Cross of Iron: The Rise and Fall of the German War Machine, 1918-1945

“In smooth, economical prose, [Mosier] incorporates a number of thought-provoking insights and hypotheses . . . This is a stimulating overview of a war machine.” ―Publishers Weekly

World War I has inspired a vast mythology of bravery and carnage that has fascinated readers for decades. Now acclaimed military historian John Mosier demystifies the strategic and tactical aspects to explain that, contrary to the standard military history accounts, Germany’s military culture provided them with the advantage. Their war machine succeeded against more powerful Allied armies until, in both wars, it was crushed by U.S. intervention. Through simliarly stunning revelations, Mosier forces a reevaluation of the reasons behind the French withdrawal, the Russian contribution, and Hitler as a military thinker.

The result of thirty years of research, Cross of Iron is a powerful, riveting, and authoritative recasting of the legends of modern European warfare.