A Selection of the History Book Club and Military Book Club
An engrossing account of a little-known but dramatic World War I battle for control of the Baltic
"A campaign relatively unknown even in the field of military history, Albion was quite significant in dictating events on the Eastern Front in World War I. It features a sea battle between German dreadnoughts and a Russian battleship; the use of aircraft and zeppelins; and an attack and dramatic stand by bicycle troops. And Michael Barrett writes very well, indeed." —Malcolm Muir, Jr., author of The Human Tradition in the World War II Era
". . . Michael Barrett provides both the World War I enthusiast and the seasoned naval professional a detailed look at one of the past century's early forays into opposed amphibious landings." —Andrew G. Wilson, Naval History , Oct. 1, 2008
"In the end, what we have in Operation Albion is a thorougly researched, well organized, and very well-written history of an operation that deserves to be more widely studied." —Mark D. Karau, The Journal of Military HIstory , October 2008
"This book will remain the definitive account of this most unusual operation in World War I for some tiime to come." —Richard L. Dinardo, The NYMAS Review , October 20 2008
"Specialists in the history of the Great War and the operational history of any period, historians of Germany and of Russia, and anyone with a general interest in well-written military history will enjoy reading this book." —Jesse Kauffman, Stanford University, H-German , March 2009
". . . the work is extremely well-researched and it fills a large void in the history of the First World War. I highly recommend the book, in particular to students and scholars of the period." —Mark D. Karau, University of Wisconsin, H-German , April 2009
"[Barrett's] book will remain the definitive account of this most unusual operation in World War I for sometime to come." —Richard L. DiNardo, USMC Command & Staff College, H-German , April 2009
"Michael Barrett deftly tells the tale of the most successful amphibious operation of World War I. . . . As a work of military history the book is exemplary. . . . In short, this book deserves its place in a series on twentieth-century battles." —Russian Review , January 2009
In October 1917, an invasion force of some 25,000 German soldiers, accompanied by a flotilla of 10 dreadnoughts, 350 other vessels, a half-dozen zeppelins, and 80 aircraft, attacked the Baltic islands of Dago, Osel, and Moon at the head of the Gulf of Riga. It proved to be the most successful amphibious operation of World War I. The three islands fell, the Gulf was opened to German warships and was now a threat to Russian naval bases in the Gulf of Finland, and 20,000 Russians were captured. The invasion proved to be the last major operation in the East. Although the invasion had achieved its objectives and placed the Germans in an excellent position for the resumption of warfare in the spring, within three weeks of the operation, the Bolsheviks took power in Russia (November 7, 1917) and Albion faded into obscurity as the war in the East came to a slow end.
Michael B. Barrett is Professor of History at the Citadel and Brigadier General (retired), U.S. Army Reserve. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina.
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Distribution: World
Publication date: 7/9/2009
Format: cloth 312 pages, 28 b&w photos, 9 maps, 6.125 x 9.25
ISBN-13: 978-0-253-34969-9
ISBN: 0-253-34969-9
