World War II ( The Grear Patriotic War) in Russia | Page 3

Great Patriotic War in Russia: main events. 1941-1945.
The term Great Patriotic War is used in Russia and some other states of the former
Soviet Union to describe the portion of World War II from June 22, 1941, to May
9, 1945, against Nazi Germany and its allies in the Eastern Front. It is a patriotic
and symbolic term. The Soviet Union lost 26.6 million men and women in total.
The outbreak of the Second World War found the Soviet Union unprepared for the
conflict ahead. Political purges had stripped the army of many of its experienced
leaders while industrial production was slow in adapting to military needs. Having
signed a non-aggression pact with Germany in 1939, Hitler’s invasion of June
1941 caught the USSR by surprise.
The Battle for Moscow.
The Battle for Moscow - the Germans code-named it 'Operation Typhoon'
took place between October 1941 and January 1942. The capture of Moscow,
Russia's capital, was seen as vital to the success of 'Operation
Barbarossa'. Hitler believed that once the heart - Moscow - had been cut
out of Russia, the whole nation would collapse.
The initial stages of Barbarossa were successful for the Germans and
catastrophic for the Russians. Few would deny the success of the German
attack - 28 Russian divisions were put out of action in just three weeks and
more than 70 divisions lost 50% or more of their men and equipment.
Hitler's belief that the Red Army would crumble seemed to be coming true..
To defend Moscow, the Russians had under 500,000 men, less than 900
tanks and just over 300 combat planes.
The Red Army managed to reorganise itself and its defences under the
command of Marshall Georgy Zhukov - the man who 'never lost a battle'.
By December, the Russians had started to counter-attack the Germans. In
just 20 days of the second offensive, the Germans lost 155,000 men (killed,
wounded or a victim of frostbite), about 800 tanks and 300 artillery guns.
The Wehrmacht was pushed back between 60 and 155 miles in places and
by January 1942, the threat to Moscow had passed.