At the beginning of the summer of 1941, or rather on June 22, the Great Patriotic War began with the treacherous betrayal of Germany. Hitler and his entourage created the Barbarossa plan, according to which the USSR was to be defeated with lightning speed. The document was signed on December 18, 1940.
Each of us must remember the main dates of the Second World War and pass this knowledge on to children. At the beginning of the conflict, the German army was the strongest in the world. She worked simultaneously in three directions and was supposed to immediately capture the B altic states, Leningrad, Kyiv and Moscow.
Treachery attack
On August 23, 1939, a non-aggression pact was signed between two countries - Germany and the USSR. Some historians believe that he contributed to the beginning of the military confrontation.
According to the pact, the two countries were to refrain from any aggression, either alone or in alliance with other powers. The parties to the treaty were also not supposed to support coalitions, which could include other countries, if their plans included military actions directed against Germany orTHE USSR. The signatories were:
- from the USSR - Vyacheslav Molotov;
- from the German side - Joachim von Ribbentrop.
The day after the conclusion of the treaty, Germany attacked Poland.
Why did the Barbarossa plan fail?
Everyone around Hitler understood that he was programmed to take over the USSR. General Marx received the order to develop a plan for the capture. He gave Hitler several options. Why did the Barbarossa plan fail? German intelligence misjudged the military power of the USSR and the morale of the Red Army. According to her, for example, the USSR produced six times fewer combat aircraft than it actually was.
Beginning of confrontations
Belarus, Ukraine and the B altic States were the first to be hit by German bombing. This happened at 3:30 am on June 22, 1941. In Zhukov's book "Memories and Reflections" the following figures are also given. Participated in the battle:
- 4950 combat aircraft;
- 3712 tanks;
- 153 German divisions.
High school students study all the main dates of the Second World War, but most of all schoolchildren are struck by its beginning. It was a peaceful sunrise on June 22 - graduates met the dawn, said goodbye to school and prepared for adulthood. Each of them had plans and dreams that were cut short by German tanks and planes. Goebbels announced to his people the beginning of the war at 5:30 am. He read Hitler's address on the Great German Radio.
Brest Fortress - the firsthit
If we consider all the main dates of the Second World War, then the defense of the fortress in the city of Brest is an incredible feat of soldiers, their families and just the population. German troops planned to capture it for the first time in the war.
Defense held 3500 people:
- 17th border detachment;
- unit of the 6th and 42nd rifle divisions;
- 132nd battalion of the NKVD troops.
The Brest Fortress was liberated from the Germans on July 28, 1944.
The garrison was cut off from the Red Army. As a result of a hurricane of artillery fire, all communications and communications with the outside world were destroyed. Already on June 24, the Nazis partially captured the fortress. Shooting in the vicinity was heard until August.
The heroic defense of the Brest Fortress is a worthy example of patriotism. May 8, 1965 she was given the title of a fortress-hero. It became a memorial in 1971.
Battle of Smolensk
From July 10 to September 10, 1941, the Battle of Smolensk took place. The Nazis opposed the Western Front. The army of the Third Reich had twice as many soldiers and four times as many tanks. The task of the Nazis was to break our Western Front into pieces and destroy the troops that defend Smolensk. With this they were supposed to clear the way to Moscow.
The battle of Smolensk is an event of the Second World War, in which the Nazis failed for the first time since the beginning of the confrontation between Germany and the USSR. Soviet soldiers heroically defended this direction for 2 months. The enemy did not expect thisresistance. This led to the complete disruption of all plans of the Wehrmacht. Instead of quickly capturing Moscow, the enemy was forced to move to the defense of their positions.
Capture of Ukraine
Fascist Germany saw a strategically important object in Ukraine. The Germans needed coal, which was mined in the Donetsk region, Krivoy Rog ore, as well as agricultural land.
If we take the strategic task, then, having captured the territory of Ukraine, the German troops could help the central grouping of their colleagues in the southern direction in the capture of Moscow. Hitler failed to defeat this country with lightning speed, but still the Red Army had to surrender.
Main dates of the Second World War that concern Ukraine:
- The Red Army left the capital of Ukraine on September 19, 1941.
- German troops captured Odessa on October 16, 1941.
- Kharkov surrendered October 24, 1941
Union of Winners
August 14, 1941, the Atlantic Charter was created - a document that outlined the main goals of the war against the fascist states. The negotiations were held on board the British ship "Prince of Wales", which stopped in Newfoundland. Roosevelt and Churchill signed the declaration. The USSR and many other countries joined the Atlantic Charter on September 24, 1941. This policy document of the anti-Hitler coalition determined the world order after the defeat of the Nazis and became the basis for the creation of the UN.
Turning point February 2 - Battle of Stalingrad
The capture of Stalingrad was veryimportant to the Nazis. The Germans wanted to get a road to:
- Caucasus (oil-bearing regions);
- lower Volga;
- Kuban;
- Don.
It's scary to imagine what would happen if German troops captured Stalingrad. As a result, the Soviet army would lose one of the most important water arteries of the country - the Volga River. Cargo from the Caucasus went along it. Having captured Stalingrad, the enemy wanted to cut off the south of the USSR from the central part. One hundred and twenty-five days there were fierce battles for this city, but Stalingrad survived. The confrontation began on July 17, 1942, and at the end of the winter of 1943 (February 2), the Battle of Stalingrad was won.
Battle of Kursk
After the defeat of the Nazis near Stalingrad, the German troops were thrown back and wanted revenge. The victory of the Red Army created the conditions for the expulsion of the enemy from Ukraine. In December 1942, the liberation of Donbass began.
On July 5, 1943, the Battle of Kursk began, which lasted 50 days. It ended with the victory of the Soviet troops. The Battle of Kursk made it possible to liberate Kharkov and other cities of Ukraine:
- Poltava;
- Chernihiv;
- all Donbass.
Prokhorovka (1943)
In the summer of 1943, on July 12, the most terrible battle in history took place near Prokhorovka. For an hour, the battlefield was littered with flaming tanks, which clung to their tracks and fired until the enemy vehicle exploded. Soviet troops heroically withstood this fight and blocked the enemy's path to Kursk.
The end of the war: interesting facts
German troops surrenderedMay 9, 1945 at 00:43 minutes - this is a victory, a great event of the Second World War. The bloodiest military confrontation in the history of the USSR lasted 1418 days. On May 9 at 22:00, as a sign of victory in Moscow, they fired a huge number of guns.
This date is the end of the Second World War, but military confrontations in the world have not ended. There was an alliance treaty that had to be fulfilled. On August 8, Soviet troops began to fight Japan. The confrontation lasted 2 weeks. Soviet soldiers defeated the powerful Kwantung Army in Manchuria.
According to the documents, the USSR was in a state of military confrontation with Germany until January 1955, since a peace treaty was not signed immediately after the surrender.
Do not forget the main dates of the Second World War - it is the duty of each of us to those who defended our land. The Second World War claimed the lives of 65 million people around the globe. This must be remembered so that the terrible tragedy will never touch humanity again.
