A Discussion of the Phenomenon of Operation Barbarossa

When discussing the topic of the Nazi invasion attempt on the Soviet Union in World War II, also know as Operation Barbarossa, historians often have differences in opinion on why the Germans failed. The principal question that remains unanswered today is Was the Nazi failure caused by obstacles that they couldn't possibly foresee and avoid, or were they simply unprepared and over-zealous? It is my belief that Hitler was, or should have been, aware of the situation he would be putting his army into by attacking Russia, and therefore could have won his campaign in the East had he made better plans.

Operation Barbarossa, which initiated June 22, 1941, was named after Fredrick Barbarossa, an emperor of the Holy Roman Empire who took part in leading the crusades in the 12th century. Hitler's plan, according to World War II: The Axis Assault, 1939-1942, was to invade Russia directly and rapidly as to avoid the brutal upcoming winter and maintain the element of surprise throughout the campaign. This was necessary for a German victory because the Russians greatly outnumbered the Nazi forces, not to mention the Soviets were fighting in their own homeland and on their own terrain in conditions that only they were accustomed to. According to Stalin's War of Extermination, the Soviet forces were composed of at least 5 times as many tanks and aircrafts as Hitler's army.

The Red Army also had possession of as much as 10 times as many guns and mortars as the Germans. If Hitler were to face all of Russia at once, he would surely be over-come. He knew that eventually, the Soviet Union would have to fall. It was a necessary step for him to acquire living space for his Aryan race. In addition, Russia was a predominant element of the Allied forces. To win the war, he would need to defeat them permanently. Unfortunately for him, he had to make the difficult decision of whether to attack before or after the Russian winter. Attacking before the winter could mean having to fight into the season, severely damaging the army's strength. On the other hand, attacking too late could mean that the Russians had had enough time to build up forces strong enough to repel the Germans, and possibly perform an assault of their own against the Reich. If the Soviet Union had fallen, it could have been the end of the war with German victory and Nazi rule over all.

There were several faults with Hitler's plan. To begin with, he placed the entire fate of the attack on the assumption that the element of surprise, if he were successful in achieving it, would bring a swift and thorough victory in Russia. This was a huge mistake because Stalin knew all along of the impending German invasion. He had been tipped off by his own intelligence agency months before, yet he chose not to attack first because his own army could not yet go on the offensive. In addition, Hitler knew that his work was no longer private, and that there were spies giving information to his enemies. According to World War II: The Axis Assault, 1939-1942, Hitler wrote a letter to il Duce the day before Operation Barbarossa. He said, "I earnestly beg you, therefore, to refrain, above all, from making any explanation to your Ambassador at Moscow, for there is no absolute guarantee that our coded reports cannot be decoded." To base an entire operation on the element of surprise and secrecy is certainly unwise.
In addition to this, Hitler placed even more importance on the element of speed. The initial date for the commencement of Operation Barbarossa was May 15, 1941. An anti-Nazi uprising in Yugoslavia required the focus of the Germans, and the date was pushed back to June 22, 1941. The Germans desperately wanted to avoid dragging the campaign into the winter, since the winters in Russia can reach deadly temperatures, but Hitler was too confident of himself because of his recent victories in Western Europe, and stated that "We have only to kick in the door and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down".
According to the Reader's Digest The World at Arms, the Russian troops were ready to defend their country against Hitler's invasion: "a few Germans were beginning to sense that. . ." The Red Army was able to hold off the Nazi forces and slow down the assault. The element of surprise failed, and the speed that the Nazis required to take the Soviet Union was not there. Without the speed, his army would have to fight in the winter. They had to completely invade before then to make it successful. If they had to fight into the winter, their chances of losing were increased dramatically. Though Germany successfully invaded the Soviet Union, the Operation was ultimately a failure. Hitler's plan rose out of confidence and misplaced ambition. His loss was the effect of this. As you can see, the effect of winter had a great effect on the outcome of this campaign.

Another mistake that Hitler made was to establish a two-front war for Germany. He had not yet finished off the British, but he felt that they were no longer a threat and he could come back and finish them off after he had taken the Soviet Union, which he didn't want to leave any time to strengthen its forces. The Soviets were, in fact, working on a plan to strengthen their army, but it would take at least a year to reach the power it needed to fight the Germans. If Hitler had waited to attack after the winter, he may have had a better chance of taking Russia since the winter deadline would not be approaching. His military leaders strongly urged that opening up a second front in the war would soon become a major problem, especially since Great Britain was still responsive and able to retaliate. At least once the British had surrendered, then the front could be switched to the East, and the German army would not be so weakly spread out. By taking the risk by fighting a two front war, Hitler opened his country up to many other new problems. His pride was so strong though, that he acted against the suggestions of his military generals and over-reached.
By starting a new front against the Soviets, Germany had to spread its entire army across the distance from England all the way to the Eastern end of Russia. That way, they could defend against any British attacks, and continue invading the entirety to the Soviet Union. This was an obvious mistake, especially since the Russians outnumbered the Germans by so much. This was another example of Hitler's overbearing confidence.

On June 21, 1941 (the day before Operation Barbarossa), Hitler said, "When Operation Barbarossa is launched, the world will hold its breath". According to The World at Arms, 148 German divisions, 14 Romanian, divisions, 22 Finish divisions, 3 Italian divisions, and 1 Slovakian division stood ready to invade the Soviet Union. Following his rapid success in Western Europe, Hitler was confident that Operation Barbarossa would succeed without any problems, and that the war was as good as won. He was right in the sense that they would invade Russia, but there was yet more to come that he had not thought of.

The Russians were extremely patriotic and had a huge sense of nationalism. They simply felt that there was nothing to gain by surrendering. They feared their leaders, loved their country, and hated the Germans with a passion. After the invasion, Stavka, a new Soviet command, was established. Military forces were formed again, and they were much better prepared. Russia had 16 million men that could fight, and they all knew the terrain in which they were fighting. According to The World at Arms, a German officer once said, "Their positions, not on the forest edge, but deep inside, were superbly camouflaged. Their dugouts and foxholes were established with diabolical cunning, providing a field of fire only to the rear. From the front and from above they were invisible. The German infantrymen passed them unsuspecting, and were picked off from behind". At this time, the seasons were approaching winter, and once that was reached, the Germans would no longer be able to hold on to their control in Russia. They were too thinly spread and they weren't equipped for the Soviet winter. All supplies had to come from the back of the assaulting force, and that took too much time. The Germans had not yet taken full control, and they needed it to be successful. The Russians would not give in, no matter how depressing the odds were. This was what really mattered. By 1942, the Germans and the Russians were stuck in a stalemate. No side was winning at all. Three years later (to the day, June 22, 1944), the Russians set out their own Blitzkrieg. The Nazis could not withstand the attacks.

Another problem which plagued the Nazi forces was miscommunication and disputes between Hitler and his military officers. Though his army wanted to take the city of Moscow, Hitler didn't believe that it was necessary. He ordered his officers to attack Smolensk, then Leningrad and Kiev. Then, when Leningrad seemed like a more difficult target, Hitler ordered that the main focus be shifted to an assault on Moscow. This switch in tactics made it impossible for the Germans to take any city of value. This also presented many problems to the Nazi forces. Without the right cities, the Germans could not hope to successfully invade a country as large as Russia but taking whatever cities which were easiest to invade. That is why the German army had so many disagreements. They could not agree on the importance of each city, and, therefore, could not invade quickly. The whole operation would take time that they did not have. Then winter arrived.

By the time the Germans finally decided to take the city of Moscow, winter had fallen over Russia. The Nazi's had almost infiltrated Joseph Stalin's position, but they were stopped by the larger numbers of Soviet troops (who were no longer caught unprepared for the attack), aided by the new harsh weather. According to The World at Arms, the temperature on average reached as low as -40ºF, and wind chill made it feel even colder. The Germans, who had not intended to still be fighting through the winter season, were not equipped for this lethal weather. They had to use whatever they could find (bed sheets, woolen toque, etc.) to use as winter clothes. In addition, most of their supplies were made out of metal, which conducted the cold and created frostbite. The Russians, on the other hand, were obviously ready. Many troops were moved from their initial location in Siberia were moved to the Moscow front to protect the capitol of the Soviet Union. In addition to being used to the extremely cold weather, they were well equipped. Their boots were made of compressed felt and were called valenki. They wore fur hats, which kept the troops much warmer that the Germans with their metal helmets. They also wore a warm white over-suit which served as camouflage in addition to more layers underneath. They knew how to deal with cold weather and how to keep warm when sleeping and making shelter. And they carried weapons that worked in the cold where German guns would not fire. Overall, the Germans knew they could not fight the Russians through their own winter. Nonetheless, they continued the assault even though it was postponed. This mistake proved to be fatal.