Why Was the Soviet Union Attacked by Germany in 1941?

Furthermore, WWII was filled with racial hatred which fueled the fire of the war. On September 1, 1939 Britain declared war on Germany for an unprovoked attack on Poland. This caused the start of the second world war and the beginning of a genocide of the Jewish population. Hitler used the Jews as a motive for WWII, “Hitler used the Jews as a scapegoat, blaming them for Germany’s economic

The main goal of Adolf hitler was to create more living space for the German people so they dominated the world because he wanted to create a racist world in which one dominant

A third promise of Hitlers was that he would provide more living space. Hitler believed that Germany required more living space, or "Lebensraum", in order to survive. Instead of adding colonies to make Germany bigger, Hitler wanted to enlarge Germany within Europe. Hitler stated that the Soviet Union was run by the Jews, thus Germany had a right to take Russian land. With more living space, it was believed that this would make Germany stronger: stronger military, and built high hopes that Germany would become economically self-sufficient with the newfound wealth of food and raw material sources.

<br>As the war progressed, Hitler became more risky in his decision making, and made the crucial error of invading Russia in June 1941. This opened Germany up to communist attack by breaking the Soviet-German non-agression pact of August 1939, and also a two front war, and Hitler was forced to divert forces to Russia, which could have been spent on defeating Britain. Hitler's aim of invading Russia had been postponed due to the distractions in both North Africa, and also south eastern Europe. Hitler felt an urgency to begin the move to the east, even though the British remained undefeated in the west. The invasion of Russia was the largest military campaign of the war.

By blaming the Jews for the economic crisis that Germany was suffering through as well as their defeat in WW1, Hitler targeted the Jews as the country’s main enemy. According to him, the Jewish were directly responsible for Germany’s problems. Hitler hated the Jews leading up to the Holocaust because he believed that the Jewish financiers were responsible for sending the world into its first World War, causing the deaths over 100,000 Germans. According to the Nazis the “Aryan race” was the best and strongest race. Jews were of another inferior race. In fact so inferior that they were not considered to be “people” by the

At the end of WWI in 1918, Germany’s economy was in ruins. There were very few jobs, and bitterness began to take over the country. According to the text, “Hitler, a rising politician, offered Germany a scapegoat: Jewish people. Hitler said that Jewish people were to blame for Germany’s problems. He believed that Jews did not deserve to live.” (7) This was the birth of Antisemitism--prejudice against Jewish people. Europe’s Jewish people have always been persecuted due to their “different customs and beliefs that many viewed with suspicion.”(7) Hitler simply reignited the flames, and a violent hatred was born.

Adolf Hitler wanted the Jewish race to be destroyed forever. But he didn’t just stop at beliefs. Even if you were a Christian, Catholic, Atheist, etc., you were still in danger. You were still in danger because if you looked Jewish to him then you were swooped up and taken hostage in a concentration camp.

From Hitler's perspective, the German empire demanded more territories. Hitler stated that all the German people should be in one nation (Document 1). Thus, the idea of expanding colonies became the central goal of Hitler's government. As a result, the best way for Germany to get the its needs was to start a

Emerging victoriously from World War II, America became the leader of the free-market capitalist world, and proved to be a military, economic, and political powerhouse. However, as one major war came to a close, another battle was brewing between the democratic United States and the communist Soviet Union. As the Soviet Union expanded farther West into Europe, America as well as its NATO allies worked together in an effort to contain the USSR’s expanding communist party. The Cold War went far beyond a battle between different ideologies. Rather, it developed into a global conflict where espionage, treason, and massive propaganda campaigns were inflicted on all aspects of individuals’ lives internationally. The plausibility of communism seeping into the confinements of the United States caused nation-wide fear to erupt. American businesses feared the idea of a communistic revolution on the basis that it would disturb the very groundwork that holds capitalism together. As a result, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) was formed to investigate communist and fascist organizations within America. Unfortunately, the controversial tactics used during the HUAC hearings contributed to the fear, blacklisting, and repression that existed from 1940 through the 1950s. In the midst of the Cold War, several American opinions materialized concerning the role of the HUAC, in which Americans either praised the committee for its patriotic ideals, applauded but recognized the

While Hitler wasn 't interested in conquering the mighty USSR from the start, he did for see an eventual war with her for her abundant resources16. Thus, the clash that the two countries had in 1941 was long coming, but not a surprise.

The lands that Hitler aspired for Lebensraum were also rich in resources. Hitler envisioned his people to have living space in the east and within that area there were many resources that Hitler wanted. Hitler could use these resources for his German War Machine and for the home front. Germany had, “Limited access to basic raw materials.” At the time that Hitler and his German military attacked in 1941, they were already preoccupied with Great Britain and what was left of its allies. Germany needed to be economically self-sufficient to win a war; otherwise they would be greatly vulnerable. “Hitler was heavily influenced by the collapse of the German home front in 1918, which resulted in large measure from the British Naval blockade and the consequent food shortages.” Russia was “rich in natural resources” . Before Germany attacked Russia, Russia had supplied Germany with the natural resources that it needed. Russia demanded armaments in payment for the natural resources and that is something that many top German officials strongly did not want. Germany did not want these weapons used against them once a war broke out. The natural resources that

From the time of ‘Mein Kampf’ Hitler had outwardly expressed his desire to move toward Russia in his quest for ‘Lebensraum,’ however in 1939, it was beneficial for him

According to Kagan, “Hitler’s long-range plans included germinating in lands inhabited by people racially akin to the Germans.” (Kagan, 2001) He wanted to turn these lands in colonies/empires. He also intended to recapture territory that was lost to Poland in World War One.

Hitler also wanted to eliminate the Jews and the spread of communism. According to Overy, “German forces entered the USSR with instructions from Hitler’s headquarters to use the most brutal methods to keep control and to murder Communist commissars and Jews in the service of the Soviet Union” (BBC.com). Hitler thought that by preventing the spread of communism and murdering Jews, Germany would have a greater advantage of

First of all, the situation that Germany was facing during the Depression was not easy. For the Germans and for Hitler himself, this situation was one of the worst conditions to live. When Hitler’s ideas appeared in Germany, the people did not think twice but to accept his ideals. Hitler’s aim was to rebuild a new Germany with the discipline that he believed. For this to happen new people would need to appear and for Hitler those new people would be the Germany future, the children.