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Iron Cross - Issue 20 (issue: Issue 20)

The mystery surrounding the loss of a Dornier 217 crew member in March 1943 might easily have been resolved in August 1989. Instead, as our Editor, Andy Saunders explains in our regular Conflict Archaeology feature, it took another sixteen years before the puzzle was finally unravelled following a dramatic series of excavations.

What's in this issue?

FINDING FRANZ
The mystery surrounding the loss of a Dornier 217 crew member in March 1943 might easily have been resolved in August 1989. Instead, as Andy Saunders explains, it took another sixteen years before the puzzle was finally unravelled following a dramatic series of excavations.

THE SILENT SOUND OF DEFEAT
As German forces finally reached Dunkirk after the British evacuation in 1940, they were astonished by the destruction they discovered. One German officer reported on what he saw, and Martin Mace presents the visceral words of his report with some of his remarkable photos.

WASPS OVER BISCAY

To counter Allied air activity over the Bay of Biscay during the summer of 1943, Messerschmitt Bf 110s of the Wespengeschwader were deployed to deal with the threat. As Chris Goss explains, the victories that the unit claimed can only be regarded as somewhat pyrrhic.

LUFTWAFFE FLYING KIT
In our regular Uniforms and Equipment feature, Mark Hillier presents the various bits of flying equipment used by Luftwaffe airmen operating over Britain during the early part of the Second World War.

A PANZER FOR ALL FRONTS
The Wehrmacht’s Panzer III in all its various guises is often perceived as a tank that was outclassed, outgunned, and outperformed throughout its use. However, the renowned German armoured vehicle specialist, Thomas Anderson, takes a critical look at the mainstay of the Panzertruppe across all theatres of war between 1939 and 1945. His conclusion is contrary to how the Panzer III is often considered, historically, and presents his convincing analysis in an exclusive and highly detailed feature for Iron Cross magazine.

WAR POSTER
The feature for this issue is a 1944 poster to recruit new members for the Volkssturm. We examine the background of this striking poster and the story behind its publisher.

FROM THE SALEROOM
A look at German militaria at auction is provided by Duncan Evans in his review of objects appearing in forthcoming sales and gives us an update on the results from recent sales.

THE MASTFERNROHR
In the Australian War Memorial’s reserve collection, Canberra, is a strange looking contraption which is a First World War telescopic periscope. Here, we examine this unusual object.

PHOTOS FROM THE FRONT

In this issue’s image, Richard J Molloy has colourised a photograph depicting German troops bringing up the rations on a light railway as they pass a ruined church at St Julien, Belgium, during the First World War.

FILM POSTERS

We feature the poster for a 1940 film which celebrated the German military success in Poland in 1939, called Feldzug in Polen, a film that was typical of Nazi propaganda of the period.

EQUIPMENT IN COLOUR

In our regular ‘Equipment in Colour’ feature, Richard J Molloy presents an unusual configuration of the Focke-Wulf 190 as a torpedo bomber.

REVIEWS

We review a selection of new German military history titles and products and give ‘Editor’s Choice’ to a new book on the Heinkel He 115.

THE VOLKSSTURM

With the war in its final phase, the Nazi administration established a motley last-ditch home guard organisation: the Volkssturm. Robbie McGuire outlines a brief history of the organisation and its desperate attempts to defend the Third Reich in the regime’s dying days.

THE CLAUSEWITZ FACTOR

When Germany and France went to war in 1914, military leaders on both sides claimed Carl von Clausewitz as their ideological guru. Compare their military doctrines to what Clausewitz wrote in his treatise, On War, argues Cris Andrews, and a very different story emerges.

TO THE LAST ROUND
As soon as the Wehrmacht established itself on the French coastline of the English Channel in 1940, it set up fixed batteries of heavy guns in the Pas-de-Calais to bombard Channel shipping and the Dover and Folkestone area – a district which became known as ‘Hell Fire Corner’.

PANZER PARADE

In a special feature showcasing his work, Richard J Molloy presents a series of his impressive colourisations of a variety of German armoured vehicles from the First and Second World War in a presentation of some of his work that has been specially commissioned for Iron Cross magazine and depicting a wide range of types.

TALE OF A TAIL

Studying contemporary photographs from battles and campaigns can reveal a mass of historical detail. Sometimes, as Andy Saunders shows, such photos throw up more questions than answers. Unlocking the story can take time and patience and a bit of luck - as was the case with this Battle of Britain photo.

WESERÜBUNG AND BLÜCHER

On 9 April 1940, German forces launched their attack on Norway and during the Battle of the Drøbak Sound in Oslo Fjord, the Norwegian defenders achieved one of their biggest and most dramatic victories on that fateful day by sinking one of the Kriegsmarine’s heavy cruisers, as John Grehan reveals