The Sad Story of Winston Churchill, FDR, And The Cossacks
Said one observer: The Cossacks in German field gray who disappeared into the NKVD labor camps in 1945 took with them the remnants of a unique way of life. It will never again be resurrected.
Here is What You Need to Remember: Most Cossack senior officers were tried, convicted, sentenced to death, and executed. The remainder were imprisoned for long terms.
An estimated four million Red Army soldiers were captured by the Germans during the six months after the launching of Operation Barbarossa, the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, on June 22, 1941. Indeed, the chief of the German General Staff, Colonel General Franz Halder, wrote, “The Russians have lost this war in the first eight days! Their casualties in both men and equipment are unimaginable.”
Why Did Churchill Betray the Cossacks in World War II?
At Yalta, Churchill agreed to turn over to Stalin all captured Soviet Cossacks that had been on the German side. Surely he knew what that meant.
Here s What You Need to Know: An estimated four million Red Army soldiers were captured by the Germans during the six months after the launching of Operation Barbarossa, the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, on June 22, 1941. Indeed, the chief of the German General Staff, Colonel General Franz Halder, wrote, “The Russians have lost this war in the first eight days! Their casualties in both men and equipment are unimaginable.”
Holding the Line at Smolensk: The Red Army s Bloody Attempt To Stop the Nazi Juggernaut
In Smolensk during the summer of 1941, the Soviet Red Army attempted to slow Hitler s Operation Barbarossa.
Here s What You Need to Know: The Red Army suffered over 600,000 casualties, including almost 400,000 men taken prisoner.
After crushing the first-line Soviet armies in brutal three-week cauldron battles at the border, the steamroller of German Army Group Center continued deeper into Soviet territory during the opening days of Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, which began on June 22, 1941.
The twin armored spearheads of Army Group Center were Panzer Group 2 under the command of General Heinz Guderian and Panzer Group 3 under extremely capable tank general Hermann Hoth. Their coordinated offensive on July 10, 1941, unleashed the Battle of Smolensk, a bloody struggle around the ancient Russian city that was to last two long months.