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... in late August and slowly took most of the city. Speaking to an assembly of war veterans in November 1942, Hitler told them, I wished to reach the Volga at a certain point, near a certain city. That city happens to bear the name of Stalin himself But Stalin ordered that the city be defended at all cost, the city which bore his name. Two very powerful Soviet armies were then assembled, one in the north and the other in the south of Stalingrad. As another Russian winter set in, Hitler was still very confident, although the Russian supply position was much better, with factories and huge labour force poured out weapons and equipment for the Red Army.
Although Hitler had captured most of the city, time was running out for the Germans. In a few days the Russian armies broke the German lines and in a sweeping movement encircled the city. The German Sixth Army and part of the Fourth Panzer Corps were then trapped. Fearing that the advancing Russians would also trap German troops in the Caucasus, Hitler had no choice but to retreat, and reluctantly ordered them to withdraw. The commander of the German army in Stalingrad, Von Paulo's, asked Hitler for permission to break out of Stalingrad, but permission was refused and the Sixth Army was forced to fight on. The Germans in Stalingrad endured the harsh Russian winter, struggled through starvation and the Russian attacks.
But by January 1943, Von Paulo's was forced to surrender what was left of his army to the Russians. The Russian victory in Stalingrad was a major turning point in the war. The Germans suffered heavy losses, which could not be replaced. Of the 300 000 men who made up the mighty Sixth Army, only 91 000 survivors were captured and marched off to Soviet prison camps, and only 6000 ever saw Germany again. Hitler also had to cover other military fronts, for example the worsening situation in North Africa. The Red Army, however, were able to significantly increase the size of their army, despite the terrible losses in battle, from 173 infantry divisions when the German attack began in 1941, to 513 divisions by the end of 1943.
The Red Army was also better supplied. It was receiving Lend Lease aid from the US, and by 1943, 3500 tanks and 7000 aircraft had been shipped from the United States. The situation for Germany was worsening as the war drew on. Hitler was plunging Germany further and further into hot water with his terrible judgement.
In an attempt to counter the worsening situation on the Eastern Front, Hitler launched a new attack on the Russian line at Kursk, in 1943. The battle, raging 18 days, was the greatest tank battle of the war. But it was another Russian victory and all German hope of defeating the Russians was now completely gone as Germany suffered over 500 000 casualties. On June 6 1944, Deliverance Day, or D-Day, the allies made an attempt to open another front against Germany.
The Germans expected the attack to come at Pas de Calais, but in actual fact it took place on the beaches of Normandy, further west. Paris was liberated on August 25 and Germany itself was now under real threat of an invasion from various fronts, the Russian advance from the east and the British and Americans beginning their move from the west. Hitlers alliance with Italy also contributed to the downfall of Germany. Hitler thought that Italy would be a strong ally, due to the similar governments.
But Italy was more of a liability instead of an asset. It was weak, and incapable of supporting Germany. Italy was almost fully reliant on Germany for its military aid due to its incredibly weak army, which was unable to match the strength and numbers of the opposing armies it faced. In June 1940, Italy declared war on France, just before the French surrender. Mussolini had watched the rapid expansion of German power and he wanted Italy to share its glory. In September, Italian troops moved to expand their empire in North Africa and from their colony in Libya they also invaded neighbouring Egypt.
In October Italy then invaded Greece and Albania. But the Italian troops were in way above their depth, facing defeat in Greece and were in retreat in North Africa. Hitler was forced to intervene with German military forces to save his ally. Italy did not support Germany with any real advantages throughout their alliance, it was quite obvious it was a dependant partner in the alliance, on many occasions Germany had to waste valuable resources to keep its own interests in the country. When the Italian government was overthrown, the new Italian Government joined the allies, which opened up a new front for Germany to be attacked. The pursuit of the final solution was a constant drain of Germany's resources and manpower.
Jews were continually transported from Ghettos in the cities of Poland and Germany to the extermination camps by rail. The railways could have been used for other purposes, for transporting troops, artillery, supplies, and other purposes used for winning the war. Plus, Hitler had some of his best army men wasted in administrative jobs in these camps, although they were more suited to action and fighting out on the fronts. Hitlers views on the role of women also took its toll on the number of people serving in the army. Nazi principles stated that a womans place was with her child and in her home and her job was to bring children into the world for the existence of her people. Nazi ideology was very simple, biological differences between male and female had carved out separate spheres for men and women, and womans sphere was essentially the home, where, as nature intended, she ministered to husband and children.
In 1942, Speer requested that women took their place in the workforce, as part of the demand for total mobilisation. Hitler passionately opposed this because of his ideological belief in the role of women as mothers even though casualties were increasing from the failed campaigns in Russia and other areas, and army numbers were depleting rapidly. Another reason towards the German defeat in World War Two was the fact that Germany were never prepared for the war to be as long as it was. They were reliant on blitzkrieg as their main tactic and when this failed, the army faced a long war in which they were not prepared for. In his military thinking, Hitler believed in the importance of a short war. Germany had always planned for a quick war, and because of this they were not prepared for the long war that ultimately developed.
Total war was not implemented until 1943, and by this time the Germans were already facing defeat. The military began to run out of resources, and began to collapse because the home front was not supportive enough of the campaigns. The general population that were not out fighting had no idea that Germany was losing, because they still had a high standard of living, and propaganda did not tell them otherwise. In February 1943, Goebbels finally called on the German people to wage total war, even though Germany was already facing defeat.
These factors all contributed to the defeat of Germany in World War Two, however each factor, either directly or indirectly, was influenced by the leadership and critical errors in judgement on the part of Hitler himself. The decision to invade one of the worlds great powers the Soviet Union in 1941, was Hitlers. This opened up a two front war and forced him to divert troops, weakening the strength of the German force. Further crucial mistakes in military situations in the Russian campaign, like Hitlers failure to prepare for a long battle and the stand fast policy lead to the defeat and severe losses, which were un replaceable.
Hitler was weakening his own strength, whilst he was strengthening that of his opponent by declaring war on another great power, the United States. The declaration of war on the US proved very costly. Hitlers alliance with Italy was also a burden to Germany as they were too dependable on Germany and became more of a liability than an asset. Plus after the overthrow of the Italian Government, the new Italian government joined the allies, which opened up a new front and threat of attack. Hitler continually underestimated the strength of his opponents and overestimated the strength of his own army. Diverting his troops to different fronts too often and weakening the German force.
Hitlers pursuit of the Final solution, which drained the army of manpower and resources, and his failure to recognise the need for total war before it was too late and Germany was already facing defeat, can also be attributed to bad leadership and judgement by the Fuhrer which would eventually lead to the downfall of the Third Reich. Therefore the leadership and decisions of Hitler make him responsible for Germany's defeat in World War Two.
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