Zhukov (ten cents)

William Spahr has published a biography, more or less, of Marshall Georgii Konstantinovich Zhukov. I say more or less, because his sources were very limited and most of what he wrote was based on Zhukov's own memoirs, which are suspect because they were written in the Soviet Union and subject to censorship and control.

Yet enough of the story comes out to give a good idea of Zhukov's triumphs during World War II and the immediate post-war period, his brief reign as Minister of Defense, and his discreditation and internal exile.

He was a very smart military leader, whose contribution to the eventual Russian defeat of the German invasion was immeasurable. He was brave and not afraid to speak up even to Stalin in the midst of the purges. He was crafty enough to stay alive during all of the Soviet times of trouble. He was ruthless enough to lead his commands in large part by fear. And he was bright enough to write very sophiticated memoirs of the war years.

The book brought back again to my mind the MILLIONS of Soviet soldiers and civilians who died during WW II. It showed me something that I did not know at all, which is that Stalin was the ultimate military decision maker, as he was the ultimate decision maker in all fields. And that he made his decisions based on reports brought to him and discussed with him, and wa shimself without military training.

Zhukov was a very powerful figure. This was both his strength and the cause of his downfall. Party leaders feared him as they feared anyone with sufficient charisma and visibility to become more powerful than they.

I read the entire book today, which means I skimmed over a lot of material, including detailed military campaign data. I cannot say that the book left me totally satisfied, mainly because I don't think its sources were totally satisfactory. But to remind me, and teach me, about the Soviet experience during the war, it is clearly worth reading through.