In Book Two of the third volume of his magisterial Stalingrad Trilogy; David Glantz continues and concludes his definitive history of one of the most infamous battles of World War Two; the Stalingrad campaign that signaled Germany’s failure on the Eastern Front and marked a turning point in the war. Book Two finds Germany’s most famous army—General Friedrich Paulus’s Sixth—in dire straits; trapped in the Stalingrad kessel; or pocket; by a Red Army that has seized the initiative in what the Soviets now term the Great Patriotic War. The Red Army’s counteroffensive; Operation Uranus; is well underway; having largely destroyed the bulk of two Romanian armies and encircled the German Sixth and half of the German Fourth Panzer Army.Drawing on materials previously unavailable or believed lost; Glantz gives a closely observed account of the final ten weeks of Germany’s ill-fated Stalingrad campaign. In short order; the Red Army parried and then defeated two German attempts to rescue the Sixth Army; crushed the Italian Eighth and Hungarian Second Armies; severely damaged the German Fourth Panzer and Second Armies; and finally destroyed the German Sixth Army in the ruins of Stalingrad. With well over half-a-million soldiers torn from its order of battle; Hitler’s Axis could only watch in horror as its status abruptly changed from victor to vanquished. This book completes a vivid and detailed picture of the Axis defeat that would prove decisive as a catastrophe from which Germany and its Wehrmacht could never recover.As in the preceding volumes; Glantz extensively mines newly available materials to provide a clearer and more accurate picture of what actually happened at Stalingrad at this crucial moment in World War II—a “ground truth†that gets beyond the myths and misinformation surrounding this historic confrontation. And this concluding chapter; relating events even more steeped in myth than those that came before; is especially bracing as it takes on controversial questions about why Operation Uranus succeeded and the German relief attempts failed; whether the Sixth Army could have escaped encirclement or been rescued; and who; finally was most responsible for its ultimate defeat. The answers Glantz provides; embedded in a fully-realized account of the endgame at Stalingrad; make this book the last word on one of history’s epic clashes.
#1017549 in Books University Press of Kansas 2002-01-22Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.20 x .73 x 6.36l; 1.10 #File Name: 0700615547320 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Wings; Women; Skill; and Extraordinary CourageBy James E. EgolfReina Pennington wrote a good book re very young women in the Soviet Air Force during WW II. Pennington's careful description of the Russian Front showed war's unimaginable destruction and undaunted courage. The book had humorous anecdotes; and many of the women in the Red Army Air Force were mavericks to say the least. While many of Russian/Soviet women filled traditional roles; once war erupted between the Germans and Soviets; many Soviet women showed a willingness to sacrifice themselves for "The Russian Motherland.."Pennington began this book with a brief historical description of Russian/Siberian of women. Archaeology showed that the remains of women holding weapons. During WW I; a women's unit was organized in 1917 to fight against the Germans. The initial number of women was about 2;000 women; but the number was reduced to 300 women due to unreasonable discipline. Alexander Kerensky was critical of such unreasonable discipline; and during the later civil war between the Whites vs. the Reds; women were on both sides of the conflict.Prior to WW II; women joined glider and aviation clubs whereby these young women impressed their instructors with their ability and skill. Often these women would perform acrobatic stunts which they were not supposed to do. Pennington noted that gliders and planes were practical because of the fact that Russian roads were scarce and primitive. As an aside; the lack of good roads helped slow the German invasion which the SovietsWhen the German invasion started on June 22;1941; Soviet recruiters faced a deluge of women to join the Red Army to fight against the Germans. These women volunteered combat roles such as tank drivers; tank gunners; and tank commandants. These women volunteered as snipers; partisans; The men were skeptical of these women's skill or courage; but once these women showed their deadly skill and courage; the men learned to respect and honor these women.Among those who volunteered; women entered the Red Air Force as fighter pilots; air to ground assault pilots; and "night witches." The night witches flew primitive biplanes which were primitive. Their commanders were skeptical and one commander thought he was commanding "a little girls unit" due to the youth of these women. Pennington described these planes called the Po-2 as slow yet deadly. These women would fly at night at such altitudes that parachutes were useless. After some embarrassing training missions; these women proved their skill. The Po-2 was slow which worked to their advantage because the much faster German fighter pilots would stall their planes to such slow speeds to attack the Po-2 pilots. These brave women faced search lights; anti-aircraft fire; bad weather; and lack of navigation equipment. These women continued These dangerous missions in spite of the death of their women comrades. These women were so proud of their work and refused to let men load bombs. The tactics the women used were to fly close to their targets; shut their engines; and glide to the targets without the noise of operation engines.As noted above; Soviet male commanders were skeptical of women in the ranks. Commander Markov was angry that he was ordered to command women pilots; but his skepticism changed to praise. The women appreciated the change and his training that he became affectionately known as "Daddy." What surprised many of the men who had command positions was the women's unrestrained enthusiasm to engage in combat and defend Holy Mother Russia or the Motherland.As noted; some of these women were indeed mavericks. Liliia Litviak (1921-1943); who did not live to be 22; was such a maverick. She violated dress code uniform by taking the fur from her books and decorating her uniform collar. When confronted about the unauthorized decoration; Litviak; asked the commander if the frill suited her rather than the violation of the dress code. Many pilots decorated their planes with shark teeth designs. Litviak decorated her plane with flowers. She rearranged her quarters with "woman's touch."Pennington wrote the Red Army women's courage. She also wrote about these women's determination. When efforts were made to demobilize; these women used their "feminine wiles" to stay in combat. Women who were seriously wounded; DEMANDED to return to action rather than returning home to "rest on their laurels." The women served as an example to the men in the Red Army; and the women's courage was contagious not only among other women comrades but also the men in the Red ArmyWhen WW II ended; the women were mustered out of the Red Army Air Force; they few were readmitted to the ranks. Some of these women married. Others got careers as flight instructors; college professors. These women returned to civilian life; but their memory was subdued until conscientious historians revived what was a forgotten episode which should get more attention. This book was well written.James E. EgolfAugust 5; 20160 of 0 people found the following review helpful. The "go-to" book on Stalin's three female aviation regiments.By E. Elaine SutherlandI give it a four and a half; actually. It is a solid job of research; very well written; and with far more detail than I ever expected (It has the style of a dissertation; with tons of footnotes; but is still extremely readable). I would have given it a five if it were not for the description of the trip from Moscow to Engels taking nine days. Other sources give it as one day; and while Pennington may be right and the others wrong; it throws up an uncertainty about other facts. If she is correct; and all the others wrong; I apologize to the author. The book is; decidedly; the 'go to' book regarding the three female aviation regiments and anyone wanting to do research; should start with this. In fact; no other book is really necessary.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Cool Stories of Women Fighter and Bomber Pilots in World War IIBy Heather SteeleWhat a well researched; well written; and interesting book about a group of women that we never hear about. Cheers to Ms. Pennington for bringing this fantastic history to light.
