Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Discussion, background, reviews, and critical analysis of works by Feldgrau.net members who are published authors.
User avatar
Jason Pipes
Patron
Posts: 1800
Joined: Wed Sep 25, 2002 4:06 pm
Location: CA & WI

Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Jason Pipes »

Place holder for discussions specifically related to forum member Marc Rikmenspoel and his various published works.

Marc is a specialist in the Waffen-SS and it's units and commanders and is an authority on foreign volunteer formations. His list of published books include the following works.

Waffen-SS Encyclopedia

Soldiers of the Waffen-SS: Many Nations, One Motto

For Rex and For Belgium: Le'on Degrelle and Walloon Political and Military Collaboration 1940-45

Slaughterhouse: The Handbook of the Eastern Front
Last edited by Jason Pipes on Thu Jan 03, 2008 11:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
pzrmeyer2

Post by pzrmeyer2 »

Its an honor having a guy like Marc on this site. I especially enjoyed his research on the Oradur controversy.
John P. Moore
Author & Moderator
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 10:40 pm
Location: Portland, Oregon & France

Post by John P. Moore »

I have the first three of Marc’s books and I was pleased with all of them. My favorite was “For Rex and for Belgium”. Good text with interesting details and plenty of new photos. As I recall, I found the descriptions of Léon Degrelle to be quite objective in contrast to the heroic praise that one typically encounters elsewhere. An Appendix includes the details of 169 Walloon officers who served in the Legion Wallonie and its successor formations. Helion did a superb job with the printing.

“The Waffen-SS The Encyclopedia” is an excellent introductory text for someone beginning to research the Waffen-SS while more experienced researchers are also likely to learn something new. An Index in the back would improve the book’s usefulness. Interestingly, the final chapter in the book has the title, “Myths about the Waffen-SS”.

John
User avatar
sniper1shot
Moderator
Posts: 1438
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2004 10:56 pm
Location: Canada

Post by sniper1shot »

I have 2x of his books and found them both excellantly (is that a word?) written and informative.
Only he is lost who gives himself up as lost.
John P. Moore
Author & Moderator
Posts: 1868
Joined: Thu Jan 02, 2003 10:40 pm
Location: Portland, Oregon & France

Post by John P. Moore »

Marc - Could you please tell us when your interest in researching the German military first began and if your primary interests have changed over the years? What can you tell us about the research methodology that you used for your first book and how did it change for subsequent publications?

John
Paddy Keating

Post by Paddy Keating »

Marc is also a gent.

PK
Marc Rikmenspoel
Enthusiast
Posts: 488
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2002 8:33 pm
Location: Denver, Colorado USA

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel »

Thanks for the good words, folks! I was around 8 years old, one day circa 1978, when my parents went out for the day, and left me with a babysitter. I poked around in some things my father stored in my bedroom's walk-in closet, and found his copy of Ryan's The Longest Day.

I read a lot of it that afternoon, and was fascinated (I could read at an adult level from a young age). I soon started collecting paperback books on WW2, which were easily available at the time, things like With Rommel in the Desert, Company Commander, Marine at War, The Bridge at Remagen, and Hitler Moves East. I quickly understood that numerous Germans were part of many massive battles over the course of several years, while most Allied soldiers saw far less service. I also realized from these books, which were mostly personal accounts, that all sorts of dirty deeds and suppressed truths occurred on both sides, but the campaign histories I would read usually were critical of Axis activities, while ignoring or dismissing Allied ones.

Over time, the Eastern Front of World War 2 became, to me, the most fascinating event in all of military history. I realized that there were endless little nooks and corners to investigate, and that the full story was nowhere close to being reported (for example, the Grossdeutschland photo book translated by Squadron/Signal mentioned horrific fighting near Rhzev in late 1942, yet this campaign wasn't discussed in English until Glantz's Operation Mars book many years later).

I collected all sorts of books on the German military of World War 2, but it became easiest to specialize in the Waffen-SS, since that is what could be found readily in English. Yet, as I read these English works, I noticed inconsistencies, and once Fedorowicz and others began releasing translations of German unit histories, I started to learn the detailed facts of the service of Waffen-SS units. I also collected, eventually, German language books, and I came to have a better reference library than most people with similar interests. I decided to start combining obscure information from rare books with information provided to me by various friends and online contacts, so as to present students of the Waffen-SS with books full of information that is much more accurate than what is normally found in English. I don't take credit for the research, so much as the presentation, and anyone who has seen my books knows they have length lists of contributors thanked, and works consulted.

This is what I have time to write today, but I'll add more another time, thanks again.
User avatar
Nate
Supporter
Posts: 145
Joined: Sun Sep 29, 2002 5:16 pm
Location: Little Rock, AR

Post by Nate »

Ryan's The Longest Day
This and A Bridge Too Far were the books that got me into WW II, along with Donald Burgett's "Currahee". I read the Readers Digest condensed version and I was hooked!!
Verloren ist nur, wer sich selbst aufgibt !!
phylo_roadking
Patron
Posts: 8459
Joined: Thu Apr 28, 2005 2:41 pm

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by phylo_roadking »

My formative experience was more deepdown formative. I was taught to read at a VERY early age, my mother being a primary school teacher off on several years' Leave after I was born and with time on her hands LOL At the time we lived a VERY small pebble's throw from the North Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland, and I remember at about four and a half years of age sitting puzzling my way through an old War Picture Library edition with Lancasters in it...and looking up at a sudden noise to see an RAF Shackleton scoping out a fishing boat offshore at about 100 feet of altitude...and thinking the 4-year-old, 1960's version of "Yes way!!!" :D
"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle." - Malcolm Reynolds
Kelvin
Enthusiast
Posts: 509
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2007 7:49 am

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Kelvin »

Marc is expert in Waffen SS.
Marc Rikmenspoel
Enthusiast
Posts: 488
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2002 8:33 pm
Location: Denver, Colorado USA

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel »

I'm starting to put together a new project. It will be a big photo book about the Germanic Waffen-SS. Anyone who has seen my previous books will have seen a preview, of sorts, of what I intend to include. It will be a mix of SS-PK war reporter photos, private photos, and portraits, accompanied by detailed captions. I'll probably include occasional essays, sort of like in the big Latvian and Estonian Legion books.

My expectation is that I'll begin with a bit of coverage of the Germania Reg. before the war and early in the war. I'll then show a bit about the formation of the Wiking Division and its early combats. I'll then cover the foreign legions. They ended up alongside Latvians, so there will be just a bit about them. This will be followed by the new units of 1943: Nordland, Nederland, Langemarck, and Wallonien. They fought alongside Estonians, who had already served in Wiking, so there'll be a bit about them. Finally, there will be some photos from the last phases of the war.

I have plenty of Germania and Wiking photos, from my own collection and from friends. I have a lot of Norwegian photos from friends, and some Danish ones from another friend. I have Flemish private photos and PK photos from several friends. I'd like more Walloon photos, though I have plenty of Degrelle. I could also use more Dutch photos, though I'm especially well-supplied with photos of German officers in Brigade Nederland. I also seek more Latvian and Estonian photos, especially PK ones. I probably have enough Finnish photos.

What I need most of all is Swiss photos. I know that photos exist of most Swiss officers in the Waffen-SS, but I don't have any! I'm looking for portraits (or field pics) of Paul Benz, Waldo Rodio, Otto Lölliger, Eugen Corrodi (von Elfenau), Jean Marie Stehli, Paul Diebold, Gunther Greer, and any others.

Anyone with photo material to share can PM me, or email me at [email protected] (take out the NOSPAM). I always compensate those who help me with my projects. Suggestions or requests for coverage are also welcome. I'm just beginning my work on this book, so I don't expect it to be available until a year and a half from now, at the earliest. I hope everyone will enjoy it, when the time comes.
Kelvin
Enthusiast
Posts: 509
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2007 7:49 am

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Kelvin »

Hi, Marc, as expert in Waffen SS, are you considered writing the detaled history of Waffen SS division by division with nice decoration like JJ Fedorowicz does ? I have already had many Waffen SS divison separate history which were written by former Waffen SS members. But right now many document is available, maybe you can rewrite that history with much more detailed and accurate data with new look for that.

Recently, I am specially interested in Totenkopf and Wiking Panzer divisions, so new project on Wiking is welcome. :D

Some division history in English was not enough in market. Even Hitlerjugend only had Meyer book. Separate history for Hohenstaufen and Frundsberg are also needed. :[]
Marc Rikmenspoel
Enthusiast
Posts: 488
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2002 8:33 pm
Location: Denver, Colorado USA

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel »

Thanks for the good words, Kelvin, but I think the projects you seek are coming more from Charles Trang. He is preparing a set of books about Wiking, and has another Totenkopf book on the way. This is besides the extensive coverage he has given to LAH. My specialty is the Germanics, and Waffen-SS photos in general, so that's what I am concentrating on for now.
Charles Trang
Supporter
Posts: 185
Joined: Wed Jan 16, 2008 7:49 am
Location: France

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Charles Trang »

Hi Kelvin,

If you can read German or French, Herbert Fürbringer's book on Hohenstaufen is a "must have".

Hi Marc,

Can't wait to see your next book !
Marc Rikmenspoel
Enthusiast
Posts: 488
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2002 8:33 pm
Location: Denver, Colorado USA

Re: Feldgrau Author: Marc Rikmenspoel

Post by Marc Rikmenspoel »

Good news! I have a publisher who wants to publish my Germanic Waffen-SS photobook! Nothing's been signed, so I won't go into details. However, I hope to be done with my work by this summer, so a release date of the summer of 2012 could be reasonable.
Post Reply