Conventional wisdom suggests that the Allies and the Soviets were the only side in the Second World War to support resistance movements. This book shows that Hitler had his own version of the SOE and the OSS, and that the Nazis too encouraged underground resistance against their enemies, especially as Europe was liberated in 1944-5.

Conventional wisdom suggests that the Allies and the Soviets were the only side in the Second World War to support resistance movements in occupied countries. However, based on recently-released archival sources, The SS Hunter Battalions shows that Hitler had his own version of the SOE and the OSS, and that the Nazis too encouraged underground resistance against their enemies, especially as Europe was liberated in 1944-45. The Nazis tried to exploit the misguided activism of ex-collaborators, ethnic nationalists and rabid anti-communists, but their efforts were clumsy and they were hamstrung by the sordid reputation that they had gained as wartime occupiers. In addition, the German commandos and spy-masters in charge of the project hindered their own efforts through infighting, ill-discipline and a misconceived appreciation of their ability to motivate violent dissent. Nonetheless, the Germans supported as many as 700,000 anti-Soviet partisans during the last year of the war, and even in liberated France and Italy they bolstered small anti-Allied cells and bands. As Perry Biddiscombe demonstrates, such efforts were not mere transitory occurrences, but touched upon the origin of die Cold War and the roots of postwar 'Euro-fascism'.

Details the history of the Dirlewanger Brigade, an anti-partisan unit of the Nazi army tasked with capturing partisan fighters, and recounts the atrocities the brigade executed and the repercussions of its actions.

The publisher of The Boardgamer magazine created five special issues devoted entirely to one game within the Avalon Hill catalog. They were known as Unofficial Player guides, but were considered the best collection of new information, variants, scenarios, rules variations, errata, inserts, and new articles written for these games. Fans loved the materials, because it delivered new life into a game that was forgotten by Avalon Hill, but still cherished by the players. This item is the collection of two of these five guides for PanzerBlitz and Panzer Leader. Below is a description of each guide: A. In this player's guide, the third in a series of five, is dedicated to the classic, Eastern Front armor wargame Panzerblitz. The articles include: More New Expressions For A Familiar Face - Do Your Own Panzerblitz Prokhorovka - New Scenarios For Panzerblitz Historical Addendum To Prokhorovka - Historical Orders Of Battle For Each Scenario Panzerblitz Clarifications - and Question Box Variations On A Theme - For Panzerblitz Tournament Situations - For Panzerblitz Panzerblitz Tournament Situations – Part II - And An Analysis Of The Situations The Pieces Of Panzerblitz - Part 2 References From The General New Expressions For A Familiar Face II - Still More Situations For Panzerblitz Operation Wintergale - The Relief Of Stalingrad Beyond Situation 25 - Yet More New Scenarios For Panzerblitz More Historical Corrections - To Panzerblitz Situations References From The Boardgamer Other Products From The Boardgamer Insert: Countersheet - Additional Panzerblitz Counters - Required To Play Scenarios In This Issue B. In this player's guide, the fourth in a series of five, is dedicated to the classic, Western Front armor wargame Panzer Leader The articles include: More New Expressions For Another Familiar Face - Do Your Own Panzer Leader The Battle For The Remagen Bridge - New Scenarios For Panzer Leader New British Scenarios For Panzer Leader - British And Commonwealth 1944 & 1945 Situations Panzer Leader Situations - A Collection Of Panzer Leader Scenarios Panzer Leader 1940 Situations - Variant Situations Updated Panzer Leader Clarifications - And Question Box Other Products From The Boardgamer The Pieces Of Panzer Leader - Part 2 The Pieces Of Panzer Leader - Part 3 - Panzer Leader 1940 References From The General More Historical Corrections - To Panzer Leader Situations References From The Boardgamer The Panzer Leader In Normandy - Situations From The Normandy Campaign Insert: Countersheet - Additional Panzerblitz Counters - Required To Play Scenarios In This Issue

The publisher of The Boardgamer magazine created five special issues devoted entirely to one game within the Avalon Hill catalog. They were known as Unofficial Player guides, but were considered the best collection of new information, variants, scenarios, rules variations, errata, inserts, and new articles written for these games. Fans loved the materials, because it delivered new life into a game that was forgotten by Avalon Hill, but still cherished by the players. This item is the collection of all five guides for 1776, PanzerBlitz, Panzer Leader, War at Sea, and B-17 Queen of the Skies. Below is a description of each guide: A. This player's guide, the first in a series of five, is dedicated to the naval wargame War At Sea The articles include: Victory In The Atlantic - Strategic Considerations and a Variety of British Opening Moves Admirals Raedar and Doenitz Would’ve Been Proud - Axis Play In War At Sea Mediterranean Strategies - The Exciting Approach To War At Sea Why I’m A “Barents On One” Believer - Allied Opening Strategy For War At Sea Underwater Strategy - Use of U-Boats In War At Sea Ten Hints Everyone Ought To Know By Now - Quick Tips For War At Sea War At Sea – Beginner’s Tip Sheet - Prepared For Avaloncon ‘97 Rules Clarifications For War At Sea - As Of July 1, 1999 Improving Yahtzee At Sea - A War At Sea Variant References From The General - War At Sea Articles Through The Years War At Sea Series Replay #1 - Barents On 1 Challenged War At Sea Series Replay #2 - The North Sea Gambit War At Sea Series Replay #3 - The Rubber Match War At Sea Series Replay #4 - The Mediterranean StrategyAvaloncon/WBC Statistics - From the 1991 – 1998 Tournaments B. In this player's guide, the second in a series of five, is dedicated to the revolutionary-war game 1776. The articles include: The American Revolution - And The Boardgaming Hobby Command Pressures Revisited - Leader For 1776 Partisan Leaders - For 1776 1776 Elite Units, Artillery and Naval Rules - and General Rule Observations Wilmington - The Forgotten City In 1776 1776 Clarifications - and PBeM Play Conventions Trouble Areas - Realistic Supply Movement In 1776 The 1776 Thesis - Strategy In 1776 A New 1776 Thesis - The 1776 Thesis Analyzed Contrasting Games On The Revolution - American Revolution, 13: The Colonies In Revolt, and 1776 The Invasion Of Canada Scenario Revisited - Modifying 1776’s Scenario #1 The British Southern Campaign - A 1776 Short Campaign Game Lincoln’s Southern Campaign – 1779 - Revised The British Dilemma – 1778 - A 1776 Scenario Montcalm And Wolfe - A 1776 Variant For The French & Indian War – 1759 The Tory and Indian War – 1778 - Revised 1776 Revisited - A 1776 Scenario At Avaloncon The British Receding - A New 1776 Scenario In The South – 1781 The Carolinas – 1776 - A New Short Scenario The British Receding - A 1776 Series Replay Insert: Countersheet - Additional Counters for 1776 C. In this player's guide, the third in a series of five, is dedicated to the classic, Eastern Front armor wargame Panzerblitz. The articles include: More New Expressions For A Familiar Face - Do Your Own Panzerblitz Prokhorovka - New Scenarios For Panzerblitz Historical Addendum To Prokhorovka - Historical Orders Of Battle For Each Scenario Panzerblitz Clarifications - and Question Box Variations On A Theme - For Panzerblitz Tournament Situations - For Panzerblitz Panzerblitz Tournament Situations – Part II - And An Analysis Of The Situations The Pieces Of Panzerblitz - Part 2 References From The General New Expressions For A Familiar Face II - Still More Situations For Panzerblitz Operation Wintergale - The Relief Of Stalingrad Beyond Situation 25 - Yet More New Scenarios For Panzerblitz More Historical Corrections - To Panzerblitz Situations References From The Boardgamer Other Products From The Boardgamer Insert: Countersheet - Additional Panzerblitz Counters - Required To Play Scenarios In This Issue D. In this player's guide, the fourth in a series of five, is dedicated to the classic, Western Front armor wargame Panzer Leader The articles include: More New Expressions For Another Familiar Face - Do Your Own Panzer Leader The Battle For The Remagen Bridge - New Scenarios For Panzer Leader New British Scenarios For Panzer Leader - British And Commonwealth 1944 & 1945 Situations Panzer Leader Situations - A Collection Of Panzer Leader Scenarios Panzer Leader 1940 Situations - Variant Situations Updated Panzer Leader Clarifications - And Question Box Other Products From The Boardgamer The Pieces Of Panzer Leader - Part 2 The Pieces Of Panzer Leader - Part 3 - Panzer Leader 1940 References From The General More Historical Corrections - To Panzer Leader Situations References From The Boardgamer The Panzer Leader In Normandy - Situations From The Normandy Campaign Insert: Countersheet - Additional Panzerblitz Counters - Required To Play Scenarios In This Issue E. In this player's guide, the fifth in a series of five, is dedicated to the classic, aerial bomber wargame B-17: Queen of the Skies. The articles include: Bombing The Med - Adding the 9th and 12th USAAF and the RAF No. 160 & No. 178 Squadrons Command Decisions - In B-17: Queen of the Skies In Search of Geographical Accuracy - Or, “Hey Navigator Where Are We?!” The Winged Soldiers of ‘44 - A B-17: Queen of the Skies Variant This collection is a must have for fans of these classic, Avalon Hill wargames.

The German Army’s Strafbattalions were infantry units made up largely of convicts, felons, malingerers, thugs and the criminally insanePreviously unpublished story of the unitsThe accounts of the most famous Strafbattalion units in combatA story of little-known Nazi units: Hitler’s ‘Dirty Dozens’ When war broke out in 1939, Hitler created Strafbattalion (Penal Battalion) units to deal with incarcerated members of the Wehrmacht as well as ‘subversives’. His order stated that any first-time convicted soldier could return to his unit after he had served a portion of his sentence in ‘…a special probation corps before the enemy’. Beginning in April 1941, convicted soldiers, even those sentenced to death, who had shown exceptional bravery or meritorious service could rejoin their original units; however, those in probation units were expected to undertake dangerous operations at the front. Refusal entailed enforcement of the original sentence. The soldiers who ‘won back an honourable place in the national community’ had done everything that was asked of them from suicidal advance teams, shock troops, and laying mines under fire. By 1945, over 50,000 Wehrmacht troops had served in punishment regiments. Strafbatallion: Hitler’s Penal Battalions examines the penal units, their combat history and order of battle.

Previously unpublished photographs depicting the Strafvollzugslager environsPreviously unpublished letters written by convicts, which describes their hopes and yearningsUnprecedented detailed biographies of the SS guards and convicts, which include details of their post-war fatesWritten with the assistance of veterans’ families, their unselfish access to their archives has resulted in a unique publication Strafvollzugslager der SS- und Polizei: Himmler’s Wartime Institutions for the Detention of Waffen-SS and Polizei Criminals is a book that the SS Leader, Heinrich Himmler, would not have wished written. Preferring that this corner of SS history remained forever in the shadows, in unprecedented detail, this study illuminates the reasons why Waffen-SS and policemen were imprisoned in purpose-built institutions and describes the regulations governing their detention. Revealing details of their daily life, veterans’ families have contributed to this book in an effort to enumerate the lives of those tasked with the prisons operation. Tasked with ensuring the convict’s National Socialist spirit remained undamaged by their punishment, these guards provided the malfeasance elements of Himmler’s Army with a suitable SS environment. Eventually, these institutions become portals through which inmates returned to the Front and this process is examined alongside a history of the various field probation units. Here, Himmler commanded the parolees face death or serious wounding as the means to earn their full rehabilitation. Case histories are tendered throughout and describe the crimes and punishments imposed on those who brought shame on the SS.

This first book to reassess the myth and the realities of Otto Skorzeny, Hitler's favourite commando. SS-Obersturmbannführer Otto Skorzeny became a legend in his own time. 'Hitler's favourite commando' acquired a reputation as a man of daring, renowned for his audacious 1943 mission to extricate Mussolini from a mountain-top prison. Skorzeny's influence on special operations doctrine was far-reaching and long-lasting – in 2011, when US Navy SEALs infiltrated Pakistan to eliminate Osama Bin Laden, the operational planning was influenced by Skorzeny's legacy. Yet he was also an egoist who stole other men's credit (including for the seminal rescue of Mussolini), brave and resourceful but also an unrepentant Nazi and a self-aggrandizing hogger of the limelight. Stuart Smith draws on years of in-depth research to uncover the truth about Skorzeny's career and complex personality. From his background as a student radical in Vienna, to his bloody service with the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front, his surprise rebirth as a commando, and his intriguing post-war career and mysterious fortune, this book tells Otto Skorzeny's story in full – warts and all – for the first time.

The Routledge History of the Second World War sums up the latest trends in the scholarship of that conflict, covering a range of major themes and issues. The book delivers a thematic analysis of the many ways in which study of the Second World War can take place, considering international, transnational, and global approaches, and serves as a major jumping off point for further research into the specific fields covered by each of the expert authors. It demonstrates the global and total nature of the Second World War, giving due coverage to the conflict in all major theatres and through the lens of the key combatants and neutrals, examines issues of race, gender, ideology, and society during the war, and functions as a textbook to educate students as to the trends that have taken place in how the conflict has been (and can be) interpreted in the modern world. Divided into twelve parts that cover central themes of the conflict, including theatres of war, leadership, societies, occupation, secrecy and legacies, it enables those with no memory of war to approach it with a view to comprehending what it was all about and places the history of this conflict into a context that is international, transnational, and institutional. This is a comprehensive and accessible reference volume for anyone interested in the most up to date scholarship on this major conflict. Chapter 18 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com