Buchholz, Frank/Brügge, Frank Deutsche Maschinengewehre. 2 Volumes

Volume 1: Entwicklung, Taktik und Einsatz von 1892 bis 1918; Volume 2: Vorschriften für deutsche Maschinengewehre. In addition to the standard MG 08 and MG 08/15 machine guns, the book also describes the Luft-MG 08 and 08/15 variants, the MG 08/18 which ended the Maxim development series, and the very rare models Parabellum M 1913, M 1913/17, the Dreyse machine gun, the Bergmann machine gun alter Art and neuer Art models, and the Anti-Tank and Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun. The period under consideration thus extends from 1892 until the post-war period after the First World War and into the time of the Reichswehr. The authors digress to examine the Mondragón self-loading rifle and the Mauser aircraft self-loading carbine, which though not automatic weapons, were used by the German air force as predecessors of automatic weapons. Finally the book also examines the Maschinenpistole 18, the automatic weapon introduced shortly before the end of the First World War which for the first time allowed the machine gun to be wielded as a versatile hand-held weapon. New knowledge, gleaned from the archives of the Bavarian War Archive and the Bundesarchiv/Militärarchiv, makes possible a new way of looking at production and procurement procedures, the use of machine guns by the German Army in the First World War, and the use of captured machine guns. This illustrated book with 520 pages and ca. 1000 photos and illustrations traces the development of German machine guns and graphically depicts why they became the most feared infantry weapons of the First World War. "The artillery shapes the battlefield - machine guns defend it!" This sentence characterizes the battles of materiel fought during the First World War like almost no other. After the outbreak of war in 1914, the revolutions in armaments of the late 19th and early 20th centuries resulted in industrialized warfare, which was marked in particular by the use of machine guns and artillery. If a unit under attack was able to survive the attackers preparatory artillery fire with its machine guns intact and place them in position as the infantry attack began, it could be assumed with certainty that this infantry assault would be a bloody failure. Consequently, all available means were employed in an attempt to knock out the enemys machine guns. The proper use of machine guns could decide battles and give a numerically inferior defender the fire superiority necessary to successfully repulse attacks. Especially for the German Army on the western front, the firepower of the machine gun came to replace the steadily diminishing personnel strengths of the infantry regiments. As opposed to the rifle bearers, machine gunners became the true pillars of infantry combat. It was for this reason that the machine gun crisis of 1915 was all the more strongly felt, German weapons makers having failed to produce sufficient quantities of machine guns to meet the requirements of the fighting forces. It was only the advent of the new production methods devised by Prof. Romberg and the introduction of standardization that led to a tenfold rise in monthly output with production of the MG 08/15.

Finally, the book also deals with the 18 machine pistol, which was introduced shortly before the end of the war and made automatic weapons usable as flexibly guided hand weapons for the first time.
New insights, gained from archival documents from the Bavarian War Archives and the Federal Archives/Military Archives, provide a new perspective on production and procurement processes, the use of MGs by the German army during the First World War and the use of captured MGs. This illustrated book with 520 pages and around 1000 photos and illustrations traces this development of German machine guns and vividly conveys why they became the most feared infantry weapon of the First World War. "Artillery shapes the battlefield - machine guns defend it!" This sentence characterises the material battles of the First World War like no other. After the outbreak of war in 1914, the changes in weapons technology at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century led to industrialised warfare, which was particularly characterised by the use of machine guns - in addition to artillery. If an attacked unit managed to survive the attacker's barrage and bring its own machine guns into position in time for the start of the infantry attack, it was safe to assume that the enemy attack would fail bloodily. Every effort was therefore made to disable the enemy machine guns. The correct use of machine guns could decide battles, could give a numerically inferior defender the necessary fire superiority to successfully defend against attacks.
For the German army on the Western Front in particular, the firepower of the machine guns replaced the constantly decreasing manpower of the infantry regiments. In contrast to the rifle carrier, the machine gunner became the actual carrier of the infantry battle. The machine gun crisis that began in 1915 made itself all the more noticeable with the inability of German weapon manufacturers to produce machine guns in sufficient quantities to meet the needs of the troops. Only the new production processes developed by Prof. Romberg and the introduction of standardisation led to a tenfold increase in monthly production figures with the production of the MG 08/15.

Description of Volume 2: During the work on the illustrated book "Deutsche Maschinengewehre. Development, Tactics and Use from 1892 to 1918", the authors soon realised that original specifications for machine guns are very rare, and when they are, they can often only be found in archives. The decision was therefore taken to publish a facsimile volume containing the most important service regulations, instructions and directives on the use of machine guns in the German army from 1899-1918. Thanks to the support of the Bavarian Main State Archives / War Archives Department, this volume can now be presented. In addition to the regulations for the 08 and 08/15 machine guns, it is now possible to make available to the reader guides and instructions for such rarely encountered weapons as the M.G. 99, the M.G. 01, the different variants of the Parabellum and the Bergmann-MG, the Dreyse-MG as well as the Becker machine gun and the machine pistol 18. Other rare regulations, such as the instructions for indirect firing, can also be found in this volume, as well as the use of makeshift mounts, telescopic sights and other accessories that were used in the German army. This volume is therefore an indispensable basis for all interested readers who wish to obtain comprehensive information on the use of machine guns in the German army before and during the First World War. The developments in weapons technology towards the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century led to industrialised mass warfare soon after the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, which was significantly influenced by the use of machine guns. Before the outbreak of war, the machine gun was considered more of an auxiliary weapon of the infantry, but in the first months of the war it proved to be the most important weapon in infantry firefighting. However, the emergence of machine gun troops in the German army dates back to 1901, when the first machine gun sections were set up after several years of trials.