What Are You Reading?

John Ward "the Stuka Squadrons", Eagles of war series.

 

I just picked up the latest issue WWII History magazine and started with an article regarding the Royal Navy's operations in the Pacific during 1945.

[ 14. November 2004, 11:30 PM: Message edited by: Deep Web Diver ]

 

Nazi Terror by Eric A. Johnson. Very good.

 

Also The Holocaust by César Vidal.

 

I am so happy today. One of the areas that I read everything I can get is about the Manhattan Project and the atomic bombings. This past week on Veteran's Day I had the pleasure of meeting a gentleman who my grandfather had served with during the war in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy before he had lost his leg and was sent home while my grandfather continued on to southern France and Germany. Well this gentleman was also a childhood friend of Lt. Col. Fred Olivi who was the co-pilot of "Bockscar" the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki. From this wonderful gentleman I was able to obtain an autographed copy of Col. Olivi's book, "Decision at Nagasaki" which was published in 1999 and signed shortly before Col. Olivi passed away this past April.

 

That sounds like an excellent memento, Bill !

 

Just finished Kurt Herrman´s Dietl (1957).

Excellent, I say!

 

Got a first edition (less dustjacket) of The Memoires Of Field Marshall Kesselring, William Kimber, London, 1953, for a mere 10 euros...

BTW anyone interested in a first edition of Skorzeny's 'Geheimkommando'?

 

Stevin, I finally managed to finish The Third Reich A New Story by Michael Burleigh —read it by bits.

It is a very, very good read. It is not a conventional academic study of the Reich, nor as detailed and chronologically-ordered. It goes step by step, from aspect to aspect, tryig to form a sociological and phylosophical profile of x situation and builds a narrative, agreeable and human atmosphere. All his theories are just the general ideas showed in previous academic studies like those of Gellately and Kershaw.

I highly recommend it.

 

Gents anyone have a good read on the 1813 Wars of Liberation in Germany ? Though I would elve back into the Napoleonics a bit as winter is on it's way...

 

I was in Jena last summer....There was a Napoleonic battle close by there...

I really don't know much about these wars or any books. I only have a biography of a Dutch admiral in Napoleon's fleet...but alas, in Dutch...

 

Stevin how was the Dutch particpation anyway ? I think Napoleon had a special Dutch elite Lancer regiment if I am not mistaken as well as many ships in his combined Navy.. ?

cheers

 

Oeh...I have to look that one up... I think we had units on both sides, actually. The Dutch are strange like that

Will get back to you on this...

 

Erich...I think I got them....

The 14th Cuirassiers
and 2nd Dutch Belgian Carbineers

History of the association
The 'Napoleontische Cavalerie Vereniging' (Napoleonic Cavalry Association or NCV) was founded in 1992 with the objective to study the Dutch cavalry of the Napoleonic era and to enable riders to re-live aspects of military mounted life of that period.

The NCV as an equestrian association now reconstitutes two Dutch cavalry regiments: the 14th Regiment of Cuirassiers, Dutchmen in French service (1810 – 1814), and the 2nd Regiment of Carbineers, one of the three heavy cavalry regiments in the Netherlands army that fought for the Allies at Waterloo (1815). Members of the NCV ride according to historical regulations and aim for museum quality outfit and equipment. After thorough research the NCV has been able to compose a well-balanced, historically correct attire.

Regimental history
The 14th Cuirassiers (14ième Régiment de Cuirassiers)
In 1810 Napoleon decided to incorporate the satellite Kingdom of Holland (1806 – 1810) into the French Empire. The regiments of the Dutch army were completely integrated into the French army and given a new number and uniforms. Thus, the Dutch 2nd Regiment of Cuirassiers, which had distinguished itself in the battles of Friedland and Stralsund, became the 14th Regiment of Cuirassiers in the Grande Armée. At the time still in their white uniforms with light blue facings,. the uniform would change into dark blue with wine lees-coloured facings ('lie de vin') in 1812.


Cuirassiers hiding for snowstorm in Russia, 1812
They took part in the 1812 Russian campaign as part of the Heavy Cavalry Division under General Doumerc which in its turn belonged to Marshal Oudinot's II Corps. Commanding the 14th was Colonel Albert Dominicus Trip. This II Corps, which formed the left wing of Napoleon's army together with VI and IX Corps ultimately reached positions at Duna and Drissa, near Polotsk. The 14th Cuirassiers took part in the fighting around Polotsk and later joined the army on its retreat to the Berezina. At the Berezina they charged the Russian cavalry in an attempt to buy precious time for what was left of the Grande Armée's men and horses who tried to cross the river.

During the further retreat to France, the 14th barely survived. In the next year, the regiment was replenished with Dutch and French recruits, but it never reached its original strength again. The 14th Cuirassiers, now 2 squadrons strong, were now part of the 1st Brigade under General D'Audenarde of Doumerc's 3rd Heavy Cavalry Division.

In the great clash around Leipzig, on 16th October 1813 all four cuirassier divisions of Latour-Maubourg's 1st Corps with Murat at their head made a massive charge against Pahlen's cavalry, between Liebertwolkwitz and Wachau. The charge was succesful in that respect that a battery of 26 guns was taken, but it could not be pursued to the full because the terrain provided too many obstacles. When retreating the cuirassiers had to fend off the light cavalry of the Russian Guard which attacked on their flank.

After the ordeals of 1812 and 1813 the regiment was not able to able to move to the field in the 1814 campaign. This was mainly caused by the transition of power in the Low Countries to the Allied Prince of Orange in December 1813. The surviving native Dutch in the 14th were confined to their barracks, designated to be demobilised. The French cuirassiers in the 14th will probably have served in other cuirassiers regiments in 1814. In the Spring of 1814 what was left of the 14th was incorporated in the 12th Cuirassiers and the regiment was formally disbanded.

The 2nd Belgian Carabiniers (2ième Régiment de Carabiniers)

Carabinier
In 1814, the newly founded Kingdom of the Netherlands was rapidly building up its army in order to be able to defend the sovereignty of the country. At the Congress of Vienna, the allied powers decided that they needed a strong buffer state at France's northern borders, so the erstwhile Austrian Netherlands (currently Belgium) were to be amalgamated with the former Kingdom of Holland into the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

In the fall of 1814, preparations were made to raise new regiments in all parts of the country, also in what were now named the Southern Netherlands. In Brussels the 2nd (Southern Netherlands) Carbineers were formed as one of the three heavy cavalry regiments destined to become cuirassiers. Many of the veterans of the 14th Cuirassiers and other regiments such as the 27th Chasseur à Cheval joined this new regiment.

Most of the officers were highly experienced and a substantial number of them had been awarded the Légion d'Honneur during their service in the Grande Armée. Commanding the regiment was Jean-Baptiste de Bruijn. During the 1815 campaign the 2nd Carbineers were part of the Heavy Cavalry Brigade under the command of General Trip, who had led the 14th Cuirassiers in the past. The other heavy cavalry regiments were the 1st and 3rd (Dutch) Carbineers. Just like the British cavalry the Carbineers didn't take part in the battle of Quatre-Bras, but were in time to join Wellington's army as it took up positions on the heights of Mont St Jean., near the village of Waterloo.

The Carbineers remained in the centre during the entire battle. The 2nd Carbineers are known to have taken part in at least three charges upon the French heavy cavalry. At 16:00 hours when the French massive cavalry charge against the allied centre took place. In this countercharge Trips' heavy brigade succeeded in throwing the French off the ridge. At about 18:00 hours when the French Cavalry charges became weaker and allowed the heavily pressed allied cavalry to adopt once again a more offensive role. And finally at about 20:00 hours when the whole allied line advanced. Losses were quite heavy and amounted to about a third of the original strength.


source; http://www.kurassiers.nl/ This is a Dutch Napoleonic Cavalry reencatment group. Site is in English.

 

whoa friend impressive and quick !! I'll have to make a copy of this and post it in my small data files on Napoleonics. Actually I found the Guard had two regiments of elite Lancers.

Polish with blue uniforms and red facings.

Dutch with red uniforms and blue facings.

quite sharp looking

 

Latest on my table is George Forty's 'The Fall of France'

Erich - The Dutch Lancers were originally a regiment of Dutch Hussars.

 

Just bought:

S Flower´s "A hell of a bomb" on Barnes Wallis´ bombs and what they did to Tirpitz and the U-boat pens...(2002)

A Finnish translation ( finally here )on Wilhelm Johnen´s 1956 book "Duell under den Sternen" named "Night fighter pilot".

 

Congratulations on getting Flowers' book, Kai !

It's a great piece of research and dispels many questions and myths about the 'big bomb' raids. A real collector's item of the future.....

 

The Forgotten Conscript; a history of the Bevin Boys by R. Warwick Taylor.
This guy is the former secretary of the Bevin Boy Association, formed by all the British men who were unlucky enough to get called up and sent down the pit, rather than to the front.
They got no thanks, no medals, and no guaranteed jobs on demob; in fact, when they asked about jobs the standard reply was "you've got one".
The book records their trials, tribulations and eventual repatriation to the armed forces just before the war's end.
From the industrial archaeology viewpoint, the book contains a complete list of all types of mines operational in Britain in 1945. The list is amazing in its size.

 

Just finished Helmut Langerbein´s "Hitler´s Death squads" dealing alot with the profile of the commanders of the Einsatzgruppen.Quite interesting if you want to know more on them.

Starting the Flowers´book ( on Wallis´bombs) and "FIRST THE MEUSE, THEN ANTWERP" on Skorzeny's Panzer-brigade 150 during the Ardennes Offensive by Michael Schadewitz.Should be great reading!