Heroes of the Soviet Union 1941-45 (Elite) [Paperback]

Henry Sakaida (Author), Christa Hook (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Elite | Publication Date: October 22, 2004

Osprey's examination of Soviet heroes of the Great Patriotic War portion of World War II (1939-1945).  The Great Patriotic War began on 22 June 1941, when the Germans invaded the Soviet Union. Over 10 million Soviet soldiers took part in the war and of those about 12,600 earned the Soviet Union’s highest military award - the Hero of the Soviet Union - for deeds of great daring and self sacrifice. This book covers the male recipients of the Hero of the Soviet Union award during the Great Patriotic War. Snipers, fighter pilots, partisans and spies are all included, together with the famous aces Pokryshkin and Kozhedub, who both gained the award an amazing three times.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

An unrivalled illustrated reference source on fighting men and commanders, past and present. Each volume is packed with full colour artwork, making military history uniquely accessible to enthusiasts of all ages.

About the Author

Henry Sakaida was born in Santa Monica, California in 1951. After a Russian language course, he developed an interest in the culture and war history, later leading to his research in the Ukraine and Russia. Eilte 90: ‘Heroines of the Soviet Union 1941–45’ is based on this research, as is this companion volume. His other area of interest is Japanese combat aviation history on which he has written several books. Henry lives with his wife and two children in Temple City, near Los Angeles.

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (October 22, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841767697
• ISBN-13: 978-1841767697
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.2 x 9.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,935,360 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Watch out for Wartime Communist Propaganda, December 8, 2004

By 

R. A Forczyk (MD, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Heroes of the Soviet Union 1941-45 (Elite) (Paperback)

Although the Soviet Union awarded over 12,000 medals for valor in the Second World War, few of these men have even been heard of in the West. One suspects that even in Russia today, these heroes from sixty years ago are slipping into obscurity. Amateur historian Henry Sakaida is to be congratulated on bringing these men to light in Osprey Elite #111, Heroes of the Soviet Union 1941-45. Sakaida's narrative of the 30+ individuals that he profiles covers the gamut from aviators, to pilots, to snipers, to sailors, to tankers and infantrymen. Western readers can gain a good impression of the kind of troops that made up the Red Army in 1941-45 in these pages (at least the better ones). However, readers should be aware that the author accepts the Soviet-era claims about these men's exploits with few qualms and that the Soviet Government was more than willing to "manufacture" heroes as needed. While the majority of these men were probably genuine heroes, the exploits of some suggest imaginative citation-writing.

After a short introduction on "the Great Patriotic War," the author provides background on the Hero of the Soviet Union (HSU) award. Interestingly, the author provides data on medal's recipients by branch and ethnic group (e.g. 3 Chechens received the HSU). The author then provides capsule biographies of about 30 recipients of the HSU. The volume includes eight color plates: the Gold Star Medal and the Order of Lenin; sniper Ohlopkov; Lieutenant Gakhokidze at Sevastopol; spy Robert Klein; sailor Golubkov in Manchuria in 1945; pilot Maresyev; medic Kokorin; and partisan Kazei. The author provides no bibliography or notes on source material.

The author certainly provides some dramatic detail in these pages, such as the Soviet pilot who was captured and escaped in a commandeered Heinkel bomber or the naval commando Leonov. However, some of the Soviet-era claims appear pretty dubious. For example, the Soviets awarded the HSU to partisan leader Dmitri Medvedev, claiming that his unit had "killed more than 2,000 Germans, including 11 generals and high officials." Now, the German army in the Second World War had a ratio of perhaps 1 general officer for every 5,000 or more troops, so how likely is it that the Soviets would nail this many generals in one area? Not very likely. Furthermore, a number of citations claim that the recipient killed a German general, but not one is mentioned by name, date, or location, making crosschecking very difficult. Another "tale" that is very fishy is the account of the "Heroes of Taranovka Station," a small unit action near Kharkov in March 1943. This action was unusual because all 25 men in a Guards Rifle platoon received the HSU for this action, in which it was claimed that the platoon held off most of a German tank battalion and destroyed nearly half their vehicles. Taranovka Station is one of those fantasy worlds that Stalin used to like to make out of "dead heroes." As a former tanker, the idea that 25 infantrymen in wooden shacks, armed only with one light AT gun, a few mines and grenades could defeat a mixed force of German armor and mechanized infantry is just silly. Certainly the Guards platoon may have inflicted some damage, but the force ratio was just too unbalanced to be credible. Noticeably, the author avoids commenting on some of the more questionable claims - it appears that he might be concerned about offending some of his hosts.

This volume on the HSU goes well with other Osprey volumes on the Medal of Honor and Knights Cross winners (hopefully they will have one on the Victoria Cross as well), but the volumes from the totalitarian side of the street seem tinged with elements of wartime propaganda and hero creation. Readers from modern democracies should appreciate the sacrifices made by the Red Army in the Second World War (well, not maybe those sacrifices against the Poles or Finns in 1939) - it was the Red Army that did the most to defeat Nazi Germany - but should remain cognizant of the imperatives of Stalin's version of communism that underlay this cult of the hero.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very nice sequel!, September 7, 2005

By 

Raymond F. Gillis (Yonkers, New York) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Heroes of the Soviet Union 1941-45 (Elite) (Paperback)

This is a more traditional volume of work, the sequel to Heroines of the Soviet Union...yet it breaks ground in that author Henry Sakaida & artist Christa Hook take on some less than well known subjects and bring them to life magnificently. The stories are inspiring and worthy of Hollywood epics yet the men who lived them saw themselves as merely ordinary folk doing what needed to be done...and there is the genius of this book.
Highly recommended!

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tales of Ivan at War!, October 5, 2007

By 

Michael OConnor "Wordsmith" (Wausau, WI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Heroes of the Soviet Union 1941-45 (Elite) (Paperback)

Noted aviation historian Henry Sakaida shifts his sights in this Osprey 'Elite' volume, focusing on those Soviet soldiers, sailors, airmen and civilians who were awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union medal in World War II.

The HSU award was the USSR equivalent of the U.S. Medal of Honor or England's Victoria Cross. During the Great Patriotic War, over 11,600 individuals were awarded the HSU medal. Sakaida details the combat exploits of 27 HSU winners, dividing them into categories such as "Aviators," "Snipers," "Naval Troops," "Spies," "Partisans," "Infantrymen," etc.

The stories contained in this book certainly make for compelling reading. Included in this book are the likes of fighter ace Sultan Amet-Khan, spymaster Richard Sorge, sniper Vasily Zaitsev and submariner Alexandr Marinesko. Photographs or drawings of the HSU winners covered are included. Lastly, a color section includes artwork depicting various HSU combats.

As exciting as the HSU accounts are however, I have major problems in accepting these exploits as fact. I don't doubt that the HSU winners were brave men who sometimes accomplished incredible feats. However Stalin's government never let truth stand in the way of propaganda that aided the war effort against the hated Nazis.

Sakaida's book contains a number of official Soviet claims that cause one to question whether we're getting the true story - battles in which 100s of Germans are killed yet the HSU's unit suffers no losses, an infantry Captain who takes part in a 'High Noon' duel with a German officer, an IL-2 pilot credited with destroying large amounts of German equipment including 654 automobiles(!), numerous HSU winners who killed German generals, etc.

So, while the book makes for exciting reading, you really need to treat the historical claims made by the Soviet government as related in Sakaida's book with a healthy dose of skepticism. Yes, the book is an interesting, well-written, well-illustrated introduction to a fascinating subject...but...keep the salt shaker and a tablespoon handy!