Lost Victories: The Reminiscences of Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, Hitler's Most Brilliant General

Diona Holst: -

Spain on Nov 15, 2023

William Z. Morphis: I have been reading and studying about WWII, especially the European theater of the war, for about six decades and this is the best book I have read on the subject. Von Manstein's first hand perspective on German operations, especially in Russia, are unparalleled in presenting the war from the German point of view. It also clarifies Hitler's thinking and decisions in the Russian campaign which were so detrimental to the Wehrmacht's success against the Communists.

Although an undisputed master of European politics, as proved by his brilliant successes prior to September 1, 1939, Hitler's unprofessional meddling in the planning and execution of military operations by the Wehrmacht, especially in Russia, doomed Germany as early as Dunkirk. Had the arrogance of the British and French in declaring war on Germany been met with a well developed strategy to eliminate both countries as a threat, France did however get what it deserved, Germany would have had a free hand to successfully conquer and occupy the resource rich Russian territory west of the Urals and in the Caucasus.

As pointed out by Von Manstein in this book, the superiority of many of the German generals,...

United States on Oct 18, 2021

Tecumseh: The author's cunning mind stands out through the reading of his book (mostly a whitewashing of Nazi guilt and his failed operations). The first part of the book is interesting and well written, after gaining that credibility from the reader the author spends about half of the book (some 250 pages of it) finding excuses for his failure to reach the Stalingrad pocket or refusing to accept the job in the first place, since he himself states the minimum conditions for viability were not gathered, and whitewashing the regular army (and so the forces under his command) responsibility in war crimes and crimes against Humanity.
The description of the taking of Sevastopol (one of his successful operations) is very good and useful (he didn't have to hide or distort facts to evade guilt).
There are also several gullible excerpts in the book that the author would have done better leaving out: when he purports to have been extremely brave and standing up to Hitler when he didn't agree with his orders. Unfortunately, cross examination of his statements with other testimonies does not corroborate that. As far as I can say, after having read some 80 book about the WWII, he was never one of...

United Kingdom on Jan 13, 2021

Allen Wilson: Highly readable, with no attempt to shift the blame for anything. Manstein does blame Hitler for some things of course and rightly so, but this is far from being an exercise in self exculpation. He writes it from his own perspective as it happened. Interestingly, Manstein engages in some counter factual history too (what ifs), which, coming from one of those involved, is very interesting indeed. He was a man of war, of course, but he was also a man of honour and courage, who might have been even more successful if he hadn't angered the big boss. This is a highly intelligent and literate account from a highly intelligent and educated man. Superb.

United Kingdom on Aug 13, 2020

Martin: Indispensible for the serious WW2 military student, as is also Gen. Guderian's memoires of tank warfare. As another reviewer has pointed out, written with sub-agenda's in mind, the principle one being the unsuitability of Adolf Hitler as military chief. This itself is an interesting and controversial topic and GFM v. Manstein makes his points very well on it.

Highlights for me were his gripping description of the Crimea campaign, account of Stalingrad/6th Army, also the intricacies/timing of the retreat from Donetz to Dnieper (plus interesting "what-if's" on the proposed construction of an Ostwall etc). The book is overall so good I might change these selections after re-reading... I also was disappointed by his brief coverage of Zitadelle/Citadel but found a satisfactory substitute in "Blood, Steel and Myth" by George M. Nipe.

United Kingdom on Dec 07, 2014

Jason Galbraith: This month, I finally read "Lost Victories." It is by Erich von Manstein, who at the beginning of World War II in Poland in 1939 was Chief of Staff to Gerd von Runstedt, commander of Army Group A. Neither von Runstedt nor von Manstein were still in command of German armies at the end of the war in 1945 for a reason von Manstein makes clear: Hitler systematically dismissed his best generals because they had a habit of standing up to him and shining the cold light of reality on his impossible schemes (for example, as late as November 1942 Hitler still thought it would be possible to conquer the Near East and India with a single army group the following year). Von Manstein was dismissed on March 30, 1944, von Runstedt in early July 1944 after the Normandy invasion had led him to implore the top leadership, "End the war, you bloody fools!" Had von Manstein still been on active service in July 1944, he might have offered the same advice.

By far the most interesting part of the book is the last third because it shines light on the thinking of the German military leadership about the war in the East after Stalingrad. The already significant Soviet numerical and material advantages...

United States on Jul 11, 2014

Hector: This book is an account of the three major German campaigns of World War Two in which the author was engaged. It has three themes.

The first and major theme is the strategic and grand tactical approach to the defeat of Poland, the defeat of France and the invasion of Russia up to 1944. This top-down description of the battles gives a fascinating insight into the problems of fighting a war and the way a senior professional soldier deals with them.

The second theme running through the book is the good and the bad influence of Hitler on the rise and fall of Germany in this period. His political genius for successfully manouvering other States finally deserts him when he invades Poland. He then embarks increasingly on a disastrous path of directing the armed forces, for which he has neither the training nor the experience. Manstein points out the opportunities missed, the defeats suffered and the battles thrown away by Hitler's mistakes. Finally Manstein's repeated demands for Hitler to appoint a professional soldier to manage the war objectives leads Hitler to sack him in 1944.

The third theme is the rigorous German approach of the times to military duty and...

United Kingdom on Oct 07, 2010

Older Dog: The five stars is for what it is supposed to be-- a detailed military memoir by an exceptional leader of German armed forces. Manstein was by any judgment a first rate staff officer, who excelled with troops and shone in use of combined force tactics and strategy on a large scale. His impact in WWII was immense -- on both the Western and Eastern Front.

He was also convicted for war crimes and served four years of an 18 year sentence noted in a 1981 introduction. That is not noted in the original edition which I also have. He was not a political general, i.e. he was not a Nazi Party member and had long credentials as a professional soldier and offspring of professional soldiers. He had Hitler's ear frequently and stood up to him more than most. Evidence (from other sources) indicated that one of his orders referred to a need to eliminate "Jewish Bolshevism" once and for all. There's no point in retrying his case here,but it does affect the way some of his writing is interpreted. Some of his comments should be read knowing that he had only recently been released from prison.

Manstein had a stellar reputation before the war, although he angered some old guard when he...

United States on Jul 08, 2006