Excellent historical overview with human interest !

books:


	• ONCE I HAD A COMRADE: Karl Roth and the Combat History of the 36th Panzer Regiment 1939-45 R Byrd Helion and Company Ltd., 2006 - 160 pages average customer review:based on 5 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Historical and personal

This is an excellent historical account of the author's father-in-law (Karl Roth) in a German Panzer division during World War 2. The author amassed an extraordinary amount of data on the military activities, and on some of the personnel associated with Karl Roth, who comes across as a decent person caught up in circumstances over which he had no control. He had to serve in the military and suffer the consequences of the German defeat. The author is commended for adhering to historical detail with virtually no mention of the politics of the time, other than a few brief references noting Hitler and Goering bungling the military operations, which contributed to the German defeat, particularly in Russia. A highlight of the book, is the description of the battle of Stalingrad that started the disintergration of the German army. The book, desspite all of its detail, is easy reading; its extensive bibliography and footnotes make it a superb resource for anyone interested in World War 2, especially the eastern front. It would have been even better had the many photographs and maps been larger.

Elliott Lesser

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Nice, solid work!

I just received the book yesterday so I wanted to update my previous review. I am working on a similar biography for an officer from a sister regiment so I am very familiar with the topics presented in this book. I will write a final review once I am finished reading it.

Overall, this is a good bio of a panzer soldier and an overview of the unit in which he served. The author has put in a lot of effort to provide background to the subject and to provide a coherent timeline for the events in this soldier's life. The photo material and graphics are good. The book is well put together physically.

I only gave it 4 out of 5 stars because although the author has done a fine job, I think there are some weak spots in the editing and the sourcing. The book would have been well served to have been proofread to clean up some odd uses of English and catch some German errors - like translating fortress as "Berg" instead of "Burg." The quoted sources tend to be generic secondary sources like Time-Life books rather than the archival materials which the author even mentions that he had access to.

Don't let the weak points deter you from buying this book.

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A vivid memoir of Karl Roth and his war encounters.

R.W. Byrd's ONCE I HAD A COMRADE: KARL ROTH AND THE COMBAT HISTORY OF THE 36TH PANZER REGIMENT 1939-45 tells of the author's German father-in-law Karl Roth, who grew up in the 1930s, and of his regiment. His eyewitness participation in campaigns in Poland in 1939, France in 1940 and Yugoslavia in 1941 before serving at the Eastern Front charts a division under siege and a fighter who saw much of the war's many battles. A vivid memoir of Karl Roth and his war encounters.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Excellent historical overview with human interest !

Author tells the story of his heroic father-in-law whom he never met in person. This is a quick read with strong historical research. Great photographic journaling. The personal interest is compelling. Gripping, what's going to happen next combat action. By the end of the book you feel that Karl Roth is a close friend. Authors personal insights are of note. Must read!!

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OK history of Panzer Regiment 36

This is an average book on Panzer Regiment 36. Though the author also claims this book is about Karl Roth, a maintenance NCO in the regiment's tank recovery section, the pages contain little information on this NCO other than brief accounts of his family life and snippets of information from former comrades who remember little about the man, except that he was a competent leader and a solid soldier. If the book had contained more information about German tank recovery techniques and equipment, it would have rated 4 stars. The use of more primary source material, especially corps, army, and army group war diaries might have boosted it to five stars. I do commend the author for using the war diary of the 14th Panzer Division as a primary source.

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Once I Had a Comrade is the story of the author's German father-in-law, Karl Roth, who grew up during the tumultuous 1930s in the Franconian town of Schweinfurt, located in northern Bavaria, and of his regiment, 36th Panzer Regiment. When the Second World War began, he found himself conscripted into the army and assigned as maintenance private to the headquarters company of Schweinfurt's new branch of service, the 36th Panzer Regiment, assigned to 4th Panzer Division until November 1940, 14th Panzer Division thereafter. They participated in the campaigns in Poland 1939, France 1940 and Yugoslavia 1941, before serving on the Eastern Front (southern sector) until destruction at Stalingrad 1943. The division was then rebuilt and again served in the southern sector of Russia before being transferred to Kurland in late 1944, where it saw out the rest of the war serving with 18th Army. During these campaigns, Karl Roth repaired nearly every type of tank in the German arsenal, holding the rank of master sergeant by the end of the war. After six years of conflict he survived being blown off his tank, dysentery, malaria, weeks separated behind enemy lines, a possible court-martial, and was awarded the Gold Tank Destruction Badge. As Richard Byrd began to research the story, several questions arose about the unit and his father-in-law, including: What kind of man was he? Where did he fight and what tactics were used? Why wasn't a regimental history written after the war? What was their strength and what strategic events affected them? Many of the answers to these questions were supplied by books, but more important than all the numbers and statistics gathered for the research were the first hand accounts related to him by his mother-in-law and survivors of the regiment, who have provided a host of original photographs and anecdotes explaining the human aspect of the 36th Panzer Regiment's history.

This book then is a tribute to Roth and his comrades, and to all soldiers who aspire to commendable and honorable action during time of war. Key sales points: Provides the first history of 36th Panzer Regiment yet published in any language / Combines operational details with fascinating personal accounts telling the story of Karl Roth and his comrades / Features over 150 b/w photos, many previously unpublished / A major contribution to the history of the Panzertruppen.

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