Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942 (Modern War Studies)
by Robert M. Citino
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert M. CitinoEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-10-07
ISBN: 0700615318
Number of pages: 431
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
Book Reviews of Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942 (Modern War Studies)
Book Review: Really not the best
Summary: 2 Stars
An earlier review (Biggest Problem is the Constant Re-Statement of the Same Premise) included much of what I felt about Death of the Wehrmacht, but I felt the problems went even deeper than that review discussed. Citino argues that the strategic practices of the German army became obsolescent by 1942, and weren't able to cope with modern warfare. Honestly, his point doesn't make sense; the German army continued to punch far above its weight class into 1945, and Citino even acknowledges the spectacular performance and ferocious tenacity of the German army in the later sections of his book. What Citino really says is essentially this : The side with the overwhelming advantage in men, weapons, and fuel won. Duh. This is not to say that Death has no value; it was a fascinating account of the year, battle by battle, and does actually shed some light on Rommel's bad decision making skills in his dive for the Nile, but in the end, Citino is trying to write a history of weight overwhelming merit, which I felt was better accomplished in an economic history (The Wages of Destruction by Adam Tooze is a fantastic book that covers much of this same history in a much more sensible way). Ultimately, I would read this only for its history, not for its interpretation, and read Wages or perhaps Chris Bellamy's Absolute War (if you really want to read about the Soviets).
Summary of Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942 (Modern War Studies)
For Hitler and the German military, 1942 was a key turning point of World War II, as an overstretched but still lethal Wehrmacht replaced brilliant victories and huge territorial gains with stalemates and strategic retreats. In this major reevaluation of that crucial year, Robert Citino shows that the German army's emerging woes were rooted as much in its addiction to the "war of movement"--attempts to smash the enemy in "short and lively" campaigns--as they were in Hitler's deeply flawed management of the war.
From the overwhelming operational victories at Kerch and Kharkov in May to the catastrophic defeats at El Alamein and Stalingrad, Death of the Wehrmacht offers an eye-opening new view of that decisive year. Building upon his widely respected critique in The German Way of War, Citino shows how the campaigns of 1942 fit within the centuries-old patterns of Prussian/German warmaking and ultimately doomed Hitler's expansionist ambitions. He examines every major campaign and battle in the Russian and North African theaters throughout the year to assess how a military geared to quick and decisive victories coped when the tide turned against it.
Citino also reconstructs the German generals' view of the war and illuminates the multiple contingencies that might have produced more favorable results. In addition, he cites the fatal extreme aggressiveness of German commanders like Erwin Rommel and assesses how the German system of command and its commitment to the "independence of subordinate commanders" suffered under the thumb of Hitler and chief of staff General Franz Halder.
More than the turning point of a war, 1942 marked the death of a very old and traditional pattern of warmaking, with the classic "German way of war" unable to meet the challenges of the twentieth century. Blending masterly research with a gripping narrative, Citino's remarkable work provides a fresh and revealing look at how one of history's most powerful armies began to founder in its quest for world domination.
This book is part of the Modern War Studies series.
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