The Road To Kiev: Trouble At The Top (Part 1)

Al Murray (0:02)

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James Holland (2:03)

On the strategic access of Moscow, the Germans are unable to mount a major offensive operation in the near future, owing to their heavy losses and they lack appreciable reserves to secure the right and left wings of Army Group Center.

On the Leningrad access, it is impossible for the Germans to begin an operation to capture Leningrad and link up with the Finns without additional forces. The most dangerous and weakest sector of our line is the Central Front. Since the armies covering Unsch and Gomel are weak and badly equipped, the Germans can use this present weak spot to strike into the flank and rear of the Southwestern Front. And that, of course, was Marshal Yogi Zhukov writing to the Stavka, Stalin, to all intents and purposes, on the 29th of July, 1941

Al Murray (3:00)

Well, Jim, thank you very much for ventriloquising him so ably there. That was a very special moment. Welcome, everyone, to We Have Ways of Making You Talk with me, Al Murray and James Holland, your second WW2 podcast of choice. And welcome back to our Barbarossa series. And we are looking at The Road To Kiev, aren't we, Jim? Let's just get this straight out of the way right now. We're calling it Kiev because that's what it was known at, as at the time.

We are 100% Kiev people currently without a shadow of a doubt. I think it's fair to say, Jim. But at the time it was known as Kiev. So we're going to stick with that. After all, all the accounts say that, it would be sort of an act of mental gymnastics to just change it endlessly. And actually anachronistic. And we don't do anachronisms on this podcast, do we Jim?

James Holland (3:45)

Not at all.

Al Murray (3:46)

No, never.

James Holland (3:47)

In any shape or form.

Al Murray (3:48)

In any shape or form.

James Holland (3:48)

We like to stick to the original script.

Al Murray (3:51)

Exactly. Well, so we left our last Barbarossa series at the end of July 1941 So we covered the best part of a month and a half, didn't we?

James Holland (4:04)

In eight episodes, yes.

Al Murray (4:06)

Eight episodes. And there's so many moving parts. There's so many parts to the sort of huge, cogged machine that is this story.

James Holland (4:14)

And can I just point out that the next four episodes, they're only going to get us to the next six weeks as well.

Al Murray (4:19)

Fine. That's all right. That's all right. I think people understand that's the nature of this particular beast. But the German effort at the end of July 41 is really, or their initial effort is running out of puff. And especially the effort of its army group center that is really beginning to sort of run out of steam.

And also, helpfully for the campaign, the military genius has decided to...

James Holland (4:49)

The one and only.

Al Murray (4:50)

stick his oar in. Mr. Adolf Hitler.