In late August 1944, World War II was clearly coming to a swift close for Romania. Having sided with Nazi Germany under the government of Ion Antonescu, Romania observed the Red Army’s August 1944 Jassy-Kishinev offensive crush the Axis front in northeastern Romania. With no realistic chance of survival, the Romanian Army declared a unilateralContinueContinue reading “1944 Romania Switches Alliances in WW2: Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire”
Category Archives: World War Two
1942: Nazi Propaganda School in Wustrow for Soviet POWs With Promise of Ukrainian Independence
In recent days, the FSB archives for the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic have declassified excerpts of documents which shed light on the operations of Nazi propaganda schools for Soviet prisoners of war. Among the papers are interrogation transcripts from 1944–1947, in which former trainees describe in detail how they were taught to hate the SovietContinueContinue reading “1942: Nazi Propaganda School in Wustrow for Soviet POWs With Promise of Ukrainian Independence”
1952: Soviet Executed for Collaborating with the Nazis During WW2 and Executing Soviet Jews
There’ll likely never be a consensus on the exact tally of Soviets executed for treason during World War 2. However, there is no doubt about two things: the number is in the six-figure range, and as many as half of them were wrongfully executed. There is also no doubt that, as we crawl along inContinueContinue reading “1952: Soviet Executed for Collaborating with the Nazis During WW2 and Executing Soviet Jews”
July 1941: Hero of the Soviet Union Executed for “Allowing” Nazi Germany to Invade USSR
When discussing Nazi Germany’s opening volleys against the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, and what Josef Stalin observed as a shameful withdrawal and defeat of Red Army forces in the Western Special Military District [ZapOVO], it is important to give pause and consider the tragic fate of ZapOVO Commander Dmitriy Grigoryevich Pavlov, at theContinueContinue reading “July 1941: Hero of the Soviet Union Executed for “Allowing” Nazi Germany to Invade USSR”
June 1945: The Soviet Interrogation of Hermann Göring
Immediately prior to or following Germany’s defeat in World War II, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring surrendered to the U.S. 36th Infantry Division on May 6–9, 1945, near Radstadt, Austria, seeking to avoid capture by Soviet forces. After being stripped of power by Hitler for perceived treason, Göring offered his surrender to the Western Allies, expecting toContinueContinue reading “June 1945: The Soviet Interrogation of Hermann Göring”
April 1945: Germans Admit to the Needless Execution of Soviet POWs and Civilians on the Eve of the Fall of Königsberg
In late 1944 and early 1945, the Red Army’s combat operations shifted into German territory. During the East Prussian Offensive, the Red Army advanced upon the fortress city of Königsberg (today known as Kaliningrad). To breach the Königsberg Fortified Region, troops of the 3rd Belorussian Front, under the command of Marshal of the Soviet UnionContinueContinue reading “April 1945: Germans Admit to the Needless Execution of Soviet POWs and Civilians on the Eve of the Fall of Königsberg”
Soviet Intelligence Report: Germans in Stalingrad on the Eve of the 1942 Red Army Counteroffensive
Knowledge of the morale and physical state of the enemy army has always been of significant interest in planning defensive and offensive operations. In this regard, intelligence services constantly focused on obtaining information of this kind. The defeat of the German-fascist troops at Stalingrad would have been impossible without the persistent, deadly work of SovietContinueContinue reading “Soviet Intelligence Report: Germans in Stalingrad on the Eve of the 1942 Red Army Counteroffensive”
Stalin’s 1941 Scorched Earth Order: Separating Myth from Fact
Every year or so, additional questions and claims appear on the Internet regarding the so-called ‘Scorched Earth Order’ signed by Josef Stalin and Boris Shaposhnikov, on behalf of the Headquarters (Stavka / Ставка) of the Supreme High Command. Would-be historians take the contents of the basic document and add their own ingredients, either made upContinueContinue reading “Stalin’s 1941 Scorched Earth Order: Separating Myth from Fact”
Stalin’s Son Revisited: Why Stalin Refused to Save Him
As discussed in an August TranslatingHistory post, Yakov Dzhugashvili, the oldest child of Josef Stalin, was captured by Germans in 1941 near Vitebsk and used as a propaganda piece by Hitler and Goebbels. According to a generally accepted legend, he was dangled as bait in a proposed exchange with the Germans for Field Marshall Paulus, toContinueContinue reading “Stalin’s Son Revisited: Why Stalin Refused to Save Him”
On This Date: 1942 – Soviet Fighter Pilot Rams Nazi Ju-88 to Bring it Down, His Second Such Victory That Year
On 27 December 1942, Soviet pilot Petr Shavurin downed an enemy aircraft by ramming it at an altitude of 6000 meters. It was a frosty December of 1942. The winter days were short. A blizzard raged with only brief interruptions. On December 27th, exactly five months after his ramming attack in the skies over Gorky,ContinueContinue reading “On This Date: 1942 – Soviet Fighter Pilot Rams Nazi Ju-88 to Bring it Down, His Second Such Victory That Year”
Translating History 