Miracle at the Litza: Hitler's First Defeat on the Eastern Front

by Alf R. Jacobsen, Frank Stewart (Translation)

In the early summer of 1941, German rock hunters 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 road-less quagmire terrain 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 resulted in warfare by riverbeds. The offensive would develop into a nightmare for those inadequately equipped German soldiers, who soon were in the minority on the Litzafronten.

In an exciting and authoritative narrative based on previously unknown material, Alf Reidar Jacobsen tells about the prelude and 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.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, World War II, Military History, War, 20th Century, Russia

190 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Alf R. Jacobsen is a Norwegian journalist and author.

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heretofore Unknown Operation to me.

[Ragnar Bang Moe · Rating 4 out of 5]

E-bok. Norsk bokmål. Grundig og spennende om krigen øst for Kirkenes, Litza-fronten.

E-book. Norwegian Bokmål. Thorough and interesting about the war east of Kirkenes, the Litza front.