Warriors of the 106th: The Last Infantry Division of World War II
Jun 2017 · Casemate Publishers
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About this ebook
This chronicle of the 106th Infantry Division follows the unit into the Battle of the Bulge and recounts the stories of GIs who fought—even after capture.
On December 16, 1944, as the European conflict of World War II was reaching its climax at the Battle of the Bulge, the 106th Infantry Division was fresh, green, and right in the pathway of the Fifth German Army. Warriors of the 106th chronicles the movements and combat operations of this significant unit while sharing individual stories of the heroism and sacrifice of these young Americans in the face of overwhelming odds.
From this division alone, 6,800 men were taken prisoner. But their stories didn’t end there. For the ones who miraculously escaped, there was a battle to fight. With remarkable courage, they survived debilitating weather conditions and fought a determined enemy with superior numbers. And despite all adversity, they eventually prevailed.
One 106th GI waged his own personal war using guerilla tactics that caused serious consternation amongst the German troops. Another GI’s main concern was recovering his clean underwear. These stories are heartwarming, heartbreaking, nerve-wracking, and compelling. Warriors of the 106th puts readers on the front lines and in the stalags during the final months of WWII.
On December 16, 1944, as the European conflict of World War II was reaching its climax at the Battle of the Bulge, the 106th Infantry Division was fresh, green, and right in the pathway of the Fifth German Army. Warriors of the 106th chronicles the movements and combat operations of this significant unit while sharing individual stories of the heroism and sacrifice of these young Americans in the face of overwhelming odds.
From this division alone, 6,800 men were taken prisoner. But their stories didn’t end there. For the ones who miraculously escaped, there was a battle to fight. With remarkable courage, they survived debilitating weather conditions and fought a determined enemy with superior numbers. And despite all adversity, they eventually prevailed.
One 106th GI waged his own personal war using guerilla tactics that caused serious consternation amongst the German troops. Another GI’s main concern was recovering his clean underwear. These stories are heartwarming, heartbreaking, nerve-wracking, and compelling. Warriors of the 106th puts readers on the front lines and in the stalags during the final months of WWII.
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About the author
Michael Collins is an American historian who lives outside of Albany, New York. He co-authored the book Voices of the Bulge with his good friend and co-author Martin King and he is currently the historian for the 10th Armored Division Veterans Western Chapter. With help from the Western Chapter and Martin King, he fundraised and ran logistics for having a 10th Armored Division plaque dedicated next to a tank turret in Bastogne, Belgium in December, 2011 to commemorate the 10th Armored Division veterans who fought during the Battle of the Bulge. His primary interest is preserving the memory of World War II veterans through oral history and photographs. He has lectured on the importance of oral history and the Battle of the Bulge at numerous venues including colleges, military bases, and museums. He traveled on an extensive book tour of the north eastern United States with fellow co-author Martin King which included stops at West Point Military Academy, Fort Dix, Valley Forge Military College, and the U.S. Navy Museum. He has worked for various museums in the north eastern United States including the Destroyer Escort Historical Museum, the New York State Military Museum and Veteran’s Research Center, Irish American Heritage Museum and Connecticut’s Old State House. He currently works at Siena College in Loudonville, NY in the library’s audio-visual department.Michael is interested in World War II history and 20th Century U.S. and European History. He received his Bachelor’s degree in history from Siena College and his Master’s degree in Public History from Central Connecticut State University.Ken Johnson received his PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Clarkson University. He has been based in Los Angeles for 30 years, working for several aerospace companies in a variety of R&D, organizational, and project leadership roles. In late 2008 he learned that his uncle had served with the 106th Infantry Division in the Battle of the Bulge and was KIA the first night of the battle. That was all he needed to get hooked on the study of history.Martin King is a highly qualified British Military Historian/Lecturer who’s had the honor of reintroducing many US, British and German veterans to the WWII battlefields where they fought. He lives in Belgium near Antwerp where he spends his time writing, lecturing and visiting European battlefields. He is a British citizen who has been resident in Belgium since 1981. Previous to that he attended Wakefield Technical and Arts College and followed a foundation course in Teacher Training. In 1981 he decided to continue his academic career firstly with a teacher training course at the famous Berlitz Language School, and secondly with a degree course in European History at the ULB University in Brussels, where he also began studying military history. In 2000 he was offered a position at Antwerp University. Around this time he began writing the first draft of ‘Voices of the Bulge’, a book based on a series of one to one interviews with veterans who participated in the Battle of the Bulge. Later he was joined by co-author Michael Collins who assisted in this project. His voluntary work with veterans and the tracing the individual histories of veterans has been a labor of love for almost 20 years. He speaks fluent German, Dutch, Italian and French. Frequently in demand as a public speaker he has lectured at many British and US military bases throughout the world. His activities came to the attention of some major military documentary makers in Hollywood. The History Channel hired Martin to be their Senior Historical Consultant on their series “Cities of the Underworld”. In 2007 he began a three year assignment to work on the hit series ‘Greatest Tank Battles’, currently the most watched military documentary in the US. Shortly thereafter he accepted an invitation to work as a Presenter/Historical Consultant on the series ‘Narrow Escapes’ with Bafta Award winning documentary makers WMR.He was recently invited to the prestigious West Point Military Academy and Valley Forge Military College in the United States. Due to his extensive work on veteran research, at Valley Forge he was honoured by being asked to officially open the ‘Eric Fisher Woods’ Library. His documentary film based on the book ‘Voices of the Bulge’ is currently in production. Widely regarded as an authority on European Military History, General Graham Hollands referred to him as the “Greatest living expert on the Battle of the Bulge”. Fellow writer and notable historian Professor Carlton Joyce said “He really is the best on the Ardennes". Stephen Ambrose author of ‘Band of Brothers’ referred to him as ‘Our expert on the Battle of the Bulge’.
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