Opening the Gates of Hell
Operation Barbarossa, June–July 1941
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Publishing:5th Jun '25
£30.00
This title is due to be published on 5th June, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

A unique account of the opening weeks of history’s largest, most brutal conflict, told through the eyes of those who were there and based on original source material from across Europe.
Opening the Gates of Hell is based on over a decade’s research in archives and sites across Europe. It is a ground-breaking examination of the start of the Nazi–Soviet conflict, a narrative history not just of the fighting, but also the impact on civilians, the atrocities committed by both sides and ethnic cleansing carried out by the inhabitants of the regions invaded.
This fascinating history tells the stories of bravery, cowardice, misery and horror through the eyes of those who were there including ordinary soldiers, generals, leaders, politicians and civilians on both sides. The book draws on published and unpublished sources from across Germany and Eastern Europe with the majority of the material never having appeared in English-language accounts of the conflict before.
The combination of combat accounts, analysis of high-level diplomacy and leadership and the visceral accounts of the atrocities committed by both sides gives this book a unique approach to the war on the Eastern Front and will ensure that it is regarded as the definitive work on the subject for many years to come.
ISBN: 9781472869463
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
496 pages