![]() The aim was to slow down the brutal invaders before the main targets of Moscow, Leningrad and Kiev. Survivalĭuring 1941 the Soviet Union was fighting for survival and refusing to capitulate. It was a Great Patriotic War, uniting the maximum number of citizens including those ones who hadn’t always supported the revolution. More importantly, it responded quite differently than other countries had in the face of blitzkrieg.įrom the off, it organised a dogged defence and total war, embracing both military and civilian populations. Over 5 million army reservists were called up by the end of June 1941. Germany held the initiative at the start, but the Soviet Union quickly mobilised a multi-faceted defence of the country. At that point the only opposition to the expansive imperial desires of German fascism had been the war in the skies during the Battle of Britain from July to October 1940. It had taken out Czechoslovakia, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark with either minimal resistance or relative military ease. Hitlerite Germany had already achieved great military success with lightning blitzkrieg tactics. On 22 June 1941, fascist Germany unleashed without warning a blitzkrieg assault – an immense ground invasion along its western border and into Soviet territory. The victory at Kursk was the culmination of two years of total dedication by the people and military forces of the Soviet Union in response to the German invasion. The battle was fought in south western Russia between two of the largest national armies ever seen, as the Soviet Union first blunted Nazi Germany’s invading forces then overwhelmed them and went on to the offensive. ![]() Raging ferociously from July to August 1943, Kursk was the most decisive battle of the Second World War, crucially transforming anti-fascist fortunes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |