introduction

This is a review of the Osprey Publishing LTD book Panzerjäger vs KV-1 – Eastern Front 1941-43 by author Robert Forczyk and illustrators Peter Dennis and Ian Palmer.

the book

** This is the account of machines of war pitted against each other and the combatants who operated them. Step onto the battlefield and immerse yourself in the experience of real historic combat. **
** The Eastern Front clashes between Soviet heavy tanks and German antitank weapons were a rare case of German technology failing to match that of the Soviet Union. Having developed a heavy ‘breakthrough” tank to smash enemy infantry defenses, at the start of Operation Barbarossa the Rad Army’s KV-1 and KV-2 tanks were virtually invulnerable to the antitank weapons of the Panzerjäger and demonstrated their ability to overrun German infantry. This advantage gave the Red Army a window of opportunity between fall 1941 and spring 1942 to use their heavy tanks in a series of desperate counteroffensives, before German antitank technology could catch up.**
** Fully illustrated, this book analyzes the fascinating technological and tactical duel between German antitank guns and Soviet armour in the early years on the Eastern Front **
** Quoted from the back cover of the book.

Osprey Publications Ltd. has released Panzerjäger vs KV-1 – Eastern Front 1941-43 as Number 46 in their “Duel” series. Panzerjäger vs KV-1 is a paperback book with 80 pages. Included with the text are colour and black & white photographs, colour and black & white illustrations, colour maps, informational charts and detailed captions. It has a 2012 copyright and the ISBN is 978-1-84908-578-6. As the title states, the book covers the German Panzerjäger fight against the Russian KV-1 on the Eastern Front during World War II from 1941 to 1943.

the contents

- Introduction
- Chronology
- Design and Development
- The Strategic Situation
- Technical Specifications
- The Combatants
- Combat
- Statistics and Analysis
- Aftermath
- Bibliography
- Index

the text:

The book is well-written and contains many excellent details about German and Russian armour and their use during Operation Solstice in 1945. The text starts with detailing Germany’s development of a modern antitank gun and Russia’s development of a modern battle tank. It goes on to describe the variants of the antitank guns and developments of the Russian armour and the pros and cons of each. And of great interest is the detailed information in regards to the different conflicts between German antitank guns and the Russian KV-1 and the success and losses during their clashes in combat. I didn’t notice any spelling or grammatical errors as I read through the text. Grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. I feel that if the text is well written then it shows that the author has taken the time to be a professional with their writing. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the text for yourself.

the photographs

There are a total of 53 black & white photographs, as well as five colour photographs throughout the book. The photographs range from showing tanks and antitank weapons in static positions for the photographer to action photographs. There are action photographs such as crew members, antitank weapons engaging enemy armour, destroyed armour and antitank guns, factory scenes, battle damage, crews conducting maintenance, troop and weapon movements, and personnel examining captured, abandoned and destroyed armour. The photographs cover all seasons and all types of terrain. All of these photographs would be of a great benefit to the detail minded military modeller. Several of the photographs will be of use and interest to the scale modeller and several of them will be of interest to military enthusiasts that are interested in viewing the KV-1 and German PaK weapons. Most of the photographs are well done, however there are some that have an out of focus look to them, and some appear to be too dark. All of that is typical for photographs of this period of time. Several are stills taken from period films, which would account for the lack of sharpness. One thing that I was appreciative of with the photographs is that a good majority of them are not overused photographs that tend to turn up in numerous publications. Robert Forczyk has stuck to the title of the book and chose photographs that are relevant to the subject of the book and did not include photographs that strayed from the main subject. It is always nice to see the lesser known photographs. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the photographs for yourself.

the illustrations

There are eight colour illustrations by illustrators Peter Dennis and Ian Palmer that are very well done, nicely detailed and cover:

- KV-1 Model 1940 “Ekranami” (with screens)
- German Antitank Guns
- 3.7cm PaK 36 L/46.5
- 5cm PaK 38 L/60
- 7.5cm Pak 40 L/48
- KV Ammunition
- German PaK Ammunition, 1941-43
- Tank panic! Soviet KV heavy tanks counterattack on the Pulovo Heights, September 13, 1941
- KV-1 Engagement Sequence
- PaK 38 Engagement Sequence
- The KV’s swan song – German XXXV Armeekorps’ antitank defense slaughters KV-led attack on the Orel salient July 13, 1943

The colour illustrations of the KV-1 and the anti-tank guns show and list specifics for each one such as weight, measurements, rates of fire, etc. and the thing I found very interesting with the illustrations is that the cost/prices for the KV-1, as well as the German anti-tank guns, are shown from the WWII time frame in Russian Rubles and German Reichsmarks. The ammunition for both the KV-1 and the German PaK anti-tank guns is shown and explained as well. This type of information will be especially helpful to the detail minded military armour modeller and the armour enthusiast. Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the illustrations for yourself.

the colour maps

There are two colour maps throughout the book and they show:

- KV vs Panzerjäger actions, 1941, the opening stages
- The battle of Raseiniai, June 24, 1941, German Kampfgruppen

the informational charts

There are six informational charts throughout the book that are very well done, nicely detailed and provide information on:

- English to metric conversion chart
- Military abbreviation glossary
- Comparative ranks between English, Russian and German ranks
- Key to military symbols and a key to unit identification
- Soviet KV order of battle, June 1941
- German Panzerjäger weapons by entry into service

personal profiles

There are two personal full page profiles with the individuals photograph included in the book that are very well done, nicely written and detailed and provide information on:

- Rudolf Bittner (1921-45) – German
- Pavel Gudz (1919-2008) - Russian

the captions

The captions are well written and are very detailed and explain the accompanying photographs well. They provide such detailed information as the type and model of the armour and anti-tank guns shown, damaged equipment, locations, military units, individual’s names and other such specific information. As with the text I didn’t notice any spelling or grammatical errors I read through the captions. As I stated before, grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. I feel that if the captions are well written then it shows that the author has taken the time to be a professional with their writing Please refer to the scans that I have provided so that you can judge the captions for yourself.

conclusion

All in all, I am very impressed with the book. It examines combat between the German Panzerjäger and the Russian KV-1 on the Eastern Front during World War II from 1941 to 1943. Osprey Publishing continues to release many great titles such as this one and I would have no hesitation to add more of their books to my personal library, nor would I hesitate to recommend this book to others.

This book was provided to me by Osprey Publishing Ltd. Please be sure to mention that you saw the book reviewed here when you make your purchase.

references

Tanks of World War II
Duncan Crow
Exeter Books

The Great Tanks
Chris Ellis and Peter Chamberlain
Hamlyn

German Tanks Of World War Two In Action
George Forty
Arms and Armour

An Illustrated History Of Fighting Vehicles
Armin Halle/Carlo Demand
Crescent Books

Anti-Tank Weapons
WW2 Fact Files
Peter Chamberlain and Terry Gander
Arco Publishing Company, Inc.

Armour Series Vol. 6
Armour On The Eastern Front
An Armour Series Special
Walter J. Speilberger and Uwe Feist
Aero Publishers, Inc.

Take a look inside the book on the Osprey web site:

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/store/Panzerjäger-vs-KV-1_9781849085786

Take a look inside the book on the Amazon web site:

http://www.amazon.com/Panzerjäger-KV-1-Eastern-Front-1941-43/dp/1849085781/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356887698&sr=8-1&keywords=Panzerjäger vs KV-1 - Eastern Front 1941-43

Take a look inside the Kindle Edition on the Osprey web site:

http://www.amazon.com/Panzerjäger-KV-1-Eastern-1941-43-ebook/dp/B009BVZAXG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1356887698&sr=8-2&keywords=Panzerjäger vs KV-1 - Eastern Front 1941-43#_