Valhalla's Warriors: A History of the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front 1941-1945 [Paperback]

Terry Goldsworthy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 25, 2007

They were the soldiers sworn by an oath of loyalty to follow Hitler into a maelstrom of genocidal barbarity. They were the elite of the German military in World War Two. They were the Waffen-SS. On June 22, 1941, before dawn, German troops invaded Russia. The Barbarossa campaign included some of the greatest episodes in military history: it also allowed Hitler's ideological warriors, the Waffen-SS, to give full vent to their ideological way of war. It provided the killing ground in which some of the worst atrocities seen by humanity were committed. In Valhalla's Warriors, author Dr. Terry Goldsworthy, meticulously chronicles what has become one of the most famous fighting elites in World War Two. Discovering the truths behind the legend by drawing on hundreds of sources - including first hand accounts of Waffen-SS veterans - and spanning five years of research Dr. Goldsworthy leads the reader through the events that occurred on the Eastern Front, both on the front lines and behind. This book is an exploration of the Waffen-SS, and by necessity of evil. The Waffen-SS are commonly regarded as the elite of Germany's armed forces during World War II. They gained much of this reputation whilst fighting on the Eastern Front in Russia. Germany's war against the Soviet Union in World War II, in particular the role of the Waffen-SS forms much of the subject matter of this book. The death and destruction during this conflict would result not just from military operations, but also from the systematic killing and abuse that the Waffen-SS directed against Jews, Communists and ordinary citizens. This book provides a clear, concise history of the Waffen-SS campaign of conquest and genocide in Russia by looking at the actions both on and behind the front lines. By drawing on the best of military and Holocaust scholarship, this book dispels the myths that have distorted the role of the Waffen-SS, in both the military operations themselves and the unthinkable crimes that were part of them. The conventional wisdom that the Waffen-SS in World War II fought a relatively clean fight, unsullied by the atrocities committed by the Nazis, is challenged-and largely demolished. Focusing on the Eastern Front, the book contends that the Nazi vision of a racial-ideological death struggle against Slavic hordes and their Jewish-Bolshevik commissars resonated with soldiers of the Waffen-SS, steeped in traditional anti-Semitic and racist dogmas. In doing so this book clearly shows that the Waffen-SS was an organisation that committed widespread atrocities, and were truly soldiers of evil. Dr. Terry Goldsworthy is a Detective Senior Sergeant with over 23 years policing experience in Australia. He specialises in the investigation and management of homicides, rapes, armed robberies and other serious crimes as well as general crime. Dr. Goldsworthy has completed a Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Laws, Advanced Diploma of Investigative Practice and a Diploma of Policing. As a result of his law studies Dr. Goldsworthy was admitted to the bar in the Queensland and Federal Courts as a barrister in 1999. Dr. Goldsworthy then completed a Master of Criminology at Bond University. He later undertook his PhD at Bond University focusing on the concept of evil and its relevance from a criminological and sociological viewpoint. In particular Dr. Goldsworthy looked at the link between evil and armed conflicts using the Waffen-SS as a case study. Dr. Goldsworthy has had a number of journal articles published in journals such as the Australian Police Journal and also the Journal of Behavioural Profiling. He has also contributed a chapter to the tertiary textbook, Serial Crime, published by Academic Press.

Product Details

• Paperback: 284 pages
• Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing, LLC (October 25, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1598584456
• ISBN-13: 978-1598584455
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,785,011 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars valhalla's warriors "a history of the waffen ss on the eastern front 1941-1945", February 8, 2008

By 

Peter A. Edney - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Valhalla's Warriors: A History of the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front 1941-1945 (Paperback)

I was very disappointed with this book given the previous positive reviews. I found the book subjective and appeared to be largely based on secondary sources which have been selectively used to try and support the author's core argument which at times, I found tenuous. The Waffen SS is a very complex area of research which I believe requires far more use of primary source material and a balanced assessment of the facts. Furthermore, I believe that you cannot view the Waffen SS in isolation and one needs to broaden the area of investigation and examine the other branches of the German armed forces (and allies especially on the Eastern Front) in order to place the debate into proper context. This book I'm afraid, fails in all these areas.

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save your money! You can do better!, March 27, 2009

By 

Mr. Ap Lewis (UK) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Valhalla's Warriors: A History of the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front 1941-1945 (Paperback)

Valhalla's Warriors: A brief overview of the SS from its foundation till fall. Asks the Question; (From what I remember) "were the SS as a whole evil or just misunderstood"? To anyone who's reads many books about the SS, Waffen SS, or whatever part of the Organisation; the conclusion was a god awful nightmare. Yes; many SS battled beyond comparison to their counterparts and for that their early victories and later defences where done with skill, bravery, and tactics far exceeding their enemies! However, it was all for a lost cause because what they represented ie the future they wanted; was a truly evil!

A lot of text is wasted weighing up the different points of view: a waste of text space in my opinion.

Looking for gripping first person accounts? Your find more online, or try the BBC's Auschwitz.

Looking for detailed Battle Campaign History of the Waffen SS? Search the Stackpole Military History books.

Looking for info/accounts about the role of the SS, Waffen SS, Werhmacht, etc in the extermination process in the East? Try Ordinary Men, or Masters of Death.

Anyhow this book is only a brief overview of the SS, and not a special interest book, for those looking for unique accounts, sources, etc.

As for those who are interesting in such things you would find more then what you need online.

This is a short book; written as if it were A thesis.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed..., June 9, 2011

By 

P. Roman "saratoga" (Ukraine) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Valhalla's Warriors: A History of the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front 1941-1945. (Hardcover)

This book is the vision of Waffen-SS by PhD T. Goldsworthy. The author used many sources and research books and made good references. But this book contains a lot of mistakes. At first, some of references in this book are mistakenly, e.g. on the pages 36-37 author quoted words of ss-hstuf M. Klein and made references to G. Williamson's book "Loyalty is my Honor". But, in the book of Williamson these words are said by other member of Waffen-SS, not Klein. Also, the author did not critically analyze many sources though some of them are very dubious (e.g. - Sol Littman's book). He described war atrocities of LSSAH in Taganrog 1941 (p.77), but did not mention that C. Messenger in his biography of Sepp Dietrich (this book is in the list of the Literature Goldsworthy's book) argued this case as fake.

Next example - the author wrote 14th SS Galichina Division fought in Yugoslavia with partisans and made references to G. Lepre's book. But, when we open Lepre's book on the mentioned page (p.222), we do not see any mention of Galichina division, only SS Handshar division.

All these mistakes give this book small worth even for beginners.