Transcript Battle of the Baltics

Battle of the Baltics
David Cao and Jennifer DeJong
Timeline
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June 22, 1941: Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa
o June 22 - July 3, 1941: Lithuania and Estonia are occupied by the Germans
o July 10, 1941: Latvia is occupied by the Germans
July 10, 1941 - September 13, 1944: German forces continue to occupy the Baltic
states with fighting between Germans and Russians
September 14, 1944: Russian forces launched an attack in the Baltic Offensive on the
Eastern Front, attempting to recapture the Baltic States
o September 17 - September 26, 1944: Estonia is recaptured by Russian forces
o October 5 - October 22, 1944: The Battle of Memel results in the recapturing of
Estonia by Russia
October 9, 1944 - May 10, 1945: The Courland Pocket, the Russian encirclement of
German forces on the Courland Peninsula, results in German surrender and the
reoccupation of Latvia by Russia
Baltic Operation
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June 22, 1941 - July 9, 1941
After Germany launches Operation Barbarossa, Russia attempts to defend their
territories of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia
The Battle of Raseiniai
o A tank battle between Germany and Russia
o Soviet army gets destroyed
o Germany takes control, allowing them to cross the Daugava River towards the
baltic states
Battle of Hanko
o Finland attempts to take the Hanko base
o Russia is cornered between Finland’s army and Germany’s advance on the Gulf of
Finland
o Russia evacuates Hanko base
Russia continually retreats and Germany is able to claim the three Baltic states
Background
● After 2 years of fighting, Germans launch
Operation Zitadelle to try to conquer
Russia
● It fails
● They try to retreat
● Leads to...
BALTIC
OFFENSIVE
CHARRRGE!
Baltic Offensive
● Operation Bagration June-August 1944
o Russia’s push towards Poland, Belarus, and the Baltic States
o German defenses quickly breached
o Minsk, Belarus retaken by Russia (original objective)
o German army crushed, so Russia pushes further than they
planned to
o Šiauliai, Lithuania is taken along with more of Belarus and
Poland
Baltic Offensive
● Northern Estonia under pressure
● Threatened supply lines
● Germans held out until the Spring
Baltic Offensive
● Riga offensive: September 1944
o Russia attempts to drive Germany away from
Riga, the capital of Latvia
o German army overwhelmed and begins falling
back into the Courland Peninsula
o Russia takes control of Riga and pushes up to
Madona, Latvia
Baltic Offensive
● Tallinn Operation: September 1944
o Soviet attempt to capture Tallinn, Estonia’s
capital
o Russians quickly advance into Estonia
o Germans evacuated quickly with barely any
fighting
o Russians regain control of most of Estonia
Baltic Offensive
● Courland Pocket
o Due to the Riga offensive, German army forced
back into Courland
● Red Army encircled German Army Group North by
reaching the Gulf of Riga
● Half a million troops encircled
● August: Germans enlist help of navy to defeat
Soviets at Tukums
● 10 German tanks +navy vs. 50 soviet tanks
● Troops escape back to Germany
● Russia gains control of the rest of Latvia
Baltic Offensive
● Moonsund Landing Operation
o Germans continued to defend the Estonian
islands
o Immediately withdraws forces after seeing
Russian army
o Germans pushed back to the peninsula
o Finally, germans evacuated against Hitler’s will
Baltic Offensive
● Battle of Memel: October 1944
o Russia further advances into Lithuania and begins
pushing into Latvia
o Began sieging Memel
o German forces evacuate and Russia takes control
of Memel
Thesis:
As a result of their campaigns in the Baltics
against the Russians, much of Hitler’s army
was occupied through the latter part of the
war, wasting many resources with no payoff as
they eventually lost when Russia took the
Baltics, demoralizing German troops and
leading to Hitler's defeat.
What did we learn today?
● Germany took Baltics in 1941
● In 1944, the Germans got greedy and
tried to take Russia
● Stalin = >:{(
● Russia beats off Germans and takes the
Baltics, demoralizing and destroying all
the way
Works Cited
"German Occupation in Estonia 1941-1944." Estonica.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar.
2015.
Goldmanis, Maris. "Tag Archives: World War II." Latvian History. N.p., n.d. Web. 23
Mar. 2015
"GREATEST TANK BATTLES - THE BATTLE OF THE BALTICS - Military/History/World
War II (documentary)." Dailymotion. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2015.
Merriman, John. "Bagration Operation." Gale Virtual Reference Library. N.p., n.d.
Web.
"The Red Army Invasion of Estonia in 1944." Estonica.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar.
2015.
"World War II in the Baltic." World War II in the Baltic. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar.