Soviet Blitzkrieg: The Battle for White Russia, 1944

by Walter S., Jr. Dunn

Release Date: January, 2000

Edition: Hardcover

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There is no such thing as White Russia

Some call it "a masterpiece of World War II History" but how can it be one, if the author could not even get the name of the country right?

The country of which Walter S. Dunn (Jr.) is writing about is called Belarus...

One might ask then: "But doesn't the word Belarus actually mean White Russia, if you translate it literally from Belarusan?" This is a widespread misconception. "Rus" refers to the Eastern Slavic lands that nowadays belong mostly to Belarus and Ukraine.

There is a Latin term for Rus which has been used in English scholarly works as well: Ruthenia. So, etymologically, the word Belarus means "Ruthenia Alba" or "White Ruthenia."

Indeed, for centuries Russian historians have tried to confuse the situation by equating Ruthenian with Russian. But in Belarusian language there is a clear distinction between ruski (refering to Ruthenia) and rasiejski (refering to Russia).

Unfortunately, in many other languages there is no special word for Ruthenia (Rus), so this differentiation may be difficult. But, essentially, it must be clear that "Belarus" does not mean "White Russia", but rather "White Ruthenia."

That said, I think I should praise Dunn for writing this book. I have not finished reading it yet, but the parts that I've read I've really enjoyed. So I actually recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the World War II. And I sincerely hope that in the next edition Mr. Dunn will call "Belarus" by its proper name, and will use the word "Soviets" instead of the word "Russians" in his book.

A masterpiece of World War II History

The serious student of World War II will appreciate the immense scholarship that lies behind the writing of "Soviet Blitzkrieg." The author, Dr. Walter S. Dunn, Jr., gives ample testimony to the high scholastic demands of his doctorate in history. In his years of researching the archives of World War II and its eastern front and amassing figures on the relative strength of Russian and German military forces, Dr. Dunn displays the rigorous discipline of the seasoned professional historian. So dedicated was Dr. Dunn to his reasearch tht he acquired a rudimentary knowledge of the German and Russian languages, the better to understand the written records of both sides.

The book describes in great detail each offensive of the blitzkrieg from beginning to ultimate outcome. This is the first time that such an epic description of the Russian-German struggles on the eastern front has appeared in English. "Soviet Blitzkrieg" is one of several authoritative descriptions of World War II events published by the author. Other books are "Second Front Now," "Hitler's Nemesis," and "Kursk."

The reader less familiar with the battles for White Russia will benefit from having on hand a detailed map of Russia. Chapter 1, titled "The Strategic Position," describes a complicated series of movement on the eastern front that would be more understandable were the reader able to follow the action on a map.

In its 248 indexed pages, the student of World War II will find this book to be a treasure trove of authoritative information.