The words "Murmansk Run" conjure visions of ice-laden ships and thoughts of freezing to death in seconds. For five long years, thousands of men and women fought ferociously in the coldest corner of hell on earth. Some fought for survival, some struggled to help others survive, and some sought to crush their enemies. If man-made death didn't get you, the Arctic's weapons of ice and cold would. These natural weapons killed regardless of whose side you were on or how just was your cause. No one escaped unscathed. Author Mike Walling captures the Arctic convoys’ bitter essence in Forgotten Sacrifice.

The story launches in October 1939, when Germany and the Soviet Union began diplomatic maneuvering. The action accelerates with Winston Churchill's decision in 1941 to provide supplies to Soviet forces battling the German invasion. From this point until the closing days of WWII in spring 1945, an unremitting sea battle raged within the confines of the always-lethal, ever-shifting Arctic ice pack and the savage Scandinavian coastline. Nearly 4.5 million tons of supplies were moved in 77 convoys over the course of 5 years in order to help the Soviet war effort. The Allies fought to keep the sea lanes open to Murmansk while the Germans were determined to slaughter every ship which dared to make the attempt. By the end of the convoys, 98 ships had been lost. Forgotten Sacrifice reveals a timeless tale of determination, heroism, sacrifice, and the strength of the human spirit.

In Forgotten Sacrifice, historian Michael G. Walling tells the complete story of the Arctic Convoys and the vital role they played in helping Russia repel the Germans. The tale involves torpedo attacks and survival at sea in open boats in the biting cold; Stuka dive bombers, naval guns, and weeks of total darkness in the Arctic winter; ships disappearing into the sea because of the ice and snow that weighed down their decks; and political calculations that needlessly put countless men into harm’s way. There are colorful stories of the female workforce that staffed the Soviet ports and of the meager, frozen conditions that awaited Allied sailors when they finally reached their icy destinations. Life in port was barely more comfortable than life at sea during the Arctic Convoys.

Drawing on hundreds of oral histories from eyewitnesses and veterans of the convoys, plus original research into the Russian Naval archives at Murmansk, Walling offers a fresh retelling of one of the Second World War’s pivotal, yet largely overlooked campaigns.