World War II was the most tragic war in human history. One of the notable features of saying that it was the most tragic was the staggering death toll. In World War II, more than 70 million people died directly from the war and because of war-related factors.
Of the more than 70 million people, the Soviet Union accounted for more than 1/3, and its death toll was as high as 26.6 million. Of course, because of the difference in statistical caliber, this figure may not be very accurate, and there is still some controversy in the field of historians (some say that it is about 23.4 million), but the Soviet Union's personnel losses were the most serious, almost recognized by all countries.
Why was the Soviet Union the one with the largest number of casualties in this human catastrophe? The reasons are manifold.
First, at the beginning of World War II, the Soviet Union misjudged Germany's strategic intentions, thinking that the German army would not invade the Soviet Union so early. However, in June 1941, the German army launched "Operation Barbarossa", which easily occupied a large part of the Soviet territory through blitzkrieg, thus putting the Soviet Union in a passive situation at the beginning of the war.
Second, the Soviet Union was founded for a relatively short period of time, born out of the mess of the original Tsarist Russia, which was once the most backward power in Europe, and although it had developed rapidly during the Soviet period, its industrial base could not be compared with Germany.
Germany, on the other hand, had the most powerful industrial system in the world at that time. The famous "Tiger Tank", the tank that came out of the Soviet Tank Factory when the European battlefield was destroyed, was jokingly called "a tractor with artillery".
Third, the quality of Soviet personnel was also far inferior to that of Germany. At that time, Primary Education had been popularized in Germany. Although this sounds like a joke today, in that era few countries in the world could do this, and "an army without culture could not defeat the enemy."
Fourth, although the Soviet Union was vast, it was overwhelmingly barren and barren, and Although Siberia provided great strategic depth, survival there was a problem, so its value was almost equal to zero for the war at that time.
Therefore, the Soviet army must cling to its territory in the European part, because once the important towns of Moscow, Stalingrad, and Leningrad are lost, most of the population and industry of the Soviet Union will be lost, and it will be almost impossible for the Soviet Union to counterattack.
Therefore, the Battle of Moscow, the Battle of Stalingrad, and the Battle of Leningrad, which took place on top of these three cities, became one of the most tragic battles in World War II.
01 Defense of Moscow
In September 1941, the Germans drew up a plan for a massive offensive code-named "Operation Typhoon" to capture Moscow before winter came.
In the offensive, the Germans concentrated on encircling and destroying several Soviet army groups, and advanced to a distance of only 120 kilometers from Moscow. At this time, the bad weather in the Soviet Union in autumn made it difficult for German vehicles and horses. On 30 November, the German Panzer Corps had reached less than 23 km from Moscow, but their offensive came to a standstill due to weather conditions.
But the Soviet army was very tenacious, from December 5, 1941 to January 7, 1942, the Soviet army, newly equipped with winter weapons and equipment, launched a strategic counteroffensive against the German army, and finally won the victory in the defense of Moscow.
During this period, the number of German casualties was between 170,000 and 250,000 (some say about 400,000), while the number of Soviet casualties was about 650,000.
02 Battle of Stalingrad
Stalingrad, now known as Volgograd, is Russia's important town on the Volga River and was an important production base of military materials for the Soviet Union during World War II.
In June 1942, after the defeat at the Battle of Moscow, the Germans concentrated their forces on attacking Stalingrad in order to capture the Caucasus and Stalingrad and cut off the Soviet strategic supply line. In the initial phase, the German army invested 270,000 troops, and the total number of subsequent troops reached 1.04 million. The Soviets also issued a deadly order, with a total of 2.5 million troops.
In the city of Stalingrad, the two sides fought in a street battle, and although the Germans successfully occupied 90% of the city at different stages, they were still unable to take the last defensive positions of the Soviet army. After the arrival of Soviet reinforcements, the Germans were surrounded by regiments, and in the winter, when the river ran out of food, the Germans suffered the first large-scale defeat since World War II, with 840,000 dead and wounded. The Soviets also won a crushing victory, with more than 1.12 million people killed, missing or wounded.
03 Battle of Leningrad
Leningrad, now called St. Petersburg. During World War II, it was the second largest city in the Soviet Union, an important port, transportation hub, and an important base for the Soviet Baltic Fleet. Not only that, but it is also known as the cradle of the "October Revolution", which is of even greater significance to the Soviet Union. As a result, Leningrad also became one of the cities that the German army had to win.
Beginning on September 9, 1941, the Germans put in more than 720,000 troops and began an 871-day siege of Leningrad. It was not until January 14, 1944, that the Soviets broke the German siege. The long siege led to an unprecedented famine in the city, which resulted in the death of more than 1.5 million Soviet soldiers and civilians in the battle.
These three major battles were only a microcosm of the Soviet Union in World War II. It was precisely because in World War II that the Soviet Union became the main force that held the German army back and eventually eliminated it, that the country suffered the heaviest casualties.