1. Germany in 1945
LO: What was the situation in Germany following total defeat in the war?

2. In April 1945, over two years after the German defeat at Stalingrad, the Oder and had became the front line between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
Two and a half million Red Army troops, 6000 tanks and over 40,000 artillery pieces were deployed for the final onslaught against the German capital.

3. In contrast, the German armed forces, the Wehrmacht, was a shadow of its former self. But its 300,000 German troops were determined to hold out against the Red Army.
Since 1941, Nazi forces had laid waste to large parts of the Soviet Union. More than 23 million Soviet soldiers and civilians had died.
Fuelled by Nazi propaganda, the Germans were terrified of what would happen if Berlin fell into Soviet hands

4. Stalin was in a hurry. The Americans had recently crossed the Rhine and the Soviet leader was concerned that they might capture Berlin before him.

5. To speed up his campaign, he split the command of the Berlin operation between Marshall Zukhov in the centre and Marshall Konev in the south.
This triggered a race between his two most senior commanders, as both of them were eager to be credited with the conquest of the German capital.

6. It took Zukhov three days to break the German resistance, far longer than planned.
Huge numbers of Soviet tanks were lost because they were used as battering rams against the German positions.
Over 30,000 Soviet soldiers died compared to the 10,000 soldiers lost by the Germans.
n the end, the high Soviet casualty rate was largely a result of Stalin's hurry to reach Berlin.

7. 'It was decided to fight the battle for Berlin and that Hitler would direct it personally.' From his bunker in Berlin, Hitler ordered a counter attack against the Red Army.

8. The 90,000 German defenders - mainly old people or members of the Hitler Youth - stood little chance against more than a million Red Army troops

9. the first wave of Soviet troops was generally considered to be disciplined, it was the second that indulged in orgies of rape and violence, fuelled by large stocks of alcohol found in the city.

10. It is estimated that up to two million German women were raped during the last six months of World War Two, around 100,000 of them in Berlin.
One woman remembered hiding in the loft of her apartment block, ready to jump out of the window if she was detected, whilst her best friend was being gang raped by Soviet soldiers in the apartment below.

11. The authorities in Moscow traditionally deny German allegations of mass rape at the end of the war. But Red Army documents were discovered that prove that the Soviet High Command was well aware that some of their soldiers were running out of control.
Even more shocking is the discovery in the Red Army files that Red Army troops also raped Russian women after their release from Nazi slave labour camps in Germany.

12. The Fall of Berlin
Watch the DVD clip and name 2 groups in Germany who fought in the streets against the Russian Army
Watch 40mins47 to 49mins 35

13. The last recruits learn how to fire anti-tank Panzerfausts to stop the Russians - 1945

14. Hitler Youth

15. On 30 April, Hitler committed suicide - together with his mistress Eva Braun, only hours after they were married. Hitler had given strict orders for his body to be burned, so that his enemies wouldn't do what they had done to Mussolini, who was publicly displayed hanging upside down.

16. Click to see what happened to Goebbels and his family
Downfall – 1hr 46mins 46 to 2hr 06 min 10

17. Soviet troops reach the Brandenberg Gate

18. By 2 May, the Reichstag, the old German parliament, had fallen.
Berlin surrendered to Marshall Zukhov, who received the honour of being the conqueror of Berlin.
The battle for Berlin had cost the Soviets over 70,000 dead. Many of them had died because of the haste with which the campaign was conducted.

19. After the war ended on 8 May 1945, much of Berlin was nothing but rubble: 600,000 apartments were destroyed, and only 2.8 million of the city’s original population of 4.3 million still lived in the city.
The war was over. But at an appalling cost in human lives and after years of unimaginable suffering for millions of people.

20. Key Words you MUST include:
TASK
Imagine you are an eyewitness living in Germany on May 8th. Write a diary entry for one of the days. Include:
Your thoughts on Hitler’s suicide
The condition of Berlin
What happened to you in the final days
Your thoughts for the future
Key Words you MUST include:
Volksturm
Hitler Youth
Goebbels
Hitler
Reichstag
Defeat
Russians
Red Army