Overview

This handbook brings together historical and contemporary essays about Soviet and Russian military studies, to offer a comprehensive volume on the topic. Comprising essays written by acknowledged specialists, the handbook examines the development of the Russian and Soviet armed forces from the Napoleonic Wars all the way through to the course and conduct of the ‘Special Military Operation’ in Ukraine. Divided into thematic and chronological sections, the volume looks at wars fought by the Tsarist regime through to the First World War; the Soviet Union’s ‘Great Patriotic War’, from 1941 to 1945; the Cold War (including the Soviet war in Afghanistan); and Russia’s post-Soviet wars and military development. In addition, the volume also includes a section that analyses a number of ‘overarching themes’, including the development of Russian and Soviet airpower, partisan warfare, counterinsurgency and the role of women in Russian and Soviet armed forces. The volume concludes with an essay looking at whether, using the historical material and material on the conduct of the war in Ukraine, we can reasonably talk of a ‘Russian way of war’. This volume will be of considerable interest to students of the Soviet Union and Russia, strategic studies and military history.

Full Product Details

Author:   Alexander Hill
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
Weight:   1.240kg
ISBN:  

9781032407630

ISBN 10:   1032407638
Pages:   564
Publication Date:   24 February 2025
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Undergraduate ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Introduction Part I: Chronological topics 1. The Russian Army and the Napoleonic Wars 2. Russian Colonial Warfare in the Caucasus and Central Asia 3. War in the Borderlands: The Crimean War and Russo-Turkish Wars of 1828-29 and 1877-78 4. From Port Arthur into the Abyss: The Russo-Japanese War and its Aftermath 5. The Russian Army and the First World War: The View from Outside 6. The Russian Civil War 7. The Inter-war Development of Soviet Military Theory 8. From Tsushima to Berlin and the Kurile Islands: Russian and Soviet Naval Power, 1905-45 9. The Soviet Union, Foreign Military Assistance and the ‘Small Wars’ of the Inter-War Period 10. Soviet Strategy during the Second World War 11. Stalin’s War: Soviet Command and Control during the Great Patriotic War 12. The Soviet Armed Forces in the Mirror of the Enemy, 1933-41 13. The Soviet Home Front and the Great Patriotic War, 1941-45 14. The Impact and Aftermath of the Second World War in the Soviet Union 15. The Significance of the Great Patriotic War's Collective Memory in the USSR and Russia 16. The Development of the Soviet Armed Forces and Military Doctrine after 1945 17. From the Tsar-Bomba to START-I: The Evolution of the Soviet Strategic Nuclear Deterrent, 1945-91 18. Soviet Military Assistance and Advising, 1953-91 19. The Soviet War in Afghanistan 20. Russian Military Reform and Development, 1992-2021 21. U.S.-Russian Nuclear Weapons, Arms Control and Strategic Missile Defence: Past, Present and Future 22. The Chechen Wars 23. Russia and the War in Donbass, 2014-15 Part II: Overarching Themes 24. ‘Hybrid’, ‘Non-Linear’ and ‘New-Type’ Warfare in Soviet and Russian Theory and Practice 25. Russian and Soviet Logistics from 1700 to the Present Day 26. Russian and Soviet Partisan Warfare 27. Russian and Soviet Military Aviation 28. The Soviet and Russian Navies: From the Cold War to the Cold War 2.0, 1945-2024 29. Women in the Russian and Soviet Armed Forces 30. Soviet Counter-insurgency: From the Civil War to Afghanistan 31. Predictions of Future Conflict in Soviet and Russian Military Exercises, 1929-2021 Part III: The War in Ukraine 32. Russia’s ‘Special Military Operation’ in Ukraine: Military Successes and Failures during 2022 33. The War in Ukraine, January 2023 to July 2024 34. Strategic Leadership of the Russian Armed Forces in Russo-Ukrainian War: Valerii Gerasimov and the Contemporary Importance of the ‘Great Patriotic War’, 1941-45 35. The Ukraine War and the Power/Order Debate in Russia: ‘Let the Storm Rage On!’ 36. Understanding Russia’s ‘Special Military Operation’ in the Context of Its Wider Military History: Some Thoughts on a ‘Russian Way of War’

Reviews

'Combining empirical and analytical material on key moments in Soviet and Russian military history, this is a thought-provoking compendium of works by leading experts in their respective fields. Analysis of Russia’s strategic and military culture provides invaluable insights into the dynamics of the Russo-Ukrainian war.’ Richard Sakwa, University of Kent, UK ‘Alexander Hill has gathered a galaxy of stellar researchers whose expertise combines to produce the definitive sourcebook on Russia’s military history, doctrines and practices. Their cutting-edge contributions are as innovative as they are deep and make this book the essential starting-point for students and scholars of Russian and Soviet military studies.’ Geoffrey Roberts, University College Cork, Ireland

'Combining empirical and analytical material on key moments in Soviet and Russian military history, this is a thought-provoking compendium of works by leading experts in their respective fields. Analysis of Russia’s strategic and military culture provides invaluable insights into the dynamics of the Russo-Ukrainian war.’ Richard Sakwa, University of Kent, UK ‘Alexander Hill has gathered a galaxy of stellar researchers whose expertise combines to produce the definitive sourcebook on Russia’s military history, doctrines and practices. Their cutting-edge contributions are as innovative as they are deep and make this book the essential starting-point for students and scholars of Russian and Soviet military studies.’ Geoffrey Roberts, University College Cork, Ireland 'It is a fine work exploring the complex structure of the Russian military from the era of Tsars to the New Tsar in the 21st century.' Punsara Amarasinghe & Davide Orsitto, The RUSI Journal, 170:6-7, December 2025

Author Information

Alexander Hill is a Professor in Military History at the University of Calgary, Canada, and a fellow of its Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies. He is the author or editor of several books, including The Red Army and the Second World War (2017).

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