Commander
Georgy Zhukov
Also Known As Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov
Modern
Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov (1 December 1896 - 18 June 1974) was a Soviet general who rose to Marshal of the Soviet Union and served as deputy commander-in-chief of the Soviet armed forces under Joseph Stalin. He organized the defense of Stalingrad in 1942 and helped direct the Soviet counteroffensive that encircled the German Sixth Army there, then commanded the 1st Belorussian Front in the final Soviet assault that captured Berlin in 1945. He is remembered as one of the greatest Soviet military leaders of the Second World War, though historians still debate whether his operational successes came at a disproportionate cost in Soviet casualties. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Birth DateGregorian calendar date; the Julian (Old Style) date used in Russia at the time was 19 November 1896. BirthplaceStrelkovka, Kaluga Governorate, Russian Empire 1 RankMarshal of the Soviet Union (1943-1957); deputy commander-in-chief of the Soviet armed forces under Stalin 1 Defining ContributionOrganized the defense of Stalingrad in 1942 and helped direct the Soviet counteroffensive that encircled the German Sixth Army, then commanded the 1st Belorussian Front in the final Soviet assault that captured Berlin in 1945. 1 Notable WorkMemories and Recollections, his memoirs, begun in 1958 1 Connections
Associated With
Zhukov applied deep operation doctrine to major effect at Stalingrad and Berlin but was not among its original 1920s-1930s theorists (Triandafillov, Tukhachevsky, Svechin, Frunze); developed-by is reserved here for the doctrine's actual originators, none of whom are yet minted as commanders in this atlas.
Source Wikipedia: Deep operation
Zhukov held major commands on this front (Stalingrad, then the 1st Belorussian Front at Berlin) but, unlike this atlas's other founding wars, no single commander led the entire multi-year Eastern Front; led-by is reserved here for the individual battles where Zhukov's command role is directly documented.
Source Wikipedia: Georgy Zhukov
Battles and Wars Led
Source Wikipedia: Battle of Berlin
Source Wikipedia: Battle of Kursk
Additional Source Wikipedia: Battle of MoscowInfobox: Commanders (Soviet, Western Front)
Source Wikipedia: Georgy Zhukov
Additional Source Wikipedia: Siege of LeningradInfobox: Commanders (Soviet)
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Russia, found in there.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Georgy Zhukov
WikipediaLead section
Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov (1 December [O.S. 19 November] 1896 - 18 June 1974)...achieved the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union...Zhukov is remembered as one of the greatest Russian and Soviet military leaders of all time.
Infobox
Moscow, Soviet Union
Lead section and Infobox
achieved the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union...served as deputy commander-in-chief of the armed forces under leader Joseph Stalin.
- The Eastern front and March on Berlin sections
Later life section
Zhukov had begun writing his memoirs, Memories and Recollections, in 1958.
- Associated With: Eastern Front (World War II)
Battles and Wars Led: Battle of Stalingrad, The Eastern front section
In late August 1942, Zhukov was made deputy commander in chief, subordinate only to Stalin, and sent to the southwestern front to take charge of the defence of Stalingrad.
View the Source Wikipedia: Battle of Berlin
WikipediaBattles and Wars Led: Battle of Berlin, Preparations sectionQuote, Battles and Wars Led: Battle of Berlin, Preparations section
Marshal Georgy Zhukov concentrated his 1st Belorussian Front, which had been deployed along the Oder river.
Wikipedia: Deep operation
Wikipedia: Battle of Kursk
Wikipedia: Siege of Leningrad
Battles and Wars Led: Siege of Leningrad, Infobox: Commanders (Soviet)Quote, Battles and Wars Led: Siege of Leningrad, Infobox: Commanders (Soviet)
Georgy Zhukov
Wikipedia: Battle of Moscow
Battles and Wars Led: Battle of Moscow, Infobox: Commanders (Soviet, Western Front)Quote, Battles and Wars Led: Battle of Moscow, Infobox: Commanders (Soviet, Western Front)
Georgy Zhukov
Dissenting Readings (1 dissenting reading)
Defining Contribution
A view that became widespread in the post-Soviet period holds that Zhukov was a "butcher" and "poacher of the Russian people" who spent his soldiers' lives carelessly to win. Military historian Aleksei Isaev disputes this characterization, arguing that measured as a percentage of the troops under his command, Zhukov "has consistently lower casualties in percentage terms than other commanders," including contemporaries such as Konev and Malinovsky.
A dissenting reading, from an independent laneRussia Beyond: The BEST Soviet Military Commander of World War II, Russia Beyond
Frequently Asked Questions
Was Zhukov really a "butcher" who wasted his soldiers' lives?
Historians are divided: some call him careless with soldiers' lives, others point to his comparatively low casualty rate as a percentage of his forces.
Historians disagree. A view that became widespread after the Soviet Union's collapse holds that Zhukov was a "butcher" who spent lives carelessly to win. Military historian Aleksei Isaev disputes this, arguing that measured as a percentage of the troops under his command, Zhukov had consistently lower casualty rates than contemporaries such as Konev and Malinovsky, and that his major operations, including the meticulously planned 1944 Operation Bagration, were built around reducing unnecessary losses rather than accepting them. Both readings agree Zhukov's campaigns were extremely costly in absolute terms, which was typical of the entire Eastern Front; they disagree on whether that cost reflects carelessness or the sheer scale of the fighting.
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