Contents

List of Illustrations

List of Maps

List of Tables

Abbreviations

Preface

1	Introduction: Plan Barbarossa, Opposing Forces and the Border Battles 22 June–1 July 1941
	Plan Barbarossa
	Soviet War Planning: Defense Plan-41 (DP-41) and the “Answering” Strike
	Opposing Forces
	The Border Battles, 22 June–5 July

2	Army Group Center’s Advance to the Western Dvina and Dnepr Rivers and the Western Front’s Counterstroke at Lepel’, 2–9 July 1941
	German Command Decisions
	The Situation in Early July
	The Stavka’s and Western Front’s Dilemmas
	Army Group Center’s Advance to the Western Dvina and Dnepr Rivers, 2-6 July
	The Western Front’s Lepel’ Counterstroke, 6–9 July
	The Capture of Vitebsk and Preparing the Advance on Smolensk, 7–9 July

3	Army Group Center’s Advance on Smolensk and the Timoshenko “Counteroffensive” 10–15 July 1941
	The Advance across the Dnepr, 10–13 July
	The Timoshenko Offensive, 13–16 July
	Hoth’s Advance to Smolensk and Nevel’, 13–16 July
	Guderian’s Advance to Smolensk and the Siege of Mogilev, 13–16 July
	The Southern Flank: 21st Army’s Counterstroke in the Rogachev Region

4	Army Group Center’s Encirclement Battle at Smolensk, 16-23 July 1941
	Context
	Evolving German Strategy
	The Red Army Regroups
	The Encirclement Battle for Smolensk, 16–23 July

5	The First Soviet Counteroffensive and the Struggle for the Smolensk Pocket, 23–31 July 1941
	The Counterstroke by the Western Front’s Operational Groups
	The Struggle for the Smolensk Pocket, 24–31 July
	Conclusions

6	The Battles on the Flanks and the Siege of Mogilev, 16-31 July 1941
	Background
	The Northern Flank: Nevel’ and Velikie Luki
	The Southern Flank, the Fall of Mogilev and the Problem of 21st Army

7	Armeegruppe Guderian’s Destruction of Group Kachalov and the Reduction of the Smolensk Pocket, 31 July–6 August 1941
	Hitler’s Changing Strategy (Directives Nos. 33 and 34)
	The Destruction of Group Kachalov, 31 July–6 August
	The Reduction of the Smolensk Pocket, 1–6 August
	Conclusions

8	Armeegruppe Guderian’s and Second Army’s Southward March and the Fall of Gomel’, 8–21 August 1941
	The Stavka Regroups
	Armeegruppe Guderian’s Advance across the Sozh River and the Krichev Encirclement, 8–14 August
	Second Army’s Advance on Gomel’, 12–18 August
	The Stavka Reacts: the Formation of the Briansk Front
	Armeegruppe Guderian’s Advance to Starodub and Second Army’s Capture of Gomel’, 15–21 August
	Conclusions

9	The Second Soviet Counteroffensive: the Western Front’s Dukhovshchina Offensive, the Initial Phase, 6–19 August 1941
	Preliminaries, 6–13 August
	Soviet Offensive Planning, 14–16 August
	Timoshenko’s Offensive, 17-19 August

10	The Second Soviet Counteroffensive: the Western Front’s Dukhovshchina Offensive, the German Counterstroke, and Aftermath, 20–24 August 1941
	German Ninth Army’s Counterstroke, 20–22 August
	The Aftermath, 23–24 August

11	The Second Soviet Counteroffensive: the Reserve Front’s El’nia Offensive, Altered Strategic Plans, and the Struggle for Velikie Luki, 8–24 August 1941
	The Reserve Front’s (24th Army’s) El’nia Offensive, 8–21 August
	Altered Strategic Plans, 18–21 August
	The Northern Flank: the Struggle for Velikie Luki, 21–24 August

12	Conclusions
	Army Group Center’s July Battles
	Army Group Center’s August Battles

Photographs of Commanders
	German
	Soviet

Appendices

A	The Composition, Dispositions, Command Cadre, and Armored Strength of Mechanized Corps supporting the Western Front in July 1941
B	Comparative Orders of Battle, 1 July 1941
C	Comparative Orders of Battle, 10 July 1941
D	The Personnel and Armor Strength of the Stavka’s Reserve Armies on 22 June 1941
E	The Estimated Personnel Strength of the Western Front’s Armies from 10–31 July 1941
F	The Red Army’s Personnel Losses during the Battles for Smolensk, 10 July–10 September 1941
G	The Red Army’s Strength on 30 September 1941

Selective Annotated Bibliography