
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I borrowed this from a friend many years ago, and liked it so much I had to get my own copy after reading his, in a repeat of what had already happened with the aforementioned Shirer book.</div>
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The material relating to Japan is, I find, particularly fascinating, as so much historical literature on this period and the two world wars is so Euro-centric. Also the militarism of Japan differed markedly from that of Russia, Germany and Italy, in that it was much more broad based, rather than focussing on a charismatic figurehead. Indeed, the Japanese emperor seems to have been carried along on a martial current that flowed through a whole class (primarily the officer class), ultimately more or less saturating the whole culture.</div>
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One specific episode amongst the many in this brilliant book that really struck me - haunted me even, for a little while after reading it - was the horror of Magnitogorsk, in Stalinist Russia. The name of the city alone sounds both awesome and terrifying! A hint of what was happening can be inferred from the fact it was declared a closed city, i.e. off limits to foreigners, in 1937. But I won't say why here. Buy this superb book and read about it yourself.</div>
</span>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-50121061897965896182020-11-18T08:02:00.005+00:002020-11-18T08:02:47.478+00:00Book Review: Wellington in 100 Objects, Gareth Glover<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYyQ_fU5TM3GsHURsYI-keMcmO1KNQVED1bn7qWZ5sojosKTv-tQYUXVycvJxlWsUFiG8txpd6BA8ubeBvjuR11jhRpNZY0CgXRNVL7HzhTP0uwZIoAoOU3ocBLVxv9BnOLnChCpkpbRP/s1165/Wellington100Objects_Glover.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1165" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYyQ_fU5TM3GsHURsYI-keMcmO1KNQVED1bn7qWZ5sojosKTv-tQYUXVycvJxlWsUFiG8txpd6BA8ubeBvjuR11jhRpNZY0CgXRNVL7HzhTP0uwZIoAoOU3ocBLVxv9BnOLnChCpkpbRP/s320/Wellington100Objects_Glover.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMKWTrUPjCQekvCXG43Oeqy5LlQClc4TpKQ3wYNdm0Rry-liRezfN5sXjiyd-XmXuVQpJH02DlccRbqFadUWcqOB2bsjwKdJDZWqZbXoly7AyPtdj5SpEmofd9Mzgh4C2patJVpiYo3Oh/s155/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMKWTrUPjCQekvCXG43Oeqy5LlQClc4TpKQ3wYNdm0Rry-liRezfN5sXjiyd-XmXuVQpJH02DlccRbqFadUWcqOB2bsjwKdJDZWqZbXoly7AyPtdj5SpEmofd9Mzgh4C2patJVpiYo3Oh/s0/5-Boney_Hats.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: times;">In the venerable tradition started - as far as I know? - by the British Museum's exemplary <i>History of the World in 100 Objects</i>, the book I'm reviewing here today joins an ever growing assortment of similarly themed books on numerous historical subjects. Prolific Napoleonic author Gareth Glover notches up yet more titles, annexing ever more shelf-space, authoring several such books on Napoleonic matters himself, including this one. And there are also titles by other authors, on the Third Reich, and all sorts.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;">In this book the objects themselves range from the tiny - a looted silver fork - to the massive - castles, stately homes, even whole villages, towns or cities, that Arthur Wellesley had some connection with. From the obvious, like his boots or campaign cape, to the more obscure, like dentures, or the saw used to amputate Lord Uxbridge's leg. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7QxNj3c8cOy3lBkWjT7l2GVhAJUSgJSd-dAf8SE-7OXhpRf5COPts6vz9-G1v-2vljq6gGYs4h6vqjBN6GcPJa1JNWg96l0JwTx3m3W_rnizzCvKjXa-K5wf-JYRlCF6ivpsdKSPI4fKy/s620/Wellington-Winchelsea_Battersea-Duel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="354" data-original-width="620" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7QxNj3c8cOy3lBkWjT7l2GVhAJUSgJSd-dAf8SE-7OXhpRf5COPts6vz9-G1v-2vljq6gGYs4h6vqjBN6GcPJa1JNWg96l0JwTx3m3W_rnizzCvKjXa-K5wf-JYRlCF6ivpsdKSPI4fKy/s320/Wellington-Winchelsea_Battersea-Duel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">From the humourous... [1]</div><br /><p></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;">And in the process of examining this wealth of material, which is frequently supplemented by other related stuff, we learn masses about not just the famed and celebrated victor of Waterloo, but his family, the times in which he lived, and the many and varied places his life story connects together. From the Congress of Vienna, to Napoleon's lonely and remote exile on St. Helena. From ancestral roots in Ireland, to nepotistic postings in India. And with his activities and interests connecting him with everywhere from the far-flung, such as to the Americas, to such near neighbours as Portugal, Spain and Northwest Europe.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;">Wellington doesn't have quite the same the mercurial mythological magnetism that Boney had, and continues to have. At the time of posting this review this book is listed as 'currently unavailable' on Amazon's UK website, unlike the pendant title, also by Glover, on Napoleon in 100 Objects. But, and especially so for the English, he is, and ought to be, someone we want to know more about. And this book does an admirable job of facilitating that.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWhP4JD5ue3sXz5ca6UXrIK-7r0O47S-Rg16g5hDkED4TXG5ArtoO-u0bhkwTsDuaOVI_XVBofSImde4l5m_JmtphzQIu9lGnoiSldtWJNcpri8Q9eF4l7Bpd_eThjOFCynKY23FzZSjta/s1920/Uxbridge_Saw%2526Glove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWhP4JD5ue3sXz5ca6UXrIK-7r0O47S-Rg16g5hDkED4TXG5ArtoO-u0bhkwTsDuaOVI_XVBofSImde4l5m_JmtphzQIu9lGnoiSldtWJNcpri8Q9eF4l7Bpd_eThjOFCynKY23FzZSjta/s320/Uxbridge_Saw%2526Glove.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">... to the more macabre. [2]</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><u>NOTES</u>:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">[1] Wellington infamously duelled Lord Winchelsea, in 1829, whilst he (the former) was P.M!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">[2] The saw and a bloodied surgeon's glove, from National Army Museum's collections, allegedly used to remove Uxbridge's shattered leg, at or just after Waterloo.</div><br /><span class="s1" style="font-family: times; font-kerning: none;"><br /></span><p></p>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-72421058603620686022020-11-16T09:18:00.001+00:002020-11-16T09:18:17.298+00:00Book Review: Artillery Warfare, '39-'45, Simon & Jonathan Forty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_WPkKvRbT3lwlfJDh-zWCHSln0jFb_1SvlWuS5082rzJeqNsFv4p41qBDSBpjOdz4FE4LHQIp_4jmAujE4U1GpVQUOwbvb7JtmNm0mkseE7CeCaAPLvPOjQ5SbIJm6TRY7AQwKegrlha8/s581/ArtilleryWarfare_Forty.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_WPkKvRbT3lwlfJDh-zWCHSln0jFb_1SvlWuS5082rzJeqNsFv4p41qBDSBpjOdz4FE4LHQIp_4jmAujE4U1GpVQUOwbvb7JtmNm0mkseE7CeCaAPLvPOjQ5SbIJm6TRY7AQwKegrlha8/s320/ArtilleryWarfare_Forty.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHbD7VwTcg7syicI-lqexLf24qkZ8cIWCDeSK1Hl5cIXhfWXMeIDTC5kLZ765px_whSEU6LdmVCA1JdTLOvepnrUyYRlTmakyrFdGLcpOP3jRghN90DBQ2XOm2Eqc9SPbd2HjRWae_bJw/s155/4%253A5-Balkankreuz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHbD7VwTcg7syicI-lqexLf24qkZ8cIWCDeSK1Hl5cIXhfWXMeIDTC5kLZ765px_whSEU6LdmVCA1JdTLOvepnrUyYRlTmakyrFdGLcpOP3jRghN90DBQ2XOm2Eqc9SPbd2HjRWae_bJw/s0/4%253A5-Balkankreuz.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This excellent single volume packs an awful lot into a pretty small space. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Over 400 black and white photos illustrate the massive range of materiel covered, taking in all the main (and many minor) combatant nations and theatres*. As well as the plentiful imagery, extracts from wartime records are used to show how the various artillery branches of the armed forces operated. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A remarkable range of artillery is covered, even if - give the enormity of the subject - only in relatively quick or short form; from the brief mention of hand-held anti-tank weapons, to individual entries on such weaponry as the Long Tom, or those crazily huge Nazi rail-super-guns, including towed artillery, SP guns, rockets, AA and fixed batteries (like the Maginot and Westwall), and so on. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnh46FcrbePyvE9Wt1ci7Q4e0KaTx3GWf6tt2pj5X-XMRTyqNyuJgNrBswylyzs-4wpYz_LXFk7DluOvupTXaXiE0HpR2E0K-qNx62AX_38ZnVafdCyaHL8H3884ZPmnEkjYLPXC2ImX0j/s800/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-127-0391-21_Pak37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="551" data-original-width="800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnh46FcrbePyvE9Wt1ci7Q4e0KaTx3GWf6tt2pj5X-XMRTyqNyuJgNrBswylyzs-4wpYz_LXFk7DluOvupTXaXiE0HpR2E0K-qNx62AX_38ZnVafdCyaHL8H3884ZPmnEkjYLPXC2ImX0j/s320/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-127-0391-21_Pak37.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">From pocket-sized pea shooters, like the Pak 37...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The roots of modern artillery developments in WWI, their rapid evolution during WWII, and even hints of the postwar legacy - many guns of WWII remained in use long after '45, and many technologies evolved by quantum leaps during the Second World War, to create a new era (guided missiles/rocketry) - are all here. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Appendices add info on observation and gun siting, etc. All in all a very impressive work, covering exactly what the title suggests. I'd say this is a pretty essential reference work for the seriously interested WWII history buff. But obviously being a brief and wide ranging picture based survey, more in depth detail is to be sought/found in more specialist publications.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQx6P1yz9s8fs2TZzve9hng4yews7h4vDxaUyJpItSKdSyvqsoW2AO8Z1n8rlYrGXudPeEdQad0fd45p-5obpAMivXMwZp9rBuGvqXDm2wO4gHUzobokO-W5asPyIsruk0ZNMRDuF2WUPD/s797/railroad-gun-ww2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="797" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQx6P1yz9s8fs2TZzve9hng4yews7h4vDxaUyJpItSKdSyvqsoW2AO8Z1n8rlYrGXudPeEdQad0fd45p-5obpAMivXMwZp9rBuGvqXDm2wO4gHUzobokO-W5asPyIsruk0ZNMRDuF2WUPD/s320/railroad-gun-ww2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">... to huge monsters like this, there's a lot here.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Further to this last point, this book might also, as it has for me, stimulate a desire to delve further into certain sub-categories; for example, I recently got into the famed German 88mm gun, and I'm prompted now, having read this, to pick up a book from my pending pile about Germany's West Wall...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">* The only notable omission theatre/combatant wise that struck me being China.</div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3515676111354157450.post-65318180097823183002020-11-10T19:51:00.000+00:002021-05-21T19:51:41.862+01:00Book review: A G.I. In The Ardennes, Denis Hambucken<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vPtvqfVpHvyPxfHDDWu_GgR28MzrLOuMvB1IsoLfVU8GFMJhmOTeO8115IDyDeI-4tHwZib2IwIHKkHbkc4NzOSpaM3R98EBm9NNV4jt-J0g0gUErUCMfCuO7ih0gr0CvPnJL6mssTFI/s500/GIinArdennes.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="475" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vPtvqfVpHvyPxfHDDWu_GgR28MzrLOuMvB1IsoLfVU8GFMJhmOTeO8115IDyDeI-4tHwZib2IwIHKkHbkc4NzOSpaM3R98EBm9NNV4jt-J0g0gUErUCMfCuO7ih0gr0CvPnJL6mssTFI/s320/GIinArdennes.jpg" /></a></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3JbGrYGBqXa9sSC8vvxzht92BvQoQ_bm3wzzV2jjlZzwGKEjTz8e-sE1ktH7gtuCo6WrL1ICF48rQ6rM2S8hzBEtUOpMVga7muKR5Ee4K-bHkJArrR0l7PVG1lVT70-Yq90_X9YzUwuZQ/s155/Kreuz_10_Five.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="30" data-original-width="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3JbGrYGBqXa9sSC8vvxzht92BvQoQ_bm3wzzV2jjlZzwGKEjTz8e-sE1ktH7gtuCo6WrL1ICF48rQ6rM2S8hzBEtUOpMVga7muKR5Ee4K-bHkJArrR0l7PVG1lVT70-Yq90_X9YzUwuZQ/s0/Kreuz_10_Five.jpg" /></a></div><div class="noborderdv" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">I love this book!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;">It accomplishes what I think a lot of Dorling Kindersley style 'survey' type books attempt but, for me, usually fail to achieve, i.e. a colourful yet comprehensive synthesis of a vast amount of information, conveyed in an interesting, exciting yet easy to digest form.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Not only does this book tell the story of the Ardennes campaign, albeit in an admittedly very light and basic manner - from a primarily American perspective as the title makes clear - with numerous firsthand accounts, but it also covers a huge array of more general stuff. There are brief articles on everything from uniforms and equipment to more general American wartime institutions such as the USO (United Service Organizations) and PX (Post Exchange), and the ways in which the homeland and the 'sharp end' interacted.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Aside from the incredible richness and variety of the subject itself, perhaps the greatest strength of the book is the absolutely superb collection of photographic illustrations. These run the gamut from contemporary black and white photos to colour imagery, depicting everything from surviving veterans to a huge array of GI kit/weapons, from such small and humble items as socks, via back-packs and small arms, right up to various tanks, or such monster materiel as the mighty Long Tom 155mm gun.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Amongst this embarrassment of riches I think it's the ragtag yet colourful pictorial smorgasbord of ephemera that I find so evocative and exciting; the many beautifully designed things, from matchbooks (often also quite humorous) and food packaging, to the plethora of items of clothing and weaponry, all of which mix utility with a minimalist military aesthetic - in a range of colours, greys and browns and greens, that I happen to love - it's all just fantastic.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">If you're interested in this theatre of the war, I'd highly recommended this thoroughly fascinating and incredibly beautifully put together book.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Seb Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02825706166433888211noreply@blogger.com0