Men of Steel - I SS Panzer Corps, The Ardennes and Eastern Front 1944-45

Hitler's vision of dealing a paralyzing blow against the Western Allies in the Ardennes in December 1944, before turning his entire might against Bolsheviks, came to naught and saw the virtual destruction of the only German Divisions to bear his name - the 1st SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend. And yet, in just over a month, these two Divisions had been rebuilt and re-equipped and transferred to Hungary where, in a mere nine days, they defeated seven Soviet infantry divisions and a Mechanized Corps and recaptured over 400 square kilometers of enemy-held territory.

The men who wore the Hakenkreuz and SS runes were then ordered to play a major role in the Fuhrer's last gamble - the Lake Balaton operation. When this failed and the Soviets launched their massive counter-offensive, they were threatened with encirclement and destruction and forced to conduct a fighting withdrawal all the way back to, and within, the eastern borders of the Greater German Reich.

Ironically, their tenacious efforts to protect their "Heimat" helped to prolong the war and ensure the total destruction of everything for which they had been fighting. On 7th May 1945 one of their Regimental commanders sent his last message: "The dream of Empire is over… tonight we face the last enemy!"

The capitulation came a day later with some 20,000 survivors of these proud Divisions marching into captivity - most of them to be shunned by their fellow countrymen and some to face the death penalty and imprisonment for war crimes.

Following his highly acclaimed narrative of these famous Divisions in Normandy, Steel Inferno, Michael Reynolds now completes the history of the "twin" Divisions of the Waffen-SS by describing their actions in the last six months of WWII.

As a former professional soldier he is able to tell their story in a unique manner and demonstrate again his renowned objectivity and attention to detail. He concludes that these zealous soldiers, who neither gave nor expected quarter, were worthy heirs of their Teutonic ancestors and, as such, their place in the history of warfare is assured.