Soviet forces advanced westward through Eastern Europe from 1944. (a) Describe the Soviet advance from Operation Bagration to the fall of Berlin. [4] (b) Wh...

Part (a) - The Soviet advance from Operation Bagration to the fall of Berlin [4 marks]

• Operation Bagration (22 June 1944): This massive offensive destroyed German Army Group Centre in Belorussia (modern Belarus), killing or capturing over 300,000 German soldiers in one of the war's most devastating defeats.
• Soviet forces advanced rapidly through Poland, Romania, Hungary and into Germany itself during 1944-45.
• The siege of Budapest lasted from December 1944 to February 1945, with fierce fighting in the Hungarian capital.
• The final Soviet offensive on Berlin began on 16 April 1945, with over two million Soviet troops attacking the German capital. Berlin fell on 2 May 1945, after brutal street fighting. Hitler had committed suicide on 30 April.

Part (b) - Why Germany was unable to halt the Soviet advance in 1944-45 [6 marks]

• Exhausted military resources: Years of fighting on multiple fronts had depleted Germany's manpower, equipment and industrial capacity.
• Soviet numerical superiority: The Soviet Union had achieved overwhelming superiority in troops, tanks, aircraft and artillery. By 1944-45, the Red Army outnumbered the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front by significant margins in every category.
• Two-front war: Germany had to divide its remaining forces between the Eastern Front, the Western Front (following D-Day in June 1944), and Italy.
• Bombing and fuel shortages: Allied strategic bombing had crippled German industry and fuel production, leaving the Wehrmacht short of tanks, ammunition, aircraft fuel and transport.
• Hitler's interference: Hitler's refusal to allow tactical retreats or flexible defence resulted in German forces being repeatedly encircled and destroyed rather than withdrawing to more defensible positions.
• Irreplaceable losses: Experienced officers and soldiers could not be replaced. The German army increasingly relied on hastily trained replacements, conscripted boys and elderly men who lacked combat effectiveness.

Part (c) - How far was the Soviet advance the most important factor in Germany's defeat? [10 marks]

The case for the Soviet advance being the most important factor:

• The Eastern Front was where the bulk of the German army was destroyed. Approximately 80 per cent of Wehrmacht casualties occurred fighting the Soviet Union.
• Soviet offensives from 1943 onwards steadily pushed German forces back, liberating vast territories and destroying entire army groups.
• The capture of Berlin directly ended the war in Europe.
• The Eastern Front was the largest and deadliest theatre of the entire war.

Other factors in Germany's defeat:

• The Western Allies' invasion of Normandy and advance through France forced Germany into an unsustainable two-front war.
• The strategic bombing campaign destroyed German industry, transport and fuel production.
• The Battle of the Atlantic ensured the flow of American supplies to both Britain and the Soviet Union.
• American Lend-Lease provided the Soviet Union with trucks, jeeps, communication equipment and food that significantly enhanced its military capability.

The Soviet contribution was the single greatest factor in Germany's defeat - it was Soviet forces that broke the Wehrmacht's fighting power and captured Berlin. However, this achievement was enabled and complemented by the efforts of all the Allied powers. The Soviet advance was the most important factor, but it did not occur in isolation.