Hitler often called Stalin a 'fellow of genius', for whom he had 'unreserved respect'; he recognized in Stalin a worthy opponent with his own inflexible will. Professor John Erickson has written the comprehensive account of their conflict.In this first of two volumes on Stalin's war with Germany, he surveys the battleground of the Eastern front where Hitler went astray at the peak of his power. Focusing on Soviet command decisions, he follows the movements of the Red Army from the edge of destruction to triumph at Stalingrad, where it 'caught a tiger by the tail'. He discusses the preparedness of the two armies, examining the effects of Stalin's purge of the Staff Officers in the old Soviet military establishment. He describes the war games of the pre-Barbarossa period, those 'shadowy and symbolic conflicts' which augured catastrophes to come. Battle by battle and decision by decision he describes hoe the ponderous military machine, hounded by disaster, came finally to grips with halting the Blitzkrieg. this volume culminates in Stalin's strategic offensive which turned the tide at Stalingrad. He considers these complex military situations with authoritative accuracy, and at the same time conveys the relevance of massive detail on troop movements and staff decisions.Professor Erickson brings together economic, political, strategic and intelligence material in the most complete account of this mammoth subject ever published. His research includes documents from both Russian and German sources previously unpublished and unobtainable. He combines scholarship with fascinating readability in this definitive study of the dual between Hitler and Stalin.