The Tank Commander Pocket Manual: 1939-1945

by R Sheppard (Editor)

From the pioneering tactics and terror of the Blitzkrieg assault, through the carnage of Barbarossa, Kursk, the Desert War, the Normandy Bocage, and the Battle of the Bulge, there were perhaps no more unsettling and merciless positions to occupy in World War II than that of a tank commander. This book puts the reader at the very heart of this "hell on wheels" and presents all of the original information required to perform this most dangerous of wartime battlefield roles. From training manuals and war office memorandums to combat reports and first-hand accounts, The Tank Commander Pocket Manual sits you in the turret position of commander of some of the most fearsome land vehicles. These include the Soviet T-34, the German Panther and its nemesis the American Sherman, the terrifying Tiger I as well as tank variants including flamethrowers and tank destroyers such as the Allied M10 and the StuG III. Original documents, diagrams, technical drawings and reports have been collated and compiled from archives and collections to include original Russian, German and English angles on the commander's many roles including how to 'run' the rest of the crew of this most decisive weapon of the Second World War.

* Published to mark the centenary of the tank

* Rare, previously unpublished documents

* Attractively produced in cloth-bound retro-styled case

R Shepherd has worked for many years in military publishing for leading companies such as Casemate and Osprey, and has compiled a number of books.

Pool of London Pocket Manuals
The new Pocket-Manual series from the Pool of London Press presents some of the most iconic military, naval and transport machines from the last 100 years by means of compiling the original documents, confidential memos, plans and artworks that contributed to their celebrated history. This approach allows the modern reader both to have an excellent understanding of the development of these extremely influential aircraft, AFVs, ships, automobiles and trains, but also provides the unique opportunity for further interpretation through the study of many previously unpublished original documents, diagrams and illustrations. Every volume in the series is skillfully compiled and researched by the leading experts in their field who also provide a lengthy contextualizing introduction.

Superbly priced, retro-styled to their historical period, and beautifully hard-bound in debossed cloth, the Pool of London Pockets sell as self-purchase, gift and are excellently suited to book trade as well as to museum stores and heritage outlets across the world.

Genres: World War II, Military History, History

144 pages, Hardcover

Published July 15, 2016

Reviews

[Lowarn Gutierrez · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a collection of reports, manuals, and accounts of tank maintenance and warfare throughout the Second World War. What else can be said about it?

If you're really into your military history or you're a tank appreciator (I am the latter), this will be of interest to you. I liked reading it, but it's definitely for a niche audience.

The report where three tanks and a personnel carrier all fell into ditches by accident was my favourite. Somehow, nobody involved got hurt, if I read it correctly, and most of them fell into the same ditch. Beautiful.

[Luke Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

For what it is, a collection of primary material on tank command and operation, it is invaluable.

[Lee A · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Dad served during WW2 in a Sherman tank. I better understand his experience through this book.