The German Army 1914-18 (Men-at-Arms) [Paperback]

Donald Fosten (Author), Gerry Embleton (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Men-at-Arms | Publication Date: July 27, 1978

The Imperial German Army began the Great War (World War I) as the most professionally impressive conscript force in the world. This fascinating book by Donald Fosten and Robert Marrion explores in great detail the organization, tactics, weapons, uniforms, equipment and origins of this army that fought in World War I from its start in 1914 to their ultimate defeat in 1918. Numerous contemporary photographs serve to illustrate this engaging and informative text which covers such wide-ranging topics as conscription, artillery and the army veterinary service. Eight full page colour plates by military artist Gerry Embleton, together with extensive commentaries provide a wealth of information concerning the uniforms and equipment of troops from a variety of services.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Packed with specially commissioned artwork, maps and diagrams, the Men-at-Arms series is an unrivalled illustrated reference on the history, organisation, uniforms and equipment of the world's military forces, past and present.

About the Author

Donald S V Fosten was born in London in 1924, the son of a master military embroiderer and a Court Embroidress. He worked as a student with the Herald Painter at the College of Arms before wartime army service which was initially spent with the Welch Regiment in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Austria and Germany. For many years a leading researcher and author on uniform history, he produced, with his brother Bryan Fosten, a number of books and many articles. He was a President of the British Model Soldier Society BMSS and a leading member of the Society for Army Historical Research. Robert Marrion is an expert on the forces of World War I. He has co-authored various titles for Osprey's Men-at-Arms series on this subject.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (July 27, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 085045283X
• ISBN-13: 978-0850452839
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.1 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,260,111 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good overview, July 31, 2004

By 

Michael A Dorosh (Calgary, AB, CANADA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The German Army 1914-18 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

This is another good overview by MAA. The contents of this volume is broken into specific parts; firstly an introductory history, dealing with the unification of Germany and their involvement in World War One, which is well written. Next comes a numerical listing of German Army regiments, by type and nationality (Prussian, Saxon, etc.) but unfortunately not a detailed breakdown into higher level formations (which would have been hard to fit into a volume this small). Next are some notes on organization of the army and some facts and figures on manpower, types of units, etc. A piece on Conscription and Mobilization follows, with details of the German conscription system and training system, a sketch of the organization of German military districts, and finally a thumbnail glance at the various components of the German military - infantry, artillery (all the major types are described, with numbers of batteries given), assault detachments, cavalry, machine gun units, pioneers, air service, signals service, transport and communications service, medical and finally veterinary service. These thumbnails give an approximate idea of their duties, roles and numerical strength and give a good picture of First World War logistics. The photos in the text complement the information given, and are of a generally high standard.

Finally are the captions to the colour plates. Embleton is one of the best artists in the Osprey stable; clear and interesting figures are rendered. The final plate - featured on the cover - manages to convey without words the absolute horror and misery of life in the trenches through the effective placing of the dead men, the look of fatigue on the man who has just killed an Allied soldier with a now-blood-covered shovel, the look of urgency on the face of the NCO, and the tremendous explosion in the background. Perhaps the finest depiction of First World War combat ever rendered - quite a lot to say about a simple colour plate in a history primer.

Sidebars include tables of piping colours for uniforms, though these are incomplete in some cases - reference is made to Guards uniforms wearing piping in the full dress colour but don't say what these colours are, and which regiments wore them.

A detailed list of regiments would have been a nice addition had there been room to include it. There is a nice listing of ranks but no idea given of the corresponding responsibilities of men holding those ranks in the various types of unit - infantry company, artillery battery, cavalry squadron, etc. Very little is said of German tanks and the air service information is properly the subject of a seperate book and a bit of a waste of space.

Also no guide to uniform rank insignia, which would have complemented the rank information, which has text descriptions of the insignia but no corresponding picture, and only for enlisted men and not officers.

Overall a good intro but would have benefitted from being about twice as long and containing more complete info on all the topics raised. Another shortcoming is no detailed description of regiment, battalion, company, and platoon organization of the various arms.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book on this series, September 18, 2001

By 

"ussan" (Brazil) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The German Army 1914-18 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

Ok, the book is, as usual in Osprey's Men at Arms, a litlle to short, but this one is quite good for modelers, of course, and also for the beginner. It is a good start and quite comprehensive for this series.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Best for modelers, May 25, 2000

By 

Federico Kereki (Miami, Florida United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The German Army 1914-18 (Men-at-Arms) (Paperback)

If you are a modeler, this book is a great source on all details about german soldiers in WWI. (You could also add Osprey's "GERMAN STORMTROOPERS 1914-1918" for extra information).

The book has plenty of (black and white) photos as well as the usual Osprey center color plates, with complete explanations at the end. For historians, it is a bit too thin, but I believe the book is targeted for modelers.