The The Westwall

1938 – 1945 (book)

by Bill Rutherford

Jean-denis Lepage, pub. by the Nafziger Collection

This book, in the standard Nafziger format (96 pages tape-bound 8.5’ by 11”, $20) is fascinating if you’re at all interested in post-D-Day WW 2 in Europe. In chapter 1, Lepage sets the scene, tracing German fortification development up to the eve of WW 2, including a number of plans and bunker diagrams, including several WW 1 bunkers. The meat of the book is profusely illustrated, with many sketches of the interiors of the various bunkers, and descriptions of 56 types of “standardized” (???) bunkers, fighting stations, shelters, command posts, armored artillery garages, store-rooms, and observation posts, with perspective plans for no less than 40 of them, many of these accompanied by sketches and exterior views.

There are several pages of illustrated notes and descriptions of the defenses that lay outside the bunkers – wire, dragons’ teeth, and trenches – and 20 pages at the book’s back that describe the equipment and troops who occupied the Westwall. There’s also a two-page bibliography (no annotation, though!). This whole topic is, of course, somewhat specialized, but if you have any interest at all in WW 2 ground combat in Europe (similar bunkers appeared on the eastern front) you’ll find this book interesting. If you’re a gamer, the book provides a wealth of ideas for terrain set-up, especially so if you’re a skirmish gamer! There’s a chance your local game shop may carry this volume (I even found a book store that stocked the Nafziger range) but if not, you can get it directly from George Nafziger on-line at http://home.fuse.net/nafziger, by email at nafziger@fuse.net, or by regular mail from The Nafziger Collection Inc., PO Box 1522, West Chester, OH 55069-1522. Recommended!

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