Hitler's Commanders

German Bravery in the Field 1939 - 1945

Hitler's command and control of the German war machine was absolute, but it depended nevertheless on the ability, judgment and unquestioning loyalty of the senior officers charged with putting his ideas - however difficult - into effect. Although they came from different social backgrounds, and their routes to Army prominence were equally varied, these were all men who rose to the military challenge. Here military historian and ex-British army officer James Lucas examines the role and achievement of fourteen such men of power. His subjects include Eduard Dietl, the hero of Narvik, 1940; Werner Kempf, one of the most successful Panzer commanders of the Second World War, who served with distinction on the Eastern Front; Kurt Meyer, who as General Commanding the Hitler Youth Division was one of Germany's youngest General Officers; Theodor Scherer, the hero of Cholm in 1942; and others of equal stature and bravery.