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With some 3.5 million German and nearly 700,000 German-allied troops (Romanians, Finns, Hungarians, Italians, Slovaks, and others) facing off against a Red Army that numbered some 5.5 million men, the opening phase of Barbarossa saw nearly 10 million human beings locked in mortal combat from the outset.
Operation 'Barbarossa' had clearly failed. Despite the serious losses inflicted on the Red Army and extensive territorial gains, the mission to completely destroy Soviet fighting power and force a capitulation was not achieved.
Just 20 miles short of their objective, the Soviets launched a counter-attack forcing the Germans onto the defensive. It was Hitler's first defeat on land in the Second World War. Find out why Hitler failed to defeat Russia and what caused Operation Barbarossa to fail.
Feb 29, 2020 · Operation Barbarossa, Hitler's plan to attack the Soviets and solidify his conquest of Europe, led to epic combat and casualties. Learn the history and significance of the attack.
June 22, 1941. Operation Barbarossa. Nazi Germany invades the Soviet Union in "Operation Barbarossa." In accordance with previous agreements between SS and police and Wehrmacht representatives, German mobile units of Security Police and SD officials, called Einsatzgruppen, followed the frontline troops into the Soviet Union.
In the early morning hours of June 22, 1941, the Germans struck. They and their allies had mustered nearly 3.7 million men, 3,350 tanks, and nearly 3,000 aircraft, organized into three vast Army Groups. Their targets were Leningrad, Moscow, and Ukraine, respectively. At 3:15 am, German artillery began to pound Soviet border positions.
Operation Barbarossa: Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union. Nazi Germany invading the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa, June 22, 1941. See all videos for this article. For the campaign against the Soviet Union, the Germans allotted almost 150 divisions containing a total of about 3,000,000 men.
