Although Operation Barbarossa; the German invasion of Russia in June 1941; is widely perceived seen as a great land offensive; equally important was the aerial supremacy that the Luftwaffe achieved over the front during its early phases. Without the elimination of the threat posed by the Soviet air force; it would have been impossible for the army to have made the rapid advances of the summer and autumn of 1941. This book provides a detailed account of the massive aerial campaign fought in the skies over the Soviet Union following the launch of Operation Barbarossa. Drawing on both Russian and German sources; the strength of Christer Bergström's writing lies in its detail; his ability to tell the story from the viewpoints of both sides and to put events in both their strategic and tactical contexts. A large number of rare and previously unpublished photographs; biographical studies of major players; data tables; technical assessments and appendices accompany the text. Compiled by one of the world's leading experts on the air war over the Eastern Front; this is the first in a series of books to cover the major phases of World War Two in this theatre of operations.
#1979541 in Books Arms Armour 1995-08Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.50 x 6.50 x 1.25l; #File Name: 1854091778288 pages
Review
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Readable; useful; but nothing much newBy Steven PetersonThis is a niche book. If you want a sense of U. S. Grant's generalship; many other books have more meat to them. However; this volume does have its uses. To me; it is interesting to see the author judge--with respect to most of Grant's most important campaigns--his assessment of Grant's leadership; Grant's staff; his top lieutenants; the infantry; the cavalry; artillery; and medical corps. I'm not sure that I agree with all of the assessments; but this approach does get one to thinking critically about Grant's campaigns and his armies. The author notes that (Page 8): ". . .this book is a story of the development of a great fighting force; the Army of the Tennessee; and the story of how the commander of that army adapts to an entirely different army and a wholly new style of war when he comes East to grapple with his greatest foe."On to the war itself. One of the more important formative experiences for Grant was his first combat expedition when he moved against a rebel camp; commanded by Colonel Thomas Harris. Grant describes how his heart was in his throat. And then he discovered that the camp had been abandoned. He reasoned as follows (Page 13): "'From that event to the close of the war; I never experienced trepidation upon confronting the enemy. . . I never forgot that he had as much reason to fear my forces as I had of his."Then; campaign by campaign. . . . Belmont. A botched affair; but retrieved by Grant's coolness under fire. Forts Henry and Donelson. Not a great performance by Grant and his forces; but his coolness ended up sealing a victory at Donelson after his bizarre absence; meeting with Admiral Foote. Shiloh; the first great horrific battle of the Civil War. Grant's forces were poorly deployed and inadequately prepared. But; again (is there a theme here?); his coolness and appreciation of the situation led to victory on the second day. Then; Vicksburg. This was a masterpiece of campaigning; perhaps Grant's greatest generaling in the Civil War (after his little experiments went by the boards and he moved with firmness). And so on. I am not always convinced that the author's judgments of Grant and his lieutenants and so on is what I would conclude. But it is a useful way of organizing Grant's and his Armies' performance. It does get one to thinking.So; hardly a major work. But one that outlines matters in a way to reflect on his generalship and the work of his subordinates and the various elements of his forces.4 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Useful but not essentialBy A CustomerI purchased this book based on the strength of the last work by Arnold I read; Grant Wins The War. Whereas that book was rich in detail and thoroughly covered all aspects of the Vicksburg campaign; this book was more superficial. I would not recommend it to anyone as a first reference for any of Grant's battles. Each campaign gets only the most superficial coverage in terms of strategy; tactics and events during the fighting. Shiloh merits only a few pages; for example. The western theater battles receive more detail than the eastern theater. Arnold is a bit too apologetic for Grant's leadership when he moved to the Army of the Potomac. However I did find this work very useful for the rich and detailed coverage of items of interest: tactics and training; weaponry; recruiting; army organization; the soldiers' life; supply and the like. Most books about the Civil War years which I have read so far (more than 20 books) were not so thorough on these points as Arnold. So I found this book a useful adjunct to Grant Wins The War. I recommend that book as essential reading to everyone; whereas The Armies of US Grant is more a supplement to the Civil War aficianado.
