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Osprey Raid #47
Behind Soviet Lines: Hitler’s Brandenburgers capture the Maikop Oilfields 1942
Featuring specially drawn full-color artwork and expert analysis of the Maikop operation, this assessment of the dramatic raid that delivered intact Soviet oil-production facilities into Nazi hands casts new light of the German special-forces operations on the Eastern Front.
With his forces having conquered a huge swathe of formerly Soviet territory in the months following the launch of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, Hitler planned to continue the Germans' strategic offensive against the Soviet Union's oil-production capacity in the southern Caucasus region during the summer of 1942. To help pave the way for regular forces, the Abwehr (German military intelligence) sent forward 'Brandenburger' commando units to pave the way using tactics that had proven successful throughout the previous Western and Balkan campaigns. These commandos would secure oil-producing assets until more conventional forces from 1. Panzerarmee and 17. Armee could arrive in strength. Specially trained in foreign cultures and military vehicles, small-unit tactics, parachuting, sabotage, reconnaissance, assassination and deception techniques, these elite commandos usually operated in company-sized units or smaller and recruited many 'non-Aryan' native speakers of those languages spoken in the target countries.
In early August 1942, a small Brandenburger unit of Baltic and Sudeten Germans led by Freiherr Adrian von Folkersam penetrated far ahead of German regular forces to seize Soviet oil facilities around Maikop. Disguised as members of Stalin's NKVD, the repressive police organisation dreaded by most Soviet citizens and soldiers, Folkersam's command passed through the Soviet front lines using captured trucks and moved deep into hostile territory, where the chaos of the Soviet battlefield situation aided in their passing as 'official'. As regular German forces approached after several days, the Brandenburgers went into action using grenades to simulate an artillery attack before disabling Maikop's military communication network. Having previously seen Folkersam with their commander, and lacking any communications to rebut or confirm his statement, the Soviets began to evacuate Maikop at Folkersam's urging. The German spearhead entered the city on 9 August 1942 against minimal resistance and found that several oil-production facilities were still functioning.
With his forces having conquered a huge swathe of formerly Soviet territory in the months following the launch of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, Hitler planned to continue the Germans' strategic offensive against the Soviet Union's oil-production capacity in the southern Caucasus region during the summer of 1942. To help pave the way for regular forces, the Abwehr (German military intelligence) sent forward 'Brandenburger' commando units to pave the way using tactics that had proven successful throughout the previous Western and Balkan campaigns. These commandos would secure oil-producing assets until more conventional forces from 1. Panzerarmee and 17. Armee could arrive in strength. Specially trained in foreign cultures and military vehicles, small-unit tactics, parachuting, sabotage, reconnaissance, assassination and deception techniques, these elite commandos usually operated in company-sized units or smaller and recruited many 'non-Aryan' native speakers of those languages spoken in the target countries.
In early August 1942, a small Brandenburger unit of Baltic and Sudeten Germans led by Freiherr Adrian von Folkersam penetrated far ahead of German regular forces to seize Soviet oil facilities around Maikop. Disguised as members of Stalin's NKVD, the repressive police organisation dreaded by most Soviet citizens and soldiers, Folkersam's command passed through the Soviet front lines using captured trucks and moved deep into hostile territory, where the chaos of the Soviet battlefield situation aided in their passing as 'official'. As regular German forces approached after several days, the Brandenburgers went into action using grenades to simulate an artillery attack before disabling Maikop's military communication network. Having previously seen Folkersam with their commander, and lacking any communications to rebut or confirm his statement, the Soviets began to evacuate Maikop at Folkersam's urging. The German spearhead entered the city on 9 August 1942 against minimal resistance and found that several oil-production facilities were still functioning.
- GenresHistoryMilitary History
80 pages, Paperback
First published October 20, 2014
1 person is currently reading
29 people want to read
About the author
David R. Higgins
14 books3 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
David R. Higgins attended the Columbus College of Art & Design, and received a BFA from Ohio State University and an MISM from Keller. In addition to 'The Roer River Battles' and 'King Tiger vs. IS-2: Operation Solstice 1945' he has written over 40 articles for magazines such as 'Strategy and Tactics', 'Armchair General', 'Modern War' and 'World at War', as well as MCS Group's 'States of Conflict'. He lives in Columbus, Ohio.
David R. Higgins attended the Columbus College of Art & Design, and received a BFA from Ohio State University and an MISM from Keller. In addition to 'The Roer River Battles' and 'King Tiger vs. IS-2: Operation Solstice 1945' he has written over 40 articles for magazines such as 'Strategy and Tactics', 'Armchair General', 'Modern War' and 'World at War', as well as MCS Group's 'States of Conflict'. He lives in Columbus, Ohio.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 6, 2019
Many a time when one is reading about a great battle that was a turning point in history, one reads how a general did this or that, and the troops were brave or not, and etcetera and etcetera. It isn't often they one hears of the importance of logistics. The main reason is that it just sounds boring as compared to what went on at the front. But few, and many a general, realize how important logistics and the bean counters are.
At the beginning of WWII, the German economy was still based on peacetime. This applied to everything. There was no blackout, production still produced consumer goods, and until Germany attacked Russia, they still imported much of their oil from them. Once the war started the Germans needed oil and the Romanian fields was not enough to satisfy the hunger of the Blitzkrieg war machine.
That being the case, Hitler gambled on capturing the Soviet Maikop oilfields in the Caucasus. The problem was, how to do it without the Soviets moving rigs and equipment or plugging the holes? The answer was to employee the Brandenburgers.
The Brandenburgers were a type of special forces in the German army. The members spoke foreign languages fluently, dressed in captured uniforms, and operated behind the front lines causing mischief and mayhem. For this operation they wore the uniforms of the dreaded Russian NKVD, which allowed them unlimited access behind the enemy lines. Their charade was so good that at one point their leader gained the confidence of a NKVD general! With Brandenburger assistance, the Germans succeeded in capturing the oilfields though much damage was one by the retreating Soviets. This was due to Hitler's meddling rather then any fault of their own.
The story as told is fairly interesting. The book is a short read, only 80 pages total, but one does get their money's worth. There are rare pictures, maps, and color illustrations by artists in the typical Osprey Books manner. There is a lot of interesting information here.
For instance, one may wonder the fate of these super commandoes. Did they go home and suffer PTSD in a bombed out Germany? Were they handed over to the Soviets to be executed? No, many, if not all of them joined the French Foreign Legion and waged a very successful campaign against the Viet Cong. (By the way, that was until French Communists had them disbanded before the battle of Dien Bien Phu. But that is another story.)
At the beginning of WWII, the German economy was still based on peacetime. This applied to everything. There was no blackout, production still produced consumer goods, and until Germany attacked Russia, they still imported much of their oil from them. Once the war started the Germans needed oil and the Romanian fields was not enough to satisfy the hunger of the Blitzkrieg war machine.
That being the case, Hitler gambled on capturing the Soviet Maikop oilfields in the Caucasus. The problem was, how to do it without the Soviets moving rigs and equipment or plugging the holes? The answer was to employee the Brandenburgers.
The Brandenburgers were a type of special forces in the German army. The members spoke foreign languages fluently, dressed in captured uniforms, and operated behind the front lines causing mischief and mayhem. For this operation they wore the uniforms of the dreaded Russian NKVD, which allowed them unlimited access behind the enemy lines. Their charade was so good that at one point their leader gained the confidence of a NKVD general! With Brandenburger assistance, the Germans succeeded in capturing the oilfields though much damage was one by the retreating Soviets. This was due to Hitler's meddling rather then any fault of their own.
The story as told is fairly interesting. The book is a short read, only 80 pages total, but one does get their money's worth. There are rare pictures, maps, and color illustrations by artists in the typical Osprey Books manner. There is a lot of interesting information here.
For instance, one may wonder the fate of these super commandoes. Did they go home and suffer PTSD in a bombed out Germany? Were they handed over to the Soviets to be executed? No, many, if not all of them joined the French Foreign Legion and waged a very successful campaign against the Viet Cong. (By the way, that was until French Communists had them disbanded before the battle of Dien Bien Phu. But that is another story.)
tbr-soon
February 6, 2019Joe's review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews