"Russia's engagement with Germany on the Eastern Front during World War II was ferocious, unprecedented and bloody, costing millions of civilian and military lives. In this challenging new book, Lee Baker distinguishes myth from reality and deflates the idea that this war, while gargantuan in scale, was in essence a war like any other. Following an introduction that considers historiographical approaches to the conflict, the author examines the reasons behind Germany's decision to fight a war on two fronts and the initial inadequacy of the Soviet defence, analyzes the major battles and questions whether there was a definitive moment at which the war turned against Germany, and looks at the role of resistance movements and considers key issues such as the relationship between the war and the Holocaust"--Page 4 of cover Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Introduction to the Series Dedication Table of Contents Acknowledgments List of Maps List of Plates Chronology Who’s Who Glossary Maps Part One: Analysis Introduction 1. The Background The Origins of the War on the Eastern Front Planning ‘Operation Barbarossa’ Soviet Preparations for War 2. 22 June 1941: The Invasion The Border Battles The Battle for Leningrad The Battle for Kiev The First Major German Defeat: Rostov Mass Murder in the USSR The Battle for Moscow 3. The War Turns Against the Germans, 1942–43 ‘Operation Blue’ The Battle for Stalingrad German Efforts to Halt the Red Army The Partisans ‘Operation Citadel’ 4. The Soviet Union on the Offensive Battles for the Ukraine The Relief of Leningrad ‘Operation Bagration’ The Destruction of Army Groups North and South The Battle for Berlin 5. Assessment Part Two: Documents 1 Nazi–Soviet Pact, 23 August 1939 2 Hitler letter to Mussolini, 21 June 1941 3 Directive for ‘Operation Barbarossa’ 4 Directive for Special Areas during ‘Operation Barbarossa,’ 13 March 1941 5 Decree for the Conduct of Courts-Martial in the East, 13 May 1941 6 ‘Commissar Decree,’ 6 June 1941 7 Stalin’s speech on 3 July 1941 8 Decree on the Treatment of Civilians, 23 July 1941 9 Halder’s Diary, 3 July 1941 10 Halder’s Diary, 11 August 1941 11 Field Marshal Walter von Reichenau’s order, 10 October 1941 12 Hitler comments on motorization, 29 October 1941 13 Order for German forces to go on the defensive, 8 December 1941 14 Hitler comments on the winter 1941–42, 12 and 17 January 1942 15 Order for ‘Operation Blue,’ 5 April 1942 16 Soviet order concerning discipline in the Red Army, 28 July 1942 17 A German witness to a mass shooting, 5–6 October 1942 18 A German soldier describes the retreat in the Ukraine, Summer 1943 19 ‘Fortified Areas’ Order, 8 March 1944 20 A Soviet soldier reports on combat during ‘Operation Bagration,’ 29 June 1944 21 A German soldier reports on fighting on the Eastern Front, 14 January 1945 22 Decree for the destruction of German industry, 30 March 1945 23 Hitler’s Last Proclamation to the Eastern Front, 15 April 1945 Further Reading References Index
