Hermann Balck: Germany's Forgotten Panzer General?

Today, we're diving into the life and legacy of one of World War II's most enigmatic and effective military leaders no one ever heard of—Hermann Balck, Despite being one of the most talented Panzer generals in the German army, his name often escapes the spotlight that shines on other, more well-known figures like Erwin Rommel Heinz Guderian and Erich von Mannstein. In this video, we will explore the strategies and battlefield maneuvers that earned Balck legendary status among his peers.

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
00:30 Balck's Military career
09:54 Outro

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[crownprincesebastianjohano]

Balck's memoirs are required reading as it is the best German general officer memoir. It is honest and meticulous in its documentation by a man who was incredibly self-aware. "Order in Chaos" is actually more valuable for his insights on the political and historical events in Germany than its very ample and incredibly well documented military narrative. Whereas his military career was absolutely brilliant, he was an even better psychologist. His father was a general so he had access to leading personalities of the Kaiser Reich most young officers did not. His assessments of Wilhelm II and other leading figures is immensely valuable, as well as insights on the German people. His evaluation of the Hungarians, Finns, Romanians and Italians is also quite interesting, and as it turns out, correct. His insights on Hitler, and friendships with Guderian, Manstein and Wenck and the other leading German leaders is also very useful in understanding the true nature of Germany's decision making processes when the popular narrative spun by other German generals looking to burnish their reputations blames everything on Hitler. Balck calls this a cop-out, that simply calling Hitler insane "lets everyone off the hook for the collective disaster." The only blind spot he seems to have is understanding American politics and of course is not free of the typical German mindsets regarding how the Allies and Soviets should have interacted. But overall a great book.

[jayglithero]

Balck wasn't forgotten by me. I read von Mellinthin's book describing Balck's defense of the Chir River with only 3 divisions. They fought by day and redeployed by night. I was impressed.

[rickden]

Balck is a ''forgotten'' German general because his units aren't connected to war crimes, a major requirement it seems for extraordinary average German commanders in the spotlight.

[frankfischer]

Von Mellenthins' book describes the German Army being always outnumbered against the Soviets, and how German commanders, like Hermann Balck, had to constantly devise innovative tactics to keep from being overwhelmed. Desperate circumstances.

[paulwallis]

Order in Chaos is a fascinating book. The American translator didn't quite get a few points, like Balck's reference to "mixed blood" as some sort of racial thing, when it meant "mixed loyalties".If someone doesn't know who Balck is, he's not forgotten, but some people are truly illiterate. Nice to hear that History Inside has actually read the book.

[p.d.stanhope]

Anyone interested in Balck's strategic thought processes, I highly recommend reading his book Order in Chaos.

[richardmiddleton]

I own both Von Mellinthin's Panzer Battles, and Balck's Order in Chaos, and found him to be an outstanding leader. One noteworthy entry in in Von Mellinthin's book regarding the 1943/44 Winter battles around Zhitomar, where Balck's masterful plans were slightly upset by a division commander who laagered his division overnight during an attack. Balck tore a strip off that commander for that oversight, Von Mellinthin dryly noted that in Back's world, divisions in combat rarely stopped. That nugget speaks loudly about Balck's character and drive in operations.

[robertmaybeth]

Von Mellenthin's timeless classic "Panzer Battles" as the post points out, the author served under Herman Balck for some time. And Mellenthin invariably describes his superior with much admiration. Mellenthin served under several of the other legendary German commanders, including Rommel himself for a time, so this was high praise indeed.

Balck was the type of commander whom the Germans were so good at developing, a leader who other men wanted to follow. His leadership was crucial in many battles and he rescued many battlefield situations from almost certain defeat. But, again as OP points out, he is practically unknown in the west.

[infolover_]

A humble commander, not hungry for popularity status...

[fredrictengstrom]

Yes.A fine man Thus almost forgotten.Thank you 4 uploading.Dr T

[alexbowman]

Panzer general Hans Valentin Hube was trapped fighting in the Stalingrad battle seemingly doomed to death or captivity when he received an order from Hitler to fly out the kessel but Hube replied “I took my men into Stalingrad, I’ve ordered them to fight to the last bullet, I intend to stay and show them how”, Hitler sent in a squad of his personal SS guards and an unsuspecting Hube was ordered to report to Paulus’s headquarters where he was jumped on and dragged out on a plane with a pistol to his head. Hube was killed in a plane crash a year later.

[daniellebcooper]

This explains why his skill rating increases quickly in Hearts Of Iron. He was Competent.

[ILTXGunslinger]

Wow, I’ve admired Balck for decades - so surprised to see his name show up on YouTube. Great comments concerning comparisons with post war German General Staff autobiographies. Balck doesn’t embellish mistakes

[anniebones]

I become engrossed with one of his fellow officers who is referred to as the devil's general his exploits are amazing

[edhodapp]

Balck is definitely my favorite German general.

[tillposer]

4:52 Effectively, this means that he was awarded the Knight's Cross four times, after having received the Iron Cross 2nd and 1st class in the current conflict, he had received both in WWI. Think of it as receiving the Distinguished Service Cross four times. The Knight's Cross with Oakleaf, Swords and Diamonds was not an individual medal. It interesting to note that the KC was not often rewarded posthumously, unlike the VC or the MoH.

[DonMeaker]

He was an instructor-contractor at the US command and staff school course.

[DonMeaker]

He had von Mellenthin as his 1A operations officer.

[davidhimmelsbach]

Col Schwartzkopf learned a lot from Balck in 1978's war game... hence the Gulf War in 1991.

[kevinhealey]

I would say that the hierarchy who helped him out along the way, as well those getting him into position,
after the whole thing was over, they realized they made a big mistake and regretted what they had done.

I believe that this thought entered into Ernst Rohm's head, as well as Erwin Rommel just before they were killed.