[Charles Winchester] Ostfron t: Hitler's War on Russia 1941-45 (pdf){Zzzzz}[BЯ]

"Ostfront - the War on the Eastern Front 1941-45" details the decisive theatre of World War II. The War in the East remains the greatest land campaign in history in every sense; it was fought on a 1200 mile front from the Arctic Circle to the Caspian Sea, involved more personnel and cost more casualties than any other. Most popular books on the Russian front are based on German sources. The testimonies of de-briefed German officers together with published memoirs have dominated in the English-speaking world. Now, with the availability of hitherto secret Russian archives, a much fuller picture is emerging. Charles Winchester examines the structure, doctrine, leadership, strengths and weaknesses of the Red Army and the German armed forces in the summer of 1941. He focuses on factors such as the way in which rapid expansion of the army of 1940 had diluted the proportion of mechanized forces in the German Army; the logistics nightmare created by the acquisition of motor transport from all over western Europe; how lopsided technological progress in the Red Army sees vast numbers of tanks and aircraft but few radios; how an army built around a culture of the offensive faced a formidable upcoming defensive task. The detailed analysis of the war in the east which follows explodes a range of myths and tackles the key issues; how the Nazi system squandered huge economic advantages; correction of the commonly held myth that the Soviets enjoyed overwhelming industrial and numerical strength; how German racial policies in the east alienated largely sympathetic populations; and the importance of the Allied air campaign against Germany in diverting resources to defend the Reich.

Editorial Reviews
Review
For readers new to the subject of the war on the Eastern Front, this would make an excellent introduction to the topic. The book is packed full of photographs and illustrations in typical Osprey Publishing format, and these are probably the book's main strength, though, together with the thick glossy pages, they give the publication a somewhat superficial `coffee table' feel. For me, the book lacks balance - the text is heavily weighted to the German perspective of events, and the photographs are predominantly of German/Axis troops and equipment. --By Historyline

To this Ostfront fanatic Winchester's book represents the definitive study of the 1437 day German-Russo conflict. I particularly liked how he steered away from the tendency of prolonged military division detail of other works whilst through great statistics, never seen before photographs, good graphics and vivid maps his wonderful book brings home to the reader the incredible scope of this campaign and the full horror of its "total war" base. Considering the deep supply lines that the Germans had to maintain their successes in Russia were phenomenal as to was the patriotism of the Russian soldier and civilian whose tenacity turned the tide of the entire war. Indeed a most unlikely accomplishment if it had not been for the "Ostfront" For all students of WW2 this is an absolute must. --By Dudley Ristow

This is the clearest book I've read on WW2 ever. Period. Absolutely absent is the author ego and non-historical hype so prevalent in the field today. Absent also is the strange Cold War hangover which takes the credit for defeating Germany away from the Soviets and makes it seem WW2 was won on the shores of northern France. The facts which become clear to an impartial student of WW2 are presented perfectly in this work: the Soviets bore the brunt of the land war in WW2 and the main contribution of the Western Allies was their destruction of the Luftwaffe and their strategic bombing campaign. The overwhelming scale of the war on the Eastern Front and its horrible consequences are sketched out clearly with both words and pictures. This book was a pleasant surprise. --By Jeffrey L. Thurston -

Publisher: Osprey Publishing (October 30, 1998)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1855327112
ISBN-13: 978-1855327115