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War memoirs - Unity 1942-1944 Charles Gaulle

In the second volume of de Gaulle's memoirs, significant space is devoted to the relationship of the French National Liberation Committee with its allies in the anti-Hitler coalition - the USSR, the USA and England. The book presents extensive factual and documentary material that is of great interest to those interested in the political history of France during the Second World War. Thanks to de Gaulle's efforts, defeated France became one of the victorious countries in World War II and became one of the five great powers in the post-war world. De Gaulle...

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In early 1945, Hitler made a final attempt to turn the tide of the war and avoid final disaster on the Eastern Front by ordering a large-scale offensive in Western Hungary to drive Red Army units beyond the Danube, stabilize the front line and hold the Hungarian oil fields. By the beginning of March, the German command concentrated almost the entire armored elite of the Third Reich in the area of Lake Balaton: SS tank divisions “Leibstandarte”, “Reich”, “Totenkopf”, “Viking”, “Hohenstaufen”, etc. - in total...

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The last soldier of the Third Reich Guy Sayer

German soldier (French on his father) Guy Sayer talks in this book about the battles of World War II on the Soviet-German front in Russia in 1943–1945. The reader is presented with a picture of the terrible trials of a soldier who was always on the verge of death. Perhaps for the first time, the events of the Great Patriotic War are presented through the eyes of a German soldier. He had to endure a lot: a shameful retreat, continuous bombing, the death of his comrades, the destruction of German cities. Sayer does not understand only one thing: that neither he nor his friends are going to Russia...

Military Russia Yakov Krotov

A military state differs from a normal state not in the military, but in the civilians. The military state does not recognize the autonomy of the individual, law (even in the form of the idea of a police state), only agrees to orders as absolute arbitrariness. Russia has often been characterized as a country of slaves and masters. Unfortunately, in reality this is a country of generals and soldiers. There was and is no slavery in Russia. A military man was considered a slave. The mistake is understandable: soldiers, like slaves, have no rights and live not of their own free will and not by right, but by order. However, there is a significant difference: slaves do not fight.…

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On both sides of the blockade ring Yuri Lebedev

This book attempts to provide another perspective on the Leningrad siege and the fighting around the city through documentary records of people on opposite sides of the front line. About his vision of the initial period of the blockade from August 30, 1941 to January 17, 1942. told by: Ritter von Leeb (commander of Army Group North), A. V. Burov (Soviet journalist, officer), E. A. Scriabina (resident of besieged Leningrad) and Wolfgang Buff (non-commissioned officer of the 227th German Infantry Division) . Thanks to the efforts of Yuri Lebedev, military translator and chairman...

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Veterans know: to see the true face of war, one must visit not even the battlefield, but front-line infirmaries and hospitals, where all the pain and all the horror of death appear in an extremely concentrated, condensed form. The author of this book, Oberarzt (senior doctor) of the 6th Wehrmacht Infantry Division, looked death in the face more than once - in 1941 he walked with his division from the border to the Moscow outskirts, saved hundreds of wounded German soldiers, personally participated in battles, and was awarded The Iron Cross of I and II classes, the German Cross in gold, the Assault badge and two stripes...

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On June 22, 1941, the Red Army won its first victory in the Great Patriotic War - the assault on the Brest Fortress, which the German command had spent only a few hours capturing, ended in complete failure and heavy losses of the 45th Wehrmacht Division. Despite the surprise of the attack and the loss of command and control at the very beginning of the battle, the Red Army soldiers demonstrated miracles of spontaneous self-organization, offering desperate resistance to the enemy. It took the Germans more than a week to break him, but separate groups of defenders held out until...

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What to do if an ordinary person was completely unexpectedly brought from our enlightened time into the most terrible year of Soviet history? Moreover, just a day before hundreds of Junkers will begin to spin their engine propellers, and millions of German soldiers will receive the order to cross the border with the USSR. Probably, for starters, just try to stay alive. And then, posing as someone who has lost his memory due to shell shock, pick up a rifle and, if life turns out that way, fight for his country. But not just to fight, but by collecting all your extremely scanty...

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J. S. Patton is one of the most prominent figures in the history of World War II. Since 1942, he has been an active participant in the fighting in North Africa, where he commanded the Western Operational Group of the US Army, and then in Sicily, having taken command of the US Third Army in Normandy in July 1944, J. S. Patton meets the end of the war already in Czechoslovakia. Not only is Patton's war memoir a fascinating read for military history buffs, but it can also serve as a resource on the history of World War II.

Anti-Russian meanness Yuri Mukhin

In order to unite Europe in the armed struggle against the advancing Red Army, Hitler in 1943 ordered to dig up the graves of Polish officers shot in 1941 by the Germans near Smolensk and inform the world that they were allegedly killed in 1940 by the NKVD of the USSR on the orders of the “Moscow Jews." The Polish government in exile, sitting in London and betraying its allies, joined this Hitlerite provocation, and as a result of the increased bitterness during the Second World War, millions of Soviet, British, American, German soldiers were additionally killed on the fronts...

Sevastopol Fortress Yuri Skorikov

The book is written on the basis of a rich collection of archival materials and rare photographic documents. It tells about the history of the origin and stages of construction of the Sevastopol fortress. The most important events of the 349 days of the heroic defense of Sevastopol in 1854-1855 are described in detail. during the Crimean War of 1853-1856, the unparalleled work of sappers and miners on the defense line, the courage and heroism of the defenders of the fortress - sailors and soldiers who fought under the leadership of outstanding military leaders - admirals V. A. Kornilov, M. P. Lazarev, P . S. Nakhimov and the head...

The Return of Bernhard Schlink

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German postcard and notebook seized during the arrest of prisoners of war

I was called up for military service.

In the battles near Revel on August 20, Ferdi Walbrecker fell for his fatherland. Hans and I spent the last Sunday in September in Aachen. It was very nice to see Germans: German men, women and German girls. Previously, when we first arrived in Belgium, the difference did not catch my eye... To really love your homeland, you must first be away from it.

1941 October. 10. 10. 41.

I'm on guard. Today I was transferred to the active army. In the morning we read the list. Almost exclusively people from construction battalions. Of the July recruits, only a few mortarmen. What can you do? I can only wait. But next time it will probably affect me too. Why should I ask voluntarily? I know that it will be more difficult to fulfill my duty there, much more difficult, but still...

14. 10. 41.

Tuesday. On Sunday, machine gunners were selected from 1st platoon. I was among them. We had to swallow 20 quinine pills; suitability for service in tropical conditions was tested. On Monday I received an answer: good. But I heard that the shipment was cancelled. Why?

Today we had a review. It was conducted by our company commander. This is all just a theatrical performance. As could have been predicted in advance, everything went well. Vacation in Lüttich for 18-19.10 has been arranged.

22. 10. 41.

The vacation has already passed. It was good. We still found the military priest. During divine services, I served him. After lunch he showed us Lüttich. It was a pleasant day. I felt like I was among people again.

Hans, Gunther and Klaus left. Who knows if we'll see each other.

There has been no news from my brother at home for many weeks (7-9). After I received the news of Ferdi Walbrecker's death, I felt as if my brother would also be killed. May the Lord God protect me from this, for the sake of my parents, especially for the sake of my mother.

Werner Kunze and Kosman are killed. Nothing more is heard from Africa.

Written by Frieda Grislam (relation to the government and to the people; soldier and woman at the present time).

1941 November.

20. 11. 41.

Five days in Eltfenborn are over. The service there was very easy. Apart from shooting as a platoon, we practically did nothing. But we were in Germany, and it was nice. In Eltfenborn I visited the priest.

The way the Germans are holding out in the former Eifen-Malmedy can be understood; we expected a different Germany. Not so anti-Christian. But there are also Walloon villages there, and quite a few. During the shooting, someone lit a fire. When you stand like that and look at the flames, old memories come up. As it was before. For me, nothing better could happen right now than to go on the road with a few guys, but...

P... also wrote about wasting time; now that we are in the prime of our powers and want to use them. What would you like to work on?

What challenges await us! They say that two marching battalions are being formed again. News from home: Willy Walbrecker has also been killed. We also made our sacrifice. Willie is fourth. I ask: who's next?

26.11. 41.

Willie Schefter is in the infirmary. This was a real comrade. More and more often the thought occurs to me that I am wasting my time here aimlessly. I hesitate on what I want to be: Africa; technical profession; or a priest only for God.

There is no camaraderie to be found in our room. I would like to get to the front sooner. It will be good for me.

25. 11. 41.

Yesterday morning, unexpectedly for everyone, the dispatch order arrived. Now no one wanted to believe it when we were gathered. But it is so. The day was spent in uniform. What I expected has finally arrived, and I firmly believe that more will come. A more difficult, but better (if that is the right expression) time is coming. Now you have to show whether you are a man or a coward. I hope that this experience will be a lifelong gain for me; I will become more mature.

I don’t want to write about the general enthusiasm that was reflected in drunkenness; it won't last long.

1941 December. 8.12.41.

I've written various things this week, and there's a lot more I could write. About general enthusiasm, about duty at the moment, etc. Dusseldorf! It's not good for you. No!

Magdalene was also here on Wednesday (my parents were here last Sunday). The Gestapo searched and took away my letters and other things. No comments needed. I'll get my leave on Sunday and find out more about it. From me they went to the Dealer and took a lot of things there. Do they have the right, because we live in Germany; The dealer was taken to... and from there sent to Dortmund, where he is in pre-trial detention. They were still sitting until Sunday. Johann is there too. I think there are 60-100 people sitting there.

12.12. 41. Friday.

We've been on the road since Wednesday. They say that we are 13.12. We will be in Insterburg, and on December 15 we will be on the other side of the border.

America also entered the war.

It's cramped in the carriage here. Whether we will get to the Southern Front is now, perhaps, doubtful. Regarding the Gestapo, I visited our captain; he promised me full support. I composed the letter, but there are still some little things, we'll see. We'll be somewhere for Christmas.

13.12. 41. Saturday.

I wrote a letter to the Gestapo. The captain will probably sign the petition. What more could you want? I put it all in a business-like manner. Success is doubtful. We are in Insterburg.

East Prussia is almost all behind. I haven't shaved since Monday. “Unshaven and far from home.” Still haven't encountered any camaraderie. I hope that things are better at the front in this regard; otherwise it would be a big disappointment for me.

16.12.41. Tuesday.

Lithuania, Latvia are behind. We are in Estonia. We had a long layover. I was in the city. Nothing interesting. Riga was already better. Unfortunately, we couldn't get into the city.

The mood in our carriage is terrible! Yesterday two people fought; Today there are two again. Companionship here is an illusion, a utopia.

Lithuania is a flat country that stretches wide before our eyes. This country is poor. Everywhere there are wooden huts (they cannot be called houses), covered with thatch. The inside is small and cramped.

Latvia is not so smooth. One part is mountainous and covered with forest. Even the houses in the villages here are better and look more comfortable. Estonia also has a lot of forests and hills.

The people here are very nice. The language is completely incomprehensible. There's not much here either. No vodka. Food cards.

In Riga, they say, 10,000 Jews (German Jews) were shot. No comments needed. Three people were shot for robbery, I support this, no matter how harsh it may be. To prevent this from spreading, decisive intervention is needed. This is a mistake: we were not in Estonia on Tuesday (12/18)

18.12. 41.

In Russia. We passed through Estonia very quickly. Russia is a flat, endless country. Tundra. We received cartridges.

We traveled along the following route: Riga - Valk (Estonia) - Russia; to Pskov. Pskov is said to be the third most beautiful city in Russia.

I read Shakespeare: The Merchant of Venice and Hamlet. We are located 10 km. from Pskov and we will probably stay here for a long time. I like Shakespeare.

19.12. 41.

We are still near Pskov. The fact is that the Russians have severely damaged the railway system and there are few steam locomotives here.

I gave bread to several Russians. How grateful these poor people were. They are treated worse than livestock. Of the 5,000 Russians, approximately 1,000 remain. This is a shame. What would Dvingoff and Etighofer say if they knew this?

Then I “visited” one peasant. When I gave him a cigarette, he was happy. I looked at the kitchen. Poor! I was treated to cucumbers and bread. I left them a pack of cigarettes. Not a word is clear from the language except: “Stalin”, “communist”, “Bolshevik”.

The ring around St. Petersburg was broken through by the Russians a few days ago. The Russians broke through 40 km. They couldn’t do anything against the tanks. The Russians are extremely strong here. Whether the ring is closed from the side of the lake is doubtful. There are too few of our troops there. When will Leningrad fall? War! When will it end?

21. 12. 41.

Today is Sunday. It's not noticeable in any way. The trip is over. In Gatchina (Baltic) we were unloaded. The population besieged our carriages, asked for bread, etc. It is good when you can bring joy to a child, woman or man. But there are too many of them.

We are located 6 km. from the station. There are 16 of us in one room with 4 wide beds; There are 3 people for each bed, and the other four..?

I don’t want to write anything about the last days in the carriage. There is not a trace of soldier's friendship. In one prison camp, more than 100 prisoners are said to have died in one night. 22.12.41.

Our apartment is good. The hostess (Finnish) is very kind, but poor. We give her quite a lot. After all, it is better to give than to take.

24. 12. 41.

Today is Christmas Eve... In Gatchina, most of the churches were destroyed by German pilots, not by the Reds. There is still a cross on the palace.

(Bra)ukhich resigned or was dismissed. What does this mean?

27. 12. 41.

Christmas has passed. In fact, these were very, very sad days, there could not be any real Christmas cheer.

It is said that the 1st Division, since it took part in very heavy fighting, will be sent to the south of France. Therefore, we will probably end up in the 12th division. I hope so. Others would also like to get to the south of France.

Today we saw seven carriages with soldiers who arrived from the ring near Leningrad. These soldiers looked terrible. Such pictures are not seen in newsreels.

It's gradually getting cold here. 20 degrees.

Wrote something about a soldier's life. I think a lot about Dealer, Johann and things related to them.

30. 12. 41.

Today or tomorrow we are being sent, and to the 1st division at that... Something will happen with Dealer, Johann and others...

1942 January. 03.01.42.

New Year has arrived. Will the war end in 1942? On December 31, 1941 we set out from Gatchina. When we walked 15-20 km, two buses and one truck arrived, which immediately delivered 60 people. to 1st division. Among these 60 were also myself, Wunten and Tsuitsinga. In the division we were immediately distributed among regiments; the three of us ended up in the 1st regiment. That same evening we were sent to the 3rd battalion, where we spent the night in an ice-cold dugout. This was a New Year's gift. Then we were distributed into companies. Wunten and I ended up in the 10th company. We handed over our food to the kitchen and “stomped” to the company, which had been on vacation for five days and just 1.1.42. in the evening she returned to the front line.

And now we are in the dugout. We stand on duty 6-7 hours a day. The rest of the time we lie down or eat. A life unworthy of man.

We are here between Leningrad and Shlisselburg, near the Neva, where it makes a sharp bend. The crossing is still in Russian hands. We are to the left of it. The dugout is tolerable (compared to others). It's calm here. Occasionally mortars fire. One person was killed last night. One person in the second platoon was killed today.

Our life is in the hands of God. We must remain on the front line for 10 days, and then 5 days of rest.

The company numbers 40-50 people. Of the division (15,000), only 3,000 remained alive. The ring around Leningrad is not closed (propaganda). The food is very good.

04. 01. 42.

You look like a pig. That's not putting it too strongly. You can't wash your face. And so, eat it in this form. I don't write this to complain. It just needs to be recorded.

Yesterday we brought a dead man - “We are not carrying treasure, we are carrying a dead man.” The rest don't pay attention to it. It's because you see too many dead people.

Friendship! Will she come again? Don't know. Or am I still not accustomed to the new environment?

Johann and Dealer, what could it be? You often get furious when you think about this meanness. If you then think that you are here at the front, then questions arise to which you would like to receive an answer. But there is a difference between the government and the people. This is the only solution.

07. 01. 42.

Yesterday more reinforcements arrived from the 4th marching company. There is talk that we will be replaced in the coming days!?!

“Comrades” often sing a beautiful song:

“Heil Hitler, heil Hitler.
All day - Heil Hitler
And on Sundays Heil Hitler
Heil Hitler, heil Hitler."

They sing this song to the melody of “Gedwig’s aunt, Gedwig’s aunt, the machine doesn’t sew”... Comments are unnecessary.

There is one soldier in our department. He is a Catholic. He is 35 years old. Peasant (6 cows, one horse). He is from Altenburg; from Bourscheid 2.5 hours walk. Maybe it can be used somehow for a group, or..?

(?). 1. 42

Yesterday there was talk that we were leaving here. The convoy seemed to have already been loaded. Everyone believes it. I also think this is true. I call this big disgusting. The “comrades” rejoice. I understand those who have been here from the very beginning. But we, who have just arrived, and are already back; This is downright scandalous. But we can't change anything about this. Nobody knows where they are sent. To Koenigsberg? Going skiing to Finland?

13. 1. 42.

We're on vacation. If you can call it a vacation. In any case, better than on the front line. Regarding the shift: behind Mga, where the convoy is located, a new position is being built.

18. 1. 42.

We are back on the front line for ten days. This time on the right position (south). We should post a few more posts. The dugout is small and cold. The conversations were really in vain. This will probably last a long time. But we believe that in the spring, when the attack comes, we will not be here, since then we disappeared, everyone says.

Friendship is funny. Sometimes you are pleased, and sometimes you again commit the most unfriendly and selfish act that can be done. In the near future I will be collecting cigarettes again, since my comrades really don’t deserve to always be given cigarettes.

30. 1. 42.

Only today did I find time to write further. Instead of ten days, it turned out to be thirteen, but it was pretty good in the dugout... During this time, I shaved once and “washed” in a lid with water (1/4 liter). Von Leeb also left, or was suspended. Reichenau died. It is not known how this should be understood. I don't mind going to Germany either.

1942 February.

02. 02. 42.

The two days of rest were soon over. On Sunday, January 31, the order came. At 18 o'clock we left and came back again. We weren't supposed to be here until the next morning at 6 o'clock. At night we changed our underwear and “washed ourselves”. We are further east from the old position. Again at the Neva. The area is calmer and better. The dugouts are all quite comfortable. The company occupied 1800 meters (probably the length of the defense section - editor's note). There are 4 people in our department. We put one person out for the night. This would have been nothing if we had not been occupied with too many other things during the day (carrying ammunition).

They say we will stay here until the attack? We don't get trench rations. It is not right.

15. 2. 42.

I'm again in another department. Tomorrow we move to another place. Erwin Schultz was wounded 7.2 by a mine fragment. Because of this, the three of us are forced to stand at the post. This is a bit much, but other branches cost the same. So you need to be happy. Everything is still calm here. I rejoice at every letter from home. Now I finally know about Johann and the Dealer... I’m finishing. Prayer must not be forgotten. I will be glad for the time when I will be free from military service and will be able to live the way I want - not like everyone else.

Long live Moscow! Mouth front!

22. 2. 42.

We are still in the same position. It became colder again. I'm happy with the mail. The Gestapo was with us. They wanted to know the address. Hope I hear something about this soon.

27. 2. 42.

Today I turn 19 years old. Corporal Schiller arrived from Mga. The wound was not terrible; it was caused not by the Russians, but by Domerak.

I am already looking forward to the day when I can start working, free from military service.

Non-commissioned officer Riedel seems to be a big pig. Nothing has been heard from the Gestapo yet. If only I could hear nothing at all from all that is so disgusting for a few days.

1942 March. 09.03.42.

Several days passed again. It would be nice to get a few nights sleep. I don't have enough food - too little bread. There is wild talk about Vienna, Koblend, etc.

12. 03. 42.

From 9.30 to 10 o'clock approximately 100-200 rounds were fired per rifle, 600-1000 rounds per machine gun; in addition, a mass of flares were fired. After 10 o'clock there is silence. We weren't supposed to show up during the day. This was done in the area from the crossing to Shlisselburg (15 km). The command wanted to attract defectors in this way or cause the expulsion of a reconnaissance detachment, since prisoners were needed to obtain testimony.

On the night of 9.3. on 10.3. a man came on the left wing of our company - a defector or not, eyewitnesses differ on this point. He told a lot: the positions were poorly defended, there was nothing to eat, the company commander was supposedly a Jew, etc. Whether this is true is doubtful. I don’t know how many Russians fell into our hands in the indicated area.

It was also said that if we do not receive prisoners, we will have to send a reconnaissance detachment across the Neva, which, one might say, is a team of suicide bombers. Volunteers, go! We need to bring in the prisoners!

I haven't heard anything about the Gestapo yet.

20. 3. 42

At 20-30 we were loaded and transported by truck to Shapki (a little further).

21. 3. 42

Reconnaissance squad in the forest.

24. 3. 42

About 3 o'clock. Order: get ready. Now, as a battalion reserve, we are sitting in dugouts in which “the sun is shining.” The worst thing is artillery fire.

10th company - losses of 9 people.

10, 11, 12 companies - losses of 60 people.

9th company - losses 40%.

Our position is omega (possibly Mga - comp.). Food is better. Easter. What will happen for Easter?

Translated by: shekhn. Quartermaster I rank - Zinder.

https://www.site/2015-06-22/pisma_nemeckih_soldat_i_oficerov_s_vostochnogo_fronta_kak_lekarstvo_ot_fyurerov

“The soldiers of the Red Army shot, even burning alive”

Letters from German soldiers and officers from the Eastern Front as a cure for the Fuhrers

June 22 is a sacred, sacred day in our country. The beginning of the Great War is the beginning of the path to the great Victory. History does not know a more massive feat. But also bloodier, more expensive for its price - perhaps too (we have already published terrible pages from Ales Adamovich and Daniil Granin, stunning with the frankness of front-line soldier Nikolai Nikulin, excerpts from Viktor Astafiev’s “Cursed and Killed”). At the same time, alongside inhumanity, military training, courage and self-sacrifice triumphed, thanks to which the outcome of the battle of nations was predetermined in its very first hours. This is evidenced by fragments of letters and reports from soldiers and officers of the German armed forces from the Eastern Front.

“Already the first attack turned into a battle for life and death”

“My commander was twice my age, and he had already fought with the Russians near Narva in 1917, when he was a lieutenant. “Here, in these vast expanses, we will find our death, like Napoleon,” he did not hide his pessimism... “Mende, remember this hour, it marks the end of the old Germany”” (Erich Mende, chief lieutenant of the 8th Silesian infantry division about a conversation that took place in the last peaceful minutes of June 22, 1941).

“When we entered the first battle with the Russians, they clearly did not expect us, but they could not be called unprepared either” (Alfred Durwanger, lieutenant, commander of the anti-tank company of the 28th Infantry Division).

“The quality level of Soviet pilots is much higher than expected... Fierce resistance, its massive nature do not correspond to our initial assumptions” (diary of Hoffmann von Waldau, Major General, Chief of Staff of the Luftwaffe Command, June 31, 1941).

“On the Eastern Front I met people who could be called a special race.”

“On the very first day, as soon as we went on the attack, one of our men shot himself with his own weapon. Clutching the rifle between his knees, he inserted the barrel into his mouth and pulled the trigger. This is how the war and all the horrors associated with it ended for him” (anti-tank gunner Johann Danzer, Brest, June 22, 1941).

“On the Eastern Front I met people who could be called a special race. Already the first attack turned into a battle for life and death” (Hans Becker, tankman of the 12th Panzer Division).

“The losses are terrible, they cannot be compared with those in France... Today the road is ours, tomorrow the Russians take it, then we again and so on... I have never seen anyone more evil than these Russians. Real chain dogs! You never know what to expect from them” (diary of a soldier of Army Group Center, August 20, 1941).

“You can never say in advance what a Russian will do: as a rule, he rushes from one extreme to the other. His nature is as unusual and complex as this huge and incomprehensible country itself... Sometimes Russian infantry battalions were confused after the first shots, and the next day the same units fought with fanatical tenacity... Russian as a whole is certainly excellent a soldier and with skillful leadership is a dangerous adversary” (Mellentin Friedrich von Wilhelm, Major General of Panzer Forces, Chief of Staff of the 48th Panzer Corps, later Chief of Staff of the 4th Panzer Army).

“I have never seen anyone more evil than these Russians. Real watchdogs!”

“During the attack, we came across a light Russian T-26 tank, we immediately shot it straight from the 37mm. When we began to approach, a Russian leaned out waist-high from the tower hatch and opened fire on us with a pistol. It soon became clear that he had no legs; they were torn off when the tank was hit. And, despite this, he fired at us with a pistol!” (memories of an anti-tank gun artilleryman about the first hours of the war).

“You simply won’t believe this until you see it with your own eyes. The soldiers of the Red Army, even burning alive, continued to shoot from the burning houses” (from a letter from an infantry officer of the 7th Panzer Division about the battles in a village near the Lama River, mid-November 1941).

“... Inside the tank lay the bodies of the brave crew, who had previously only received injuries. Deeply shocked by this heroism, we buried them with full military honors. They fought until their last breath, but it was just one small drama of the great war" (Erhard Raus, colonel, commander of the Kampfgruppe Raus about the KV-1 tank, which shot and crushed a column of trucks and tanks and an artillery battery of Germans; a total of 4 Soviet The tanker was held back by the advance of the Raus battle group, about half a division, for two days, June 24 and 25).

“July 17, 1941... In the evening, an unknown Russian soldier was buried [we are talking about 19-year-old senior artillery sergeant Nikolai Sirotinin]. He stood alone at the cannon, shot at a column of tanks and infantry for a long time, and died. Everyone was surprised at his courage... Oberst said before his grave that if all the Fuhrer’s soldiers fought like this Russian, we would conquer the whole world. They fired three times in volleys from rifles. After all, he is Russian, is such admiration necessary? (diary of Chief Lieutenant of the 4th Panzer Division Henfeld).

“If all the Fuhrer’s soldiers fought like this Russian, we would conquer the whole world.”

“We took almost no prisoners, because the Russians always fought to the last soldier. They didn't give up. Their hardening cannot be compared with ours...” (interview with war correspondent Curizio Malaparte (Zuckert), an officer in the tank unit of Army Group Center).

“The Russians have always been famous for their contempt for death; The communist regime has further developed this quality, and now the massive Russian attacks are more effective than ever before. The attack undertaken twice will be repeated for the third and fourth time, regardless of the losses incurred, and both the third and fourth attacks will be carried out with the same stubbornness and composure... They did not retreat, but rushed forward uncontrollably" (Mellenthin Friedrich von Wilhelm, General Major of Tank Forces, Chief of Staff of the 48th Tank Corps, later Chief of Staff of the 4th Tank Army, participant in the Battles of Stalingrad and Kursk).

“I’m so furious, but I’ve never been so helpless.”

In turn, the Red Army and the inhabitants of the occupied territories faced a well-prepared – and also psychologically – invader at the beginning of the war.

"25-th of August. We throw hand grenades at residential buildings. Houses burn very quickly. The fire spreads to other huts. A beautiful sight! People cry, and we laugh at the tears. We have already burned ten villages in this way (diary of Chief Corporal Johannes Herder).

“September 29, 1941. ...The sergeant-major shot each one in the head. One woman begged for her life, but she was also killed. I am surprised at myself - I can look at these things completely calmly... Without changing my facial expression, I watched as the sergeant major shot Russian women. I even felt some pleasure at the same time...” (diary of non-commissioned officer of the 35th Infantry Regiment Heinz Klin).

“I, Heinrich Tivel, set myself the goal of exterminating 250 Russians, Jews, Ukrainians, indiscriminately, during this war. If each soldier kills the same number, we will destroy Russia in one month, everything will go to us, the Germans. I, following the call of the Fuhrer, call all Germans to this goal...” (soldier’s notebook, October 29, 1941).

“I can look at these things completely calmly. I even feel some pleasure at the same time.”

The mood of the German soldier, like the backbone of a beast, was broken by the Battle of Stalingrad: the total enemy losses in killed, wounded, captured and missing amounted to about 1.5 million people. Self-confident treachery gave way to despair, similar to that which accompanied the Red Army in the first months of fighting. When Berlin decided to print letters from the Stalingrad front for propaganda purposes, it turned out that out of seven bags of correspondence, only 2% contained approving statements about the war; in 60% of the letters, soldiers called to fight rejected the massacre. In the trenches of Stalingrad, a German soldier, very often for a short time, shortly before death, returned from a zombie state to a conscious, human one. It can be said that the war as a confrontation between troops of equal size was ended here, in Stalingrad - primarily because here, on the Volga, the pillars of the soldiers’ faith in the infallibility and omnipotence of the Fuhrer collapsed. This - this is the truth of history - happens to almost every Fuhrer.

“In the homeland, some people will begin to rub their hands - they managed to preserve their warm places, and pathetic words surrounded by a black frame will appear in the newspapers: eternal memory to the heroes. But don't be fooled by this. I’m so furious that I think I would destroy everything around me, but I’ve never been so helpless.”

“People are dying from hunger, severe cold, death here is simply a biological fact, like food and drink. They die like flies, and no one cares about them, and no one buries them. Without arms, without legs, without eyes, with their stomachs torn apart, they are lying everywhere. We need to make a film about this in order to destroy the legend of “the beautiful death” forever. This is just a bestial gasp, but someday it will be raised on granite pedestals and ennobled in the form of “dying warriors” with their heads and hands bandaged.

“Novels will be written, hymns and chants will be sung. Mass will be celebrated in churches. But that’s enough for me.”

Novels will be written, hymns and chants will sound. Mass will be celebrated in churches. But I've had enough, I don't want my bones to rot in a mass grave. Don’t be surprised if you don’t hear from me for some time, because I am determined to become the master of my own destiny.”

“Well, now you know that I won’t come back. Please inform our parents about this as discreetly as possible. I am in great confusion. Before I believed and therefore I was strong, but now I don’t believe in anything and am very weak. I don’t know much of what’s going on here, but even the little that I have to participate in is already too much for me to handle. No, no one will convince me that people die here with the words “Germany” or “Heil Hitler.” Yes, people die here, no one will deny this, but the dying turn their last words to their mother or to the one they love most, or it is just a cry for help. I saw hundreds of dying people, many of them, like me, members of the Hitler Youth, but if they could still scream, they were cries for help, or they were calling for someone who could not help them.”

“I looked for God in every crater, in every destroyed house, in every corner, with every comrade, when I was lying in my trench, I also looked in the sky. But God did not show himself, although my heart cried out to him. Homes were destroyed, comrades were brave or cowardly like me, there was hunger and death on earth, and bombs and fire from the sky, but God was nowhere to be found. No, father, God does not exist, or only you have him, in your psalms and prayers, in the sermons of priests and pastors, in the ringing of bells, in the smell of incense, but in Stalingrad he is not... I no longer believe in the goodness of God, otherwise he would never allow such terrible injustice. I no longer believe in this, for God would clear the heads of the people who started this war, while they themselves spoke in three languages about peace. I no longer believe in God, he betrayed us, and now see for yourself what to do with your faith.”

“Ten years ago we were talking about ballot papers, now we have to pay for it with such a “trifle” as life.”

“The time will come for every reasonable person in Germany when he will curse the madness of this war, and you will understand how empty your words were about the banner with which I must win. There is no victory, Mr. General, there are only banners and people who die, and in the end there will be no more banners or people. Stalingrad is not a military necessity, but political madness. And your son, Mr. General, will not participate in this experiment! You are blocking his path to life, but he will choose another path for himself - in the opposite direction, which also leads to life, but on the other side of the front. Think about your words, I hope that when everything collapses, you will remember the banner and stand up for it.”

“Liberation of peoples, what nonsense! The peoples will remain the same, only the power will change, and those who stand on the sidelines will argue again and again that the people must be freed from it. In 1932, something could still have been done, you know that very well. And you also know that the moment was missed. Ten years ago we were talking about ballot papers, but now we have to pay for it with such a “trifle” as life.”

German soldiers about Russians.

From Robert Kershaw's book "1941 Through German Eyes":

“We took almost no prisoners, because the Russians always fought to the last soldier. They didn't give up. Their hardening cannot be compared with ours...” /Tankman of Army Group Center/

After successfully breaking through the border defenses, the 3rd Battalion of the 18th Infantry Regiment of Army Group Center, numbering 800 people, was fired upon by a unit of 5 soldiers. “I did not expect anything like this,” admitted the battalion commander, Major Neuhof, to his battalion doctor. “It’s pure suicide to attack the battalion’s forces with five fighters.”

“On the Eastern Front I met people who could be called a special race. Already the first attack turned into a battle for life and death.” /Tankman of the 12th Panzer Division Hans Becker/

“You simply won’t believe this until you see it with your own eyes. The soldiers of the Red Army, even burning alive, continued to shoot from the burning houses.” /Officer of the 7th Tank Division/

“The quality level of Soviet pilots is much higher than expected... The fierce resistance and its massive nature do not correspond to our initial assumptions” /Major General Hoffmann von Waldau/

“I have never seen anyone more evil than these Russians. Real chain dogs! You never know what to expect from them. And where do they get tanks and everything else from?!” /One of the soldiers of Army Group Center/

“The behavior of the Russians, even in the first battle, was strikingly different from the behavior of the Poles and allies who were defeated on the Western Front. Even when surrounded, the Russians steadfastly defended themselves.” /General Gunter Blumentritt, Chief of Staff of the 4th Army/

71 years ago, Nazi Germany attacked the USSR. How did our soldier turn out in the eyes of the enemy - the German soldiers? What did the beginning of the war look like from someone else's trenches? Very eloquent answers to these questions can be found in the book, the author of which can hardly be accused of distorting the facts. This is “1941 through the eyes of the Germans. Birch crosses instead of iron ones” by the English historian Robert Kershaw, which was recently published in Russia. The book consists almost entirely of memories of German soldiers and officers, their letters home and entries in personal diaries.

Non-commissioned officer Helmut Kolakowski recalls: “Late in the evening our platoon was gathered in the barns and announced: “Tomorrow we have to enter the battle with world Bolshevism.” Personally, I was simply amazed, it was out of the blue, but what about the non-aggression pact between Germany and Russia? I kept remembering that issue of Deutsche Wochenschau, which I saw at home and in which it was reported about the concluded agreement. I couldn’t even imagine how we would go to war against the Soviet Union.” The Fuhrer's order caused surprise and bewilderment among the rank and file. “You could say we were taken aback by what we heard,” admitted Lothar Fromm, a spotter officer. “We were all, I emphasize this, amazed and in no way prepared for something like this.” But bewilderment immediately gave way to the relief of getting rid of the incomprehensible and tedious wait on the eastern borders of Germany. Experienced soldiers, who had already captured almost all of Europe, began to discuss when the campaign against the USSR would end. The words of Benno Zeiser, then still studying to be a military driver, reflect the general sentiment: “All this will end in about three weeks, we were told, others were more cautious in their forecasts - they believed that in 2-3 months. There was one who thought that this would last a whole year, but we laughed at him: “How long did it take to deal with the Poles? What about France? Have you forgotten?

But not everyone was so optimistic. Erich Mende, a lieutenant from the 8th Silesian Infantry Division, recalls a conversation with his superior that took place in these last peaceful moments. “My commander was twice my age, and he had already fought with the Russians near Narva in 1917, when he was a lieutenant. “Here, in these vast expanses, we will find our death, like Napoleon,” he did not hide his pessimism... Mende, remember this hour, it marks the end of the old Germany.”

At 3:15 a.m., advanced German units crossed the border of the USSR. Anti-tank gunner Johann Danzer recalls: “On the very first day, as soon as we went on the attack, one of our men shot himself with his own weapon. Clutching the rifle between his knees, he inserted the barrel into his mouth and pulled the trigger. This is how the war and all the horrors associated with it ended for him.”

The capture of the Brest Fortress was entrusted to the 45th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht, numbering 17 thousand personnel. The garrison of the fortress is about 8 thousand. In the first hours of the battle, reports poured in about the successful advance of German troops and reports of the capture of bridges and fortress structures. At 4 hours 42 minutes, “50 prisoners were taken, all in the same underwear, the war found them in their beds.” But by 10:50 the tone of the combat documents had changed: “The battle to capture the fortress was fierce - there were numerous losses.” 2 battalion commanders, 1 company commander have already died, and the commander of one of the regiments was seriously wounded.

“Soon, somewhere between 5.30 and 7.30 in the morning, it became completely clear that the Russians were fighting desperately in the rear of our forward units. Their infantry, supported by 35-40 tanks and armored vehicles that found themselves on the territory of the fortress, formed several centers of defense. Enemy snipers fired accurately from behind trees, from roofs and basements, which caused heavy losses among officers and junior commanders.”

“Where the Russians were knocked out or smoked out, new forces soon appeared. They crawled out of basements, houses, sewer pipes and other temporary shelters, fired accurately, and our losses continually grew.”
The report of the Wehrmacht High Command (OKW) for June 22 reported: “It seems that the enemy, after initial confusion, is beginning to put up more and more stubborn resistance.” OKW Chief of Staff Halder agrees with this: “After the initial “tetanus” caused by the surprise of the attack, the enemy moved on to active action.”

For the soldiers of the 45th Wehrmacht Division, the beginning of the war turned out to be completely bleak: 21 officers and 290 non-commissioned officers (sergeants), not counting the soldiers, died on its very first day. In the first day of fighting in Russia, the division lost almost as many soldiers and officers as in the entire six weeks of the French campaign.

The most successful actions of the Wehrmacht troops were the operation to encircle and defeat Soviet divisions in the “cauldrons” of 1941. In the largest of them - Kiev, Minsk, Vyazemsky - Soviet troops lost hundreds of thousands of soldiers and officers. But what price did the Wehrmacht pay for this?

General Gunther Blumentritt, Chief of Staff of the 4th Army: “The behavior of the Russians, even in the first battle, was strikingly different from the behavior of the Poles and the Allies who were defeated on the Western Front. Even when surrounded, the Russians steadfastly defended themselves.”

The author of the book writes: “The experience of the Polish and Western campaigns suggested that the success of the blitzkrieg strategy lay in gaining advantages through more skillful maneuvering. Even if we leave resources aside, the enemy’s morale and will to resist will inevitably be broken under the pressure of enormous and senseless losses. This logically follows the mass surrender of those surrounded by demoralized soldiers. In Russia, these “elemental” truths turned out to be turned on their heads by the desperate, sometimes reaching the point of fanaticism, resistance of Russians in seemingly hopeless situations. That’s why half of the Germans’ offensive potential was spent not on advancing towards the set goal, but on consolidating existing successes.”

The commander of Army Group Center, Field Marshal Feodor von Bock, during the operation to destroy Soviet troops in the Smolensk “cauldron,” wrote about their attempts to break out of encirclement: “A very significant success for the enemy who received such a crushing blow!” The encirclement ring was not continuous. Two days later, von Bock lamented: “It has still not been possible to close the gap in the eastern section of the Smolensk pocket.” That night, approximately 5 Soviet divisions managed to escape from the encirclement. Three more divisions broke through the next day.

The level of German losses is evidenced by the message from the headquarters of the 7th Panzer Division that only 118 tanks remained in service. 166 vehicles were hit (although 96 were repairable). The 2nd company of the 1st battalion of the "Great Germany" regiment lost 40 people in just 5 days of fighting to hold the line of the Smolensk "cauldron" with the company's regular strength of 176 soldiers and officers.

The perception of the war with the Soviet Union among ordinary German soldiers gradually changed. The unbridled optimism of the first days of fighting gave way to the realization that “something is going wrong.” Then came indifference and apathy. Opinion of one of the German officers: “These enormous distances frighten and demoralize the soldiers. Plains, plains, there is no end to them and there never will be. That’s what drives me crazy.”

The troops were also constantly worried about the actions of the partisans, whose numbers grew as the “cauldrons” were destroyed. If at first their number and activity were negligible, then after the end of the fighting in the Kiev “cauldron” the number of partisans in the sector of Army Group “South” increased significantly. In the Army Group Center sector, they took control of 45% of the territories captured by the Germans.

The campaign, which dragged on for a long time with the destruction of the encircled Soviet troops, evoked more and more associations with Napoleon's army and fears of the Russian winter. One of the soldiers of Army Group Center complained on August 20: “The losses are terrible, cannot be compared with those in France.” His company, starting from July 23, took part in the battles for “Tank Highway No. 1”. “Today the road is ours, tomorrow the Russians take it, then we take it again, and so on.” Victory no longer seemed so close. On the contrary, the desperate resistance of the enemy undermined morale and inspired far from optimistic thoughts. “I have never seen anyone more evil than these Russians. Real chain dogs! You never know what to expect from them. And where do they get tanks and everything else from?!”

During the first months of the campaign, the combat effectiveness of the tank units of Army Group Center was seriously undermined. By September 1941, 30% of the tanks were destroyed, and 23% of the vehicles were under repair. Almost half of all tank divisions intended to participate in Operation Typhoon had only a third of the original number of combat-ready vehicles. By September 15, 1941, Army Group Center had a total of 1,346 combat-ready tanks, while at the beginning of the Russian campaign this figure was 2,609 units.

Personnel losses were no less severe. By the beginning of the offensive on Moscow, German units had lost about a third of their officers. Total manpower losses by this point reached approximately half a million people, equivalent to the loss of 30 divisions. If we consider that only 64% of the total strength of the infantry division, that is, 10,840 people, were directly “fighters”, and the remaining 36% were in the rear and support services, then it becomes clear that the combat effectiveness of the German troops decreased even more.

This is how one of the German soldiers assessed the situation on the Eastern Front: “Russia, only bad news comes from here, and we still don’t know anything about you. Meanwhile, you are absorbing us, dissolving us in your inhospitable viscous expanses.”

About Russian soldiers

The initial idea of the population of Russia was determined by the German ideology of the time, which considered the Slavs to be “subhuman.” However, the experience of the first battles brought its own adjustments to these ideas.
Major General Hoffmann von Waldau, chief of staff of the Luftwaffe command, wrote in his diary 9 days after the start of the war: “The quality level of Soviet pilots is much higher than expected... Fierce resistance, its massive nature do not correspond to our initial assumptions.” This was confirmed by the first air rams. Kershaw quotes one Luftwaffe colonel as saying: “Soviet pilots are fatalists, they fight to the end without any hope of victory or even survival.” It is worth noting that on the first day of the war with the Soviet Union, the Luftwaffe lost up to 300 aircraft. Never before had the German Air Force suffered such large one-time losses.

In Germany, the radio shouted that shells from “German tanks were not only setting fire to, but also piercing through Russian vehicles.” But the soldiers told each other about Russian tanks, which were impossible to penetrate even with point-blank shots - the shells ricocheted off the armor. Lieutenant Helmut Ritgen from the 6th Panzer Division admitted that in a clash with new and unknown Russian tanks: “... the very concept of tank warfare has radically changed, KV vehicles marked a completely different level of armament, armor protection and tank weight. German tanks instantly became exclusively anti-personnel weapons...” Tankman of the 12th Panzer Division Hans Becker: “On the Eastern Front I met people who can be called a special race. Already the first attack turned into a battle for life and death.”

An anti-tank gunner recalls the lasting impression the desperate Russian resistance made on him and his comrades in the first hours of the war: “During the attack, we came across a light Russian T-26 tank, we immediately shot it straight from the 37 graph paper. When we began to approach, a Russian leaned out waist-high from the tower hatch and opened fire on us with a pistol. It soon became clear that he had no legs; they were torn off when the tank was hit. And, despite this, he fired at us with a pistol!”

The author of the book “1941 Through the Eyes of the Germans” cites the words of an officer who served in a tank unit in the Army Group Center sector, who shared his opinion with war correspondent Curizio Malaparte: “He reasoned like a soldier, avoiding epithets and metaphors, limiting himself to argumentation, directly related to the issues discussed. “We took almost no prisoners, because the Russians always fought to the last soldier. They didn't give up. Their hardening cannot be compared with ours...”

The following episodes also made a depressing impression on the advancing troops: after a successful breakthrough of the border defense, the 3rd battalion of the 18th infantry regiment of Army Group Center, numbering 800 people, was fired upon by a unit of 5 soldiers. “I did not expect anything like this,” admitted the battalion commander, Major Neuhof, to his battalion doctor. “It’s pure suicide to attack the battalion’s forces with five fighters.”

In mid-November 1941, one infantry officer of the 7th Panzer Division, when his unit broke into Russian-defended positions in a village near the Lama River, described the resistance of the Red Army. “You simply won’t believe this until you see it with your own eyes. The soldiers of the Red Army, even burning alive, continued to shoot from the burning houses.”

Winter '41

The saying “Better three French campaigns than one Russian” quickly came into use among the German troops. “Here we lacked comfortable French beds and were struck by the monotony of the area.” “The prospects of being in Leningrad turned into endless sitting in numbered trenches.”

The high losses of the Wehrmacht, the lack of winter uniforms and the unpreparedness of German equipment for combat operations in the Russian winter gradually allowed the Soviet troops to seize the initiative. During the three-week period from November 15 to December 5, 1941, the Russian Air Force flew 15,840 combat sorties, while the Luftwaffe carried out only 3,500, which further demoralized the enemy.

Corporal Fritz Siegel wrote in his letter home on December 6: “My God, what are these Russians planning to do to us? It would be good if up there they at least listened to us, otherwise we will all have to die here."

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