Blood On The Shores; Soviet SEALs in World War II

New York, N.Y.: Ivy Books, 1994. First Balantine Books Edition [stated]. First printing [stated]. Mass market paperback. Fair. [14], 287, [3] pages. Illustrations. Appendixes. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Front cover has become detached and reattached with tape. Includes Foreword; Acknowledgments Translator's Note; Introduction; Early Experiences; Strength Meets Strength; On Hill 4115; A Rookie Arrives in the Detachment; In a Double Ring of Encirclement; Black Devils; Before the Decisive Blow; Face to Face; Final Missions; and In Place of an Epilogue. From the Arctic Circle to the shores of Japan, Russia's most famous naval scout describes his deadly missions in the Soviet Navy's World War II version of the U.S. Navy's SEALs. Viktor Leonov tells how these elite recon troops acquired their special skills--initially in actual combat--to beat Hitler's formidable 20th Mountain Army, which occupied Russia's Scandinavian borders and threatened the ports receiving crucial American Convoys. Dressed in white, their weapons concealed in white sacks, these naval commandos employed methods as diverse as skiing, navigation by azimuth, parachute and submarine insertions, and climbing icy cliffs to carry out their operations in the polar nights. Whether raiding, capturing German officers, organizing partisan activities, or vectoring air strikes, the scouts exhibited the exceptional operational security, surprise, and daring that ultimately drove the Germans out of Norway and Finland and made the Russian commandos' exploits legendary throughout the North and the Far East. Viktor Nikolayevich Leonov (21 November [O.S. 8 November] 1916, in Zaraysk - 7 October 2003, in Moscow) was a Soviet Navy officer and twice Hero of the Soviet Union. Considered a legend in the Soviet era after the war, he frequently gave speeches to Communist organizations about the war, but he became obscure after the fall of the Soviet Union. Following the start of Operation Barbarossa in 1941, Leonov sent a report on his enrollment in the 181st Separate Reconnaissance Detachment of the Northern Fleet, in which he conducted about 50 combat operations in the rear of the enemy since 18 July 1941. In October 1944, during the Petsamo-Kirkenes Offensive, the naval scouts under the command of Leonov landed on the shore occupied by the Wehrmacht, and for two days made their way to the designated point in the harsh off-road conditions, unable to make fire in order to warm up and prepare food. On the morning of October 12, they suddenly attacked the 88-mm battery at Cape Krestovoy. They managed to capture it and also capture a large number of Nazi soldiers. When a boat with a Nazi soldiers attempted to make landing towards their position, Leonov along with a detachment of Ivan Barchenko-Yemelyanov repulsed the attacks, and captured about 60 enemy soldiers. This battle ensured the success of the Soviet landing in Liinakhamari, which led to capture of the port and city by Soviet forces. Thus, Leonov's detachment, by its actions, created favorable conditions for the landing of Soviet troops in the ice-free port of Liinakhamari and the subsequent liberation of Petsamo and Kirkenes. For doing so he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for the first time on 5 November 1944. After the defeat of Nazi Germany on May 1945, Leonov was assigned to the Far East where he took part in the Soviet-Japanese War in August 1945. As a front-line intelligence officer attached to the 140th Separate Reconnaissance Detachment of the Soviet Pacific Fleet headquarters, the unit under his command took part in the amphibious landing of the Soviet troops into Japanese-occupied Korea, where they landed at the port cities of Seishin, Genzan and Rajin-guyok, which are located at the northern portion of the Korean Peninsula. At the port city of Genzan, the naval scouts under Leonov's command were credited with capturing and disarming 200 officers and 3500 soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army in addition to capturing three artillery batteries, five aircraft and several ammunition depots. Leonov received the title Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time on 14 September 1945.