By Dean Roxby
These four titles are from a series of nine (so far) books that cover German WWII weapons. What sets this series apart from other books is the use of official photos taken by German military photographers. These SS-Kriegsberichter, or war reporters, were tasked with capturing inspiring images for the German propaganda machine. Propaganda being what it is, most of the original captions must be treated with a great deal of suspicion. The author, Guus de Vries, mentions this in the preface.
The preface also mentions that there were perhaps 2,500 Kriegsberichter covering all branches of the German war effort. Operating under the direction of the Ministry of Propaganda, these photographers and reporters helped the Third Reich tell its version of the war.
More often than not, they were not actually capturing real combat scenes but recreating great battles a week or so after the event. This becomes evident upon careful scrutiny of the photographs. The author often points out small details such as a missing magazine or rear sight folded down as a soldier is supposedly aiming at an enemy. This seems strange that even with an entire ministry devoted to creating the perfect image of a victorious soldier, such details were missed.
Once it is understood that these photos (and especially the captions that accompany the photos) represent the Nazi point of view, they become an intriguing piece of history.
Each book typically starts with an Introduction, then a look at the development process of the specific weapon (the exception being the title, Captured Arms / Beutewaffen, for obvious reasons). From there, accessories, different variants, markings and so on are covered. This is not a rigid list, however. For example, the FG42 book covers pre-production trials models, the first production model, an intermediate type, and the second (final) production model. This technical study takes up the first 50 or so pages (this differs with each title). The Propaganda photos section makes up the remainder of the 152 pages.
The Captured Arms / Beutewaffen book takes a different approach. As the Germans did not develop but merely captured these arms, the book is divided into country of origin. Photographs of German soldiers armed with weapons from a long list of nations are featured. The cover photo shows a very pleased paratrooper posing with a British Mk I Bren, probably captured in Dunkirk or Crete.
The technical first section of each book often has several photos sharing one page, especially if there are three views of the same gun or a comparison of two variants. The Propaganda section, however, features one large photo per page, along with a comment from the author(s). Generally this is a translation of the original German caption, along with the author’s observations. These large photos are less about the gun and more about the soldiers. Besides the posed battle recreations mentioned above, there are many photos taken during training, casual group photos, various “lifestyle” photos of soldiers relaxing, etc., and even a few real combat photos.
As might be expected from the posed photos, they tend to be better quality than “grab” shots. Most photos are crisp and clear, although some are not (usually specific battle photos). All are black and white; there are no color photos.
While these books are not the final word on each gun covered, they do hold a great deal of information in the technical first section. Adding in the official German Kriegsberichter photos makes this an interesting group of books.
DETAILS: Propaganda Photo Series
Vol. III: The P08 Luger Pistol
By Guus De Vries and Bas J. Martens
Hardcover, 9×9 inches
152 pages, includes dust jacket
Copyright 2001, 2nd ed.
ISBN 978-90-805583-5-9
Publisher: S.I. Publicaties BV sipublicaties.nl
Vol. VI: The MG34 Machine Gun
By Guus De Vries
Hardcover, 9×9 inches
152 pages, includes dust jacket
Copyright 2010
ISBN 978-90-78521-03-7
Publisher: S.I. Publicaties BV sipublicaties.nl
Vol. VIII: The FG42 Fallschirmjägergewehr
By Guus De Vries
Hardcover, 9×9 inches
152 pages, includes dust jacket
Copyright 2011
ISBN 978-90-78521-05-1
Publisher: S.I. Publicaties BV sipublicaties.nl
Vol. IX: Captured Arms / Beutewaffen
By Guus De Vries
Hardcover, 9×9 inches
152 pages, includes dust jacket
Copyright 2011
ISBN 978-90-78521-06-8
Publisher: S.I. Publicaties BV sipublicaties.nl
| This article first appeared in Small Arms Review V24N1 (Jan 2020) |
