FALLSCHIRM
PANZER DIVISION ‘HERMANN GÖRING’
A METICULOUSLY DETAILED ACCOUNT OF THE GERMAN AIR FORCE’S CHAOTIC FORAY INTO THE WORLD OF THE PANZER TANK, DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Author: Lawrence Paterson Publisher: Pen & Sword Price: £25
The German Wehrmacht was infamous for the myriad of often bizarre formations it created during WWII, and Lawrence Paterson does an excellent job of covering the genesis and combat history of one of its strangest – the Hermann Göring Panzer Division. Starting out life as a paramilitary force at the disposal of the Prussian Interior Ministry, it soon expanded into something of a personal army for its overblown boss and head of the new Luftwaffe, Hermann Göring. Its first action was the invasion of Czechoslovakia: “The drivers don’t have driving licenses yet, we haven’t fired a single bullet, and we go to war anyway.”
From then on Paterson recounts the evolution and expansion of the unit as it took part in the attack on the Soviet Union, but the book really comes to life when the paratroopers and tankers of the Hermann Göring moved to the Mediterranean to fight in Tunisia, Sicily and mainland Italy. Throughout, Paterson seeks to balance an often confusing and everchanging organisational structure with personal testimony from members of the division. What emerges is a picture of increasing chaos and improvisation as the Third Reich retreated on every front. Paterson is honest about the division’s patchy track record, with one of its own commanders bemoaning that during the fighting in Sicily “men came running to the rear, hysterically crying because they’d heard… a single shot”. However, Paterson also details the often-dogged defence displayed by the division as it fought against heavy odds.
In all, Fallschirm Panzer Division ‘Hermann Göring’ is an important contribution to an otherwise little-known but fascinating unit.