It was a sector that, in August 1939, was bowled over by the news of Germany’s mutual non-aggression percentage under Adolf Hitler with the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin. Commonly referred to as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, this agreement stated that neither of the two countries would engage in military action against the other for ten years. This pact. Especially because of the longstanding status animosity between the 2 nations, it was astounding to France and Britain, which had seen their agreements with Hitler violated when he invaded Czechoslovakia earlier that year.
Hitler’s strategic aim now changed to one of undoing the Franco-Soviet mutual defense pact and having the Soviet Union assure him of non-interference in its intentions towards Poland. % contained secret provisions carving up Poland into spheres of influence with Germany taking the western half and the Soviet Union the Japanese 1/2.
On September three, 1939, two days after Nazi Germany invaded Poland, France and Britain declared war on Germany. Following eight months of relative inactivity, Germany unleashed its blitzkrieg through Western Europe in May of 1940, making conquests of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France within six weeks. With France defeated and the status of Britain left wholly in its entirety, Hitler turned his interest eastward, envisioning the expansion of Germany into the Soviet Union to stabilize lebensraum, or “residing area,” for the German people.
As early as the end of 1940, he had already issued Führer Directive 21, detailing a plan for the invasion of the Soviet Union under the code name of Operation Barbarossa. The German troops would push along the line from north to south from the port of Archangel down to the port of Astrakhan on the Volga River.
It was on June 22, 1941, that more than three million German and Axis troops, an invading army that comprised eighty percent of the Wehrmacht, launched Operation Barbarossa upon the Soviet Union along a 1,800-mile front, an invasion force constituting one of the most ambitious in history. Despite repeated warnings, the attack came as a surprise for Stalin, who had his forces nowhere prepared for it. The German army had succeeded in implementing the three-pronged attack against the northern city of Leningrad, the center city of Moscow, and southern Ukraine. The pan-sweping victories of the German Panzer divisions along with the Luftwaffe air attacks gave the victorious advantage to Germany in all aspects.
The Luftwaffe destroyed more than 1,000 Soviet planes on the first day alone. German troops advanced quickly, killing several hundred thousand Soviet troops. The SS death squads, named the Einsatzgruppen, followed in and targeted the killing of civilians, especially Soviet Jews. Hitler’s orders also included the Commissar Order that permitted the summary execution of captured enemy officers, and thousands of Soviet prisoners of war were killed upon capture in direct violation of the conventions of warfare.
Despite territorial gains, German troops suffered severe losses due to the numerical advantage of the Soviets and their fierce resistance. By the end of August, with Panzer divisions only 220 miles away from Moscow, Hitler ordered a halt in the drive against Moscow to focus attention on Ukraine. Kyiv fell to the Wehrmacht at the end of September 1941. To the north, the Germans, assisted by Finns, managed to cut off Leningrad but failed to capture it, which resulted in a long-lasting blockade.
In early October 1941, Hitler launched Operation Typhoon, the attack on Moscow. The postponement permitted the Soviets to stiffen their defenses with 1 million troops and 1,000 new T-34 tanks. The rainy fall roads bogged down the German advance, and by mid-November, Panzer divisions were within 12 miles of Moscow. Nevertheless, replacements from Siberia enabled the Red Army to push back the Germans and delay the offensive until the iciness set in. This, in turn, came very close to provoking a Soviet counterattack in early December to which the Germans began to retreat.
Eventually, Operation Barbarossa did not reach its major goal of forcing the Soviet Union to surrender. The Germans underestimated the Soviet opposition and did not establish good supply traces for the tremendous distances and vicious conditions. Stalin’s appeals to defend “Mother Russia” galvanized Soviet dedication, while Hitler’s ruthless techniques only hardened the Red Army’s remedy.
The Eastern Front was continually fought over, with a second major offensive launched by Hitler in June of 1942, which also proved unsuccessful. In 1943, the Battle of Stalingrad marked one of the turning points of the will of the Allied Powers during World War II.