The 614th Tank Destroyer Battalion

The 614th Tank Destroyer Battalion written by Samuel D Korte published by Pen & Sword

Books - £20.00 - Hardback - Pages 240

The 614th Tank Destroyer Battalion was activated on 25 July 1942 at Camp Carson, USA and, like many other tank destroyer battalions, would be sent to Europe. It saw combat in France, where a platoon earned the Distinguished Unit Citation, and later continued to fight gallantly in Germany and Austria until the war was over.

However, unlike many other tank destroyer battalions that fought in the Second World War, this unit was crewed only by black soldiers. The men had been subjected to racism from their countrymen during training, although the battalion did eventually win the respect of the white soldiers they fought alongside. When the third platoon deployed their guns on the slopes near Climbach, France, they weren’t just fighting against the Germans, but also against any prejudices that their white countrymen might have had.

Having earned the respect of the 103d Infantry Division, the 614th Tank Destroyer Battalion shared in their triumphs and tragedies. So when the division needed to retreat during a blizzard, or when Task Force Rhine pushed its way across the German plains, or when the division suffered heavy losses at Schillersdorf, the 614th Tank Destroyer Battalion was there with them.

This book follows the soldiers of the 614th during their time in France, in World War Two, with the difference being that they were an all black unit. Now at the time they faced enormous prejudice and racism from not only fellow white soldiers but the army top brass too. But to be honest this just spurred them on to be better than anyone else, if these guys were going to be victimised they were going to prove everyone wrong by being the best at what they did.

Now, this Tank Destroyer Battalion had its fair share of downs but it had many ups too, so much so that they earned the respect of fellow white soldiers and received a Distinguished Unit citation too. As usual, this case is like all others where black people are not given the respect and recognition they deserve and so they have to work harder in order to receive it from fellow white people. This book takes the reader through their war via a good number of personal accounts, reports, evidence and resources. Did I know about these soldiers and what they achieved, no sadly not. But having read this brilliant book I would like to read more and learn more. This has been a fantastic book, well written and very well researched and it feels like this book has been written by a committee wanting to get this out in the world. A thoroughly excellent read, there is little to fault in this book. I should add that at the back of the book all those black soldiers are listed and remembered and there is also a chapter that lists all the medals and citations received by these young men and what they achieved.