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Fire & Ice

Arctic Convoys 1941-1945

Simon Lister

$97.95   $83.30

Hardback

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English
Paul Honeywill
17 November 2022
The Arctic convoys run to the ports of Northern Russia from 1941 to 1945 combined the man-made and maritime horrors of the Battle of the Atlantic with the unforgiving ferocity of one of the most inhospitable of the world's climates. Maintaining that lifeline through the waters of the Arctic circle was essential to the development and maintenance of the Anglo-American alliance with the Soviet Union. With the massive campaign on Germany's Eastern front hanging in the balance in 1941 to 1942, the German Armed Forces deployed significant numbers of submarines, bomber and torpedo aircraft, together with heavy ships such as the Tirpitz and Scharnhorst, against the slow-moving Allied convoys of merchant ships and their escorting forces. The challenge to maintain this lifeline placed a heavy burden on the resources of the Royal Navy. Here, in a contemporary battle summary, prepared by the Naval Staff of the Royal Navy, and supported by academic analysis and an extensive photographic section, those challenges and difficulties, the tragedies and the triumphs of the Arctic convoys, are laid bare. A Shared Strategic Goal. The Arctic Convoys reflect the need to be able to work with enemies who become allies, and vice versa, and understand the strategic circumstances and imperatives that drive those choices. This strategic perspective and agility characterised Churchill's approach to Stalin and the Soviet Union. It is notable that British co-operation with the Soviet Union started before the US had entered the war, and continued to the end, reflecting British strategic national interests throughout. The intent and comradeship forged through the existence of a common foe survived the many operational set-backs and doubts on both sides, and speaks clearly to the need in these matters to have a clear, shared strategic goal and enduring commitment to its achievement. Leadership of Effective Collaboration. The collaboration and integration at a working level that was achieved in a short space of time was remarkable, given the suspicion and gulf of political outlook that existed at the outset. Genuine collaboration and integration delivered a whole that was greater than the sum of its parts. what Churchill is credited with calling 'the worst journey in the world.'

By:  
Imprint:   Paul Honeywill
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 233mm,  Width: 158mm, 
ISBN:   9781838010775
ISBN 10:   1838010777
Pages:   500
Publication Date:  
Audience:   College/higher education ,  A / AS level
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Simon Lister joined the Royal Navy in 1978. After training at the Royal Naval Engineering College at Manadon and the Royal Naval College, Greenwich gaining an MSc in Nuclear Engineering in 1986, was subsequently appointed the marine engineer officer of the submarine Odin. He went on to be marine engineer officer of Torbay and then Trenchant in 1993. He became Naval Assistant to the Chief Executive of the Ship Support Agency in 1994 and, after attending the London Business School in 1996, he became Director, Naval Plans at the Ministry of Defence in 1997 and then Naval Attach� in Moscow in 2001. He became head of the team responsible for phase one of the internal restructuring programme at the Defence Logistics Organisation in 2004. Lister went on to be Commander, HM Naval Base Plymouth in 2005, Senior Naval Member on the Directing Staff at the Royal College of Defence Studies in 2008 and Director, Submarines in 2009. Lister became Chief of Materiel (Fleet) and Chief of Fleet Support with promotion to the rank of Vice-Admiral in 2013. In 2017, he was appointed as interim head of the Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) and given the title of Chief of Materiel (Submarines). Appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the2001 Birthday Honours, Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2013 New Year Honours, and Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2017 Birthday Honours. In 2017 Lister took a sabbatical from his Royal Navy Career to lead the Aircraft Carrier Alliance delivering the nation's new Queen Elizabeth Class carriers. He retired from active naval service in 2019. Following his retirement, Lister became Managing Director of BAE Systems's naval ships business. In 2021, he additionally became a non- executive director on the board of the Office for Nuclear Regulation. Recently he has been a member of the Scottish Government's National Strategy for Economic Transformation Delivery Board.

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