German Atrocities during Operation Barbarossa

What was Operation

Barbarossa?

What Sorts of Atrocities did German Soldiers Commit?

How Did the SS Work?

Why Were Soviet Prisoners Treated Differently Than Others?

• The SS was made up of three major groups
• The first group was called the Leibstandarte-they were the personal bodyguards of top Nazi executives like Hitler and Himmler
• The second group was the Totenkopfverbände-they were in charge of everything in concentration camps
• The third group and final group was called the Verfügungstruppen-they were to assist and fight alongside the German military

Statistics

What Happened During the Invasion?

Aftermath

• Hitler and the Nazi Party were highly anti-slavic and anti-communist
• As a result of the hate towards this group of people Hitler made Soviet prisoners suffer more than any other
• More than half of the Soviet prisoners captured died in Nazi and SS captivity

• After the war was over, Germany and Russia were both in ruins; Germany had lost almost 6 million citizens in WWII, Russia lost almost 14 million, and the entire USSR combined lost more than 26 million
• Since many of the dead were young men, there were not enough workers
• Both countries suffered economic downfall, however Russia restored their economy much faster than Germany

• The Nazis killed 3,650,000 out of the 8.8 million people in Belarus
• 380,000 slaves were shipped back to Germany from Belarus
• More than 80% of males in Russia did not survive WWII
• Approximately 14 times more Soviet prisoners of war were killed than those from other nations

• On their way to Russia, the Germans passed through other countries such as Ukraine and Belarus, where they killed millions of people and took hundreds of thousands of slaves
• Many slaves were sent to camps, were they were tortured and not given enough food to eat
• Hitler ordered many people to be executed, and is even quoted of saying "The giant area must naturally be pacified as quickly as possible; this will happen at best if anyone who just looks funny should be shot"
• The Nazi soldiers were told to kill many prisoners of war without being tried
• After several weeks, the Nazis began killing women and children as well
• These killing operations were carried out by Hitler’s right hand men, the S.S. (Schutzstaffel).

Hitler Expresses His Love for the Schutzstaffel to the Public

What Was the SS?

• The S.S. was a military group loyal to Hitler and the Nazis
• S.S. stood for "Schutzstaffel" which meant "Protective Echelon" in German
• Their leader during the Holocaust was Heinrich Himmler
• They killed millions of Jews, Slavs, Gypsies, and Communists

• At first the Germans were sweeping away the Russians and were heading towards an easy victory
• The Nazis took prisoners wherever they could and had them tortured
• However when the Germans were closing in on Moscow, the Russians launched a massive attack which drove he Germans back
• By that time the Soviets had set up a strong line and the Russian winter was starting, so the Germans went home

• German attack on USSR
• Began on June 22, 1941 and ended on December 5, 1941
• Hitler wanted to take over the Soviet Union since he was anti-communist and anti-slavic

German Atrocities during Operation Barbarossa

How Were the Nazis Punished After WWII?

By: Daniel Sebestyen

• Many Nazis were afraid of being caught after Germany lost the war
• Hitler and Himmler both committed suicide to avoid capture
• Many who were caught were sentenced to death or life in prison
• A handful of Nazis, such as Dr. Mengele managed to escape and avoid capture for all their lives