What are you reading at the moment?

Just finished Got to Go Now.

Now on Kaufman & Kaufman's The American GI in Worldd War II: The Battle in France

 

Fighting Vichy from Horseback | Military History Book | Helion & Company

This book starts with the story of a division that was never intended to fight; the British 1st Cavalry Division in the Second World War. It was composed almost exclusively of yeomanry horsemen from Britain's Territorial Army - a force that had been ignored by Whitehall's military reforms since 1920. One of their only upgrades in the 20th century had been the change from leather sabre grips to rubber. When war came in 1939 the only plans that existed for them were to duly mobilise with horses compulsorily purchased from the civilian population. This combination of territorials and civilian horses of unknown pedigree impressed no-one at first. Even today, outside regimental histories and war diaries, its fighting contribution is barely credited. Yet in May 1941, an incongruous saga of deception, desperation and reinvention, saw British horsemen advancing into Syria on Operation "Exporter", with each patrol's point man nervously clutching his rubber-gripped sabre. The leading patrols were soon under fire, and an entire regiment was swimming the Litani river, with some elements taking on aircraft.

Incredibly, by the end of the campaign, these horsemen had proved themselves so effective that the British had completely rewritten their doctrine for mounted cavalry. That the horsemen were able to adapt and overcome in 1941, mounted throughout the campaign as they were, is one of the most remarkable aspects of their saga. The fact that they were ever mobilised as cavalry is probably the second.

Ever since the reorganisation of the reserve forces in 1920, the yeomanry had been theoretically destined for mechanisation. When war broke out in September 1939 the vehicles and training had still not materalised and these yeomanry were fit for very little; over half the troopers were townsmen who had never ridden before joining in April 1939. Any doubts the authorities may have had about the division's unsuitability for active service must have been confirmed by the odyssey of train, ferry and alcohol that saw the 7,800 horses and men out to Palestine, losing each other at various stages along the way. One stranded yeomen locked himself and his charger in a railway waiting room with brandy until help came. Yet this was the force that was ear-marked to garrison Palestine.

To Churchill's eyes they were an anachronism. He fumed about their very existence, fulminating that these regiments deserved a "man's part in this war". He personally took to task those responsible for still maintaining horsed soldiers. However his subordinates wilfully deceived him and continued to maintain a cavalry arm to protect the northern border of Middle East command.

The story behind these clashing mindsets is as much a part of 1st Cavalry Division's story as their deeds in Syria. The historiography of cavalry and what they were capable of starts with the Liddell-hart paradigm, then David French and David Kenyon et al. But what drives it is the accounts of the men and their horses of whom so little was expected in 1939.

 

I recently finished ‘Shooting the War- Memoirs of a World War II U-Boat Officer’ by Otto Giese and Captain James E. Wise. This book was published by Leo Cooper in 1994. Another Op-Shop find, I found this to be a well-written account by a true German who was very willing to serve his country, however, as the book progressed he could clearly see the folly in following the Fuhrer and the destruction he brought upon Germany.

The book pretty much opens with Otto Giese joining the German Merchant Marine as a nineteen-year-old cadet in 1933, following which he served on the North German Lloyd liner SS Columbus until, as a crew member, he was forced to scuttle the ship on 19 December 1939. Giese and the crew were taken into custody and moved around the United States before Giese and a few others managed to make their way to Japan and from there back to Germany, where he enlisted as a U-boat man. Giese described several patrols he undertook in the North Atlantic, leading up to late 1943, before he was assigned to another U-Boat (U-181) which was sent to operate in the Far East. I wasn’t aware of the number of U-boats operating in the Pacific, nor the number of bases the Germans used alongside their Japanese allies, so this book was a bit of an eye-opener on an area of operations long forgotten. U-181 never made it back to Germany and after moving from Penang overland (and witnessing Malayan communists attacking the Japanese) his crew found themselves imprisoned by the British military forces in Changi for a while before they were released. Imprisoned seems a harsh word, as he recalls at evening roll calls British paratroopers stationed near them would often cover missing U-boat men longing for a night on the town.

My impression of the U-boat men overall was that they were very independent, resourceful, and well-disciplined. Giese himself seems to have had a very stoic disposition which no doubt helped him cope with the many and varied situations he found himself in.

The book also contains many black & white photographs taken by Giese and the crew which add to the story as Giese works his way through it. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it if you wish to hear a German voice from the U-Boat War.

Scott

 

Picked this up for a quid in a local charity shop.

 

I didn't know about that one, Deacs!

 

Their new series is just as good as their old series. Great coverage of the Japanese side of things makes it an excellent history.

 

Again: The War Illustrated Archive

 

Currently almost 900pp through an original copy of Weapon Mounts for Secondary Armament I was lucky enough to stumble across at a used bookstore online. Typically, I'm annoyed by previous owners who have made notes/drawings/etc in books I've bought, but I honestly can't get too mad at this person.

 

The Blitz Juliet Gardiner

 

Booked a fortnight in Kos for next years summer holiday so getting some early reading in.

 

Those additional flashes to the guns are very Milligan like

 

Factory of the Elite

Virtual Grenadier

Factory of the Elite is a first of its kind compilation of the German army’s replacement and training system, organized into seven chapters. As with previous volumes on the history, uniforms, and insignia of the elite unit, “Großdeutschland” (Schiffer Publishing, 2010), this volume details the unit within the broader context of the Wehrmacht - specifically the recruiting, training, and replacement system of the Ersatzheer. The Wehrmacht's levy system of young male citizens is contrasted with the special treatment and requirements for volunteers into “Großdeutschland” units. The German army was comprised of a wide variety of arms and services, but only some were represented within “Großdeutschland”. All arms and services and associated Wehrmacht schools and courses are comprehensively cataloged to provide the background for understanding the training and professional education that were available to soldiers, sergeants and officers who served within “Großdeutschland”. The final two chapters include descriptions of the garrisons used by the “Großdeutschland” replacement and training base presented in a “then and now” format. Lastly, a detailed study of the history of the “Großdeutschland” replacement base structure as it developed year-to-year between 1939 and 1945, as driven by the events experienced by the frontline units it supported, is presented in depth. The chapter has numerous cameo presentations on interesting aspects of the lives of soldiers in the home zone, such as activities, routines, awards, medical care, and photography.

Factory of the Elite is a limited run private printing through Pertinacity Press.

USD $175 plus shipping and handling


Click here for ordering information

 

Finished reading Port Elgin's War Orwell1984

It's a good book but it didn't blow my socks off. Very interesting to see the home front side of things as well as the active service. Also the complications of having an MP who enlists and doesn't seem to think the rules apply to him!

There are some places in which I would have ordered things differently because they were actually not in chronological order.

 

Reading and enjoying James Hollands, Burma 44.

 

Just bought this from a bookstall on my local market for £1, bargain!

 

Just finished We landed in Sicily and Italy: A story of the Devons, a late 1943 publication by A W Valentine, something like 48 pages, describing the actions of the 2nd Devons, with a summary of their time on Malta and spending the rest of it, as the title indicates, on their actions up until they were sent home to the UK.

Also a little staplebound booklet about the Grey and Simcoe Foresters, a Canadian regiment which unfortunately was split up to reinforce other units in both the FWW and SWW, but has a lot of history behind it.

 

I am reading books for my classes.
1. Biographies of Ulysses S. Grant by Geoffrey Perret and Ron Chernow
2. Grant's memoirs and letters
3. Sir Alf, an excellent biography of Alf Ramsey by Leo McKinstry
4. Two biographies of Bobby Moore, one by Matt Dickinson (good and revealing) and one by Moore's old press buddy Jeff Powell (largely a puff piece)
5. England Managers by Brian Glanville, great stuff by probably the best British football journalist
6. England and the 1966 World Cup a Cultural History by John Hughson, also good
7. Never Had it so Good, by Dominic Sandbrook. History of Britain 1953-1964, very informative
8. We Got the Neutron Bomb the Untold Story of LA Punk by Mark Spitz
9. Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung by Lester Bangs
10. More Fun in the New World the Unmaking and Legacy of LA Punk by John Doe et. al
The last three on this list are of course about rock and the punk scene and largely from the mouths of those who were there. I have to say that these books contain more self-important grandiosity than I have ever seen contained within covers before. If these people had spent more time creating music and less time boasting about themselves and their achievements then punk might still be with us.

 

I read the Valentine for my own book. It was quite useful and remarkably honest and modest for something published during the war.

 

Boy, was that a disaster. Ouch.

 

Temperature's climbing, but still a way to go yet