Kursk 1943: The Northern Front (Campaign, 272)

Mr Forczyk has written another efficient, understandable, clear-cut Osprey Campaign; this time the campaign is led by General Model's 9th Army as it attempts to penetrate the Soviet line and reach Kursk where it was expected General Hoth's 4th PzA would link up from the south and help destroy the Soviet salient. It would turn out that neither Model or Hoth would achieve their mission goals and would have to fight savagely just to survive. The book starts with a prehistory that begins in 1942 that explains the key points leading up to the July 1943 Operation Citadel. This prehistory is extended to describe the battle plans, key officers and military units of both sides that would take part in this monumental battle on the northern flank of the salient. In these beginning chapters the strengths of the officers, the general fighting conditions of the forces and the advantages each side has over its enemy are succinctly presented.To my delight, the Soviet counter offensive, Operation Kutusov, which involves the elimination of the Orel salient is included in this summary. The combine coverage of both the German attack toward the south, the German defense of Orel and the Soviet counter offensive toward the west clearly shows the scale and determination of the combatants. The coverage of the multiple attacks begins on July 5th and lasts until mid August. The coverage includes land and air operations as well as good coverage of both German and Soviet actions.The author provides concise daily coverage up through July 11th of Model going up against Rokossovsky's Central Front and from the 12th to the middle of August in a more general summary when the primary fighting moves to the Orel salient as Model goes defensive but is eventually pushed back to the Hagen Line by the Bryansk and Western Fronts . Its in this latter phase that Model shows his true cunning and experience in defending his forces against superior numbers and the grave potential of having his forces completely destroyed. The author also clearly shows the importance of this neglected second phase to 9th / 2nd Pz Armies and the huge costs to the Soviets in pushing the Germans back.To help support the narrative, nine color maps are provided: six 2D and three 3D. Most of the 2D maps generally cover the entire front line progression while the 3D maps show specific assaults. These specific attacks include the important drives toward the key objectives of Maloarkhangelsk, Ponyri and Olkhovatka. These maps are easy to follow and will be very useful when reading this book as well as other Kursk books.I also enjoyed the many fine photos of key officers, armor and battlefield scenes included in the book as well as their descriptive captions. Also included is an Order of Battle, a Chronology, color action scenes, a closing analysis, a suggested reading list and an Index.For a sub 100 page book the author has provided a wealth of useful information about the planning and officers aa well as a successful telling of the northern campaigns that despite the huge Soviet losses will keep the Germans on the strategic defense for the rest of the war. It also shows the author's knowledge and experience of this sector and time period that will leave the reader with a sense of confidence in what is being read. This book is highly recommended to all, new student or old, who have an interest in this pivotal battle.

I bought this book because it covers the northern face of the Kursk salient, while most books on the battle focus almost exclusively on the southern face. As mentioned by other reviewers, the book also covers the Soviet's Operation Kutuzov, which liberated Orel.With the exception of a few minor issues noted below, this is a very good book--the writing is clear and concise, and the author is admirably even-handed. The coverage of the Kursk part of the battle is reasonably detailed. The book also includes numerous photos (from both sides), which are often accompanied by helpful/thoughtful captions. The maps are also rather good.The Kindle version does not seem to include the "real page numbers" feature, but in terms of percentages, the first 44% of the book is dedicated to the background/opposing forces/commanders, etc., 34% of the book deals with the Kursk battle, 15% deals with Operation Kutuzov, and the rest deals with the aftermath, the battlefield today, etc. Note that this book is rather brief (96 pages according to Amazon), and that much of that is occupied by photos/maps/art, so there is relatively little text.A note about the Kindle version: obviously, if you're reading this book on an actual Kindle device, you'll not get much out of maps/artwork. I read the book via the Kindle app on my iPad and was generally pleased--while not as good as reading a hard copy, this book allowed me to zoom in to examine maps/art much more than other Kindle books that I've seen.Given my high opinion of the book, why not 5 stars? Good question, so I thought I'd provided specific reasons so that you can judge for yourself:--The book has no footnotes, which for me is a serious drawback for any historical work; others might not care.--While the book seems well-researched, in addition to the lack of footnotes, there is no bibliography per se (only a "Further Reading" list consisting of ten books).--I found the coverage of Operation Kutuzov rather thin--despite the fact that this offensive lasted from 12 July to 18 August and involved three fronts, it received less than half the "page count" as the Kursk part of the book, which only lasted from 5-11 July. Generally this operation is covered only in broad brushstrokes.--Finally, while the writing is clear and concise, and the coverage of the Kursk battle includes mention of at least some battlefield incidents, etc., I found that the lack of direct quotes from participants gave the text a slightly clinical feel. This is not to suggest that the text is boring (it is not) or as dry as, say, a Glantz book (again, it is not), but it does lack a certain "you are there" feeling.

Dans ce court livre au format Osprey, Robert Forczyk résume de façon utile les affrontements ayant lieu sur le front nord de la bataille de Koursk avant de résumer rapidement la bataille d'Orel en juillet/août 1943.Le livre commence par résumer le contexte de la bataille puis présente ( de façon classique pour un ouvrage Osprey ) les généraux et les armées en présence avant de présenter dans 2 chapitres distincts l'assaut allemand vers Koursk à partir de la face nord du front puis la contre-offensive soviétique contre le saillant d'Orel.L'auteur fait un effort réel de présenter de façon concise les opérations terrestres et aériennes avec un point de vue plutôt allemand que soviétique.Outre une description correcte des principales opérations de ces 2 opérations, l'autre intérêt majeur de cet ouvrage tient à la réévaluation de la stratégie de Model : l'auteur démontre de façon convaincante que Model n'a jamais tenté de percer et de prendre Koursk mais a plutôt tenté d'engager Rokossovki dans un combat d'attrition afin de neutraliser le front "Centre" avant de se retourner contre les fronts "Ouest" et "Briansk", anticipant leur inévitable contre-attaque.Au final, un ouvrage certes non indispensable mais utile à la fois pour les connaisseurs de la bataille et les néophytes

New insights into the capabilities of both sides make this an informative read.

good

One of the best Osprey campaign booklets. thanks for the service -a very good bargain.

This is another excellent book by the good doctor.