- 562 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
An authoritative revisionist account of the German Winter Campaign of 1941–1942, with maps: "Hair-raising . . . a page-turner." —
Kirkus Reviews
Germany's winter campaign of 1941–1942 is commonly seen as its first defeat. In Retreat from Moscow, a bold, gripping account of one of the seminal moments of World War II, David Stahel argues that instead it was its first strategic success in the East. The Soviet counteroffensive was in fact a Pyrrhic victory. Despite being pushed back from Moscow, the Wehrmacht lost far fewer men, frustrated its enemy's strategy, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative.
Hitler's strategic plan called for holding important Russian industrial cities, and the German army succeeded. The Soviets as of January 1942 aimed for nothing less than the destruction of Army Group Center, yet not a single German unit was ever destroyed. Lacking the professionalism, training, and experience of the Wehrmacht, the Red Army's offensive attempting to break German lines in countless head-on assaults led to far more tactical defeats than victories.
Using accounts from journals, memoirs, and wartime correspondence, Stahel takes us directly into the Wolf's Lair to reveal a German command at war with itself as generals on the ground fought to maintain order and save their troops in the face of Hitler's capricious, increasingly irrational directives. Excerpts from soldiers' diaries and letters home paint a rich portrait of life and death on the front, where the men of the Ostheer battled frostbite nearly as deadly as Soviet artillery. With this latest installment of his pathbreaking series on the Eastern Front, David Stahel completes a military history of the highest order.
"An engaging, fine-grained account of an epic struggle . . . Mr. Stahel describes these days brilliantly, switching among various levels of command while reminding us of the experiences of the soldiers on the ground and the civilians caught up in the Nazi 'war of annihilation.'" — The Wall Street Journal
Germany's winter campaign of 1941–1942 is commonly seen as its first defeat. In Retreat from Moscow, a bold, gripping account of one of the seminal moments of World War II, David Stahel argues that instead it was its first strategic success in the East. The Soviet counteroffensive was in fact a Pyrrhic victory. Despite being pushed back from Moscow, the Wehrmacht lost far fewer men, frustrated its enemy's strategy, and emerged in the spring unbroken and poised to recapture the initiative.
Hitler's strategic plan called for holding important Russian industrial cities, and the German army succeeded. The Soviets as of January 1942 aimed for nothing less than the destruction of Army Group Center, yet not a single German unit was ever destroyed. Lacking the professionalism, training, and experience of the Wehrmacht, the Red Army's offensive attempting to break German lines in countless head-on assaults led to far more tactical defeats than victories.
Using accounts from journals, memoirs, and wartime correspondence, Stahel takes us directly into the Wolf's Lair to reveal a German command at war with itself as generals on the ground fought to maintain order and save their troops in the face of Hitler's capricious, increasingly irrational directives. Excerpts from soldiers' diaries and letters home paint a rich portrait of life and death on the front, where the men of the Ostheer battled frostbite nearly as deadly as Soviet artillery. With this latest installment of his pathbreaking series on the Eastern Front, David Stahel completes a military history of the highest order.
"An engaging, fine-grained account of an epic struggle . . . Mr. Stahel describes these days brilliantly, switching among various levels of command while reminding us of the experiences of the soldiers on the ground and the civilians caught up in the Nazi 'war of annihilation.'" — The Wall Street Journal
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Yes, you can access Retreat from Moscow by David Stahel in PDF and/or ePUB format. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
eBook ISBN
9780374714253Subtopic
Military & Maritime HistoryTable of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Notice
- Dedication
- Introduction
- 1. Hungry as a Bear: The Soviet Counteroffensive Begins
- 2. Dodging the Soviet Bullet: Army Group Center Holds
- 3. Between the Hammer and the Anvil: Army Group Center Between Hitler and Stalin
- 4. Keeping the Wolf from the Door: The Panzer Groups Retreat from Moscow
- 5. Digging In His Heels: Hitler Orders a Halt
- 6. Put to the Sword: The End of Brauchitsch
- 7. The Bear Without Any Claws: The Inadequate Red Army
- 8. The Battle of Nerves: Army Group Center on the Brink
- 9. The More the Merrier: Christmas 1941 and the Supply Crisis
- 10. Playing with Fire: Guderian Gets Burned
- 11. Turning the Screws: Ninth Army’s Near Collapse
- 12. Rank and File: Soldiering in Army Group Center
- 13. Reinforcing Failure: Stalin’s January Offensive
- 14. Hanging in the Balance: Fourth Army’s Impending Encirclement
- 15. The Flood Gates Are Breaking: Ninth and Fourth Panzer Armies Rupture
- 16. Making a Virtue of Necessity: Surviving the Russian Winter
- 17. Defending the Indefensible: Hitler’s Last Stand
- 18. Lonely Front: Embattled Homeland
- 19. Retreat and Counterattack: Army Group Center Rebounds
- 20. Departing the Eastern Front: Treacherous Routes of Escape
- 21. The Last Hurrah: The Failure of the Soviet Winter Offensive
- Conclusion
- Photographs
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Acknowledgments
- Index
- Also by David Stahel
- A Note About the Author
- Newsletter Sign-up
- Contents
- Copyright