Dallas Public Library

The Wehrmacht's last stand, the German campaigns of 1944-1945, Robert M. Citino

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 561-597) and index

illustrationsmaps

index present

non fiction

The Wehrmacht's last stand

bibliography

985635783

Robert M. Citino

Modern war studies

the German campaigns of 1944-1945

"By 1943, the war was lost, and most German officers knew it. Three quarters of a century later, the question persists: What kept the German army going in an increasingly hopeless situation? Where some historians have found explanations in the power of Hitler or the role of ideology, Robert M. Citino, the world's leading scholar on the subject, posits a more straightforward solution: Bewegungskrieg, the way of war cultivated by the Germans over the course of history. In this gripping account of German military campaigns during the final phase of World War II, Citino charts the inevitable path by which Bewegungskrieg, or a 'war of movement,' inexorably led to Nazi Germany's defeat. The Wehrmacht's Last Stand analyzes the German Totenritt, or 'death ride,' from January 1944--with simultaneous Allied offensives at Anzio and Ukraine--until May 1945, the collapse of the Wehrmacht in the field, and the Soviet storming of Berlin. In clear and compelling prose, and bringing extensive reading of the German-language literature to bear, Citino focuses on the German view of these campaigns. Often very different from the Allied perspective, this approach allows for a more nuanced and far-reaching understanding of the last battles of the Wehrmacht than any now available. With Citino's previous volumes, Death of the Wehrmacht and The Wehrmacht Retreats, The Wehrmacht's Last Stand completes a uniquely comprehensive picture of the German army's strategy, operations, and performance against the Allies in World War II"--Provided by publisher"This third volume in Rob Citino's 'Wehrmacht trilogy' looks at the fight of the German Wehrmacht against the Allies from January 1944 to May 1945. One of the most pressing questions of World War II is: What kept the German army going in an increasingly hopeless situation? What kept the General Staff planning, the commanders commanding, and the soldiers fighting, even when the situation clearly seemed hopeless? Over the years, historians have posited various answers. Hitler seems the key reason that Germany fought on when most nations would have cracked. Other scholars point to the role of ideology and to National Socialist indoctrination as the heart of Germany's prolonged resistance. Rob Citino maintains the 'German way of war' led the German army to fight on to the bitter end. In a wider context it invites a reconsideration of why armies fight"--Provided by publisher

In the Cauldron : The Battle of the Korsun Pocket -- In the Mountains : The Battle for Italy -- On the Beach : The D-Day Landing [Normandy and Beyond] -- In the Middle : The Smashing of the Central Front -- In the West : The Campaign in France -- On the Run : The East -- On the Run : The West -- The Last Battle -- Five Minutes Past Midnight -- The Last Stand