7042 Panzers of the Ardennes Offensive 1944-45
by Tom Cockle ISBN 962-361-684-8
72 pages, 177 b/w photos, 16 color plates

On 15 December 1944, Hitler launched his last offensive, code-named "Wacht am Rhein". The assault force would be made up of three armies, intended to thrust through the US First Army units holding Monschau in the north to Echternach on the Luxemburg border, cross the Meuse River and continue on to Brussels and Antwerp. This Ardennes offensive would result in approximately 81,000 German and 77,000 American casualties in addition to loss of approximately 500-600 armored fighting vehicles on each side. This last gamble was a failure and by the end of January 1945 the Germans were back to the original lines where they had launched the attack from six weeks earlier.

This book documented the armored fighting vehicles of both sides during the Ardennes Offensive, aka Battle of the Bulge - Panther, King Tiger, Sherman, StuG III, Hanomag, Wirbelwind, ersatz M10¡K¡K Tom Cockle, an expert in German armor and a modeler, well researched the text and captions in the book, the contents are very informative. Doug Jameson, also a modeler, is an artist by profession. All the color plates are well researched, from camouflage and markings down to the weathering and zimmerit patterns. From modelers to modelers, a 'must' for any modeler's library.