Normandy 1944: German Military Organization, Combat Power and Organizational Effectiveness

by Niklas Zetterling

At last, a single-source reference book which accurately details the German field forces employed in Normandy in 1944 and their losses. Chapters German Combat Organization (overview); Number of Soldiers Employed; Effects of Allied Air Power; German Armor in Normandy; German Losses in Normandy; Combat Efficiency; and, Unit Movements. In addition, there is a capsule history of every major formation employed in infantry and Panzer divisions and separate formations; artillery and Werfer (rocket) units; corps and field-army formations and miscellaneous elements which could bring combat power to bear. Dr. Zetterling provides a sobering analysis of the subject matter and debunks a number of popular myths concerning the campaign (the effectiveness of Allied air power; the preferential treatment of Waffen-SS formations in comparison to their army counterparts; etc.). He supports his text with exhaustive footnoting and provides an organizational chart for most of the formations covered in the book. Includes numerous organizational diagrams, charts, tables and graphs.

Genres: World War II, War, History, Military Fiction

462 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Niklas Zetterling is a researcher at the Swedish Defense College. Along with Anders Frankson he has previously written Kursk 1943: A Statistical Analysis and The Korsun Pocket: The Encirclement and Breakout of a German Army in the East, 1944.