German offensive against Moscow begins

On 2 October 1941, after a series of successful „battles of encirclement and annihilation“ which led to the total defeat of several Russian armies, the army group Centre begins „Operation Typhoon“ – the advance on Moscow. German command deploys 70 divisions, but the period of bad weather just beginning to set in significantly hinders troop movements. The German divisions battle their way through bottomless mire and against the ever stiffening resistance of the Red Army up to the outskirts of the Soviet capital city.

© Moscow house of photography Soldiers in the russian winter war near Moscow, 1941

Ministries, public offices and industrial works are evacuated. Josef Stalin himself remains in the Kremlin and delegates the defence of the city to General Georgi Zhukov. Through rigorous use of the civilian population, the general expands defensive positions around the capital city.

In late November comes the onset of winter – temperatures fall to minus 40 degrees Celsius and below. Whereas the Soviet divisions are very well prepared for winter warfare, German soldiers have to fight in their summer uniforms. On 5 December 1941 the Red Army – supported by fresh units from Siberia – begins a broad counter-offensive. The Wehrmacht runs into severe difficulties. In any event the front holds by and large – at the price of extreme sacrifices by German soldiers. Germans as well as Soviets suffer enormous casualties. By April of 1942 the situation on the German „eastern front“ will be stabilised again.