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. ...
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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.
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Add this copy of White Death: Russia's War on Finland 1939-40 to cart. $24.34, very good condition, Sold by Alpha 2 Omega Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Southampton, HANTS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2006 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
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Seller's Description:
Near fine in Near fine jacket. Near fine condition. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2006. First UK edition-first printing(1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2). Blue hardback(silver lettering to the spine, small nick on the edge of the cover) with Dj(a couple of small nicks, scratches and crease on the edges of the Dj cover), both in near fine condition. Illustrated with b/w photos, maps. Nice and clean pages with two small ink marks on the outer edges, small pencil mark impression on the edge of the front endpaper, two small nicks on the edges of the pages. Nice and clean book with light shelf wear.319pp including List of maps, list of photographs, appendix, notes to the text, select bibliography, index. Price un-clipped.
Add this copy of White Death: Russia's War on Finland 1939-40 to cart. $35.70, like new condition, Sold by Marlowes Books rated 1.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Ferny Hills, Brisbane, QLD, AUSTRALIA, published 2006 by Weidenfeld And Nicolson.
Add this copy of White Death to cart. $50.47, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2006 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
