Operation Barbarossa Essay Research Paper Operation Barbarossa

Operation Barbarossa Essay, Research Paper

Operation Barbarossa ;

Why did it fail.

At the height of his power, Adolf Hitler had the world by the throat. His reign of terror was known in every country around the globe. His strengths as a leader were based mainly in politics; charisma mixed with intelligence. People would follow his lead, run blindly into battle, commit atrocities the likes of which the world had never seen, and not think twice about it. An uncanny ability to sway millions to follow, does not however constitute ability as a military general. Hitler s eventual decline begun with the invasion of Russia, code named “Operation Barbarossa”. After this military blunder, the tide of the war began to sway, and the power of Nazi Germany decreased with each passing day. Why did Operation Barbarossa fail so terribly. Hitler s generals had tried desperately to talk him out of it, but he was convinced Russia would fall to the Werhmarcht (German Army). Breaking his non-aggression pact with Stalin, to invade Russia was the most costly mistake Hitler ever made. It seems that fate is not without irony, as it would be the advancing Russians that eventually brought Germany to its knees.

The ultimate ideological goal for Operation Barbarossa was to destroy Communist Russia, but Germany s original intent for invading Russia was to gain control of the oil and

wheat regions in the Crimea territory. At this point in the war shortages of petrol, oil, and

lubricants were hindering German war efforts. The strategy for invasion however was flawed with many lapses, and uncertainties. The German Army High Command, the German Armed Forces High Command, and even Hitler himself had contradictory ideas. This combined to lead to a number of blunders, unresolved conflicts, and unmet objectives. Hitler was basing his invasion on his delusional belief that the bulk of the Soviet forces could be trapped and destroyed by the time his armies reached the Dneiper River. He also was certain that Stalin s “Great Terror”, the attempt to merge the social classes had left the Russian armies battered and weak. To Hitler, it seemed like the right moment to invade.

On Sunday, June, 22, 1941, elements from 148 divisions were mobilised and ready to invade. They totalled 3 300 000 German soldiers, 3 500 tanks, 7 184 artillery pieces, 600 000 vehicles, 625 000 horses, and 2 000 aircraft. There was also support from the German navy, and support from the Finnish, Rumanian, Italian, Hungarian, Slovak, Croatian, and Spanish armies. Hitler had divided the army into three separate divisions. The northern division marched to Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), the central division marched to Moscow, and the southern division invaded the Ukraine and Caucasus regions (both rich in wheat and oil). The amount of troops Hitler sent is quite significant in understanding the reasons for Operation Barbarossa s failure. At the time Hitler was already in a war with the Allies on one front. Starting a war on a second front meant Hitler

could not dedicate the numbers of troops that he otherwise could have. The timing was terrible as the army s vital needs desperately required restocking. If an invasion of Russia was to take place, supplies would be needed there as well. Hitler had sound reason to invade the Ukraine and Caucasus area.

Operation Barbarossa opened with the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) taking out most of the Russian air support. It was a well rehearsed attack using Hitler s method of blitzkrieg. This was one of the more intelligent moves that was made during the invasion. This tactic to eliminate any support the Russians could have had from the air was a clever use of making a good offence one s best defence. The problem following this strike was that Hitler failed to send in more aircraft as support to his 3 300 000 troops. The added support of aircraft from the Luftwaffe could have been the edge the Germans needed to defeat the Russians. If the German Air Force losses had not been so great in the Battle of Britain, then perhaps Hitler would have made more effective use of the air power he had under his control.

On July 15 1941, the central division under the command of General Guderian proceeded as planned to Smolensk, where the city was captured and 300 000 Russia

troops were taken prisoner. The northern division had reached Leningrad (present day St. Petersburg) but found it heavily defended, and laid siege to the city. The siege of Leningrad lasted an incredible 28 months, beginning in September 1941. The Wehrmarcht (German Army) trapped 3 000 000 civilians inside the city. In the first few weeks the food ran out, and civilians were forced to eat whatever they could. General Zhukov of the Russian military was sent to oversee defence of the city. He put the civilians to work creating multiple defensive lines around the city. Zhukov successfully defended the city and with the help of the cruel Russian winter, the Germans suffered a serious setback with the loss at Leningrad.

In September of 1941 the southern division had also run into trouble in Kiev – they found themselves opposed by a formidable Russian army. General Guderian and his central division had almost reached Moscow by this point. This is when Hitler made one of the largest military blunders of the invasion of Russia, and perhaps World War 2. He ordered the Pan