World War II start and end. Beginning of World War II

Andrei Pashev

When started and when the second world ended

Unknown war of the twentieth century

When the Second World

Silhouettes of 15 tanks, 15 super-modern cars barely loomed in predestal twilight. Behind was a night march, and ahead ... ahead - the line of defense of the fascists. What awaits a Soviet tank company there? For her, 26 kilometers of march shots were a trifle, but as a infantry, did people exit themselves? Do they leave tanks? Are the intelligence information? Have the fascists managed to equip firepoints on the captured turning turn? After a few hours everything will become clear.

It's time. The engines roared. Captain Arman's tanks rushed forward.

Paul Matisovich Arman was not French. He comes from Latvia, but a teenager lived for several years in France, and the first identity card got there, from here and an unusual name. Before the war was the commander of the tank battalion near Bobruisk.

Fascists have no anti-tank funds, machine-gun queues were filled with peas in the peas. "The machine gun is the worst enemy of infantry," it is written in the instruction, and the tank workers fusked the fireproof with fire and caterpillars. The infantry is still behind. It is impossible to linger, will be detected and covered with aviation or artillery. To retreat? Captain Arman was soon in decisions. On the commander tank, flags were filled: "Do as I", - and the tanks rushed forward. Here are the outskirts of the town. No one is waiting for the raid of Soviet tanks, and there are no fascists in the town according to intelligence data. Tanks rushing with open hatches, in the head car - Arman.

Suddenly, from behind the corner, an Italian officer runs out, waving his hands, something shouts. "Accepted for his own," said Arman. Stalled tank hatches. The fascist motorway battalion is not lucky. On the pavement rolls wheels, fragments of trucks fly, the surviving soldiers are hiding behind the stone fences. But the fascinated fascists quickly came to mind, the bottles of gasoline fly, the surviving cannons fly on the roofs of the houses. The commander knows well that in the city of one armored car it is impossible to fight, they will immediately burn. New solution - go on. Tanks rush through the town, two artillery batteries are sweeping on the outskirts.

And here are the Italian tanks. A short duel - and three "Italians" are burning, the remaining five retreated. Our tanks did not damage them.

The infantry for the day never broke the defense of the fascists. After the care of the tanks, the surviving machine guns came to life, aviation of the opponent was attracted ... Fight failed. And although Arman has what is proud ... What is reported by the commander?

But Krivoshin Combrigs is not upset. Not everything is so bad. Tanks are intake, the losses are small, and most importantly - the offensive of the fascists is stopped. And the colonel of the raven reported that at the auxiliary direction - success. Are busy two nodal railway stations.

Bright stars are burning in the anthracite-black sky. Severe-edged tower shooter died - brought out the cutting wires. Slags iron, shadow shadows from portable lamps - these techniques are under tanks.

Yes Yes. This is not a typo. The time of action - October 1936, the place is the town of Sessia, south-west of Madrid. Today, this name does not say anything to us, and then it was very important.

How many times did the second world begins?

In the strange time we live. People who implement the most cherished dreams of Hitler are awarded each other a medal "For the fight against fascism." It would be clarified - "For the struggle with fascism." But this is by the word.

In the European tradition, it is customary to be the beginning of World War II, the attack of Germany to Poland on September 1, 1939. The Chinese (Let's remind, this is not just a nation, one of many, this is a quarter of humanity) consider the beginning of war the so-called "incident on the Looguziao Bridge" on July 7, 1937 - the beginning of the open aggression of Japan against China. Why not? The surrender in World War II, Japan signed and in front of China, including no separate surrender, it means there was no separate war.

Americans are almost officially considered the beginning of World War I war-Harbor (December 7, 1941) - and indeed, only from this point in their understanding, the European and Asian war merged into the global. This position also has its own reason.

But in order to determine the exact date of the beginning of the war, you must understand who led it and because of what.

Who fought?

What was the meaning of that war? Why in one coalition people often turned out to be very different from each other, why one country was a predator, then the victim, then a fighter for justice in such an uncompromising collision? In an uncompromising - in the direct understanding of this word. Not many wars ends with the complete destruction of the military-economic potential and the military-political elite of one of the parties.

I do not want to give the most explanations, here they are not a place and not time. But for me, it is obvious - after all, it was a fight of two ideologies. And ideologies are extremely simple. The first - people are created equal. The second - people are not created equal. From the second ideology there is a celestial investigation - that since people are not equal, they can be higher or lower simply on birth, and the highest can solve their problems at the expense of the lower.

Who were the main carriers of the first and second ideologies, let the dear reader guess.

The complexity of the situation is that people often do not understand aware of what ideology they confess. So, the founding fathers of the United States, writing in the Constitution beautiful words about the equality of people, themselves were slave owners. After all, negros, in their understanding, were not quite people! Therefore, some countries did not immediately determine, in which camp they are.

What is called the "anti-Hitler coalition" was an extremely dispericant company. Many have taken part in it, say straight, not immediately and under the influence of the "roasted rooster", then strong powers, and even "having received in the face" for the support of Hitler, as, for example, Romania. Some, being ideologically close to Hitler and even by participating in some of its promotions (as a pre-war Poland), then for some reason found themselves in the discharge of the "lower". And only one state - the USSR - fought against the fascist bloc almost from the moment of its formation to the complete defeat, almost nine years.

"Fascist" block was very defined. First of all, because he had a completely defined ideological basis. And any nationalist group in any country was his natural ally, unless he considered his nation "Higher" and if this nation did not turn out to be "superfluous" in the geopolitical deck of the Anti-Comintern Covenant. The name "Fascist" is not a completely accurate ideological label. Captive Germans, let's say, were sincerely surprised when they were called the fascists. The self-configuration of this organization, the war with the whole continents fired with fire and blood, reflects its essence. And there was a struggle against the Comintern, but against the community of people who do not pay attention to the national affiliation.

Nationalism is not always bad. If a country in one form or another is depressed by other countries or foreign organizations, the liberation movement is often called and is nationalist. The sage Sun Yatsen considered nationalism the only medicine capable of awakening China from a narcotic sleep, in which he was immersed by Western powers, mainly England, and in many ways it turned out to be right.

And internationalism is different. The ruling circles of the West were not then nationally slaughtered - the capital of nationality does not have. But their internationalism is called cosmopolitanism, I will not explain the difference.

Therefore, the content of that stage of world history, which is called World War II, is the confrontation of not two imperialist groups, as in the first world, and the Soviet Union on the one hand and the block of Germany, Italy and Japan on the other, as the most complete expressions of the other ideology. Then, the nationalists of depressed and destroyed nations joined the Soviet Union, at different stages of his struggle, and spontaneous cosmopolitans.

Therefore, the beginning of the Second World War is more correct to consider the first collision of the regular parts of the main warring parties, or the corresponding statement of at least one of them. So when there was a direct military collision of the Union and the powers of the Anti-Comintern Covenant (at first it was called the "axis Berlin-Rome"), that is, the actual start of the war?

Why we did not celebrate the anniversary

The author is not a professional historian. The article was thought of a long time ago for the 70th anniversary of this event, but the anniversary was not observed by an anniversary. The right literature fell into the hands too late, and it was not easy to read it.

75 years ago , September 1, 1939 With the attacks of Hitler's Germany to Poland, the Second World War began. The formal reason for the beginning of the war was the so-called "Gleivitsky incident" - the staged attack of disguised into the Polish form of the SES heads led by Alfred Nuyoxes on the German cross-border radio station in Gleivitz, after which, August 31, 1939 , the press and radio Germany reported that "... on Thursday, approximately 20 hours, the premises of the radio station in Gleivice was captured by the Poles."

Imaginary "rebels" were broadcast Appeal in Polish and quickly left, neatly decomposing in the floor prepared corpses of prisoners from German concentration camps in Polish uniforms . The next day, September 1, 1939, German Führer Adolf Gitler stated about " polish attacks On the German territory "and declared the War Poland, after which the troops of fascist Germany and the Allied Slovakia, where the fascist dictator was in power Joseph Tiso. , invaded Poland, which provoked the announcement of the war of Germany by England, France and other countries that had allied relations with Poland.

War began with that on September 1, 1939, at 4 45 minutes in the morning, arrived in Danzig with a friendly visit and with an inspiration of the German training ship met by the local German population - an outdated battleship Schleswig-Holstein - opened fire from the instruments of the main caliber in Polish fortifications on Vesterplatte that served signal By the beginning of the invasion of the German Wehrmacht in Poland.

In the same day September 1, 1939, in Reichstag Adolf Hitler, dressed in a military uniform. In justifying the attack on Poland, Hitler referred to the "incident in Gleivice". At the same time, he thoroughly avoided in his speech term "war", fearing possible accession In this conflict, England and France, who gave Poland in their time, the relevant guarantees. In a published Hitler, the order said only about "active defense" Germany against allegedly had a "Polish aggression".

Italian fascist dictator - "Trude" Benito Mussolini In this regard, immediately offered to convene " conference For a peaceful decision of the Polish issue, "which met the support from the Western powers, who was afraid of the outrage of the German-Polish conflict in the world war, but Adolf Hitler decisively refused , stating that "It is not necessary to represent the diplomacy that was conquered by weapons."

September 1, 1939 In the Soviet Union, a universal military service was introduced. At the same time, the prize age was reduced from 21 to 19 years, and for some categories - up to 18 years. Law O. universal Military Means immediately entered into force and in a short time the numerical composition of the Red Army reached 5 million Man, which amounted to about 3% of the then population of the USSR.

September 3, 1939 at 9.00 am England , and at 12:20 hours of the day - France , as well as Australia and New Zealand, declared Germany war. For several days, Canada, Newfoundland, South African Union and Nepal joined them. World War II began.

German Führer Adolf Hitler And his environment until the last moment was hoping that the Allies of Poland would not be decided to enter the war with Germany and the case would end " second Munich " The main translator of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany Paul Schmidt described in his post-war memoirs the condition of the shock in which Hitler came when the Ambassador of Britain Neville Henderson , appearing in Reichancelery at 9 am on September 3, 1939, handed him ultimatum of his government demanding put the troops from Polish territory to starting positions. Only attended Herman Gering He was able to pronounce: "If we lose this war, we can only hope for the mercy of God."

At the German Nazis There were very serious reasons to hope that London and Paris again clog their eyes on the aggressive actions of Berlin. They proceeded out precedent Created September 30, 1938 British Prime Minister Nevillem Chamberlain who signed with Hitler "Declaration of nonsense and a peaceful settlement of controversial issues between the United Kingdom and Germany", that is contract famous in the USSR as " Munich Catchy ».

Then, in 1938. Neville Chamberlain We met three times Hitler , and after the meeting in Munich returned home with his famous statement " I bring you peace ! ". In fact, this agreement concluded without the participation of Czechoslovakian leadership led to her section Germany, with the participation of Hungary and Poland.

"Munich Collusion" is considered a classic example decitation of aggressor which subsequently only prompted him to an even greater expansion of his aggressive politics and became one of the reasons The beginning of World War II. Winston Churchill On October 3, 1938, on this occasion, said: "Great Britain was proposed a choice between war and dishonor. She chose dishonor and get war. "

Until September 1, 1939 German aggressive actions did not meet serious resistance from UK and France who were not decided to start the war and tried to save the system of the Versailles Treaty intelligent, from their point of view, concessions (the so-called "Decience Policy"). But, after violating Hitler of the Munich Treaty, In both countries, more and more began to be aware of the need for a more rigid policy, and in case of further aggression of Germany, United Kingdom and France dali Military Guarantees Poland .

Followed by these events Frequent defeat and occupation of Poland, "Strange War" on the West Front, German Blitzkrieg in France, Battle for England, and June 22, 1941 - the invasion of the German Wehrmacht in the USSR - all these grand events gradually pushed back to the background The history of the Second World War and the Gleivitsky Incident, and the Polish-German conflict itself.

However, the choice of place and object for provocation, which gave the start of the Second World War, was far not accident : Starting from the mid-1920s, Germany and Poland led an active information war behind the hearts and the minds of the inhabitants of border areas, primarily with the help of the latest technology of the twentieth century - radio. In the pre-war months of 1939 antinec propaganda The authorities of the Polish Silesia became extremely aggressive and, it must be said, quite effective, which gave Hitler some likelihood resource for the drag of Gleivitsky provocation.

Earth Silesia - The historic region at the junction of the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland - originally belonged to the Polish crown, but then they switched to the power of the Habsburgs, and in the XVIII century were conquered by Prussia. The mixed population of the territory for many centuries gradually opened , and Silesia was considered one of the most devoted to the Second German Reich Land. In the XIX century, the upper silesia became the primary industrial area of \u200b\u200bGermany: a quarter of coal was mined, 81 percent of zinc and 34 percent lead . In 1914. Poles (and mixed identity) in the region remained more than half (of 2 million people).

Versailles' contract extremely limited The possibilities of Germany in the military sphere. From the point of view of Germany, the conditions dictated in Versaille were unjust Legally and impracticable economically. Moreover, the amounts of reparations were not previously stipulated and increased twice. All this created international tensions and confidence that no later than after 20 years of world war will be resumed.

According to the Versailles Agreement (1919), in Upper Silesia, Plebiscit was to pass: its residents provided the opportunity to decide in which state to live them. Plebiscite he was appointed for 1921, while the German authorities remained in their places. And Poles, and the Germans used this time for active propaganda - moreover, poles raised on the territory of Silesia two uprisings . However, as a result, most of those who voted in Silesia unexpectedly for everyone spoke for Germany (707 605 against 479 359).

After that, in Silesia flashed third Polish uprising , and the most bloody, in connection with which the countries of the Entente decided to divide the upper silence along the front line between Polish and German formations (as of October 1921). So in the Polish Silesian Voivodeship, approximately 260 thousand Germans left (at 735 thousand Poles), and the German province of Upper Silesia - 530 thousand Poles (by 635 thousand Germans).

In the 1920s, European states , dissatisfied with the first world borders established by the first world borders, began to actively use for the propaganda struggle for the soul of the inhabitants of border areas (their own and strangers) new technology - radio . Officials wanted to make the "right" Germans (Poles, Hungarians, and so on) from their citizens, to support "compatriots" for new boundaries, at the same time suppressing the separatist mood of ethnic minorities on their territory and inciting them in the neighborhoods.

To this end, Germany has created border radio stations : from Aachen to Koenigsberg, from Kiel to Breslau. It is to strengthen the signal of the latter and in 1925 the re-repeater station was built in Gleivice. . Two years started work "Polish Radio Katowice" (PC), Whose signal was eight times more powerful Gleivitsky. Imperial broadcasting society strengthened the power of the relay station, and after five years, the Nazis who came to power raised him ten times and rebuilt gleivitsky Radomach . She began (and remains to this day) one of the highest - 118 meters - wooden structures in the world. Radio content Initially, there was a frankly provocative nature, contributed to the "incitement of an interethnic retail" and "incitement to armed rebellion."

With arrival in 1933 To the authorities of the National Socialist Workers Party (NSDAP) led by Adolf Hitler Germany without meeting special objections from the UK and France, and in some way and with their support, soon the beginning ignore many restrictions on the Versailles Agreement - in particular, restored the call to the army and began to quickly increase the production of weapons and military equipment. October 14, 1933 Germany came out League Nations And refused to participate in the Geneva Conference on Disarmament. January 26, 1934 The aggression agreement was concluded between Germany and Poland. The Austrian border has four divisions.

After the meetings of the heads of the relevant structures in 1927, as well as signing Polish-German Covenant for nonsense in 1934 Provocative transmissions were closed and concerts, radio actacles, literary readings, educational programs with a slight political accent were released on the fore.

In pre-war years However, there was radio There was a new turn of tension. In response to Hytler held a germanization ( Eindeutschung) Silesia, Polish Radio Katowice launched the program "Abroad", where local residents called on to refuse to use German toponyms (Gleivitz - Gliwice, Breslau - Wroclaw) and informed about their rights as representatives of the national minority.

Especially intensely Polish radio worked during the census in May 1939 When Berlin, with the help of threats and powerful propaganda, tried to force the locals to call themselves in the polling sheets of the Germans.

In 1939. The ideological confrontation of the German and Polish radio stations acquired such a heat that the locals began to seriously fear the war. In July 1939, PRK began broadcasting in German, masking under the radio of the Third Reich And also began to produce anti-enecane programs in Czech, for residents of the BEGEMI and Moravia Protectorate. In August 1939 Germany abandoned its policies of one-language broadcasting and began to broadcast the transfer also in Polish and Ukrainian. In response to this silesian Poles They began to sow rumors that these programs, in fact, proceed from the Polish radio to Breslau (the capital of the province of Silesia) and that all the upper silesia will soon join the speech by the compulculation.

During the political crisis of 1939 There are two military-political bloc in Europe: english-French and german-Italian Each of which was interested in agreement with the USSR.

Poland, concluding the Union contracts With the UK and France, which were obliged to help her in the case of German aggression, refused to make concessions in negotiations with Germany (in particular, on the issue of Polish corridor).

August 15, 1939 German Ambassador to USSR Werner von der Schlenburg read Vyacheslav Molotov Message of German Foreign Minister Johima Ribbentrop in which he expressed his readiness to personally come to Moscow to "clarify the German-Russian relations". On the same day, Directives of the USSR No. 4/2/48601-4 / 2/486011 were sent to the RKKE on deploying to existing 96 small divisions of 56 divisions.

August 19, 1939 Molotov agreed to accept the ribbentrop in Moscow to sign a contract with Germany and August 23 USSR signed with Germany Agreement on non-fire In which the parties agreed on each other (including in the event of the beginning of the hostilities of one of the parties against third countries, which was the usual practice of German agreements at the time). In the secret additional protocol It was provided for by the "section of spheres of interest in Eastern Europe", including the Baltic states and Poland, between the USSR and Germany.

German propaganda I portrayed Poland at this time as a "puppet in the hands of the English-French imperialism" and called Warsaw " the source of aggression ", Introducing Nazi Germany, the" stronghold of the world around the world ". Polish government measures aimed against the organizations of the German minority in Silesian Voivodeship were given excess visor In the hands of propagandists from Berlin.

During these years , especially in summer, many residents of the Polish Silesia illegally crossed the border to find work in Germany and good earnings, as well as avoid calling to the Polish army, fearing to participate in the brewing, obviously losing, in their opinion, war.

Nazis recruited These Poles and taught them on the agitators who had to tell the solester from the German province about the "horrors of life in Poland." To "neutralize" this propaganda, Polish Radio reported on the disgusting conditions in which refugees live, and how poorly and hungry lives the Third Reich himself who is preparing to war: "It is better to wear a Polish shape! The hungry German soldiers dream of how they will conquer Poland to finally improve their feet. "

May 23, 1939 in the Hitler's office in the presence of a number of senior officers a meeting was held on which it was noted that " polish problem closely connected with the inevitable conflict in Germany with England and France, Fast victory over which is problematic. In this case, Poland is unlikely to be able to execute role of Barrier against Bolshevism. Currently, the task of foreign policy of Germany is expansion of living space east ensuring guaranteed food supply and elimination of threat from the East. Poland must be captured At the first convenient case. "

To counteract Propaganda aggression on the part of Nazi Germany, the Polish radio did not hesitate to and itself bryhen weapons ", To different ways speaking about the inevitability of war with Germany, and usually in ironic manner:" Hey, Nazis, make your ass for our rose ... Let the Germans only enter here, and we will ruin them with our bloody sharp claws. "

Even hints on the fact that Poland can take the first step . It was said that the fortifications on the border erected by the Germans allegedly in order to "hide their ass, when we, Poles, come ».

On Berlin protests Polish officials answered that the Germans do not understand jokes. "What are the strained nerves of the German" Furrers ", if even Polish humor and laughter is disturbed," said the official edition of the Silesian Voivodeship "Polish Zakhod".

Silesian Voivod Mikhal Gruzign (Michał Grażyński) in June 1939, together with veterans of the uprising of 1919-1921, participants in the militarized formation "Zvarzek Mistantsev" And the soldiers of Polish troops solemnly opened the "Monument to Polish Rebel", and at a distance of only 200 meters from the German border. During the opening ceremony, which broadcasting the CPC, Grazinsky promised that "the case that did not finish the heroes of the third uprising, we will finish" - that is, will save the upper silence in Germany.

In a week The Polish Voivode opened another "monument to the rebel", also in the German border (in the village of Borushovice). Finally, in mid-August 1939, Zvenzek Mistantzav held his annual "Marsh to Oder "From German to the Czech border. In other years, these Polish "traditions and ceremonies" could hardly cause a large political resonance, but in the pre-atmosphere of the propaganda of the Third Reich, the maximum evidence for their theory about aggressive plans of Poland , allegedly preparing annexation of the Upper Silesia.

Therefore on September 2, 1939 For years, the German authorities were able to very convincingly tie the "Gleivitsky incident" with the aggressive statement by Mikhail Grazinsky, saying that in the attack on the radio station " take part of the gang of Zvizek Mistantsev. Thus, broadcasting the program in the live program where it was openly announced that "German Silesia should be selected from Germany", Polish Radio Katowice helped Berlin gives the likelihood of its statements about the "Polish aggression" that facilitated the Nazis Search for a reason to invade Poland, provoked the beginning of the Second World War.

The Second World War - War of two world military-political coalitions, who has become the biggest war in the history of mankind. She participated in it 61 State Of the 73 existing at that time (80% of the world's population). The fighting was carried out on the territory of three continents and in the waters of the four oceans. This is the only conflict in which nuclear weapons were applied.

The number of countries participating in the Second World War Changed during the war. Some of them were active hostilities, others helped their allies supplies of food, and many participated in the war only nominally.

The antihytler coalition included : Poland, British Empire (and its Dominions: Canada, India, South African Union, Australia, New Zealand), France - entered the war in September 1939; Ethiopia - Ethiopian troops under the command of the government of Ethiopia in exile continued partisan fighting after annexation of the state in 1936, was officially recognized as an ally on July 12, 1940; Denmark, Norway - April 9, 1940; Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg - from May 10, 1940; Greece - October 28, 1940; Yugoslavia - April 6, 1941; USSR, Tuva, Mongolia - June 22, 1941; USA, Philippines - from December 1941; US deliveries on Land Lesu in the USSR since March 1941; China (Government Chan Kaisha) - Fights against Japan from July 7, 1937, was officially recognized as an ally on December 9, 1941; Mexico - May 22, 1942; Brazil - August 22, 1942.

Against the "axis" countries also formally performed : Panama, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Cuba, Nepal, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Iran, Albania, Paraguay, Ecuador, San Marino, Turkey, Uruguay, Venezuela, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Liberia, Bolivia.

During the war, the coalition joined Some states issued from the Nazi block: Iraq - January 17, 1943; The Kingdom of Italy - October 13, 1943; Romania - August 23, 1944; Bulgaria - September 5, 1944; Finland - September 19, 1944. Also not entered the Nazi Block Iran.

On the other hand, the "Axis" countries and their allies participated in World War II: Germany, Slovakia - September 1, 1939; Italy, Albania - June 10, 1940; Hungary - April 11, 1941; Iraq - May 1, 1941; Romania, Croatia, Finland - June 1941; Japan, Manzhou - December 7, 1941; Bulgaria - December 13, 1941; Thailand - January 25, 1942; China (Government Wang Jingwei) - January 9, 1943; Burma - August 1, 1943; Philippines - September 1944.

In the territory of the occupied countries Puppet states were created, which were not within the sense of participants in World War II and joined to the fascist coalition : Vichi France, Greek State, Italian Social Republic, Hungarian State, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Pindo-Meglen Princess, Manjiang, Burma, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Azad Hind, Wang Jingwei mode.

In a number of German Reichsky examinations Autonomous puppet governments were created: quisling regime in Norway, Mustert regime in the Netherlands, Belarusian Central Rada in Belarus. On the side of Germany and Japan Many collaboration troops, created from citizens of the opposing party, also fought: ROA, foreign SS divisions (Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Estonian, 2 Latvian, Norwegian-Danish, 2 Netherlands, 2 Belgian, 2 Bosnian, French, Albanian), a number of foreign legions . Also in the Armed Forces of the Nazi blocks, the volunteer forces of states, formally remained neutral: Spain ("Blue Division"), Sweden and Portugal.

September 3, 1939 in Bydgosc (Former Bromberg), the city of Pomeranian Voivodeship (former Western Prussia), which passed on the Versailles Agreement to Poland, happened mass kill on national sign - "Bromber pogrom." In the city, the population of 3/4 consisted of Germans, several hundred civilians of German origin were killed by Polish nationalists. Their number varied From one to three hundred dead - according to the version of the Polish side and from one to five thousand - according to the German side.

The offensive of German troops developed according to plan. Polish troops generally turned out to be a weak military force compared to agreed by the acting German tank connections of the Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe. Wherein on Western Front Union English-french troops did not no active action. Only on the sea of \u200b\u200bwar began immediately and, also, Germany: On September 3, 1939, the German submarine U-30 without warning attacked the English passenger liner "Athenium" and sank him.

September 7, 1939 German troops under the command Heinz Guderiana Started the attack on the Polish defensive line under the visa. In Poland, in the first week, the German troops in several places were cut off by the Polish front and took part of Mazovia, Western Prussia, the Upper-Silesian industrial area and Western Galicia. By September 9, 1939 The Germans managed to break the Polish resistance throughout the front line and approach Warsaw.

September 10, 1939 Polish commander-in-chief Edward Rydz-Smiglia I gave an order about the overall retreat to Southeast Poland, but the main part of his troops, failing to move away for the Wove, was surrounded. By mid-September 1939, not having received support from the West, the Armed Forces of Poland ceased to exist as a whole; Only local resistance centers have retained.

September 14, 1939 19th Corps of Heinz Guderian by a throw from East Prussia captured Brest . Polish troops under the command of General Plerical for a long time, the Brest Fortress was defended. On the night of September 17, 1939, her defenders left the forts in an organized manner and moved away for the Bug.

September 16, 1939 Ambassador Poland in the USSR was stated that because the Polish state and his government ceased to exist , Soviet Union takes under his defense Life and property of the population of Western Ukraine and Western Belarus.

September 17, 1939 , fearing that Germany will refuse to fulfill the terms of the secret additional protocol to the non-aggression agreement, the USSR began the introduction of the troops of the Red Army to the eastern regions of Poland. Soviet propaganda said that "RKKA takes protected fraternal peoples."

On this day, at 6.00 am , Soviet troops with two military groups crossed the state border with Poland, and the Soviet People's Commissar on International Affairs Vyacheslav Molotov sent the Ambassador of Germany to the USSR Werner of the background der Schlenburg congratulation Regarding the "brilliant success of the German Wehrmacht." Although neither the USSR, nor Poland declared war to each other , some liberal historians mistakenly consider this day today date "Entry of the USSR Second World War.

On the evening of September 17, 1939 Polish government and the Supreme Command fled to Romania. September 28, 1939 Germans occupied Warsaw. On the same day in Moscow was signed Agreement on friendship and border between the USSR and Germany who established the line of distinction between the German and Soviet troops on the territory of the former Poland about the "Line of Kerzon".

October 6, 1939 Capitulated the latest divisions of the Polish army. Part of the Western Polish lands passed into the third Reich. These lands were subject to " germany " The Polish and Jewish population was deported from here to the central regions of Poland, where "Governor's General" was created. Mass repressions were carried out against the Polish people. The very difficult situation was the situation of Polish Jews, coented in the ghetto.

Territories deposited in the influence of the USSR were included in the Ukrainian SSR, the Belarusian SSR and independent at that time Lithuania. In the territories included in the USSR, the Soviet power was established, conducted socialist transformations (industry nationalization, the collectivization of the peasantry), which was accompanied by deportation and repression In relation to the former dominant classes - representatives of the bourgeoisie, landowners rich in peasants, part of the intelligentsia.

October 6, 1939 , after the end of all hostilities in Poland, German Führer Adolf Gitler made a proposal for convening Peace conference With the participation of all the largest powers to resolve existing contradictions. France and United Kingdom stated that they will agree to the conference, only if the Germans immediately bring their troops from Poland and the Czech Republic And refund independence to these countries. Germany rejected These conditions, and as a result, the peace conference did not take place.

Further running of events in Europe He led to the new aggression of Germany against France and Great Britain, and then against the Soviet Union, the expansion of the Second World War and the involvement of all new states into it.

World War II completed The complete and unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany (the act of surrender was signed on May 9, 1945 in Berlin) and Japan (the act of surrender was signed on September 2, 1945 on board the American Lincore Missouri).

The most large-scale in human history The Second World War has become a logical continuation of the First World War. In 1918, Kaiserovskaya Germany lost to the countries of the Entente. The result of the First World War was the Versailles Agreement for which the Germans lost part of their territory. Germany was forbidden to have a large army, fleet and colony. There was an unprecedented economic crisis in the country. He aggravated even more after the Great Depression of 1929.

German society hardly experienced his defeat. There were massive revengers. At the wish to "restore historical justice" began to play politicians-populists. The National Socialist German Workers Party began to use very popular, at the head of which Adolf Hitler stood.

The reasons

Radicals came to power in Berlin in 1933. The German state quickly became totalitarian and began to prepare for the upcoming war for domination in Europe. Simultaneously with the Third Reich, its "classic" fascism arose in Italy.

World War II (1939-1945) is events not only in the old world, but also in Asia. In this region, the source of concern was Japan. In the country of the Rising Sun, just like in Germany, imperialist sentiment were extremely popular. The object of the Japanese aggression became weakened by internal conflicts China. The war between the two Asian powers began in 1937, and with the beginning of the conflict in Europe, it became part of the general Second World War. Japan was the allied Germany.

The third Reich came from the League of Nations (UN predecessors), stopped his own disarmament. In 1938, anchlus (joining) of Austria occurred. It was bloodless, but the reasons for the Second World War, briefly speaking, were that European politicians closed their eyes to the aggressive behavior of Hitler and did not stop his absorption policies all new territories.

Soon, Germany annexed the sudan region, inhabited by the Germans, but belonging to Czechoslovakia. In the section of this state, Poland and Hungary also took part. In Budapest, an alliance with the Third Reich was observed until 1945. An example of Hungary shows that the reasons for the Second World War, briefly speaking, among themselves in consolidation around Hitler anti-communist forces.

Start

September 1, 1939 invaded Poland. A few days later, Germany declared war on France, United Kingdom and their numerous colonies. Two key powers had allied arrangements with Poland and were protected. So the Second World War began (1939-1945).

A week before the Wehrmacht attack on Poland, German diplomats concluded an aggression agreement with the Soviet Union. Thus, the USSR was aside from the conflict between the Third Reich, France and the United Kingdom. By signing an agreement with Hitler, Stalin solved its own tasks. In the period before the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the Red Army entered the Eastern Poland, Baltic States and Bessarabia. In November 1939, the Soviet-Finnish war began. As a result, the USSR joined several Western regions.

While the German-Soviet neutrality persisted, the Army of Germany was engaged in the occupation of most of the old world. 1939 was greeted by the Swokshan countries restrained. In particular, the United States announced its neutrality and retained it to a Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Blitzkrieg in Europe

Polish resistance was broken in just a month. All this time, Germany acted only on one front, since France and the UK actions were mini-initial. The period from September 1939 to May 1940 received the characteristic name of the "strange war". For these several months, Germany, in the absence of active actions of the British and French, occupied Poland, Denmark and Norway.

The first stages of the Second World War were distinguished by chart. In April 1940, Germany invaded Scandinavia. The air and the naval landing room went into key Danish cities unhindered. A few days later, Monarch Christian X signed the surrender. In Norway, the British and the French landed the landing, but he turned out to be powerless before Natius of the Wehrmacht. Early periods of World War II were characterized by the casual advantage of the Germans before their opponent. The long-term preparation for future bloodshed. The whole country worked for war, and Hitler did not hesitate to throw all new resources into her boiler.

In May 1940, the invasion of Benilux began. The whole world was shocked by unprecedented by the bombing of Rotterdam. Thanks to his rapid throw, the Germans managed to take key positions before the allies appeared there. By the end of May, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were capitulated and were occupied.

In the summer of the battle of World War II moved to the territory of France. In June 1940, Italy included in the campaign. Her troops attacked the south of France, and the Wehrmacht - North. Soon the truce was signed. Most of France has been occupied. In a small free zone in the south of the country, a loop regime was installed, which went to cooperate with the Germans.

Africa and Balkans

In the summer of 1940, after entering the war, Italy, the main theater of hostilities moved to the Mediterranean. Italians invaded North Africa and attacked British bases in Malta. On the "Black Continent" then there was a significant number of English and French colonies. The Italians at first concentrated on the eastern direction - Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Sudan.

Some French colonies in Africa refused to recognize the new government of France led by Peten. The symbol of the national struggle against the Nazis was Charles de Gaulle. In London, he created the liberation movement, the name "Fight France". British troops together with de Gaulle detachments began to beat African colonies in Germany. Equatorial Africa and Gabon was liberated.

In September, the Italians invaded Greece. The attack took place against the background of the battle for North Africa. Many fronts and stages of the Second World War began to intertear with each other, increasingly expanding the conflict. The Greeks managed to successfully resist Italian Natik until April 1941, when Germany intervened to conflict, occupied Elladu in just a few weeks.

Simultaneously with the Greek campaign, the Germans began the campaign of Yugoslavskaya. The forces of the Balkan state were split into several parts. The operation began on April 6, and already on April 17, Yugoslavia capitulated. Germany in World War II looked more and more on unconditional hegemon. On the territory of the occupied Yugoslavia, puppet profascular states were created.

Invasion in the USSR

All the former stages of World War II fade along the scale compared with the operation, which Germany was preparing to hold in the USSR. War with the Soviet Union was only the matter of time. The invasion began exactly after the third Reich occupied most of Europe and was able to concentrate all his strength on the Eastern Front.

Parts of the Wehrmacht crossed the Soviet border on June 22, 1941. For our country, this date has become the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. In the Kremlin until the last moment they did not believe in the attack of the Germans. Stalin refused to take seriously reconnaissance data, considering their disinformation. As a result, the Red Army turned out to be absolutely not ready for the operation of Barbarossa. In the first days, airfields and other strategic infrastructure in the West of the Soviet Union were bombed unhindered.

The USSR in World War II collided with the next German Plan Blitzkrieg. In Berlin, they were going to seize the main Soviet cities of the European part of the country. The first months everything went according to Hitler's expectations. Ukraine, Belarus, Baltic States were fully occupied. Leningrad was in the blockade. The course of the Second World War led the conflict to a key border. If Germany had overcome the Soviet Union, she would have no opponents left, except for the overseas Great Britain.

The winter of 1941 was approaching. The Germans were in the vicinity of Moscow. At the outskirts of the capital, they stopped. On November 7, a festive parade was held, dedicated to the next anniversary of the October Revolution. Soldiers went straight from Red Square to the front. Wehrmacht stuck a few tens of kilometers from Moscow. German soldiers were demoralized by the most severe winter and the most difficult conditions for doing the battle. December 5 began Soviet counteroffensive. By the end of the year, the Germans were discarded from Moscow. The former stages of the Second World War were characterized by the total advantage of the Wehrmacht. Now the army of the Third Reich first stopped in its global expansion. The battle for Moscow has become a turning point of war.

Japan's attack on the USA

Until the end of 1941, Japan retained neutrality in the European conflict, at the same time fighting with China. At a certain point, the country's leadership turned out to be a strategic choice: to attack the USSR or the United States. The choice was made in favor of the American option. On December 7, the Japanese Aviation attacked Pearl Harbor Naval Base in Hawaii. As a result of the plaque, almost all American battleships were destroyed and in general a significant part of the American Pacific Fleet.

Up to this point in the United States in the Second World War did not openly participate. When the situation in Europe has changed in favor of Germany, the US authorities began to support the UK resources, but the conflict itself did not interfere. Now the situation has changed 180 degrees, as Japan was an allied Germany. The day after a plaque on Pearl Harbor in Washington, Tokyo War was declared. The same did the United Kingdom and her dominion. After another day, Germany, Italy and their European satellites declared the US War. So finally there were contours of unions, who collided in full-time confrontation in the second half of World War II. The USSR has been in a state of war for several months and also joined the antihytler coalition.

In the New 1942, the Japanese invaded the Dutch East-India, where there was an island island without much difficulty. At the same time, an occurrence in Burma developed. By the summer of 1942, the Japanese forces controlled all Southeast Asia and a significant part of Oceania. The United States in World War II changed the situation at the Pacific Theater of Military Activities is somewhat later.

Countessing of the USSR

In 1942, the Second World War, the table of events of which includes, as a rule, the basic information was at its key stage. The forces of opposing unions were approximately equal. The fracture occurred by the end of 1942. In the summer, the Germans began another offensive in the USSR. This time their key goal was the south of the country. In Berlin, they wanted to cut off Moscow from oil and other resources. For this, it was necessary to force the Volga.

In November 1942, the whole world was anxiously awaited news from Stalingrad. Soviet countertime on the banks of the Volga led to the fact that the strategic initiative has become finally finally found from the USSR. In World War II, there was no more bloody and large-scale battle than Stalingrad battle. The total loss of both sides exceeded two million people. At the cost of incredible efforts, the Red Army stopped the attack of the axis on the Eastern Front.

The next strategically important success of the Soviet troops was the Kursk battle in June - July 1943. While the Germans at the last time they tried to intercept the initiative and make an offensive on Soviet positions. The Wehrmacht plan failed. The Germans not only did not succeed, but they left many cities in Central Russia (Eagle, Belgorod, Kursk), while following the "tactics of the scorched land." All the tank battles of the Second World War were distinguished by bloodshed, but the most large-scale progestor battle was. It was the key episode of the entire Kursk battle. By the end of 1943 - the beginning of 1944, the Soviet troops liberated the south of the USSR and went to the boundaries of Romania.

Allied landing in Italy and Normandy

In May 1943, the allies were cleared of North Africa from Italians. The British fleet began to control the entire Mediterranean Sea. Former periods of World War II were characterized by the successes of the axis. Now the situation has become exactly the opposite.

In July 1943, American, British and French troops landed at Sicily, and in September - on the Apenninsky Peninsula. The Italian government renounced Mussolini and after a few days he signed a truce with the advancing opponents. Dictator, however, managed to run. Thanks to the help of the Germans, he created the Puppet Republic of Salo on the industrial north of Italy. British, French, Americans and local partisans gradually retracted all new cities. On June 4, 1944, they entered Rome.

Exactly two days later, the 6th, the Allies landed in Normandy. So the second or western front was opened, as a result of which the Second World War was completed (the table shows this event). In August, a similar landing began in the south of France. On August 25, the Germans finally left Paris. By the end of 1944, the front stabilized. The main battles took place in the Belgian Ardennes, where each side took up to the time before the time unsuccessful attempts to develop their own offensive.

On February 9, the German army, which was standing in Alsace was surrounded as a result of the Colmarian operation. Allies managed to break through the defensive "Siegfried line" and go to the German border. In March after the Mas-Rhine operation, the Third Reich was lost territories behind the West Bank of the Rhine. In April, the Allies established control over the Ruhr industrial area. At the same time, the offensive continued in northern Italy. On April 28, 1945 he fell into the hands of Italian partisans and was executed.

Taking Berlin

Opening the second front, Western allies coordinated their actions with the Soviet Union. In the summer of 1944, the Red Army began to launch control over the remnants of their possessions in the USSR (with the exception of a small enclave in the West of Latvia).

In August, Romania came out of the war, before the third Reich acting as satellite. Soon the same did the authorities of Bulgaria and Finland. The Germans began to hastily evacuate from the territory of Greece and Yugoslavia. In February 1945, the Red Army held Budapest operation and liberated Hungary.

The path of Soviet troops on Berlin ran through Poland. Together with her, the Germans left Eastern Prussia. Berlin operation began at the end of April. Hitler, realizing his own defeat, committed suicide. On May 7, an act of German surrender was signed, which entered into force on the night of 8 to the 9th.

Defeat Japanese

Although in Europe the war ended, the bloodshed continued in Asia and in the Pacific Ocean. The last force opposed to the allies was Japan. In June, the empire lost control over Indonesia. In July, the United Kingdom, the United States and China presented it with an ultimatum, which, however, was rejected.

On August 6 and 9, 1945, the Americans dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These cases became the only one in human history, when nuclear weapons were used in combat. On August 8, the Soviet offensive in Manchuria began. The act of surrenders of Japan was signed on September 2, 1945. This ended the Second World War.

Losses

Studies are still underway about how many people suffered and how many died in World War II. On average, the number of life-groomed lives is estimated at 55 million (of which 26 million are Soviet citizens). Financial damage was 4 trillion dollars, although it is hardly possible to count the exact numbers.

Europe suffered the strongest. Its industry and agriculture were recovered for many more years. How many died in World War II and how much it was destroyed, it became clear only after a while when the world community could clarify the facts about Nazi crimes against humanity.

The most ambitious bloodshed in the history of humanity was carried out with completely new methods. Under bombing databases, the century-old infrastructure was destroyed within a few minutes. The genocide of the Second World War, directed against Jews, Gypsy and the Slavic population, terribly, terribly, horrifies its details to this day. The German concentration camps have become real "death factories", and the German (and Japanese) doctors spent violent medical and biological experiments on people.

RESULTS

The results of the Second World War were summed up at the Potsdam Conference held in July - August 1945. Europe was divided between the USSR and the Western Allies. In Eastern countries, communist societary modes have been established. Germany lost a significant part of its territory. It was attached to the USSR, a few more provinces switched to Poland. Germany was first divided into four zones. Then the capitalist Germany and Socialist GDR appeared on them. In the east of the USSR, the Kuril Islands belonged to Japan and the southern part of Sakhalin. Communists came to power in China.

Western European countries after World War II lost a significant part of their political influence. The former dominant position of Great Britain and France was occupied by the United States, less than other victims of German aggression. Started the process of decay of colonial empires. In 1945, the United Nations was created, designed to preserve the world around the world. The ideological and other contradictions between the USSR and the Western allies were the reason for the start of the Cold War.

Humanity is constantly experiencing armed conflicts of varying degrees of complexity. 20 century did not exception. Our article will talk about the "dark" stage of the history of this century: World War II 1939 1945.

Prerequisites

The prerequisites of the named military conflict began to form long before the main events: since 1919, when the Versailles peace agreement was concluded, which secured the results of the First World War.

We list the key causes that led to the new war:

The absence of Germany with the opportunity to fulfill some Terms of the Versailles Treaty in full (payments to victims) and reluctance to put up with military restrictions;
Change of power in Germany: Nationalists led by Adolf Hitler, skillfully used dissatisfaction with the German population and the fears of world leaders in front of communist Russia. Their internal policy was aimed at establishing dictatorship and promoting the superiority of the Aryan race;
The external aggression of Germany, Italy, Japan, against which major powers did not take active actions, fear of open confrontation.

Fig. 1. Adolf Hitler.

Initial period

The Germans provided military support of Slovakia.

Hitler did not accept the proposal to solve the conflict peacefully. 03.09 The Great Britain and France was announced the beginning of the war with Germany.

Main events

Starting from the second period (06.1941-11.1942) the course of hostilities is reflected in the chronological table:

*date*	*Event*
	Germany attacked the USSR. The beginning of the Great Patriotic War
	The Germans captured Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Moldova, Belarus, part of Ukraine (Kiev failed), Smolensk. Anglo-French troops liberate Lebanon, Syria, Ethiopia
August-September 1941	Anglo-Soviet troops occupy Iran
October 1941.	Captured Crimea (without Sevastopol), Kharkov, Donbass, Taganrog
December 1941.	The Germans lose the battle for Moscow. Japan attacks the American military base Pearl Harbor, captures Hong Kong
January-May 1942	Japan captures Southeast Asia. German-Italian troops are tested by the British in Libya. Anglo-African troops capture Madagascar. Defeat of Soviet troops near Kharkov
	American fleet defeated Japanese in the battle for the island of Midway
	Lost Sevastopol. Staped Stalingrad Battle (until February 1943). Rostov captured
August-October 1942	The British liberate Egypt, part of Libya. The Germans captured Krasnodar, but lost to the Soviet troops in the foothills of the Caucasus, in Novorossiysk. Variable success in battles for Rzhev
November 1942.	The British took the western part of Tunisia, the Germans are eastern. Start of the third stage of war (11.1942-06.1944)
November-December 1942	The second battle near Rzheva is lost by Soviet troops
	Americans win the Japanese in the Battle of Guadalkanal
February 1943.	USSR victory near Stalingrad
February-May 1943	The British defeated the German-Italian troops in Tunisia
July-August 1943	The defeat of the Germans in the Kursk battle. The victory of the union troops in Sicily. English and American aviation make the bombing of Germany
November 1943.	Allied troops occupy the Japanese island of Tarava
August-December 1943	A series of victories of Soviet troops in battles on the banks of the Dnieper. Released Left Bank Ukraine
	The Anglo-American Army captured the south of Italy, freed Rome
	Germans retreated from the Right Bank of Ukraine
April-May 1944	Liberated Crimea
	The landing of the union troops in Normandy. The beginning of the fourth stage of war (06.1944-05.1945). Americans took Mariana Islands
June-August 1944	Debeliana Belarus, South France, Paris
August-September 1944	Soviet troops allotted Finland, Romania, Bulgaria
October 1944.	The Japanese lost to Americans of the sea battle at the island of Leite
September-November 1944	Baltic is released, part of Belgium. Active bombing of Germany resumed
	The Northeast of France was liberated, the Western border of Germany is broken. Soviet troops liberated Hungary
February-March 1945	West Germany captured, Rhine Forcing began. Soviet army frees Eastern Prussia, North Poland
April 1945.	The USSR begins an offensive on Berlin. The Anglo-Canado-American troops defeated the Germans in the Ruhr region and met with the Soviet army on the Elbe. Brought up the last defense of Italy
	Allied troops captured the north and south of Germany, freed Denmark, Austria; Americans switched through the Alps and joined the Allies in the north of Italy
	Germany surrendered
	The liberation troops of Yugoslavia defeated the remnants of the German army in the north of Slovenia
May-September 1945	Fifth Final Stage of War
	Japan has dismissed Indonesia, Indochina
August-September 1945	Soviet-Japanese war: the Kwantung Army of Japan is crushed. The United States resets atomic bombs into Japanese cities (6, 9 August)
	Japan surrendered. End of war

Fig. 3. The Capitulation of Japan in 1945.

results

Let's summarize the results of the Second World War:

War in different degrees touched 62 countries. About 70 million people died. Tens of thousands of settlements are destroyed, of which only in Russia - 1700;
Germany and its allies suffered defeat: the capture of countries and the spread of the Nazi regime stopped;
World leaders change; They became the USSR and the USA. England and France have lost their exceeds;
The boundaries of states changed, new independent countries appeared;
In Germany and Japan, war criminals are convicted;
United Nations established (24.10.1945);
The military power has increased the main winning countries.

Historians consider an important contribution to victory over fascism. Serious armed resistance of the USSR against Germany (Great Patriotic War 1941-1945), American supplies of military equipment (LEnd Liz), receiving aviation of Western Allies (England, France) of the air in the air.

What did we know?

From the article we learned briefly about the Second World War. This information will help you easily answer questions about when the Second World War began (1939), who was the main participant of hostilities, in which year ended (1945) and with what result.

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Nikolay Rabotnov

When will end
The Second World War?

I will start with the memories of one Soviet documentary film released in 1980 to the Silver Anniversary of the Austrian State Treaty. His authors, in particular, asked many inhabitants of Vienna a question in front of a movie chamber: Who and when freed Austria from the occupation? The unanimous replies of the Ventsevas - the Americans in 1955 - rustic (or outer) authors of the film crushed: what, they say, the short memory of these Austrians, they have already forgotten their liberators, the soldiers of the Soviet army, and even the date of the end of the war are confused. Is it so?
The greatest tragedy in the history of mankind, called the Second World War, many in the West seemed to be a homogeneous bloody nightmare that lasted exactly six years from the German attack on Poland on September 1, 1939 to the signing of an act on the unconditional surrender of Japan in September 1, 1945. We have differently. In the memoirs of the literary institute, the poet Mikhail Lvov wrote: "It was in March forty-first year, three months before the Second World War." But the Second World War by then continued for a year and a half on three continents and three oceans. We know about its initial and final periods. Remember the American documentary series, who led Bert Lancaster? We were so prevented by the name of the original - "Unknown War in the East", - that Soviet television insisted on its replacement. It seems that our society about "pre-war" and "post-war" in our definition combat operations of the Second World War knows no more than Americans about the Great Patriotic. There were also huge sacrifices, there were also their heroes - about them our schoolchildren know no more than Americans about Alexander Matrosov. This white spot must be gradually eliminated, as fortunately, the white spots of domestic history are eliminated.
In fact, the second world was the most difficult interweaving of hundreds of bilateral wars, in which 72 states were involved and which began and ended in a variety of time, and there are very different opinions on the time of their endings. So the Austrians do not confuse anything. For them, war really ended in 1955 with the cessation of Soviet occupation. Austria turned out to be the only country that broke up from the hook and for which, as a result of the entry of our troops, the five-year-old fascist occupation was not replaced by a forty-male communist. It is not excluded, for example, that in future textbooks history of the Baltic countries, the Second World War will end in 1991. And there is one important question - when will it end in Japanese textbooks?
If you bring up the second world war in approaching the two main "sked" - the European-African and Asia-Pacific, then the behavior of the forces in them, which eventually took shape in the anti-Hitler (and Antiappon) coalition, can be called mirror. At first, Western countries were fought with Hitler and the Japanese - almost two years, and Stalin waited. Then Hitler attacked us, and the allies began to pull with the opening of the second front and also pulled as much until June 6, 1944. We, in turn, already going to a decisive victorious offensive in the West, did not help allly on the Pacific Theater, and they had a long stray there. All this, of course, is not by chance, but quite naturally. In the United States and Great Britain, on the one hand, and the Soviet Union - on the other - as the socio-political systems there was absolutely nothing in common, except for the enemy. This is a durable cement, but its effect with the defeat of the enemy ends, and in the process of defeat, is limited to a clear consciousness of the polar difference of interests. In the depths of the soul Roosevelt and Churchill, undoubtedly considered the war on the eastern front with a collision of two cruel dictators and wished them to maximize mutual bleeding and weakening. The reason for the Cold War is in this, so it was inevitable.
The Second World War has already become an event of the first half of the last century. But, it seems, it will not be a long time for the "damned past". There are two very often repeatable, but false statements about history. The first thing she does not teach anyone. The second thing is that there is no subjunctive ignition. It does not teach it only bloody geek like Stalin and Hitler. Can we not say that the history of the Second World War has not taught Adenauer, Erhard and Kolya? Or their Japanese colleagues whose names are much less known (and to start the second list should be, maybe with the emperor Hirohito)? And there is no subjunctive inclination in history as a real process of human life. The story as a science can be said, and there is mainly for the sake of the subjunctive inclination. Anyone who is interested, and even more professionally engaged in history, should continuously ask himself a question - what would happen if an alternative decision was taken at the crucial moment? If the factors were taken into account, then they knew about, but these knowledge neglected? We cannot change the past, but the future is in our hands, so let's learn from history. Below we will discuss the events of the last months of World War II, when its most long-lived consequences arose - the global problem of atomic weapons and the local, bilateral problem of Russian-Japanese relations is the question of the "Northern Territories".
Not so long ago, read the book of Richard Rhodes "Creating an Atomic Bomb" was pushed to writing real notes. She was released back in 1986, but still not translated into Russian, although in his homeland received all those who thought to work this genre of the Prize - the Pulitzer, National Book and Association Association of Literary Critics. Perhaps this is the best document and journalistic book I ever read. The most interesting thing in it not only and not so much information on the history of nuclear science and technology, the relatively interesting relatives interestingly and at a very high level - I have an idea about them - and the history of the process of accepting and executing a decision on atomic bombing of Japanese cities. The decision was made, of course, are not scientists and not even generals, but by the political leadership - the President, the Secretary of State and the Military Minister. These posts then occupied Harry Truman, James Birnes and Henry Stimson.
Today it is easy to condemn their solution as barbaric and inhuman, which it is undoubtedly, and is. But such is inevitably any strategic decision in wartime, leading to huge losses - army and civil - on both sides. Adjectives "barbaric" and "inhuman" during the war are acquired, alas, a comparative degree and - twice alas - the degree of excellent. This statement may seem cynical, but without recognizing its justice, we risk a lot to not understand not only in the wars of the past, but also in the nature of military threats in today's world and in the methods of combating them. And it's just dangerous.
Each commander, if he is an honest soldier, and not an obsessed by Mania, the conqueror, seeks, even fighting on the territory of the enemy, not only to reduce the loss of his troops, but also to reduce victims among civilians. It is clear that these requirements are too often conflicted, and, as you know, among those killed in World War II, the majority were not the soldiers killed in battle. In war, every real commander and the native of the highest goal puts, in the end, salvation, and not the murder of people. But the tragedy of the situation is exacerbated by three paradoxes. The first: the losses are inevitable, are obvious, quite well predictable and in most cases accurately taken into account postfactum, and the number of saved lives can only be estimated approximately, probabilically. The second: the life of some people - let them and more - bought the price of the life of others who are killed or ordered to death. The third: the victims are specific, known namely, and the rescued anonyms, their many blurred, and what more they are more, the harder to understand and believe and believe that it is he who is obliged to live. The tragedy of Hiroshima and Nagasaki illustrates all this very convex.
The closer was the end of the war in the Pacific region, the clearer understood the American command that the invasion of the Central Japanese Islands would be the very bloody operation for all six years. It was primarily told about the experience of two "rehearsals" - the filled and Okinawa. The Japanese demonstrated there and the high quality of defensive structures, and an inflexible morale. They fought literally to the last. Of the more than a twenty thousandth of the Izodzima garrison, it was captured by ... 1083 people, mostly wounded. From the American side it was a war of flamethos - aviation, artillery and small arms were ineffective against the stone holes that the whole island was existed. Ivodzima - Japanese "Sulfur Island" - became a real hell. On a block of land, less than twenty square kilometers, American losses amounted to 6821 people killed and 21685 wounded - this is with three-time superiority in a vibrant, repeated - in the firepower and absolute domination in the air.
On Okinawa, everything was repeated in a larger scale, although the effectiveness of the American fire was higher. The Americans have lost the twelve and a half thousand people killed, and the Japanese are one hundred thousand! The command and political leadership of the United States became clear that the landing on the central islands would cost the lives of at least half a million, or even a million Americans (see the statement of General Le Mea). And the fighting of such a fierce in such a densely populated country as Japan would mean million victims among civilians.
The dark need to "choose" Japan before the invasion were, as hoped, instead of invasion - became clear and military, and politicians long before the success of the Manhattan project. This, of course, was about ordinary bombards, even MacArtur and Eisenhuer did not know about the atomic bomb.
The Japanese territory was very difficult to access. Before the appearance of B-29 stratospheric bombers with a huge radius of action, 3 thousand kilometers the only opportunity to achieve Japanese goals were airfields in the west of China, who remained from Chan Kaisha. The Americans were forced to supply them a flammable aviation path through India (!), Spending twenty tons of gasoline to deliver one ton. These actions had very low efficiency. B-29 The root changed the situation and inspired hope for victory without landing on the Japanese archipelago. These machines could convey a five-tailed bomb burden from basic airfields on Guama and Saipan to Japan.
To honor of Americans it should be said that at first they planned to use B-29 only on the sighting bombing on military facilities, primarily on aircraft and other plants, lost three months and many airplanes, but did not succeed. None of the nine priorities was destroyed. Inkjet air flows with speeds up to two hundred kilometers per hour at large altitudes - the honor of the opening of this atmospheric phenomenon belongs to the B-29 crews - made aiming absolutely impossible. The commanding of the air army Hencell was removed from office, and to replaced him to General Le Meius was given to understand what results are waiting for him. Later he wrote in his autobiography: "No matter how cool, it became clear that they would have to kill civilians. Thousand and thousands. If you do not destroy the Japanese industry, you will have to land in Japan. And how many Americans will be killed when invading? Five hundred thousand seems to be minimal assessment. Some say - a million ... We are fighting with Japan. She attacked us. What do you prefer - to kill the Japanese or so that they kill Americans? ".
It became clear that the elements of B-29, alas, "carpet" bombing from a ten-lue size height. They called fire storms in the largest Japanese cities, destroyed buildings and all living in the territories in tens of square kilometers.
Such bombing was no longer atomic anymore, it is important to understand it. Reid 344 B-29 bombers at Tokyo on March 9, 1945 burned out of forty square kilometers of urban territory and killed a hundred thousand people in place, about a million were injured. All these figures exceed the consequences and Hiroshim, and Nagasakian atomic explosions. On March 11, approximately the same fate suffered Nagoi, on March 13 - Osaka, March 16 - Kobe, March 18 - again Nagoi.
They say, the fate of Hiroshima decided that it was the only major Japanese city without a camp of American prisoners of war. But at the European Theater, 26 thousand prisoners from the Allied Troops, concentrated in Dresden, did not save this city from full destruction by two consecutive airrades, each of which took part 1400 (!) Heavy bombers. Among the American prisoners was Kurt Vonnegut, who later wrote the "Seline number five". Victims and destruction were quite Hiroshimi - and this was back in February, in Europe, and in Dresden, the military industry has practically existed.
In general, by the end of the Pacific campaign and the fierce of hostilities, and the mutual fierce of people involved in them reached the limit. All of us are familiar with the photos of the capture of Berlin - Katyusch shells, written by chalk: "On Reichstagu!", "Gift Führere!" etc. The twenty-cattle "kid" was kept chalk, prepared for the first atomic bombing. But these photos were not published - the authors of the inscriptions in the expressions were not shy (as I think, and the authors of some inscriptions on the ammunition issued by Berlin). But one story kept: "The emperor from the crew" Indianapolis ". Writing did not know where the bomb was dropped, but the imperial palace really had to become the epicenter of the Tokyo bombardment, for which the third bomb was intended in the most likely option.
The cruiser "Indianapolis" July 26 delivered the details of the Uranium charge "Baby" and the crew of 1196 people immediately took the course to the Philippines, where two-week teachings were required - preparation for landing on Kyushu, which was planned for the first November. On July 29, the vessel was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine and sank, carrying out more than three hundred members of the crew. The remaining 850 people more than three days swam in the open ocean in life jackets, more than five hundred of them died, and the majority were ripped out sharks. There was only 318 people. This tragedy, stirring all America, apparently, the last straw. The next day, the order of bombardment was given to Washington, and Hiroshima was named as a target of the first priority ...
In 1947, Stampson wrote in the magazine "Harpers": "My main goal was to finish the war of the victory, losing as few soldiers of the army that I helped create. I am sure that, honestly weighing the alternatives available to us, not one person in our position and clothed our liability, receiving a weapon that gave such opportunities to achieve this goal and save these lives, could not refuse to use it, and then watch In the eyes of your compatriots. "
More than once I had to read and hear that the Japanese and without Hiroshima would agree to fold the weapons if it were not for the demand of allies on unconditional surrender. It is not excluded that this is true. But why the allies insisted - and insisted! - It is on this tight requirement and in relation to Germany and in relation to Japan? At a very good reason: they remembered the end of the First World War. Neither the unconditional surrender of Germany, neither its occupation did not require. Today it is equally difficult to doubt that the occupation after the First World War would prevent the emergence of fascism in Germany and the arrival of Hitler to power and in the fact that after World War II, the occupation of Japan and the Western zones of Germany laid the historical foundations of their political and economic stabilization. And provided their peaceful, democratic development, which led to current prosperity.
Dilemmas that stood before politicians are understandable. And how did they relate to the atomic bombings of ordinary performers?
All those who have taken direct participation in the preparation and implementation of atomic bombing, they were sharply felt - their work brings the end of the war, delay or failure only to multiply the victims. Rhodes describes a characteristic, sufficient dramatic episode. On the night before the planned bombing of the kokura (Nagasaki was a spare target, everything decided the weather) Tired to the limit of the main scientific and technical staff went out of the assembly premises, the latest simple connections and checks had to make some kind of Bernardo O'Kifu, equipment from the marines, with an army assistant . The crucial moment is better to describe him with his own words.
"I checked everything for the last time and reached for a cable connector to insert it into the socket of the Biasaper. The connector was not included!
"You do not do something like that," I thought, "I remember, you're tired and thinking badly." I looked again. To my horror, and on charge, and the cable were "chips-moms". I walked around the bomb and looked at the other end of the cable leaving the radar. Two "Pope Chips" ... I checked and recovered. I made the assistant to see, he confirmed. I frown, and then covered in the room with air conditioned air. "
O'Kef, of course, had to call the bosses. But on the strictest instructions, any operations with heating devices near the bomb were prohibited, there was not a single electrical outlet in the room. According to the rules, they would have to free and turn the cable, and for this partially disassemble the complex implosion device. It will go all day. The weather in the weather forecasters promised for one day, and there is badned for a week. Another week of war! - That is what pounded into the brain of the technique.
O'Kef with a partner opened and left an open door to the next room (another violation of the safety rules!), Found a suitable extension, soldering iron and, flying around them next to detonators, spanked the connectors. The next morning, the Major Charles Suiney's bomber took on board the "fat man" (an implosion plutonium bomb, unlike the "stem" uranium, discarded on Hiroshima) and started.
And the crew "Enologi Gay"? This is what the navigram van Kirk answered when he was asked what he saw and that he thought immediately after the explosion: "If you want a comparison with something familiar - a pot with boiling black oil ... And I thought - thank God, the war ended in I will not shoot more. I can return home. "
The horror of atomic bombing at Raza is aggravated by the fact that it uses almost exclusively evidence of many dozens of victims, which at that time were children - fourteen, nine, five years old. One of the tragic, demoralizing the features of the situation was full of destruction, there were no anything left from the infrastructure of cities - neither the fire teams, no transport, nor water supply, and there were almost no housing and medical institutions. The wounded and dying were granted to themselves or on the care of semi-handed relatives.
Japanese politicians realized that atomic bombing makes it possible to capitulate without shame. As directed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of that ambassador to Moscow, Sato rushed to seek the mediation of Moscow, but Moscow had other plans. On the day of the bombing of Nagasaki - two days after Hiroshima - the Soviet Union entered the war with Japan.
And the Japanese generals did not want to give up - the deputy head of the Japanese Navy headquarters, the Camikadze pilot divisions, stated at the decisive meeting, that in the case of the allied landing, he will expose twenty million suicide bonuses. Decisive - and, fortunately, the position of the emperor turned out to be the position of the emperor, although he had to cope with strong opposition, right up to mini-rebellion. The proposal to surrender and accept the conditions of the Potsdam Declaration was sent through Geneva and received in Washington on August 10. President Truman gave an order to stop atomic bombing - it saved Tokyo. Delivery of Plutonium charges of another bomb from New Mexico on the island scheduled for August 10-12 was canceled. Since August 11, the usual "carpets" bombing of Japanese cities was stopped.
Thus, it is possible to confidently assert that the calculation of the Americans was justified - the Second World War was cut by atomic bombing, and the total number of its victims was reduced by many hundreds of thousands, if not per millions.
Everyone knows the words embarrassed on the monument to the victims of Hiroshima: "I sleep quietly, it will not happen again." It's hard to say that this is an expression of hope? Promise? If the promise is not broken. After the end of the war, atomic weapons were not applied anywhere. The main monument to those who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki became - it's time to call things by their names - the great power of Japan, who revived the national identity and pride in the new level, which would have shown that this could be achieved without bloody claims for world domination, and simply making the talent as universal respect, Labor and law.
War with Japan, which the Soviet Union announced the eighth and started the nine-August 1945, was the largest success of the Stalinist principles of foreign policy, rare on the completeness of his Maciavelism. First, although the decision to join the USSR to the war with Japan was taken in the spring at the Yalta Conference, Stalin got up to the moment when indeed, unlike the war with Germany, was able to win "low blood, a powerful blow." Secondly, the Soviet Union, or rather Russia, not only returned to South Sakhalin with the previous part of the Kuril ridge, but the southern smokers were attached, never under the jurisdiction of Russia were not available. Thirdly, in China and North Korea, the communist power was approved, which the population of the Stalinist Stalinist Empire increased, and the victory of the allies in the Pacific turned to a large extent in Pyrro.
All Soviet sources of the pore, for example, the first edition of the BSE, call our blitzpack in the east of the "war against Japanese aggressors". Stalin himself in appeal to the people of the second of September 1945, said: "Japan began his aggression against our country during the Russian-Japanese war." The application is precisely in this form it was absolutely necessary, because in World War II, Japan, though, undoubtedly, was an aggressor - but not in relation to the USSR! On the contrary, the Japanese fully complied with the neutrality pact, imprisoned after a series of unsuccessful pre-conflicts, in which were the attacker party - CERE, Hassan, Halchin-goal. We are fairly highly appreciated by Richard Sorge's intelligence officer, who reported to Moscow in the critical days of her defense that the Japanese are not going to invade the Far East. This made it possible to transfer Siberian divisions, to defend the capital and go to the offensive. But information information, and the fact of the fact - the Japanese did not take advantage of the possibility of a blow to the back. And he could well become fatal, the slogans of the external and domestic forces that gave way to the Japanese government were symmetrical: "Germany to the Urals" and "Japan to the Urals". This seriously weakens not only the shaky legal, but also the moral foundations of our sovereignty over southern smokers. Japanese blood for them is praised much more than ours, plus over half a million prisoners, very, very many of which have not returned. And it was, I repeat, beating the lying, which we did not put and we did not touch us. By the way, those who have made the maximum contribution to the victory over Japan - the British and Americans are not acquired by a single square meter of the territory. The only long-busy Japanese Island Okinawa is finally returned by Japan - and we all forty years were angrily protested against this "illegal occupation."
Disagreement by the population of southern smoked and mostly of the Russian public of the potential return of Japan islands is clear. National feelings of Russians are too large after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Less understandable glow of passions and angry protests with any attempts to discuss this issue. Yes, I will announce Putin today on the recognition of the rights of Japan on these four islands, for several thousand Russians, the prospect of being abroad is scored. But as a result of the collapse of the USSR abroad - for the real border, let's understand it! - turned out to be thirty million Russians, and, frankly, the fate of most of them - yes not the majority, everyone! - inspires me personally much stronger and justified concerns than the fate of Kurilica in the event of a return of the islands. That is, in fact, for the bricks, I am completely calm and is absolutely confident that all questions with the device of their fate, the Japanese would help us solve immaculately and politically and in legal and financially. This, alas, I can not say about dozens of millions of your blood brothers, which suddenly became uncomfortable in native places, from Estonia to Pamir. Someone very, to put it mildly, uncomfortable. And, unlike Japan, no one promises them.
I will say more: the final normalization of relationships with a great neighboring power, the transformation into friendly and allied promises the real flourishing of the entire Sakhalin region and Primorye, whose geopolitical role will sharply increase and change. From the military outpost on the outskirts, they will become a genuine window into rapidly developing Asia, and Vladivostok may well be the role of the "Pacific St. Petersburg". Then this is that rich in natural resources, but by no means overpopulated by our region can become the center of attraction and reliable refuge in his homeland for those Russians from "near abroad", which are now forced to search for such a refuge. This will help Russia to solve one of its most difficult and burning problems today.
Add only this is what. Russia is now poor and weakened. The prospect of the transmission of the islands therefore it is unwittingly perceived as the "sale of the Motherland", as an attempt to shut down some kindters with compensation money to the detriment of the national prestige. But our poverty will soon end, I believe it, and then such a decision - and in any case it will hardly be accepted and implemented soon - it will be a gesture of goodwill a great power, confident in its power and resting in relations with neighbors is not for the power and ambitions, and on mind, justice and international law.

World War II start and end. Beginning of World War II

The reasons

Start

Blitzkrieg in Europe

Africa and Balkans

Invasion in the USSR

Japan's attack on the USA

Countessing of the USSR

Allied landing in Italy and Normandy

Taking Berlin

Defeat Japanese

Losses

RESULTS

Prerequisites

Initial period

Main events

results

What did we know?

Test on the topic

Report assessment

Ahead of time: Jul Predictions Verne

The most famous works of Stalin

Study of world spaces with reactive devices (1926) * (fragments)

War and world are the first 4 chapters

War and World Second 4

World War II start and end. Beginning of World War II

The reasons

Start

Blitzkrieg in Europe

Africa and Balkans

Invasion in the USSR

Japan's attack on the USA

Countessing of the USSR

Allied landing in Italy and Normandy

Taking Berlin

Defeat Japanese

Losses

RESULTS

Prerequisites

Initial period

Main events

results

What did we know?

Test on the topic

Report assessment

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