SS-Wiking: The History Of The 5th SS Division 1941-45

SS-Wiking: The History of the 5th SS Division 1941-45

The 5th SS Division "Wiking" was the first "international" (western European freiwilligen) Waffen-SS division and the only German armed forces panzer division comprised of foreign troops. Not only did it earn an esteemed combat reputation but also served as an SS "finishing school," spinning off a host of additional divisions.Wiking operated exclusively on the eastern front. On the offense, it served as a spearhead for operations Barbarossa and Citadel. As a defensive "fire brigade," it served in the Cherkassy pocket and in 1944 Hungary. Despite at leastone allegation of war crimes, in the main Wiking earned a reputation for fighting tough but fighting fair.This book is fully illustrated with rare eastern front photographs, many of which have never been published before. It also includes numerous maps and biographies of the key personnel.About the AuthorRupert Butler is an authority on Soviet and Nazi police, secret police and special forces during the 1930s and the Second World War.His many books include Gestapo: The Truth Behind the Evil Legend, The Black Angels: A History of the Waffen SS, Legions of Death: The Nazi Enslavement of Eastern Europe, and SS-Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler: The History of the First SS Division 1933-45.Rupert currently lives in London.