World War II Snipers: The Men, Their Guns, Their Stories (Casemate Illustrated Special)

A comprehensive illustrated history of snipers, their training and their battlefield role in all theaters in World War II.\nThousands of volumes have been published about World War II but relatively little attention has been given to the sniper. Drawing from memoirs, government documents and interviews, World War II Snipers incorporates eyewitness accounts to weave a comprehensive narrative of snipers in World War II.\nWhile certain common traits were shared among belligerents, each had its unique methodology for selecting and training snipers and, as casualties were high, their replacements. Drawn from hunters, competitive shooters, natural marksmen, outdoorsmen, city dwellers, farmers and veteran soldiers, they fought to assert local battlefield dominance and instill among their enemy a paralyzing fear.\nSometimes admired and other times reviled by their own comrades because of the retaliation they drew, they were always too few in number. Their battlefield role, their victories and their defeats are retold here from neglected or forgotten sources.\nThe scope of World War II Snipers is extensive with three chapters each on the major theaters of the war including Western Europe, Eastern Europe and the Pacific. This is supported by a lengthy chapter on the sniper rifles used by the snipers and their equipment.\nTable of Contents\nPart I: Selection & Training
Chapter 1: Prewar and Early War Years
Chapter 2: Selection
Chapter 3: Training\nPart II: Wartime Sniping
Chapter 4: Western Europe, North Africa, and Italy
Chapter 5: Liberation of Northwestern Europe
Chapter 6: To the Rhine and the Elbe
Chapter 7: Drang Nach Osten
Chapter 8: The Stalingrad Kessel
Chapter 9: Nach Berlin!
Chapter 10: Far East
Chapter 11: Southwest Pacific Theater
Chapter 12; The South Pacific Theater and Asia\nPart III: The Weapons
Chapter 13: Guns and Equipment\nConclusion
Notes to the text
Glossary
Bibliography
Index