Book Alert: G.S. Isserson and the War of the Future

Those interested in the development of Soviet armored and combined arms warfare doctrine in the pre-WW2 era may find this recently released book worth looking into, G.S. Isserson and the War of the Future: Key Writings of a Soviet Military Theorist.  Although less well-known than Mikhail Tukhachevsky, G. S. Isserson was one of the architects of the Soviet Doctrine known as “Deep Operations.”  Unlike Tukhachevsky, Isserson survived Stalin’s officer purge prior to the war, although his career was ended before the war began. This is the second book that author Richard W. Harrison has written on Isserson.  At the bottom of this post we have also provided a youtube clip of author Richard Harrison giving a talk on Isserson for those interested in learning more about this important, yet relatively forgotten figure in Soviet military history.

Publishers Description:

Georgii Samoilovich Isserson (1898-1976) was one of the most prescient and prolific authors on military art in the years preceding World War II. His theories greatly influenced the Red Army’s conduct of operations and were instrumental in achieving victory over Germany. This book gathers together for the first time English translations of Isserson’s most influential works, including some that are still classified. His writings on the preparation and conduct of the deep offensive operation–the deployment of tanks, mechanized infantry, air power and airborne troops to penetrate deeply echeloned defenses–also serve as a primer on how to construct a position to defeat such an attack. His well argued defense of the deep operation based on an examination of recent wars and his reminiscences about the people and events that shaped Soviet military theory in the 1930s are included.