David Glantz's books

[Tal Inbar]

A study of the Red Army's Belorussian operation in the summer of 1944, unprecedented in terms of its scale, scope and strategic consequences. The Soviet Stavka had planned a campaign consisting of a series of massive operations spanning the entire Soviet-German front. Four powerful fronts (army groups) operated under close Stavka (high command) control. Over 1.8 million troops acomplished a feat unique in the history of the Red Army: the defeat and dismemberment of an entire German army group. This book is a translation of the Soviet General Staff Study No 18, a work originally classified as "secret" and intended to educate Soviet commanders and staff officers. The operation is presented from the Soviet perspective, in the words of the individuals who planned and orchestrated the plans. A map supplement, including terrain maps, is provided to illustrate the flow of the operation in greater detail.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Situation in Belorussia at beginning of June 1944 - plan of the Red Army's Belorussian operation
- preparations for the operation
- beginning of the Soviet offensive - penetration of the German defence
- the Red Army offensive along the Polotsk-S'ventsiany, Minsk and Slutsk-Baranovichi axes - seizure of Minsk and encirclement of German forces
- liquidation of encircled German forces at Minsk - offensive against Dvinsk and westward pursuit of the enemy
- brief overview of combat operations up to the end of July - restoration of railroads and change in transport conditions.