Customer Reviews

Panzer Battles : A Study of the Employment of Armor in the Second World War

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Panzer Battles" is maybe THE indispensible tactical and strategic memior of the Second World War. The author, Maj. General F.W. von Mellenthin, does not have the fame of a Guderian or von Manstein, the colorful personal experiences of a von Luck, or the resources of a Patton (whose memoiors were written during, rather than after, the war); what he does have is a keen understanding of how modern warfare evolved during WWII and how its lessons can and should be applied -- not only in war itself, but (and I am reading a bit into this, but bear with me) in business and in life.

Some cautions. Firstly -- "Panzer Battles" is very technical and is not a "hot lead and cold steel" memior, nor does it have the colorful stories that von Luck's "Panzer Commander." Personal experiences are kept to an absolute minimum and von Mellenthin seldom pulls back to give us a 'God eye' view of the war (he explains that on direct order of Hitler, field commanders and even the General Staff officers assigned to them were kept totally in the dark about the war as a whole, and only permitted to know that information which related to their own theater of operations). His book is a study of tank warfare as he experienced it as a staff officer in North Africa, Soviet Russia, and the Western Front, and does not pretend to be a historical overview, but only a sober analysis of his own expereinces. Secondly, it is almost entirely devoid of sentiment, emotion, prejudice, or favoritism -- Mellenthin writes in a cool-blooded, analytic vein, as if describing chess matches in a newspaper. People looking for vivid discriptions of combat, or even the small personal experiences that make war memiors so interesting, will be disappointed and should look elsewhere.

Now -- the author, the book, its message, and its impact. "Panzer Battles" was written by a general staff officer who started the war as a captain and finished it as a major general. Along the way he served in Poland in 1939, France in 1940 and again in 1944, North Africa in 1941 - 1942, Russia in 1943 - 1944, commanded the 9th Panzer division in the battle of the Bulge and finished the war as chief of staff to the German army group trapped in the Ruhr, whose surrender more or less ended active fighting on the Western Front in 1945. He had intimate knowledge of generals like Model, Rommel, von Manstein, and Balck (who he considers the most underrated general of the war), access to many of their personal papers, and even met Hitler. The book follows his career from theater to theater, and recounts the many battles, but is most interesting when it discusses how the Germans achieved such amazing successes with am army that was usually outnumbered and outgunned, sometimes by odds of as much as 5 - 1. Mellenthin makes a convincing case that as late as 1944, the Germans could have avoided defeat on the Russian front had they been allowed to use the mobile tactics that they had invented and perfected, and whose worth they proved over and over
again during the war, rather than sticking by Hitler's inevitable 'hold or die' orders, which caused one disaster after another. He backs up this claim with numerous examples of small, mobile German forces destroying Soviet armies many times their size; and on the other hand points to such follies as the disasterous Battle of White Russia in July, 1944 (where Hitker issued yet another 'stand or die' order) as proof that "war is a science and one cannot disregard its principles with impunity."

In addition to his ridicule of Hitler, Mellenthin also offers some rather pointed insight on the mentality of the Russian soldier and his leaders. His language is such that some modern readers will be offended, but his viewpoint was shaped not merely by Nazism (for which he clearly had little enthusiasm) but by culture shock. Mellenthin descended from an ancient, petty-noble Prussian military family that viewed war as a gentleman's pursuit, to be fought by dashing professionals on a field of honor: the cold-blooded tactics of the Soviet Command, which employed penal battalions, human-wave assaults, and forcible conscription of children and old people (who were sometimes thrown into battle without weapons), shocked and appalled him (he makes passing mention of German crimes against the Soviet population, but doesn't delve deeply into the matter). Like most Germans of this period, Nazis or no, Mellenthin viewed the Slav as an Asian, rather than a European, and seemed to regard them as slightly less than human. His comments in this regard are an interesting reflection of the times, and must be taken in that context.

In closing, "Panzer Battles" can be taken as a simple military thesis, or broadened to show the value of felixibility, quick-thinking, and personal initiative in other aspects of the human condition. Either way, it is worth buying.

A very good book covering World War 2 from the perspective of a German General Staff Officer. Especially interesting is Part 2 about the war in the Western Desert. Von Mellenthin describes Rommel's leadership methods, the reasons for victories and defeats. In Part 3 he writes about the Russian theatre, the skills of Generals like Manstein or Balck, who takes the author with him as his Chief of Staff from Corps to Army level in Russia and to Army Group G in the Western Front. I can highly recommend Panzerbattles not only for readers of military history but also for soldiers who want to know more about lessons learned in World War 2.

The author does an excellent job in recounting the panzer battles against the British in North Africa, against the Soviets in Southern Russia, and against the Americans in France and Germany. Von Mellenthin's personal account of the strategic and operational level planning are excellent. His clear precise writing and the many maps make this a valuable resource for military historians. The author's analysis of panzer tactics and the evolution of the same is excellent. He presents overwhelming evidence that reinforces the perception that on the tactical and operational level the Germans were geniuses; however, Hitler was a strategic imbecile.

Panzer Battles is a must have for those interested in the fighting in North Africa and the Eastern Front. Major General von Mellenthin provides an extremely knowledgeable account of the divisional level fighting before El Alamein and during and after Stalingrad. Of particular interest are his accounts of the 4th Panzer Army's attempt to rescue the 6th Army at Stalingrad and the 4th's actions near Belgorod during operation Citadelle. The only flaws this book has are von Mellenthin's tendency to blame Hitler for any setbacks and his comments on his Russian opponents which lead one to beleive that von Mellenthin had little problem with Hitler's "lebensraum" policies. These minor details notwithstanding, this is a very good book well worth a read.

This book is an invaluable work in understanding the complexities of warfare. Others have commented on a few possible inaccuracies. While I have not looked into these complaints, there can be no doubt that this book is doubly effective, first as one of the few comprehensive accounts of armored warfare in WWII told from the German Staff Officer's perspective, and second as an excellent guide in understanding the complexities and necessities of waging mechanized war on a large scale.

V. Mellenthin provides dozens of keen insights into the art and science of warfare. Though his comments concerning Rommel and the African Campaign are supposedly the centerpiece of Panzer Battles, I would argue that the most interesting and instructive parts of the book deal with the years 1942-1944 in the Soviet Union while he served with and under Gen. Balck, a less known but superb officer of the War.

Regardless of what theatre of the war in Europe you are interested in, you can't go wrong with this terrific book. So thick are the lessons and so fascinating is the narrative that I have come back to read this book again and again. Don't miss out on it.

Although I could only give a three star rating, I think it really deserves a 3 and a half. That said...

This is not an easy book to read. If you are not familiar with military terms, good luck with this one. Even after working in a division level staff, I had to re-read some passages. That being said, as with all military reports, it's a little dry. For those with military experience, it's kind of like reading manuals; a bit boring, but filled with useful information.

As a book that covers large unit actions, the decision making processes of some of Germany's brightest Generals, and more than a few disparaging remarks against the OKW/OKH, this book doesn't miss. In that vein, it provides a look at somebody who was behind the scenes at the German army's most pivotal campaigns, even if he is a little free with his glowing reviews of the Generals he worked for.

If your looking for a book that covers tank on tank battles, and conversations with individual soldiers, you may want to pass on this book. A better book that recounts small unit actions is Panzer Commander by von Luck, which covers almost the same ground, but reads like someone sharing old war stories.

I would reccomend this book to anyone interested in WW II history, with an emphasis on the grand scale. Bottom line, a good book, if a little slow.

Though not as great a work as Mansteins memoirs "Lost Victories" Mellenthin's account of his experiences in WWII may be one of the greatests combinations of military theory and history ever produced. At the age of 20 I have already read this book three times and hope to read it again soon. I would recomend it to anyone who is intrested, especialy those new to the field of military theory and tactics. This is truly a great work.

This book belongs to the classic literature of World War II, as von Mellenthin took part in some of the most exciting and hard fought campaigns and served under great panzer leaders like Rommel, Balck and Manteuffel in the original triumphs of blitzkrieg and also in the last desperate defensive battles. Be careful though which edition of the book you will choose because that of the Arcadia Publishing (ISBN 0752420216) has no maps at all (although it contains numerous black and white photos) thus it is very difficult for the reader to follow the action. I think that the best edition so far is the hardcover published recently by Konecky & Konecky (ISBN 1568525788) which has all the necessary maps of the various campaigns. And they are many, indeed!

I actually read this book BEFORE the first Gulf War, and when, during operation Desert Shield, a camera crew showed this book sitting on General Schwartzkopf's nightstand I knew immediately what Africa Korps operation Schwartzkopf was going to try to repeat in the coming Desert Storm, -- namely, the battle of the Gazala line, only instead of a dust storm to cover the shift of his tanks to the outer flank in the desert, he would use the airforce to blind his opponents. And sure enough...

Panzer Battles is a good buy but not a must read if your not a "North Africa freek". The best part of the book is when vom Mellenthin describes his accounts in North Africa. He also gives a ballanced view of the pros and cons on working with Ervin Rommel as a Commander. His accounts on the eastern and western front somewhat deteriorates in quality as he tries to describe situations that he only had brief personal experiences of. All in all the book is a nice read.