Velikiye Luki 1942–43

"Velikiye Luki had been an important Russian fortress city sine the 13th century and became a key rail hub in the 19th century. In august 1941, the Germans entered the city (which was a major supply depot for the Red Army) and enforced a brutal occupation of 30,000 citizens. The city became a bulwark on the boundary between Heeresgruppe Nord and Heeresgruppe Mitte. In the winter of 1942/43, while Soviet forces were encircling Stalingrad, Stavka (the Soviet High Command) conducted a simultaneous offensive to isolate and destroy the 7,500-man German garrison in the city. After surrounding Velikiye Luki on 27 November 1942, the Soviet 3rd Shock Army gradually reduced the city to rubble, while the German garrison hunkered down and desperately awaited rescue, sustained by Luftwaffe airlifts. In this highly detailed account of a fascinating and little-known episode of the Eastern Front fighting, author Robert Forczyk narrates the dramatic events of the seven-week siege of Velikiye Luki, which saw soviet forces striving to liberate the city in the face of a determined garrison and ferocious relief efforts."--