The Naval War in the Baltic, 1939-1945

by Poul Grooss

Overview

A military historian and naval warfare expert delivers a revealing history of the Baltic Sea Campaigns and their significance throughout WWII.
 
From the Battle of Westerplatte on the Polish coast in 1939 to the thousands of German refugees lost at sea in 1945, the Baltic witnessed continuous fighting throughout the Second World War. This chronicle of naval warfare in the region merges such major events as the Siege of Leningrad, the Soviet campaign against Sweden, the three wars in Finland, the Soviet liberation of the Baltic states, the German evacuation of two million people from the East, and the Soviet race westwards in 1945.

Naval historian Poul Grooss explains the political and military backgrounds of the war in this theatre while also detailing the ships, radar, artillery, mines and aircraft employed there. He also offers fascinating insights into Swedish cooperation with Nazi Germany, the Germans’ use of the Baltic as a training ground for the Battle of the Atlantic, the secret weapons trials in the remote area of Peenemunde, and the Royal Air Force mining campaign that reduced the threat of German submarine technology.
 
A major contribution to the naval history of this era, Naval War in the Baltic demonstrates the extent to which the Baltic Sea Campaigns shaped the Second World War

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526700025
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	01/31/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	416
File size:	20 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

POUL GROOSS is a retired Danish Navy Captain who commanded torpedo boats and guided-missile corvettes in a career that lasted more than 40 years. His is a teacher of naval warfare at the Royal Danish Naval Academy, Chairman of the Naval History Society of the Royal Danish Naval Museum and a tour guide on military history expeditions to the Eastern Front.

Table of Contents

Foreword xi

Introduction xiii

1 The Baltic: Geography and History 1

2 Political Manoeuvring Between the Wars 12

3 Naval Developments Between the Wars 18

4 The Attack on Poland 46

5 The Baltic Region After the Polish Campaign: October 1939 - June 1941 62

6 Attack on the Soviet Union: 22 June 1941 - Spring 1942 119

7 The War between Spring 1942 and Spring 1944 175

8 Towards the End: Spring 1944 - New Year 1944/1945 220

9 New Year 1944/1945 to the End of the War - Month by Month 262

10 The End of the War: Aftermath and Retrospect 336

11 Postscript 345

Appendices

1 Chronology of Key Events up to the Outbreak of War 365

2 Glossary, Abbreviations, Ranks, Terminology and Explanations 369

3 Cross-reference List of Place Names in Various Languages 375

Sources and Bibliography 385

Index of Ship Names 391

Index of People 397