(8/12) Battlefield I The Battle of Berlin Episode 12 (GDH)

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Videos Running Time: 01:54:00 in 12 Parts

Battlefield I: "The Battle of Berlin"
The Battle of Berlin was a colossal battle that ended the war in Europe. The Western Allies, pushing from the West, and the USSR encircling Berlin from North and South doomed Nazi Germany. Controversy still remains in Eisenhowers decision not to take Berlin and leave the greatest trophy claimed in World War II to Stalins Soviet Union.
Many in the American and British high commands, recommended to Eisenhower the taking of Berlin by Allied forces. Probably the only decision that Montgomery and Patton agreed on, was the taking of Berlin. Both reasoned it symbolized the destruction of Nazi Germany by the Allies. Of course both had their selfish dreams of glory in mind. Eisenhower had several reasons deciding against the capture of Berlin. No matter what nation captured Berlin, Berlin would become a four nation occupation zone. Planners had estimated the capture of Berlin would cost 100,000 KIA Allied troops. Intelligence reports and Nazi propaganda indicated that several Waffen SS divisions were planning a national redoubt in the mountains of Austria. The latter proving to be utter nonsense. For these reasons, Eisenhower declined to capture Berlin. The Allies were amazed at Stalins seemly lack of interest in taking Berlin. In actuality it was his greatest dream to capture Berlin with USSR forces.
The USSR attacked the German lines before Berlin with three massive Soviet Fronts (Army Groups). First Belorussia Front (Marshal Georgy Zhukov) was to attack the German Oder-Neisse area on April 16th, 1945. First Ukrainian Front (Marshal Ivan Konev) would attack the south Berlin Oder area on April 16th, 1945. Second Belorussian Front (Marshal Konstantin Rokossovskiy) would strike north out the Stettin bridgehead on April 20th, 1945. The estimated combined strength of the USSR forces before Berlin and surrounding areas was; 2,500,000 soldiers, 6,250 tanks and AFV, 7,500 aircraft, 41,600 artillery pieces. Total USSR troops in the Berlin Defense Area would consist of an estimated 1,500,000 troops
Nazi Germany would defend Berlin with 2 Army Groups. Army Group Vistula (Heeresgruppe Weichsel) (Col. Gen Heinrici) would defend the approaches to Berlin and the Seelow Heights. Army Group Center (Heeresgruppe Mitte) (Field Marshal Ferdinand Schörner) would defend the southern approaches to Berlin, and Prague. The German defense of the Berlin would consist of an estimated; 766,750 soldiers, 1,519 tanks and AFVs, 9,303 artillery pieces. Total German strength in the Berlin Defense Area would consist of an estimated 45,000 troops.
Zhukov was convinced his past victories would elevate him to supreme commander of all Soviet forces. However, Zhukov was in for a rude awakening. Stalin announced that Zhukov and Konev would race for the honor of taking Berlin. Both commanders would ruthlessly throw everything they had into the capture of Berlin no matter the cost in lives.
Col. Gen Heinrici was a master at defensive tactics. Heinrici had discovered the Soviet time table for their offensive. His plan was to retreat from his first line of defense and fortify his second line of defense. The Soviet opening barrage would fall on a skeleton force. Zhukov planned to blind the defenders with search lights. The last set piece battle of World War II in Europe began on April 16, 1945.
The battles of the Seelow Heights and Halbe were a horrific nightmare. Zhukov keep pouring in unit after unit until the German lines broke. On April 19th Zhukov broke through. To the north and south of Berlin other spearheads had broken through. Konev encircled the 9th Army (Busse) near Halbe. Hitler ordered the 12 Army (Wenck) to link up with 9th Army and counterattack the Soviet forces encircling Berlin. This last ditch effort hadnt a prayer from the start. After the encirclement of Berlin Soviet forces crushed the remaining, mostly irregular forces, inside the defenses. Berlin surrendered on May 2nd, 1945. (GDH)

Enjoy this excellent episode of Battlefield I The Battle of Berlin.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• World
• War
• II
• Berlin
• USSR
• Soviet
• Zhukov
• Eisenhower
• Stalin
• Hitler
• German
• Nazi
• Allies
• Heinrici
• Konev
• Seelow
• Army
• Group
• encirclement

[dachicagoan]

During all this, Hitler was pounding his fist onto his desk and screaming "Fegelein, Fegelein, Fegelein!!!!!"

[Lasstpak]

@MrTheaterjunkee NO NEEEEEEEEED TO SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO­OOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT­!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Evinruderascal]

@dachicagoan  That is an awesome movie...the best the German's have ever done on those final days...

[allewen]

@dachicagoan LOL!! i was thinking the same thing!

[dachicagoan]

@normison69 look up 'red army purges of 1936-38'. If he would kill officers based on suspicion, why would anyone doubt he would do the same for officers that failed him? The red army suffered a lot of casualties in 1941 because they weren't prepared at all for blitzkrieg that incorporated the use of combined air attack and tank warfare. Also, the army hadn't been trained much on defensive operations. It's air force was grounded because Stalin had ordered that. To not "provoke" the Germans.

[normison69]

This is bullshit, Stalin did not execute all officers that failed him, but only those one who failed him and were under suspicion of working with enemy or against Soviet war effort or those who failed a bulletproof task, but even those were just send to prison. There were many traitor generals and marshals when in 41 germans attacked, why do u think red army suffered so much casualties and why its air force was grounded in 41?

[dmacid]

@nicesinging1 The mindset was very simple. Better them than me. Stalin had no problem executing officers and even generals who didnt get the results he wanted on the battlefield. Plus Russians were eager to fight the Germans after the nazi destroyed their country and killed over 20 million of their people.

[topperheartramada]

@nicesinging1 well, they were ultimately responsible only to stalin. and stalin had no concern for casualties. he killed more people in peace time than in war, so go figure. plus something about the bloody soviet revolution and the way the soviets had to fight the germans from the beginning demanded extremely high casualties. it appears that they basically decided to m ake it part of the military doctrine.

[StasTarasov]

@nicesinging1 its cuz in the russian-soviet army, if you attack in the first place is the objective in the second are the men and i think that thatis right cuz if you will put men on the first place th in war you wont be able to win.

[tjhoenecke]

@Attila709 Time was a factor -- Stalin wanted to reach Berlin before the US and UK, and with enough men to discourage them from objecting to his occupation of "liberated" territories. Very few Soviet commanders were as gifted as Zhukov. Quantity was about the only real advantage they had over Germany. Life had always been cheap in the Russian military, but the communists took it to a new level. As Stalin liked to say, it took a brave man to be a coward in the Red Army.

[tjhoenecke]

@lennardivoodoo Well, Stalin kept pressing for an invasion of Western Europe all the time, but it's not like it wouldn't have happened if he hadn't. US and UK landed as soon as it was practical, but paranoid Stalin suspected they were delaying just to hurt him -- as if the English were enjoying getting bombarded by V1s and V2s, lol. And he was getting plenty of logistical help from US and UK, lend-lease wasn't just US supplying the UK.