Customer Reviews

Das Reich: March of the Second Ss Panzer Division Through France

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Hastings in no way glorifies the Das Reich's march to Normandy. He does a good job of pointing out the delays that the Resistance imposed upon the division because Das Reich first orders were to combat the maquis, not to march to Normandy. He is very fair to point out that some the "atrocities" accorded the Das Reich were actually within the rule of law. I find his comments about the execution of 29 maquis captured along the road to Gueret and the execution of a maquisard captured in Terrasson especially insightful in regard to today's GWOT.

His comment from John Tonkin of the SAS that 'I have always felt the Geneva Convention is a dangerous piece of stupidity, because it leads people to believe that war can be civilized. It can't' is also worth pondering in 2005.

If you can get your hands on this book, read it. It covers a small period of time, early spring 1944 - D-day, but is packed with info on the resistance in France (FFI, FTP, AS etc.), the British SOE and SIS, as well as the personalities of the Das Reich Division and their interactions ending in the massacre at Oradour. To me Hastings is not quite a David Irving, in terms of revisionism, but is more full of admiration for the Germans than say, John Keegan. This book belongs on any armchair historian's bookshelf.

Das Reich is a look at wartime France, the SS, and the horror and cruelty of war. It is a consideration of the French resistance, supported by the British and Americans, and the role they played in disrupting and slowing the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich in its journey from Toulouse to the bocage of Normandy. A journey that should have taken only a few days instead took over 15, due to the efforts of the resistance and of Allied air cover.

That this journey was slowed is not vital to the outcome of WWII, but it did have a significant impact on the second battle of France.

One of the things that Das Reich makes clear is the fractured and fragmented nature of the French resistance - some little better than criminals, some communists seeking political power, and many simply young men who thought running off to the forests was a better option than being forcibly shipped to Germany to work in German factories. Most Frenchmen seemed not to mind working for the Germans, so long as it was in France, but being sent to Germany was a different matter altogether. It is also clear that being anti- a particular resistance group - especially the more political ones - was not the same as being pro-German. Basically, France was a horrible place to live in 1944, although probably better than being in Russia in 1941.

Of course, the Das Reich division was in Russia at that time, fighting a brutal war on the Eastern Front. In early 1944 it was moved to southern France to reform and rearm. Hastings points out why the SS were as fiercely loyal to Hitler as they were: generally, they were working class men who would not be fully accepted in the blue blooded Wehrmacht. They Nazi party gave them a chance, and they took it and gave unfailing loyalty in return.

The author seeks to be as evenhanded as it possible to be when discussing war crimes, and it is pretty clear that those occurred on both sides during the events covered Das Reich. It is spelled out repeatedly that simply shooting a maquis resistance member was not a war crime, as they were not in uniform and not covered by the Geneva convention. The problem was, in Tulle 99 men were hanged from lampposts on mere suspician, and that in Oradour-sur-Glane 642 men, women and children were brutally murdered, shot and burned to death. These acts were horrific and can never be excused or explained.

The role of the Allied forces in guiding the resistance is discussed - the liaison officers and spies, from Violette Szabo to radio operators in the UK.

Hastings finishes the book with a chilling quote from a former SS officer, to the effect of "compared to the Eastern Front, the massacres were nothing".

This book is an excellent companion to any WWII history of D-day and the liberation of France. It serves to bring out the true horror of war, which is that real evil lurks in the hearts of men.

I like Max Hasting's work although this book was far too brief. The Das Reich Division has the equal highest number of Iron Cross winners and I would have preferred their entire history rather than just the western front.

I do find Hastings quite impartial though. He left me feeling rather annoyed with the Maquis and their hit & run tactics against the SS columns. The German reprisals, though horrendous, can be understood in the light of warfare values. I agree. The Germans wore uniforms and were distinguishable combatants. The Maquis worked their military tricks in disguise and expected the Germans to accept the losses.

Not likely.

A great read - I just wish it were a complete history. The three stars is no blight against Hastings - but against me for not buying the full historical account.

After the Allies landed in Normandy in June of 1994, the 2nd SS Panzer Division, stationed in southern France, was ordered to move its 15,000 men and 209 tanks and self-propelled artillery 450 miles north to assist in repelling the invaders. A journey that would have taken 3 days wound up taking 15 days.

This book tells the story of the trail of horror and atrocities left in the wake of the "Das Reich" division's ruthless journey north. Assisted by Allied agents (SOE and OSS) dropped into France to assist them, the French Resistance (The Maquis) sabotaged the roads and rails and ambushed the column on numerous occasions. The Germans retaliated by hanging resistance men they captured and killing and burning men, women and children.

This book provides great insight into Allied covert operations, the French Resistance and the mindset of the commanders in the 2nd SS Panzer. It certainly fills in some lesser-known aspects of the War.

A worthy companion for any World War II book collection.

The book is fully indexed, liberally sourced with a robust bibliography and complete glossary. It also contains a full Table of Organization and Equipment of the 2nd SS Panzer and drawings of the principle weapons of the Maquis and primary vehicles/tanks of the 2nd SS Panzer Division.

John E. Nevola
Author of The Last Jump - A Novel of World War II

I stumbled onto this book after reading about the Normandy invasion. I think it's an interesting book in that it shows how effective French and English guerrilla operations were, and were not, against a very ruthless armored unit.

I wish more detail had been included about what happened to the Germans after they arrived at the battle of the Falaise Gap, other than to remark that 2/3 of them did not emerge from that battle.

I have read several of Mr. Hastings' books and enjoyed all of them except this one. I feel like I missed very important information especially in chapter three. Yes, I could have looked up the French, though translating whole sentences is difficult though in some cases I did. My chain of thought was constantly interrupted trying to translate the French. It is arrogant on his part and condescending to expect the average reader to understand French in order to read his book. The practice of using French was very prevalent in fiction before 1960 and always irritated me when I was younger. It still irritates me. Would a Frenchman ignorant of English enjoy reading a French history that used English frequently, I expect not. Mr. Hastings I am impressed with your command of French, alas I do not posses your fluency.