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Niklas Zetterling
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Blitzkrieg: From the Ground Up Kindle Edition

by Niklas Zetterling (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 out of 5 stars 204 ratings
From the author of Bismarck: “A work of simply outstanding scholarship . . . unreservedly recommended for . . . World War II Military History collections” (Midwest Book Review).
 
The successes of the German Blitzkrieg in 1939-41 were as surprising as they were swift. Allied decision-makers wanted to discover the Germans’ secrets, even though only partial, incomplete information was available to them. The false conclusions drawn became myths about the Blitzkrieg that have lingered for decades.
 
It has been argued that rather than creating a new way of war based on new technology, the Germans fitted the new weapons into their existing ideas on warfare. The conduct of German soldiers, particularly the lower-ranking men, on the battlefield was at the core of the concept, and German victories rested upon the quality, flexibility, and mobility of the small combat units.
 
This book focuses on the experiences of the enlisted men and junior officers in the Blitzkrieg operations in Poland, Norway, Western Europe, and Russia. Using accounts previously unpublished in English, military historian Niklas Zetterling “not only shows you the big picture, economically, strategically, but also takes you right into the Panzers,” showing how a company commander led his tanks, how a crew worked together inside a tank, and the role of the repair services. “For those of us who are interested in the tactics and strategy of the early war years, it is a book you won’t want to miss” (A Wargamers Needful Things).
 
“In support of his convincing argument the author uses several accounts of German actions seen through the eyes of the soldiers and junior officers who had to put theory into practice on the battlefield. 4.5 stars.” —Army Rumour Service
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  1. Print length
    411 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Casemate
  4. Publication date
    April 19, 2017
  5. File size
    20.6 MB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“In support of his convincing argument the author uses several accounts of German actions seen through the eyes of the soldiers and junior officers who had to put theory into practice on the battlefield. 4.5 stars.”
Army Rumour Service

“The author argues that the concept was not new, but merely a refinement of fighting techniques that were developed over decades… To demonstrate this idea the book uses not only the experiences of generals and their broad perspective, but also those of enlisted soldiers and junior officers as they fought the war on the ground.”
WWII History December 2017

“For those who wargame these periods there are some good scenarios which would translate very nicely onto the wargames table.”
Miniature Wargames

"Niklas Zetterling, a former historian at the Swedish Defense College, provides a very different perspective by examining blitzkrieg not as a revolutionary means of waging war, but as a logical extension of exiting German operational art brought to its fullest capability."
New York Journal of Books

“A comprehensively detailed work of definitive scholarship… "Blitzkrieg: From the Ground Up" is an extraordinary and highly recommended addition to community and academic library World War II Military History collections.”
Midwest Book Review

“’Blitzkrieg’ not only shows you the big picture, economically, strategically, but also takes you right into the Panzers. This book looks at the nuts and bolts of the German army during the blitzkrieg years. It gives you a background on the theory of blitzkrieg war-making as well… As usual, this Casemate Publishers book is a well written and absorbing read. For those of us who are interested in the tactics and strategy of the early war years, it is a book you won't want to miss.”
A Wargamers Needful Things

"This book's greatest value lies in how it takes real life facts and circumstances and uses them to educate the reader on core concepts driving the German approach to tactics and operations."
Globe at War

About the Author

Roger Clark is a professional actor and voice-over artist who lives in New York City with his beautiful family. American born, Roger moved to Ireland as a youth and graduated from the University of Glamorgan in Wales. He has performed in over forty-five countries. His first venture in audio narration was as a child, helping his father record local newspapers for the blind and visually impaired.

Niklas Zetterling is a military historian and researcher at the Swedish Defense College. His books include Bismarck, The Korsun Pocket, and The Drive on Moscow, 1941.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B06XGLLC4B
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Casemate (April 19, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 19, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 20.6 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 411 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 204 ratings

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Niklas Zetterling

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
204 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book highly informative, particularly praising its excellent discussion of German combat operations and well-documented content. Moreover, the book receives positive feedback for its readability, with one customer noting it's an engaging read on its own. Additionally, customers consider it a worthwhile addition to a WWII library.

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13 customers mention "Information quality"13 positive0 negative

Customers find the book highly informative and well-documented, particularly praising its excellent discussion of German combat operations. One customer notes that it provides a detailed analysis of lower-level tactics, while another points out that it explains the origin and meaning of the Blitzkrieg.

"Great read! Shifts back & forth from overall view of the politics, into the individual soldiers point of view...." Read more

"...He does an interesting job of looking at lower level tactics and the Wehrmacht mind set...." Read more

"...Much discussion about the misconceptions about blitz warfare. Explains the reasons for the early success and later failure of German blitz warfare...." Read more

"...Well documented with excellent maps of all the major campaigns, this book shows that "Blitzkrieg" was a Nazi propaganda term used to inliset fear..." Read more

5 customers mention "Value for money"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book valuable, with one mentioning it's a worthwhile addition to a WWII library.

"...This is a good book that looks at one of the facets of German success at the levels of tactics and operational art. Four stars." Read more

"...First this book is worth a read for it's look at campaigns like the Norway invasion that aren't often written about...." Read more

"A good book, which uses personal stories from the men who were inside the German tanks." Read more

"A worthwhile addition to a WWII library and an engaging read on its own. His central thesis is well presented and compelling...." Read more

3 customers mention "Readability"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and not boring to read.

"...Overall a highly informative and satisfying perfomance." Read more

"...Good discussion of the structure of command. Not boring, enjoy. PW" Read more

"A worthwhile addition to a WWII library and an engaging read on its own. His central thesis is well presented and compelling...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Peter A
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Insight
    Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2019
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    Great read! Shifts back & forth from overall view of the politics, into the individual soldiers point of view. Shows how they used & missed using different modern & historical military tactics. Loved the POV of a reconnaissance plane photographer, and front line tank driver.
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  • Stone Dog
    4.0 out of 5 stars Blitzkrieg at the lowest levels.
    Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2018
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    In "Blitzkrieg: From the Ground Up", author Niklas Zetterling focuses the reader's attention on a too-little looked at aspect of the German successes of the early World War II period - the actions of individual German junior officers, NCOs and enlisted men.

    The author brings to the forefront the German way of war in which soldiers, at all levels, were expected to take initiative to act in accordance with what the situation before them required, whether in absence of orders or against orders. The German military, since Scharnhorst, devolved tactical decision making down to the lowest level of officer and in WWI down to NCOs with Stropptruppen tactics and this is borne out by Zetterling's study.

    The author tells the story of campaigns from Poland to Barbarossa where he presents first-hand accounts of officers, NCOs and ordinary enlisted men showing initiative in this tradition. While opposing troops waited for orders from above, the German soldiers acted - sometimes successfully, sometimes not, but more often than not this made the difference in battles. Part of the speed in "Blitzkrieg" was due to this phenomenon where the Germans thought, decided and acted faster than their opponents.

    It is important to note that the second campaign the author looks at is the Scandinavian campaign in Denmark and Norway where no German armor or mobile forces were used. German infantry, mountain troops and Fallschirmjäger quickly conquered these countries. This is a good book that looks at one of the facets of German success at the levels of tactics and operational art. Four stars.
    19 people found this helpful
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  • J. B. Kramer
    3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting look at company level tactics, not much about blitzkrieg
    Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2019
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    Me me say that I am not a professional military having done my service in the Silent Service. But I am well read in military history.

    First this book is worth a read for it's look at campaigns like the Norway invasion that aren't often written about. He does an interesting job of looking at lower level tactics and the Wehrmacht mind set. Which is completely different from the usual thinking about the rigid Prussian mentality. The theme of the book is that the German's freed their lower level troops to make their own decisions down to the NCO ranks. And their relentless concentration on keeping the tempo of the warfare at a high level.

    However when he discusses the antecedent to this way of thinking he falls flat on his face by accepting the Allied view of German 'infiltration tactics' which were anything but that. The German's broke away from the mass action mindset of the Armies of the period by adopting open tactics. And that required that the NCO's and lower levels of the officer corp be trained to a much higher level. And given freedom to make tactical decisions based on the real time information available to them.

    The so called infiltration tactics were actually based on well thought out tactics developed by Major Calslow and Hauptmann Willy Rohr. Especially Rohr a lowly Captain. Rohr determined that a major weakness of the trench system occurred when the enemy troops got in the trench with your people and attacked down the trench. From inside the trench an also along the rims with grenades, flame throwers and machine guns.

    To get the Stosstruppen to the trench, Lt Colonel Bruchmüller aka Durchmüller developed new artillery tactic on the eastern front. He came west with Ludendorf and took control of Army level artillery. Even at his rank. He designed a system which used a brief very heavy bombardment just prior to the attack with no artillery preparation and registration of the guns. He developed firing plans which minute by minute assigned targets to each battery in his control. This was ended with a creeping barrage that the stosstruppen followed into the trench line. The target area was cut off from support by a box barrage.

    This was highly successful but ultimately failed because it wasn't tried until all sides were exhausted by the war and the incapability of the logistics corp to push support lines forward as fast as the troops were advancing. The troops out ran their support and the advance failed.

    This is not infiltration.

    As for Blitzkrieg the author is correct that this term was coined in the west during the Polish invasion and was not used by the Wehrmacht. He makes much of the fact that infantry troops often made the initial breakthru followed by Panzer troops. But as I understand it this was as designed. Tanks don't survive when they are forced into close action with infantry. But once the line is broken they can run wild in the rear area moving faster than the slow acting French can compensate for.

    But still I'd give this book a read just for the coverage of rarely covered actions.
    14 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Blitz Warfare Explaned
    Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2019
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    Surprising information about the development of Bliz warfare during and after WW I and beyond. Much discussion about the misconceptions about blitz warfare. Explains the reasons for the early success and later failure of German blitz warfare. Overall a highly informative and satisfying perfomance.
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  • Hans Rigelman
    5.0 out of 5 stars German War Machine More Conventional than Innovative in WWII
    Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2019
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    Interesting study on the decisions and tactics used by Germany in WWII. Well documented with excellent maps of all the major campaigns, this book shows that "Blitzkrieg" was a Nazi propaganda term used to inliset fear in their enemies.
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  • David Wilkerson
    4.0 out of 5 stars Real. Effectively Researched. Written for Those of us Who Will Never be Generals.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2019
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    Niklas Zetterling has joined those researchers and writers who have for decades battled long-dead propagandists and few self-aggrandizing historians whose greatest hope is that readers will never research those who felt the horror of firsthand war. Some reviewers have noted that Zetterling's thesis is not new; true, but still his conclusions are very important. To me, the best aspect of this work is the heavy emphasis on those who wore blood-soaked bandages instead of grand and pompous uniforms.

    If you want to read personal accounts to learn something worthwhile, Zetterling is for you. If you want exciting war stories, turn to Hollywood.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Craig Simpson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Blitzkrieg Works - main 2 points
    Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Not bad. For the most part it shows Blitzkrieg had two parts:

    1) Commanders need the ability to make all decisions needed to complete a mission.
    2) Full speed ahead doesn't work so good, when supply lines are stretched too far.

    About #1 -Don't you see the lack of this every day? How many checkers need a manager to do "anything". Also see it in the corporate world, as specialization has replaced end-to-end knowledge, ability, enthusiasm, and self respect.
    3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Neal Ames
    3.0 out of 5 stars A Study of Germany's Art of War
    Reviewed in Australia on May 30, 2019
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    A solid look at how Germany approached the major battles in WWII, how practices learnt during WWI shaped those future battles and the fundamentals that allowed their army to defeat much larger and better equiped armies in Europe. Fundamental to their success was the philosophy that all leaders, at any level should take initiative in line with the overall mission, regardless of their orders. A good study.
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  • JWH
    5.0 out of 5 stars Vital Book on the Early War German Army
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 3, 2017
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    As I read through it, I was aware that this was a very good, very well researched book, presenting new things for the English-speaking public interested in the performance and doctrine of the German Army in WW2. It has an over-arching narrative of how the German Army prepared for WW2 and then how it performed during the campaigns of Poland, Norway, France and the Low Countries, and then Russia. This narrative is liberally spiced with first-hand accounts, often quite detailed, of various actions - often at the level of the platoon, company and battalion, which have to be omitted from the "grand narratives" of the campaigns and the war as a whole. Some of the accounts would be an excellent start point for further research for how the various Allied units involved perceived the situation and many of the accounts would be a very useful start point for wargamers wanting to write rules or design scenarios. Often there are very interesting little details in the accounts: I was struck by the instances where German panzer crews dismounted and assaulted difficult positions on foot.
    The book is focused on its subject, but the author's extensive knowledge of WW2 allows him to draw on many different examples and comparisons, as well as being aware of the overall levels of losses and replacements and equipment and so on.
    The main theme of the book is perhaps quite well-known in military circumstances but hasn't yet strongly entered the popular imagination - that theme is that the theoretical and doctrinal advances made in inter-war Germany - the emphasis on attacking initiative and extremely fast low-level decision making - were the foundations of the so-called "Blitzkrieg" success, not the combination of tank and aircraft which is often credited with this. Zetterling makes similar comments about the Luftwaffe as he does about Allied close air support in his book on Normandy Normandy 1944: German Military Organization, Combat Power and Organizational Effectiveness, that the effect of this kind of support was overrated in comparison with the importance of air reconnaissance and (in the Norway campaign) troop transport. The case is strongly made and very persuasive.
    Zetterling certainly does not present a monolithic view of German success; rather, he shows the development of the German army over time. In particular, he emphasizes the (relative) weakness of the panzer units in Poland and France, and shows how the increasing importance of the panzer arm was directly related to the absolute increase in capability of the actual tanks.
    In addition, there is a genuine moment of insight at the end of the book - a comment on why modern Western armies haven't ever got their version of "mission command" to work to the same extent.
    Throroughly, thoroughly recommended to historians, military professionals, wargamers and anyone else with an interest in the German Army at the beginning of WW2.
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  • Mr. Christopher M. Letch
    5.0 out of 5 stars What if?
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 18, 2019
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    Great read tons of info well worth purchasing.
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  • Richard
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 8, 2019
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    Very well written and in-depth study. Recommended.
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