SS- Steel Rain

I purchased this book with a fair amount of knowledge regarding the subject matter, but I am really happy to have this book in my collection! It is FULL of great photos, color maps, and interesting/informative text ~ in short, this book is the real deal and I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the battles of the Waffen SS, the Western Front, or World War Two in general.

~Steel Rain: Waffen-SS Panzer Battles in the West 1944-45~ by Tim Ripley is a well-written historical narrative, intermingled with some great photographs, which chronicle the military operations of the Waffen-SS on the Western front. The Panzer divisions of the Waffen-SS were among the elite of German military units. All were well-equipped, well-trained and battle-hardened. They were helmed by men of fanatical devotion like Sepp Dietrich, Kurt Panzer Meyer, and Papa Hausser. The Panzers were a formidable force to be reckoned with at Normandy. Seeing the battles retold from the German side offers insight to students of World War history in general, and provides valuable context for understanding the movements and engagement of Western Allies--American, British and Canadian. My great uncles who spearheaded the Allied invasion of Normandy stood against the tide of these devoted and fanatical Germans, such as the 2nd SS Das Reich at Normandy. To garner a fuller appreciation for American sacrifices, it helps to recognize the dedication, ferocity and lethal efficiency of the Germans in the Waffen-SS. Outnumbered and outgunned, the Germans still possessed a lethal arsenal of well-armored equipment and well-trained, battle-hardened troops--many fresh veterans from the Eastern Front. Ripley chronicles the 12th SS Panzer Division's zealous defense of Caen. Here the 34 year-old officer Kurt Meyer demonstrated his battlefield prowess. Boasting that he would crush the Allied bridgehead at Normandy, he avowed, "Little fish! We'll throw them back into the sea in the morning!" His arrogance was matched by his ferocity and strategic mind for combat. Herein, we see the boldness and daring of men like Meyer. Meyer knew the Allies possessed superior air power, and their bombers could easily decimate their Panzers. Rather than leave his men vulnerable to bomber attacks, he ordered his Panzers to intermingle with British and Canadian tanks and infantry, and lay down a fierce counter-assault. Turbulent yet possessed of a soldier's composure, Meyer was a force to be reckoned with. Upon detaining Canadian prisoners-of-war, the 12th SS Hitlerjugend gained notoriety for its cruel ferocity as it promptly executed them. Allegations of such cruelty flew back and forth from both sides. Ripley tells of the exploits of the infamous Panzer Ace Michael Whittmann who gained renown for his lethal efficiency at decimating Allied tanks. General Montgomery responded to the stalwart defense of Caen by the 12th SS with Operation Perch in an attempt to exploit the gaps in German lines. The Germans reacted by repositioning its troops. A `Tiger Trap' had been set, and German Panzers were ambushed at Villers-Bocage. Whittman fled his disabled tank on foot, and ran back to the German operations center, were he personally commandeered a response force of 15 Panzer IV's and promptly ordered them to clear the town of all British troops. At the expense of 4 Panzers, he retook the village, an

I wished for more on Whitman et al. but there are lots of good personal accounts of tank fighting, and many many well written sections regarding how the elite panzer units managed to turn back attacks when they were outnumbered 5 or even 10 to 1! One definitely gets the impression that if the Luftwaffe had been able to protect the skies at all, the stalemate in Normandy could have lasted for years because the Germans were better trained, had much better equipment and vastly superior tactics.