Operation Barbarossa 1941: Hitler against Stalin

Book Synopsis: Illustrated with over 250 photos, many never previously published, this is an objective, balanced account, published in time for the 75th anniversary of the start of Operation Barbarossa on 22nd June 2016.Operation Barbarossa was the largest military campaign in history. Springing from Hitler’s fanatical desire to conquer the Soviet territories, defeat Bolshevism and create ‘Lebensraum’ for the German people, it pitted two diametrically opposed armed forces against one another.The invasion began with 4.5 million troops attacking 2.3 million defenders. On one side was the Wehrmacht, without any doubt the world’s most advanced military force. On the other were the Soviet armed forces, downtrodden, humiliated, decapitated and terrorized by an autocratic and crude dictator with no military education whatsoever.Based on decades of research work in both German and Russian archives, as well as interviews with a large number of key figures and veterans, Operation Barbarossa brings our knowledge on the war on the Eastern Front several big steps forward. It reveals and dispels many myths and misconceptions including: the myth of mass surrenders by Soviet soldiers; the myth about the vast differences in troop casualties between the two sides; the myth of the Soviet partisans and the myth that it was the Arctic cold that halted the German offensive. It also does not shy away from difficult truths such as the true nature of Finland’s participation in Operation Barbarossa, and the massive scale of rapes committed by German troops.Christer Bergström has once again produced what will be the definitive account of this monumental campaign.

Table of Contents
Maps
Operation Barbarossa, June – December 1941
Offensive in the Center, June – September 1941
Offensive in the North, June – November 1941
Offensive in the South, June – December 1941
The Finnish front
Operation Typhoon
The Soviet counter-offensive
Glossary and guide to abbreviations
Rank equivalency
Time line
Preface
Brandenburgers in the Night
1. Hitler against Stalin
2. Lebensraum
3. The Wehrmacht versus the Red Army
4. Towards the abyss
5. Strike at dawn
6. The first battles of annihilation
7. Tank battles in the North
8. The advance towards Kiev
9. The advance towards Moscow
10. The Blitzkrieg is halted
11. Annihilation in the Ukraine
12. Leningrad holds out
13. The Finnish front
14. The final attempt against Leningrad
15. Typhoon against Moscow
16. The race for “the Soviet Ruhr area”
17. The battle of the Crimea
18. The Red Army strikes back
Results and Conclusions
I. The military scene
II. The war of annihilation
Appendix
1. Order of battle on 22 June 1941
2. German and Soviet unit structures in June 1941
3. Tanks in Operation Barbarossa
4. Aircraft in Operation Barbarossa
5. Loss tables
Sources
Chapter notes
Index