White Death by Robert Edwards

White Death by Robert Edwards

The Russian invasion of Finland in November 1939 was a critical turning point in world history. Only now, with the opening of the Russian archives can this extraordinary story be told in full. Two months after his cynical alliance with Hitler and their joint invasion of Poland, Stalin ordered the Red Army to crush the Finns. Everybody expected a walk-over: the odds were 10:1 in Stalin's favour. But the Finns fought bravely, and the Red Army - its high command decimated by Stalin's purges - fumbled to defeat after defeat. Tens of thousands of Russian soldiers died in the snow. Only after four months and the massing of over a million men and thousands of guns did the Russians break through and force the Finns to accept terms. The 'Winter War' revealed Stalin's army to be as badly led as it was poorly equipped. Hitler's generals, previously so nervous about their leader's plan to invade Russia that they contemplated a coup d'etat to remove him, were now convinced they could win. Stalin's blunder in Finland led directly to the Nazi invasion of Russia the following year. In Britain and France, the spectacle of Russia invading a neutral neighbour shattered the left-wing political parties (although the DAILY WORKER's headline on the opening day of the invasion was 'HEROIC RED ARMY SMASHES MARAUDING FINNS). Attlee expelled one pro-Russian MP and cleared the way for a coalition with the Conservatives. Paradoxically, the 'Winter War' also saved the Red Army and Stalin. With the results of the purges all too clear, Stalin promoted outspoken technocrats like Zhukov and accepted reforms that would enable the Russians to survive the German assault in 1941 and ultimately stop them at Stalingrad.

'Edwards provides a compelling account of the effect of the Winter War in relation to the Second World War' SCOTTISH LEGION NEWS This is a stunning account of the Russo-Finnish war and one of the best narrative histories of recent years-- Mike McCarthy THE BATTLE GUIDE 'this excellent book ... is well researched, clearly written and well stocked with photographs, maps, notes, bibliography etc.' -- George Rosie SUNDAY HERALD (GLASGOW) 'The book is highly recommendable.' RUSI JOURNAL

After twenty years as a City and Wall Street analyst and trader, Robert Edwards wrote his first book on a private passion: Aston Martin cars. Since then he has written many books in the field of motor racing including Archers and the Listers, voted both book of the year and of the decade by the motoring press. He is a regular contributor to THE DAILY TELEGRAPH.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780297846307
ISBN 10	0297846302
Title	White Death
Author	Robert Edwards
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Orion Publishing Co
Year published	2006-07-13
Number of pages	320
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable