Hitler's Mountain Troops - Hardcover

James Sidney Lucas

3.3

10 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1854090798 ISBN 13: 9781854090799

Publisher: Arms & Armour, 1992

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An account of the Alpine divisions of the German army in World War II. Recruited from the mountainous regions, and so used to the testing terrains, they were also used in non-Alpine conditions when special-purpose attributes were called for.

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Review:

British author James Lucas has written a number of excellent books dealing with various aspects of the purely military prowess of some of WW II Germany's best formations, among them (and all highly recommended) - Das Reich: The History Of The 2nd SS Division, Storming Eagles: German Airborne Forces In World War Two, World War Two Through German Eyes, Kommando: German Special Forces Of World War Two, Eastern Front: The German Soldiers In Russia, Hitler's Commanders: German Bravery In The Field 1939-1945, and Last Days Of The Reich: The Collapse Of Nazi Germany May 1945. His narrative style, always reflecting a depth and wealth of knowledge on the subject second to none, puts him at the top - or very close to it - of any list of recommended authors. In this volume, first published in 1991, he chronicles the campaigns of the Gebirsjaeger, described this way in the overleaf: "Warfare in the mountains was unique - fighting in a vertical wilderness in which the objective of a nearby mountain peak meant a gruelling descent into the valley and an exhausting ascent to the summit, often under fire and in grim weather conditions. Hence the Gebirsjaeger were tough and hardy men, often from the alpine regions of Germany - true `mountain men' at home in the harsh conditions, an advantage that frequently won victories or facilitated escape where any other unit would have failed. These specially trained troops, skilled in mountaineering, skiing and endurance marching, are the subject of this authoritative study from the pen of an admiring writer who fought them in Italy." Gebergs Divisions, fully described in an appendix, fought in Poland in 1939, Norway in 1940, Greece in 1941, Yugoslavia in 1941, Crete in 1941, all over the Eastern Front starting in 1941, including the encirclement around Uman, Lappland from 1941 to 1945, the battles in the Caucasus in 1942-1943, the Volkhov Sector of the Battle of Leningrad in 1942-43, along the Western Front in 1944-45, and in Steiermark, Austria in 1945. Profusely illustrated with black and white photos and battle maps, and a thorough alphabetical index. Apparently the same author wrote another volume in 1981 titled Alpine Elite: German Mountain Troops Of World War II. Whether this is an update of that book with a lot of similarity is not known to me as I have never run across a volume. In any event, this is one you should not miss if WW II history is your passion. --AvidOldiesCollector

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