SOLDIERS OF THE LEIBSTANDARTE : SS-Brigadefuhrer Wilhelm Mohnke and 62 Soldiers of Hitler’s Elite DIvision

The history of the Leibstandarte is that of the Third Reich in miniature. Originally raised as a handful of ‘heavies’ whose job was to guard the future Fhhrer at rowdy political meetings during the Nazis’ rise to power, the ‘Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler’ then became firstly Hitler’s efficient and highly trained bodyguards – protecting his person at both the Reichschancellery in Berlin, and at his mountain retreat, the Berghof near Berchtesgaden in Bavaria’s Alps. But as war neared, the Leibstandarte assumed its final role, increasing almost exponentially both in size and structure as it became the 1 SS Panzer-Division, the elite core of the Waffen SS, taking on increasingly important military roles in almost all overseas campaigns from the annexation of Austria to the final defence of Berlin in 1945.
Author Thomas Fischer has written what must become the definitive history of this notorious force, He has gone to extraordinary lengths to track down and interview Leibstandarte veterans, from their commander Wilhelm Mohnke, who was with the unit from the beginning to the very end in the Berlin bunker; and there is a central focus on Sepp Dietrich who rose from barroom brawler to becoming one of the Reich’s most respected Panzer commanders on the eastern and western fronts. Illustrated by more than 700 photographs, plus 165 images of award documents and more than 70 additional illustrations – the vast majority of them previously unpublished, including candid images of Hitler and Dietrich, – this book is both expert and revealing, and an objective history of a formation that, feared and hated though it was for its loyal and unflinching service to a criminal regime, was at the same time respected for its unmatched fighting qualities.

Published by J.J. Fedorowicz Publishing, the Canadian publishing house that specialises in literature on the German armed forces of the World War II era. The press has received praise from North American and German writers for professionally produced text and illustrated books, also for providing a platform for authors who present an uncritical and historical portrayal of the German war effort during WW2.
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