The Red Army Strikes Back

Soviet and German forces had fought through to tough winters and were still going strong. They at the end of 1942 were at a near standstill. The main battleground was Stalingrad were at the beginning of last fall, Germany had the city surrounded, and at the end of the fall, the Soviets had the Germans surrounded. The first major military move of 1943 was the retreat of the German forces from Stalingrad.

The summer of 1943 looked very much the same as the summer of 1942. The German force had fought back to get to nearly the same line they had before. Stalin wanted to drive back the Germans once and for all. So they decided to try and hold the German were they were and wear themselves out. Then the Soviets could bring back their new strong reserves and beat back the German forces. Yet in the middle of the June, the Germans started the "greatest offense in history." They planned to destroy the Red Army in Kursk. Their fatal mistake was giving Stalin enough time to prepare his forces to counterattack.

The battle began on July 5 and went well for four days. Then the Russian resistance took over. The Red Army counterattacked and began to take back German gains. But to everyone's surprise, Hitler took back his forces to help beat back the Allies that had landed in Sicily.

The Russians were not going to give the Germans a break however. On August 3, 1943, the Soviets attacked Kusk and overtook the city in a quick fashion. The Germans were planning to build a East Wall for their forces to fall back behind and keep their position. Yet the Russian were coming on strong to that area with no sign of an imaginary East Wall. By the end of August, Kharkov had been liberated and the Soviets were threatening the German Army Command Center of Vinnesta. In the next two weeks, the Red Army pushed the German forces from north and south to the central area. They were then forced to retreat even farther. It is finally starting to look like the Red Army was going to defeat the German forces.

Josef Stalin

The Anti-Comintern Pact

The Beginning of Alliances

The Nazi-Soviet Pact

The Invasion of Finland

The Annexation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania

Shifting Sides

Operation Barabossa

"The Russians Lost the War in Eight Days"

Cold Winter

Moscow, Kiev, and Stalingrad

The Battle for Moscow