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The Devil's General: The Life of Hyazinth Strachwitz, "The Panzer Graf"
This is the story of the most highly decorated German regimental commander of World War II, known as the Panzer Graf (Armored Count).
An aristocratic Silesian, whose ancestors had faced the Mongols at Leipzig, Strachwitz first won the Iron Cross in the Great War. After fighting with the Freikorps and in between the wars, he was serving with the 1st Panzer Division when the Polish campaign inaugurated World War II. Leading from the front, his exploits as commander of a panzer battalion earned him further decorations during the French campaign.
Transferred to the newly formed 16th Panzer Division, Strachwitz participated in the invasion of Yugoslavia and then Operation Barbarossa where he earned the Knight's Cross. The following year, during the advance on Stalingrad, he won the Oak Leaves for destroying 270 Soviet tanks at Kalach. Now commander of a regiment, he reached the Volga and fought ferociously on the northern rim of Sixth Army s perimeter. Severely wounded during the battles, he was flown out of the Stalingrad pocket and was thus spared the fate of the rest of Sixth Army.
Upon recuperation, Strachwitz was named commander of the Grossdeutschland Division s panzer regiment, and won the Swords to the Knight's Cross during Manstein's counteroffensive at Kharkov. After fighting through Kursk and the ensuing defensive battles, he was transferred the next year to Army Group North where he won the Diamonds to the Knight's Cross at Narva.
For the rest of the war, sandwiched around a stay in hospital, Strachwitz commanded ad hoc battlegroups, and pioneered the formation of tank hunter brigades, consisting of deep-penetration infantry armed with panzerfausts and other demolitions who would ambush Soviet tanks.
Wounded 12 times during the war, and barely surviving a lethal car crash, Strachwitz was finally able to surrender to the Americans in May 1945.
Australian author/researcher Raymond Bagdonas, though impaired by the disappearance of 16th Panzer Division's official records at Stalingrad, and the fact that many of the Panzer Graf's later battlegroups never kept them, has nevertheless written an intensely detailed account of this combat leader s life, as well as ferocious armored warfare in World War II.
An aristocratic Silesian, whose ancestors had faced the Mongols at Leipzig, Strachwitz first won the Iron Cross in the Great War. After fighting with the Freikorps and in between the wars, he was serving with the 1st Panzer Division when the Polish campaign inaugurated World War II. Leading from the front, his exploits as commander of a panzer battalion earned him further decorations during the French campaign.
Transferred to the newly formed 16th Panzer Division, Strachwitz participated in the invasion of Yugoslavia and then Operation Barbarossa where he earned the Knight's Cross. The following year, during the advance on Stalingrad, he won the Oak Leaves for destroying 270 Soviet tanks at Kalach. Now commander of a regiment, he reached the Volga and fought ferociously on the northern rim of Sixth Army s perimeter. Severely wounded during the battles, he was flown out of the Stalingrad pocket and was thus spared the fate of the rest of Sixth Army.
Upon recuperation, Strachwitz was named commander of the Grossdeutschland Division s panzer regiment, and won the Swords to the Knight's Cross during Manstein's counteroffensive at Kharkov. After fighting through Kursk and the ensuing defensive battles, he was transferred the next year to Army Group North where he won the Diamonds to the Knight's Cross at Narva.
For the rest of the war, sandwiched around a stay in hospital, Strachwitz commanded ad hoc battlegroups, and pioneered the formation of tank hunter brigades, consisting of deep-penetration infantry armed with panzerfausts and other demolitions who would ambush Soviet tanks.
Wounded 12 times during the war, and barely surviving a lethal car crash, Strachwitz was finally able to surrender to the Americans in May 1945.
Australian author/researcher Raymond Bagdonas, though impaired by the disappearance of 16th Panzer Division's official records at Stalingrad, and the fact that many of the Panzer Graf's later battlegroups never kept them, has nevertheless written an intensely detailed account of this combat leader s life, as well as ferocious armored warfare in World War II.
376 pages, Hardcover
First published October 19, 2013
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84 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 5, 2014
If you go looking online, you can find tidbits of Hyazinth von Strachwitz's life and career, but not much, so the military history readers will find The Devil's General a treat. Raymond Bagdonas provides a life story, not just a World War II tale. He brings out what details he can uncover of Graf von Strachwitz background and education, early military career, First World War experiences, and the interwar years before concentrating on his Second World War service and finishing with his life after the war.
Raymond Bagdonas does a credible job of documenting sources when he finds them available. But as he admits in the introduction, some things are unknowable since Graf von Strachwitz did not keep a diary that survived, write a memoir or give many interviews after . This lack of evidence leads to Bagdonas speculating without confirming evidence on why von Strachwitz joined the Nazi Party in the 1932. He can only argue on what he thinks is the likeliest explanation. He runs into the same problem in regard to von Strachwitz's joining the plot to overthrow Hitler, lack of documentation.
Overall, the reader of military history, especially those interested in the Eastern Front in the Second World War will appreciate The Devil's General.
Raymond Bagdonas does a credible job of documenting sources when he finds them available. But as he admits in the introduction, some things are unknowable since Graf von Strachwitz did not keep a diary that survived, write a memoir or give many interviews after . This lack of evidence leads to Bagdonas speculating without confirming evidence on why von Strachwitz joined the Nazi Party in the 1932. He can only argue on what he thinks is the likeliest explanation. He runs into the same problem in regard to von Strachwitz's joining the plot to overthrow Hitler, lack of documentation.
Overall, the reader of military history, especially those interested in the Eastern Front in the Second World War will appreciate The Devil's General.
June 1, 2018
An entertaining and interesting biography of a cavalry general who on the Eastern Front of the war won many battles with obsolete equipment and undermanned outfits that beat the Russian's on their own turf successfully with his nose for terrain, aggressiveness, and outstanding tactics won many battles.
September 16, 2018
A rather poor effort to bring to life a remarkable combat leader. While one can understand that the lack of primary sources is going to hinder any such attempt, the author's use of sources was rather abysmal. He more or less rambled on for pages at a time on subjects really not relevant to discussing the Graf's action. The prose was not particularly easy to read either and he fell into digressions every chance he had. That being said, this book did do a good job of describing unit level combat and manoeuvre warfare. It just would have been better if that's all he spoke of, instead of trying to make the graf seem like a superhuman at every turn. For any reader who goes ahead with this work, he should just skip over the unnecessary additions of the author and stick to the events specifically involving the Panzer Graf.
June 2, 2019
Real nice book.
Like this story. In dept telling of a story about a great officer. Also tells civillian stories. Nice to read this one.
Like this story. In dept telling of a story about a great officer. Also tells civillian stories. Nice to read this one.
September 17, 2022
Top 10 books ever
A definite must read for every military professional. What a combat leader that should inspire every leader to commit too.
A definite must read for every military professional. What a combat leader that should inspire every leader to commit too.
August 28, 2024
Well written and engrossing.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews