| Third Axis Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941-1945 |  | Authors: Mark Axworthy, Cornel Scafes, Cristian Craciunoiu
Publisher: Arms & Armour
Category: Book
List Price: $34.95
Buy New: $29.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 791460
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 9.8 x 6.8 x 1.5
ISBN: 1854092677
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.5409498
EAN: 9781854092670
ASIN: 1854092677
Publication Date: May 1995
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Condition: New - 2007 SOFTCOVER Reprint
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Romania was the third Axis element in Europe, yet suffered some of the highest casualties of the Allied nations in the last year of the war. This account of Romania's changing allegiance and its part in World War II draws on details from the recently opened archives. Details chart: the relationships between Romania and other Axis powers; the importance of Romania to Hitler, its operational record; the international coup d'etat and liberation; and the change to support the Allied cause. The authors also provide full coverage of the personalities, weaponry and orders of battle.
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| Customer Reviews:
 The best! December 27, 2008
Simply put, this is the best book in English for the Romanian Armed Forces in World War II. Anyone interested in the Eastern Front in WWII must have it.
An Excellent Introduction January 16, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is an excellent introduction to a subject unjustly ignored by English-speaking historians; to date, it is still the only comprehensive account of Romania's military involvement in WW2 in English. Very well written and lavishly illustrated with maps and diagrams, it is invaluable for anyone interested in operations on the Eastern Front.
However, it does have a number of shortcomings. On the minor side, a short guide to Romanian pronunciation would have been useful, and there should have been uniformity in the usage of Romanian diacritics; as it is, they seem to have been used haphazardly. An appendix with summary biographical data on the Romanian officers mentioned in the text would also have been a valuable addition.
A more serious flaw is the absence of a detailed bibliography; but the single most important shortcoming is the lack of a critical apparatus. There are no footnotes or endnotes to indicate the sources of various statements, so there's no way to verify their accuracy, consider the context, or follow them further.
The book has been too long out of print. One hopes that a reprint is not too far off; but I suppose that a new edition, including attributions, is a little too much to hope for.
One of the ten most important books on the Eastern Front in WWII: An exceptionally original and comprehensive military history. February 1, 2006
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
This book is not just the only English-language book on its subject, but it stands comparison with the best English-language studies of any individual country's armed forces in WWII.
The book has ten chapters. Chapter 1 is a survey of Romania and its armed forces prior to the war. Chapters 2-6 each cover one annual campaign over 1941-45. Chapter 7 is on Romanian armour, Chapter 8 is on the Romanian aircraft industry, Chapter 9 is on Romanian air force operations and Chapter 10 is on Romanian naval operations.
The book is packed with unique research, maps, line drawings, charts, organigrams and photographs, virtually none of which are available elsewhere. There is also a most comprehensive index.
I hesitate to describe any WWII book as definitive or indispensable on its subject, but "Third Axis, Fourth Ally" comes as close as any. Indeed, I consider it one of the ten most important books on the Eastern Front in WWII, dealing, as it does, with the third most important participant and its armed forces.
For anyone interested in the military history of WWII, I recommend it most strongly.
P. A. S. Jefferson
 A valuable look at an often-overlooked factor in WWII... August 22, 1998
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
Although Romania's contribution to World War II, both on the Axis and Allied sides, was much greater than Italy's, it has received very little attention in the West. This is mainly because almost all Romanian action was on the Eastern Front, save for air actions against Western Allied planes raiding over Romanian oil-refining plants, and therefore got little attention from West-oriented historians. Axworthy has remedied this situation with this dry, thorough, careful overview of the Romanian experience in World War II. This is a valuable reference tool, but not for pleasure reading...hopefully, the change in circumstances in Eastern Europe will eventually bring out livelier memoirs of Romanian veterans before they all pass away.
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