This technical and operational history is the definitive guide to the legendary Panzerwaffe, from its very infancy to the days when it made Europe its playground at the height of Nazi German power. With rare and revealing combat reports, along with photographs sourced from previously unseen private and archival collections, it uncovers the technical and operational stories of the formidable German war machine in the early years of World War II.
From its origins as a lumbering and ponderous experiment in World War I, armoured warfare was transformed by the German Army into something that could decide the outcome of conflicts. This was down to no mere technical advantage, but more to the development of a combined force with its own doctrine, organization and tactics that would prove supremely effective on the battlefield of the early years of World War II – the Panzerwaffe.
This is the first of a two-part study detailing the development of Germany's armoured force from the very earliest days of its development in the years immediately following World War I, through to the heady years of German advance from 1939 to 1942.
Using contemporary combat reports and other operational documents, it examines the evolution and performance of the Panzerwaffe as it was first blooded in Poland before the culmination of the concept in the Blitzkrieg campaigns of 1940. It will look in detail at the war in the east, where panzers faced their greatest challenge yet.
Taken from the inside of the book's dustcover.
Chapter10: Sonnenblume – A war of logistics?
The text in the book is well written and extremely detailed. The contents portion where I listed the contents of the book is accurate as to what is discussed. However the contents list does not prepare you for the wealth of information provided. Thomas Anderson goes into great detail in regards to Germany's armor program from its initial development to its indoctrination and experiences in combat from the years of 1939 to 1942. I was very impressed with the amount of details provided in all aspects of Germany's armor program. One can refer to the Information Charts portion of my review too view the many aspects of the Panzerwaffe that Anderson details. Well detailed information is provided on the technical data of various types of armor, structures of light and medium panzer companies, combat losses and strengths of the Panzerwaffe at various time frames, and enemy tank strengths just to name a small portion of the information provided. Anyone interested in World War II German armor and its history will find this book very informative and interesting. As I read through the text I didn't notice any spelling or grammatical errors throughout the book. Grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. I feel that if the text is well written then it shows that the author has taken the time to be a professional with their writing.
There are a total of 263 black and white photographs shown throughout the book, not counting the photographs on the book's dustcover. There are no color photographs featured in this volume. In addition to German armor the photographs range in subjects such as uniforms, small arms, soft-skinned vehicles, bunkers, important individuals, captured armor and other such subjects in nice detail. The majority of the photographs are nice, clear, centered and focused images and are of a good quality. I haven't seen a majority of the featured photographs before, if not all of them, and I was pleased with this. I definitely consider that a bonus as it is nice to have a reference book that contains several lesser known photographs as opposed to the same old over used photographs that many books tend to contain. The photographs will prove to be valuable to the scale military modeler as well as anyone interested in World War II German armor.
-	Establishment of the Kampwagen truppe – Mg and 2cm armed PzKpfw, 3.7cm armed PzKpfw, 7.5cm armed PzKpfw.
The captions are well written and are very detailed and explain the accompanying photographs in great detail eliminating any doubt as to what is shown and taking place in the photograph or illustration. The captions go into very specific detail as to specific military units, specific individuals, dates and locations, and other such pertinent information. As I read through the captions I didn't notice any spelling or grammatical errors. As I stated before, grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. The captions themselves are basically miniature history lessons as they detailed what is happening, or happened, in the photographs and give specific detail as to the who, what, when, why and where. I was very impressed by Thomas Anderson's captions as they are very helpful to the reader due to their detailed content as opposed to other captions I have seen that are very brief and lack detail.
All in all I am impressed with the book. This is a very nice book that contains many nice photographs, well detailed captions and an excellent informative and educational text. I would have no hesitation to add other Osprey Publications ltd titles to my personal library nor would I hesitate to recommend this book to others as it will be a welcome addition to one's personal military reference library. The scale modeler as well as anyone interested in World War II German armor will find this volume a useful reference source.
Verdict: An excellent book that is well researched and details the history of the Panzerwaffe during the years of 1939 through 1942 in great detail.