Operation Barbarossa 1941 (1)

Between June 1941 and the start of 1942 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union Clashed in a titanic struggle which changed the course of history. With each side led by an unscrupulous dictator and each army driven by a pitiless ideology. War was waged with a ferocity and barbarism up to then unimaginable. This resulted in a collision of unprecedented violence. To Hitler the conquest of vast Soviet territories and the destruction of the Red Army was vital for Germanys survival. Robert Kirchubel has embarked upon the ambitious task of summarizing the greatest land offensive in history - Operation Barbarossa - in three volumes (the assault on Moscow is also in another book). This first volume covers the German Army Group South's (AGS) invasion of the Ukraine in 1941. This Army Group led by von Rundstedt was the one that came closest to achieving all its goals in Barbarossa: it crossed the Dnepr, occupied most of the important areas of the Ukraine, neutralized Crimea, captured a million Red Army troops and probably killed as many...however in the end these spectacular successes did not mean strategic victory. The book as usual describes the opposing plans, commanders and armies. It notes here that initially for the Soviet HQ the South front was a main goal for the Axis because of it huge oil reserves, so it was defended accordingly. Then all the campaign is described: Frontier battles, Uman, Kiev, Crimea, Kharkov and Rostov. And lastly the conclusion showing that von Rundstedt AGS performance was the most satisfactory given the circumstances. This volume is a handy summary of an important campaign and as such, is useful for military professionals and amateur historians alike.