Illustrated with photographs and detailed artworks, Weapons and Fighting Techniques of the Waffen-SS is a complete record of the deployment and use of the weaponry in the service of the Waffen-SS in World War II.

The Waffen-SS was one of the most feared and loathed military forces in history, due largely to the hardware which the group had at its disposal. This study examines the numerous small arms, support weapons, anti-tank weapons, armored personnel carriers and tanks employed by the Waffen-SS between 1939 and 1945. Each weapon is accompanied by a table listing its caliber, dimensions, range, muzzle velocity, detailed illustrations, and descriptions of its use in battle.

The divisions of the Waffen-SS were the elite of Hitler's armed forces in World War II, but what is often forgotten is that their military achievements were due in no small measure to the hardware they deployed. Weapons and Fighting Techniques of the Waffen-SS examines in detail the military equipment used by Hitler's elite. Included are all the most important types of small arms, anti-tank weapons, armoured personnel carriers and tanks employed by the 'death's head' soldiers between 1939 and 1945. The book explains how the weapons were used, including accounts of SS soldiers in action, such as panzer ace Michael Wittmann. As many of the elite divisions of the SS were armoured formations, the book has detailed chapters on German tanks, such as the Panzer V 'Panther', Panzer VI 'Tiger' and Tiger II 'King Tiger'. Panzer tactics, such as the Panzerkeil ('armoured wedge'), are also explored. Illustrated with photographs and detailed artworks, Weapons and Fighting Techniques of the Waffen-SS is a complete record of the deployment and use of the weaponry in the service of the Waffen-SS in World War II.

Waffen-SS: The Illustrated History 1923/45 Ails Unique insight into the most notorious military formation in history. Packed with previously unpubl ished photographs, most taken from private albums of former Waffen-SS soldiers, Waffen-SS chroniclesall the battles and campaigns Waffen-SS units fought in during WWII. Recreates in pictorial form al l aspects of the Waffen-SS¦s war: the growth of the SS panzer divisions, their tactics, recruitment of units, an examination of their weapons and equipment, and images of all Waffen-SS commanders. Includes a chapter on SS war crimes and atrocities.

Waffen-SS Armour in Normandy presents the combat history of SS-Panzer Regiment 12 and SS-Panzerjäger Abteilung 12 in the Battle for France from June to the end of August 1944 based on transcriptions of their original unit war diaries from the Military History Archives in Prague. Both armored units belonged to the 12.SS-Panzer Division Hitlerjugend. SS-Panzer Regiment 12 was fully equipped with Panzer IV and Panther tanks. The main AFV of SS-Panzerjäger Abteilung 12 was the Jagdpanzer IV L/48 tank destroyer. The structure of the volume is partly source publication (documents of SS-Panzer Regiment 12) and partly study (the deployment of SS-Panzerjäger Abteilung 12). The text was written and footnoted by the author based upon original wartime files in Prague that have remained almost unknown. The book starts with the story of the units' establishment and training in 1943/1944, including, for example, the shipments of equipment, orders of battle and tactical numbers of the tanks. After this introduction, a highly detailed daily chronology of the combat actions is provided, from 12.SS-Panzer Division traveling to the Caen sector to Operation Totalize and the withdrawal to the Seine River. Documents from SS-Panzer Regiment 12 presented in the book include the following: combat reports, list of knocked-out enemy tanks, German personnel and tank losses, combat orders, summary of acquired combat experiences and others. This is an impressive look at tactical-level events and command decisions, highlighting the armored combat tactics that were able to stop Montgomery's Army Group from breaking through the German lines near Caen for two months. The study includes a number of detailed maps and excellent photos. In addition, the book has benefited from the contribution of rare information, photographs and documents from the archive of noted Waffen-SS historian Mark C. Yerger.

What it was like to fight Hitler's ideological troops in Normandy starting on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

In his classic work, On War, Carl von Clausewitz wrote, “As we shall show, defense is a stronger form of fighting than attack.” A generation of nineteenth century officers, nurtured on the study of the experiences of Napoleon and conditioned by the wars of German unification, had little reason to accept that view. The offensive spirit swept through European armies and manifested itself in the regulations, plans, and mentality of those armiehe events of 1939, 1940, and 1941 in Poland, France, and Russia respectively again challenged Clausewitz’ claim of the superiority of the defense and prompted armies worldwide to frantically field large armored forces and develop doctrines for their use. While blitzkrieg concepts ruled supreme, it fell to that nation victimized most by those concepts to develop techniques to counter the German juggernaut. The Soviets had to temper a generation of offensive tradition in order to marshal forces and develop techniques to counter blitzkrieg. In essence, the Soviet struggle for survival against blitzkrieg proved also to be a partial test of Clausewitz’ dictum. In July 1943, after arduous months of developing defensive techniques, often at a high cost in terms of men and material, the Soviets met blitzkrieg head-on and proved that defense against it was feasible. The titanic, grinding Kursk operation validated, in part, Clausewitz’ views. But it also demonstrated that careful study of force organization and employment and application of the fruits of that study can produce either offensive or defensive victory. While on the surface the events of Kursk seemed to validate Clausewitz’ view, it is often forgotten that, at Kursk, the Soviets integrated the concept of counteroffensive into their grand defensive designs. Thus the defense itself was meaningless unless viewed against the backdrop of the renewed offensive efforts and vice versa. What Kursk did prove was that strategic, operational, and tactical defenses could counter blitzkrieg.

The Waffen-SS are commonly regarded as the elite of Germany’s armed forces during World War II. They gained much of this reputation while fighting on the Eastern Front in Russia during Germany’s war against the Soviet Union. They were also called to the fore in an attempt to hurl back the Western Allies’ invasion forces in Normandy, and were used in the last great offensive on the Western Front in the Ardennes and contributed to the final defence of Berlin. In adversity, they were some of the most resilient soldiers that fought for Germany in World War II and were ideologically and politically aligned with Hitler. For over 70 years, many of the manuscripts contained in this book, and sourced from the United States National Archives, have not been scrutinised by modern researchers. This book provides a unique opportunity to publish these records in order to provide an insight into the Waffen-SS. The Waffen-SS was a military organisation that is steeped in the military folklore of being a force capable of incredible military feats, but it was also capable of incredible evil. These records are exceedingly valuable as they are one of the few contemporaneous primary sources of information available in relation to the Waffen-SS.