143,000,000 Soviet citizens killed, 1,800,000 killed in captivity or immigrated - the Great Patriotic War broke into every home on June 22, 1941. Over the course of 4 terrible years, fathers, sons, brothers, sisters, mothers and wives remained “bones” at the fronts. The Second World War is called a “terrible lesson of the past,” “a political miscalculation,” and a “bloody massacre.” Why did the terrible war begin, what was its course, what were the results?

Background of the Second World War. Where do “legs grow” from?

The prerequisites are hidden in the Versailles-Washington system established after the First World War. Germany and its ambitions were humiliated and brought to its knees. In the 1920s, the National Socialist German Workers' Party, promoting far-right views, entered the political arena. Party supporters proclaimed the ideas of “revenge for defeat in the First World War” and the establishment of world domination of the German nation. European politicians looked at a "rising Germany" and thought they could govern it. France and Great Britain “pushed” the country towards the borders of the Union, pursuing their own benefits. But they could not think that on September 1, 1939, German troops would invade Poland (the Second World War would begin).

ATTENTION! The Second World War lasted more than 6 years (September 1, 1939 - September 2, 1945). WWII - June 22, 1941 - May 9, 1945.

Why did the Great Patriotic War begin? 3 reasons

Historians talk about dozens of factors that influenced the outbreak of the war. Let's face it, the war began with the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939. “Behind Europe’s back,” Germany and the Soviet Union agree that they will be “on the same side.” After the outbreak of World War II, the USSR invaded Poland on September 17, 1939. On September 22, 1939, a parade of the Wehrmacht and the Red Army solemnly took place in Brest.

Joseph Stalin did not believe that Hitler would “stab him in the back” and attack the USSR. Moreover: when Minsk fell on June 28, 1941, the leader was in a panic (and even thought that he would be arrested for a crime against the people). The first days of the Second World War, the Red Army retreated, and the Germans easily took one city after another.

Let’s not forget that there were massive repressions in the USSR: during the last “purge” in June 1941, experienced military leaders were killed (shot, expelled).

The causes of the Second World War lie in:

1. Hitler's desire for “domination of the whole world” (“Germany from sea to sea”). Resources were needed for conquest, and the territory of the USSR with its natural resources seemed like a “tidbit.”
2. The desire of the Soviet authorities to “crush” Eastern Europe.
3. Contradictions between the socialist system and capitalism.

What plans did Germany have?

German tacticians and strategists had several plans on the territory of the Soviet Union.

1. War plan "Barbarossa". In the summer of 1940, a “blitzkrieg” plan was developed: in 10 weeks (i.e., 2.5 months), German troops were supposed to paralyze the industry of the Urals, crush the European part of the country and reach the Arkhangelsk-Astrakhan line. On June 17, 1941, Hitler signed the very order that launched the offensive.
2. "Ost." Jews and Gypsies were completely destroyed; Belarusians, Russians and Ukrainians turned into “slaves” who served the German invaders. Up to 140,000,000 people were to be destroyed. Mass genocide, violence, murder, concentration camps, torture, medical “experiments” - all this awaited those who live today in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine.
3. "Oldenburg" and "Goering's Green Folder". Cultural and historical values ​​were to be exported to Germany. Soviet museums were simply robbed, and gold, precious stones, art and antiques were sent to the West by the trainload.

By the summer of 1941, there were 5,500,000 soldiers trained to kill at the borders of the USSR, versus 2,900,000 Soviet (this is the number of military personnel concentrated in the border districts). It’s not worth talking about weapons: one rifle for three, a limited number of bullets, “rusty iron” - all this “came up” more than once in the memories of veterans.

The Soviet Union was not ready for war:

1. Stalin ignored the memos about “pulling up” the German armies to the lines. It seemed to the leader that Germany would not invade and fight on 2 fronts.
2. Lack of talented military leaders. The “Little Blood War” technique turned out to be a failure. The idea that the Red Army would move to the West, and the workers of the whole world would join its ranks, also turned out to be unfounded.
3. Problems with army supplies. According to some information, the Wehrmacht had 16 times more rifles (not to mention tanks and aircraft). The warehouses were located close to the borders, so they were quickly captured by the enemy.

Despite all the miscalculations and problems, Soviet soldiers snatched victory with sweat and blood. In the rear, women, children, old people, and disabled people produced weapons day and night; partisans risked their lives trying to collect as much information as possible about enemy groups. The Soviet people stood up to defend their Motherland.

How did events develop?

Historians talk about 3 main stages. Each of them is divided into dozens of small stages, and behind every success of the Red Army there are shadows of dead soldiers.

Strategic defense. June 22, 1941 – November 18, 1942

At this time, the Barbarossa plan collapsed. In the first stages, enemy troops took Ukraine, the Baltic states and Belarus without any problems. Moscow was ahead - an important geopolitical and economic goal. The capture of Moscow would automatically mean the fragmentation of the Red Army and the loss of control.

September 30, 1941 – January 7, 1942, i.e. For almost 4 months there were heavy battles with varying success, but Soviet troops were able to push back the enemy.

The Battle of Moscow was Hitler's first failure. It became clear that the Blitzkrieg had failed; the Western world saw that the “invincible Adolf” could lose; The morale and fighting spirit of the people rose.

But ahead were Stalingrad and the Caucasus. The victory near Moscow provided a “respite.” The partisan struggle gradually unfolds, and an anti-Hitler coalition is formed. The USSR is transferring the economy to a military footing, so the supply of the army is improving (KV-1 and T-34 tanks, Katyusha rocket launcher, IL-2 attack aircraft).

Radical fracture. November 19, 1942 – end of 1943

Until the fall of 1942, victories were either on the side of the USSR or on the side of Germany. At this stage, the strategic initiative passes into the hands of the Soviet Union: 26 strategic operations (23 of them offensive), assistance from allies and Lend-Lease, “first news” of the collapse of the Hitler coalition, strengthening the authority of the USSR.

All results were given with sweat and blood. At this stage, there are a number of major battles that “turned” the course of the war.

• The Battle of Stalingrad and the defeat of German troops;
• battle for the Dnieper;
• Kursk Bulge.

The stage ends at the end of 1943 with the liberation of Kyiv and the “crossing of the Dnieper.”

Europe liberated from Nazism. January 1944 – May 9, 1945

Let us remember that World War II ended on September 2, 1945. But Europe freed itself from the shackles of Nazism in the spring.

In the fall of 1944, the Soviet command carried out a series of operations to liberate the country from enemy armies: Korsun-Shevchenkovskaya, Lvov-Sandomierz, Yassko-Kishinevskaya. Siege Leningrad, which found itself “cut off” from food and security, was liberated. Thanks to the East Prussian, Vistula-Oder, and West Carpathian operations, it was possible to create all the conditions to “go to Berlin.”

On May 1, 1945, Adolf Hitler takes poison and leaves the people “to their fate.” The provisional government, which “by chance” was headed by K. Doenitz, in its “death convulsions”, tries to negotiate a separate peace with Great Britain and France, but fails. There are tribunals, high-profile scandals, trials and verdicts ahead. On May 8, 1945, the Act of Unconditional Surrender was signed in Karlshorst (a suburb of Berlin). Germany is defeated.

May 9, 1945 becomes Victory Day, a symbol of endless courage, unity and the ability to repel the enemy.

The Great Patriotic War is a terrible lesson in history, for which the Soviet Union paid too high a price. The exact number of deaths is impossible to calculate (figures vary from source to source). But the Soviet people were faced with another task - to raise the destroyed economy from its knees.

Looking back, these events seem to be centuries old. Life is in full swing around, everyone is fussing, in a hurry, and sometimes even the events of a year ago have no meaning and are ingloriously covered with dust in memory. But humanity has no moral right to forget the 1418 days of the Great Patriotic War. Chronicles of the war 1941-1945. - this is just a small echo of that time, a good reminder to the modern generation that war has never brought anything good to anyone.

Causes of the war

Like any armed confrontation, the reasons for the outbreak of the war were very banal. The chronicle of the Great 1941-1945 states that the battle began because Adolf Hitler wanted to lead Germany to world domination: to seize all countries and create a state with pure races.

Years later he invades the territory of Poland, then goes to Czechoslovakia, conquers more new territories, and then violates the peace treaty concluded on August 23, 1939 with the USSR. Intoxicated by his first successes and victories, he developed the Barbarossa plan, according to which he was supposed to capture the Soviet Union in a short time. But it was not there. From this moment begins a four-year chronicle of the events of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945).

1941st. Start

In June the war began. During this month, five defense fronts were formed, each of which was responsible for its own territory:

• Northern front. Defended Hanko (from 22.06 to 02.12) and the Arctic (from 29.07 to 10.10).
• Northwestern Front. Immediately after the attack, he began to carry out the Baltic strategic defensive operation (06.22-09.07).
• Western Front. The Bialystok-Minsk battle took place here (06.22-07.09).
• Southwestern front. The Lviv-Chernivtsi defensive operation was launched (06.22-06.07).
• Southern front. Founded 25.07.

In July, defensive operations continued on the Northern Front. On the Northwestern Front, the Leningrad defensive operation began (from 10.07 to 30.09). At the same time, the Battle of Smolensk begins on the Western Front (10.07-10.09). On July 24, the Central Front was founded and took part in the Battle of Smolensk. On the 30th the Reserve Front was formed. The Kiev defensive operation began in the South-West (07.07-26.09). The Tiraspol-Melitopol defensive operation begins on the Southern Front (07.27-28.09).

In August the battles continue. The forces of the Reserve Front join the Battle of Smolensk. On the 14th, the Bryansk Front was founded, and the city was defended in the Odessa defensive region (05.08-16.10). On August 23, the Transcaucasian Front is formed, two days later the Iranian operation begins.

Entries for September in documentary chronicles of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) indicate that most defensive battles have ended. The forces of the Soviet Union changed their location and began new offensive operations: Sumy-Kharkov and Donbass.

In October, the Sinyavskaya and Strelninsk-Peterhof operations were carried out on the Leningrad Front, and the Tikhvin defensive operation began (from October 16 to November 18). On the 17th, the Kalinin defensive front was formed, and the defensive operation of the same name began. On the 10th, the Reserve Front ceased to exist. The Tula defensive operation began on the Bryansk Front (10.24-05.12). Crimean troops began a defensive operation and entered the battle for Sevastopol (10.10.1941-09.07.1942).

In November, the Tikhvin offensive operation began, which ended by the end of the year. The battles went on with varying degrees of success. On December 5, the Kalinin offensive operation began, and on the 6th, the Klin-Solnechnaya and Tula offensive operations began. On December 17, the Volkhov Front was formed. The Bryansk Front was formed again, and the Kerch landing operation began in the Transcaucasus (December 26). The defense of Sevastopol continued.

1942 - a brief military chronicle of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945)

On January 1, 1942, an anti-German bloc was formed, which included 226 countries. Meanwhile, on January 2, the city of Maloyaroslavets was liberated, on the 3rd, near the city of Sukhinichi, the Russian army defeated the Germans, and on January 7, German shock groups were defeated near Moscow.

New offensive operations begin. On January 20, Mozhaisk was completely liberated. At the beginning of February, the entire Moscow region was liberated from the Germans. Soviet troops advanced 250 km in the Vitebsk direction. On March 5, long-range aviation was created. On May 8, the German offensive in Crimea begins. Fighting is underway near Kharkov, and on June 28 a large-scale offensive by German troops begins. The forces were mainly directed to the Volga and the Caucasus.

On July 17, the legendary Battle of Stalingrad begins, which is mentioned in all chronicles of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (photos of the confrontation are attached). On August 25, a state of siege was introduced in Stalingrad. On September 13, fighting begins at Mamayev Kurgan. November 19 The Red Army begins an offensive operation near Stalingrad. On December 3, a group of German troops was defeated in the Shiripin area. On December 31, troops of the Stalingrad Front liberated the city of Elista.

1943

This year has become a turning point. On January 1, the Rostov offensive operation began. The cities of Mozdok, Malgobek, and Nalchik were liberated, and Operation Iskra began on January 12. The military personnel who took part in it must have been in Leningrad. Five days later, the city of Velikiye Luki was liberated. On January 18, it was possible to establish contact with Leningrad. On January 19, an offensive operation began on the Voronezh Front and managed to defeat a large enemy military group. On January 20, enemy troops were defeated near the city of Velikoluksk. On January 21, Stavropol was liberated.

On January 31, German troops surrender at Stalingrad. On February 2, it was possible to liquidate the army at Stalingrad (almost 300 thousand fascists). On February 8, Kursk was liberated, and on the 9th, Belgorod. The Soviet army advanced towards Minsk.

Krasnodar liberated; 14th - Rostov-on-Don, Voroshilovgrad and Krasnodon; On February 16, Kharkov was liberated. On March 3, Rzhevsk was liberated, on March 6, Gzhatsk, and on March 12, the Germans abandoned their positions in Vyazma. On March 29, the Soviet flotilla caused significant damage to the German fleet off the coast of Norway.

On May 3, the Soviet army won the air battle, and on July 5, the legendary Battle of Kursk began. It ended on August 22, during the battle 30 German divisions were defeated. By the end of the year, successful offensive operations were carried out, one after another, the cities of the Soviet Union were liberated from the invaders. fails.

1944

According to the chronicle of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), the war took a turn favorable for the USSR. Offensive operations began on all fronts. Ten so-called Stalinist strikes helped completely liberate the territory of the USSR; military operations were now carried out in Europe.

Way to victory

The German command understands that it cannot seize the strategic initiative and begins to take defensive positions in order to preserve at least those territories that they managed to capture. But every day they had to retreat further and further.

On April 16, 1945, Soviet troops surround Berlin. The Nazi army is defeated. April 30 Hitler commits suicide. On May 7, Germany announced its surrender to the Western Allied forces, and on May 9, it capitulated to the Soviet Union.

In the chronicles (1941-1945), the war is presented to the reader as a list of dates and events. But we must not forget that behind every date there are hidden human destinies: unfulfilled hopes, unfulfilled promises and unlived lives.

On Sunday, June 22, 1941, at dawn, the troops of Nazi Germany, without declaring war, suddenly attacked the entire western border of the Soviet Union and carried out bombing airstrikes on Soviet cities and military formations.

The Great Patriotic War began. They were waiting for her, but still she came suddenly. And the point here is not a miscalculation or Stalin’s distrust of intelligence data. During the pre-war months, different dates for the start of the war were given, for example May 20, and this was reliable information, but due to the uprising in Yugoslavia, Hitler postponed the date of the attack on the USSR to a later date. There is another factor that is extremely rarely mentioned. This is a successful disinformation campaign by German intelligence. Thus, the Germans spread rumors through all possible channels that the attack on the USSR would take place on June 22, but with the main attack directed in an area where this was obviously impossible. Thus, the date also looked like misinformation, so it was on this day that the attack was least expected.
And in foreign textbooks, June 22, 1941 is presented as one of the current episodes of the Second World War, while in the textbooks of the Baltic states this date is considered positive, giving “hope for liberation.”

Russia

§4. Invasion of the USSR. Beginning of the Great Patriotic War
At dawn on June 22, 1941, Hitler's troops invaded the USSR. The Great Patriotic War began.
Germany and its allies (Italy, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia) did not have an overwhelming advantage in manpower and equipment and, according to the Barbarossa plan, relied mainly on the surprise attack factor, the tactics of blitzkrieg (“lightning war”). The defeat of the USSR was planned within two to three months by the forces of three army groups (Army Group North, advancing on Leningrad, Army Group Center, advancing on Moscow, and Army Group South, advancing on Kiev).
In the first days of the war, the German army caused serious damage to the Soviet defense system: military headquarters were destroyed, the activities of communications services were paralyzed, and strategically important objects were captured. The German army was rapidly advancing deep into the USSR, and by July 10, Army Group Center (commander von Bock), having captured Belarus, approached Smolensk; Army Group South (commander von Rundstedt) captured Right Bank Ukraine; Army Group North (commander von Leeb) occupied part of the Baltic states. The losses of the Red Army (including those who were surrounded) amounted to more than two million people. The current situation was catastrophic for the USSR. But Soviet mobilization resources were very large, and by the beginning of July 5 million people had been drafted into the Red Army, which made it possible to close the gaps that had formed at the front.

V.L.Kheifets, L.S. Kheifets, K.M. Severinov. General history. 9th grade. Ed. Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences V.S. Myasnikov. Moscow, Ventana-Graf Publishing House, 2013.

Chapter XVII. The Great Patriotic War of the Soviet people against the Nazi invaders
The treacherous attack of Nazi Germany on the USSR
While fulfilling the grandiose tasks of Stalin's third five-year plan and steadily and firmly pursuing a policy of peace, the Soviet government did not for a minute forget about the possibility of a new "attack by the imperialists on our country. Comrade Stalin tirelessly called on the peoples of the Soviet Union to be in mobilization readiness. In February 1938 in his response to a letter from Komsomol member Ivanov, Comrade Stalin wrote: “Indeed, it would be ridiculous and stupid to turn a blind eye to the fact of capitalist encirclement and think that our external enemies, for example, the fascists, will not try to carry out a military attack on the USSR on occasion.”
Comrade Stalin demanded strengthening the defense capability of our country. “It is necessary,” he wrote, “to strengthen and strengthen our Red Army, Red Navy, Red Aviation, and Osoaviakhim in every possible way. It is necessary to keep our entire people in a state of mobilization readiness in the face of the danger of a military attack, so that no “accident” and no tricks of our external enemies can take us by surprise...”
Comrade Stalin's warning alerted the Soviet people, forced them to more vigilantly monitor the machinations of their enemies and strengthen the Soviet army in every possible way.
The Soviet people understood that the German fascists, led by Hitler, were seeking to unleash a new bloody war, with the help of which they hoped to conquer world domination. Hitler declared the Germans to be the “superior race”, and all other peoples to be inferior, inferior races. The Nazis treated the Slavic peoples with particular hatred and, first of all, the great Russian people, who more than once in their history fought against the German aggressors.
The Nazis based their plan on the plan for a military attack and lightning defeat of Russia developed by General Hoffmann during the First World War. This plan provided for the concentration of huge armies on the western borders of our homeland, the capture of the vital centers of the country within a few weeks and a rapid advance deep into Russia, right up to the Urals. Subsequently, this plan was supplemented and approved by the Nazi command and was called the Barbarossa plan.
The monstrous war machine of the Hitlerite imperialists began its movement in the Baltic states, Belarus and Ukraine, threatening the vital centers of the Soviet country.

Textbook “History of the USSR”, 10th grade, K.V. Bazilevich, S.V. Bakhrushin, A.M. Pankratova, A.V. Fokht, M., Uchpedgiz, 1952

Austria, Germany

Chapter “From the Russian Campaign to Complete Defeat”
After careful preparation that lasted many months, on June 22, 1941, Germany began a “war of total annihilation” against the Soviet Union. Its goal was to conquer a new living space for the German Aryan race. The essence of the German plan was a lightning attack, called Barbarossa. It was believed that under the rapid onslaught of the trained German military machine, Soviet troops would not be able to provide worthy resistance. Within a few months, the Nazi command seriously expected to reach Moscow. It was assumed that the capture of the capital of the USSR would completely demoralize the enemy and the war would end in victory. However, after a series of impressive successes on the battlefields, within a few weeks the Nazis were driven back hundreds of kilometers from the Soviet capital.

Textbook “History” for grade 7, team of authors, Duden publishing house, 2013.

Holt McDougal. The World History.
For Senior High School, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Pub. Co., 2012

Hitler began planning an attack on his ally the USSR in the early summer of 1940. The Balkan countries of Southeastern Europe played a key role in Hitler's invasion plan. Hitler wanted to create a bridgehead in Southeastern Europe for an attack on the USSR. He also wanted to be sure that the British would not interfere.
In preparation for the invasion, Hitler moved to expand his influence in the Balkans. By early 1941, by threat of force, he persuaded Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary to join the Axis powers. Yugoslavia and Greece, ruled by pro-British governments, resisted. In early April 1941, Hitler invaded both countries. Yugoslavia fell 11 days later. Greece surrendered after 17 days.
Hitler attacks the Soviet Union. By establishing tight control over the Balkans, Hitler could carry out Operation Barbarossa, his plan to invade the USSR. Early on the morning of June 22, 1941, the roar of German tanks and the drone of airplanes signaled the beginning of the invasion. The Soviet Union was not prepared for this attack. Although he had the largest army in the world, the troops were neither well equipped nor well trained.
The invasion progressed week after week until the Germans were 500 miles (804.67 kilometers) inside the Soviet Union. Retreating, Soviet troops burned and destroyed everything in the enemy's path. The Russians used this scorched earth strategy against Napoleon.

Section 7. World War II
The attack on the Soviet Union (the so-called Barbarossa plan) was carried out on June 22, 1941. The German army, which numbered about three million soldiers, launched an offensive in three directions: in the north - towards Leningrad, in the central part of the USSR - towards Moscow and in the south - towards Crimea. The onslaught of the invaders was swift. Soon the Germans besieged Leningrad and Sevastopol and came close to Moscow. The Red Army suffered heavy losses, but the main goal of the Nazis - the capture of the capital of the Soviet Union - was never realized. Vast spaces and the early Russian winter, with fierce resistance from Soviet troops and ordinary residents of the country, thwarted the German plan for a lightning war. At the beginning of December 1941, units of the Red Army under the command of General Zhukov launched a counteroffensive and pushed back enemy troops 200 kilometers from Moscow.

History textbook for the 8th grade of primary school (Klett publishing house, 2011). Predrag Vajagić and Nenad Stošić.

Never before had our people reacted to a German invasion except with determination to defend their land, but when Molotov, in a trembling voice, reported the German attack, the Estonians felt everything but sympathy. On the contrary, many have hope. The population of Estonia enthusiastically welcomed the German soldiers as liberators.
Russian soldiers aroused hostility among the average Estonian. These people were poor, poorly dressed, extremely suspicious, and at the same time often very pretentious. The Germans were more familiar to the Estonians. They were cheerful and passionate about music; laughter and playing musical instruments could be heard from the places where they gathered.

Lauri Vakhtre. Textbook “Turning moments in Estonian history.”

Bulgaria

Chapter 2. Globalization of the conflict (1941–1942)
Attack on the USSR (June 1941). On June 22, 1941, Hitler launched a major offensive against the USSR. Having begun the conquest of new territories in the east, the Fuhrer put into practice the theory of “living space”, proclaimed in the book “My Struggle” (“Mein Kampf”). On the other hand, the termination of the German-Soviet Pact again made it possible for the Nazi regime to present itself as a fighter against communism in Europe: aggression against the USSR was presented by German propaganda as a crusade against Bolshevism with the aim of exterminating “Jewish Marxists.”
However, this new blitzkrieg developed into a long and exhausting war. Shocked by the surprise attack, drained of blood by Stalin's repressions and ill-prepared, the Soviet army was quickly driven back. In a few weeks, German armies occupied one million square kilometers and reached the outskirts of Leningrad and Moscow. But fierce Soviet resistance and the rapid arrival of the Russian winter stopped the German offensive: the Wehrmacht was unable to defeat the enemy in one campaign. In the spring of 1942, a new offensive was required.

Plan for a “lightning war” against the USSR
The German command expected to approach Moscow by August 15, to end the war against the USSR and create a defensive line against “Asian Russia” by October 1, 1941, and to reach the Arkhangelsk-Astrakhan line by the winter of 1941.
On June 22, 1941, the Great Patriotic War began with the attack of Nazi Germany on the Soviet Union. Mobilization was announced in the USSR. Voluntary joining the Red Army became widespread. The people's militia became widespread. In the front-line zone, fighter battalions and self-defense groups were created to protect important national economic facilities. The evacuation of people and material assets began from territories threatened by occupation.
The military operations were led by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, created on June 23, 1941. The headquarters was headed by J. Stalin. Italy
June 22, 1941
Giardina, G. Sabbatucci, V. Vidotto, Manuale di Storia. L "eta`contemporanea. History textbook for graduating 5th grade of high school. Bari, Laterza. Textbook for 11th grade of high school "Our New History", Dar Aun Publishing House, 2008.
With the German attack on the Soviet Union in the early summer of 1941, a new phase of the war began. A broad front opened in eastern Europe. Britain was no longer forced to fight alone. The ideological confrontation was simplified and radicalized with the end of the anomalous agreement between Nazism and the Soviet regime. The international communist movement, which after August 1939 took an ambiguous position of condemning “opposing imperialisms,” revised it in favor of an alliance with democracy and the fight against fascism.
The fact that the USSR represented the main target of Hitler’s expansionist intentions was not a mystery to anyone, including the Soviet people. However, Stalin believed that Hitler would never attack Russia without ending the war with Great Britain. So when the German offensive (codenamed Barbarossa) began on June 22, 1941, along a 1,600-kilometer front from the Baltic to the Black Sea, the Russians were unprepared, a lack of preparedness reinforced by the fact that the 1937 purge had deprived the Red Army of the army of its best military leaders, initially made the task of the aggressor easier.
The offensive, which also included the Italian expeditionary force, which was sent in great haste by Mussolini, who dreamed of participating in a crusade against the Bolsheviks, continued throughout the summer: in the north through the Baltic states, in the south through Ukraine, with the aim of reaching the oil regions of the Caucasus .

• Causes and preconditions of the war
• Nazism in Germany
• Beginning of the war
• Stages of the war
• In the rear
• Soldiers of the invisible front

Addition to the article:

• The Great Patriotic War, in short, was the last major military conflict in which the USSR participated. The war was waged against Germany, which treacherously attacked the territory of the Soviet Union and violated the peace treaty.

• Speaking briefly about the Great Patriotic War, it is worth noting that at the same time it is one of the main stages of World War II.

Causes and preconditions of the war

• The fact is that the countries that lost the war found themselves in an extremely humiliated state and did not agree with the conditions Treaty of Versailles. Germany, the instigator of the war, found itself in a particularly difficult position, having to pay indemnities beyond its means and not having the right to have its own armed forces. In addition, she was excluded from participation in international affairs.

Nazism in Germany

• Not surprisingly, the population became increasingly sympathetic to the National Socialist Party and its leader Adolf Hitler. He refused to accept the results of the First World War and called on Germany for revenge and world domination. The humiliated country accepted these calls. With Hitler coming to power in 1933, Germany began to increase its military-industrial turnover at a gigantic pace.

Beginning of the war

• In 1939, Germany occupied Czechoslovakia and began making claims against Poland. The USSR proposes to create an alliance between England and France, but they do not dare to take this step. Churchill later admitted that he should have agreed to this proposal.

• September 1, 1939, after the attack of Nazi Germany on Poland, the Second World War begins. The allies of the Polish state, England and France, also enter the war.

• By 1941, all of Europe was in German hands, with the exception of Great Britain. After this, Hitler, in violation of all treaties, starts a war with the Soviet Union.

Stages of the war

• The Great Patriotic War, in short, lasted 4 long years. As is known, the Soviet Union was practically not ready for war, because Stalin refused to believe counterintelligence reports about the exact date of the attack by Nazi troops. He was offered a plan for a pre-emptive strike on Germany, but he rejected it. Germany itself was completely ready to strike the USSR (Blitzkrieg plan, Barbarossa plan), and preparations for war had been in full swing since 1940. Many plans were created regarding the USSR.

• The enemy was stuck near Leningrad, unable to capture the city. Started Leningrad blockade.
• By December 1941, German troops captured the territory of the Baltic republics, Belarus, part of Ukraine and advanced approximately 1200 km deep into the USSR.
• The largest and most significant battle of the Great Patriotic War, briefly speaking, of this period, was battle for Moscow.

• For Hitler, this was the main event of his operation to capture the USSR. The battle for Moscow is divided into two stages - defense and offensive. Until December 1941, Soviet troops held the enemy on the approaches to the capital. On December 5, a counteroffensive began, which grew into a general offensive of all troops. German troops lost the Battle of Moscow. It showed that the German army is not invincible.

• Stage 2 is associated with a radical turning point in the war in favor of the USSR. During this period from 1942 to 1943, two difficult battles took place, won by Soviet troops at a very high cost - Stalingrad and Kursk.

• On the night of May 8-9, 1945, Germany signed an act of surrender.

• The history of the Great Patriotic War, briefly outlined, can describe the severity of this time extremely sparingly. In numbers, it looks like this: the total casualties among the military and civilian population of the USSR amounted to almost 27 million people.

Major battles and military operations

• Defense of the Brest Fortress

According to the plan developed by Hitler, to capture the first Soviet strategic object of the Brest
The fortress was given only a few hours. The defenders of the fortress held out, despite the numerical superiority of the fascist invaders, for several days. Only after a week of incessant attacks and bombings did the Nazis manage to capture part of the fortification. But even after German units entered the territory of the fortress, they had to fight for almost a month with separate groups of soldiers of the Soviet army in order to gain a foothold in it.

• Battle of Smolensk

Twice as many people and 4 times as many tanks. The Nazis had such superiority when they launched an offensive on the Western Front, hoping to quickly divide it and gain unhindered access to the capital of the country.

But even here they cruelly miscalculated. Battle of Smolensk, which was supposed to open the way to Moscow for enemy occupiers, lasted two months.
Having suffered huge losses, the Soviet defenders, however, knocked down the enemy’s arrogance and significantly exhausted him.

• Fights for Ukraine

The seizure of the largest industrial and agricultural Ukrainian region was one of the
priority tasks of Hitler's army.

But here, too, the Fuhrer’s plans were disrupted. Fierce battles claimed hundreds of lives of the defenders of Ukraine.

But when they died, they took with them many fascists.

As a result, the allied forces were forced to retreat, pushed back by superior enemy troops.

But the forces of the occupiers were also significantly undermined.

• Leningrad blockade

On the approaches to Leningrad, the fascist army also encountered a completely unexpected obstacle. For about a month, despite all their efforts, they could not capture the city. Realizing the futility of their attempts, they decided to change tactics.

A long siege began, accompanied by almost continuous artillery strikes.
But the Nazis never had to march victoriously through the streets of Leningrad.

Steadfastly enduring all the hardships, the besieged continued to fight and did not surrender the city.
The powerful ring of the blockade was broken only after almost a year and a half, and was finally lifted another year later.

• Battle for the capital

After a long, grueling and bloody 4 months (instead of the planned few days), the German
The invaders found themselves on the outskirts of Moscow. Fierce battles began to pave the way to this desired goal.
At the end of October, the capital goes into a state of siege. A number of institutions were evacuated, and many valuables were removed. The defenders prepared to defend the heart of the Motherland until their last breath, until the last drop of blood.
Having launched the second stage of the offensive in November, the Nazis realized within a few weeks that they did not have enough strength to carry out their plan, and began to retreat. The myth of the invincibility of Hitler's army was finally debunked.

• Crimean direction. Sevastopol

At the end of October of the first year of the war, battles for Sevastopol began. Unable to enter the city immediately, the invaders decided to lay siege to it. The siege lasted 9 months.

In May 1942, several units of the Wehrmacht army concentrated on the approaches to the Crimean Peninsula. Using aviation, they broke through the defenses of the Soviet troops, capturing Kerch, and then the entire peninsula.
After this, the defense of Sevastopol became even more difficult, and Soviet troops were forced to retreat.

• Stalingrad

Having decided to take revenge for the failure at the approaches to the capital, the German occupiers decided to isolate the south of the country, and
cut it off from the central region and capture the largest water transport route - the Volga.
In order to prevent these plans from coming true, Soviet troops begin preparations for defense in the Stalingrad direction.
Two major operations, lasting a total of 125 days, resulted in the invading forces being encircled by Soviet troops.

As a result, almost one hundred thousand Germans were captured.

There were not much fewer people killed.

This was the most crushing defeat of the army of the Third Reich.

• Caucasian direction

For more than a year there were battles in the North Caucasus direction.

Having retreated at first and leaving more and more cities to the enemy, Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive at the beginning of 1943.

The time has come for the Nazis to retreat.

Despite losses and difficulties, units of the allied army pushed back the enemy until 10 months later they completed the liberation of the region.

• Fight for Kursk

Hitler's next aggressive plan for the seizure of Kursk also ended in failure.

Within
During the defensive-offensive operations, one of the largest tank battles in the history of this war took place on the outskirts of the city (the Battle of Prokhorovka).

Here the Germans used their new Tiger and Panther tanks, but thanks to the numerical superiority of both people and equipment, the Soviet troops were able to win.

As a result, having begun in July 1943 with a large-scale offensive by the invaders, the operation ended 10 months later with an equally large retreat.

This defeat accelerated the collapse of the Hitler coalition.

• Operation to liberate Smolensk

After a radical change, the army of the Soviet Union switched from defensive actions to an active offensive.

One of the first offensive operations was the Smolensk campaign.

Carefully thought out, it consisted of three stages, the consistent and systematic implementation of which led to the liberation of the city and the advance of the Red Army several hundred kilometers to the west.

• Left Bank of Ukraine

The Nazis attached great importance to Donbass, and after Soviet troops went on the offensive, they all They tried to keep this city for themselves.

But, when the risk of a new encirclement and a repeat of the events at Stalingrad arose, German troops began to retreat.

At the same time, they tried to devastate the abandoned territories as much as possible. Destroying industrial enterprises and all infrastructure, they exterminated the population or drove it to Germany.

Only the too rapid advance of the Soviet army prevented them from completely destroying the region.

Donbas, Bransk, Sumy - cities one after another were liberated from the fascist yoke.

Having completely liberated left-bank Ukraine, formations of the USSR army reached the Dnieper.

• Crossing the Dnieper

Hitler was confident to the last that Soviet troops would not be able to cross the Dnieper.

However, here too he miscalculated.

Without allowing the German units to gain a thorough foothold on the opposite bank, the allied army began crossing the water barrier.
On September 21, under heavy Nazi fire, the forward troops crossed the river and entered into fierce battles, thereby allowing the remaining troops and equipment to pass the river barrier without hindrance.
The crossing continued for several days, and as a result, more than 2 thousand of its participants were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

• Crimean liberation

From the beginning of April 1944, a number of Soviet military formations began the systematic implementation of a plan to
liberation of Sevastopol and the entire Crimean peninsula.

Conquering one settlement after another, they moved towards their goal.
As a result of the assault, Sevastopol was liberated (May 9, 1944).

The Nazis tried to hide from the victors at Cape Chersonesos, but were completely defeated.

More than 20 thousand people, as well as hundreds of pieces of military equipment and weapons ended up in the hands of Soviet soldiers.

• Liberation of Europe

After the lifting of the Leningrad blockade and the widespread liberation of Russian territories from Nazi occupiers, the Soviet army continued its march through the territory of neighboring and then other foreign countries occupied by the Nazis.
Among the largest liberation offensive operations of military units of the Soviet Union are Minsk and Polotsk (carried out simultaneously), Vilnius, Narva, Yassy-Kishinev, East Carpathian, Baltic and others.
The East Prussian operation was of particular importance, since the territory of this country not only served as a springboard for an attack on the USSR, but also reliably blocked access to the center of Germany.
One of the main points that the Nazis held on to was Koenigsberg. It was considered the best German fortress and impregnable bastion.
But as a result of the three-day assault, both this stronghold and Hitler’s hope threw out the white flag.

• Final (Berlin) operation

The apogee of the entire offensive campaign of the Soviet army was the battle for Berlin, on which, in fact, it depended
the final outcome of the war.

Fights were fought for every house, for every street, shots did not stop day or night, until the Nazis completely surrendered.

In the rear

The victory of the Soviet army in the Great Patriotic War would have been impossible without a reliable rear. “Everything for the front!” This idea was lived by millions of Soviet people in regions that were not directly affected by the fighting.
One of the priority tasks from the first days of the war was the restructuring of the entire national economy and industry in a new direction.

Many enterprises were hastily evacuated from hot combat spots to calmer areas of the country: Central Asia, Kazakhstan, the Urals and Western Siberia.

At the new location, the enterprises were quickly installed and began producing products for the front. Sometimes
machines and machines began to work long before factory walls and roofs were erected around them. At the same time, new specialists from the local population were trained to operate the equipment.
Their husbands, fathers and brothers, going to the front, were replaced at the machines by their wives, sisters, and children.

12-13-year-old teenagers, who could not reach the working part of the equipment, made footrests for themselves and worked equally with adults. After intense shifts, many of them remained in the workshop and went to bed here, only to begin their next work shift again a few hours later.

Most mechanical engineering enterprises produced various types of weapons during the war.
By the middle of the second year of the war, it was possible to completely adapt the economy to the realities of wartime. By this time, more than 1,000 evacuated enterprises had resumed their work in a new location. In addition, another 850 new facilities were created (factories, power plants, mines, etc.)

At the end of the second half of the year, the country produced 1.1 times more weapons than in the first half of the same year. The production of mortars increased 1.3 times, the production of mines and shells almost doubled, and the production of aircraft increased 1.6 times. Significant progress has also been made in tank assembly.

An equally important area of ​​rear work was the preparation of reserves for the front. Therefore, from the first days in
Military training included not only professional educational institutions, but also volunteer organizations that trained shooters, machine gunners and other specialists. At the same time, medical and sanitary personnel were trained.

The agricultural complex also faced a difficult task. Despite the reduction in the number of collective farms and the deterioration of their material and technical base, it was necessary to supply the population and the front with products, and industry with raw materials. At the cost of incredible efforts, the sown agricultural areas were increased in areas remote from the front line. And here the women who replaced the men who had gone to war mastered new professions: combine operators, tractor drivers, drivers, etc. And together with their children, they worked without sleep or rest in the fields and farms to provide the front and industry with everything they needed.

Soldiers of the invisible front

Partisans made a great contribution to the common victory in the Great Patriotic War. These invisible fighters did not give the Nazis any sleep or rest, constantly carrying out sabotage activities in their rear.
At times, the population of entire villages joined the partisan detachments. Hiding in hard-to-reach forests and swamps, they constantly dealt significant blows to the invaders.
The partisans' weapons consisted, most often, of light rifles, grenades, and carbines. However, large groups sometimes even had mortars and artillery pieces. In general, the equipment depended on the region where the detachment was stationed and on its purpose.

Men, women, old people and children - all in the territory of the Union captured by the Nazi occupiers
More than 6 thousand units operated. And the total number of partisans was 1 million people. As a result of the war, many of them were awarded various orders and medals, and 248 received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

During the Second World War, partisan detachments were not disparate, spontaneously created groups of dissatisfied people. On the contrary, they were part of one large, well-organized and well-functioning structure. It had its own command, it existed completely legally and was subordinate to the leadership of the country.
All activities of the movement were controlled by special bodies and were regulated by a number of legislative acts.

The main goals of the guerrilla war included causing the greatest damage to the military infrastructure of the Nazis, disrupting the frequency of food supplies, etc. - everything that could destabilize the work of the Nazi well-functioning system.
In addition to sabotage activities, the partisans also participated in reconnaissance operations. They made every effort and invented hundreds of ways to obtain papers and documents with the plans of the Wehrmacht leadership for the deployment of military operations.

At the same time, partisan formations carried out their subversive activities not only in the occupied territory of the Union, but also in Germany. All obtained documents were forwarded to headquarters so that the Soviet command was aware of when and where to expect an attack, and the troops could redeploy and prepare in a timely manner.

At the beginning of the war, the average size of a partisan detachment could be 10-15 people. Later this quantity
increased to 100 or more. Sometimes several units were united into brigades. Therefore, if necessary, the partisans could take on open battle. Although very few such cases are known.

In addition, participants in the partisan movement carried out active propaganda and agitation activities among the population, especially those living under occupation. The country's leadership understood perfectly well that to win the war it was necessary for the population to unconditionally believe and trust the state. Members of the partisan detachments even tried to organize uprisings of the population against the hated fascist occupiers.
To be fair, it is worth noting that not all partisan formations supported Soviet power. There were also those who fought for the independence of their region from both the Nazis and the USSR.

The Great Patriotic War, which lasted almost four years, affected every home, every family, and claimed millions of lives. This concerned everyone, because Hitler did not just go to conquer the country, he went to destroy everything and everyone, sparing no one or anything. The first information about the attack began to arrive at 3:15 a.m. from Sevastopol, and already at four o’clock in the morning the entire western land of the Soviet state was attacked. And at the same time the cities of Kyiv, Minsk, Brest, Mogilev and others were subjected to aerial bombardment.

For a long time it was believed that the top leadership of the Union, led by Stalin, did not believe in the attack of Nazi Germany in the summer of 1941. However, recent studies of archival documents have allowed a number of historians to believe that the order to bring the western districts to combat readiness was given by the Directive of the General Staff of the Red Army on June 18, 1941.

This Directive appears in the interrogation protocols of the former commander of the western front, Pavlov, although to date the Directive itself has not been found. According to historians, if it had been carried out a few days before the start of hostilities, then by the winter of 1941 the Germans would have reached Smolensk.

In the first months of border battles, the Red Army lost about 3 million people killed or captured. Against the backdrop of the general retreat, the Brest Fortress stood out, heroically defending itself for a month, and Przemysl, a city where the Soviet Union not only withstood the blow of German troops, but also managed to launch a counterattack and push the Germans back two kilometers into Poland.

The troops of the southern front (the former Odessa military district) repelled enemy attacks and penetrated several kilometers into Romanian territory. The Soviet navy and naval aviation, put on full combat readiness several hours before the attack, did not lose a single ship or aircraft on that tragic day. And naval aviation bombed Berlin in the fall of 1941.

One of the most significant events of the beginning of the war was the capture of the suburbs of Leningrad by German troops on September 8, 1941 and the capture of the city in a tight ring. The blockade, which lasted 872 days and was lifted by Soviet troops only in January 1943, caused enormous damage to the city and its inhabitants. Unique architectural monuments were destroyed, palaces and temples, considered the pride of the Russian people, were burned. 1.5 million people, including young children, died from hunger, cold and constant bombing.

The selfless and heroic resistance that a simple Russian soldier put up at the very beginning of the war thwarted the Germans’ attempt to carry out a lightning war on the territory of the USSR - a blitzkrieg and in a short six months bring the great country to its knees.