Leningrad 1941–44: The epic siege

Militære operasjoner #9

by Robert Forczyk, Peter Dennis (Illustrator)

Osprey's Campaign title for Hitler's protracted siege of Leningrad, which resulted in one of the most brutal campaigns on the Eastern Front during World War II (1939-1945). The German Army Group North was able to isolate the city and its garrison for a period of 900 days, during which an estimated 1.5 million Soviets died from combat, disease and starvation. For over two years, German forces pounded the city with artillery and air assaults while the Soviets made repeated efforts on the frozen swamplands of the Volkhov Front to break through. Finally, in January 1944, the Soviets were able to break Army Group North's front and relieve Leningrad. While most histories of the siege of Leningrad focus on the plight of the starving civil population, this refreshing title instead examines the strength of the garrison's defenses - which ultimately prevented the Germans from capturing the city - and the growing sophistication of Soviet offensive tactics. Dr. Forczyk also provides an assessment of how weather and terrain factors shaped the campaign in this superb addition to the history of the Eastern Front.

Genres: Military History, World War II, Russia, Military Fiction, History, Germany, Nonfiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Robert Forczyk has a PhD in International Relations and National Security from the University of Maryland and a strong background in European and Asian military history.

Reviews

[Dimitri · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a way, it's a Light Version of David M. Glantz' Sovietophile battle studies, written with the flair that makes Forczyk one of Osprey's most recognizable contributors. It squarely lives up to its blurp:

"While most histories of the siege of Leningrad focus on the plight of the starving civil population, this refreshing title instead examines the strength of the garrison's defenses -"

Just so. The only light in which the civilian starvation is shown, is its detrimental effect upon manpower in terms of labourers and urban militia. Most of the book is spent on the barricades with the garrison and on the other side of the ring, with the relief armies' unfaltering efforts to create a corridor into the city.

[Arthur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent source.

[Yoda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Succint but Very Good Overview of this Quite Long Campaign

Any review of this book would have to start out by pointing out that it is part of Osprey Publishing's "Campaign" series. As such, it is relatively short, at only 96 pages of length. Of these 96 pages, very roughly a third or so consist of illustration of one type or another (i.e., 2-D and 3-D maps, contemporaneous photographs, etc.). Hence if one is looking for an academic tome on the subject this is not it. For such a tome this reviewer recommends Dr. David Glantz's "The Battle of Leningrad, 1941-1944)" (published by University of Kansas). That book is about 700 pages long and is an academic tome. Hence the relevant question is how well does Dr. Forczyk's book do considering its short length and the other constraints imposed on it by the "Campaign" series (i.e., only a few pages to write on topics such as "strategic situation before the battle", "leadership", etc.? The answer is very, very well.

The author uses the limited number of pages available to him on each area quite well. He describes very well the strategic situation at the time of the battle, the leadership of both sides, the armies, goals, how the battle played out, the aftermath and the factors relevant for each sides success and failure. In the two or so hours it takes to read this book the reader obtains a very good picture of this battle. An impressive feat considering the short length of the book combined with the fact that the siege lasted almost 3 years.

The book does have a few weaknesses, though, that need mentioning. One is that the book only covers high level leadership, not lower level (i.e., NCOs, lower level officers). The book also does not cover ad hoc organizational ability (or lack thereof). Then again, very few books in the Osprey "Campaign" series do this. The only book this reviewer has read in this series that does this is David Chandler's book on Austerlitz (in this reviewer's opinion one of the best "Campaign" books published - despite the fact it was published decades ago). A third problem is one inherent in the "Campaign" format - that is a lack of footnotes. This is especially a shame considering the considerable (and impressive) research that has gone into this book (and for that matter many of the newer Osprey "Campaign" books by authors such as Mr. Steven Zaloga and Mr. Mark Stille). This reviewer hopes that someone from Osprey Publishing is reading these comments on footnotes. In this reviewer's opinion they are a serious weakness in this series' format.

A very good introduction to this long campaign that hits all the major nails on the head albeit in only a succinct manner. Four and a half stars.

[Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Osprey's usual thoroughness and beautiful illustrations are at the forefront of Forczyk's study of the military campaign of Leningrad. Unlike most standard histories, he only briefly mentions the civilian experience inside the city to focus on military operations.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good (and brief) overview of the Leningrad campaign, covering the military operations. However, it tended to use untranslated German words when referring to German units, rather than using their English equivalents.