"A highly illustrated account of the race for the River Dnepr in 1943, one of the major campaigns on the Eastern Front in World War II, written by one of the pre-eminent historians of Eastern Front military history.
Against the wishes of Hitler, German forces under Erich von Manstein were forced to retreat following the failure of the Kursk offensive of July 1943. The weakened force only had one possible refuge, behind the wide Dnepr River. The race to the natural defensive line was on, with the Soviets launching one of their largest offensives of the war – with over 2 million men on the move. Robert Forczyk describes the dramatic four-month campaign that saw the Red Army not only succeed in crossing the Dnepr at multiple points, but also liberate Kiev, capital of the Ukraine.
Revealing new detail about the largest Soviet airborne operation of the war and the increasingly desperate delaying tactics employed by Manstein as catastrophic casualties mounted on both sides, Forczyk charts the course of the battle that confirmed to many observers that the relentless Soviet advance westward could not be halted. Berlin would be next."
"A fully illustrated study of the defensive struggle for the Kuban bridgehead on the Eastern Front of World War II, where the Red Army repulsed a series of ferocious German offensives in the Caucasus.
In the summer of 1942, the Wehrmacht invaded the Caucasus in order to overrun critical oil production facilities at Maikop, Grozny and Baku. However, the Red Army stopped the Germans short of their objectives and then launched a devastating winter counteroffensive that encircled them at Stalingrad. Consequently, Hitler grudgingly ordered an evacuation from the Caucasus, but ordered 17. Armee to fortify the Kuban bridgehead and hold it at all costs in order to leave open the possibility of future offensives. On the other side, the Soviet Stavka ordered the North Caucasus Front and the Black Sea Fleet to eliminate the Kuban bridgehead as soon as possible. The stage was set for a contest between an immovable object and an unstoppable force.
With the help of stunning specially commissioned artwork, this book tells the enthralling story of the impressive but strategically foolish German stand at Kuban, which tied down seven Soviet armies in a sideshow battle of attrition, which the Soviets dubbed ‘the Kuban meat grinder.’"
"This fascinating new study from renowned historian Robert Forczyk tells the story of the Wehrmacht from its birth in 1935 through to the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1938.
Adolf Hitler rose to power in 1933 on the back of a populist agenda, and a promise to lead the nation back to unity, stability and prosperity. A key part of that was his promise to restore Germany’s military which had been reduced to little more than a well-armed police force by the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles. Central to this was the formal establishment of the Wehrmacht, the newly renamed German Army, in 1935.
In this new military-focused study, renowned World War II historian Robert Forczyk traces the development and operations of the Wehrmacht from the announcement of rearmament in 1935 to the occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1938. He examines the critical trends and events in this period, including the growth of the new Panzer arm, as well as competing priorities with the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine. He looks at how Hitler ignored or trampled existing diplomatic agreements while directing a rapid and massive rearmament program in Germany, reoccupying the Rhineland in 1936, incorporating first Austria then the Sudetenland into the Reich by force in 1938 and finally seizing the remainder of Czechoslovakia, Memel from Lithuania and demanding the return of Danzig from Poland, leaving Europe on the cusp of World War II. C 2026 Robert Forczyk P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"The first in a three-book series examining the Stalingrad campaign, one of the most decisive military operations in World War II that set the stage for the ultimate defeat of the Third Reich.
After failing to defeat the Soviet Union with Operation Barbarossa in 1941, Adolf Hitler planned a new campaign for the summer of 1942 that was intended to achieve a decisive victory: Operation Blue (Case Blau). In this new campaign, Hitler directed that one army group (Heeresgruppe A) would advance to seize the Soviet oilfields in the Caucasus, while the other (Heeresgruppe B) pushed on to the Volga River.
The expectation was for a rapid victory – instead, German forces had to fight hard just to reach the outskirts of Stalingrad, and then found themselves embroiled in a protracted urban battle amid the ruins of a devastated city on the Volga.
The Soviet Red Army was hit hard by the initial German offensive but held onto the city and then launched Operation Uranus, a winter counteroffensive that encircled the German 6. Armee at Stalingrad. Despite a desperate German relief operation, the Red Army eventually crushed the German forces and hurled the remnants of the German southern front back in disorder.
This first volume in the Stalingrad trilogy covers the period from 28 June to 11 September 1942, including operations around Voronezh. The fighting in the Don Bend, which lasted weeks, comprised some of the largest tank battles of World War II – involving more armour than the tanks employed at Prokhorovka in 1943. C 2021 Osprey Publishing P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"The second in a three-part series examining the Stalingrad campaign, one of the most decisive military operations in World War II, that set the stage for the ultimate defeat of the Third Reich.
By early September 1942, 6.Armee and 4.Panzer-Armee had reached the outskirts of Stalingrad, and Hitler believed it was about to fall. He ordered for the capture of the city as soon as possible, but this was easier said than done.
On 13 September, a direct German assault was launched against the city on the Volga and a protracted urban battle followed amid the ruins, already devastated by massive Luftwaffe raids. Although hit hard by the initial German offensive, a ruthless and obstinate Red Army was able to hold onto the city through a costly battle of attrition that sacrificed huge amounts of men and materiel.
This second volume in the Stalingrad trilogy, written by a leading expert on the military history of the Eastern Front, brings the fighting in the city to life in full visual detail, including the iconic battles at the Krasny Oktyabr Steel Plant, the Grain Elevator, the Barrikady and STZ factories, the ‘Tennis Racquet’ and Rynok–Spartanovka.
Drawing from sources on both sides, this book offers a truly comprehensive account of history’s greatest urban battle. C 2021 Osprey Publishing P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"The final part in a three-book series on the Battle of Stalingrad, examining the Soviet encirclement, German relief efforts, and the final surrender of Paulus’ 6.Armee.
Having fought hard just to reach the outskirts of Stalingrad, the Axis forces found themselves embroiled in a protracted urban battle amid the ruins of a devastated city on the Volga. The Soviet Red Army was able to hold onto the city then mount a surprise winter counter-offensive known as Operation Uranus, which succeeded in encircling the German 6.Armee at Stalingrad. Despite a desperate German relief operation, the Red Army eventually crushed the 6.Armee and hurled the remnants of the German southern front back in disorder.
This third and final volume in the Stalingrad trilogy begins just after the German 6.Armee has been isolated at Stalingrad, and covers the period from 24 November 1942 to 2 February 1943. The specially commissioned maps and 3D diagrams guide the reader in step-by-step, easily to follow detail through the German relief operation (Wintergewitter), the fighting on the Chir River, and the Soviet operations Koltso and Little Saturn, and are complimented by the battlescene artworks that vividly depict the harsh conditions experienced by the common soldiers fighting on both sides. C 2022 Osprey Publishing P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"Bloomsbury presents Generalship on the Eastern Front, 1941–45: A Study in Command by Robert Forczyk, read by Elliot Chapman
A comprehensive evaluation of generalship on the most important front in World War II.
The war on the Eastern Front from 1941 to 1945 was the largest sustained air-ground conflict in military history and played the decisive role in the defeat of the Third Reich. This new study seeks to analyse the command and generalship of the combatants.
The scale of the conflict was immense. Lasting over 46 months it involved over 10 million combatants at its peak, and resulted in roughly 15 million military deaths, as well as about 20 million civilian deaths. More than 50 percent of all German military fatalities in 1941–45 occurred there, and by the time the Western Allies invaded France in June 1944, the Wehrmacht was already decimated.
Who were the generals who led these campaigns on the Eastern Front? The standard historiography of World War II tends to focus on a few prominent leaders while ignoring the mass of commanders and operational-level military staffs who actually fought most of the war and this new study by renowned Eastern Front historian Robert Forczyk seeks to redress the balance.
Generalship on the Eastern Front offers an objective analytic framework for assessing the senior German and Soviet commanders on the Eastern Front through the lens of generalship and battle command, examining a total of 54 German and 140 Soviet officers. C 2026 Robert Forczyk P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"Bloomsbury presents Where the Iron Crosses Grow: The Crimea 1941-44 by Robert Forczyk, read by Mark Meadows.
The Crimean Peninsula was the setting for the destruction of a number of armies in World War II, both Soviet and German.
When the Soviets fortified Sevastopol in 1941 it heralded the beginning of a period of intense fighting over the Crimea. In this remarkable work, acclaimed author Robert Forcyzk assembles new research to investigate the intense and barbaric fighting for the region in World War II, where first Soviet and then German armies were surrounded and totally obliterated.
Forcyzk’s unique account provides a definitive analysis of the many unique characteristics of the conflict, exploring the historical context as it uncovers one of the most pivotal theaters of the Eastern Front during World War II. C 2014 Robert Forczyk P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"Bloomsbury presents We March Against England: Operation Sea Lion, 1940-41 by Robert Forczyk, read by Dugald Bruce Lockhart.
We March Against England tells the thrilling tale of Operation Sea Lion, Hitler's plan to invade Britain and end its involvement in World War II.
In May 1940 Nazi Germany was master of continental Europe, the only European power still standing was Great Britain – and the all-conquering German armed forces stood poised to cross the Channel. Following the destruction of the RAF fighter forces, the sweeping of the Channel of mines, and the wearing down of the Royal Naval defenders, two German army groups were set to storm the beaches of southern England. Despite near-constant British fears from August to October, the invasion never took place after first being postponed to spring 1941 before finally being abandoned entirely.
Robert Forcyzk, author of Where the Iron Crosses Grow, looks beyond the traditional British account of Operation Sea Lion, complete with plucky Home Guards and courageous Spitfire pilots, at the real scale of German ambition, plans and capabilities. He examines, in depth, how Operation Sea Lion fitted in with German air-sea actions around the British Isles as he shows exactly what stopped Hitler from invading Britain. C 2016 Robert Forczyk P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"Bloomsbury presents Case Red: The Collapse of France by Robert Forczyk, read by Christopher Ragland.
Case Red tells the often overlooked story of the fall of Metropolitan France from the evacuation of the BEF at Dunkirk through to the eventual collapse and armistice in June 1940.
Even after the legendary evacuation from Dunkirk in June 1940 there were still large British formations fighting the Germans alongside their French allies. After mounting a vigorous counterattack at Abbeville and then conducting a tough defence along the Somme, the British were forced to conduct a second evacuation from the ports of Le Havre, Cherbourg, Brest and St Nazaire. While France was in its death throes, politicians and soldiers debated what to do – flee to England or North Africa, or seek an armistice.
Case Red captures the drama of the final three weeks of military operations in France in June 1940, and explains the great impact it had on the course of relations between Britain and France during the remainder of the Second World War. It also addresses the military, political and human drama of France’s collapse in June 1940, and how the windfall of captured military equipment, fuel and industrial resources enhanced the Third Reich’s ability to attack its next foe – the Soviet Union. C 2017 Robert Forczyk P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC"
"Robert Forczyk covers the development of armored warfare in North Africa from the earliest Anglo-Italian engagements in 1940 to the British victory over the German Afrikakorps in Operation Crusader in 1941.
The war in the North African desert was pure mechanized warfare, and in many respects the most technologically advanced theatre of World War II. It was also the only theatre where for three years British and Commonwealth, and later United States, troops were in constant contact with Axis forces.
World War II bestselling author Robert Forczyk explores the first half of the history of the campaign, from the initial Italian offensive and the arrival of Rommel's Panzergruppe Afrika to the British Operation Crusader offensive that led to the relief of Tobruk. He examines the armored forces, equipment, doctrine, training, logistics and operations employed by both Allied and Axis forces throughout the period, focusing especially on the brigade and regimental level of operations.
Desert Armour goes back to the sources to provide a new study of armored warfare in the desert."
"The German invasion of Poland on 1 September, 1939, designated as Fall Weiss (Case White), was the event that sparked the outbreak of World War II in Europe. The campaign has widely been described as a textbook example of Blitzkrieg, but it was actually a fairly conventional campaign as the Wehrmacht was still learning how to use its new Panzers and dive-bombers.
The Polish military is often misrepresented as hopelessly obsolete and outclassed by the Wehrmacht, yet in fact it was well-equipped with modern weapons and armor. Indeed, the Polish possessed more tanks than the British and had cracked the German Enigma machine cipher. Though the combined assault from Germany and the Soviet Union defeated Poland, it could not crush the Polish fighting spirit and thousands of soldiers and airmen escaped to fight on other fronts. The result of Case White was a brutal occupation, as Polish Slavs found themselves marginalized and later eliminated, paving the way for Hitler's vision of Lebensraum (living space) and his later betrayal and invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.
Using a wide array of sources, Robert Forczyk challenges the myths of Case White to tell the full story of the invasion that sparked history's greatest conflict."
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