Junger/Storm of Steel Companion

[Jack Sheldon]

Rene Senteur (Eparges) has rendered a great service to all interested in the Great War as fought and recorded by Ernst Junger. 'Ground breaking' is a somewhat over-worked term when it comes to books concerning the Western Front but, in this case, it is wholly justified. Rene, fascinated by Junger's writing for over thirty years, some time ago set about systematically gathering material and photos relating to Junger's life and wartime experiences and the result is a handsome, privately published book, entitled De Bazancourt a Favreuil: Sur les Traces d'Ernst Junger. Yes, spot on; it is in French, but do not be put off. Rene's very clear text, couched in simple, straightforward language, is set off by anything up to eight fully captioned illustrations (many of them in colour) on every double page spread, so the story is very easy to follow.

The book opens with the arrival in France of Junger with a party of reinforcements for Fusilier Regiment 73 on 1 January 1915 and we are quickly into a series of sixteen sections on Champagne, the Meuse Heights, Monchy au Bois, Guillemont, Nameless Copse (Moislains), Villers Carbonnel, Fresnoy/Arleux, Hindenburg Line, Langemark, Regnieville, Passchendaele, Moeuvres(Cambrai), Vis en Artois, Operation Michael, Copse 125 and Favreuil. Some of these actions are better known than others to the Anglophone audience, but they are all to be found in Storm of Steel and the regimental history and each gets the same painstaking treatment from Rene.

There is a general description of the battle, then the text homes in on the part played by FR 73 and Junger in particular. There is an extract of a modern, full-colour, overprinted map to show the action and a cascade of 'then and now' photos which demonstrate the depth of Rene's knowledge and the enormous effort he has put into the production of the book. In following the twists and turns of Junger's remarkable ascent from recruit through to a reserve commission and an immense haul of medals for bravery and devotion to duty we discover why he ended the war with the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, the Order of the House of Hohenzollern with Swords, the Golden Wound Badge and, finally, in September 1918, the Pour le Merite (The Blue Max).

The fascination of the book does not end there. Along the way, for example, we read about Junger's time pre-war with the French Foreign Legion, we discover two little French boys, orphaned and 'adopted' by FR 73 at Douchy in 1916 who fed, clothed and looked after them and we benefit from two useful annexes and a post script.

This is a really well produced book, which deserves to be read by anybody interested in Junger, or who wishes to follow his remarkable personal war on the ground. So, lose no time! Contact Rene by PM and find out how to obtain a copy.

Jack

[JimSmithson]

Thanks for the information on the book Jack. It certainly looks well worth getting hold of a copy.

Jim

[Dave G]

Rene, is it possible to post ordering information for your book? I seem to be having trouble sending private messages.

Best Regards,

Dave

[eparges]

Thanks for the information on the book Jack. It certainly looks well worth getting hold of a copy.

Jim

I have a sort of info leaflet, but don't know if I'm allowed to publish it here...have to ask the moderators..

regards, René

(All PMs seem to arrive safe & sound though, so please try again ad I'll get you all the info)

[MartinWills]

It's frequently the case that reviews here give a price, ISBN, publisher details etc so providing this should not offend the mods - unless it is "blatant advertising" as opposed to indicating where it can be obtained.

[Simon Jones]

Congratulations René

There is a description by René on Nils Fabiansson's blog: http://stahlgewittern.blogspot.com/ with a link to René's website.

[David Filsell]

Great news - But. But. Who's going to do the translation and when!!!

Best regards

David

[kaiserknight]

Thanks for that information Jack! Will check it out at some stage.

Question to you - when is your new book due out? Are you planning to due anything on the other fronts that the German troops fought in? Would like to read some more on the Ostfront & Italian Fronts. I can't seem to locate any English translations of Alpenkorps material.