Operation Barbarossa

Operation Barabarossa
Part of the Eastern Front of World War II
Date June 22, 1941 – December 5, 1941 Location Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Western Russia Result Axis conquers huge areas of the Soviet Union and causes heavy losses on the Red Army, but fails in its overall strategic goal of defeating the USSR in a Blitzkrieg campaign
Belligerents
Nazi Germany Template:Country data Kingdom of Romania Finland Italy Template:Country data Kingdom of Hungary Template:Country data Slovak Republic (1939–1945) Template:Country data Independent State of Croatia	Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Adolf Hitler Franz Halder Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb Fedor von Bock Gerd von Rundstedt Template:Country data Kingdom of Romania Ion Antonescu Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim Giovanni Messe	Joseph Stalin Georgy Zhukov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Semyon Budyonny Kliment Voroshilov Semyon Timoshenko Markian Popov Fedor Kuznetsov Dmitry Pavlov Ivan Tyulenev
Strength
~3.9 million (including reserve), 3,600 tanks, 4,389 aircraft 46,000 artillery pieces	~3.2 million at the beginning (later 5 million+) 12,000-15,000 tanks, 35,000-40,000 aircraft (11,357 combat ready on 22 June 1941)
Casualties and losses
250,000 killed 500,000 wounded 25,000 missing 2,093 aircraft destroyed 2,758 tanks lost	802,191 killed (Documented losses only) 3,000,000 wounded 3,300,000 captured. 21,200 aircraft destroyed 20,500 tanks lost

Operation Barbarossa (German: Unternehmen Barbarossa, named after Federick I) was the code name for the European Axis's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II which began on 22 June 1941. More than 4.5 million men attacked along 2,900 km front. It also involved 600,000 motor vehicles and 750,000 horses. Planning for the operation started since December 1940.

Even though the Soviets were in a terrible condition, the Axis did not complete its objectives. Tactically, the Germans held some of the most important economic areas of the Soviet Union, mainly in Ukraine. However, the Germans were pushed back from Moscow and could not start an attack as large and long as Operation Barbarossa on the Eastern Front again. The failure led to Hitler's demands for more operations, but all of which failed.

A freezing Russian winter broke in and froze many of the tank's fuel and men were still wearing summer uniforms which they stuffed with newspapers in an attempt to stay warm. The war lasted only for a few months with a German victory, But the Soviets struck back when the Allies invaded Normandy. The Soviets invaded, and continued to occupy more German Territories in Eastern Europe When they Reached the capital the Battle of Berlin began.

Operation Barbarossa was the largest military operation in human history which more men were involved and more were dead. The operation opened a theatre which more men were involved than any others in the history. Some of the battles fought became the largest battles, dealiest cruelty, highest dead, and most horrific.