Barbarossa delayed

 

By the end of 1940, it was clear that Britain was not yet beaten and an invasion had to be postponed. On the other hand, it was equally clear that Britain could do no real damage to Hitler. The list of countries under Nazi control was impressive - France, Belgium, Holland, Norway, Denmark and half of Poland. By the middle of 1941, Greece and Yugoslavia were added to the list. Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary were all occupied and forced to join the Axis.

 

It took just three weeks to bring about the surrender of Yugoslavia (made up of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia). However, this meant that Hitler had to postpone 'Operation Barbarossa' for five weeks. Barbarossa was Hitler's codename for the invasion of the Soviet Union - even though Germany and Russia were still allies. [The Soviet Union at this time was a vast nation and included today's independent states of Russia and the Ukraine. Most references in the text are to Russia since this was by far the biggest of the states which made up the Soviet Union.] Hitler had always loathed Communism, and Russia at that time was a Communist state. By destroying Russia he could wipe out the cause of the Communist 'virus'.

 

In addition, he could use the vast wheatfields of the Ukraine to feed his people and the important oil fields of the Caucasus to supply petrol for his tanks, planes and ships. Russia would be a valuable prize for his new Germany. The Russians, members of an 'inferior' Slav race, would become slave labour for the German 'master race' of Aryans (north Europeans). Hitler did not expect any problems. 'We have only to kick in the door and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down', he confidently told his generals.

 

Neil Demarco: The era of the Second World War; Oxford University Press, 1993/2000, page 37