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Learning Target Students will understand events on the Eastern that lead to the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Major Questions to Consider Over Next Few Weeks: (1) How did the U.S. impact the outcome of WWII, leading to Allied victory? (2) Was the decision to drop the atomic bomb by the United States justified? (3) How did the role of the U.S. in world affairs change because of its involvement in WWII?

All Quiet on the “Eastern Front” * Most epic and intense fighting front in the history of mankind

Operation Barbarossa -22 June – 5 December Largest military operation, land invasion, and number of casualties in the history of warfare. -Consequence: Opens up the Eastern Front

Operation Barbarossa

First Battle of Kiev (1941) -Aug. 7 to Sept. 26, Nearly the entire “Southwestern Front” Soviet Army encircled, 665,000 troops -Largest number of prisoners in history of warfare -Destruction of Soviet Tank Armies

Siege of Leningrad -Sept. 8, 1941 to Jan. 27, Now called “St. Petersburg,” the cultural center of Russia -872-day siege -Death of 1,500,000 soldiers and civilians -1,400,000 civilians evacuated, mainly women and children

Diary of Tanya Savicheva During Siege of Leningrad -Shown at the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials -She describes the starvation faced by her family …

Two German soldiers outside Moscow, 1941 … I imagine them saying, “Hey Claus, did you pack any winter gear?” “No Dieter. They told us we’d beat the Soviets in four months.”

Operation Typhoon & Battle of Moscow (1941) -Oct., 1941 to Jan., Nazis stall 19 miles outside Moscow -Hitler is furious, fires head of Wehrmacht, and takes over control -"This created a cold (chill) in our relations, a cold (chill) that could never be eliminated afterwards.” Let’s Defend Moscow

“Case Blue” or Operation Brauschweig” -June, 28 to Nov. 24, German offensive to take the Ukraine and knock the Soviet Union out of the war -Take the oilfields of Baku (modern-day Azerbaijan)

Battle of Stalingrad German advance halted and Soviets go on the offensive Bloodiest battle in the history of warfare - Sept to Feb. 1943

Battle of Stalingrad Most strategically decisive battle in WWII 2 million soldiers killed, wounded, or captured!! 144,000 Axis prisoners; 6 th Army destroyed; Wehrmacht never recovers - Sept to Feb. 1943

U.S. Aid and Geography

Casablanca Conference - Jan. 14 to 24, 1943 [1] Ground invasion of Western Europe is delayed a year [2] Aerial bombing of Germany to begin [3] Policy of “Unconditional Surrender” established [4] No separate agreements

Strategic Bombing of Germany * Between Jan., 1943 to May, 1945, it is decided to intensify strategic bombing of Germany for two reasons: - [1] Destroy German morale - [2] Destroy German production capacity

Operation Saturn -Dec, 1942 to Feb Soviets exploit their advantage in southern U.S.S.R., launching an offensive

Battle of Kursk -July & Aug., German Offensive, code named “Operation Citadel” -Largest tank battle in history -Only time in WWII the German blitzkrieg is ineffective -Last major German offensive on Eastern Front

Tehran Conference - Nov. 28 to Dec. 1, 1943 * Following Agreements: [1] Invasion of W. Europe [2] Soviet Union offensive once W. Europe front opened up [3] Germany divided [4] Soviet Union would help U.S. against Japan, once Germany was defeated [5] All parties agree to an international peace- keeping organization

Remember when Stalin agreed to launch an offensive when the Allies – United Kingdom and the United States – invaded Western Europe?

Operation Bagration -June 2 to Aug. 19, Soviet Offensive -Almost complete destruction of Nazi “Army Group Center.” -Largest German defeat in WWII Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive -These offensives lead to the Soviet repossession of Belarus and Ukraine -Almost complete liberation of western Soviet Union -Soviet Offensive -Almost complete destruction of Nazi “Army Group South.” -Soviets advance through Ukraine into Romania -July 13 to Aug. 29, “Maskirovka”

Vistula–Oder Offensive -Jan. 12 to Feb. 22, Soviet Offensive covers 300 miles from Vistula River in U.S.S.R. to 43 miles from Berlin

Battle of Berlin -April 20 to May 2, Soviet Union takes Berlin, Hitler commits suicide, and Germany surrenders the city -V-E Day – May 8, 1945