Operation Barbarossa Essay Example for Free

Operation Barbarossa Essay Operation Barbarossa, the code name given to Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, would come to be considered one of Nazi Germany’s greatest follies in the Second World War, and would play a monumental role in bringing an end to Hitler’s regime just a few years later. Though the operation itself lasted less than six months it resulted in four years of harsh fighting on the Eastern Front, marked by an enormous casualty toll for both the Russians and the Germans and countless battles fought in the cruel conditions of Russian winter. All of this despite the fact that both countries had engaged in a mutual non-aggression pack two short years earlier. In 1939 Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, a series of agreements regarding how both countries would split the territory separating them and share the resources therein. Signing of the pact created strong political and economic ties between the two nations, at least on the surface. Historians, however, argue that the pact was doomed to fail long before it was even signed, as Hitler had long harbored a disgust for the Soviet Union’s Slavic peoples, which he viewed as sub-human. Couple this racial prejudice with the extremely different political ideologies governing both countries and it becomes clear that the relationship between Germany and the Soviet Union was merely one of temporary convenience. Despite the volatile nature of the German-Soviet relationship, it still struck many as incomprehensible why Hitler should choose to invade Russia in 1941, with war already raging in the west. One can only judge that Hitler, in a misplaced display of ego, believed the west to already be won, with France effectively crushed and England standing as the only viable opponent on that front, struggling hopelessly to maintain a foothold on the European mainland. Believing the western front was theirs, Germany sought to expand her influence and complete her domination of Europe by conquering the resource-rich eastern countries- including the powerhouse of the Soviet Union. Preparations for the invasion began in April of ’41, as Germany began to secretly amass troops on her eastern borders. The plan involved a three-pronged Blitzkreig attack that would simultaneously strike northern Russia with the object of taking Leningrad, while a second group struck toward Moscow and a third took a southern route through the Ukraine. By doing this, Hitler believed that the Russians would be caught completely off guard and would be unable to mount an effective defense in so many places at once. Hitler’s plan, however, contained a number of fatal flaws. Firstly, he greatly underestimated the numbers and strength of the Soviet military, which had effectively doubled its number of troops, artillery pieces and aircraft since the outbreak of war in western Europe. Though not all of this strength was situated in the western part of Russia, where Hitler planned to strike, significant advances had also been made in Soviet infrastructure (most significantly, their railroad system) such as allowed for more efficient movement of troops and supplies, and therefore faster mobilization. Also, the German superiority in armor, which had served them so well in their western blitzkrieg was lost to them here- Soviet tanks, though less technologically advanced at this point in the war, actually outnumbered German tanks approximately four-to-one. The one advantage inarguably held by the Germans was troop quality. The German army was well trained, well equipped and led by experienced and educated officers. The Soviet army, in contrast, were untested by battle and overwhelming led by incompetent officers, many of whom had been given their commissions in exchange for political favors. The vast majority of Soviet officers had less than one year of experience, as many of the older and more experienced commanders had been executed or imprisoned during Stalin’s â€Å"Great Purge† between 1936 and 1938. When Operation Barbarossa began in the pre-dawn hours of June 22nd, 1941, Germany initially made fantastic gains. Approximately three million German soldiers, supported by armor and the Luftwaffe swarmed across the border, advancing more than 200 miles in the next 5 days. The only solid resistance they were met with in the first few days of the attack came in the south, where Soviet commanders reacted quickly and were able to organize an effective defense. The central and northern arms of the German advance, however, met little resistance and charged ahead at full speed- a factor that would later return to haunt them. Armored divisions of the German army actually advanced too quickly, putting them well ahead of the infantry divisions meant to support them. This forced Hitler to call the Panzer divisions to a halt for nearly a week to allow their accompanying infantry troops time to catch up- a week that was used by the Soviets to amass troops ahead of the German advance and fortify target cities such as Stalingrad. By the time the order was given to resume the advance, heavy rainstorms struck which greatly slowed the progress of German tanks attempting to slog down muddy roads. With their advance slowed and the element of surprise expired, the Germans faced ever-strengthening resistance from the Soviet army. In a decision that would prove disastrous, Hitler ordered the central arm of the attack to call-off its march for Moscow and redeploy to the north and south, strengthening the other two prongs of the invasion in hopes of quickly capturing the rich oil fields in the south and the Soviet stronghold of Leningrad in the north. This had mixed results, as the southern wing of the attack was eventually successful in capturing Kiev, and with it an approximate 600,000 Soviet troops, but the advance in the north stalled as heavy resistance was met in Leningrad. The southern wing, after completing its advance through the Ukraine, resumed the march toward Moscow, ultimately coming within 15 miles of the Soviet capital before the Soviets’ greatest ally came to their aid- the harsh Russian winter. As had been the case for Napoleon more than a hundred years earlier, the Russian winter proved disastrous to the unprepared German troops. Expecting a quick victory, the German army had not bothered to supply its men with winter uniforms, and as the snows set in many found themselves facing temperatures well below zero wearing little more than light cotton summer clothing. Frostbite, pneumonia and other side effects of the horrendous cold mercilessly ate away at the German divisions, which were already weakened by months of hard fighting. To make matters worse the cold prevented use of German tanks in many instances, which froze solid in the fields, and high winter winds and snow flurries grounded the Luftwaffe, preventing air support. The Soviets in contrast, well accustomed and prepared for the hardships of winter, took the opportunity to launch a massive counter attack which robbed the Germans of most of their earlier gains, pushing them back over 200 miles and removing the pressure on Moscow. Never again would the Germans make it so deep into Russian territory, though the war continued on and countless more men would die in the years to come. The failure of Operation Barbarossa proved disastrous to Hitler’s Reich, which lost huge numbers of valuable and experienced troops and vast amounts of material that would have proved invaluable to them later in the war. They also awoke the military beast that was Soviet Russia and forced themselves to actively wage war on two fronts, a strain that would eventually prove too much for Germany as Allied efforts redoubled in the west with the entrance of the United States into the conflict.

Crimea: Paradise Divided Essay -- World Civilization

â€Å"Crimean history would suggest that it is folly to think that possession of any place, especially paradise, is anything other than a tenancy (Newman, 2011).Crimea may be compared to paradise, the crowning glory of many an empire, and it is no wonder with its subtropical climate, fertile lands, soft meadows and sprawling coastline. But the very aspects that make an Eden out of the Crimean Peninsula have also been the causes of struggle and conflict. For it may be said that Crimea is a contested land in an identity crisis and is the subject of much debate still today. Divided by conflicting ethnicities, passed through the hands of the ancient Greeks to Ukraine and left battered by three major wars, Crimea truly is the jewel of many crowns (Newman, 2011). The period between 1 B.C. to 1475 set the stage for what was to become Crimea’s legacy. It was the rich resources offered by the peninsula that first attracted the Greeks in 1 B.C. (â€Å"Crimea,† 2011 ). Crimea soon became an important source of wheat for the kingdom (Rubel, 2003). However, the Greeks were unable to maintain a firm hold on the peninsula and were constantly warding off invaders. It became apparent that Crimea was not to stay in the hands of one group for long, a fact that has been the bane of many empires ever since. First the Goths and then the Huns, Slavs and Mongols following in succession invaded Crimea over the next thousand years (Crimea). Each fought to achieve control over what many deemed as paradise. The Romans were not to be left out either. By establishing protectorates and naval bases, they capitalized upon the fact that Crimea was an excellent area to position a navy and created the earliest ancestor to the Black Sea Fleet (Rubel, 2003). N avies were to bec... ...ecked/topic/514064/Russo-Turkish-wars Simonsen, S. (2000). â€Å"You take your oath only once:† Crimea, the black sea fleet, and national identity among russian officers. Nationalities Papers, 28(2), 289. The crimean khanate- a brief history. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.accesscrimea.com/crimean-khanate The transfer of the crimea to the ukraine. (2005, July). Retrieved from http://www.iccrimea.org/historical/crimeatransfer.html TJK. (2004). The tatar khanate of crimea. Retrieved from http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=The_Crimean_Khanate Voyetekhov, B. (1943). Last days of sevastopol. Saturday Evening Post, 215(46), 18-106. Zihni, A. (2010). Pages from the history of the crimea, the ukraine, caucasia, poland and muscovy. Washigton, DC: The International Commitee for Crimea. Retrieved from http://www.iccrimea.org/historical/tevarih20100908.pdf

Loftus and Palmer Evaluation Essay

The Loftus and Palmer study is a laboratory experiment. This means that the study is artificial. The artificiality of the setting can intimidate participants or make them more obedient. This in turn can produce unnatural behavior and results that do not generalize to real life. This can be seen in experiment 2 when 12% of the control group reported seeing broken glass even though they were unaffected by the verb. This could be attributed to the leading question or to demand characteristics when participants look for cues as to what the research is about and behave accordingly, perhaps to please the researcher, especially as the participants in this case are students that may even be familiar with the researcher as they are from the same environment. In a nutshell, due to the nature of the experiment, it lacks ecological validity. In a real life situation there would be an element of surprise and an increase in emotion. Basically the eye-witness would be in some way involved, which is not the case while watching the video the eye-witness is not part of the event. Furthermore, an eye-witness in a real life situation may discuss the event with other people which may alter their memory of the event. Lastly, an eye-witness may think more carefully about giving an answer when in a real life situation when they realize that their answer could judge how innocent or guilty a person is, they may hesitate and realize the importance, although when taking part in a study they may just give an answer without as much thought. The participants were students meaning that the researchers used an opportunity sample. This means that all the participants share certain common characteristics and are not representative of society, these may include age, driving experience and educational background. If the study used a random sample the results could be generalized. This study was very useful because it introduced the notion of reconstructive hypothesis and that eye-witness testimony isnt’t reliable. This study, and studies similar to it, have led to changes nowadays as to how the police question and use the information given by witnesses. Certain other details that could also have influenced the participants answers include: the colour or make of the car; the driver; the ability to estimate speed.

Hiv / Aids Throughout Sub Saharan Africa Essay - 2196 Words

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the majority of people in the world living with HIV/AIDS reside in Sub-Saharan Africa. Since there is currently no vaccine to prevent the spread of the infection, there have been countless attempts in the past to control the spread of HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. There are multiple ways of infection spread in Sub-Saharan Africa. People are contracting the disease through, drug use, sexual relations, giving birth, and blood-to-blood contact. With so many ways to contract the infection it makes the prevention of spreading the infection so difficult, especially in such a low-income country. These challenges have not stopped many scientists, educators, and health-care professionals create interventions to try and stop the wildfire, that is the spread of HIV/AIDS in Sub- Saharan Africa. Most interventions have failed and some have helped. There are a huge amount of factors that need to be carefully thought about when creating an intervention. What looks good on paper may not work for the culture of a country. Making all people in sub- Saharan Africa listen, understand and act on a plan is nearly impossible. Going into a country with an intervention can be overwhelming, that is why it is common for a group to focus on one demographic of a population to educate. An intervention done from January 2005 to December 2008 by the Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine,Show MoreRelatedSocial Services During Sub Saharan Africa951 Words   |  4 PagesSocial Services Provided in Sub-Saharan Africa have had a Positive Impact on People Infected and Affected by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Summary Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a disease that has evolved over time into an epidemic. 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