The German Order of Battle: Infantry in World War II

Rating:
Summary: A good reference for German infantry organization
Review: Another massive compilation of information about the German army of World War II by Mr. Nafziger.

This book is an excellent resource for determining the organization and equipment of German infantry units during the war.

Mr. Nafziger documents the order in which the various divisions were created and equipment in their possession during various points of the war.

There are a couple of items which detract from the worth of the book as a reference.

Information on deployment of the units and their relationships to German higher commands is scarce, and makes order of battle analysis impossible without resort to other works on the German army.

The book addresses only German army infantry divisions; the infantry divisions fielded by the German air force and navy are not mentioned, nor are the air force parachute divisions. There is no mention of S.S. units in the book, as Mr. Nafizer apparently intends to publish a separate work on the S.S.

There is a detailed table of organization of a Volksgrenadier division in the book, but the explanatory notes on the numbers of weapons for most of the sub-units appear to have been omitted.

There are occasional minor errors, such as the explanation that "zbV" means "zur besonder Verband" [the last word should be 'Verwendung'], meaning a unit "for special employment".

Mr. Nafziger has done an admirable job tracking the chaotic German order of battle in 1945 and providing detailed notes on the nonstandard composition of these units.

There are only a few references to German fortress infantry units; one can only hope that in the future Mr. Nafziger will publish a volume dedicated to all German fortress units to clarify that aspect of the German order of battle.

A useful reference, if incomplete in some regards.

Rating:
Summary: A Massive Undertaking
Review: Mr. Nafziger has once again gone where few dare. He has compiled a tome well worth the effort.

As in his other books on various military units Mr. Nafziger has created understanding and clarity in a very difficult area. Especially during the end of WW II. Making sense with sparse information and keeping a clear delination of units and their histories.