German Field Artillery of World War II

An illustrated study of the big guns of Hitler's army - the Wehrmacht's field artillery, its capabilities and its role in German fighting units of World War II.
Often overshadowed in military history by the tanks and aircraft of Blitzkrieg, Germany's artillery was key to its methods of waging war throughout World War II. Field artillery remained the primary killer on the battlefield, often responsible for three-quarters of combat casualties inflicted.
Redressing the balance, this book surveys the major Wehrmacht guns of the war, and the basic organizational structure of the German field artillery. Its primary focus is on the divisional field guns, especially the lFH 18 10.5cm field howitzer and the 15cm sFH 18 field howitzer that formed the backbone of German artillery. A brief survey is also made of the infantry guns used at the regimental level, and of corps-level heavy artillery. The issue of the use of"Beutewaffen," captured war-booty field guns, is also looked at, as is the Nebelwerfer and schwere Wurfgerät rocket artillery.
With archive photos and meticulously detailed new illustrations, this book provides a concise study of the German Army's big guns of World War II, how they were organized and how they were used, both on the Eastern and Western fronts.

Steven J. Zaloga received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has worked as an analyst in the aerospace industry for three decades, covering missile systems and the international arms trade, and has served with the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think tank. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and history, including NVG 294 Allied Tanks in Normandy 1944 and NVG 283 American Guided Missiles of World War II. He currently lives in Maryland, USA.

Introduction
Artillery organization
Infantry guns
Light infantry guns
Heavy infantry guns
Divisional artillery
Old and eccentric: the 7.5cm field gun
Backbone of the artillery: the 10.5cm light field howitzer
10.5cm gun battery organization
10.5cm leFH 18 operation
The 10.5cm mountain howitzer
The 15cm heavy field howitzer
GHQ artillery
10cm gun
12.8cm K 81 gun
15cm guns
17cm gun K 18 in Mörserlafette
21cm Mörser 18
21cm Kanone
Beutegeschütze
Rocket artillery
15cm Nebelwerfer 41
21cm Nebelwerfer 42
28/32cm schwere Wurfgerät
Artillery in combat
Artillery on the Eastern Front 1941-45
Artillery on the Western Front 1944-45
Further reading
Index