Books on SS Cavalry Units

[Michael Page]

I'm interested in a getting a book on SS Cavalry formations and would like some opinions as to which are the better works - that is, how they stack up against each other, and what you would recommend.

I'm not interested in getting "Steadfast Hussars" at the present time.

Thoughts?

[SSamir]

I bought a book a couple of years ago, I think it was called called "Riding East, The SS cavalry brigade". It's a good read. I can't remember too much details, but I did enjoy the book.

Samir

[rhamadeen dixon]

Cavalry books

Also Himmler's Cavalry is a a good read.Good details on the history.

[Mark C. Yerger]

"Riding East, The SS Cavalry Brigade in Poland and Russia 1939-1942"
and
German Cross in Gold Holders of the SS and Police," volume 4 (Kavallerie)

Both have considerable data beyond their cover titles, between the two some 600 pages and several hundred images for the personnel, development, and operations of the Brigade, 8th, and 22nd divisions. 37th had no GC holders.

[Herr Lyppe]

I have Mark's 'Riding East....' and it's definitely well worth the read.

[Michael Page]

Thanks for the input. I also note Cavalry Divisions of the Waffen SS, by Rolf Michaelis.Has anyone perused that one?

[Barry Brown]

I have this 1982 Munin Verlag title by Hanns Bayer. Photo history with German/English text.

[MarcRikmenspoel]

The Munin photo book is better than nothing, but it is one of the least interesting Munin books. Bayer also wrote a privately printed text history of the SS cavalry that is considered quite good, but which I've never seen.

A good book for an introduction to SS cavalry is Charles Trang's dual-language French-english Heimdal book. It puts the many Max Bueschel photos from 1941-42 into context.

Hans-otto Wachter has a lengthy series of paperback volumes about SS cavalry. He was an SS cavalryman, and used his veteran connections to acquire material not seen elsewhere. These are German-only, and fairly expensive, but are the best single source for SS cavalry material.

[Reichsword]

" Riding East" by Yerger

[Johnny R]

Thanks for the input. I also note Cavalry Divisions of the Waffen SS, by Rolf Michaelis.Has anyone perused that one?

I have not seen the English but I have this book in German. It is good publication and has a lot of information in it.

[Mark C. Yerger]

Bayer's small format text volume is generally poor, skips a lot of significant time periods with no data for them. What is there has a lot of errors but good considering what archive and private materials were available at the time he wrote it. He basically skips the multiple years of the Berittene Abteilung through the two Totenkopf-Reiterstandarten. "Florian Geyer" has the most coverage as KTB copies for 1942-1943 were available.

I keep paper copies of two of them as they're among the most usable to me for various subjects and those who did entries added data not normally encountered in divisional level KTBs of other units.

[John P. Moore]

I have both of Mark Yerger's excellent SS cavalry books and I highly recommend them.

John