The Last Battle: The Fall of Berlin, 1945 (Wordsworth Military Library)

The Battle for Berlin was the culminating struggle of WWII in Europe, the last offensive against Hitler's 3rd Reich, which devastated one of Europe's historic capitals & marked the final defeat of Nazi Germany. It was also one of the war's bloodiest & most pivotal battles, whose outcome would shape international politics for decades to come. The Last Battle is Ryan's compelling account of this final battle, a story of brutal extremes, of stunning military triumph alongside the stark conditions that the civilians of Berlin experienced in the face of the Allied assault. As always, Ryan delves beneath the military & political forces that were dictating events to explore the more immediate imperatives of survival, where, as the author describes it, "to eat had become more important than to love, to burrow more dignified than to fight, to exist more militarily correct than to win." The Last Battle is the story of ordinary people, soldiers & civilians, caught up in the despair, frustration & terror of defeat. It's history at its best, a masterful illumination of the effects of war on the lives of individuals & one of the enduring works on WWII.
Foreword
The city
The general
The objective
The decision
The battle
A Note on Casualties
The Soldiers & Civilians: That They Do Today
Bibliography
Acknowledgments
Index