Chapter 21 - The Great Patriotic War and its impact Flashcards
When was the German offensive pushed back from Moscow?
December 1941
When did the new German offensive advance towards the Caucasus oilfields?
June 1942
When was the German offensive halted at Stalingrad?
October 1942
When was the German surrender at Stalingrad?
February 1943
When was the new German offensive defeated at Kursk?
July 1943
When was Kiev liberated by the Red Army?
November 1943
When did the siege of Leningrad end?
January 1944
When did the Soviet forces reach Budapest?
December 1944
When was Warsaw captured by the Red Army?
January 1945
When was the Yalta summit meeting?
February 1945
When was the final defeat of Germany?
May 1945
When did Japan surrender?
August 1945
What was Operation Barbarossa?
The codename for the German invasion of the USSR
When did Germany invade the USSR?
22 June 1941
How long did the Germans think it would take to complete Operation Barbarossa?
A few weeks, well before the onset of winter
When was the German invasion originally planned for and why was it delayed?
1 June
Because of the Nazi invasion of Yugoslavia
The German invasion forces were split into 3 army groups. Where were they going?
Leningrad, Ukraine and Moscow
Why did Stalin take no direct action to prepare for a German invasion?
2 possible reasons
1. He didn’t believe it would happen
2. He was worried that if he increased Soviet defences it would provoke attack
How did Stalin respond to the invasion?
Ignored it for nearly 2 weeks, spoke publicly about it on 3 July
Molotov made a speech in his place on the day of the invasion
What did Stalin say when he first acknowledged the invasion himself?
He stressed themes of patriotism, religion and unity
Called on all the peoples of the USSR to join the patriotic war against fascism
In which ways was poor leadership an issue in the early stages of the war?
- Stalin was indecisive
- The army had inexperienced commanders
- Stalin refused to let the southern armies retreat from Kiev until it was too late
Give an example of Stalin’s indecisiveness in the early stages of the war
Preparations to move the capital from Moscow to Kuybyshev were cancelled at the last minute on his orders
What was the result of Stalin’s refusal to allow his army to retreat from Kiev?
A massive defeat in the south in September 1941
What were the 3 main stages of the war?
June 1941 - summer 1942
1942 - summer 1943
1943 - summer 1945
Give a summary of Stage 1 of the war
Russia struggled to survive against successive German offensives, suffering massive losses of people and territory
What are the key dates of Stage 1 of the war?
September 1941: siege of Leningrad begins
December 1941: German advance on Moscow halts; first sign of German hesitation in the war
August 1942: bombardment of Stalingrad begins
What are the key details of Stage 1 of the war?
- 3 mill German troops invaded the USSR in June 1941
- German advance was swift, huge losses for the Soviets (665,000 troops captured at Kiev)
- Soviets attempted peace negotiations on 15.10 but Hitler ignored their offer
What was the turning point of Stage 1 of the war?
October 1941:
Germans were unable to capture Moscow because of bad weather and because Stalin had recieved intelligence reports from Japan that allowed him to bring troops back from Siberia
Give a summary of Stage 2 of the war
Russia stabilised its war effort, built a powerhouse war economy and stopped German advances
What are the key dates of Stage 2 of the war?
February 1943: Surrender of German Sixth Army at Stalingrad
July 1943: Battle of Prokhorovka
July 1943: Kursk offensive called off
What are the key details of Stage 2 of the war?
- The war was turning into a war of attrition and Hitler didn’t have the resources to compete
- Mass production of the T-34 tank was central to Soviet success in the Battle of Prokhorovka
What was the turning point of Stage 2 of the war?
February 1943: Hitler made a major mistake in refusing to pull his troops out of Stalingrad. The defeat of the Sixth Army was a military and psychological disaster for the Germans
Give a summary of Stage 3 of the war
Soviet armies moved on to the offensive, capturing vast areas that had been ocupied, and finally defeating the Germans
What are the key dates of Stage 3 of the war?
November 1943: liberation of Kiev
November 1943: Tehran summit
January 1944: Soviet troops enter Poland
January 1944: siege of Leningrad ends
What is a key detail of Stage 3 of the war?
There was a series of Soviet chain victories across Eastern Europe from Aug 1943 onwards, but the Germans were resilient defenders and it took until April 1945 for the Red Army to reach Berlin
What was the turning point of Stage 3 of the war?
July 1943: Soviet victory at Prokhorovka was a springboard for Soviet counter attacks. Start of the Soviet offensive that actually won the war
In what two ways was the USSR ‘ravaged by war’?
- The German advance caused huge destruction
- Soviet ‘scorched earth’ tactics as the Red Army retreated
Why was life for civilians on the Home Front hard?
Food, fuel and shelter in short supply
Many factories, hospitals and houses destroyed
How many civilians died in the war?
~12 million
1/8 of the pop alive before the war was dead by 1945
How many towns, cities and villages were destroyed in the war?
1700 towns and cities
70,000 villages
Examples of German brutality and repression in the war
- 1000s of Soviet soldiers held as prisoners of war
- 1000s of Soviet workers conscripted to work in German war factories
- Captured Soviet commissars executed immediately
- Vicious reprisals against partisans
- Massacres and deportations of Jews
Give an example of a massacre of Jews
Sept 1941, 34,000 Jews were shot and buried in mass graves at Babi Yar
Examples of Soviet brutality and repression in the war
- 1000s arrested or executed as ‘slackers’, ‘deserters’ and ‘defeatists’
- 170,000 military personnel executed for treason during the war
- Harsh treatment of people from liberated western areas
- Harsh treatment of returned prisoners of war
- Mass deportations of ethnic minorities
Give an example of mass deportations of ethnic minorities
May 1944, the entire Tartar population of 24,000 people were deported to Uzbekistan
Name 3 powerful unifying factors during the war
- fear and hatred of the Germans (helped by German repression and cruelty)
- deep patriotism in defending the Motherland
- an underlying faith in Stalin and defence against fascism
What was the impact of conscription on the Red Army?
1941: 4.8 million soldiers
+29.5 million over course of war
How many factories were moved from Moscow?
500
Rapid mobilisation in the Soviet war economy
In the early stages of the war, Stalin’s errors lost millions of Red Army men and equipment
Rapid and massive conscription was a major strength to the USSR
Evacuation of industry in the Soviet war economy
German invasion and occupation of western regions destroyed the basis of the economy in industry and agriculture
Industry was relocated from the western areas to the Urals and further east
Whole factories were dismantled and moved with their equipment and workers
How many trains were used to transport the factories?
20,000
Improved military resources in the Soviet war economy
- Began to build a huge industrial base for war production in 1942
- Centrally controlled command economy was especially effective during wartime, helped USSR produce the resources it needed
- Huge improvements made to military vehicles and tactics
- Industrial capacity meant they could withstand the loss of 1000s of T-34 tanks in battle
Why was the T-34 tank so good?
- equal to the German Tiger tank in close-up fighting
- quick to manufacture
- easy to repair
Foreign aid from the USA
Huge quantities of armaments, industrial goods and food
300,000 American trucks supplied through the Lend-Lease scheme
What was the US Lend-Lease scheme?
A US policy in which the USA supplied its allies with food, oil and military equipment 1941-45
Why was foreign aid important for the USSR?
- It was an important factor in the ability to mobilise for total war
- Vital in the winter of 1942-43 when the USSR was recovering from heavy losses earlier in the war
