The Kuban 1943: The Wehrmacht’s Last Stand in the Caucasus (Osprey Campaign 318)
The Kuban 1943: The Wehrmacht’s Last Stand in the Caucasus (Osprey Campaign 318)
2018 | ISBN: 1472822595 | English | 97 Pages | True PDF | 22 MB
2018 | ISBN: 1472822595 | English | 97 Pages | True PDF | 22 MB
In the summer of 1942, the Wehrmacht invaded the Caucasus in order to overrun critical oil production facilities at Maikop, Grozny and Baku. However, the Red Army stopped the Germans short of their objectives and then launched a devastating winter counteroffensive that encircled them at Stalingrad. Consequently, Hitler grudgingly ordered an evacuation from the Caucasus, but ordered 17. Armee to fortify the Kuban bridgehead and hold it at all costs in order to leave open the possibility of future offensives. On the other side, the Soviet Stavka ordered the North Caucasus Front and the Black Sea Fleet to eliminate the Kuban bridgehead as soon as possible. The stage was set for a contest between an immovable object and an unstoppable force.