Iron Cross

Iron Cross is the UK’s only magazine of German military history from the First World War to the end of the Second World War. Covering all aspects of German military history including the Imperial German forces of the Great War, the Weimar period and the Nazi period. Iron Cross prides itself on the highest quality production with stunning content in the unique and ground-breaking features, often revealing untold stories and publishing photographs that have never been seen before. Iron Cross features specially commissioned and innovative artwork in all issues.

Iron Cross

Editorial

CONTRIBUTORS • Introducing you to some of our main contributors for this issue:-

S-Boote Slaughter • The S-Bootsflottillen on the Channel coast waged a bloody war of attrition against the Allies during 1944, inflicting notable casualties and suffering irreplaceable losses. Tony Holmes and Gordon Williamson chronicle the fighting that took place from January to early September, when all S-Boote were finally forced to flee French ports.

Hitler’s Valkyries • Courageous, ambitious and unconventional, Hanna Reitsch and Melitta von Stauffenberg made their names as pioneering test pilots in Hitler’s Germany. As leading historian Clare Mulley reveals, although their lives frequently overlapped, they could not have been more different.

Seaside Jabos • Fighter-bombers of the Luftwaffe’s Jagdbomber (Jabo) ‘tip and run’ force targeted Eastbourne, on Britain’s south coast, numerous times in 1942–43, inflicting considerable damage to property and causing civilian loss of life. Andy Saunders takes a detailed look at these attacks.

‘Let’s Hit it Hard!’

Pioneering Panzertruppe • On 1 September 1939, German troops crossed the eastern border into Poland, thus starting the Second World War. The young Panzertruppe played a crucial role in the German plans for this campaign. Thomas Anderson describes the then-groundbreaking concept of tank divisions and the interaction of all sub-units at the tactical level.

BOOKS & PRODUCTS

Will the Real von Buttlar Please Stand Up • Horst Julius Ludwig Otto, Freiherr Treusch von Buttlar Brandenfels was the longest serving Zeppelin commander of the war, and the only one to be awarded the ‘Blue Max’. Considered a hero in Germany, he claimed four successful raids on London, others on the ports of Harwich and Grimsby and attacks on Derby and Nottingham. The only thing is, he lied, as Zeppelin expert Ian Castle explains.

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Pillbox-mounted Panther Tank Turrets • Panther tank turrets provided the Germans with ready-made pillboxes for the ill-fated defence of the Third Reich, as Michael Heidler explains.

The Kaiserpreis Scandal • When a German regiment cheated at a shooting competition in 1912, it led to scandal within the Imperial German forces just prior to the First World War. Graham Rumney explains the repercussions that resulted, along with the fates of those involved.

Germany’s U-boat Blockade-busters • Whilst Germany had been free to trade with neutral countries such as the US, at least until the latter’s entry into the First World War, the reality was that the Royal Navy’s domination of global sea lanes meant that this was impossible for the Central Powers on any meaningful scale. As Martin Mace reveals, one innovative solution adopted by the Germans was the merchant U-boat.

Tiger 131 • Tiger 131, the world’s only operational example of Germany’s legendary heavy tank, is one of The Tank Museum’s most highly prized possessions. Undoubtedly its most popular exhibit, the Panzer can be seen in action twice a year at the Museum’s home in Bovington, Dorset, during the appropriately named Tiger Days.

Tank’s Falcon • Teaching a generation of future fighter pilots to...