KV-1 and KV-2 Heavy Tanks - USSR: Books - History and Construction

Stalin's Giants - KV-I and KV-II

This book covers the larger heavy tanks of Russia, the KV-I and KV-II.

KV-1 & 2 Heavy Tanks, 1939-1945

Named after Klimenti Voroshilov, the People's Commissar for Defence, the KVs proved a nasty surprise for German tank crews during the early days of Operation Barbarossa. Although slow, they were extremely heavily armoured.
This volume examines the transition from multi-turreted tanks to heavy single-turret vehicles, consisting of the KV-1 and 2, and the increased favour given to the heavy single-turret after the Germans began to develop ammunition capable of penetrating even the thickest armour, whilst detailing the design, development and operational history of the Soviet Union's monstrous KV series of tanks.

Contents: Design and Development - Inside the KV-1 - Operational History - Improvements in Armament - Variants - Tactical Problems.

Panzerjäger vs KV-1 - Eastern Front, 1941-42

On the Soviet side, based upon lessons from the Spanish Civil War, the Red Army decided to develop a heavy "breakthrough" tank to smash enemy infantry defenses. This resulted in the KV-1 and KV-2 tanks, introduced in 1939.

At the start of Operation Barbarossa, both these tanks were virtually invulnerable to the weapons of the Panzerjäger and demonstrated their ability to overrun German infantry on several occasions. This advantage gave the Red Army a window of opportunity between the fall of 1941 and the spring of 1942 to use their heavy tanks to repel the German invasion in a series of desperate counteroffensives.

Yet the window of Soviet advantage was a narrow one and the duel between the Soviet KV heavy tanks and German Panzerjäger had a major impact upon the struggle for the strategic initiative in 1941-42.

KV Tanks on the Battlefield

Contains 120 photos of the KV-I, KV-II and KV-85 in Russian and German service. Large format photos, one to a page, mostly unpublished.

Schwere sowjetische Panzer 1930-1945

Die Sowjets begannen früher als die Deutschen mit dem Bau von schweren Panzern. Doch die ersten Modelle erwiesen sich als viel zu schwer und unbeweglich. Später nach Kriegsausbruch überraschte der schwere russische Panzer KW-1 und 1943 die vom deutschen Tiger-Panzer angeregten JS-1 und 2 die Welt.

Alexander Lüdeke konzentriert sich in diesem Band auf die schweren Panzer der Sowjets, die von 1939 bis 1945 gebaut wurden. Dabei beschreibt er nicht nur die Haupttypen T-35, T-100, die KW- und JS-Reihe, sondern zahlreiche Varianten.
Darüber hinaus geht er auf die Entwicklung und die Einsatzgeschichte der Typen ein.