Description
Book SynopsisIn the early summer of 1941 German mountain soldiers under the command of General Eduard Dietl set out in northern Norway up through Finland to the Russian border. Operation Silberfuchs was underway. The northernmost section of the Eastern Front would ensure Hitler supplies of nickel from Finnish mines, and bring the strategically important port city of Murmansk under German control. The roadless rocky terrain and extremes of weather created major challenges for the German troop movements. Despite this Dietl's men made quick gains on his Russian foe, and they came closer to Murmansk. Despite repeated warnings of a German attack, Stalin had failed to mobilize, and the British hesitated to come to the rescue of the Red Army. But while the weather conditions steadily worsened, the Russians' resistance increased. Three bloody efforts to force the river Litza were repulsed and the offensive would develop into a nightmare for the inadequately equipped German soldiers. In an exciting and authoritative narrative based on previously unpublished material, Alf Reidar Jacobsen describes the heavy fighting that would lead to Hitler's first defeat on the Eastern Front. With firsthand accounts of the fighting on the front line, this is a dramatic new account of a forgotten but bloody episode of World War II.
Trade ReviewListed in Military History Monthly's round up of the best military history titles for March 2018. * Military History Matters (Reviewer) *
Excellent. * Miniature Wargames - Chris Jarvis *
The author does a good job of weaving the various parts of the thread together; German feuding, Britain’s concern that the Russians might collapse and the Soviet Union’s vulnerability to Stalin’s delusions. * Army Rumour Service *
Authors Jacobsen and Stewart provide thrilling and detailed information about Hitler's first defeat on the eastern Front, and the entire book reads like the premise for a new blockbuster film. An amazing tale, mde all the more enthralling by the fact it remained untold for more than three quarters of a century. * Books Monthly *
