Transcript USSR in World War II - Faribault Public Schools

The USSR
in World War II
London: monument to Roosevelt and Churchill
The Big Three: Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin at Yalta, Feb.1945
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Britain and France hoped to channel Hitler’s aggression
to the East, toward conflict with Russia – reluctant to fight
Germany
Hitler was determined to prevent Western democracies
and USSR from joining forces: beat them one by one
Stalin was determined to avoid war with Germany as long
as possible – but convinced that such a war was
inevitable
1939: A divergence of interests between USSR and
Western democracies – and a convergence of interests
between Germany and USSR
The unexpected deal was logical – but only temporary
Moscow, August 23, 1939: German Foreign Minister Joachim
von Ribbentrop signs non-aggression pact with Russia
1939-1941: growing tensions between USSR and Germany
 At first: division of the spoils. But then:
 Stalin expected the new war to generate a new wave of
Commie revolutions – and intended to get involved
 By 1941, his fear of German power became the
overwhelming factor
 He was appeasing Hitler – and preparing for war against
him at the same time
 Each of the two intended to strike first
 Hitler preempted Stalin and delivered a crushing blow
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Operation Barbarossa
June 22, 1941
Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded
the USSR along an 1,800 mile front
Goals:
Total destruction of the Soviet state
 Colonization of the Soviet territory, together with
allies – Japan especially
 Enslavement of the population, turning the territory
into a resource base for the Third Reich
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German poster
depicting
Soviets: “The
lower race”
Blitzkrieg East
In the first 10 days, German armies moved 550 km into
Soviet territory
In the first 20 days of the war, the Red Army lost 1/5 of its
manpower – 600,000 men
By July, 20 Western Soviets found themselves under
occupation. Nazi terror began : Execution squads killing Jews
and anyone that looked capable of resisting.
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Victims of German occupation
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The Battle of Moscow: September
1941 – January 1942
Moscow, October 1941
Women digging anti-tank moats near Moscow
Antitank barriers in downtown Moscow
November 7th, 1941: military parade in Red Square
Marshal
Georgi
Zhukov,
commander
of Soviet
forces in the
Battle of
Moscow
Women in the war: medics
Women in the war: pilots
Children workers assembling weapons
Partisans
Partisans
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The Battle of Moscow was the first
Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.
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Casualties in the battle of Moscow:
250,000 – 400,000 German
600,000 – 1,300,000 Soviet
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The Siege of Leningrad
 September 1941 – November 1943
 The Germans and Finns failed to take the city
 The cost to Soviet population:
 About 1.4 million people were rescued by military
evacuation from the besieged city of Leningrad in
two years between September 1941 and November
1943.
 Another 1.2 million civilians perished in the city.
The Turning Point: The Battle of Staingrad
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The Battle of Stalingrad claimed over two million
casualties, more than any other battle in human history
It was also one of the longest: it raged for 199 days
Killed, wounded or captured at Stalingrad:
 Soviets: 1,290,000
 Germans and allies: 850,000
Soviet losses in World War II
 Over 27 mil. killed (13.6% of the population)
 Of those who survived, 29 mil. took part in the fighting
(including 0.8 mil. women)
 Battlefield losses – est. 8 mil. (Germany lost 4 mln.)
 5 mil. POWs (of them 3 mil. died in concentration camps)
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US and British POWs – 232,000 (8,500 died)
German POWs – 2.4 mil (0.45 mil. died)
1710 cities and 70,000 villages completely or partially
destroyed
40,000 hospitals, 84,000 schools, 43,000 libraries
destroyed
Historically unprecedented level of damage suffered by
any country
The war took
all nine of her
sons