Death of the Wehrmacht :The German Campaigns of 1942

456 Pages·2007·85.07 MB·English

by  Robert M. Citino

For Hitler and the German military,
942 was a key turning point of
1
World War as an overstretched but
II,
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 Wehrmocht
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 1 942 fit within
the centuries-old patterns of Prussian/
German warmaking and ultimately
O
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 ihe German

DEATH OF
THEWEHRMACHT
MODERN WAR STUDIES
Theodore A. Wilson
GeneralEditor
Raymond A. Callahan
Garry Clifford
J.
Jacob W. Kipp
Jay Luvaas
Allan R. Millett
Carol Reardon
Dennis Showalter
David R. Stone
Series Editors
DEATH OF
THEWEHRMACHT
The German
Campaigns
of 1942
M.
Robert Citino
UNIVERSITY PRESS KANSAS
OF
—
©
2007 by the University Press ofKansas
All rights reserved
Published by the University Press ofKansas (Lawrence, Kansas 66049), which was
organized by the Kansas Board ofRegents and is operated and funded by Emporia
State University, Fort Hays State University, Kansas State University, PittsburgState
University, the University ofKansas, and Wichita State University
LibraryofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Citino, Robert Michael, 1958-
Death ofthe Wehrmacht the German campaigns of1942 /Robert M. Citino.
:
p. cm. (Modernwar studies)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7006-1531-5 (cloth alk. paper)
:
— —
1. Germany. Wehrmacht History World War, 1939-1945. 2. WorldWar,
— — —
1939-1945 Campaigns Eastern Front. 3. World War, 1939-1945 Campaigns
— —
Africa, North. 4. Germany History, Military 20th century. I. Title.
D757.C56 2007
—
94o.54'i343 dc22 2007016881
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data is available.
Printed in the United States ofAmerica
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
The paper used in this publication is recycled and contains 50 percent postconsumer
waste. It is acid free and meets the minimum requirements ofthe American National
Standard for Permanence ofPaper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1992.
OCT 1007
To my wife, Roberta.
Fighter.
Survivor.