ebooks The Siege of Kustrin: Gateway to Berlin; 1945 (Stackpole Military History Series) by Tony Le Tissier in History

Review

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful. Another Bloody and Futile SiegeBy Iva BuchI already had a book by Tony Le Tisser namely "Slaughter on the Halbe" so I had a a reasonable idea of what to expect from the authour and his writing style.As usual he has a large number of personal recollections from veterans; civilians; Hitler Youth and Volksstrum who fought at the city of Kustrin which was seen as the gateway to Berlin.Hitler ordered Kustrin; on the River Oder and only 50 miles from Berlin to be held as a Fortress city and the men in the city had no choice but to obey their fuhrer and hold on at all costs.The Russians needed the road/rail bridges for the attack on Berlin; and even though two Soviet armies beseiged the town the Germans were able to hang on grimly and were assisted by strategic blunders from the attackers.The book is taken from the German point of view and deals with the fighting for the city over the next 60 days in a siege from January - February 1945 where much of the city was destroyed.With the initial Russian attempt to capture the city defeated; the Russians brought in artillery and ground attack aircraft to soften up the the patch work defenders of the city. Gradually the Russian attacks wore down the defenders will and with their supply lines cut and totally surrounded; the defenders made a large scale breakout against Hitlers orders to rejoin the German lines.With around 14;000 german casualties (+ 6;000 prisoners) and 20;000 Russian; the siege finally came to an end with the capture of the city and the Russians could move on and plan for the assault on Berlin.There are very few photos of the action; from either the Germans or Russians and the minimal maps are spread throughout the book.My own opinion is that the personal recollections are a little over done in trying to tell the story.Counter attacks outside the city by other units are only briefly touched on as the main emphasis deals with the fighting in the city.However as one of the few books around which concerns this type of warfare; on the Eastern front in the closing months of the war; this book is a good addition to your library.3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. My Childhood HometownBy Frank J RettigI was born in Kustrin in 1940 lost my father in June of that year and my mother and gradmother left Kustrin as refugees in January of1945. As I was only 5 years old I do not remember much the book awakened memories and thru the eyes of those that remainedbehind I learned much from them in the book0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Alan J. Kaplangreat book