Why Barbarossa Was Expected Essay, Research Paper
Why was the German invasion of Russia to be expected?
On June 22, 1941, the armies of Nazi-Germany stood on a two thousand kilometer long Front, preparing to attack Soviet-Russia. The inevitable assault on Russia was to finally satisfy an obsession of Adolph Hitler, the Nazi F hrer. As for Joseph Stalin, the knowledge that three million men were standing on his front step about to break down his door should have come as no surprise. One of a number of acts by Hitler that should have alerted Stalin to possible invasion was the signing of the Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact. The F hrer signed simply to give his armies time to further prepare for war. Hitler s history of pact breaking, as demonstrated by the absolute dismantling of the Treaty of Versailles and his disregard for the non-aggression pact with Poland was indication enough that Hitler could not be trusted. In addition, as Germany absorbed more and more land it should have become obvious to Stalin that the next move on the part of the Nazis would be in the direction of Russia. Hitler s long standing desire for Russia s industries and agricultural lands as part of his belief in lebensraum or living space, had been public knowledge since he wrote Mein Kampf some seventeen years before. The F hrer s obsession did not end at lebensraum though; his anti-Communist feelings were an important indicator of his desire to obliterate the degenerate Slavs and their Communist government.
When Stalin signed the Nazi-Soviet Non-aggression Pact, he was at a point of almost desperation. He had tried again and again to convince Britain and France to open a second front and all he had received was a few mild mannered brush-offs. So instead of a second front he got a promise from the one person he was afraid of, that Russia would not be invaded. But what Stalin failed to see was the Hitler had no intension of keeping his promise. Hitler had a long record of lying, manipulation and promise breaking. For example, in January 1934, he signed a 10-year non-aggression pact with Poland. This pact not only convinced England and France that the German anger over the loss of the Polish Corridor was forgotten, but also served to pry away one of Frances most important allies. Also when Hitler remilitarized the Rhineland in 1936, it was in direct violation of the treaty of Versailles. Another example of this manipulation was when he stated it is my unshakeable will to wipe Czechoslovakia off the map . He then demanded that he should have control of the Sudetenland, when he was given permission to take it, it seemed that would be the end of that problem. Six months later Hitler invaded and took over Czechoslovakia. Then in September 1939, Hitler proved that he could not be trusted by invading Poland, a mere five years into their ten year non-aggression pact. These very public misdemeanors of Hitler, should have made Stalin and all of Russia cautious of any promises offered by the F hrer.
Lebensraum, or living space was the main reason for nazi-expansion into its neighboring western countries. But it also carried with it the desire for the Nazis to expand into Russia, where there was much space and natural resources, including oil in the Caucuses Mountains and steel and agricultural land in the Ukrainian wheat fields. The growing master race would be in need of all of these if Hitler were to succeed with his plans. His people would need to be fed, his factories would need oil to work and he would need steel to produce machines. He said 17 years before, in Mein Kampf, of Germany and the Thousand Year Reich, We terminate the endless German drive to the south and west of Europe, and direct our gaze to the lands in the east If we talk about new soil and territory in Europe today, we can think primarily only of Russia and it s vassel border states . This open statement of his desire to control Russia not only should have alerted Stalin but should have allowed him time to prepare for the invasion that was to come.
Hitler hated communism. In his mind, any political society that was not founded upon a distinct pecking order with a superman power, like him at the top was an unnatural outcome of Jewish manipulation. He believed that Jews had created the hateful idea of equality under the law. The defeat of communism became an obsession for him. The destruction of Russia and communism had always been Hitler s number one priority. He states in Mein Kampf the Communists never have and never will be our friends. The fight, which is about to begin, is a war of extermination. If Germany does not embark upon it in this spirit, she may well defeat the enemy but thirty years from now they will once again rise up and confront her . In addition to this Hitler also made many public and political anti-Communist moves. During the Spanish Civil War he and Mussolini assisted Franco in fighting Spain s elected Republican government, a government that was supported by the socialist and Communists. He did this because he did not wish to see another country in the clutches of communism. Hitler also struck up a deal with Japan in late 1936. In the Anti-Comintern, pact they pledged that they would stop the spread of communism and the activities of the Communist International. These obvious acts against communism should have alerted Stalin that his country would be the next under attack, based purely on the fact that it was a Communist stronghold.
Stalin had more then enough indication that Hitler was going to attack Russia. By not paying attention to the signs, he could have, theoretically caused the fall of Russia into the hands of the Nazis. The anti-Communist moves, desire for lebensraum and the disloyalty to anyone but himself, were blatant hints left by Hitler to alert Russia of their impending future. The German invasion of Russia was to be expected because Hitler had intended to do so from the beginning and told the world with his actions.