The Wehrmacht from the point of view of a common soldier

[Scherf]

Can add "The Fogotten Soldier" by Guy Sajer to the list.

Here is a reading list for anyone who wants to read about the common German soldier or the views Officers.

In Deadly combat, by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann.

Blood in The Show, by Gunter K. Koschorrek

Panzer Leader, by Gen. Heinz Guderian. Also Achtung-Panzer by Guderian. It shows how the panzer units were formed before WWII.

Panzer Commander, by Col. Hans Von Luck (one of my favorites)

Soldat, by Siegfied knappe

Lost victories, by Field Marshal Erich Von Manstein

The Forgotten, soldier by Guy Sajer.

The First and the last, by Gen Adolf Galland

The Blond Knight of Germany, by Col. Raymond F. Toliver

Strategy for Defeat The Luftwaffe 1933-1945, by Williamson Murry (A dry read but great incite on why the German air force lost the war) 

These are just a few books I have and I hope it will help other finds some very good reading on the Wehrmacht & Luftwaffe. Thanks for posting the pictures of the German soldiers.

[Oldman731]

Whoa ... that guy stuck between the top of the tank tread and the the rest of the tank is kinda eerie.

The guy who burned to death trying to get out of his tank will stick with me for a long while.

- oldman

[RngFndr]

Try, "The Blood Soaked Soil" By Gordon Williamson..
A collection of battle stories by Waffen SS men, covering all their Campaigns..

 

Here is a reading list for anyone who wants to read about the common German soldier or the views Officers.

In Deadly combat, by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann.

Blood in The Show, by Gunter K. Koschorrek

Panzer Leader, by Gen. Heinz Guderian. Also Achtung-Panzer by Guderian. It shows how the panzer units were formed before WWII.

Panzer Commander, by Col. Hans Von Luck (one of my favorites)

Soldat, by Siegfied knappe

Lost victories, by Field Marshal Erich Von Manstein

The Forgotten, soldier by Guy Sajer.

The First and the last, by Gen Adolf Galland

The Blond Knight of Germany, by Col. Raymond F. Toliver

Strategy for Defeat The Luftwaffe 1933-1945, by Williamson Murry (A dry read but great incite on why the German air force lost the war) 

These are just a few books I have and I hope it will help other finds some very good reading on the Wehrmacht & Luftwaffe. Thanks for posting the pictures of the German soldiers.

[Gman]

There was a couple of pics of German's using captures Russian PPSH sub machine guns.  I've read in many places that both sides admired the others sub guns of the time, the Russians using the MP38/40's they would capture, and the German's using the Ppsh drum fed sub guns they in turn captured.  I guess it was true.

[Nypsy]

Here is a reading list for anyone who wants to read about the common German soldier or the views Officers.

In Deadly combat, by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann.

Blood in The Show, by Gunter K. Koschorrek

Panzer Leader, by Gen. Heinz Guderian. Also Achtung-Panzer by Guderian. It shows how the panzer units were formed before WWII.

Panzer Commander, by Col. Hans Von Luck (one of my favorites)

Soldat, by Siegfied knappe

Lost victories, by Field Marshal Erich Von Manstein

The Forgotten, soldier by Guy Sajer.

The First and the last, by Gen Adolf Galland

The Blond Knight of Germany, by Col. Raymond F. Toliver

Strategy for Defeat The Luftwaffe 1933-1945, by Williamson Murry (A dry read but great incite on why the German air force lost the war) 

These are just a few books I have and I hope it will help other finds some very good reading on the Wehrmacht & Luftwaffe. Thanks for posting the pictures of the German soldiers.

Thanks for that list! 

[SmokinLoon]

There was a couple of pics of German's using captures Russian PPSH sub machine guns.  I've read in many places that both sides admired the others sub guns of the time, the Russians using the MP38/40's they would capture, and the German's using the Ppsh drum fed sub guns they in turn captured.  I guess it was true.

Indeed.  Much of it had to do with supply lines.  When the Germans overran the Soviets early on they also outran their own supply line.  They were able to stockpile Soviet arms, especially the SMG's and ammo, and once the Germans were on the defensive they readily turned to those stockpiles.  Similar things happened to the Soviets once the tables were turned, but more so it was the fact that there were more soldiers than equipment and the Soviet soldiers used anything they could grab including captured German arms.

The Germans learned early on the value of sustained automatic small arms fire.  There are accounts of entire German "rifle" squads ditching their k98's and their 60-100 rifle rounds for any of the various Soviet SMG's and loading up on hundreds of SMG rounds.  I'd be willing to bet that at the war's end what German infantry was left was armed at least %50 with Soviet SMG's, especially SS units where the rules and regulations of the Wehrmacht didn't apply.  Some of that had to due with the more urban settings, but not all of it.         

[GScholz]

While the Germans did capture a huge amount of Soviet weapons during Barbarossa the PPSh was not one of them. Only a few hundred had been made by the end of 1941. The reason the Germans used the PPSh whenever they got their hands on it was because it was a superb weapon; perhaps the best SMG of the war. In essence it was a more producible version of the Finnish Suomi KP-31; a weapon that played a large part in the Finnish victory over the Soviets in the Winter War of 1939.

The Finns would lure the Russians into forested areas and then do this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxHeCyqbHk8

[Gman]

It could easily have been a PPD sub gun in the picture, it's in the last 10 pics or so of the 150 in that album, it looks like a German Officer with a soft hat, and it's slung on his back muzzle down, so it's difficult to see which type it is.  It is definitely a Soviet sub gun with a drum magazine however, with the vent shielding around the barrel and such.  I know that early in the war the PPd was far more prevalent than the PPsh, and was in service long before it.  I just can't tell from the picture which it is.  The PPd, like the Finnish sub, was actually better built than the PPsh, but because of this was also more difficult to mass produce as well.  Both the PPd and PPsh performed very similarly, with around 1000 rpm cyclic rates, and firing from open bolts.  The PPd was a select fire weapon too, and was apparently quite accurate out to 150 meters or so.

If those pics are from the early 1941 time period during the Barbarossa time period prior to the winter coming, that pic of the PPd is fairly rare, as under 100k of the PPd were ever produced, while the PPsh I've seen numbers estimated as high as 10 million being made, with most historians agreeing that 5 million is the likely number.  Pew Pew Pew!

[GScholz]

It's a PPSh, no doubt.