The largest battles in the Second World War. The most important battles of World War II
From the very beginning of World War II, the United States provided England with the maximum possible assistance. Hitler had every reason to declare war on the United States, but he held back for fear of the country entering the war. It is quite possible that the American government would not have been able to find sufficient reasons to enter the war in Europe if the war in the Pacific had not broken out. Conflict in the Pacific had been brewing since the outbreak of the war in Europe. Japan, taking advantage of the weakening of France, penetrated into Indochina. At the same time, she continued the war in China and developed plans to conquer Malaysia, hoping to establish control over the rubber plantations of that country.
The United States treated all these Japanese actions with restraint, not wanting to provoke a Japanese attack on Southeast Asia and Indonesia. The Japanese capture of Indochina in July 1941 changed US policy. The United States froze Japanese assets and cut off Japan from oil sources; the British and Dutch did the same. Japan could not continue the war without Indonesian oil and Malaysian rubber and tin.
While Japanese representatives were negotiating in Washington, events took an unexpected turn. On December 7, 1941, a squadron of Japanese aircraft made a surprise raid on the US naval base in Pearl Harbor (Hawaii Islands), where the US Pacific Fleet was concentrated. The results of the attack were horrifying: 4 out of 8 battleships were sunk, 18 warships were disabled, 188 aircraft were destroyed and 128 were damaged, and 3 thousand military personnel were killed. December 8 USA. declared war on Japan. In response, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States, and on the same day the United States declared war on Germany and Italy. The United States became directly involved in the war.
America was not prepared for war. Although universal conscription was introduced in the United States in 1940, the army was small, untrained, and poorly equipped. American industry had not yet been transferred to a war footing, and the Japanese, taking advantage of the weakness of the American fleet, achieved rapid success.
At the first stage of the war, the main task of the Japanese was to cut off Southeast Asia from England, so the main blow was delivered to Singapore, which was the most powerful British naval base, which controlled all sea routes from Europe to the Pacific Ocean. On the same day as the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese aircraft raided Singapore and landed troops in Kota Bharu, 200 km from Singapore. Japanese troops reached Singapore within two months.
Singapore capitulated on February 15, 1942, offering virtually no resistance. The English garrison, which had powerful fortifications and was well armed, threw out the white flag without a fight. 100 thousand British soldiers surrendered, the Japanese received 740 guns, 2,500 machine guns and 200 tanks.
The fall of Singapore led to the collapse of the entire defensive system in the Pacific. By May 1942, Japan occupied Malaysia, Indonesia, New Guinea, Burma, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Guam, and the Solomon Islands, i.e., a territory inhabited by 400 million people. A real threat arose to India and Australia. However, the German offensive on the Soviet-German front in the summer of 1942 changed the strategic direction of the Japanese offensive. In anticipation of the fall of Stalingrad in November 1942, the best Japanese divisions were transferred to Manchuria. Half of all the artillery of the Japanese army and 2/3 of the tanks were concentrated here. This was a mistake by the Japanese leadership. The situation in the Pacific Ocean began to gradually change. The United States took advantage of the respite and concentrated its armed forces and re-equipped its air force and navy. Japan switched to defensive actions in the Pacific. The United States seized the initiative and maintained it until the end of the war.
Battle of Stalingrad
In the summer of 1942, the main events of World War II unfolded in Europe. The German army resumed its offensive in the Soviet Union on all fronts, but achieved success only on the Southern Front, where it reached the Caucasus Range, captured the oil-bearing regions of the North Caucasus and reached Stalingrad. Major General Sabir Rakhimov took an active part in the battles in the Caucasus.
The Battle of Stalingrad lasted six months, from July 17, 1942 to February 2, 1943, and marked the beginning of a fundamental change in the course of World War II. As a result of this battle, five armies of Nazi Germany were completely surrounded, and the encircled group of German troops was destroyed. The total losses of the Wehrmacht during the Battle of Stalingrad amounted to about 1.5 million people. 91 thousand soldiers, 26 thousand officers, 24 generals led by the commander of the 6th Army, Field Marshal Paulus, were captured. It was a disaster that signaled the beginning of the end of Hitler's Germany. Three days of mourning were declared in Germany.
After the Battle of Stalingrad, the strategic initiative in the war passed to the Red Army. The front rolled non-stop to the west. In the fall of 1944, German troops were expelled from the territory of the Soviet Union. Soviet troops began offensive operations in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe occupied by the Nazis.
Liberation of the territory of the USSR
From July 5 to August 23, 1943, the Battle of Kursk took place. The goal was to disrupt the advance of German troops in the Kursk ledge area. After a tank battle near the village of Prokhorovka
On July 12, in which 1,200 tanks took part on both sides, the enemy’s retreat began. In the Battle of Kursk, Wehrmacht losses amounted to about 500 thousand people, 1.5 thousand tanks, over 3.7 thousand aircraft, and more than 3 thousand guns were destroyed.
From August to December 1943, the battle for the Dnieper continued. The Soviet troops were opposed by Army Group Center and the main forces of Army Group South. These two groups formed the Eastern Wall defensive line, the main part of which ran along the banks of the Dnieper. During the Battle of the Dnieper, Soviet troops captured a strategic bridgehead on the Dnieper and liberated over 38 thousand settlements, including 160 cities.
From July 10, 1941 to August 9, 1944, the defense of Leningrad lasted. Army Group North (29 divisions) had the task of defeating Soviet troops in the Baltic states and, interacting with part of the forces of Army Group Center, capturing Leningrad and Kronstadt. On September 8, 1941, German troops cut off Leningrad from land. The blockade of the city began. Only on January 18, 1943 did Soviet troops break through the blockade, and in January 1944 they completely liquidated it. On August 10, 1944, the battle for Leningrad ended.
From June 23 to August 29, 1944, the Belarusian operation to liberate Belarus continued. During this operation, the main forces of Army Group Center were surrounded and destroyed, the liberation of Belarus, parts of Lithuania and Latvia was completed
Offensive in Western Europe
On July 20, 1944, during a meeting held by Hitler at the main headquarters, an explosion occurred, as a result of which four officers were killed. Hitler himself was not injured. The assassination attempt was organized by Wehrmacht officers, and the bomb was planted by Colonel Stauffenberg. A series of executions followed, during which more than 5 thousand people involved in the conspiracy were shot.
Time was working for the allies of the Soviet Union. By 1942, the United States transferred industrial production to wartime mode. During the entire war, the United States supplied 300 thousand aircraft, 86 thousand tanks and 2.1 million guns and machine guns to England and the USSR. Deliveries were carried out in accordance with Lend-Lease. The United States supplied England and the USSR with $50 billion worth of products during the war. US supplies and the increase in their own production of military equipment allowed the Allies to achieve superiority in military equipment over Nazi Germany already in 1942. In 1943, US industry was operating at full capacity. New technology and tactics made it possible to destroy almost the entire German submarine fleet in the Atlantic Ocean. American technology moved to Europe in a huge stream.
In November 1942, the Anglo-American landing began on the coasts of Algeria and Morocco. About 450 warships and transport vessels ensured the transfer of people and equipment across the ocean from the USA and England to the ports of Casablanca, Algiers and Oran. French troops, under the command of the Vichy government, offered no resistance. Anglo-American troops under the command of General D. Eisenhower (1890-1969) began an attack on Tunisia.
A little earlier, near the small town of El Atmein. located 90 km from Alexandria, a battle took place in which British troops under the command of Field Marshal B. Montgomery (1887-1976) inflicted a decisive defeat on the Afrika Korps under the command of Field Marshal E. Rommel (1891 - 1944). After Stalingrad, it was one of the most crushing defeats for Germany and Italy in World War II. The Battle of El Alamein began on October 23 and ended on November 4, 1942. Of the 249 tanks, Rommel only had 36 left; he lost 400 guns and several thousand vehicles. 20 thousand German soldiers surrendered to the British. After this battle, the Germans retreated non-stop for 2.5 thousand km. In May 1943, British troops and the Anglo-American Expeditionary Force met in Tunisia and inflicted a new defeat on the Italo-German forces. North Africa was cleared of Nazi troops, and the Mediterranean Sea came completely under Allied control.
Without giving the enemy the opportunity to recover from heavy defeats, Anglo-American troops in July-August 1943 carried out a landing in Sicily. The Italians did not offer serious resistance. In Italy there was a crisis of the fascist dictatorship. Mussolini was overthrown. The new government led by Marshal Badoglio signed an armistice on September 3, 1943, according to which the Italian troops stopped resistance and capitulated.
Saving Mussolini's regime, German troops moved to the center of Italy, captured Rome, disarmed Italian units and established a brutal occupation regime in Italy. Having fled to the protection of the Allied forces, the Badoglio government declared war on Germany on October 13, 1943.
On June 6, 1944, the landing of American-British troops began in northern France, in Normandy. This was a practical step in the long-promised opening of a second front by the Allies. By July 24, the number of Allied troops amounted to over 1.5 million people. The Allied forces outnumbered the enemy in personnel and tanks by 3 times, in aircraft by more than 60 times, they completely dominated the sea and air. On August 15, 1944, American and French troops landed in the south of France. On August 25, units of the French Resistance, by agreement with the American command, entered Paris, and the national banner soared over the capital of France.
The opening of the second front was an important event during the Second World War. Now Germany had to fight a war on two fronts in Europe, which limited the possibilities of strategic maneuver. American and British aviation completely dominated the air of Western Europe. All roads and communications were controlled by Allied aviation.
The scale of strategic bombing of Germany expanded, in which large forces of Anglo-American aviation began to be involved. During the day, American aircraft carried out raids on industrial facilities, railways, bridges, submarine bases, and factories for the production of synthetic gasoline and rubber. At night, British aircraft bombed mainly cities, trying to suppress the morale of the civilian population. As a result of the bombing, most of the defense enterprises located on German territory were destroyed, the air defense system was suppressed, and German aviation did not take active action. Civilians suffered the most from air raids. By the spring of 1945, almost a quarter of Berlin was destroyed by bombing. The transport system and the work of the rear of the fascist troops were practically destroyed and disorganized.
At the beginning of 1943, a turning point came in the war in the Pacific. Japan's economic situation deteriorated sharply. The food supply to the population first decreased and then stopped completely. Strikes began in the country. Anti-war sentiments were openly expressed. Thus, the military defeat was combined with a deep internal crisis. The political crisis in the country was expressed in a change of government. In July 1944, the Tojo cabinet, which started the war in the Pacific, was dismissed in April
1945 there was a new change in the Japanese government.
- Summary
December 7, 1941 - Japanese bombing of the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands. US declaration of war on Japan
December 11, 1941 - Italy and Germany declare war on the United States
February 15, 1942 - Japanese capture of the British naval base on the island of Singapore. Collapse of the defense system in the Pacific Ocean
1942 - Japanese occupation of Malaysia, Indonesia, New Guinea. Burma, Philippines, Hong Kong and other territories
July 17, 1942 - February 2, 1943 - Battle of Stalingrad - a turning point in the Second World War
October 23 - November 4, 1942 - defeat of the Italo-German troops at El Apamein (Egypt), transfer of strategic initiative to the British army
May 1943 - liberation of North Africa from Italian-German troops
July 5 - August 23, 1943 - Battle of Kursk
August-December 1943 - Battle of the Dnieper
September 3, 1943 - the capitulation of Italy marked the beginning of the collapse of the Nazi bloc
June 6, 1944 - opening of the second front
July 20, 1944 - unsuccessful attempt on Hitler's life
August 10, 1944 - end of the Battle of Leningrad
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The main battles of the Second World War in 1941-1944. Updated: January 27, 2017 By: admin
War is the worst thing that can happen in our lives. This must not be forgotten.
Especially about these five battles. The amount of blood in them is amazing...1. Battle of Stalingrad, 1942-1943
Opponents: Nazi Germany vs. USSR
Losses: Germany 841,000; Soviet Union 1,130,000
Total: 1,971,000
Result: Victory of the USSR
The German offensive began with a devastating series of Luftwaffe raids that left much of Stalingrad in ruins. But the bombing did not completely destroy the urban landscape. As they advanced, the German army became embroiled in brutal street fighting with Soviet forces. Although the Germans took control of more than 90% of the city, Wehrmacht forces were unable to dislodge the remaining stubborn Soviet soldiers.
Cold weather set in, and in November 1942 the Red Army launched a double attack on the German 6th Army in Stalingrad. The flanks collapsed, and the 6th Army was surrounded both by the Red Army and by the harsh Russian winter. Hunger, cold and sporadic attacks by Soviet troops began to take their toll. But Hitler did not allow the 6th Army to retreat. By February 1943, after a failed German breakout when food supply lines were cut, the 6th Army was defeated.
2. Battle of Leipzig, 1813
Opponents: France vs. Russia, Austria and Prussia
Casualties: 30,000 French, 54,000 Allied
Total: 84000
Result: Victory of the Coalition forces
The Battle of Leipzig was the largest and most severe defeat suffered by Napoleon, and the largest battle in Europe before the outbreak of the First World War. Faced with attacks from all sides, the French army performed surprisingly well, keeping their attackers at bay for over nine hours before they began to be outnumbered.
Realizing his inevitable defeat, Napoleon began to withdraw his troops in an orderly manner across the only remaining bridge. The bridge was blown up too early. More than 20,000 French soldiers were thrown into the water and drowned while trying to cross the river. The defeat opened the door to France for Allied forces.
3. Battle of Borodino, 1812
Opponents: Russia vs France
Losses: Russians – 30,000 - 58,000; French – 40,000 - 58,000
Total: 70,000
Result: Different interpretations of the results
Borodino is considered the bloodiest one-day battle in history. Napoleon's army invaded the Russian Empire without declaring war. The rapid advance of the powerful French army forced the Russian command to retreat deeper into the country. Commander-in-Chief M.I. Kutuzov decided to give a general battle not far from Moscow, near the village of Borodino.
During this battle, every hour on the battlefield, about 6 thousand people were killed or injured, according to the most conservative estimates. During the battle, the Russian army lost about 30% of its strength, the French - about 25%. In absolute numbers, this is about 60 thousand killed on both sides. But, according to some sources, up to 100 thousand people were killed during the battle and died later from injuries. Not a single one-day battle that took place before Borodino was so bloody.
Opponents: Britain vs Germany
Losses: Britain 60,000, Germany 8,000
Total: 68,000
Result: Inconclusive
The British Army suffered the bloodiest day in its history in the opening stages of a battle that would last for months. More than a million people were killed as a result of the hostilities, and the original military tactical situation remained largely unchanged. The plan was to wear down the German defenses with artillery bombardment to the point that the attacking British and French forces could simply move in and occupy the opposing trenches. But the shelling did not bring the expected destructive consequences.
As soon as the soldiers left the trenches, the Germans opened fire with machine guns. Poorly coordinated artillery often covered its own advancing infantry with fire or was often left without cover. As darkness fell, despite the massive loss of life, only a few targets were occupied. Attacks continued in this manner until October 1916.
5. Battle of Cannae, 216 BC
Opponents: Rome vs Carthage
Losses: 10,000 Carthaginians, 50,000 Romans
Total: 60,000
Result: Carthaginian victory
The Carthaginian general Hannibal led his army through the Alps and defeated two Roman armies at Trebia and Lake Trasimene, seeking to engage the Romans in a final decisive battle. The Romans massed their heavy infantry in the center, hoping to break through the middle of the Carthaginian army. Hannibal, in anticipation of a central Roman attack, deployed his best troops on the flanks of his army.
As the center of the Carthaginian forces collapsed, the Carthaginian sides closed in on the Roman flanks. The mass of legionnaires in the back ranks forced the first ranks to move forward uncontrollably, not knowing that they were driving themselves into a trap. Eventually, the Carthaginian cavalry arrived and closed the gap, thus completely encircling the Roman army. In close combat, the legionnaires, unable to escape, were forced to fight to the death. As a result of the battle, 50 thousand Roman citizens and two consuls were killed.
The Second World War was the most terrible and bloody war in human history. The world was in a state of “total war.” The anti-fascist coalition won, but some of these battles did not always end in victory. The article examines ten battles that changed the course of the war.
Battle of France
After the Germans conquered Poland in September 1939, Hitler turned his attention to the west. Invading the Soviet Union was his main goal, but he knew that first of all he needed to conquer Western Europe to avoid a war on two fronts. First it was necessary to capture the Netherlands (Holland, Luxembourg and Belgium) and France. Hypothetically, Germany could conquer Britain, redeploy its troops in the East, and then begin hostilities against the Russians. The German army outnumbered the armies of the anti-fascist coalition. However, this did not matter as the German plan was very effective. After the Germans invaded the Netherlands, the French army and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) moved north, facing German forces. This allowed the German army to break through the coalition defenses in the Ardennes and advance towards the English Channel, but it was a trap. The Germans captured Paris, France fell, and the British Expeditionary Force was evacuated at Dunkirk. The country was divided into German occupation zones, in which the Vichy regime was introduced. Now Germany could concentrate and strike at BritainOperation Overlord
By the summer of 1944, the Red Army was already on the doorstep of Germany. There is no doubt that the Russians could have defeated Nazi Germany single-handedly, but Stalin pressured the West to create a second front there to try to distract the Germans and quickly end the war. Since 1942, the American Air Force and the British Royal Air Force have carried out massive bombing campaigns. The coalition led the Mediterranean operation and invaded Italy in 1943. However, it was necessary to recapture France in order to destroy the main strength of the German army in Northern Europe. Operation Overlord began with the Normandy landings in June 1944. By August there were about 3 million anti-fascist coalition troops in France. Paris was liberated on August 25th and the German army was driven back and retreated to the Seine River on September 30th. Germany was forced to strengthen its Western Front by taking reinforcements from the Eastern Front. The anti-fascist coalition won a strategic victory. By September, the coalition's western forces were approaching the German border. Nazi Germany surrendered less than a year later. The important thing was that Western Europe could not govern Russia, which was already going through difficult times. Battle of Guadalcanal
The Battle of Guadalcanal, or Operation Watchtower, took place from August 7, 1942 to February 9, 1943 in the Pacific Theater. The war was fought between Allied and Japanese forces. The fighting took place on the island of Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands). On August 7, 1942, the first Allied troops landed on the islands of Guadalcanal, Tulagi and Florida in order to prevent the Japanese from using them as their bases, which were a threat to the United States, Australia and New Zealand. The Allies intended to use Guadalcanal and Tulagi as a staging area. The initial landing took the Japanese by surprise. The Allies immediately managed to capture the islands of Tulagi and Florida, as well as the airfield on Guadalcanal (later called Henderson Field). Not expecting such an onslaught from the Allies, the Japanese made several attempts to retake Henderson Field. These attempts led to major battles, leaving the Japanese without support. In December 1942, the Japanese began to evacuate their troops. The Battle of Guadalcanal was very important to know because it marked the loss of Japan's strategic initiative and the Allies went from defensive to offensive. Battle of Leyte Gulf
This is the largest naval battle in history. The battle took place in the seas on a Philippine island from October 23 to 26, 1944. The battle was fought between the American and Japanese fleets. The Japanese tried to push back the Allied forces located on the island of Leyte. For the first time in the war, kamikaze tactics were used. As a result, the Allied fleet won a significant victory and was able to sink one of the largest battleships in the world - Musashi and damaging another battleship - Yamato. After this battle, the Japanese Combined Fleet did not undertake major operations. Battle for Moscow
Hitler intended to capture Moscow. This capital was considered an extremely important point militarily and politically. The original plan was to capture Moscow within four months. Hitler and his coalition decide to capture the capital before the onset of winter. Weather conditions hampered the Germans, but in December they were practically 19 miles from Moscow. Then there were heavy torrential rains. And the temperature dropped sharply and reached -40. The German troops had no winter clothing and the tanks were not designed to operate in such low temperatures. On December 5, 1941, the Russians counterattacked, driving the German forces back. For the first time, the Germans retreated and Operation Barbarossa failed. Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk took place after the Battle of Stalingrad. The Germans wanted to break through the northern and southern flanks to encircle the Soviet troops. However, the Soviet Union knew about Hitler's intentions, and began to prepare for defense. The Germans delayed the advance as the Tiger and Panther tanks were waiting, thereby giving the Red Army more time to dig and gather forces for a counterattack. The defense around Kursk was 10 times deeper than the Maginot Line. German troops went on the offensive on July 5. This was the first time that a blitzkrieg plan was defeated without even breaking through the defenses. After a failed attack, the Red Army launched a counteroffensive. The war in Europe would continue for two more years, but the Battle of Kursk was over and the Americans and British could invade Italy. At the Kursk Bulge, the Germans lost 720 tanks, 680 aircraft and killed 170,000 people. This battle was the largest tank battle in history. After three years of war, the Allies finally gained a strategic advantage. Battle of Midway
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan began preparing for its next operation against the United States in the Pacific. The Japanese goal was to destroy US aircraft carriers and capture the strategically important Midway Atoll, located equidistant from Asia and North America. The Americans managed to decipher the encrypted messages of the Japanese, and now the United States could prepare for an attack. On June 3, 1942, the Battle of Midway began. Warplanes took off from Midway Atoll and began bombing and torpedoing the battles in the air. The United States won the battle, and it became a turning point in the Pacific War. Operation Barbarossa
The Nazi invasion of the USSR began on June 22, 1941. The operation involved 8.9 million soldiers, more than 18,000 tanks, 45,000 aircraft, and 50,000 artillery pieces. When the Germans went on the offensive, the Red Army was caught by surprise. The non-aggression pact was signed before the German and Soviet invasion of Poland. Both countries invaded and occupied Poland, but Hitler always saw Russia as a source of agriculture, slave labor, oil and other raw materials. Three army groups were formed; each of which had its own task. The group in the north was supposed to capture Leningrad. The central group was to take Moscow, and the group in the south was to capture Ukraine and move east to the Caucasus. The Germans advanced quickly. The main battles took place in Smolensk, Uman, and Kiev. The tank divisions could have surrounded and captured three million Soviet soldiers by the time they reached Moscow. By December, they had surrounded Leningrad from the north, reached the outskirts of Moscow in the center, and occupied Ukraine in the south. Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad is the decisive battle of World War II, in which Soviet troops won their largest victory. This battle marked the beginning of a radical change in the course of the Great Patriotic War and the Second World War as a whole. The Battle of Stalingrad is usually divided into two periods: defensive (from July 17 - November 18, 1942) and offensive (from November 19, 1942 - February 2, 1943). The Battle of Stalingrad surpassed all battles in world history: in duration, in the number of people and military equipment. The battle took place over a vast territory. The results of this battle also surpassed all previous ones. At Stalingrad, Soviet troops defeated the armies of the Germans, Romanians and Italians. In this battle, the Germans lost 800,000 soldiers and officers, as well as a large amount of military equipment and equipment. Battle of Britain
If Great Britain were withdrawn from the war, then Hitler could concentrate all of Germany's military potential on the Soviet Union. America and the Soviet Union would have had to fight Hitler's coalition, and Operation Overlord might not have taken place at all. For these reasons, the Battle of Britain is without doubt the most important battle of the Second World War. The British Expeditionary Force was successfully evacuated at Dunkirk. However, most of their equipment remained in France. Germany gained air supremacy over Great Britain, and could launch Operation Sea Lion (invasion of the British Isles). The Royal Navy would be ineffective without air cover. The Luftwaffe's initial strategy was to destroy the RAF. This was a perfectly good idea, but then the strategy changed. And this gave the Royal Air Force a chance to win. Radar was important to America. Without it, the RAF would have to keep its aircraft in the air. They lacked the resources to do this. Radar would allow troops to wait and coordinate a German attack. By October 1940, the Luftwaffe had a shortage of combat equipment and crew. Hitler did not gain an advantage in the air and Operation Sea Lion failed. This battle allowed Great Britain to regain its strength. After victory was on the side of the Allies, Winston Churchill said: “Never have human conflicts been so acute as now. It is not easy to compile a list of the most important battles in the history of World War 2. Every battle, every inch of land inhabited by the enemy brought the Allies closer to victory over Nazism, no matter where the battle took place and how large it was. The feat of every war-liberator is equally priceless.
And yet, we tried to highlight the 10 largest and most significant battles of World War II, the outcome of which significantly influenced the further course of the war.
TOP 12 most powerful battles of World War II(list sorted chronologically):
# # #
1. Battle of the Atlantic
(September 1, 1939 - May 1945)
US Navy ship USS Spencer. During the Second World War, he sank several German submarines. Was a convoy ship.And although this battle cannot be called the most massive and bloody, its significance was very high. For Germany, the purpose of this battle was to disrupt Allied communications in the Atlantic. First of all, for the weakening of Great Britain.
During the battles, the German fleet tried to sink all possible Allied ships, from military to transport and food. Germany's main weapon was submarines; they proved themselves successful from the very beginning of the battles. During World War II, Germany built more than a thousand submarines of various types, which dominated the Atlantic until the spring of 1943.
By this time, despite the colossal losses, the Allies were still trying to improve the protection of their communications, as well as increase the number of anti-submarine forces. This made it possible to break the dominance of German troops in the waters of the Atlantic.
Already from mid-1944, Allied dominance in the Atlantic was obvious. Germany suffered defeat not only on land, but also at sea. The opening of a second front forced the enemy to go on the defensive.
The losses of the sides during the Battle of the Atlantic vary in many sources. Germany lost more than 30 thousand people and 789 submarines in submariners alone. On the other hand, 179 Allied warships and 2,828 ships were sunk by German forces.
# # #
(10 May – 25 June 1940)
This is a successful operation by the Axis countries of the Nazi bloc to seize the Benelux countries, as well as France, with the goal of complete domination in Europe. German troops used rapid warfare tactics, during which the armies of Belgium, the Netherlands and France were completely defeated in a short period of time with the help of a massive attack.
Allied losses during the French campaign amounted to more than 112 thousand killed, 245 thousand wounded and 1.5 prisoners. The Wehrmacht troops lost about 45 thousand people killed and about 110 thousand people were wounded.
# # #
(9 July – 30 October 1940)
It was a nearly four-month battle for air supremacy between the Wehrmacht and the British armed forces. The Germans aimed to gain air superiority over the British Isles in order to subsequently provide air cover for the bombing of British territory and the ground operation to invade Great Britain.
On the part of the Third Reich, the main forces were Messerschmitt fighters of the Bf.109E and Bf.110C modifications, which in many respects were superior to the British Hurricane Mk I and Spitfire Mk I. Nevertheless, the Germans failed this battle, losing about 3 thousands of its pilots. The British lost 1,800 pilots in the battle and about 120,000 islanders were killed in bombing raids. Also, German bombs destroyed at least 2 million buildings and structures.
The British victory in this battle strengthened the morale of the British soldiers and inspired the Allies. By the end of the battle, the Germans realized that their plan had failed and redeployed their forces to the opened eastern direction - the USSR.
The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of the First World War, with more than 1,000,000 people killed and wounded, making it one of the deadliest battles in human history. But, according to some sources, up to 100 thousand people were killed during the battle and died later from injuries. During it, every hour, according to the most conservative estimates, about 6 thousand people were killed or injured.
Nazi Germany lost 841,000 soldiers in the battle. By mid-summer 1942, the battles of the Great Patriotic War had reached the Volga. The German command also included Stalingrad in the plan for a large-scale offensive in the south of the USSR (Caucasus, Crimea). It included 13 divisions, with about 270,000 people, 3 thousand guns and about five hundred tanks.
From that day on, fascist aircraft began to systematically bomb the city. The battles on the ground also did not subside. All houses were turned into fortresses. On September 12, 1942, at the height of the battles for the city, the General Staff began developing the offensive Operation Uranus. Marshal G.K. Zhukov was involved in its planning. The plan was to strike the flanks of the German wedge, which was defended by Allied troops (Italians, Romanians and Hungarians).
Having overthrown Germany's allies, on November 23, Soviet troops closed the ring, surrounding 22 divisions numbering 330 thousand soldiers. Hitler rejected the option of retreat and ordered the commander-in-chief of the 6th Army, Paulus, to begin defensive battles in encirclement.
4. The bloodiest one-day battle
Each side tried unsuccessfully to break through the enemy's defenses and launch a decisive offensive. 305,000 soldiers and officers on both sides lost their lives in a futile confrontation.
7. The bloodiest looting of the city
After a massive 8-hour artillery preparation, German troops went on the offensive on the right bank of the Meuse River, but met stubborn resistance. The German infantry led the attack in dense combat formations. During the first day of the offensive, German troops advanced 2 km and occupied the first French position. During the period from February 27 to March 6, about 190 thousand soldiers and 25 thousand tons of military cargo were delivered to Verdun by vehicles.
On the first day of the campaign alone, July 1, 1916, the British landing force lost 60,000 people. German losses amounted to more than 465,000 people, of which 164,055 were killed and missing. The offensive plan on all fronts, including the Western, was developed and approved at the beginning of March 1916 in Chantilly. As a result, the length of the front was reduced from 70 to 40 kilometers. Just a month after the start of the battle, the British and French lost so many soldiers that 9 additional divisions were brought into the battle, while Germany transferred as many as 20 divisions to the Somme.
From October 16 to 19, 1813, a battle took place near Leipzig between the armies of Napoleon I and the sovereigns united against him: Russian, Austrian, Prussian and Swedish. The forces of the latter were divided into three armies: Bohemian (main), Silesian and northern, but of these, only the first two took part in the battle on October 16. On October 17, both warring sides remained inactive, and only on the northern side of Leipzig did a cavalry skirmish occur.
3. The bloodiest creation of the empire
Around one o'clock in the afternoon, the allied monarchs could already enter the city, in some parts of which fierce battle was still in full swing. Due to a disastrous mistake for the French, the bridge on Elster was blown up prematurely. But the new leader of the Russian army also preferred to retreat: on the one hand, he wanted to wear down the enemy, on the other, Kutuzov was waiting for reinforcements to give a general battle. At 6 am, French artillery opened fire along the entire front.
Ahead, the rangers also lined up in a cordon. Major General Neverovsky's division occupied positions behind the flushes. This sector was attacked by the cavalry of Marshal Murat, the troops of Marshals Ney and Davout, and the corps of General Junot. The number of attackers reached 115 thousand people. The course of the Battle of Borodino, after the repelled attacks of the French at 6 and 7 o'clock, continued with another attempt to take flushes on the left flank. However, subsequent attacks (at 8 and 9 am) were, despite the incredible intensity of the fighting, completely unsuccessful.
At the same time, one-day battles that took place in the 20th century were still less bloody than the Battle of Borodino
Konovnitsin withdrew his troops to Semenovskoye only after holding these fortifications ceased to be necessary. Kurgan Heights was attacked at the same time that the battle for taking flushes was raging on the left flank.
It can be considered that this was the first case in history of the use of biological weapons
Platov was able to reach the rear of the French (Valuevo area), which suspended the offensive in the central direction. Uvarov made an equally successful maneuver in the Bezzubovo area. The Battle of Borodino lasted all day and began to gradually subside only at 6 o’clock in the evening.
Galeas San Lorenzo, flagship of the Holy League, at the Battle of Lepanto. The Battle of Lepanto was the largest naval battle of the 16th century, involving more than 500 galleys. The photograph is taken from the archives of the National Maritime Museum Greenwich (London). Chemical weapons were used during the Iran-Iraq war. Over 8 years of fighting, about 900 thousand people died, making this war one of the most brutal since World War II.
Perhaps the bloodiest battle took place on July 1, 1916 during the First World War. We talk about him and six more bloody battles in history. On October 7, 1571, the bloodiest battle in the history of naval battles took place - the Battle of Lepanto between the Spanish-Venetian fleet and the fleet of the Ottoman Empire.
