Meat Grinder

An engrossing history of the desperate battles for the Rzhev Salient, a forgotten story brought to life by the harrowing memoirs of German and Russian soldiers. The fighting between the German and Russian armies in the Rzhev Salient during World War II was so grisly, so murderous, and saw such vast losses that the troops called the campaign 'The Meat Grinder'. Though millions of men would fight and die there, the Rzhev Salient does not have the name recognition of Leningrad or Moscow. It has been largely ignored by Western historians - until now. In this book, Prit Buttar, a leading expert on the Eastern Front, reveals the depth and depravity of the bitter fighting. He details how the region held the promise of a renewed drive on Moscow for the German Army - a chance to turn the tide of war. Using German and Russian first-hand accounts, Buttar examines the major offensives launched by the Red Army against the salient, all of which were defeated with losses exceeding two million killed, wounded or missing, until eventually, the Germans were forced to evacuate the salient in March 1943. Drawing on the latest research, Meat Grinder provides a study of these horrific battles but also examines how the Red Army did learn from its colossal failures and how its timely analysis of these failures helped pave the way for the eventual Soviet victory against Army Group Centre in the summer of 1944, leaving the road to Berlin clear.

Prit Buttar studied medicine at Oxford and London before joining the British Army as a doctor. After leaving the army, he worked as a GP. He is extensively involved in medical politics, both at local and national level. An established expert on the Eastern Front in 20th-century military history, his previous books include the critically acclaimed two-volume series on the siege of Leningrad: To Besiege A City (Osprey 2023) and Hero City (Osprey 2024). He now lives France.

List of Illustrations List of Maps Dramatis Personae Introduction Chapter 1: Barbarossa and Taifun Chapter 2: The Red Army's Counteroffensive, December 1941 Chapter 3: Frustration, January 1942 Chapter 4: Snow, Mud and Confusion Chapter 5: Hannover Chapter 6: Belov's Escape and Seydlitz Chapter 7: The First Rzhev-Sychevka Operation Chapter 8: Grinding Through Summer Chapter 9: 1942, Preparing for Operation Mars Chapter 10: The Commencement of Mars: Western Front, 25-30 November Chapter 11: The Commencement of Mars: Kalinin Front, 25-30 November Chapter 12: December: The Vazuza Valley and the Bely Sector Chapter 13: December: Exhaustion in the Luchesa and Northern Sectors Chapter 14: Büffel: The End of the Salient Chapter 15: Lessons Imperfectly Learned Chapter 16: Remembering the Past Notes Bibliography Index