Audiobooks by Douglas E. Nash Sr.

The Defeat of the Damned: The Destruction of the Dirlewanger Brigade at the Battle of Ipolysag, Dece

One of the most notorious yet least understood body of troops that fought for the Third Reich during World War II was the infamous Sondereinheit Dirlewanger, or the 'Dirlewanger Special Unit.' Formed initially as a company-sized formation in June 1940 from convicted poachers, it served under the command of SS-Obersturmführer Oskar Dirlewanger, one of the most infamous criminals in military history. After assisting in putting down the Warsaw Uprising during 1944, by November of that year it had been enlarged and retitled as the 2. SS-Sturmbrigade Dirlewanger. One month later, it fought one of its most controversial actions near the town of Ipolysag, Hungary. As a result of its overly hasty and haphazard deployment, lack of heavy armament, and a confusing chain of command, it was virtually destroyed by two Soviet mechanized corps. Consequently, the Wehrmacht leadership blamed Dirlewanger and the performance of his troops for the encirclement of the Hungarian capital of Budapest that led to the annihilation of its garrison two months later. The brigade's defeat at Ipolysag also led to its compulsory removal from the front lines and its eventual shipment to a rest area where it would be completely rebuilt. Despite its lackluster performance, the brigade was rebuilt again but never recovered from the thrashing it received at the hands of the 6th Guards Army.

Douglas E. Nash Sr., Douglas E. Nash, Sr. (Author), David Stifel (Narrator)

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From the Realm of a Dying Sun: Volume 2: IV. SS-Panzerkorps from Budapest to Vienna, December 1944-M

This is the concluding volume of the history of the IV SS-Panzerkorps, a relatively unknown organization that was born in battle during the last year of the war and fought exclusively on the Eastern Front. After their successful defense of Warsaw and the Vistula Front during the fall of 1944, the corps and its two famous Waffen-SS divisions, the Totenkopf and Wiking, as well as several divisions of the German Army, were sent south to reverse the military situation on the Hungarian Front. Follow General Gille and his divisions as they try to relieve Budapest against impossible odds, defend the tactically important town of Stuhlweissenburg, and fight in Germany's last major offensive, Operation Frühlingserwachsen. Learn how this SS tank corps, during the closing days of the war in Europe, fought massive tank battles, conducted grim rear-guard actions, and carried out night assaults against a numerically superior enemy who was determined to crush the Third Reich no matter the cost. After its failure to defend Vienna, the only course remaining for Gille and his men was a long and costly retreat, ending only with capitulation to the US Army and an uncertain future.

Douglas E. Nash Sr., Douglas E. Nash, Sr. (Author), David De Vries (Narrator)

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From the Realm of a Dying Sun: Volume 1: IV. SS-Panzerkorps and the Battles for Warsaw, July-Novembe

The histories of the first three SS corps are well known-the actions of I, II, and III (Germanic) SS-Panzerkorps and their subordinate divisions, including the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, Das Reich, Hitlerjugend, Hohenstaufen, Frundsberg, and Nordland divisions, have been thoroughly documented and publicized. Overlooked in this pantheon is another SS corps that never fought in the west or in Berlin but one that participated in many of the key battles fought on the Eastern Front during the last year of the war-the IV SS-Panzerkorps. Activated during the initial stages of the defense of Warsaw in late July 1944, the corps, consisting of both the 3. and 5. SS-Panzer Divisions (Totenkopf and Wiking, respectively) was born in battle and spent the last ten months of the war in combat, figuring prominently in the battles of Warsaw, the attempted Relief of Budapest, Operation Spring Awakening, the defense of Vienna, and the withdrawal into Austria where it finally surrendered to US forces in May 1945. Herbert Otto Gille's IV SS-Panzerkorps was renowned for its tenacity, high morale and, above all, its lethality, whether conducting a hard-hitting counterattack or a stubborn defense in situations where its divisions were hopelessly outnumbered.

Douglas E. Nash Sr., Douglas E. Nash, Sr. (Author), David De Vries (Narrator)

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