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{{Anchor|German-Russian war}}

{{Anchor|German-Russian war}}

==War in the East==

==Operation Barbarossa==

1941 marked the major turning point in the war in Europe, when the Germans undertook [[Operation Barbarossa]] - the invasion of the Soviet Union.  Stalin was repeatedly informed by his own spies and anti-German countries that Germany was about to attack; he rejected the accurate reports and paid dearly for the blunder.   

 

1941 marked the major turning point in the war in Europe, when the Germans violated the Molotov-Ribbentrop Non-Aggression Pact and undertook Operation Barbarossa - the invasion of the Soviet Union.  Stalin was repeatedly informed by his own spies and anti-German countries that Germany was about to attack; he rejected the accurate reports and paid dearly for the blunder.  The [[Great Purge]] of the 1938 also had decimated the Red Army's military leadership.

[[File:Roosevelt Stalin Churchill on portico of Russian Embassy in Teheran.jpg|thumb|280px|[[Roosevelt]], [[Stalin]], and [[Churchill]] on portico of Russian Embassy in Teheran, during conference — Nov. 28 - Dec. 1, 1943.]]

[[File:Roosevelt Stalin Churchill on portico of Russian Embassy in Teheran.jpg|thumb|280px|[[Roosevelt]], [[Stalin]], and [[Churchill]] on portico of Russian Embassy in Teheran, during conference — Nov. 28 - Dec. 1, 1943.]]

In June—behind schedule because of diversions in the Balkans—the Germans launched their massive war against the Soviet Union (known as the "Great Patriotic War" in Russia). It was by far the largest, bloodiest, and most decisive phase of World War II.  Outside observers in the first few months figured that Germany would win easily. But the Nazi armies were split three ways, logistics became worse and worse as distances grew, and none met their objective by the time the extreme Russian winter of 1941-42 set in. Blitzkrieg had failed against the Soviets, and the Germans lacked the resources to fight a long war against a country with such vast areas and so many more people.  The Luftwaffe, which promised to overcome the slowness of ground travel, failed to provide adequate support and was soon matched and outnumbered by the Soviet air force.<ref>The best studies of this theater are by [https://books.google.com/books?as_q=&num=30&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES&lr=&as_vt=&as_auth=glantz+david&as_pub=&as_sub=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_isbn=&as_issn= David Glantz]</ref>

In June—behind schedule because of diversions in the Balkans—the Germans launched their massive war against the Soviet Union (known as the "Great Patriotic War" in Russia). It was by far the largest, bloodiest, and most decisive phase of World War II.  Outside observers in the first few months figured that Germany would win easily. But the Nazi armies were split three ways, logistics became worse and worse as distances grew, and none met their objective by the time the extreme Russian winter of 1941-42 set in. Blitzkrieg had failed against the Soviets, and the Germans lacked the resources to fight a long war against a country with such vast areas and so many more people.  The Luftwaffe, which promised to overcome the slowness of ground travel, failed to provide adequate support and was soon matched and outnumbered by the Soviet air force.<ref>The best studies of this theater are by [https://books.google.com/books?as_q=&num=30&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES&lr=&as_vt=&as_auth=glantz+david&as_pub=&as_sub=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_isbn=&as_issn= David Glantz]</ref>