Combat History of the 10. Panzer-Division by J. Restayn and N. Moller

The 10th Panzer Division has always been one of my favourite units. Formed in Prague in the spring of 1939, the division took part in the invasions of Poland, France, and the Soviet Union, then joined 5. Panzer-Armee in November 1942 to fight the British and Americans in North Africa. Like the rest of the Deutsches Afrika-Korps and 5. Panzer-Armee, the 10th Panzer Division surrendered to the Allies on May 13, 1943. Unusually, the division was not reformed in Europe, and so its war ended outside Tunis.

The book is divided into five major photo sections. After a short introduction, there are 15 pages of photos and maps relating to the Polish campaign. Following that we have 50 pages relating to the invasion of France, followed by 116 pages concerning the division's operations in Russia. 34 pages of photos relating to the division's reconstitution in France between April and November of 1942 follow, while the largest section, 120 pages, covers the division's final months in North Africa, from November 1942 to May 1943. 34 pages of colour plates that illustrate the vehicles of both the 10th Panzer Division and its opponents throughout its existence, along with two pages of colour photos, round out this volume.

This is a massive book, very much in keeping with other Fedorowicz titles. Although some of the photos inside have been seen before, the vast majority were new to me. Aside from "the usual suspects" (PzKpfw I, II, III, and IV of various marks), there are some excellent photos of somewhat more esoteric vehicles, such as SdKfz 10/4 flak vehicles, SdKfz 231/232 (8 rad) armoured cars, many members of the SdKfz 250/251 halftrack families, and the Tiger Is and PzKpfw IIINs absorbed from sPAbt 501 in Tunisia. There are numerous pictures of the 10th Panzer Division's opponents over its short life, from various Polish fortifications to French tanks (including the S.35, Char B1bis and even the FT.17) and artillery pieces to many Soviet armoured vehicles (including a T34 Model 1941 pressed into service with the division). Numerous captured and destroyed American vehicles are featured in the North African section, including many very badly damaged M3 Stuarts and M4/M4A1 Shermans. The M2/M3 halftrack family seems to have been very popular with the Germans, as many were impressed into service with 10th Panzer Division. Among my favourite photos in the entire book are shots from the division's reconstitution in France in late summer 1942, when the Panzer.Regiment 7 and Panzerjaeger-Abteilung 90 conducted gunnery training against several Churchills that had been abandoned during the Dieppe raid! Really cool stuff. Although a few pictures have incorrect captions for vehicles or equipment (e.g., the "captured US half-track in the lead of the column on the bottom of p. 318 is actually an M3 scout car with an MG34 mounted and the "7.5-cm Pak 40" on the bottom of p. 202 is a 5 cm PaK 38), this is only a very minor distraction from a stupendous book.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. The few minor captioning errors aside, this book is near flawless, and contains a wealth of material to inspire modellers. Like all Fedorowicz books, this one has a limited production run, so buy it while you can. I am looking forward to the companion volume, a definitive history of the division that is being translated from German, that is due to be published soon. All in all, an invaluable resource for anybody with even the slightest interest in any of the campaigns which the 10th Panzer Division participated in.