Opis: Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939-1945 - Przemysław Budzbon, Jan Radziemski, Marek Twardowski

Seventy-five years after the end of the Second World War the details of Soviet ships, their activities and fates remain an enigma to the West. In wartime such information was classified and after a brief period of glasnost ( openness') the Russian state has again restricted access to historical archives. Therefore, the value - and originality - of this work is difficult to exaggerate. It sees the first publication of reliable data on both the seagoing fleets and riverine flotillas of the Soviet Navy, listing over 6200 vessels from battleships to river gunboats, and mercantile conversions as well as purpose-built warships. Divided into three volumes, this first covers major surface warships down to MTBs and armoured gunboats, as well as submarines.

For every class there is a design history analysing strategic, tactical and technical considerations, and individual ship detail includes construction yard, key building dates, commissioning, fleet designations, relocations and ultimate fate. Once a closely guarded secret, the wartime loss of every ship and boat (over 1000) is described. Furthermore, the confusion caused by frequent name changes is clarified by indexes that run to 16,000 items.

By following the ships through both their wartime and earlier history, the book reveals many aspects of Russian history that remain highly sensitive: clandestine co-operation with Weimar Germany and fascist Italy, the NKVD-enforced closure of Soviet borders, the Gulag Fleet', the faked Metallist sinking that excused the military occupation of Estonia, and the ill-conceived pact with Nazi Germany. Restrictions recently imposed on historical publications in Russia mean this book could certainly not have been published there - as proven by the fact that most of the authors' Russian collaborators preferred not to disclose their identities.

Szczegóły: Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939-1945 - Przemysław Budzbon, Jan Radziemski, Marek Twardowski

Tytuł: Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939-1945
Podtytuł: Volume 1 Major Combatants
Autor: Przemysław Budzbon, Jan Radziemski, Marek Twardowski
Wydawnictwo: Seaforth Publishing
ISBN: 9781526751935
Języki: angielski
Rok wydania: 2022
Ilość stron: 352
Format: 24.0x30.0cm
Oprawa: Twarda z obwolutą
Waga: 1.774 kg

Recenzje: Warships of the Soviet Fleets 1939-1945 - Przemysław Budzbon, Jan Radziemski, Marek Twardowski