Violence and Occupation

This groundbreaking history traces the Red Army's advances across central Europe and the Balkans in 1944-1945. It focuses on the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts that occupied Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Austria. Utilizing material from archives across Russia, Ukraine, and Serbia, alongside diaries, memoirs, and interviews, Vojin Majstorovic examines the official policies and troops' behavior in each country and analyzes military violations, from deserting and looting to widespread sexual violence. His findings show that the Red Army was an ill-disciplined force, but that military personnel committed fewer crimes against civilians in 'neutral Bulgaria' and 'friendly' Yugoslavia than in 'enemy' Romania, Hungary, and Austria. To explain the variation in troops' conduct, he stresses the interaction of several continuously evolving factors: Kremlin's policies, the severity of the fighting, the command's policies toward criminals, the official propaganda, and troops' martial masculinity, identity, and views of the local populations.

Author: Vojin Majstorovic
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 01/19/2026
Series: Cambridge Military Histories
Pages: 340
Weight: 1.37lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.81d
ISBN: 9781009652445