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Air Battle for Moscow 1941–1942

Author: Dmitry Degtev

Publisher: Air World

Published: 2021-10-31

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 152677447X

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This is the story of the aerial element of the Battle for Moscow between 1941 and 1942, known to the Germans as Operation Typhoon. In October 1941, Operation Typhoon and the battle for Moscow began. According to Hitler's plan, it was to be the ‘last offensive’, after which nothing could stop Germany from conquering Britain and the rest of Europe – but first he had to overcome the Soviets and especially their air force. Air Battle for Moscow is the first detailed description of one of the most vital, yet little known, air battles of the Second World War. The battle for Moscow opened with the flights of long-range reconnaissance aircraft, which photographed Moscow and the Kremlin. Then, on 22 July 1941, Operation Clara Zetkin, the Luftwaffe’s aerial assault on Moscow, began. But the Luftwaffe was opposed by the ‘Stalin's Falcons’, the elite 6th Air Defence Corps, which defended the Soviet capital with a determination which saw bitter duels to the death and horrendous casualties on both sides. The book presents new facts about this dramatic battle and describes in detail the actions of the aircrew on both sides. Yet this is not just the story or the air war. The authors also describe the lives of people during the war, of suppressed anti-Soviet opposition in Moscow, and of the bloodthirsty and inhuman actions of the Stalin regime. The book also tells of the fate of German pilots caught in Russian captivity, and the adventures of those who were able to survive and escape from the Russian executioners. Many myths concerning the battle are also challenged, such as the often-stated belief that Moscow’s anti-aircraft defenses were the most powerful in the world and that it was the Soviets who were the finest pilots. In this comprehensive account, details of losses, biographical outlines of the key individuals, analyses of the different aircraft and a full chronology of the battle are presented, as well as numerous exclusive photos, documents and drawings. But it is the stories of those who fought in the Battle for Moscow that, undeniably, have the greatest impact. The harrowing tales of death and survival in conditions that are almost beyond description demonstrate just how important this conflict was to both Russia and the Third Reich and, ultimately, to the outcome of the Second World War.

Book Synopsis Air Battle for Moscow 1941–1942 by : Dmitry Degtev

Download or read book Air Battle for Moscow 1941–1942 written by Dmitry Degtev and published by Air World. This book was released on 2021-10-31 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the story of the aerial element of the Battle for Moscow between 1941 and 1942, known to the Germans as Operation Typhoon. In October 1941, Operation Typhoon and the battle for Moscow began. According to Hitler's plan, it was to be the ‘last offensive’, after which nothing could stop Germany from conquering Britain and the rest of Europe – but first he had to overcome the Soviets and especially their air force. Air Battle for Moscow is the first detailed description of one of the most vital, yet little known, air battles of the Second World War. The battle for Moscow opened with the flights of long-range reconnaissance aircraft, which photographed Moscow and the Kremlin. Then, on 22 July 1941, Operation Clara Zetkin, the Luftwaffe’s aerial assault on Moscow, began. But the Luftwaffe was opposed by the ‘Stalin's Falcons’, the elite 6th Air Defence Corps, which defended the Soviet capital with a determination which saw bitter duels to the death and horrendous casualties on both sides. The book presents new facts about this dramatic battle and describes in detail the actions of the aircrew on both sides. Yet this is not just the story or the air war. The authors also describe the lives of people during the war, of suppressed anti-Soviet opposition in Moscow, and of the bloodthirsty and inhuman actions of the Stalin regime. The book also tells of the fate of German pilots caught in Russian captivity, and the adventures of those who were able to survive and escape from the Russian executioners. Many myths concerning the battle are also challenged, such as the often-stated belief that Moscow’s anti-aircraft defenses were the most powerful in the world and that it was the Soviets who were the finest pilots. In this comprehensive account, details of losses, biographical outlines of the key individuals, analyses of the different aircraft and a full chronology of the battle are presented, as well as numerous exclusive photos, documents and drawings. But it is the stories of those who fought in the Battle for Moscow that, undeniably, have the greatest impact. The harrowing tales of death and survival in conditions that are almost beyond description demonstrate just how important this conflict was to both Russia and the Third Reich and, ultimately, to the outcome of the Second World War.

Retreat from Moscow

Author: David Stahel

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2019-11-19

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 0374714258

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A gripping and authoritative revisionist account of the German Winter Campaign of 1941–1942 Germany’s winter campaign of 1941–1942 is commonly seen as its first defeat. In Retreat from Moscow, a bold, gripping account of one of the seminal moments of World War II, David Stahel argues that instead it was its first strategic success in the East. The Soviet counteroffensive was in fact a Pyrrhic victory. Despite being pushed back from Moscow, the Wehrmacht lost far fewer men, frustrated its enemy’s strategy, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative. Hitler’s strategic plan called for holding important Russian industrial cities, and the German army succeeded. The Soviets as of January 1942 aimed for nothing less than the destruction of Army Group Center, yet not a single German unit was ever destroyed. Lacking the professionalism, training, and experience of the Wehrmacht, the Red Army’s offensive attempting to break German lines in countless head-on assaults led to far more tactical defeats than victories. Using accounts from journals, memoirs, and wartime correspondence, Stahel takes us directly into the Wolf’s Lair to reveal a German command at war with itself as generals on the ground fought to maintain order and save their troops in the face of Hitler’s capricious, increasingly irrational directives. Excerpts from soldiers’ diaries and letters home paint a rich portrait of life and death on the front, where the men of the Ostheer battled frostbite nearly as deadly as Soviet artillery. With this latest installment of his pathbreaking series on the Eastern Front, David Stahel completes a military history of the highest order.

Book Synopsis Retreat from Moscow by : David Stahel

Download or read book Retreat from Moscow written by David Stahel and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2019-11-19 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A gripping and authoritative revisionist account of the German Winter Campaign of 1941–1942 Germany’s winter campaign of 1941–1942 is commonly seen as its first defeat. In Retreat from Moscow, a bold, gripping account of one of the seminal moments of World War II, David Stahel argues that instead it was its first strategic success in the East. The Soviet counteroffensive was in fact a Pyrrhic victory. Despite being pushed back from Moscow, the Wehrmacht lost far fewer men, frustrated its enemy’s strategy, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative. Hitler’s strategic plan called for holding important Russian industrial cities, and the German army succeeded. The Soviets as of January 1942 aimed for nothing less than the destruction of Army Group Center, yet not a single German unit was ever destroyed. Lacking the professionalism, training, and experience of the Wehrmacht, the Red Army’s offensive attempting to break German lines in countless head-on assaults led to far more tactical defeats than victories. Using accounts from journals, memoirs, and wartime correspondence, Stahel takes us directly into the Wolf’s Lair to reveal a German command at war with itself as generals on the ground fought to maintain order and save their troops in the face of Hitler’s capricious, increasingly irrational directives. Excerpts from soldiers’ diaries and letters home paint a rich portrait of life and death on the front, where the men of the Ostheer battled frostbite nearly as deadly as Soviet artillery. With this latest installment of his pathbreaking series on the Eastern Front, David Stahel completes a military history of the highest order.

The German Campaign in Russia

Author: George E. Blau

Publisher:

Published: 1955

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis The German Campaign in Russia by : George E. Blau

Download or read book The German Campaign in Russia written by George E. Blau and published by . This book was released on 1955 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Battle of Moscow 1941–1942

Author: Soviet General Staff

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2015-06-19

Total Pages: 477

ISBN-13: 1912174618

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"The Battle of Moscow, 1941–1942: The Red Army’s Defensive Operations and Counteroffensive Along the Moscow Strategic Direction" is a detailed examination of one of the major turning points of World War II, as seen from the Soviet side. The Battle of Moscow marked the climax of Hitler’s “Operation Barbarossa,” which sought to destroy the Soviet Union in a single campaign and ensure German hegemony in Europe. The failure to do so condemned Germany to a prolonged war it could not win. This work originally appeared in 1943, under the title "Razgrom Nemetskikh Voisk pod Moskvoi" (The Rout of the German Forces Around Moscow). The work was produced by the Red Army General Staff’s military-historical section, which was charged with collecting and analyzing the war’s experience and disseminating it to the army’s higher echelons. This was a collective effort, featuring many different contributors, with Marshal Boris Mikhailovich Shaposhnikov, former chief of the Red Army General Staff and then head of the General Staff Academy, serving as general editor. The book is divided into three parts, each dealing with a specific phase of the battle. The first traces the Western Front’s defensive operations along the Moscow direction during Army Group Center’s final push toward the capital in November–December, 1941. The study pays particular attention to the Red Army’s resistance to the Germans’ attempts to outflank Moscow from the north. Equally important were the defensive operations to the south of Moscow, where the Germans sought to push forward their other encircling flank. The second part deals with the first phase of the Red Army’s counteroffensive, which was aimed at pushing back the German pincers and removing the immediate threat to Moscow. Here the Soviets were able to throw the Germans back and flatten both salients, particularly in the south, where they were able to make deep inroads into the enemy front to the west and northwest. The final section examines the further development of the counteroffensive until the end of January 1942. This section highlights the Soviet advance all along the front and their determined but unsuccessful attempts to cut off the Germans’ Rzhev–Vyaz’ma salient. It is from this point that the front essentially stabilized, after which events shifted to the south. This new translation into English makes available to a wider readership this valuable study.

Book Synopsis The Battle of Moscow 1941–1942 by : Soviet General Staff

Download or read book The Battle of Moscow 1941–1942 written by Soviet General Staff and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2015-06-19 with total page 477 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Battle of Moscow, 1941–1942: The Red Army’s Defensive Operations and Counteroffensive Along the Moscow Strategic Direction" is a detailed examination of one of the major turning points of World War II, as seen from the Soviet side. The Battle of Moscow marked the climax of Hitler’s “Operation Barbarossa,” which sought to destroy the Soviet Union in a single campaign and ensure German hegemony in Europe. The failure to do so condemned Germany to a prolonged war it could not win. This work originally appeared in 1943, under the title "Razgrom Nemetskikh Voisk pod Moskvoi" (The Rout of the German Forces Around Moscow). The work was produced by the Red Army General Staff’s military-historical section, which was charged with collecting and analyzing the war’s experience and disseminating it to the army’s higher echelons. This was a collective effort, featuring many different contributors, with Marshal Boris Mikhailovich Shaposhnikov, former chief of the Red Army General Staff and then head of the General Staff Academy, serving as general editor. The book is divided into three parts, each dealing with a specific phase of the battle. The first traces the Western Front’s defensive operations along the Moscow direction during Army Group Center’s final push toward the capital in November–December, 1941. The study pays particular attention to the Red Army’s resistance to the Germans’ attempts to outflank Moscow from the north. Equally important were the defensive operations to the south of Moscow, where the Germans sought to push forward their other encircling flank. The second part deals with the first phase of the Red Army’s counteroffensive, which was aimed at pushing back the German pincers and removing the immediate threat to Moscow. Here the Soviets were able to throw the Germans back and flatten both salients, particularly in the south, where they were able to make deep inroads into the enemy front to the west and northwest. The final section examines the further development of the counteroffensive until the end of January 1942. This section highlights the Soviet advance all along the front and their determined but unsuccessful attempts to cut off the Germans’ Rzhev–Vyaz’ma salient. It is from this point that the front essentially stabilized, after which events shifted to the south. This new translation into English makes available to a wider readership this valuable study.

The Battle for Moscow, 1941-1942

Author: Albert Seaton

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Published: 1971

Total Pages: 344

ISBN-13:

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Bogen er skrevet af oberst Seaton, professionel historiker med speciale i 2. Verdenskrig og i særdeleshed i de sovjetiske og tyske væbnede styrker. Taler tysk og russisk. Bogen handler om slaget om Moskva vinteren 1941/42, der blev et vendepunkt for begge parter.

Book Synopsis The Battle for Moscow, 1941-1942 by : Albert Seaton

Download or read book The Battle for Moscow, 1941-1942 written by Albert Seaton and published by HarperCollins Publishers. This book was released on 1971 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bogen er skrevet af oberst Seaton, professionel historiker med speciale i 2. Verdenskrig og i særdeleshed i de sovjetiske og tyske væbnede styrker. Taler tysk og russisk. Bogen handler om slaget om Moskva vinteren 1941/42, der blev et vendepunkt for begge parter.

Moscow 1941

Author: Rodric Braithwaite

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 458

ISBN-13:

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Sample Text

Book Synopsis Moscow 1941 by : Rodric Braithwaite

Download or read book Moscow 1941 written by Rodric Braithwaite and published by Alfred A. Knopf. This book was released on 2006 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sample Text

The Drive on Moscow, 1941

Author: Niklas Zetterling

Publisher: Open Road Media

Published: 2013-05-07

Total Pages: 342

ISBN-13: 1480406627

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How Nazi forces were driven back by the Soviets amid mud and freezing temperatures: “Excellent . . . well researched, fast paced and enjoyable to read.” —Military Review At the end of September 1941, more than a million German soldiers lined up along the frontline just 180 miles west of Moscow. They were well-trained, confident, and had good reasons to hope that the war in the East would be over with one last offensive. Facing them was an equally large Soviet force, but whose soldiers were neither as well-trained nor as confident. When the Germans struck, disaster soon befell the Soviet defenders. German panzer spearheads cut through enemy defenses and thrust deeply to encircle most of the Soviet soldiers on the approaches to Moscow. Within a few weeks, most of the Russian soldiers marched into captivity, where a grim fate awaited them. Despite the overwhelming initial German success, however, the Soviet capital did not fall. German combat units, as well as supply transport, were bogged down in mud caused by autumn rains. General Zhukov was called back to Moscow and given the desperate task to recreate defense lines west of Moscow. The mud allowed him time to accomplish this, and when the Germans again began to attack in November, they met stiffer resistance. Even so, they came perilously close to the capital, and if the vicissitudes of weather had cooperated, would have seized it. Though German units were also fighting desperately by now, the Soviet build-up soon exceeded their own. The Drive on Moscow, 1941 is based on numerous archival records, personal diaries, letters, and other sources. It recreates the battle from the perspective of the soldiers as well as the generals. The battle had a crucial role in the overall German strategy in the East, and its outcome reveals why the failure of the German assault on Moscow may well have been true turning point of World War II.

Book Synopsis The Drive on Moscow, 1941 by : Niklas Zetterling

Download or read book The Drive on Moscow, 1941 written by Niklas Zetterling and published by Open Road Media. This book was released on 2013-05-07 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How Nazi forces were driven back by the Soviets amid mud and freezing temperatures: “Excellent . . . well researched, fast paced and enjoyable to read.” —Military Review At the end of September 1941, more than a million German soldiers lined up along the frontline just 180 miles west of Moscow. They were well-trained, confident, and had good reasons to hope that the war in the East would be over with one last offensive. Facing them was an equally large Soviet force, but whose soldiers were neither as well-trained nor as confident. When the Germans struck, disaster soon befell the Soviet defenders. German panzer spearheads cut through enemy defenses and thrust deeply to encircle most of the Soviet soldiers on the approaches to Moscow. Within a few weeks, most of the Russian soldiers marched into captivity, where a grim fate awaited them. Despite the overwhelming initial German success, however, the Soviet capital did not fall. German combat units, as well as supply transport, were bogged down in mud caused by autumn rains. General Zhukov was called back to Moscow and given the desperate task to recreate defense lines west of Moscow. The mud allowed him time to accomplish this, and when the Germans again began to attack in November, they met stiffer resistance. Even so, they came perilously close to the capital, and if the vicissitudes of weather had cooperated, would have seized it. Though German units were also fighting desperately by now, the Soviet build-up soon exceeded their own. The Drive on Moscow, 1941 is based on numerous archival records, personal diaries, letters, and other sources. It recreates the battle from the perspective of the soldiers as well as the generals. The battle had a crucial role in the overall German strategy in the East, and its outcome reveals why the failure of the German assault on Moscow may well have been true turning point of World War II.

Summary of Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov's Air Battle for Moscow 1941-1942

Author: Milkyway Media

Publisher: Milkyway Media

Published: 2021-11-08

Total Pages: 34

ISBN-13:

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Get the summary from Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov's Air Battle for Moscow 1941-1942 #1 The German military planned an air campaign against Moscow, but the Soviet capital was well defended. Only when the Germans captured the city of Stalingrad in 1942 did they succeed in taking and destroying Moscow. #2 During the summer of 1941, the Germans flew a number of reconnaissance flights over Moscow, taking photographs of the city. The first attack on the Soviet capital was planned for 21 July, but was called off at the last minute when Hitler saw a report that claimed the operation would accelerate the catastrophe of the Russians. #3 The German attack on the Soviet Union was a complete and utter failure.

Book Synopsis Summary of Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov's Air Battle for Moscow 1941-1942 by : Milkyway Media

Download or read book Summary of Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov's Air Battle for Moscow 1941-1942 written by Milkyway Media and published by Milkyway Media. This book was released on 2021-11-08 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Get the summary from Dmitry Degtev and Dmitry Zubov's Air Battle for Moscow 1941-1942 #1 The German military planned an air campaign against Moscow, but the Soviet capital was well defended. Only when the Germans captured the city of Stalingrad in 1942 did they succeed in taking and destroying Moscow. #2 During the summer of 1941, the Germans flew a number of reconnaissance flights over Moscow, taking photographs of the city. The first attack on the Soviet capital was planned for 21 July, but was called off at the last minute when Hitler saw a report that claimed the operation would accelerate the catastrophe of the Russians. #3 The German attack on the Soviet Union was a complete and utter failure.

Operation Typhoon

Author: Philippe Naud

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2018-08-19

Total Pages: 221

ISBN-13: 1612006728

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A visual look at the Nazi assault on the Soviet capital in the series that’s “a welcome addition . . . targeted at the general World War II enthusiast” (Globe at War). After the initial successes of Operation Barbarossa, at the end of September 1941, Hitler turned his focus to Moscow, with the unshakeable belief that capturing the capital would knock the Soviets out of the war. On the face of it, it was an unequal matchup in Germany’s favor, but the picture was, in fact, a great deal more complex; the Germans had suffered very significant losses since the invasion of Russia had begun and had issues with logistics and air support. The Soviets, under the command of Gen. Zhukov, were beginning to be better supplied with reinforcements and were prepared to defend to the death. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series concentrates on the main German assault of October 1941. Guderian’s panzer divisions at first made sweeping gains, as they had done so many times before, and large parts of the Red Army were encircled at Vyazma and Bryansk. These successes allowed the Soviets time to regroup, as the encircled armies did not surrender and had to be dealt with. Then, three engagements followed at Mtsensk, Maloyaroslavets and the Mojaisk defense line that proved that the war in the east was not entering its final days, as German high command believed. Illustrated with over 150 photographs, plus profile drawings of tanks, vehicles, and aircraft, this book gives a vivid impression of the situation for both protagonists, and a detailed analysis of the critical days as the fate of Moscow—and perhaps the whole war—hung in the balance.

Book Synopsis Operation Typhoon by : Philippe Naud

Download or read book Operation Typhoon written by Philippe Naud and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2018-08-19 with total page 221 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A visual look at the Nazi assault on the Soviet capital in the series that’s “a welcome addition . . . targeted at the general World War II enthusiast” (Globe at War). After the initial successes of Operation Barbarossa, at the end of September 1941, Hitler turned his focus to Moscow, with the unshakeable belief that capturing the capital would knock the Soviets out of the war. On the face of it, it was an unequal matchup in Germany’s favor, but the picture was, in fact, a great deal more complex; the Germans had suffered very significant losses since the invasion of Russia had begun and had issues with logistics and air support. The Soviets, under the command of Gen. Zhukov, were beginning to be better supplied with reinforcements and were prepared to defend to the death. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series concentrates on the main German assault of October 1941. Guderian’s panzer divisions at first made sweeping gains, as they had done so many times before, and large parts of the Red Army were encircled at Vyazma and Bryansk. These successes allowed the Soviets time to regroup, as the encircled armies did not surrender and had to be dealt with. Then, three engagements followed at Mtsensk, Maloyaroslavets and the Mojaisk defense line that proved that the war in the east was not entering its final days, as German high command believed. Illustrated with over 150 photographs, plus profile drawings of tanks, vehicles, and aircraft, this book gives a vivid impression of the situation for both protagonists, and a detailed analysis of the critical days as the fate of Moscow—and perhaps the whole war—hung in the balance.

Barbarossa Derailed: The Battle for Smolensk 10 July-10 September 1941

Author: David Glantz

Publisher: Helion and Company

Published: 2010-11-02

Total Pages: 830

ISBN-13: 190767750X

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The first half of a two-part study on Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s plan to invade Soviet Russia during World War II, and what went wrong. At dawn on 10 July 1941, massed tanks and motorized infantry of German Army Group Center’s Second and Third Panzer Groups crossed the Dnepr and Western Dvina Rivers, beginning what Hitler and most German officers and soldiers believed would be a triumphal march on Moscow, the Soviet capital. Less than three weeks before, on 22 June Hitler had unleashed his Wehrmacht’s massive invasion of the Soviet Union, code-named Operation Barbarossa, which sought to defeat the Soviet Red Army, conquer the country, and unseat its Communist ruler, Josef Stalin. Between 22 June and 10 July, the Wehrmacht advanced up to 500 kilometers into Soviet territory, killed or captured up to one million Red Army soldiers, and reached the western banks of the Western Dvina and Dnepr Rivers, by doing so satisfying the premier assumption of Plan Barbarossa that the Third Reich would emerge victorious if it could defeat and destroy the bulk of the Red Army before it withdrew to safely behind those two rivers. With the Red Army now shattered, Hitler and most Germans expected total victory in a matter of weeks. The ensuing battles in the Smolensk region frustrated German hopes for quick victory. Once across the Dvina and Dnepr Rivers, a surprised Wehrmacht encountered five fresh Soviet armies. Quick victory eluded the Germans. Instead, Soviet forces encircled in Mogilev and Smolensk stubbornly refused to surrender, and while they fought on, during July, August, and into early September, first five and then a total of seven newly mobilized Soviet armies struck back viciously at the advancing Germans, conducting multiple counterattacks and counterstrokes, capped by two major counteroffensives that sapped German strength and will. Despite immense losses in men and materiel, these desperate Soviet actions derailed Operation Barbarossa. Smarting from countless wounds inflicted on his vaunted Wehrmacht, even before the fighting ended in the Smolensk region, Hitler postponed his march on Moscow and instead turned his forces southward to engage “softer targets” in the Kiev region. The “derailment” of the Wehrmacht at Smolensk ultimately became the crucial turning point in Operation Barbarossa. This groundbreaking study, now significantly expanded, exploits a wealth of Soviet and German archival materials, including the combat orders and operational of the German OKW, OKH, army groups, and armies and of the Soviet Stavka, the Red Army General Staff, the Western Main Direction Command, the Western, Central, Reserve, and Briansk Fronts, and their subordinate armies to present a detailed mosaic and definitive account of what took place, why, and how during the prolonged and complex battles in the Smolensk region from 10 July through 10 September 1941. The structure of the study is designed specifically to appeal to both general readers and specialists by a detailed two-volume chronological narrative of the course of operations, accompanied by a third volume and a fourth, containing archival maps and an extensive collection of specific orders and reports translated verbatim from Russian. The maps, archival and archival-based, detail every stage of the battle.

Book Synopsis Barbarossa Derailed: The Battle for Smolensk 10 July-10 September 1941 by : David Glantz

Download or read book Barbarossa Derailed: The Battle for Smolensk 10 July-10 September 1941 written by David Glantz and published by Helion and Company. This book was released on 2010-11-02 with total page 830 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first half of a two-part study on Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s plan to invade Soviet Russia during World War II, and what went wrong. At dawn on 10 July 1941, massed tanks and motorized infantry of German Army Group Center’s Second and Third Panzer Groups crossed the Dnepr and Western Dvina Rivers, beginning what Hitler and most German officers and soldiers believed would be a triumphal march on Moscow, the Soviet capital. Less than three weeks before, on 22 June Hitler had unleashed his Wehrmacht’s massive invasion of the Soviet Union, code-named Operation Barbarossa, which sought to defeat the Soviet Red Army, conquer the country, and unseat its Communist ruler, Josef Stalin. Between 22 June and 10 July, the Wehrmacht advanced up to 500 kilometers into Soviet territory, killed or captured up to one million Red Army soldiers, and reached the western banks of the Western Dvina and Dnepr Rivers, by doing so satisfying the premier assumption of Plan Barbarossa that the Third Reich would emerge victorious if it could defeat and destroy the bulk of the Red Army before it withdrew to safely behind those two rivers. With the Red Army now shattered, Hitler and most Germans expected total victory in a matter of weeks. The ensuing battles in the Smolensk region frustrated German hopes for quick victory. Once across the Dvina and Dnepr Rivers, a surprised Wehrmacht encountered five fresh Soviet armies. Quick victory eluded the Germans. Instead, Soviet forces encircled in Mogilev and Smolensk stubbornly refused to surrender, and while they fought on, during July, August, and into early September, first five and then a total of seven newly mobilized Soviet armies struck back viciously at the advancing Germans, conducting multiple counterattacks and counterstrokes, capped by two major counteroffensives that sapped German strength and will. Despite immense losses in men and materiel, these desperate Soviet actions derailed Operation Barbarossa. Smarting from countless wounds inflicted on his vaunted Wehrmacht, even before the fighting ended in the Smolensk region, Hitler postponed his march on Moscow and instead turned his forces southward to engage “softer targets” in the Kiev region. The “derailment” of the Wehrmacht at Smolensk ultimately became the crucial turning point in Operation Barbarossa. This groundbreaking study, now significantly expanded, exploits a wealth of Soviet and German archival materials, including the combat orders and operational of the German OKW, OKH, army groups, and armies and of the Soviet Stavka, the Red Army General Staff, the Western Main Direction Command, the Western, Central, Reserve, and Briansk Fronts, and their subordinate armies to present a detailed mosaic and definitive account of what took place, why, and how during the prolonged and complex battles in the Smolensk region from 10 July through 10 September 1941. The structure of the study is designed specifically to appeal to both general readers and specialists by a detailed two-volume chronological narrative of the course of operations, accompanied by a third volume and a fourth, containing archival maps and an extensive collection of specific orders and reports translated verbatim from Russian. The maps, archival and archival-based, detail every stage of the battle.