The German Army Handbook, 1939-1945

by James Sidney Lucas

From the opening shots of World War II in Poland in September 1939, through the blitzkrieg to the fall of France and the Low Countries, the German Army was at the forefront of battle. It remained in the thick of the action right up until the last desperate shots were fired over the ruins of a crumbling Third Reich in May 1945. The German Army was at the cutting edge of 20th-century military technology. Before the emergence of the US Army as a force to be reckoned with later in World War II, the German Army was the most powerful, efficient and well-equipped fighting force in the world. This text takes a look at the German Army, as it origins in the post-Versailles Treaty era and its resurgence under the Nazi regime; training and organization during the war years; equipment, vehicles and weapons; uniforms, rank and insignia.

Genres: War, Military History

216 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 1999

About the author

Author and historian. Imperial War Museum, London, England, deputy head of department of photographs.

Mr. Lucas was a WWII veteran. He served with the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment, First Battalion, North Africa, infantryman, 1942; Queens' Own Royal West Surrey Regiment, Italy, 1943-44; Occupation Army, Austria, 1945; Foreign Office, Germany.

Most of James Lucas's professional life was associated with war. First, he served in the Queen's Own Royal Army as a British soldier in World War II, stationed in Africa, Italy, and later in Austria. In 1960 he joined the staff of the Imperial War Museum in London, eventually becoming the deputy head of the department of photographs. After retiring from this position, Lucas took up a third career, that of an author and historian. His favorite topic was World War II, a subject about which he became a respected authority—not only among scholars, but, through his work as an adviser on film and television productions about the war, among the general public as well. According to a London Times obituary, Lucas examined "almost every aspect of the Nazi war machine …combining technical information with first-hand testimony and so producing a body of work unequalled in its breadth. Having fought the Third Reich's best troops through North Africa and Italy, he knew their tenacity and resourcefulness."

Lucas's writing style was not considered typical of war histories. "Humour and enthusiasm, combined with rigorous attention to detail, were the hallmarks of his style," reported the Times obituary writer. Lucas was a prolific writer upon his topic of choice; and he covered many different aspects of the war, often concentrating on the German side of the conflicts.

As his Times obituarist declared, Lucas "saw himself as an archivist, searching for the ordinary men in the heat of battle, playing their part in the bigger picture." Lucas died on June 19, 2002, at the age of seventy-eight.

Reviews

[Robert Hepple · Rating 1 out of 5]

First published in 1998, 'German Army Handbook 1939-1945' is a is a brief look at the organisation and weapons of the WW2 German Army. The text contains basic details of the areas covered, and whilst it concentrates on the latter part of the war, some parts cover the early war and some are unclear about which part of the war they refer to. Whilst the text is brief, it contains many material inaccuracies as well as significant omissions. Many tables and charts are included covering such areas as organisational structure, rank insignia and awards. Over 150 photos are included, but these are a mixture of good and bad quality items - some of the images are badly retouched and most are poorly reproduced. The WW2 German Army is a massive subject, and whilst superficial coverage of the subject is not a bad thing as a primer for more detailed works, the quality issues are damning.