"In short, the Russo-German war constitutes the most important chapter in world military history. Astonishingly, however, the number of authoritative books in English on any aspect of the Soviets' "Great Patriotic War" can be counted on two hands....This more than 600-page book meticulously chronicles the operational history of the Battle of Leningrad the nearly three-year German siege of the city, and the Soviets' often disastrous attempts to lift it which cost the USSR close to two million civilians and soldiers. Glantz is a sober scholar and a painstaking researcher. His books are definitive, though very heavy going. They will be an essential resource when the epic struggle in the East finally finds its Tacitus or its Parkman." Benjamin Schwarz, Atlantic Monthly (read the entire Atlantic review)
"An original and important contribution not only to the battle for Leningrad but also to a wider understanding of the Great Patriotic War. Drawing upon previously unavailable or neglected Soviet and German sources, it provides a major corrective to the shortcomings of previous accounts and will stand as a significant and durable achievement on a subject that continues to fascinate." John Erickson, author of The Road to Stalingrad
"An outstanding contribution to the study of the Second World War as it was fought on the Eastern Front." Malcolm Mackintosh, author of Juggernaut: A History of Soviet Armed Forces
List of Tables, Maps, and Illustrations
Preface
Dramatis Personae
Part I. Barbarossa
1. The City of Peter and Lenin
-Founding
-Development
-Military Organization
-Defense Planning
-Military Forces
2. Target Leningrad: German Operation Barbarossa and The Wehrmacht's Advance through the Baltic Region, 22 June-7 August 1941
-Plan Barbarossa
-The Opposing Forces
-The Border Battles, 22 June-9 July
-The Distant Approaches to Leningrad and the Soviet Counterstroke at Sol'tsy, 10 July - 7 August
3. The Defense of Leningrad, 8 August - 10 September 1941
-German Offensive Planning
-The Soviet Staraia Russa Counterstroke, 8 - 23 August
-The German Penetration of the Luga Defense Line, 22-25 August
-The German Advance to Lake Ladoga, 25 August - 8 September
-The Defense of Leningrad, 9 - 30 September
4. The Encirclement Struggle: The Miracle at Tikhvin, 30 September - 30 December 1941
-The Situation on 1 October
-The Red Army's First Siniavino Offensive, October
-The German Advance to Tikhvin, October-November
-The Soviet Tikhvin Counterstroke, November-December
Part II. Blockade
5. Winter under Siege, 1941-1942
-Defense
-Mobilization
-Defense Production and Evacuation
-The Population under Siege
-Supply, Transport, and the "Road of Life"
-The Partisan Movement
-The Human Toll
6. False Dawn: The Red Army's Winter Offensive, January-April 1942
-The Situation on 1 January
-Planning the Leningrad-Volkhov Offensive
-The January Offensive
-Expanding the Offensive, February-March
-The Germans' March Counterstroke
-The Encirclement Battle, April
-The Demiansk Dimension
7. Frustrated Hopes, May-October 1942
-The Situation on 1 May
-Initial Soviet Attempts to Rescue the 2d Shock Army
-The Red Army's Tragedy at Miasnyi Bor
-German Planning for Operation Nordlicht
-The Red Army's Second Siniavino Offensive, August
-The Germans' Siniavino Counterstroke, September
8. The Continuing Siege, 1942-1943
-Refining Leningrad's Defenses
-The Population under Siege
-Resupply in Summer 1942
-Resupply in Winter 1942-1943 and Summer 1943
-The Partisan Movement in 1942
-The Partisan Movement in 1943
9. Breaking the Blockade, January-April 1943
-The Situation in January 1943
-Planning Operation Spark
-Zhukov's Operation Spark: The Third Siniavino Offensive, January
-Zhukov's Operation Polar Star, February
-In the Wake of Operation Polar Star, March-April
10. Stalemate, May-November 1943
-The Situation in the Spring and Summer of 1943
-The Red Army's Fifth Siniavino Offensive, July-August
-The Red Army's Sixth Siniavino Offensive, September
-German Preparations to Withdraw to the Panther Line
Part III. Victory
11. Liberation, January 1944
-The Situation on 1 January 1944
-Planning the Leningrad-Novgorod Strategic Offensive
-The Leningrad Front's Ropsha-Krasnoe Selo Offensive, 14-20 January
-The Volkkhov Front's Novgorod Offensive, 14-20 January
-The Leningrad Front's Advance on Luga, 20-30 January
-The Volkhov Front's Advance on Luga 20-30 January
12. To Narva, Luga, and the Panther Line, 31 January-18 April 1944
-The Situation on 31 January 1944
-Contending Plans and Model's Sword and Shield
-The Struggle for Narva and Luga, 31 January-15 February
-The Liberation of Southern Leningrad Region, 16 February-1 March
-Soviet Attempts to Penetrate the German Panther Line, 1 March-18 April
13. The Liberation of Northern Leningrad Region, June-August 1944
-The Situation in June 1944
-The Leningrad Front's Plans
-The Leningrad Front's Vyborg Offensive, 10-20 June
-The Leningrad Front's Offensive into Finland, 21 June-14 July
14. Conclusions
Appendixes
A. Top Secret German Planning Documents
B. Soviet Planning Documents
C. Red Army Order of Battle
D. German Order of Battle
E. A Rough Comparison of Red Army and Wehrmacht Forces
F. Soviet Military Casualties
G. Estimated Civilian Losses in the Siege of Leningrad
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Index