Book Review: The Ghettos of Nazi-Occupied Poland, Ian Baxter (Images of War)

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.

Having said that, for the most part I do 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.*

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.

Ghetto residents working in a shoe-factory, Lodz.

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'. 

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

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. 

One of a number of colour images. Biebow visits Lodz.

The main chapter headings convey the content:

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.

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

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.

The Warsaw Uprising - Another brutally bleak chapter in this sad story sees the largest of the ghettos rise up, only to be mercilessly crushed.

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.

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.

Note on photos: 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.

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* 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.

** 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'.

Book Review: Images of War - Hitler's Anti-Tank Weapons 1939-1945, Hans Siedler

This is a very handy little book. Following a brief scene-setting introduction, over five chapters - Early Years (1939–41), Operations in Russia, Stop-Gap Solutions, 1943, The End - Hans Siedler gives us a brief history of German WWII anti-tank guns. 

Copiously illustrated, as befits any title in this ever growing series, with contemporary black and white photos, and with three useful appendixes, the titles of which hint at the scope of the coverage - Towed Anti-Tank Guns, Converted Anti-Tank Guns, Hand-Held Anti-Tank Weapons - whether you're a wargamer, modeller, or just a WWII history nut, this is a great resource. 

The text is very basic, but sound enough, as far as it goes. Text and images take us from the early war 3.7 Pak 36 to the late-war Pak 43; alongside this there's the development from lightly armoured/gunned Marder variants up to the Elefant and Jagdtiger (the latter the heaviest AFV of WWII); and there are also the handheld weapons, from the Panzerbusche to the Panzerschreck, with disposable Panzerfaust figuring large as the war draws to its inexorable end.

Also duly noted are the many instances of hybrid vehicles, some related to types already mentioned - the evolution of the Panzerjagers can only be briefly covered in such a slim and wide-ranging book - and others such as when guns of various types were mounted to half-tracks, or on vehicles such as the RSO. A nice little touch, after the appendices, are the two contemporary German images showing how to use and the structure of the popular mass-produced Panzerfaust. 

Hardly the definitive work on such a potentially huge subject, nevertheless this is an easy to read, well illustrated and highly enjoyable addition to the very useful Images of War series. I love it!

Book Review: The Americans, from the Ardennes to VE Day, Brooke S. Blades

This is the third and final instalment of what is now a trilogy, by American author Brook Blades, covering the Americans in NW Europe during WWII (I've posted a review of the first part here). The best thing about this book, as befits an Images of War title, is the rich and varied selection of photographs.

Troops of 399th Inf, 100th Div, entrenched near Bitche, France, Dec, '44.

The text is perfectably serviceable. But, as with many titles in the Images of War series, it's a data-heavy compression of large amounts of info, making for rather dry and not easily memorable reading. Chapters titles convey what is covered: The Winter Offensive (i.e. the Battle of the Bulge, part one); The Ardennes Winter (or Bulge, part two); Advance to the Rhine; Varsity (the Allied crossings of the Rhine); The Allies in Germany; Aftermath.

One of the more familiar images in the book.

There are also a few maps covering key events. But it's the photographs - and more than usual notice is given to the photographers who took these amazing shots - that are the stars in this book. Although I did recognise a good many images here that I've seen before elsewhere, given how much I've read and viewed on this theatre, the amount of new and unfamiliar photographic documentation presented here is, to me, very exciting and impressive. 

As a putative wargamer I particularly love the occasional aerial photos, of which there are a decent number. These really help convey something of the mix of strategic and tactical reality, as 'played' out in the real world. As well as many portrait like shots, and behind the lines stuff, there are a good deal of images captured on ornear the sharp end. And - one of my favourite types of scenario - there are a good deal of images of the logistical chain, from ammo and fuel-dumps to troops en-route, and equipment (particularly impressive are the rows of planes and gliders preparing for Varsity) being prepared for combat.

One of a number of interesting aerial photographs.

The main focus, as signalled by the title, is on Americans and their stuff. Next in order of coverage come their adversaries, the Germans. British and Canadian allies also appear, but less so, and chiefly in areas - such as after the messy aerial drops of Varsity - where they worked together, whether by chance or design.

The several photos of the paratroop deployments of Varsity, with their many planes and the almost ack-ack looking smatterings of parachutes, very densely concentrated, are amazing. This is one of the best in this excellent if occasionally rather variable, quality wise, series - by which I'm referring to IoW, as opposed to Blades' trilogy. Whilst I know I've got and have reviewed part one of this trilogy, this third and final volume is so good I feel I must ensure I also have volume two!

Cpl. Hood works to prevent trench-foot, near Bastogne, Jan, '45.

So, all in all, a fascinating and compelling resource, whose text covers the period as concisely and as thoroughly as could be wished for in a book mostly devoted to imagery. And in terms of the pictures, another exemplary addition to the Images of War series. Highly recommended. here

Book Review: Early Jet Bombers, 1944-1954, Leo Marriott (Images of War)

If I'm completely honest it's only the German part of this that really interests me. They lead the way, and had the funkiest ideas and gear. But here you also get info and pics on British, French, US and Russian stuff. 

Because the Germans were in a too little too late scenario, that's kind of reflected here: after brief mention of prop powered bombers such as the Do-17, He-111 and the rarer He-177, there's just a few pics each and basic info on the Arado 234, the better known Me-262, and the Ju-287. 

It's a pity there isn't more on the Ar-234 (which stars on the cover). And some mention of the myriad unrealised German ideas would've been nice, in particular the Ho-229, which was at least being built. These latter projects would feed into postwar jet work for other nations, the US and Russia in particular. 

The text is minimal, but clear and informative, the pictures, all black and white, are fairly interesting. A useful reference book depicting the shift from the prop to the jet age in warfare.

Book Review: Montgomery's Rhine River Crossing, Operation Plunder, Jon Diamond (Images of War)

Over five chapters - Strategic Prelude; Terrain, Fortification and Weapons; Commanders and Combatants; Clearing the Rhineland; Rhine River Crossings and Airborne Assault - supported by a number of maps and lots of excellent photographs, author Jon Diamond gives a solid and comprehensive account of Montgomery's Rhine river crossings.

Monty.

Book Review: Images of War: Hungarian Armoured Fighting Vehicles in the Second World War, Eduardo Martinez

Spanish WWII history buff Eduardo Martinez shines a light on the AFVs of the Hungarian army, during WWII. Hungary, reacting no doubt to the initially apparently unstoppable territorial expansions of Hitler's Germany, decided to ally itself to the Nazi empire.

Csaba armoured cars.

The most one usually hears about the Hungarian and Romanian allies of Germany is that they were poor and unreliable, more a liability than an asset, in Germany's quest for lebensraum on the Ostfront. So it's refreshing to encounter a book that looks at the subject from the Hungarian perspective.

The Nimrod, capable of both AA and ground target combat.

Martinez seems impressed by the fact that Hungary was able to supply itself with its own materiel, despite the fact that it was never either good enough in itself, or sufficient to the tasks in hand. I.e. it was hopelessly outclassed by the Russian forces it was up against. This pretty inevitably lead to the Hungarian armed forces being re-equipped, to some extent, with German gear.

Turán IIs captured by the Soviets, loaded on flatcars.

Tragically for Hungary, once part of the formerly great Habsburg empire, the combination of their own poor materiel, and the insufficient quantities of better German gear, added up to a hopeless situation. Plus they were now fighting nervously alongside Romania, a long-term enemy who had, like them, thrown in their lot with the Nazis.

40M Turán, 1943.

The text of this book isn't the best, the prose being a little lumpen - perhaps due to translation from Spanish? - and littered, alas, with minor but annoying typos or editorial errors (e.g. fairly frequent use of the term Panzer when I think the author's actually referring to Panthers). But this book does shed light on an interesting and little covered area of an otherwise much covered part of the war. And as befits titles in this series, the pictures do a good job of illustrating the subject, with both the German stuff, but even more so the Hungarian AFVs being very well illustrated.

This Zrínyi II has perforated side-protecting skirts.

I feel I learned a good deal reading this, and became better acquainted with Hungary's own materiel, which is very interesting. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone interested in this aspect of the enormous war on the Eastern Front. 

Book Review: The Fall of Berlin, Ian Baxter (Images of War)

Symbolically the fall of Berlin seems like end of WWII in the West, even though combat actually sputtered on in numerous other places. This latest Images of War title starts with the Russian Vistula-Oder offensive, so actually some way from Berlin, moving through the Defence of the Oder and the Battle of the Halbe. 

Each of these forms a chapter, with a brief synopsis of events from Ian Baxter and sections of black and white photos. It's not till the fourth chapter that we actually get to the Battle for Berlin. At the end there's an Order of Battle appendix, listing German and Russian forces.

The text is ok, but the captions for the pictures recycle the body text too often for my liking (not at all would be best). The pictures are by and large ok, but some are rather poor, including several so poor I don't think they should've been used. Neither the best nor the worst in this very useful series, this is still a good bit of reference material for those of us who like collecting such material on WWII.

Book Review: Battle of Midway, John Grehan (Images of War)

This is an excellent book. Well written, with a great selection of photographs. Although I'm more interested in WWII in Europe by and large, I found this a fascinating and compelling read.

For someone, like me, with a very limited and sketchy knowledge of the War in the Pacific, this is pitched perfectly, giving enough info to stimulate deeper interest, but not so much as to overwhelm. And the clear and concise text is brought to life by the images, which cover the whole event in an admirably comprehensive and evenly balanced way.

Should I revisit the '76 movie?

Materiel and personnel of both sides are shown, as are all the major events. Learning more about such famous events as the destruction of USS Yorktown was fascinating. Having read this I feel the urge to re-watch the classic old 1976 Midway movie. And maybe to even take a chance on the more recent film?*

* Due out in the UK in early November.

Book Review: 7th SS at War, Ian Baxter (Images of War)

As the cover blurb for this book informs us, Pen and Sword's Images of War series now has numerous volumes dedicated to various SS formations, this being (like it's subject!) the seventh. And from what I gather from reading further they may all be by Ian Baxter. 

Whilst the comprehensiveness of the aim is great, the execution isn't quite up to par with the best in the IoW line. I say this because more of the images herein are either of related units - such as Gebirgsjäger (mountain troops), regular Wehrmacht or Bulgarian forces, or SS troops who may or may not actually be Prinz Eugen - than are clearly and definitively of the stated/titular subject. This and the fairly poor quality of some images occasionally make this feel a bit thin and cobbled together. Still, as the Panzerwrecks guy's are fond of saying, a poor quality image is better than no image at all.

This fellow isn't in the book.

Nor this one neither (I don't think?).

In just over 100 pages, organised as five very short chapters, each preceding blocks of captioned photos, Baxter's main body of text is okay. Very brief and outline like, it does at least stay closer to its core subject than does the visual element. The history of the unit is covered, from its formation to its demise, with coverage of its major deployments/operations and some info on commanders.

Prinz Eugen's main theatre of operations was the rugged and brutal Balkans, where Nazi ideology was pursued with utmost ruthlessness. The 7th SS were instrumental in this, being constantly deployed in anti-insurgency capacities that frequently included merciless reprisals for partisan activity, routinely visited indiscriminately on the local civilian population. No winning hearts and minds here. Whilst Baxter mentions this frequently in the text, there's very little imagery on this aspect, aside from a few relatively innocuous looking round-up/interrogation photos (of course what happened next may have been far worse). [1]

When you see that Odal rune, you know it's Prinz Eugen.

Neither this chap, nor the one above, are in the book.

On the positive side, and despite the fact that the images that are certainly of Prinz Eugen forces aren't always as clear or as copious as one might wish for, the subject is a very interesting one. Called a volunteer (Freiwilligen was part of the original unit title) and Mountain (Gebirgs) unit, it was in fact made up of conscripted troops as well as volunteers. And, as with other units operating in the same region, such as SS Handschar, it stretched or diluted the Aryan superman ideology that was a central tenet of the SS/Nazi creed.

Perhaps in keeping with the inherent racism in this scheme, Prinz Eugen, like more and more units in the German armed forces as time went on was, whilst basically armed and equipped as German troops, issued with less 'purely' Teutonic high-end gear. This is a theme Baxter and the photographs substantiate at several points, and is of interest to us WWII gear nuts.

French tanks of Prinz Eugen, in impressively rugged settings.*

A Czech ZB-53 or MG-37 machine-gun in German service. *

But perhaps best and most noteworthy off all, the landscapes in which Prinz Eugen fought are also sublime, in the original romantic sense, meaning both beautiful and yet terrifying/inhuman. And the weather was equally extreme. The war that was fought in this pitiless natural paradise brought hell to earth in a Dantean way whose repercussions have echoed down into later days. But whilst Baxter touches on the WWII aspects of 7th SS' part in this long-running and often ethnically based tragedy, no real mention is made of the long-term roots or latter 20th Century aftermath.

Some of the picture captioning is redundantly repetitious of stuff in the main text (or other previous captions), and occasionally looks either a bit lazy or slapdash, as when the caption to an image of greatcoat wearing troops without any other visible gear crossing a rickety wooden footbridge opines about the slow progress made in such rugged terrain by heavily laden troops. The caption is of course quite correct. But it doesn't sit well with the accompanying image, which shows very lightly burdened soldiers. [2]

Prinz Eugen troops scaled mountains... *

... trudged through mud and snow... *

... and relied on horses and mules as much as trucks and armour. *

Despite all my criticisms, I do like this book, and it is very interesting/useful reference. I imagine over time I'll try and collect all of Baxter's IoW titles on the SS. But it could fairly easily have been somewhat better. And I wish it was. Nevertheless, well worth adding to your library if you're a WWII history obsessive. Especially so if you're particularly interested in the Germans and the SS during WWII (as I am), obviously.

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NOTES:

* Any images marked with an asterisk appear in this book. The others don't.

[1] The only image that I feel really captures this aspect of the conflict is a photo on p. 101, (shown below) of a group of prisoners sat in a field. Mostly they're young men, but there are a few women, and there's a fair range of ages. The fear and apprehension in their faces is palpable and chilling. The caption says they're captured partisans. And perhaps they are. Whether or not they are, they seem to know their fate will not be a happy one.

Faces that say, 'uh-oh...' *

[2] I always feel a bit bad, nit-picking on errors in books such as this which, for any/all their faults, are both very useful, and the work of people as passionate about their interests in the subject no doubt as I am. But on the other hand, we should all strive for the best we can, and especially so where the enterprise is also commercial. So for example the combo of poorly cropped image and subsequently redundant caption in the lower portion of page 94, in which we see naught but a soldier's head and the empty sky, and not the pack animals the caption refers to, shouldn't have passed the editorial process.

Inclusion of a few artefacts, such as this I.D. badge would've been nice.

Book Review - Images of War: 37-41, François Cochet

As if to illustrate a point I alluded to in a previous post on the M7 Priest title, regarding variable editorial quality (both are from the same Images of War series), this book on the earlier history of Germany's Fallschirmjäger is very different in feel and quality. Where the Doyle title came over very professionally, this reads like the work of an amateur/enthusiast. That in itself isn't necessarily an issue. But it becomes one when the writing is also plagued by other problems.

I'm a big 'fan', you might say, of the German military in WWII, but not - given the toxic political context of Hitler's Germany, in which it was rooted - an uncritical one. It seems to me that Cochet has been seduced by the German perspective to such an extent that his writing all too frequently reads as it's been lifted directly from the wartime commentary and picture captioning you encounter in such German propaganda publications as Signal or Der Adler.

A fairly hilarious training photograph. 

Plus points in the books favour are things such as the written and visual history of the beginnings of the German airborne infantry arm, the training the troops went through, and the fairly full coverage of the operations they took part in during the period covered herein. The bulk of the text, however, and even a good number of the images are not of the highest quality. But they are of course very useful if you have a particular interest in the subject. 

By way of an example of the poorer quality occasionally evident, there's a fairly comical instance where a picture describes the 'recovery of a container filled with heavy weapons'. Even a cursory glance at the image - which, alas, I can't find online (giving more than usual credence to the tag line 'rare photographs from wartime archives') - reveals that the contents of the container are very obviously food: one fallschirmjäger is even handing another a sausage! Heavy weapons indeed!!

A fallschirmjäger stands sentry on the Dordrecht bridge, Holland, 1940.

Despite my penchant for all things German in WWII, and their often very funky gear, I'm not massively drawn to the Fallschirmjäger branch of service. I don't quite understand why that is. But this book hasn't had the same effect on me as Doyle's Priest book did, which excited an interest in something I hadn't given much thought to before.

Having said all this, and despite being quite critical of the book, I would nevertheless like to see the second instalment, covering '42-'45. After the very costly deployment of airborne forces on Crete, which is covered here, Germany never repeated such operations on the large scale (the loss of aircraft alone in the Cretan operation having serious knock-on effects on German air strength, and directly affecting Barbarossa), the Fallschirmjäger effectively becoming, for the most part, a quasi-elite part of ordinary ground forces, save for the occasional special op, such as Skorzeny's famous rescue of Mussolini.

Casualties of the invasion of Crete.

In conclusion, not the best title in this series, but useful for those with a special interest in the subject.

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Notes:

Whilst researching photos etc for this post, I found this page, here you can peruse the whole of an issue of Der Adler (August, 1940), from which I reproduce the following:

The airborne attack on Holland is front page news.

And in amongst the adverts, a possible source for the sentry image?