Rating: 
Summary: Untainted Shield of Wehrmacht?
Review: "Panzer Leader," written by a former Colonel-General of the Wehrmacht, Heinz Guderian, is a fascinating book. It is fascinating in its own right in that it describes Guderian's efforts to create and operate effective all-arms formations including armor, armored infantry and towed (later self-propelled) artillery in spite of the opposition from the more traditional elements of the Wehrmacht. With Hitler's keen interest and help, Guderian succeeded in creating such formations in "Panzerdivisionen" - armored divisions. The subsquent successes which Guderian had as a commander of such formations in Poland, France and Russia make an exciting and informed reading.
However, the book is also fascinating because of the falsehood contained in it. Principally, there are two major "untruths" which often escape notice from the casual reader. The first falsehood is the credit which Guderian attributes to the late Sir Basil H. Liddell Hart as the "founder" of Blitzkrieg "doctrine." Guderian was jailed after the Second World War by the Allied authorities in the West, and it was Sir Liddell Hart who championed his (and other jailed German generals') cause. He brought them gifts and attempted to convince the authorities to free them, and eventually became the editor of their memoirs in the West. Sir Lidell Hart had been indeed an innovator of military doctrine in the 1920's, but he had, by 1930's, rejected the concept of armored warfare as viable. In any case, his reputation had fallen during the war, and this he attempted to salvage rather successfully with the help of the grateful ex-German generals after the war. Hence, Guderian inserted the line crediting Sir Liddell Hart as the founder of Blitzkrieg idea in the English edition of the book (it does not appear in the German edition) which was then edited by Sir Liddell Hart himself. Guderian really deserves the credit for integrating armor, motorized infantry and motorized artillery into an all-arms fighting formation known as Panzer Divisions.
Second major "irregularity" of the book concerns the infamous "Commissar Order." Prior to launching Case Barbarossa, the invasion of Soviet Union, Hitler directed that German forces to eliminate Soviet political officers (and eventually other "undesirables" including Jews) among the captured Soviet POWs. Guderian claims in the book that he did not distribute this order to units under his command, the Second Panzer Group (later the Second Panzer Army) and that hence the order was not carried out in his command. This is an outright lie as was later effectively rebutted by the books written by Professor Omer Bartov. In fact, the Commissar Order was carried out in the Second Panzer Group.
There are other smaller problems. While the account of the war in the book is largely accurate, Guderian often fails to mention that his mistakes were at times reponsible for the failure of military operations under his command. Instead he blames Hitler who, though he shares a large part of the blame, did not make the mistakes alone.
This book was instrumental during the earlier years of the Cold War in implanting the idea that the "Shield of the Wehrmacht" was "untainted" - that it was Hitler and the SS who were responsible for the military failures and the atrocities and that the German army's honor and operational brilliance remained untainted. The book was welcomed in the West because it helped to buttress the argument for the rearming of the Federal Republic of Germany, and because it pointed a way to defeat the Russian "Slavic-Asiatic" hordes with West European operational and tactical brilliance.
We now have a more accurate portrayal of the war available. Nonetheless, the book is useful in that it provides an insight into why the Panzer Division was such an effective instrument of war. The books shows that it was the operational and tactical brilliance of integrating all arms and allowing the unit to deal flexibly with all forms of enemies while maintaining the momentum of operation which made the German armored units so formidable, not the superior number of German tanks during the early years as Sir Churchill inaccurately pointed out in his writings.
At the same time, the reader must understand the context of the book and what it does not contain and what it falsifies. For the shield of the Wehrmacht was tainted with the blood of its victims and occassional military blunders by its commanders. So long as that understanding is present, the book makes an interesting and fascinating military history reading.
James J. Na
Rating: 
Summary: Classic
Review: A fine autobiography of one of the great captains in military history. One of the "holy trinity" (along with Fuller and Hart) of modern combined arms warfare, Guderian not only mastered the military arts, he also writes extremely well.
Rating:
Summary: An insider's view of Hitler
Review: All of the other reviews on this page concerning Guderian's role on the development of German tank warfare are both knowledgeable and factually correct. He was to German tank warfare strategy what Rommel was to tactics. Adding in Mannstein, it is remarkable how much competence and intelligence surfaced among the Panzer generals, especially when compared to their counterparts in the infantry.What I found most interesting about this book, however, were the insights it provided about Hitler. There has been a tendency, both during and after the war, to downplay Hitler's intelligence and abilities, which leaves the question of "If he was so stupid, how did he get so far?" What Guderian makes clear is that Hitler was exceptionally intelligent. Because Guderian was at his side at key times during the war, he provides personal insights that would not otherwise be available. Perhaps the most disturbing item in the book, which was news to me, was Hitler's plan to gather the people of Germany together in the center of the country at the end of the war, destroy all bridges and other transportation links, and allow them to die of disease and starvation, a disaster that (according to Guderian) was only averted by actions that he and Albert Speer took.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading for any combat officer, and war historian..
Review: Apart from von Manstein, Guderian is arguably to most able and important of the German commanders. He has also shown himself to be a great author and his book contains great insight into why the Germans lost the war, or at least why they lost it so fast, after their strong initial success. He also does a great study of Hitler and other members of the Nasi leadership towards the end of the book which could have only been given by one like Guderian who was there with the various individuals. The most interesting part of this book is his accounts of the various times that he and Hitler fought over matters of strategic and even tactical issues. He made it very clear that Hitler was very buried into the workings of even the divisional level of the war, which no doubt drove his commanders crazy, and lead to many of them resigning or being dismissed.. Again, the book as a great read, as well written as any other, but not quite as focused on the military formations and maneuvers the way von Manstein's book was. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading for any combat officer, and war historian..
Review: Apart from von Manstein, Guderian is arguably to most able and important of the German commanders. He has also shown himself to be a great author and his book contains great insight into why the Germans lost the war, or at least why they lost it so fast, after their strong initial success. He also does a great study of Hitler and other members of the Nasi leadership towards the end of the book which could have only been given by one like Guderian who was there with the various individuals. The most interesting part of this book is his accounts of the various times that he and Hitler fought over matters of strategic and even tactical issues. He made it very clear that Hitler was very buried into the workings of even the divisional level of the war, which no doubt drove his commanders crazy, and lead to many of them resigning or being dismissed.. Again, the book as a great read, as well written as any other, but not quite as focused on the military formations and maneuvers the way von Manstein's book was. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A first person insight into the Panzer branch of Germany
Review: Excellent book. Once you adjust to the author's meandering way of describing his work you will find a very insightful account of the inner workings of the Panzer arm of the German Army. Guderian is rightfully known as the force behind the armoured forces of the Third Riech and this work clearly is an important account of the behind the scenes action. The personal accounts of his arguments with Hitler and of the Eastern Front are excellent, once you take into account his slightly biased viewpoint. I highly recommend this book as the in depth look at the Panzer arm, but be prepared for a somewhat circuitous path and somewhat hard to read maps. Some excellent photos , but a book written for the military historian and not the everyday reader. Daniel Arsenault, BA History and Foreign Diplomacy Worcester State COllege 1996, Phi Alpha Theta 1993
Rating:
Summary: Achtung Tank Lovers!!!
Review: For anyone who is intersted in armored warfare this is a must read, because Guderian is without a doubt a pioneer of 20th century armor tactics and the father of Germany's Panzer Forces. It was him and military thinkers like him that brought about the concept of mass armored formation as a separate military arm in oppose the spreading out tanks all over as infantry support. The book describes the development of the German Panzer Forces from infancy to full develoment as well its implementation during the WWII. The book is treasure of technical information from the most well knowned to the most obsecure tanks developed in Germany, analyzing both weakness' and strengths of different models. Guderian also gives a very detailed story of the German offensive in Russia of 1941 (until he was dismissed) and he picks up the story in 1943 after his reinstatement to active military duty and describes the events up to very end of the war. Even though the General was man integrity his view of the of the war (recorded at the end) is described from the German point of view and can't help to be a bit biased. Guderain's absolute defence of the honor of the German army leaves the reader a bit skeptical in view of what we know about German atrocities on the eastern front. However none of these faults (that's why i gave it 4 stars) takes away from the richness of information this text provides on development and implementation of massed armor forces for first time in history of warfare. If you are interested in the history of the German-Soviet conflict I would look for a more balanced source eleswhere and leave this book for the armor enthusiest or a reader of military biographies.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding. A must for any military history buff
Review: For students of miltary history interested in the development of armor as a stand-alone weapon, this book is invaluable. However, its value far surpasses that of an account of the evolution of mechanized force; the insight it provides into the inner workings of the Third Reich and Hitler are of unparalleled value for anyone interested in understanding why Hitler, and not the German Army, lost the Second World War
Rating:
Summary: A Soldier's Story from the Axis High Command
Review: General Guderian's book is certainly not for the WWII reader who wants a style like that of Ambrose or Ryan, but it does deliver on sheer content and insight from one of the greatest military minds of the second world war. Guderian is quite humble in his writing considering he was the primary driving force behind development of Germany's Blitzkreig warfare. Had this been written by a personality such as Montgomery I'm sure the feel would have been much different. His descriptions of campaigns in the west and east are often quite moving, but equally as often dry and matter of fact. His writings are not as "moving" or personal as those of Rommel (see The Rommel Papers), but they are full of important information and insights. In particular his closing chapter touches nicely on his feelings of the German High Command, it's members, and leaders of the Nazi party. If you want history as told by a leading member of the German High Command this book will not disappoint. If you want edge of your seat story telling this might not be your cup of tea.
Rating:
Summary: Memoires of the war
Review: General Heinz Guderian was one of the principle figures in
the development of the German Blitzkrieg. This book is his
memoires, written shortly after the war. He discusses the
resistance to his new tectical ideas, from more conservative
soldiers, and gives a description of the personalities in
the 3rd Reich. He has a rather lengthy discussion of his
campaigns in the war, which drags on too long for light
reading. But, it is livened up with anecdotes like Sepp
Dietrich in black face, and some indirect comments about the
general who got fired for marrying a hooker.
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