Eight million Soviet soldiers died on the Eastern Front between 1941 and 1945. However, their history, uniforms, and day-to-day plight remain mostly undocumented to this day. Many misconceptions prevail, most of them stemming from the ferocious Nazi propaganda of the time. In reality, the Soviet soldier proved himself a resolute and well-equipped fighter. His uniform and equipment improved constantly during the Great Patriotic War, despite the shortcomings of a war-crippled economy. There have been few books on the history and uniforms of the World War II Soviet Army. The interested reader will find here a coherent wealth of information on the Red Army's organization and orders of battle, its uniforms and equipment, and its materials (soft skinned vehicles, AFVs, Artillery, Signals...). The various guises of the Soviet soldier, from Barbarossa to the fall of Berlin, have been reproduced in color with more than 50 studio reconstructions of infantrymen, artillerymen, parachutists, tankmen, women soldiers, marines, commissars, etc. A large variety of individual equipment, small arms, personal items, insignia and medals are illustrated in detail. The book also features hundreds of unpublished period photographs, many from the soldiers themselves. A career French Army NCO, Philippe Rio has a passion for the Red Army, from the 1930s to the 1950s. His vast knowledge of the subject has enabled him to contribute many articles to the French Militaria Magazine.

This classic WWII history presents a comprehensive yet vividly detailed account of the Third Reich’s epic and bitter clash with the Red Army. The opening onslaughts of Operation Barbarossa began on June 22nd, 1941, as German forces stormed into the Soviet Union. Few of them were to survive the five long years of bitter struggle. A posting to the Eastern Front during the Second World War was rightly regarded with dread by the German soldiers. They faced the unremitting hostility of the climate, the people and even, at times, their own leadership. There were epic conflicts, such as the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk. But surrounding these famous events was a daily war of attrition which ultimately ground Hitler’s war machine to a halt. In this classic account, military historian James Lucas examines the Eastern Front from trench warfare to a bicycle-mounted antitank unit fighting against the oncoming Russian hordes. Told through the experiences of the German soldiers who endured these nightmarish years of warfare, War on the Eastern Front is a unique record of this cataclysmic campaign.

"Chapters explore key aspects of the Soviet organization of the war, and shed fresh light on the transformation achieved by Stalin and his generals, who faced the prospect of utter defeat in 1941. The structure, tactics and operation of the Red Army through the war years are examined in close detail. The real impact of partisans and resistance fighters is reconsidered as is the role of women and the influence of propaganda. And the authors explore the economic and industrial policies -- and achievements -- that made victory on the battlefields possible"--Jacket.

Litvin's stark, candid memoir focuses on his more than two years of service in the Red Army during its war with Germany. Originally written in 1962 and recently revised through extended interviews between author and translator, the result is a gripping account--in a straightforward, matter-of-fact tone--of the trials and tribulations of being a common Soviet soldier on the Eastern Front during World War II.

In a bid to recapture territory conceded following the Winter War of 1939–40, Finnish forces cooperated with Nazi Germany and other Axis powers during the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. Rapid Finnish progress in reoccupying lost ground in Karelia during the first few months of the invasion gave way to a more static form of warfare from October 1941. The Finns resisted German pressure to participate fully in the Axis attack on the beleaguered Soviet-held city of Leningrad, and the Continuation War came to be characterized by trench warfare and unconventional operations conducted by both sides behind the front lines. In June 1944 the stalemate was abruptly ended by a massive Soviet offensive that pushed the Finns back; the two sides clashed in a series of major battles, including the battle of Tali-Ihantala, with the Finns halting the Soviet advance before agreeing to an armistice that September. The evolving military situation in this sector of the Eastern Front meant that the soldiers of the Soviet Union and Finland fought one another in a variety of challenging settings, prompting both sides to innovate as new technologies reached the front line. In this study, the doctrine, training, equipment and organization of both sides' fighting men are assessed and compared, followed by a detailed assessment of their combat records in three key battles of the Continuation War.

Focusing on three key battles of the epic David-and-Goliath Winter War, this illustrated study assesses the combat performance of Finnish and Soviet forces during this short but savage war.

A junior officer in the Red Army provides one of the richest and most detailed memoirs of life and warfare on the Eastern Front, from his combat training in early 1942 until the surrender and occupation of Germany.