In the spring of 1942, the Germans had penetrated deep into Soviet territory, but victory was nowhere near. Hitler gave him a new plan to win the Eastern Front, code-named Operation Blue.
Germany invaded the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941. Although the German army had made great progress by the time they arrived in Moscow, the fierce Soviet counteroffensive repelled them and nearly annihilated Army Group Center. The Germans were dragged into winter. "Will this winter never end?" Is a new ice age coming? Goebbels doubted life in late March 1942. Hitler proposed a new plan that would put Germany in a position to wage a global war by the end of October, when Germany was at war with the United States.
However, the United States is busy with the Japanese in Southeast Asia and is not a major threat for the time being. A second front in Europe has not yet emerged. Germany can no longer play the waiting game if it can. The war had to end politically, and Hitler rejected the possibility of a protracted war. For this, they need raw materials such as oil. As Goebbels said in an article in a Nazi newspaper: It was an ideological war, but also a war of raw materials. According to Hitler, oil was key. This would fuel Germany's war efforts and plunge the Soviet War economy into crisis.
As Hitler said, once the 'Affairs of the East' is over: the war is actually won for us. Then we will be in the position of a massive pirate war against the Anglo-Saxon powers, which they will not be able to bear in the long run. In Directive No. 41 of the Fuehrer, signed by Hitler in early April 1942, he declared the ultimate goal: "to ensure the safety of the Caucasus oil fields and the mountains themselves." "The aim was to take Voronezh, destroy the enemy forces west of the Don, and march towards the Volga. After Stalingrad wiped out industrial and communication centers and took control of the Volga, German troops could enter the Caucasus.
During the first Blitzkrieg against the Soviet Union, German generals were given orders and had freedom of how they were carried out. But when blue operates, the command structure becomes more rigid, eventually leading to chaos. Like the previous summer's Blitz, it was a desperate gamble in a short-term battle. But in the spring of 1942, the gap between Hitler's goals and his military might was even greater than it had been then. The Germans had to do more for less, because now the Germans had lost more than a million people. In late April, German commander Hald estimated that the infantry units in the south were only 50 percent of their original strength; the Germans had to rely more on their allies, such as Italy, Romania, and Hungary, some of which were not interdependent, such as Romanians and Hungarians.
Moreover, these countries can mobilize far fewer resources than the enemy alliance. Above all, Hitler believed that the Soviets were dying, and in Blau's case, he was certain that the encirclement would destroy the Red Army. German analysts misjudged the extent of industrial production in the USSR. In addition, the Soviet Union could rely on U.S. lend-lease aid. Hitler understood the risks, but had no choice. As German General George Thomas pointed out in May 1942: "It is impossible to defeat Russia completely in 1942, or at least not to reach the Caucasus and the Ural Mountains." "However, most German officers are not so pessimistic.
Operation Blue began on June 28, 1942. A German infantryman was stationed on the banks of the Mius River, one of the southernmost locations on the Eastern Front. After the fall of Sevastopell, they were one of the last to hear about the upcoming summer offensive. He's annoyed that they're spending so much time training rather than offense. On 11 July, the order moved forward. Crossing the Mius River, they reached a village that had been abandoned by the Red Army. However, a few hundred meters away, they encountered enemy fire and had to dig in. By the end of the next day, he hadn't eaten for 48 hours. Just as they were about to breathe a sigh of relief, an incoming shell broke the leg of one of his comrades. There was no hot food in the back, only bread, butter and coffee. He was later sent further south to Rostov, where they marched only at night to avoid the hot July sun. The temperature in sunlight is about 50 ° C.
Another German soldier wrote on July 18, 1942: "I believe that our goal now is Stalingrad. At least that's what I got from a soldier in the tank unit. In our industry, Russians are running so fast that our vehicles can't even keep up with them. When will we arrive in Iraq? Interestingly, the German soldier was referring to the possible occupation of the Middle East. Hitler did find the idea interesting, but was rejected because the plans were far from realistic. Speaking of the lack of realism, the soldier continued: "I just heard that Stalingrad has fallen. That's great. Our tanks had been standing in front of the city for a few days and could not move on because of insufficient fuel. Everything depends on the available fuel. ”
On 26 July, they reached Rostov on the Don River. The city was occupied by the Wehrmacht towards the end of Operation Barbarossa, but was reoccupied by the Soviets after the successful counteroffensive. Now in the summer of 1942, the Germans once again seized the city from the Soviet Union. Then they crossed the Don River and crossed the steppes. The rearguard Soviets they encountered immediately surrendered. However, most of the Soviet army was not captured, as these troops retreated eastward. This is a huge difference compared to Operation Barbarossa, where the Germans captured millions of Red Army soldiers. Of course, many people were also captured during Operation Blue, but not as many as during Barbarossa.
Operation Blue required three phases: first to capture Voronezh, then to encircle soviet forces at the Great Bend of the Don River, and then to advance towards Stalingrad and Astrakhan to protect the left flank. The occupation of the city of Stalingrad was not necessary, as long as German guns could prevent the Soviets from using it as a base for communications and weapons. Initially it went well. Voronezh was occupied and Rostov fell. Rostov is the gateway to the Caucasus region as well as to the grozny and Maykop oil fields. Hitler declared: "If we cannot take away Maykop and Grozny, then we must end the war".
On 23 July 1942, Hitler discovered that Führer Directive No. 45 had deviated from his plan: Army Group A would go to the Caucasus and Army B would go to Stalingrad. Speaking of Stalin: On July 28, Stalin issued Order No. 227 "No step back" to eliminate deserters and cowards on the spot.
At dawn on 21 August, the Germans crossed the Don River in assault boats and captured the bridgehead. Soon, the pontoon bridge was built and the armored forces could pass. On 23 August, Stalingrad was bombed on a massive scale. As Stalingrad burned in the distance, smoke billowed from the city and German soldiers took pictures of the victory. In a very short time, they managed to reach the Volga from the Don river and thought that this was the border of Asia. Many believe that the war is over. A commander stood in his armored vehicle, looking ahead. "We look at the huge grasslands leading to Asia and I'm overwhelmed."
Operation Blue was a huge operation, and the Battles of the Caucasus and Stalingrad took place as a result of Operation Blue.