Background Naming The theme of Barbarossa had long been used by the Nazi Party as part of their political imagery, though this was really a continuation of the glorification of the famous Crusader king by German nationalists since the 19th century.
Operation Barbarossa, during World War II, code name for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, which was launched on . The failure of German troops to defeat Soviet forces in the campaign signaled a crucial turning point in the war.
The Axis offensive of June-December 1941 was code-named Operation Barbarossa ('Redbeard') after Frederick Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor (r. 1155-90). Despite Axis victories, the Red Army, with larger reserves and better supply lines, remained resilient.
Be careful about superlatives, that is, until you’re talking about Operation Barbarossa, the surprise German invasion of the Soviet Union on and the nearly four years of war that followed on what the Germans called “the Eastern Front.”
Operation Barbarossa: The Biggest of All Time | The National WWII ...
Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union, marked the beginning of a campaign that would ultimately decide the Second World War. Despite initial German success, the Soviet Union did not crumble as expected and despite terrible losses, their will to fight remained strong.
The Soviet-German front that opened with Operation Barbarossa proved to be the decisive theater of the Second World War. Eighty-two percent of German military casualties occurred on the Eastern Front.
It embraces 100s of eastern front photos (many never before published), articles on Barbarossa and other themes, videos, excerpts from most of my books, and a large document archive (including the finding guide to my large collection at Hoover Institution, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA).