Barbarossa: Army Group Center and the Thrust to Moscow
by Robert Kirchubel & Ramiro Bujeiro
The largest invasion the world has ever seen kicked off on 22
June 1941, as Hitler's massed forces swarmed across the border
into the Soviet Union. Operation Barbarossa, as the campaign was
named, was supposed to last just ten weeks. In fact, Germany
enjoyed five months of victory before they were eventually denied
and turned away at the very gates of Moscow. Thus, the long and
slow road to defeat began. This new book by Robert Kirchubel
outlines Germany's ambitious hopes for Operation Barbarossa via a
careful selection of photos.
In typical style for this series of Concord books, the work
begins with some concise background text. Here the author
explains what led up to the invasion of Russia, as well as
providing salient points about the campaign right up to Operation
Typhoon, the final assault on Moscow. The core of "Barbarossa" is
the set of superb black and white photographs that document this
spectacular, but ultimately futile, campaign. Soldiers are seen
in all sorts of contexts in the vast steppes of Russia through
contemporary camera lenses. There is a wide variety of vehicle
types and weapons on show, which will please readers. Vehicles
such as trucks, horse-drawn carriages and halftracks are all in
evidence, as are numerous captured or destroyed Russian tanks and
military vehicles. Photo captions are brief but provide relevant
data and information about this long and arduous campaign.
The artist Ramiro Bujeiro has also provided four color plates
depicting realistic-looking impressions of German soldiers and
officers. These are accompanied by detailed descriptions giving
pertinent facts about uniforms and personal equipment. This is an
interesting volume packed with unique photos from this important
campaign. As the writer states in his concluding paragraph, "When
the war in Russia transformed from one of maneuver to one of
attrition, it became a war Germany could no longer win." Readers
wishing to see how Operation Barbarossa played out, and how
German soldiers participated in it, will find this book a
valuable ally.
Format 21 x 28 cm, Paperback, 52 Seiten, 137 s/w-Fotos, 4
Farbtafeln, englischer Text, Best.-Nr. Con6522