Battleground Prussia: The Assault on Germany's Eastern Front 1944-45

by Prit Buttar

Overview

The terrible months between the arrival of the Red Army on German soil and the final collapse of Hitler's regime were like no other in the Second World War. The Soviet Army's intent to take revenge for the horror that the Nazis had wreaked on their people produced a conflict of implacable brutality in which millions perished. From the great battles that marked the Soviet conquest of East and West Prussia to the final surrender in the Vistula estuary, this book recounts in chilling detail the desperate struggle of soldiers and civilians alike. These brutal campaigns are brought vividly to life by a combination of previously untold testimony and astute strategic analysis recognising a conflict of unprecedented horror and suffering.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781780964652
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	02/20/2012
Series:	General Military
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	512
Sales rank:	246,933
File size:	23 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Prit Buttar studied medicine at Oxford and London before joining the British Army as a doctor. After leaving the army, he has worked as a GP, first near Bristol and now in Abingdon. He is extensively involved in medical politics, both at local and national level, and serves on the GPs' Committee of the British Medical Association. He appears from time to time on local and national TV and radio, speaking on a variety of medical issues. He contributes regularly to the medical press. He has written a novel, but this is his first work of military history.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations iii

List of Maps iv

Author's Note v

Preface vii

Introduction-The Slavs and the Teutons 1

1 Fritz and Ivan 23

2 Memel 46

3 Nemmersdorf 77

4 The Last Christmas 97

5 The House of Cards - The Great January Offensive 115

6 Cherniakhovsky and the Pregel Valley 138

7 Rokossovsky Reaches the Coast 162

8 Encircled in East Prussia 196

9 Hannibal - The Baltic Evacuation Begins 218

10 The Riviera of Hades and the Fall of Pomerania 236

11 Heiligenbeil - Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea 277

12 Königsberg 293

13 Danzig 329

14 The Last Command 371

15 The Long Road Home 416

Notes 455

Bibliography 467

Index 469

Editorial Reviews

A powerful pick... It comes packed with action shots and photos, first-hand accounts from soldiers on both sides — most of which have never appeared in English — and follows the months between the arrival of the Red Army in Germany to the collapse of Hitler's regime. No military collection strong in World War II should be without this specific, in-depth analysis.” —The Midwest Book Review (December 2010)

“...[a] marvelously written and illustrated new work with excellent maps on a series of battles too long overlooked ... deserves to be read by any true devotee of World War II.” —Military Advisor (Winter 2010/2011)

From the Publisher

In 1944–45 the Red Army pushed westward, crushing resistance in Prussia and what had been Poland in the interwar period. The large German population mostly fled west but was often trapped. Mass murder, atrocities, and ethnic cleansing were the order of the day. A grim time not often studied in detail, but an important part of the Eastern Front story. Because it provides coverage of an underreported campaign, this is suitable for in-depth collections.

Library Journal