BLOOD ON THE SHORES: Soviet Naval Commandos in World War II

Leonov, Viktor/Gebhardt, James F. (Translated, with Introduction and Notes)

ISBN 10: 1557505063 / ISBN 13: 9781557505064

Published by Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 1993

About this Item

(1993) 216 pp. Original blue paper covered boards w/ black cloth spine. Binding very bright and clean. Spine ends a bit bumped. Previous owner's address label on front paste-down w/ black marker over name/address. DJ has mild edge wear w/ one tiny spot rubbed on front panel on hinge. Illust. w/ b/w photos. Contents nice.

Seller Inventory # M3450WWII

Bibliographic Details

• Title: BLOOD ON THE SHORES: Soviet Naval Commandos in World War II
• Publisher: Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD
• Publication Date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1557505063
• ISBN 13: 9781557505064
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Very Good+
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • American History
  • Biography
  • Military

About this title

Synopsis

Blood on the Shores is both a first-person account and a meticulously researched study of Soviet naval special operations forces in World War II. It is based on the 1957 memoirs of Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Viktor Leonov, who commanded in combat the reconnaissance detachments of the Northern and Pacific fleets. Leonov describes his entry into the elite Northern Fleet naval scout unit in July 1941 and the tactical and operational raids that followed against German forces based in Norway from 1941 through 1944. His story climaxes in the Far East, where Leonov's Pacific Fleet detachment distinguished itself in daring amphibious landings into Japanese-held Korean ports in advance of Soviet main naval and ground forces.
The translator's introduction and other materials reveal another significant activity of Soviet naval intelligence - the insertion of Soviet and Norwegian intelligence operatives deep into the German rear in Norway by submarine and parachute. These men monitored German ship traffic from Tromso northward, providing timely and accurate intelligence reports directly to Northern Fleet headquarters. When German counterintelligence rounded up and destroyed this agent net, Leonov's detachment assumed the mission. Because Leonov could not describe these highly secretive activities in 1957 when his memoir was first published in the Soviet Union, the translator's contributions to this work are crucial to a fuller understanding of the scope of Soviet naval special operations and intelligence activities in World War II. Historical documentation found in recently opened Russian archives, a survey of the scout detachments of other fleets, captured German documents, and an extensive bibliography help make this a useful reference book as well as an entertaining read about the exploits of these legendary naval commandos.

From the Inside Flap

tic circle to the shores of Japan, Russia's most famous naval scout describes his deadly missions in the Soviet Navy's World War II version of the U.S. Navy's SEALs. Whether raiding, capturing German officers or vectoring air strikes, the scouts exhibited the daring that made the Russian commandos' exploits legendary.