Order in Chaos: The Memoirs of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck, by Hermann Balck
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Order in Chaos: The Memoirs of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck, by Hermann Balck
Ebook PDF Online Order in Chaos: The Memoirs of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck, by Hermann Balck
German general Hermann Balck (1897–1982) was considered to be one of World War II's greatest battlefield commanders. His brilliantly fought battles were masterpieces of tactical agility, mobile counterattack, and the technique of Auftragstaktik, or "mission command." However, because he declined to participate in the U.S. Army's military history debriefing program, today he is known only to serious students of the war.Drawing heavily on his meticulously kept wartime journals, Balck discusses his childhood and his career through the First and Second World Wars. His memoir details the command decision-making process as well as operations on the ground during crucial battles, including the Battle of the Marne in World War I and his incredible victories against a larger and better-equipped Soviet army at the Chir River in World War II. Balck also offers observations on Germany's greatest generals, such as Erich Ludendorff and Heinz Guderian, and shares his thoughts on international relations, domestic politics, and Germany's place in history. Available in English for the first time in an expertly edited and annotated edition, this important book provides essential information about the German military during a critical era in modern history.
Order in Chaos: The Memoirs of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck, by Hermann Balck - Amazon Sales Rank: #163491 in Books
- Brand: Balck, Hermann/ Zabecki, David T. (EDT)/ D'Este, Carlo (FRW)/ Biedekarken, Dieter J. (EDT)
- Published on: 2015-05-13
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.30" h x 1.50" w x 6.30" l, .0 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 578 pages
Order in Chaos: The Memoirs of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck, by Hermann Balck Review "A model translation of one of the leading memoirs from the German Army's mid-level command. Balck takes advantage of being the 'last man standing' to present his version of events and experiences. He makes a solid case between the lines of his narrative for the emphasis on offensive action that consistently informed his approach to tactics and operations."―Dennis Showalter, author of Armor and Blood: The Battle of Kursk: The Turning Point of World War II
"[. . .] [T]his excellent wartime memoir of General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck (1897-1982), probably 'the greatest German general no one has ever heard of' [. . .] bring[s] to life Balck's wartime adventures."―Military Officer
"[. . .] Balck's Order in Chaos is an incredible surprise for those seeking fresh discussion on World War I, the interwar years, and World War II. [. . .] [It] provides vivid accounts of the battles and campaigns in which he led armored forces. His recounting of events is aided tremendously by the twenty superb maps included in this book. He discusses strategy, his decision-making process, the challenges of command, and the human dimension of war. As with his World War I discussion, he shares his opinions on various topics. I found these pages absorbing."―Military Review
"German general Hermann Balck's perspective on war had largely been lost to American scholars. His memoirs, edited by David T. Zabecki and Dieter J. Biedekarken and translated into English for the first time, provide deep insight into his experiences and decision-making during World Wars I and II."―Military History
"Hats off to Zabecki and Biedekarken for their excellent translation, intelligent editing, and insightful notes clarifying German idioms, Latin phrases, technical military terms, and obscure references, where necessary.
[. . .] Professional soldiers should read this book, reflect, and be grateful that they are not asked to violate conscience. Students of war, students of German history, and World War II buffs will read it with profit."―Journal of Military History
About the Author Major General David T. Zabecki, USA (Ret.), is the author or editor of many books, including the four-volume encyclopedia Germany at War: 400 Years of Military History. He is an honorary senior research fellow in the War Studies Programme at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom.Lieutenant Colonel Dieter J. Biederkarken, USA (Ret.), was born and raised in Germany. He attended college in the United States and became an American citizen and a U.S. Army officer.
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41 of 41 people found the following review helpful. Interesting By Thomas Reiter I haven't read a German general's memoirs in quite a while--after a while all of them started to sound the same--but Balck has always been one of my favorites, so I was eager to read this book. Briefly, this book is very interesting on some topics, less so on others, as described below.As the other review notes, a good portion of the book deals with Balck's experiences during WWI and during the interwar years--according to my Kindle, this was a third of the book. The portions of the book dealing with WWI are relatively interesting, but not, for instance, as interesting as Rommel's "Infantry Attacks". Balck also describes what was going on during the interwar years, when Germany (and the German military) were in turmoil, with communists, fascists, socialists, trade unionists, vying for power/influence, with the military caught in the middle--very interesting (to me...).Most readers will probably have bought the book to read about Balck's experiences in WWII, where he served on several fronts, although primarily in Russia. These parts of the book are indeed interesting, but I thought it would be helpful to point out what in particular was interesting:1) Balck spends a lot of time describing his command philosophy/techniques. He was a strong believer in spending most of his time out with his units, while his Chief of Staff coordinated from a command post a bit further to the rear. Balck also gave almost all of his orders orally, and gave contingency plans which could be set in motion with a code word via radio.2) Balck also spends a lot of time discussing relationships between the various German generals and between the generals (including himself), and Hitler. I was surprised to learn that Balck had an excellent relationship with Hitler (and had a generally positive view of him), and claims to almost never had had restrictions imposed on him about withdrawals, etc., which is the standard complaint from German generals in Russia.3) Balck also describes some of the failures of the German troops at various points in the war, usually ascribed to poor leadership.4) His characterizations and comparisons of the various enemies--including Russian, French, British, and American, are also interesting.5) Balck kept a journal during both wars, and quotes from it liberally, even when it turns out that his views at the time were 100% wrong--this is very refreshing, because most memoirs are written with the advantage of 20/20 hindsight and it can be difficult to determine what the author thought at the time.6) Finally, the editor does a fine job of providing additional detail, clarifications, and corrections via footnotes.In general, a highly recommended read for anyone interested in the Russian Front or in German operational-level leadership.
38 of 39 people found the following review helpful. WWII German Panzer General Hermann Balck memoir By William Garrison Jr. "Order In Chaos" by German Panzer General Herman Balck (May 2015).First quick note: there is no usual paper "book cover" or "dust jacket" to this book; essentially, the "book cover" has been printed onto the hard covers of this book -- a very fine high-quality book from the University Press of Kentucky (although the photos are murky, not sharp glossy).At the time of this review, no "Look Inside" feature was available to show its Table of Contents -- I'm sure that feature will soon appear. Until then:A much condensed "Table of Contents":WWI: chapters 1-6 (18%)Between the wars: chapters 7-10 (8%)WWII: chapters 11-19 (55%)notes, biblio, index, etc. (19%)As noted in this book's subtitle, this book contains the edited memoirs of German General of Panzer Troops Hermann Balck. At the end of WWII, as he did not participate in the "U.S. Army European Command" post-war interviews, Gen. Balck is not well known. However, he should be studied as German Maj.Gen. F.W. von Mellenthin (who served under Gen. Balck), wrote of him: "If Manstein was Germany's greatest strategist during World War II, I think Balck has strong claims to be regarded as our finest field commander" (p. ix). [Back in 1967, at my request, von Mellenthin kindly sent me an autographed photograph of himself.]For unexplained reasons, Balck wasn't interested in publishing his WWII experiences -- until after 1979 when he began participating in a number of history seminars. Fortunately, during his entire career, Balck maintained a journal -- which he edited and finally published in 1981: "Ordnung im Chaos" -- which became this book.This book's translators, MG D. Zabecki and LTC D. Biedekarken, provide an informative analysis both of Black's merits as a military commander and why he fought to the bitter end in supporting the German war effort -- I'm not going to summarize all of their thoughts here, just to mention that their "preface" ponders these concerns.What motivated Gen. Balck anyway? His son, Friedrich-Wilhel Balck, was killed in battle, as was his son-in-law: Hans Schlenther. Balck wasn't a member of the NAZI party. Pertaining to the attempted assassination of Hitler in July 1944, Gen. Balck wrote: "As far as I could tell at the time, there was hardly anybody in the responsible military leadership who would have sympathized with -- let alone supported -- those who attempted the assassination" (p. 358).Balck noted: "Jodl was right when he said that Hitler was our fate and that we would be victorious or go down with him. Hitler just was not replaceable" (p. 434).This book is Balck's autobiography, his memoir. I won't review his early youthful upbring here, nor his exploits during WWI. During WWII, he spent most of his service on the Eastern Front: the Russian campaign.[By the time that I was a young U.S. Army 2LT back in 1974, I had written to a number of German generals who had fought during WWII, and I asked them about their war experiences. I was interested in learning why they had fought until the end -- why hadn't they tried to end the war sooner? I received replies back from about 25 of them, including Manstein, Manteuffel, and others.] Balck apparently continued to soldier along to the bitter end as that was his profession: soldering.Jews: Gen. Balck wrote that while he had been informed that some Jews were being exterminated at Galicia and Auschwitz, he had also been informed that the Jews were being sent to resettlement areas. Balck wrote: "they illustrate how little we knew and how devilishly clever the cloak of deception had been. None of what was happening was supposed to filter through to the Wehrmacht (Army)" (p. 328) -- one is left wondering how ignorant Balck really was as to what was happening to the Jews.There is a German school of thought that they were the innocent victim of WWI, and Balck seems to support the view that Germany should not be held accountable for starting WWII either: "Personally, I am not certain that it really was not English politics that forced Hitler into the war" (p. 443).In the concluding chapter, "Looking Back", Balck evaluates the shortcomings of the Axis allies, the shortcomings of Hitler, and the "ignoramuses" Goring &Himmler (p. 449), and the superior coordination of the Allied countries. Balck also discusses the shortcomings as to how operational plans failed to properly address the correct supply of German units. Balck discusses many topics regarding political, economic, armament technology, & military themes that are too numerous and detailed to review here -- but well worth the read.I'll let other armchair generals muse whether or not Gen. Balck should have tacked left verses having tacked right at some river crossing.Balck finally concedes that "The solution to this problem [instigation of wars] is a free but firmly led democracy that makes human life worth living" (p. 453). Sadly he hadn't developed that belief before the outbreak of WWII, as he assigned the German military's steadfastness in following Hitler's orders until his demise as: "We had to fight until the [Allied} enemy conceded the impossibility of forcing us to our knees. That we were unsuccessful was not the fault of the soldier, who at all levels of rank from recruit to field marshal accomplished all that was humanly possible" (p. 454). Sadly, Balck seems to believe that the destruction of Germany at the end of WWII was the best "humanly possible" effort of the war-era German general command.[Not to provide any "cover" for Gen. Balck's opinions, but even highly trained American generals today still make "moral" versus "combat" mistakes: during early 2015 alone look at the number of American generals/admirals who have been relived of command for drunkenness, fund misappropriations, sloppy accountability of nukes or nuke training, failure to secure classified documents, etc.]Gen. Balck offers many opinions of many battles and personalities -- far too many for me to recount, review and critique here. Nonetheless, the main question is: "For $45 is this a worthwhile book in obtaining for understanding and analyzing the thoughts of an influential WWII Panzer General?" My answer is: "unquestionably, definitely, YES!" My 5-star rating isn't for the "politically correctness" of Gen. Balck's views [or the lack thereof], but for his candor and detailed 500+ pages of informative memoirs.
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful. An intriguing memoir from a highly decorated, well respected German officer By Dave Schranck I thoroughly enjoyed this book for it covers a lot of important ground and it should appeal to both novice and avid student though , I believe, the more experienced student will get the most out of it. Balck recounts his military experiences starting with WWI right up to May 1945 when he commanded Army Group G on the Western Front. I'll bypass his family introduction and officer candidate experience and jump into WWII on the Eastern Front where I found his higher rank and greater responsibility more interesting though he did distingush himself in France in 1940. Much time is spent as CO of the 11th PzD and later the 48th PzC. Never being far from the front, Balck had intimate knowledge of each battle and as such his descriptions of the battlefield and general tactics used were enlightening and will appeal to the avid student who have probably read about some of the key battles like the Chir River defense, Dnepr River defense, Korsun Pocket, Zhitomir, Tarnopol and more from authors like David Glantz, Douglas Nash, Rolf Hinze, Stephen Barratt and others. The inclusion of Balck's memoirs with the reading of these other authors makes for a more meaningful understanding of the battlefield events. The wisdom and insight of the author, though naturally biased, was still appreciative and helpful.The narrative was much more than just battlefield coverage; the author also covers not only the hardship and misery of fighting on the frontline as well as the morale of the Landster that frequently had to fight under poor conditions. Decisions made at Corps, Army and Group levels as well as the OKH and of course Hitler's impact on the war effort were also discussed. Officers such as Manstein, Model, Guderian, Mellenthin, Manteuffel, Kesselring and Stauffenberg, among many others, were frequently discussed, providing the reader with a profile of each of these men. General Balck had much praise for Manstein, Guderian, Mellenthin, Manteuffel while acknowledging the ability of Model but also saying that many officers and men didn't like him for he micromanage and was aloof. Hitler receives the greatest amount of attention; he was given praise for certain things but for the most part was criticized for his handling of the war and his WWI mentality that caused so much grief and death.In addition to the battlefield history and officer profiles, the author also provides political background during his military career, especially the good and bad points concerning Germany's Allies that adds to the general overall usefullness of the book.The book also includes twenty maps, a useful Appendix which includes Balck's career curriculum and important statements and documents. Photos, extensive Notes and Index are also included.These memoirs and the fine job of editing makes this one of the key books in my library and freely recommend it to all interested parties who want to study the wide ranging and distinguished career of a German General during a critical time of our recent past.
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