US German Military Studies

[MLW]

Hello All:

I am searching for many of the US Army German Military Studies. Many, but not all, are at NARA on microfiche. But, I am not certain that the archivists know exactly what they have - they recently "discovered" some new ones in there files. Considering the number of studies, I suppose that is not surprising. Anyway, at NARA, as far as I know, they have only the English language studies.

There are also many studies at the Military History Institute at Carlisle Barracks. These are the originals and often include those that were not translated into English. They also have additional studies that were completed after 1954 and therefore are not listed in the official list of studies. In turns out that there is a supplemental list of studies at MHI. For example, I was looking at the files and there was a very large study on the 4th Pz Div on the Eastern front (I think I have that right) in German. The problem at MHI is reproduction which is only by photocopy or camera on a light stand.

Meanwhile, the Air Force studies are at Maxwell AFB in Alabama.

I wonder though, and this is my question - where else are these studies hiding? These were multiple copies made. Could there be some in the text records of NARA (vice microfilm)? I don't think they are in US Army Europe anymore because I believe the USAREUR research library (or whatever it was called) shut down a few years ago. Any ideas?

BTW, I will someday post the studies I copy to my web page....someday.

Cheers
Marc
www.maginotlineatwar.com
Always looking for Maginot Line material

[MLW]

I forgot - FYI. An archivist at MHI told me that there is a publishing company that is working to publish some of the studies. Maybe we will see some in book form in the future.

Marc

[Larry deZeng]

The West Point Military Academy Library has a set of them, but whether or not it's complete is unknown.

Also, Garland Publishing (NYC) published many of them back in the late 1970's/early 1980's. Donald S. Detwiler and Charles F. Burdick were the editors, I believe, and there were a dozen or more volumes in the series.

--Larry

[Richard Hedrick]

The FMS that are ordered from NARA are now sent to you on CD and as far as i know can be ordered either in English or German (when available). Most everything i have ordered they have had execpt some P-series. To order call this number, 301-837-2987, leave a message and they will return your call. In my last orders they limited the number i could order to 5.

I have the FMS catalog and a few FMS on my site.
http://www.Sturmpanzer.com/Default.a...3&item=2&sec=3

Richard

[Larry deZeng]

Hi Richard,

Does NARA have a rate they charge for them, such as $XX.XX for 5 on a DVD regardless of the number of pages? Or is there some other method they use?

Questions concerning the FMS series come up frequently and I want as much information as possible in this thread so I can refer it to future inquirers.

Thanks,

--Larry

[F L Clemens]

...Anyway, at NARA, as far as I know, they have only the English language studies....

...In turns out that there is a supplemental list of studies at MHI. For example, I was looking at the files and there was a very large study on the 4th Pz Div on the Eastern front (I think I have that right) in German. The problem at MHI is reproduction which is only by photocopy or camera on a light stand.

I have researched in the hardcopy files of the studies at NARA, so they are definitely there. I was not aware that MHI has material beyond what NARA has, but I would like to know more. I thought that NARA had the most complete collection.

I am intrigued by the 4th Pz Div study you mentioned. Can you give me any further reference on that? That would impact directly the biographical research I am doing and I would like to make sure that you are not talking about something I have already checked. If it is something new for me, I woudl go to Carlisle just for that!

[Richard Hedrick]

Larry,

If the price has not changed since last summer it is $4.25 per publication regardless of the number of pages and this includes shipping. The minimum mail order amount is $10.

Richard

[Larry deZeng]

Okay, thanks for that, Richard. This can now be a good reference thread for inquiries about the FMS series.

Incidentally, I first started using them in 1977 up in Robert Wolff's Captured German Records Branch in 10W at 8th and Pennsylvania. Back then, very few people even knew about them. George Wagner, probably the best archivist that branch ever had, John Taylor notwithstanding, was one of the U.S. coordinators who worked with Franz Halder over the course of the entire production from 1945 to 1954 or 1955. He knew just about all of the authors personally, or at least had met them on one or more occasions.

--Larry

[MLW]

Here is what I know:

In the MHI files there is another, later supplemental guide that was published after the 1954 guide (the one that is available on sturmpanzer.com). Its title is "Supplemental to Guide to Foreign Military Studies 1945-54 catalog and index." 8 pages. Here is the link to it on MHI's Research Catalog:

http://ahecwebopac.carlisle.army.mil...026&format=999

Please understand that I had only about an hour to look through several files, so I could be wrong. But, my memory remembers one of the studies listed in the supplemental guide was about the 4th Pz Div (in German). I noticed it because it was in the same box as the study I wanted.

As a footnote to history, the foreign military studies supposedly served as primary sources for the Army's "Greenback" series on WWII.

BTW, there is a parallel discussion on axishistory.com

Cheers,
Marc
www.maginotlineatwar.com

[Shane Lovell]

Afrika Korps papers

Hi

Does anyone have copies of any of the following they would be willing to share. I'm happy to cover costs.

D-001 Vaerst Operations of the Fifth Panzer Army in Tunisia 1943

D-006 Mueller Africa Korps (28 April - 30 Sept 1941)

D-009 Jordan Pz Gp Afrika Engr Officer (26 Aug - Sept 1941)

D-030 Jordan Siege of Tobruk (Jun - Oct 1941)

D-043 von Holzendorff 15 Panzer Division (15-17 Jun 1941)

D-045 Boettcher The role of artillery in the siege of Tobruk - part 1: up to the Autumn battle of 1941

D-051 Horttmann Staff Libya (July - August 1941)

D-061 Boettcher Siege of Tobruk (Oct 1941)

D-082 Reissmann Rommel's system of fortification in north africa

D-083 Vaerst 15 Panzer Division (Aug - Sept 1942)

D-087 Holzendorff 15 Panzer Division (30 Apr - 1 May 1941)

D-088 Bolbrinker 5 Panzer Regiment (13 - 14 April 1941)

D-105 Boettcher 21 Panzer Division (Dec 41 - Feb 42)

D-114 Bolbrinker 5 Panzer Regiment (15 - 18 June 1941)

D-118 Vaerst 15 Panzer Division (Spring 42)

D-119 Nehring Africa Corps (30 Aug - 6 Sept)

D-121 Kriebel 15 Panzer Division (15 - 17 Jun 1941)

D-143 Mueller 5 Panzer Regiment (26 May - 15 June 1942)

D-144 Mueller 5 Panzer Regiment (16-21 June 1942)

D-148 Mueller 5 Panzer Regiment (Feb - 26 May 1942)

D-180 Reissmann 21 Panzer Division (19 Jan - 9 Feb 42)

D-307 Berg Panzer attack on Tobruk (20 - 21 june 1942)

D-348 Mueller Battle of El Alamein

cheers

Shane Lovell
Canberra, Australia

[Larry deZeng]

As a footnote to history, the foreign military studies supposedly served as primary sources for the Army's "Greenback" series on WWII.

They did/do. They are heavily cited in the footnotes of the ETO volumes.

--Larry

[F L Clemens]

...
Please understand that I had only about an hour to look through several files, so I could be wrong. But, my memory remembers one of the studies listed in the supplemental guide was about the 4th Pz Div (in German). I noticed it because it was in the same box as the study I wanted.

Thanks for the update - now could you give me the reference number for the report you were looking at. I would assume that the 4th Pz Div study you saw must be close to it in the series if you saw it in the same box. Or do you mean that the supplemental study guide was in the same box - not the 4.PD study?

[MLW]

I was looking at P-208. The panzer division document shared the same box (actually, P-208, was in two boxes). So the document you are wondering about is something higher than P-208, perhaps P-209.

The supplemental guide was somewhere else. I asked the archivist at the visitor desk. He got it for me from the archive.

Cheers,
Marc
www.maginotlineatwar.com

[Shane Lovell]

Supplementary List

Hi Marc

By any chance do you have an electronic copy of the supplementary list?

cheers

Shane Lovell
canberra, Australia

[MLW]

Shane:

No I don't. I also am unsure how to get a copy of it. It is held in the archive as a historical document (vice a finding aid for general use). It is stapled, so you can't photocopy it. No scanners are allowed. That leaves camera, I guess. I hope to get back to Carlisle someday soon, but it is a 2 hour drive.

In the meantime, I was poking around NARA today, and they have lots of original paper copies of the studies (vice the microfilm copies). I just didn't have time to dive into it. I will try to do so later this month, and will look for the supplemental guide there. If I find it, I will post it.

Marc