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| {{for|the RAF bombing campaign|Battle of Berlin (air)}} | |||
| this is a page | |||
| {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2013}} | |||
| have a wonderful time | |||
| {{Infobox military conflict | |||
| blah blah blah | |||
| | conflict = Battle of Berlin | |||
| this is a person, a battle of berlin of happiness | |||
| | image = ] | |||
| there is no significance | |||
| | caption = After the battle, Soviet soldiers hoist the Soviet flag on the balcony of the ] in Berlin | |||
| much awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesomemuch awesome | |||
| | partof = the ] of ] | |||
| | place = ], ] | |||
| | coordinates = {{coord|52|31|N|13|23|E|region:DE-BE_type:event|display=inline,title}} | |||
| | date = 16 April – 2 May 1945 | |||
| | result = Decisive Soviet victory | |||
| * ] and other high-ranking Nazi officials | |||
| * Unconditional surrender of the city Berlin garrison on 2 May. German forces still fighting the battle outside Berlin capitulated on 8/9 May (following the unconditional surrender of all German forces—see ]) | |||
| | territory = Destruction of ]<br/>Soviets occupy what will later be ]. | |||
| | combatant2 = {{flagcountry|Nazi Germany|1935}} | |||
| | combatant1 = | |||
| {{plainlist | | |||
| * {{flag|Soviet Union|1923}} | |||
| * {{flagicon|Poland}} ] | |||
| }} | |||
| | commander1 = | |||
| ]:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Soviet Union|1923}} ] | |||
| * {{flagicon|Soviet Union|1923}} ] | |||
| }} | |||
| ]:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Soviet Union|1923}} ] | |||
| }} | |||
| ]:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Soviet Union|1923}} ] | |||
| }} | |||
| | strength2 = | |||
| {{plainlist | | |||
| * Total strength: | |||
| * 36 divisions{{sfn|Antill|2005|p=28}} | |||
| * 766,750 soldiers{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=373}} | |||
| * 1,519 ]{{sfn|Wagner|1974|p=346}} | |||
| * 2,224 aircraft{{sfn|Bergstrom|2007|p=117}} | |||
| * 9,303 artillery pieces{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=373}}{{efn|name=SovietEsts}} | |||
| * In the Berlin Defence Area: about 45,000 soldiers, supplemented by the police force, ], and 40,000 '']''{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}}{{efn|name=GermanTroops}} | |||
| }} | |||
| | commander2 = | |||
| ]:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | style = margin-left: 1em; | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|1935}} ] | |||
| * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|1935}} ]{{Surrendered}}{{efn|name=StudentTippelskirch}} | |||
| }} | |||
| ]:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | style = margin-left: 1em; | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|1935}} ] | |||
| }} | |||
| Berlin Defence Area:<!-- | |||
| -->{{plainlist | style = margin-left: 1em; | | |||
| * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|1935}} ], | |||
| then | |||
| * {{flagicon|Nazi Germany|1935}} ]{{Surrendered}}{{efn|name=Weidling}} | |||
| }} | |||
| | strength1 = | |||
| {{plainlist | | |||
| * Total strength: | |||
| * 196 divisions{{citation needed|date=November 2012}} | |||
| **2,500,000 soldiers (155,900 – c.200,000 ]){{sfn|Zaloga|1982|p=27}}{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=261}} | |||
| * 6,250 tanks and SP guns{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=261}} | |||
| * 7,500 aircraft{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=261}} | |||
| * 41,600 artillery pieces.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=71}}{{sfn|Murray|Millett|2000|p=482}} | |||
| * For the ] and assault on the Berlin Defence Area: about 1,500,000 soldiers{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}} | |||
| }} | |||
| | casualties2 = | |||
| {{plainlist | | |||
| * Exact losses unknown. | |||
| * Estimate: <br /> 92,000–100,000 killed | |||
| * 220,000 wounded{{sfn|Müller|2008|p=673}}{{efn|name=GermanCasualties}} | |||
| * 480,000 POW{{sfn|Glantz|2001|p=95}} | |||
| * Inside Berlin Defence Area: | |||
| * about 22,000 military dead | |||
| * 22,000 civilian dead{{sfn|Antill|2005|p=85}} | |||
| }} | |||
| | casualties1 = | |||
| {{plainlist | | |||
| * Archival research <br /> (operational total) | |||
| * 81,116 dead or missing{{sfn|Krivosheev|1997|pp=219, 220}} | |||
| * 280,251 sick or wounded | |||
| * 1,997 tanks | |||
| * 2,108 artillery pieces | |||
| * 917 aircraft{{sfn|Krivosheev|1997|pp=219, 220}} | |||
| }} | |||
| }} | |||
| {{Campaignbox Axis-Soviet War}} | |||
| {{Campaignbox Battle of Berlin}} | |||
| {{History of Berlin}} | |||
| The '''Battle of Berlin''', designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the ], was the final major ] of the ].{{efn|name=LastOffensive}} | |||
| Starting on 12 January 1945, the ] breached the ] front as a result of the ] and advanced westward as much as | |||
| {{convert|40|km|mi|abbr=off}} a day through ], ], ], and ], temporarily halting on a line {{convert|60|km|mi|abbr=on}} east of Berlin along the ].{{sfn|Hastings|2004|p=295}} When the offensive resumed, two Soviet ]s (]s) attacked Berlin from the east and south, while a third overran German forces positioned north of Berlin. The ] lasted from 20 April until the morning of 2 May. | |||
| The first defensive preparations at the outskirts of Berlin were made on 20 March, when the newly appointed commander of ], General ], correctly anticipated that the main Soviet thrust would be made over the ]. Before the main battle in Berlin commenced, the Soviets managed to encircle the city as a result of their success in the battles of the ] and ]. During 20 April 1945, the ] led by ] ] started shelling Berlin's city centre, while Marshal ]'s ] had pushed from the south through the last formations of ]. The German defences were mainly led by ] and consisted of several depleted, badly equipped, and disorganised ] and ] divisions, the latter of which included many SS foreign volunteers, as well as poorly trained '']'' and ] members. Within the next few days, the Soviets rapidly advanced through the city and reached the city centre where close-quarters combat raged. | |||
| Before the battle was over, German ] ] and a number of his followers committed suicide. The city's defenders finally surrendered on 2 May; however, fighting continued to the north-west, west, and south-west of the city until the ] on 8 May (9 May in the Soviet Union) as German units fought westward so that they could surrender to the Western Allies rather than to the Soviets. | |||
| ==Background== | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| Starting on 12 January 1945, the Red Army began the ] across the ] River; and, from Warsaw, a three-day operation on a broad front, which incorporated four army ]s.{{sfn|Duffy|1991|pp=24, 25}} On the fourth day, the Red Army broke out and started moving west, up to {{convert|30|to|40|km|mi|abbr=on}} per day, taking ], ], and ], drawing up on a line {{convert|60|km|mi|abbr=on}} east of Berlin along the ] River.{{sfn|Hastings|2004|p=295}} | |||
| The newly created ], under the command of '']'' ],{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=52}} ], but this had failed by 24 February.{{sfn|Duffy|1991|pp=176–188}} The Red Army then drove on to ], clearing the right bank of the Oder River, thereby reaching into ].{{sfn|Hastings|2004|p=295}} | |||
| In the south the ] raged. Three German attempts to relieve the encircled Hungarian capital city failed, and Budapest fell to the Soviets on 13 February.{{sfn|Duffy|1991|p=293}} ] insisted on a counter-attack to recapture the Drau-Danube triangle.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=8}} The goal was to secure the oil region of ] and regain the ] River for future operations, {{sfn|Tiemann|1998|p=200}} but the depleted German forces had been given an impossible task.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=9}} By 16 March, the German ] had failed, and a counter-attack by the Red Army took back in 24 hours everything the Germans had taken ten days to gain.{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=198}} On 30 March, the Soviets entered Austria; and in the ] they finally captured ] on 13 April.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=196}} | |||
| Between June and September 1944, the ] had lost more than a million men, and it lacked the fuel and armaments needed to operate effectively.{{sfn|Williams|2005|p=213}} On 12 April 1945, Hitler, who had earlier decided to remain in the city against the wishes of his advisers, heard the news that the American President ] had died.{{sfn|Bullock|1962|p=753}} This briefly raised false hopes in the '']'' that there might yet be a falling out among the Allies and that Berlin would be saved at the last moment, as had happened once before when Berlin was threatened (see the ]).{{sfn|Bullock|1962|pp=778–781}} | |||
| No plans were made by the ] to seize the city by a ground operation.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=194}} The ], General ] lost interest in the ] and saw no further need to suffer casualties by attacking a city that would be in the Soviet ] after the war.,{{sfn|Williams|2005|pp=310, 311}} envisioning excessive ] if both armies attempted to occupy the city at once.{{sfn|Ryan|1966|p=135}} The major Western Allied contribution to the battle was the ] during 1945.{{sfn|Milward|1980|p=303}} During 1945 the ] launched a number of very large daytime raids on Berlin and for 36 nights in succession, scores of ] ]s bombed the German capital, ending on the night of 20-21 April 1945 just before the Soviets entered the city.{{sfn|McInnis|1946|p=115}} | |||
| ==Preparations== | |||
| {{further|Order of battle for the Battle of Berlin}} | |||
| The Soviet offensive into central Germany, what later became ], had two objectives. ] did not believe the Western Allies would hand over territory occupied by them in the post-war Soviet zone, so he began the offensive on a broad front and moved rapidly to meet the Western Allies as far west as possible. But the overriding objective was to capture Berlin.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=219}} The two goals were complementary because possession of the zone could not be won quickly unless Berlin were taken. Another consideration was that Berlin itself held useful post-war strategic assets, including Adolf Hitler and the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|loc=Preface xxxiv, and pp. 138, 325}} On 6 March, Hitler appointed ] ] commander of the Berlin Defence Area, replacing Lieutenant General ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=166}} | |||
| On 20 March, General ] was appointed Commander-in-Chief of ] replacing '']'' ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=140}} Heinrici was one of the best defensive tacticians in the German army, and he immediately started to lay defensive plans. Heinrici correctly assessed that the main Soviet thrust would be made over the ] and along the main east-west ].{{sfn|Williams|2005|p=292}} He decided not to try to defend the banks of the Oder with anything more than a light ] screen. Instead, Heinrici arranged for ] to fortify the ], which overlooked the Oder River at the point where the Autobahn crossed them.{{sfn|Zuljan|2003}} This was some distance {{convert|17|km|mi|abbr=on}} west of the Oder and {{convert|90|km|mi|abbr=on}} east of Berlin. Heinrici thinned out the line in other areas to increase the manpower available to defend the heights. German engineers turned the Oder's flood plain, already saturated by the spring thaw, into a ] by releasing the water from a ] upstream. Behind the plain on the plateau, the engineers built three belts of defensive emplacements{{sfn|Zuljan|2003}} reaching back towards the outskirts of Berlin (the lines nearer to Berlin were called the ''Wotan'' position).{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=76}} These lines consisted of ] ditches, anti-tank gun emplacements, and an extensive network of ] and ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=76}}{{sfn|Zuljan|2003}} | |||
| On 9 April, after a long resistance, ] in ] finally fell to the Red Army.{{sfn|Williams|2005|p=293}} This freed up Marshal ]'s ] to move west to the east bank of the ] river.{{sfn|Williams|2005|p=293}} Marshal ] concentrated his ], which had been deployed along the Oder river from ] in the south to the Baltic, into an area in front of the ].{{sfn|Williams|2005|p=322}} The 2nd Belorussian Front moved into the positions being vacated by the 1st Belorussian Front north of the Seelow Heights. While this redeployment was in progress, gaps were left in the lines; and the remnants of General ] ], which had been bottled up in a pocket near ], managed to escape into the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=426}} To the south, Marshal ] shifted the main weight of the ] out of ] and north-west to the ] River.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=71}} | |||
| The three Soviet fronts had altogether 2.5 million men (including 78,556 soldiers of the ]), 6,250 tanks, 7,500 aircraft, 41,600 ] pieces and ]s, 3,255 truck-mounted ]s (nicknamed 'Stalin's Pipe Organs'), and 95,383 motor vehicles, many manufactured in the US.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=71}} | |||
| ==Battle of the Oder-Neisse== | |||
| {{main|Battle of the Oder-Neisse}} | |||
| The sector in which most of the fighting in the overall offensive took place was the ], the last major defensive line outside Berlin.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=76}} The ], fought over four days from 16 April until 19 April, was one of the last ]s of World War II: Almost one million Red Army soldiers and more than 20,000 tanks and artillery pieces were deployed to break through the "Gates to Berlin", which were defended by about 100,000 German soldiers and 1,200 tanks and guns.{{sfn|Gregory|Gehlen|2009|pp=207–208}}{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=217–233}} The Soviet forces led by Zhukov broke through the defensive positions, having suffered about 20,000 casualties (including 5,000 to 6,000 killed),{{sfn|Isaev|2010}} while 12,000 German personnel were killed.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=244}} | |||
| During 19 April, the fourth day, the 1st Belorussian Front broke through the final line of the Seelow Heights; and nothing but broken German formations lay between them and Berlin.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=247}} The 1st Ukrainian Front, having captured ] the day before, was fanning out into open country.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=255}} One powerful thrust by ] ] and ] ] and ] ] Tank Armies were heading north-east towards Berlin while other armies headed west towards a section of the United States Army's front line south-west of Berlin on the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=312–314}} With these advances, the Soviet forces drove a wedge between the German ] in the north and ] in the south.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=312–314}} By the end of the day, the German eastern front line north of ] around Seelow and to the south around Forst had ceased to exist. These breakthroughs allowed the two Soviet ] to ] the German ] in a large pocket west of Frankfurt. Attempts by the 9th Army to break out to the west resulted in the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=217–233}} The cost to the Soviet forces had been very high, with over 2,807 tanks lost between 1 and 19 April, including at least 727 at the Seelow Heights.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=84}} | |||
| In the meantime, ] were conducting large ] against German positions inside Berlin on the nights of 15 April (105 bombers), 17 April (61 bombers), 18 April (57 bombers), 19 April (79 bombers), and 20 April (78 bombers).{{sfn|RAF staff|2006}} | |||
| ==Encirclement of Berlin== | |||
| ] handing Iron Cross II class to 16-year old Hitler Youth Willi Hübner after capture of ]]] | |||
| On 20 April, Hitler's birthday, Soviet artillery of the ] began shelling Berlin and did not stop until the city surrendered. The weight of ordnance delivered by Soviet artillery during the battle was greater than the total tonnage dropped by Western Allied bombers on the city.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=255–256, 262}} While the 1st Belorussian Front advanced towards the east and north-east of the city, the 1st Ukrainian Front pushed through the last formations of the northern wing of Army Group Centre and passed north of ], well over halfway to the American front line on the river ] at ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=337}} To the north between ] and ], the 2nd Belorussian Front attacked the northern flank of ], held by ] ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=84}} The next day, the ] ] advanced nearly {{convert|50|km|mi|abbr=on}} north of Berlin and then attacked south-west of ]. The Soviet plan was to encircle Berlin first and then envelop the IX Army.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=88}} | |||
| ] with ], Berlin, April 1945.]] | |||
| The command of the ], trapped with the IX Army north of ], passed from the IV Panzer Army to the IX Army. The corps was still holding onto the Berlin-] highway front line.{{sfn|Simons|1982|p=78}} Field Marshal ] Army Group Center launched a counter-offensive aimed at breaking through to Berlin from the south and making a successful initial incursion (the ]) in the 1st Ukrainian Front region, engaging the ] and elements of the Red Army's ] and ].{{sfn|Komorowski|2009|pp=65–67}} When the old southern flank of the IV Panzer Army had some local successes counter-attacking north against the 1st Ukrainian Front, Hitler gave orders that showed his grasp of military reality was completely gone. He ordered the IX Army to hold Cottbus and set up a front facing west.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=345}} Then they were to attack the Soviet columns advancing north. This would supposedly allow them to form a northern pincer which would meet the IV Panzer Army coming from the south and envelop the 1st Ukrainian Front before destroying it.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=248}} They were to anticipate a southward attack by the ] and be ready to be the southern arm of a pincer attack that would envelop 1st Belorussian Front, which would be destroyed by SS-General ]'s ] advancing from north of Berlin.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=310–312}} Later in the day, when Steiner explained that he did not have the divisions to do this, Heinrici made it clear to Hitler's staff that unless the IX Army retreated immediately, it would be enveloped by the Soviets; and he stressed that it was already too late for it to move north-west to Berlin; it would have to retreat west.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=310–312}} Heinrici went on to say that if Hitler did not allow it to move west, he would ask to be relieved of his command.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|pp=87–88}} | |||
| On 22 April, at his afternoon situation conference, Hitler fell into a tearful rage when he understood that his plans of the day before were not going to be realised. He declared that the war was lost; he blamed the generals and announced that he would stay on in Berlin until the end and then kill himself.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=275}} In an attempt to coax Hitler out of his rage, General ] speculated that General ] ], which was facing the Americans, could move to Berlin because the Americans, already on the ] River, were unlikely to move further east. This assumption was based on his viewing of the captured Eclipse documents, which organized the partition of Germany among the Allies.{{sfn|Ryan|1966|p=436}} Hitler immediately grasped the idea, and within hours Wenck was ordered to disengage from the Americans and move the XII Army north-east to support Berlin.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=310–312}} It was then realised that if the IX Army moved west, it could link up with the XII Army. In the evening Heinrici was given permission to make the link up.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=89}} | |||
| Elsewhere, the 2nd Belorussian Front had established a bridgehead {{convert|15|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} deep on the west bank of the Oder and was heavily engaged with the III Panzer Army.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=353}} The IX Army had lost ] and was being pressed from the east. A Soviet tank spearhead was on the ] River to the east of Berlin, and another had at one point penetrated the inner defensive ring of Berlin.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=92}} | |||
| ]'' multiple rocket launchers fire in Berlin, April 1945. This example is a BM-13N, 132 mm rocket launcher mounted on a ] U.S. ] truck.]] | |||
| The capital was now within range of field artillery. A Soviet war correspondent, in the style of World War II Soviet journalism, gave the following account of an important event that day:{{sfn|Lewis|1998|p=465}} | |||
| {{quote|On the walls of the houses we saw ]' appeals, hurriedly scrawled in white paint: 'Every German will defend his capital. We shall stop the Red hordes at the walls of our Berlin.' Just try and stop them!<br /> | |||
| Steel ]es, barricades, mines, traps, suicide squads with grenades clutched in their hands—all are swept aside before the tidal wave.<br /> | |||
| Drizzling rain began to fall. Near ] I saw batteries preparing to open fire.<br /> | |||
| 'What are the targets?' I asked the battery commander.<br /> | |||
| 'Centre of Berlin, ] bridges, and the northern and ] railway stations,' he answered.<br /> | |||
| Then came the tremendous words of command: 'Open fire on the capital of the Fascist Germany.'<br /> | |||
| I noted the time. It was exactly 8:30 a.m. on 22 April. Ninety-six shells fell in the centre of Berlin in the course of a few minutes. | |||
| }} | |||
| On 23 April, the Soviet 1st Belorussian Front and 1st Ukrainian Front continued to tighten the encirclement, and severed the last link between the German IX Army and the city.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=92}} Elements of the 1st Ukrainian Front continued to move westward and started to engage the German XII Army moving towards Berlin. On this same day, Hitler appointed General ] as the commander of the Berlin Defence Area, replacing Lieutenant General Reymann.<ref>{{harvnb|Beevor|2002|p=286}} states the appointment was on 23 April; {{harvnb|Hamilton|2008|p=160}} states "officially" it was the next morning of 24 April; {{harvnb|Dollinger|1967|p=228}} gives 26 April for Weidling's appointment.</ref> Meanwhile, by 24 April elements of 1st Belorussian Front and 1st Ukrainian Front had completed the encirclement of the city.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|pp=92–94}} Within the next day, 25 April, the Soviet ] of Berlin was consolidated, with leading Soviet units probing and penetrating the S-Bahn defensive ring.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=313}} By the end of the day there was no prospect that the German defence of the city could do anything but temporarily delay the capture of the city by the Soviets, as the decisive stages of the battle had already been fought and lost by the Germans outside the city.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=111}} By that time, ], initially successful, had been mostly thwarted, although he managed to inflict significant casualties on the opposing Polish and Soviet units, and slowed down their progress.{{sfn|Komorowski|2009|pp=65–67}} | |||
| ==Battle in Berlin== | |||
| {{main|Battle in Berlin}} | |||
| The forces available to General Weidling for the city's defence included roughly 45,000 soldiers in several severely depleted German Army ('']'') and Armed ] ('']'') divisions.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}} These divisions were supplemented by the ] force, ] in the compulsory ], and the '']''.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}} Many of the 40,000 elderly men of the ''Volkssturm'' had been in the army as young men and some were veterans of ]. Hitler appointed '']'' ] the Battle Commander for the central government district that included the ] and '']''.{{sfn|Fischer|2008|pp=42–43}} He had over 2,000 men under his command.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}}{{efn|name=SovietPrisoners}} Weidling organised the defences into eight sectors designated 'A' through to 'H' each one commanded by a colonel or a general, but most had no combat experience.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=287}} To the west of the city was the ]. To the north of the city was the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=223}} To the north-east of the city was the ]. To the south-east of the city and to the east of ] was the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=243}} The reserve, ], was in Berlin's central district.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=93}} | |||
| On 23 April, ] ] and ] ] assaulted Berlin from the south east and, after overcoming a counterattack by the German ], reached the ] ring railway on the north side of the ] by the evening of 24 April.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=312–314}} During the same period, of all the German forces ordered to reinforce the inner defences of the city by Hitler, only a small contingent of ] under the command of ''SS Brigadeführer'' ] arrived in Berlin.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=259, 297}} During 25 April, Krukenberg was appointed as the commander of Defence Sector C, the sector under the most pressure from the Soviet assault on the city.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=291–292, 302}} | |||
| On 26 April, ] ] and the 1st Guards Tank Army fought their way through the southern suburbs and attacked ], just inside the S-Bahn defensive ring, where they met stiff resistance from the ''Müncheberg'' Division.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=259, 297}} But by 27 April, the two understrength divisions (''Müncheberg'' and ''Nordland'') that were defending the south east, now facing five Soviet armies—from east to west, the 5th Shock Army, the 8th Guards Army, the 1st Guards Tank Army and ] 3rd Guards Tank Army (part of the 1st Ukrainian Front)—were forced back towards the centre, taking up new defensive positions around Hermannplatz.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=246–247}} Krukenberg informed General ], ] of the ] of (]) that within 24 hours the ''Nordland'' would have to fall back to the centre sector Z (for ''Zentrum'').{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=303–304}}<ref>{{harvnb|Beevor|2002|p=304}}, states the centre sector was known as Z for Zentrum; {{harvnb|Fischer|2008|pp=42–43}}, and {{harvnb|Tiemann|1998|p=336}}, quoting General Mohnke directly refers to the smaller centre government quarter/district in this area and under his command as Z-Zitadelle.</ref> The Soviet advance to the city centre was along these main axes: from the south east, along the Frankfurter Allee (ending and stopped at the ]); from the south along Sonnen Allee ending north of the Belle Alliance Platz, from the south ending near the Potsdamer Platz and from the north ending near the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=340}} The Reichstag, the Moltke bridge, Alexanderplatz, and the Havel bridges at Spandau saw the heaviest fighting, with house-to-house and ]. The foreign contingents of the SS fought particularly hard, because they were ideologically motivated and they believed that they would not live if captured.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=257–258}} | |||
| ===Battle for the Reichstag=== | |||
| {{see also|Raising a flag over the Reichstag}} | |||
| ] | |||
| In the early hours of 29 April the Soviet ] crossed the ] and started to fan out into the surrounding streets and buildings.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|pp=371–373}} The initial assaults on buildings, including the Ministry of the Interior, were hampered by the lack of supporting artillery. It was not until the damaged bridges were repaired that ] could be moved up in support.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=349}} At 04:00 hours, in the ''Führerbunker'', Hitler signed his ] and, shortly afterwards, married ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=343}} At dawn the Soviets pressed on with their assault in the south east. After very heavy fighting they managed to capture ] headquarters on ], but a ''Waffen-SS'' counter-attack forced the Soviets to withdraw from the building.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=375}} To the south west the 8th Guards Army attacked north across the Landwehr canal into the Tiergarten.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=377}} | |||
| By the next day, 30 April, the Soviets had solved their bridging problems and with artillery support at 06:00 they launched an attack on the ], but because of German entrenchments and support from ]s {{convert|2|km|mi|abbr=on}} away on the roof of the ], in ], it was not until that evening that the Soviets were able to enter the building.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=380}} The Reichstag had not been in use since 1933 ] and its interior resembled a rubble heap more than a government building. The German troops inside made excellent use of this and lay heavily entrenched.{{sfn|Hamilton|2008|p=311}} Fierce room-to-room fighting ensued. At that point there was still a large contingent of German soldiers in the basement who launched counter-attacks against the Red Army.{{sfn|Hamilton|2008|p=311}} Finally, on 2 May the Red Army controlled the building entirely.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|pp=390–397}} The famous photo of the two soldiers planting the flag on the roof of the building is a re-enactment photo taken the day after the building was taken.{{sfn|Sontheimer|2008}} However, to the Soviets the event as represented by the photo became symbolic of their victory demonstrating that the Battle of Berlin, as well as the Eastern Front hostilities as whole, ended with the total Soviet victory.{{sfn|Bellamy|2007|pp=663–7}} As the 756th Regiment's commander ] had stated in his order to Battalion Commander ] "...the Supreme High Command...and the entire Soviet People order you to erect the victory banner on the roof above Berlin".{{sfn|Hamilton|2008|p=311}} | |||
| ===Battle for the centre=== | |||
| ] | |||
| During the early hours of 30 April, Weidling informed Hitler in person that the defenders would probably exhaust their ammunition during the night. Hitler gave him the permission to attempt a breakout through the encircling Red Army lines.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=358}} That afternoon, Hitler and Braun committed ] and their bodies were cremated not far from the bunker.{{sfn|Bullock|1962|pp=799, 800}} In accordance to ], Admiral ] became the "President of Germany" ('']'') in the new ], and ] became the new ] ('']'').{{sfn|Williams|2005|pp=324, 325}} | |||
| As the perimeter shrank and the surviving defenders fell back, they became concentrated into a small area in the city centre. By now there were about 10,000 German soldiers in the city centre, which was being assaulted from all sides. One of the other main thrusts was along Wilhelmstrasse on which the Air Ministry, built of ], was pounded by large concentrations of Soviet artillery.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=380}} The remaining German Tiger tanks of the ] battalion took up positions in the east of the Tiergarten to defend the centre against ] 3rd Shock Army (which although heavily engaged around the Reichstag was also flanking the area by advancing through the northern Tiergarten) and the 8th Guards Army advancing through the south of the Tiergarten.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=381}} These Soviet forces had effectively cut the sausage-shaped area held by the Germans in half and made any escape attempt to the west for German troops in the centre much more difficult.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=385–386}} | |||
| During the early hours of 1 May, Krebs talked to General Chuikov, commander of the Soviet 8th Guards Army,<ref>{{harvnb|Dollinger|1967|p=239}}, states 3 am, and {{harvnb|Beevor|2003|p=391}}, 4 am, for Krebs' meeting with Chuikov</ref> informing him of Hitler's death and a willingness to negotiate a city wide surrender.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=391}} However, they could not agree on terms because of Soviet insistence on unconditional surrender and Krebs' claim that he lacked authorisation to agree to that.{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=239}} Goebbels was against surrender. In the afternoon, Goebbels and his wife (after ]) committed suicide.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=405}} Goebbels's death removed the last impediment which prevented Weidling from accepting the terms of unconditional surrender of his garrison, but he chose to delay the surrender until the next morning to allow the planned breakout to take place under the cover of darkness.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=406}} | |||
| ===Breakout and surrender=== | |||
| On the night of 1–2 May, most of the remnants of the Berlin garrison attempted to break out of the city centre in three different directions. Only those that went west through the Tiergarten and crossed the ] (a bridge over the ]) into ] succeeded in breaching Soviet lines.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=383–389}} However, only a handful of those who survived the initial breakout made it to the lines of the ]—most were either killed or captured by the Red Army's outer encirclement forces west of the city.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|pp=125–126}} Early in the morning of 2 May, the Soviets captured the ]. The military historian ] points out that as most of the German combat troops had left the area in the breakouts the night before, the resistance must have been far less than it had been inside the Reichstag.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=388}} General Weidling finally surrendered with his staff at 06:00 hours. He was taken to see General ] at 08:23. Weidling agreed to order the city's defenders to surrender to the Soviets.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=386}} Under General Chuikov's and ]'s direction, Weidling put his order to surrender in writing.{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=239}} | |||
| The 350-strong garrison of the Zoo flak tower finally left the building. While there was sporadic fighting in a few isolated buildings where some SS troops still refused to surrender, the Soviets reduced such buildings to rubble.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=391}} | |||
| ==Battle outside Berlin== | |||
| At some point on 28 April or 29 April, General ], Commander-in-Chief of ], was relieved of his command after disobeying Hitler's direct orders to hold Berlin at all costs and never order a retreat, and was replaced by General ].{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=338}} General ] was named as Heinrici's interim replacement until Student could arrive and assume control. There remains some confusion as to who was actually in command as some references say that Student was captured by the British and never arrived,{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=228}} and regardless of whether von Tippelskirch or Student was in command of Army Group Vistula, the rapidly deteriorating situation that the Germans faced meant that Army Group Vistula coordination of the armies under its nominal command during the last few days of the war was of little significance.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=128}} | |||
| On the evening of 29 April, Krebs contacted General ] (Supreme Army Command) by radio:{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=239}} {{Bquote|Request immediate report. Firstly of the whereabouts of Wenck's spearheads. Secondly of time intended to attack. Thirdly of the location of the IX Army. Fourthly of the precise place in which the IX Army will break through. Fifthly of the whereabouts of General ]'s spearhead.}} | |||
| In the early morning of 30 April, Jodl replied to Krebs:{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=239}} {{Bquote|Firstly, Wenck's spearhead bogged down south of ]. Secondly, XII Army therefore unable to continue attack on Berlin. Thirdly, bulk of IX Army surrounded. Fourthly, Holste's ] on the defensive.}} | |||
| ===North=== | |||
| While the 1st Belorussian Front and the 1st Ukrainian Front ], and started ], Rokossovsky's 2nd Belorussian Front started his offensive to the north of Berlin. On 20 April between ] and ], Rokossovsky's 2nd Belorussian Front attacked the northern flank of Army Group Vistula, held by the ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=84}} By 22 April, the 2nd Belorussian Front had established a bridgehead on the east bank of the Oder that was over {{convert|15|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} deep and was heavily engaged with the III Panzer Army.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=92}} On 25 April, the 2nd Belorussian Front broke through III Panzer Army's line around the bridgehead south of Stettin, crossed the ''Randowbruch'' Swamp, and were now free to move west towards ] ] and north towards the Baltic port of ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=94}} | |||
| The German III Panzer Army and the ] situated to the north of Berlin retreated westwards under relentless pressure from Rokossovsky's 2nd Belorussian Front, and was eventually pushed into a pocket {{convert|20|mi|km|abbr=on|disp=flip}} wide that stretched from the Elbe to the coast.{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=353}} To their west was the British 21st Army Group (which on 1 May broke out of its Elbe bridgehead and had raced to the coast capturing ] and ]), to their east Rokossovsky's 2nd Belorussian Front and to the south was the ] which had penetrated as far east as ] and ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=129}} | |||
| ===South=== | |||
| {{see also|Battle of Halbe}} | |||
| ], Germany.]] | |||
| The successes of the 1st Ukrainian Front during the first nine days of the battle meant that by 25 April, they were occupying large swathes of the area south and south west of Berlin. Their spearheads had met elements of the 1st Belorussian Front west of Berlin, completing the investment of the city.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=94}} Meanwhile, the 1st Ukrainian Front's ] of the ] ] with the ] of the ] near ], on the ] River.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=94}} These manoeuvres had broken the German forces south of Berlin into three parts. The German IX army was surrounded in the ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=350}} Wenck's XII Army, obeying Hitler's command of the 22 April, was attempting to force its way into Berlin from the south west but met stiff resistance from units of the 1st Ukrainian Front in the area of ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|pp=345–346}} Schörner's Army Group Centre was forced to withdraw from the Battle of Berlin, along its lines of communications towards ].{{sfn|Beevor|2003|p=426}} | |||
| Between 24 April and 1 May, the German ] fought a desperate action to break out of the pocket in an attempt to link up with the German ].{{sfn|Le Tissier|2005|p=117}} Hitler assumed that after a successful breakout from the pocket, the IX Army could combine forces with the XII Army and would be able to relieve Berlin.{{sfn|Le Tissier|2005|pp=89, 90}} However there is no evidence to suggest that Generals Heinrici, Busse or Wenck thought that this was even remotely strategically feasible, but Hitler's agreement to allow the IX Army to break through Soviet lines did provide a window of opportunity through which sizable numbers of German troops were able to escape west and surrender to the United States Army.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=330}} | |||
| At dawn on 28 April, the youth divisions '']'', '']'' and '']'', attacked from the south west toward the direction of Berlin. They were part of Wenck's ] and were made up of men from the officer training schools, making them some of the best units the Germans had in reserve. They covered a distance of about {{convert|24|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}, before being halted at the tip of ], south west of Potsdam and still {{convert|32|km|mi|abbr=on}} from Berlin.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=119}} During the night, General Wenck reported to the German Supreme Army Command in Fuerstenberg that his XII Army had been forced back along the entire front. According to Wenck, no attack on Berlin was now possible.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=120}}{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=350}} This was even more so as support from the IX Army could no longer be expected at this point.{{sfn|Dollinger|1967|p=239}} In the meantime, about 25,000 German soldiers of the IX Army along with several thousand civilians succeeded in reaching the lines of the XII Army after breaking out of the Halbe pocket.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=378}} The casualties on both sides were very high. There are close to 30,000 Germans buried in the cemetery at Halbe.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=337}} About 20,000 soldiers of the Red Army also died trying to stop the breakout; most are buried at a cemetery next to the Baruth-Zossen road.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=337}} These are the known dead, but the remains of more who died in the battle are found every year so the total of those who died will never be known. Nobody knows how many civilians died but it could have been as high as 10,000.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=337}} | |||
| Having failed to break through to Berlin, Wenck's XII army made a fighting retreat back towards the Elbe and American lines after providing the IX Army survivors with surplus transport.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=395}} By 6 May many German Army units and individuals had crossed the Elbe and surrendered to the ].{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=128}} Meanwhile, the XII's bridgehead with its headquarters in the park of ], had come under heavy Soviet artillery bombardment and had been compressed into an area eight by two kilometres (five by one and a quarter miles).{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=397}} | |||
| ===Surrender=== | |||
| On the night of 2–3 May, General ], commander of the III Panzer Army along with General ], commander of the XXI Army, surrendered to the US Army.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=128}} Von Saucken's II Army, that had been fighting north east of Berlin in the Vistula Delta, surrendered to the Soviets on 9 May.{{sfn|Ziemke|1969|p=129}} On the morning of 7 May, the perimeter of Wenck's XII Army's bridgehead began to collapse. Wenck crossed the Elbe under small arms fire that afternoon and surrendered to the American Ninth Army.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=397}} | |||
| ==Aftermath== | |||
| ], 3 July 1945.]] | |||
| According to ]'s work based on declassified archival data, Soviet forces sustained 81,116 dead for the entire operation, which included the Battles of Seelow Heights and the Halbe;{{sfn|Krivosheev|1997|pp=219,220}} Another 280,251 were reported wounded or sick during the operational period.{{sfn|Krivosheev|1997|pp=219,220}}{{efn|name=Casualties}} | |||
| The operation also cost the Soviets about 2,000 armoured vehicles, though the number of irrevocable losses (write-offs) is not known. Initial Soviet estimates based on kill claims placed German losses at 458,080 killed and 479,298 captured,{{efn|name=CapturedPrisoners}} but German research puts the number of dead at approximately 92,000 – 100,000.{{sfn|Müller|2008|p=673}} The number of civilian casualties is unknown,{{sfn|Glantz|1998|p=271}} but 125,000 are estimated to have perished during the entire operation.{{sfn|Clodfelter|2002|p=515}} | |||
| ] stands beside them, 3 July 1945.]] | |||
| In those areas which the Soviets had captured and before the fighting in the centre of the city had stopped, the Soviet authorities took measures to start restoring essential services.{{sfn|Bellamy|2007|p=670}} Almost all transport in and out of the city had been rendered inoperative, and bombed-out sewers had contaminated the city's water supplies.{{sfn|White|2003|p=126}} The Soviets appointed local Germans to head each city block, and organized the cleaning-up.{{sfn|Bellamy|2007|p=670}} Further, the Red Army made a major effort to feed the residents of the city.{{sfn|Bellamy|2007|p=670}} Most Germans, both soldiers and civilians, were grateful to receive food issued at Red Army ]s which began on Colonel-General ]'s orders.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=409}} After the capitulation the Soviets went house to house, arresting and imprisoning anyone in a uniform including firemen and railway-men.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=388–393}} | |||
| During, and in the days immediately following the assault,{{sfn|Bellamy|2007|pp=660,670}}{{sfn|Grossmann|2009|p=51}} in many areas of the city, vengeful Soviet troops (often rear echelon units{{sfn|Beevor|2002|pp=326–327}}) engaged in ], pillage, and murder.{{sfn|Beevor|May 2002}}{{efn|name=Rapes}} The Russian historian Elena Senyavskaya has stated that mass rapes did not occur,{{efn |name=no-mass-rapes|Elena Senyavskaya cites an official Soviet record of the military prosecutor of the 1st Belorussian Front to support her position as it states that in the seven army 1st Belorussian Front during the period from 22 April to 5 May 1945 124 crimes against civilians were recorded, including 72 of rape {{harv|Senyavskaya|2013}}.}} and that "amongst there are no differences of opinion concerning this subject".{{sfn|Senyavskaya|2013}} | |||
| Despite Soviet efforts to supply food and rebuild the city, starvation remained a problem.{{sfn|White|2003|p=126}} In June 1945, one month after the surrender, the average calorie intake of Berliners was still low: They were getting only 64 percent of a 1,240-calorie daily ration.{{sfn|Ziemke|1990|p=303}} Further, across the city over a million people were without homes.{{sfn|Beevor|2002|p=419}} | |||
| ==Commemoration==<!-- Medal For the Capture of Berlin redirects here --> | |||
| ] | |||
| 1,100,000 Soviet personnel who took part in the capture of Berlin from 22 April to 2 May 1945 were awarded with the Medal For the Capture of Berlin.{{citation needed|date=April 2009}} | |||
| The ] to be used for celebrations of the Soviet ] was defined by a federal law of ],<ref name="rg.ru" /> on 7 May 2007, as a copy of the flag was raised on the Reichstag (with the hammer and sickle, and the inscription). | |||
| Poland's official ] is held each year on 2 May, the last day of the battle in Berlin, when the Polish Army hoisted its flag on the ].{{sfn|Kutylowski|2011}} | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] and ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| ==Notes== | |||
| {{clear}} | |||
| '''Footnotes''' | |||
| {{notelist |colwidth=40em |notes= | |||
| {{efn |name=StudentTippelskirch | |||
| |Heinrici was replaced by General ] on 28 April. General Kurt von Tippelskirch was named as Heinrici's interim replacement until Student could arrive and assume control. Student was captured by the British and never arrived {{harv|Dollinger|1967|p=228}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=Weidling | |||
| |Weidling replaced Oberstleutnant ] as commander of Berlin who only held the post for one day having taken command from Reymann. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=SovietEsts | |||
| |Initial Soviet estimates had placed the total strength at 1 million men, but this was an overestimate {{harv|Glantz|1998|pp=258–259}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=GermanTroops | |||
| |A large number of the 45,000 were troops of the ] that were at the start of the battle part of the German IX Army on the ]. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=GermanCasualties | |||
| |German estimate (Müller) based on incomplete archival data: 92,000 for Seelow, Halbe and inside Berlin; 100,000 for the whole Berlin area. Initial Soviet casualties estimates are 458,080 killed and 479,298 captured, but these were based on kill claims and an incorrect number of total German strength {{harv|Glantz|1998|pp=258–259}}. For information about the genesis of the "Das Deutsch Reich und der Zweite Weltkrieg" project under the Military History Research Office of the Bundeswehr, refer to {{harvnb|Ziemke|1983|pp=398–407}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=LastOffensive | |||
| |The last offensive of the European war was the ] on 6–11 May 1945, when the Red Army, with the help of ], ]n, and ] forces defeated the parts of ] which continued to resist in Czechoslovakia. There were a number of small battles and skirmishes involving small bodies of men, but no other large scale fighting that resulted in the death of thousands of people. (See ] for details on these final days of the war.) | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=SovietPrisoners | |||
| |The Soviets later estimated the number as 180,000, but this was from the number of prisoners that they took, and included many unarmed men in uniform, such as railway officials and members of the Reich Labour Service {{harv|Beevor|2002|p=287}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=Casualties | |||
| |A number of sources cited in this article derive their casualty numbers from Krivosheev's archival work. They include, Hamilton who uses the figure of 361,367 without further breakdown {{harv|Hamilton|2008|p=372}}. Beevor lists the casualties as 78,291 killed and 274,184 wounded for a total of 352,475 {{harv|Beevor|2002|p=424}}. Max Hastings uses 352,425 Soviet casualties (1st Belorussian Front: 179,490, 2nd Belorussian Front: 59,110, 1st Ukrainian Front: 113,825), but increases the portion of killed to over 100,000 {{harv|Hastings|2005|p=548}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=CapturedPrisoners | |||
| |Captured prisoners included many unarmed men in uniform, such as railway officials and members of the Reich Labour Service {{harv|Beevor|2002|p=287}}. | |||
| }} | |||
| {{efn |name=Rapes | | |||
| Bellamy states that most of the rapes occurred between 23 April and 8 May after which the number of rapes gradually subsided {{harv|Bellamy|2007|p=670}}, but as a consequence of the deprivations suffered by the civilian population, varying degrees of coerced sex, became ways through which some women managed to secure the necessities of day-to-day life {{harv|Ziemke|1969|pp=149, 153}}. | |||
| <p> | |||
| During the months preceding to the battle, as the Red Army began its offensives into Germany proper, STAVKA recognised the potential for lapses in discipline involving vengeful troops and had been able to check such behaviour to a certain extent. Marshal Konev, in a 27 January order near the conclusion of the ] supplied a long list of commanders to be reassigned to ]s for looting, drunkenness, and excesses against civilians {{harv|Duffy|1991|p=275}}. | |||
| <p> | |||
| Although most Western sources agree that there was widespread rape, the numbers put forwards are estimations. A frequently quoted number is that 100,000 women in Berlin ] by soldiers of the Red Army (Helke Sander & Barbara Johr: BeFreier und Befreite, Fischer, Frankfurt 2005). This estimate has been questioned by Nicky Bird (Nicky Bird, ''International Affairs'' (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944–), Vol. 78, No. 4. (Oct. 2002), pp. 914–916) who argues the statistics are "unverifiable". | |||
| }} | |||
| }} | |||
| '''Citations''' | |||
| {{reflist| colwidth=20em |refs= | |||
| <ref name="rg.ru"> | |||
| {{citation |publisher=rg.ru |date=8 May 2007 |title=Федеральный закон Российской Федерации от 7 мая 2007 г. N 68-ФЗ "О Знамени Победы" |url=http://www.rg.ru/2007/05/08/znamya.html |accessdate=June 2011| archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20110519173438/http://www.rg.ru/2007/05/08/znamya.html| archivedate= 19 May 2011 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurl= no}} | |||
| </ref> | |||
| }} | |||
| ==References== | |||
| {{Refbegin|60em}} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Antill |first=Peter |year=2005 |title=Berlin 1945 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-84176-915-8 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Beevor |first=Antony |date=1 May 2002 |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,707835,00.html |title=They raped every German female from eight to 80 |newspaper=] |accessdate=13 September 2008 |ref={{sfnRef|Beevor|May 2002}} | archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20081005071906/http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,707835,00.html| archivedate= 5 October 2008 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurl= no}} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Beevor |first=Antony |authorlink=Antony Beevor |year=2002 |title=] |publisher=Viking-Penguin Books |isbn=978-0-670-03041-5 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Beevor |first=Antony |year=2003 |title=Berlin: The Downfall 1945 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-14-028696-0 }} | |||
| * {{citation |first=Chris |last=Bellamy |year=2007 |title=Absolute war: Soviet Russia in the Second World War |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |isbn=978-0-375-41086-4 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Bergstrom |first=Christer |year=2007 |title=Bagration to Berlin – The Final Air Battles in the East: 1944–1945 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-903223-91-8 |pages= }} | |||
| * {{citation |authorlink=Alan Bullock |last=Bullock |first=Alan |year=1962 |title=Hitler: A Study in Tyranny |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=978-0-14-013564-0 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Clodfelter |first=Michael |year=2002 |title=Warfare and Armed Conflicts- A Statistical Reference to Casualty and Other Figures, 1500–2000 |edition=2nd |publisher=McFarland & Company |isbn=978-0-7864-1204-4 |pages= }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Dollinger |first=Hans |year=1967 |title=The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan |publisher=Bonanza |isbn=}} | |||
| * {{citation |authorlink=Christopher Duffy |last=Duffy |first=Christopher |year=1991 |title=Red Storm on the Reich |publisher=]|isbn=978-0-415-03589-7 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Fischer |first=Thomas |year=2008 |title=Soldiers of the Leibstandarte |publisher=J.J. Fedorowicz Publishing |isbn=978-0-921991-91-5 }} | |||
| * {{cite interview |last1=Gareev |first1=Makhmut |last2=Tretiak |first2=Ivan |last3=Rzheshevsky |first3=Oleg |interviewer=Sergey Turchenko |title=Насилие над фактами |trans_title=Abuse of Facts |newspaper=] |date=21 July 2005 |language=Russian |ref=Gareev}} | |||
| * {{citation |authorlink=David Glantz |last=Glantz |first=David M. |year=1998 |title=When Titans Clashed: How the Red Army Stopped Hitler |publisher=University Press of Kansas |isbn=978-0-7006-0899-7 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Glantz |first=David M. |date=11 October 2001 |title=The Soviet-German War 1941–1945: Myths and Realities: A Survey Essay |publisher= |url=http://sti.clemson.edu/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_details&gid=189&Itemid=310 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last1=Gregory |first1=Don A. |last2=Gehlen |first2=William R. |year=2009 |title=Two Soldiers, Two Lost Fronts: German War Diaries of the Stalingrad and North Africa Campaigns |edition=illustrated |publisher=Casemate Publishers |isbn=978-1-935149-05-7 |pages=}} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Grossmann |first=Atina |year=2009 |title=Jews, Germans, and Allies: Close Encounters in Occupied Germany |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-14317-0 }} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Hamilton |first=A. Stephan |year=2008 |title=Bloody Streets: The Soviet Assault on Berlin, April 1945 |publisher=Helion & Co. |isbn=978-1-906033-12-5 }} | |||
| * {{citation |authorlink=Max Hastings |last=Hastings |first=Max |year=2004 |title=Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944–1945 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-333-90836-5 }} | |||
| * {{citation| last=Hastings |first=Max |year=2005 |title=Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944–1945 |publisher=Pan |isbn=978-0-330-49062-7 }} | |||
| *{{cite interview |ref=harv |last=Isaev |first=Aleksey |interviewer=Vitaly Dymarsky |title=Seelow Heights |url=http://echo.msk.ru/programs/victory/697626-echo |language=Russian |program=Price of Victory |callsign=] |city=Moscow |date=July 26, 2010 |year=2010 |accessdate=December 1, 2012}} | |||
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| * {{citation |last=Le Tissier |first=Tony |year=2005 |title=Slaughter at Halbe |publisher=Sutton |isbn=978-0-7509-3689-7 }} | |||
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| * {{citation |last=Wagner |first=Ray |year=1974 |title=The Soviet Air Force in World War II: the Official History |publisher=]|isbn=}} | |||
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| * {{citation |last=Ziemke |first=Earl F. |year=1969 |title=Battle for Berlin End of the Third Reich Ballantine's Illustrated History of World War II (Battle Book #6) |publisher=] <!--pre isbn-->}} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Ziemke |first=Earl F. |year=1990 |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/other/us-army_germany_1944-46_index.htm#contents |title=The U.S. Army in the occupation of Germany 1944–1946 |work=Center of Military History |publisher=United States Army |location=Washington, D. C. |id=Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 75-619027 |chapterurl=http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/Occ-GY/ch17.htm |chapter=Chapter 17 Zone and Sector }} | |||
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| * {{citation |last=Zuljan |first=Ralph |date=1 July 2003 |url=http://www.onwar.com/articles/9905.htm |title=Battle for the Seelow Heights – Part II }} Originally published in "World War II" at Suite101.com on 1 May 1999. Revised edition published in "Articles On War" at on 1 July 2003. | |||
| {{Refend}} | |||
| ==Further reading== | |||
| {{Commons category}} | |||
| * Antill, P. . Includes the Order of Battle for the Battle for Berlin (Le Tissier, T. ''The Battle of Berlin 1945'', Jonathan Cape, London, 1988. | |||
| * Durie, W. ''The British Garrison Berlin 1945–1994: No Where to Go'', Berlin: Vergangenheits/Berlin. 2012. ISBN 978-3-86408-068-5 | |||
| * {{citation |last=Erickson |first=John |title=The Road to Berlin: Continuing the History of Stalin's War with Germany |publisher=Westview Press |year=1983 |isbn=978-0-89158-795-8 }} | |||
| * ]; '']'' Translated by Anthes Bell, ISBN 978-0-8050-7540-3 | |||
| * {{citation |last=Kuby |first=Erich |title=The Russians and Berlin, 1945 |publisher=] |year=1968 |isbn=}} | |||
| * {{citation |last=Moeller |first=Robert G. |title=West Germany Under Construction |publisher=University of Michigan Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-472-06648-3 }} | |||
| * {{citation |authorlink=Norman Naimark |last=Naimark |first=Norman M. |title=The Russians in Germany: A History of the Soviet Zone of Occupation, 1945–1949 |publisher=Cambridge: Belknap |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-674-78405-5 }} | |||
| * Read, Anthony and Fisher, David; ''The Fall of Berlin'', London: Pimlico, 1993. ISBN 978-0-7126-0695-0 | |||
| * Sanders, Ian J. ; {{Wayback |date=20071014200626 |url=http://www.geocities.com/isanders_2000/ww2index.htm |title=Photos of World War 2 Berlin Locations today}} | |||
| * Shepardson, Donald E.; "The Fall of Berlin and the Rise of a Myth", ''The Journal of Military History'', Vol. 62, No. 1. (1998), pp. 135–153. | |||
| * Remme, Tilman; '''' ] article | |||
| * White, Osmar Alternative account of crimes against civilians | |||
| * ], (official channel on ]). {{YouTube|wjD6Lxiu6q4|"Fall of Berlin: Stopping the Nazi Heart"}}. 27 June 2010. 26-minute video. | |||
| {{World War II}} | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| {{Link GA|ar}} | |||
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