PDF Hitler Volkssturm The Nazi Militia and the Fall of Germany 19441945 Modern War Studies eBook David K Yelton
Download As PDF : Hitler Volkssturm The Nazi Militia and the Fall of Germany 19441945 Modern War Studies eBook David K Yelton
Pressed by advancing enemy armies on both fronts, Adolf Hitler played his final card in World War II by mobilizing all German civilian males between sixteen and sixty and indoctrinating them for a final apocalyptic defense of the Reich. The Volkssturm, created as much to boost national morale as to bolster sagging defenses, has been viewed as a negligible factor in the war. David Yelton counters that view with new insights into why the German high command sought this means to prolong an unwinnable war-and why so many civilians chose to fight to the bitter end.
Hitler's Volkssturm is the only book in English—and the most comprehensive in any language—on the German militia, illuminating its role and contributions to the Nazi war effort and shedding new light on the last days of the Third Reich. It examines the militia's strategic purpose, organization, training, and combat performance on both war fronts and explores factors contributing to its sporadic tactical successes and its overall failure.
Yelton reveals why the Nazi leadership chose to assemble such last-ditch units rather than negotiating for peace and also why civilians in these units were more than willing to serve. The Volkssturm was, in fact, part of a broader, ideologically based strategy intended to turn the tide of the war. Yelton tracks the impact of this ideology on Nazi decision-making throughout the war's final year and illustrates how ideological assumptions were often a major reason for the failure of Nazi policies and strategies.
In an unprecedented examination of the Volkssturm at the local level, Yelton also shows the negative impact of national power struggles and demonstrates how the Wehrmacht, industry, and public opinion exerted influence on the militia in ways often contrary to its official objectives. His extensive and insightful analysis illuminates German mobilization priorities, reveals that a substantial number of its commanders had experience in both the military and the Nazi Party, and clarifies the impact of Volkssturm mobilizations on the overall German war economy.
Pathbreaking in both scope and depth, Hitler's Volkssturm stresses the factional lines and conflicting centers of power within the Nazi bureaucracy, clarifies policy formulation and implementation in the late Third Reich, and assesses the shifting power relationships among various groups and individuals. Ultimately, it gives us a more complete portrait of the Third Reich during the final phase of a devastating war and conveys important lessons about the use of militia forces in modern warfare.
PDF Hitler Volkssturm The Nazi Militia and the Fall of Germany 19441945 Modern War Studies eBook David K Yelton
"We have all seen the images of elderly gentlemen and young boys shouldering Panzerfausts and antiquated rifles. Such photos speak to the futility of the Nazi cause as the Second World War in Europe came to a rapid close. The Volkssturm, a last-ditch response was nicknamed the Krüppelgarde ('cripple-guard') or HJ-Spätlese ('late-vintage Hitler Youth'). Its members could not be termed fanatical, if anything, they wanted nothing more than to surrender and get on with defeat and reconstruction having recognized a lost cause.
The individual accounts of forced participation and ultimate capitulation are engrossing but ultimately sad. This is by far the best account of the Volkssturm's short service and ranks up there in terms of fascination along with the Hitler Youth and the Werewolves. All three groups represent examples of the Nazis power of propaganda rather than truly effective fighting forces."
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Hitler Volkssturm The Nazi Militia and the Fall of Germany 19441945 Modern War Studies eBook David K Yelton Reviews :
Hitler Volkssturm The Nazi Militia and the Fall of Germany 19441945 Modern War Studies eBook David K Yelton Reviews
- We have all seen the images of elderly gentlemen and young boys shouldering Panzerfausts and antiquated rifles. Such photos speak to the futility of the Nazi cause as the Second World War in Europe came to a rapid close. The Volkssturm, a last-ditch response was nicknamed the Krüppelgarde ('cripple-guard') or HJ-Spätlese ('late-vintage Hitler Youth'). Its members could not be termed fanatical, if anything, they wanted nothing more than to surrender and get on with defeat and reconstruction having recognized a lost cause.
The individual accounts of forced participation and ultimate capitulation are engrossing but ultimately sad. This is by far the best account of the Volkssturm's short service and ranks up there in terms of fascination along with the Hitler Youth and the Werewolves. All three groups represent examples of the Nazis power of propaganda rather than truly effective fighting forces. - I was a bit disappointed having read Yelton's Osprey booklet on the Volkssturm, but this is obviously an academic work intended for a different audience. Tiring too, was the overused construct of "they were pretty bad (sad, weak, untrained, ill prepared, etc.) but some were okay (capable, diligent, motivated, etc.)" This was repeated over and over.
- The book was a bit dry. The main ding for the book was that it kept repeating itself as if it was compiled by several others. The good part was it this is the first book to really delve into the imense tug of war and politics of who gained and lost by creating the volksstrum. It was alot more complicated than just defence. The incrediable turf wars going on was good reading. Pictures would be helpful. The book was well written but not riviting. It is a critical addition studyier of military history.
- I know this isn't exactly an "exciting" subject, but the style of writing of this book was really dull. Just lots of boring facts jammed together into chapters. More info on the organization and building of the Volkssturm, than actual history of the different units. Also very little on it's arms, other than a lot of complaining about how difficult it was to obtain them.
- This book is a serious, in-depth look at one of the Nazis' last "miracles" against the advancing Allies toward the end of World War II, when the war was virtually lost. Masterfully researched and documented, Yelton's book reads a bit like a long academic paper, which stands to reason, as I believe the book owes its origins to Yelton's dissertation.
As the forward states, there is no one place or location that contains a significant cache of Volkssturm documents in Germany, so the author spent a great deal of time, energy and money to produce this work. It shows in the reading. Unlike many accounts of the Third Reich, most of which usually gloss over the Volkssturm, this is a critical look at the milita's origins, reasons for forming, the fight among Nazi leaders to lead the militia and its performance in battle.
A few tidbits that made for wonderful, surprising reading
1. The Volkssturm "People Storm" was controlled by the Nazi Party, not the Wermacht. The reasons for this are many, but it largely contributed to the milita's mostly poor performance on the battlefield, with notable exceptions (also discussed in the book).
2. Nazi leaders were fearful that Volkssturm members were going to be treated as partisans if caught by Allies and subsequently shot. Shockingly to this reader, the Nazis actually initiated contact with the British and Americans prior to the milita's formation to inquire how Volkssturm members would be treated if captured. Getting a positive response from Allied leadership that the unit would be treated as a legal militia (again, to my astonishment), the Nazis proceeded to form the Volkssturm. One can't help but wonder if the Allies had denied the Volkssturm "militia status" if the war would have been shortened on the Western Front, resulting in fewer Allied deaths.
The middle of the book is a bit of a dry read, as Yelton gets bogged down in a buffet of statistics. But, sticking with the book has its rewards, as Yelton discusses at length the militia's performance in battle toward the end of the war.
I would highly recommend this book to any student of WW II who would like to know more about the Volkssturm, its origins and performance in battle. "Hitler's Volkssturm" makes a welcome addition to any World War II bookshelf. - More than the battles, the book provides a comprehensive analysis of how
a bold military vision - fanatical, ideology-driven citizen soldiers defending their homeland - crashed with reality in the last months of the German Empire, such as the bureaucratic turf battles, the high hopes for the inspiring power of Nazi leadership dashed by the people's waning trust in them, the reality of the people preferring to work with the professionalism of regular Army units over propaganda- and ideology-heavy Nazi-centered organizing schemes, and the conflicting notions of fairness in the way people were selected and assigned to various war tasks. Many photos capture the cruelly ambiguous situation of the middle-aged and elderly soldiers, their ambivalent attitude toward their deployment, and the contrast between propaganda presentation and battleground realities. One can't but feel sympathetic for all those old soldiers many of whom must have also served in WWI, holding their ground with only substandard equipment and training (and fitness), and not much recognized in military history. Was interested in the subject since I'm in the similar age-group, and also am attracted to war situations that seem hopeless/pointless to the soldiers, soldiers who soldier on in the face of hopelessness and total skepticism. Germany's ally the Japanese Empire also had the same kind of plan for calling into soldier duty about the same age group, and just like Germany, contacted, asked for and got US to recognize their new teenage conscripts as official combattants and not irregular guerillas prior to the battle on Okinawa from April 1945.
