The Second World War brought the peoples of Europe and the Soviet state a lot of grief, there were numerous victims at the front and in the rear. Hitler’s invaders are the troops of Nazi Germany, which destroyed millions of people in Europe and the USSR. They were especially cruel to the Jewish and Slavic population. The Nazis carried out mass repressions, killed, robbed, destroyed residential buildings, enterprises, historical monuments.
What is occupation?
In 1907, in the annex to the 4th Hague Convention, the main provisions were formulated on what occupation is, who are the occupiers. This is the armed forces of the enemy, temporarily located in the territory of another state. They are required to comply with international law. An act in 1907 established that the occupation authorities:
- must respect the laws and customs, the personal property of citizens living in the occupied territory;
- not to carry out repression, hijacking of civilians;
- not involve ordinary citizens in military operations, the construction of defensive structures;
- not to destroy intentionally cultural and historical monuments, works of art, the fruits of scientific activity.
What plans did the fascists have for the countries of Europe and the USSR?
In the 30s of the XX century, Adolf Hitler seized power in Germany. Under the influence of the propaganda unleashed by the Fuhrer, the leadership of the Third Reich ceased to reckon with the norms of international law. The plans of Hitler and his associates included the conquest of a vast territory with the support of Italy and Japan. The German occupiers sought to conquer Europe, to include Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, in whole or in part, in the Third Reich. Plans were developed for France and the countries of the Balkan Peninsula. Hitler suggested that Britain would remain neutral, without interfering with a move towards world domination. When the British declared war on Germany in 1939, the Führer decided to enslave this European country. The main Nazi idea was the occupation of Russia, the conquest of the territory up to the Ural Mountains. From Soviet cities it was planned to expel the population beyond the line of 30-40 km, to make Soviet people slaves serving the Germans.
How did the Nazis act?
Until May 8, 1945, the fascist invaders carried out the total destruction of the "subhuman." To them the Nazis attributed 30 million Slavs who inhabited the USSR. The Nazis methodically exterminated the inhabitants of Belarus, Ukraine, Russia. On the temporarily occupied territory of the Soviet Union, the occupation regime was particularly cruel. German troops, their satellites and accomplices brutally treated people, purposefully killed citizens and drove them to Germany to work in factories and in agriculture. All the actions of the Nazi regime were aimed at fulfilling the super tasks set by Hitler. The ruling elite of the country pursued several goals:
- political destruction of the Soviet Union;
- economic enslavement and the transformation of the USSR into a raw materials appendage;
- obtaining in the person of the Soviet peoples a source of cheap labor;
- colonization of the territory of Russia.
The Barbarossa Plan
The occupation of the USSR by fascist Germany was included in the plan of lightning war - “Barbarossa”. It included a section of economic measures, in other words, the robbery of the Soviet country. The participants in the specially created headquarters were ordered to organize the export of stocks and military property from the occupied territory to Germany. The goal was set in the headquarters documents - all the important plants and factories should be captured by the occupiers. This "event", like others, was carefully developed at Hitler's meetings with the leadership of the Wehrmacht. The formation of the Eastern Ministry to manage the occupied territories began. Against the Soviet Union, the Nazis used the same tactics that they used in Europe - blitzkrieg (lightning war). The Nazis attacked suddenly, threw a huge number of tanks and planes into the battle, quickly attacked. June 22, 1941 the Nazis crossed the border of the Soviet state without declaring war. After 4 days, Finland entered the war, and on July 2 - Romania. In the Soviet Union, conscription of the male population over 18 years old into the army began, and fighter battalions were formed to maintain public order and conduct evacuation. Industrial equipment, archives, livestock, inventory were sent to the east of the country.
German occupation during the war
Having invaded Soviet territory, the fascist troops and satellites of Germany began to establish a "new order". The occupation regime was very cruel, punitive operations were carried out everywhere, executions of civilians were carried out, ghettos and death camps arose. All power in the occupied territory was transferred to the fascist administration, which “redrew” the administrative structure. Commandant offices and police departments were created. In the occupied territory, the Nazis abolished the Soviet authorities, banned public organizations. The guerrillas and their sympathizers were brutally persecuted. To combat the underground, special teams were created, detachments were operating, robbing the population, driving the inhabitants to Germany. A Nazi decree was issued on the death penalty for people who dared to violate the occupation regime.
Hitler’s invaders are savages and robbers
The Soviet country suffered huge casualties, on the German front they amounted to more than 20 million people, the civilian population - almost 13.7 million people. After the war, documents were published on the atrocities of the Nazis. In the USSR, the Nazis destroyed and stole 1/3 of the state wealth of the country. In the occupied areas, the amount of damage amounted to over 60% of the national heritage. Destroyed 3.5 million homes, 25 million residents were left homeless. Partially or completely destroyed more than 32 thousand enterprises, about 100 thousand collective farms and state farms, 4 thousand railway stations. The Nazis sacked and razed more than 70 thousand settlements. From the occupied regions of the Soviet state, the invaders transported 5 million people to Germany — youth and the able-bodied population.
During the occupation by fascist Germany, civilians were in danger, suffered hunger, bullying. It was hard to see the enemy devastate their native land. After being liberated from the invaders, people in cities and villages worked in the rear of their troops for the final victory over the enemy. Women, youths, adolescents were mobilized to dig trenches and trenches, to carry out other hard work. Now people who brought victory over the enemy closer with their labor in factories, factories, fields are called rear workers.