Innholdsfortegnelse for No. 57 i History of War

“Soon many of the T-34s had broken past our screen and were streaming like rats all over the battlefield” – Attrib. Heinz Guderian, on the Battle of Kursk The ‘face-off’ between German Tigers and Soviet T-34s is one of the most fiercely debated contests in military history. Of course, direct comparison between the two tanks is facile – the Tiger was a heavy and the T-34 a medium-class. Yet both played huge roles in the Battle of Kursk. As this issue explores, the numbers of machines off the assembly line, the nuances of their design, as well as their manufacturing speed and cost arguably decided the armoured clash at Kursk. Even further behind the lines, Allied spy networks and code-breakers had won the intelligence battle, revealing Hitler’s plans to the…

August 1291 FEDERAL CHARTER Switzerland’s oldest constitutional document is an alliance, or confederacy, between the Alpine cantons of Uri, Schywz and Unterwalden to help each other resist any threat of violence. The charter is arguably the foundation of the country as well as a significant defensive policy. 15 November 1315 BATTLE OF MORGARTEN Morgarten is the first great military success of the Swiss Confederation against the powerful Austrian Habsburgs. It is also a significant early victory of dismounted commoners against mounted knights, which will become a chief characteristic of Swiss fighting methods. 15th-19th centuries SWISS MERCENARIES After successfully defending their home cantons, Swiss soldiers become renowned soldiers throughout Europe. Over 1 million Swiss serve in foreign armies over three centuries, with remarkable success. January 1506 PONTIFICAL SWISS GUARD A permanent…

During the late 13th century Scottish soldiers developed the ‘schiltron’, which was a dense formation of pikes and spears. This was intended to break up charges from mounted knights, but it was the Swiss who perfected this tactic with halberds. The halberd was a 2.4-metre (eight-feet) long, two-handed pole weapon that had an axe blade and a spike. It was cheap to produce and had great versatility. The spike could push back approaching horsemen while the axe head was used to pull them to the ground at close quarters. Halberds were used with striking success by the Swiss against the Austrians at the battles of Morgarten, Laupen and Sempach. By the 15th century halberdiers had perfected their fighting skills to go on the offensive. “THIS INTELLIGENT TACTIC CHANGED THE NATURE…

“ DESPITE THESE HERCULEAN ACHIEVEMENTS, DUNANT’S HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS BANKRUPTED HIM AND HE BECAME A RECLUSE FOR DECADES” HENRI DUNANT ARCHITECT OF THE GENEVA CONVENTION & FOUNDER OF THE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS 1828-1910 Although he was a civilian, Henri Dunant made an invaluable contribution to humanitarian aid and ethical standards in modern warfare. He was born into a religious family in Geneva and worked as a businessman in North Africa and Italy. While he was organising a financial scheme with Napoleon III of France in 1859, Dunant travelled to directly visit the emperor on campaign. He subsequently witnessed the Battle of Solferino and what he saw horrified him. Tens of thousands of soldiers were lying dead, dying or wounded on the battlefield and Dunant organised assistance to help the troops. This…

ARMAMENT An 8.8cm KwK 36 gun, two 7.92mm machine guns, one co-axial, the other hull-mounted, to the right of the driver. 92 rounds of high explosive and armour piercing shells were carried. Effective range: at 2,000m (2,187yd) there was a 50 per cent probability of a kill when striking the 45mm sloped frontal armour of the T-34. This increased if the side or rear plates were hit. The commander of the Liebstandarte Tiger Company noted the ideal range for a good Tiger gunner was 800m (875yd) giving a 100 per cent chance of a kill. ENGINE The Tiger was powered by a Maybach petrol engine that produced a maximum road speed of 44kph (27mph) with that performance halved off-road. FUEL CAPACITY 568l (125gal) internally stowed next to the engine compartment.…

The T-34 was a medium tank, the Tiger a heavy tank, therefore direct comparisons are absurd. The Tiger was well-engineered in a long-established factory, the T-34 was mass produced in often relocated, under-manned factories where numbers mattered more than quality or refinement. However, the T-34 series did lead to the up-gunned 85 version and the chassis was successfully used for the SU 85 and SU 100 tank destroyer versions, which were rather more flexible than the Tiger II (King Tiger) or the Jagdtiger. Furthermore, 20 T-34s served at Kursk with SS Panzer Grenadier Division Das Reich, which is testament to the esteem in which they were held. Two T-34s were used by 6th Panzer Division to deceive the defenders of a vital bridge south of Prokhorovka into not firing –…

In October 1899 war erupted between the British Empire and the Boer republics of the Transvaal and Orange Free State. At first glance the two sides seemed laughably mismatched, and there were few in Britain who doubted another swift and victorious colonial campaign. However, in the first few weeks of the war, the hardy, highly mobile Boers shocked everyone by invading the Cape Colony and Natal, and trapping the majority of British troops in South Africa in the frontier towns of Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith. In Ladysmith alone, 13,000 British troops under Sir George White were besieged and soon rapidly running out of food and supplies. Enter Redvers Buller The only encouraging news for the British was that en route to South Africa was an army corps of 47,000 men…

Remembering Srebrenica is a British charitable initiative that organises events and raises awareness in support of Srebrenica Memorial Day, held across Europe on 11 July. They support communities and faith groups in holding memorial events across the week of 8-15 July and organise ‘Lessons from Srebrenica’ visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina, allowing delegates to raise awareness about the genocide, and work towards the rejection of racism, hatred and extremism on their return to the UK. Remembering Srebrenica’s biggest ongoing project is fundraising for the first-ever Srebrenica Learning Centre outside of BiH, which would be based in Birmingham. The centre would make the ‘Lessons from Srebrenica’ project more accessible to people in the UK. To find out how you can help or to donate, please visit srebrenica.org.uk…

Author: Anthony Tucker-Jones Publisher: The History Press Price: £25 The Battle of Kursk marked a turning point in World War II. Following their defeat at the hands of the Soviets, the Germans were never again able to mount a strategic offensive on the Eastern Front. As such, it has been widely studied and written upon, but there is always room for new interpretations. Anthony Tucker-Jones, with the benefit of newly translated eyewitness testimonies, has chosen to give us an intensely personal account to offer new perspectives. The result is a highly readable book that takes you deep into the planning and implementation of the battle on both sides. Tucker-Jones is able to convey the growing sense of frustration and even desperation among the German High Command as the ideal time…

TOM GARNER This month Tom explores the military history of Europe’s famously neutral nation, Switzerland (p.14). He also spoke with wartime sweethearts Madge and Basil Lambert, who met during service in Burma in 1944 (p.88). ANTHONY TUCKER-JONES After 20 years working in the British Defence Intelligence Staff, Anthony is now an author and analyst, with several published titles on historic and modern conflicts. On page 38 he reveals the spy operations behind the victory at Kursk. JAMES HOARE History of War’s Group Editor-in-Chief had the pleasure of speaking with Richard Westley OBE, MC, who discusses his service during the Bosnian War, and his first-hand experience defending an entire town from a massacre (p.72).…

ARMY GROUP NORTH Most accounts of Operation Citadel focus on the movements of AGS due to the battle of Prokhorovka. Consequently, the rather less well-known activities of AGN are often overlooked, as is the deployment of the 31 Tigers of Heavy Panzer Battalion 505. However, 505 was only joined by its third company on 8 July, hence its lower numbers. ARMY GROUP SOUTH Each of the three SS Panzer Grenadier divisions of II SS Panzer Corps – Liebstandarte, Das Reich and Totenkopf – had an integral Tiger company. Additionally, the Grossdeutschland Panzer Grenadier Division had its own 15-machine Tiger company. Heavy Panzer Battalion 503 was a part of III Panzer Corps under Army Detachment Kempf: it was split up, with one company each going to 6th, 11th and 19th Panzer…

“BARKMANN MADE GOOD HIS ESCAPE AFTER DESTROYING NINE SHERMANS AND SEVERAL OTHER SUPPORT VEHICLES IN A MATTER OF MINUTES” About 250 Ausf. D Panthers entered service in January 1943 and took part in the epic Battle of Kursk that summer. Many of these were lost to mechanical breakdown. Larger engines, redesigned armour skirts and a re-engineered turret were added in a production run that ended in September 1943. A total of approximately 850 Ausf. D Panthers were manufactured before giving way to the improved Ausf. A, and about 2,200 of these were built with maximum armour protection upgraded to 120mm (4.72-inch) thickness. The most numerous Panther variant, the Ausf. G, entered production in the spring of 1944, and nearly 3,000 were completed by 1945, incorporating an upgraded exhaust system, a…

“AUTHOR MAX ADAMS DESCRIBES THESE MERCILESS VANDALS AS ‘FERAL MEN, PLAYING BY A NEW SET OF RULES AND BENT ON THEFT, KIDNAP, ARSON, TORTURE AND ENSLAVEMENT’” Author: Max Adams Price: £9.99 Publisher: Head of Zeus More than 1,000 years ago, a great host of battle-hardened Norse seafarers pitched up on England’s eastern coast. They soon overwhelmed East Anglia with terrifying swiftness and then proceeded to lay the north to waste. That was in 865 CE. Six years later these same raiders penetrated deep into the kingdom of Wessex, ruled over by a new and untested monarch, Aelfred. The wave of death and destruction unleashed by the invaders brought on the air of a world-ending apocalypse. In meticulous and scholarly detail, author Max Adams describes these merciless vandals as “feral men,…

“IT WAS INTO THIS APOCALYPTIC CRUCIBLE THAT MANY PROFESSIONAL SOLDIERS BEGAN THEIR CAREERS, BUT VERY FEW ARE ALIVE TODAY WHO CONTINUE TO MAKE HIGHLY INFORMED OPINIONS ABOUT MILITARY AFFAIRS. NEVERTHELESS, FIELD MARSHAL LORD BRAMALL IS ONE OF THEM” Author: Field Marshal Lord Bramall (ed. Robin Brodhurst) Publisher: Pen & Sword Military Price: £25 (Hardback) The military world was a very different place 75 years ago, although it was also the period that created modern warfare. During World War II Britain was still the dominant naval power but jet fighters were being introduced and atomic weapons made their first appearance. It was into this apocalyptic crucible that many professional soldiers began their careers, but very few are alive today who continue to make highly informed opinions about military affairs. Nevertheless, Field…

Charles XII is one of Sweden’s most famous monarchs. Dubbed the “Lion of the North” by Voltaire, Charles was a keen soldier whose talent and speed of movement gave him the nickname ‘the Swedish Meteor’. During the 17th century the Swedish Empire included territories in modern Finland, Norway and Russia. Charles ascended the throne as a teenager in 1697, and three years later the Great Northern War (1700-21) broke out when a Russian-led coalition aimed to contest the supremacy of Sweden. Charles fought back with gusto and won great victories, but he came undone during a disastrous invasion of Russia in 1708-09. From this point on, Charles’s fortunes irrevocably declined and he lost important territories. Despite his reversals, Charles remained an aggressive king and invaded Danish-controlled Norway in 1718. Charles…

GERMAN UNITS 1. 503rd Heavy Tank Battalion 2. Panzer Grenadier Division Grossdeutschland 3. SS Panzer Grenadier Division Liebstandarte 4. SS Panzer Grenadier Division Das Reich 5. SS Panzer Grenadier Division Totenkopf 6. 6th Panzer Division 7. 19th Panzer Division 8. 7th Panzer Division SOVIET UNITS 1. 251st Tank Regiment 2. 259th Tank Regiment 3. 240th Tank Regiment 4. Second Tank Army 5. 237th Tank Regiment 6. 129th Tank Brigade 7. 27th Guards Tank Regiment 8. V Guards Tank Corps 9. VI Tank Corps 10. XXXI Tank Corps 11. First Tank Army 12. III Motorised Corps 13. 96th Tank Brigade 14. II Guards Tank Corps 15. Fifth Guards Tank Army…

“IT WAS NOT UNCOMMON FOR SAMURAI IN THE EARLY 19TH CENTURY TO WEAR FORMS OF ARMOUR THAT WERE FUNDAMENTALLY IDENTICAL TO THOSE THAT HAD BEEN USED AT THE TIME OF THE MONGOL INVASION” “BUDDHIST ICONS AND SYMBOLS WERE COMMONLY INCORPORATED INTO THE DESIGNS OF ITEMS OF ARMOUR MADE BY THE KATCHU-SHI” “THESE LARGE SHOULDER GUARDS HAD FUNCTIONED AS STATIC SHIELDS TO PROTECT WARRIORS FROM ARROWS” “WITHIN A FEW SHORT DECADES, FIREARMS WERE AN INTEGRAL PART OF SAMURAI WARFARE” For beauty, precision and strength, nothing has ever matched the combination of form and function found in the armour of the samurai. For a samurai, the consummate warrior, his suit of armour was so much more than just protective equipment that could save his life in the heat of battle – it…

“THE REVELATIONS ARE AT TIMES STARTLING” Author: Tobias Capwell Publisher: Royal Armouries Museum Price: £9.99 For most people, the word ‘joust’ will conjure an image of elaborately armoured knights charging at each other during extravagant pageants, perhaps carrying a silk scarf donated by a fair maiden – in short, a Hollywood version of history. In this slim but action-packed volume, Tobias Capwell explains how such pageantry was only one part of the story of the joust, a military tradition that evolved and endured for 500 years. The title of the book is misleading. This is not merely an investigation of arms and armour, it also delves into the philosophy of the joust and considers the practicalities of this form of ritualised combat. Space is at a premium, because the book…