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This program
is rated 14 ,
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and contains scenes of
violence, coarse language,
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and mature subject matter.
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Viewer discretion is advised.
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Since the death
of Lenin in 1924,
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Joseph Stalin has maintained
an iron grip
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on all aspects of life
in the Soviet Union.
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As a Soviet Premier,
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Stalin agrees
to the 1939 non-aggression pact
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with the Nazis,
extending his western border
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and precluding any chance
of going to war
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with Hitler's Germany.
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Stalin could not have
been more mistaken.
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All wars change the world,
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but none of them
changed the world
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like the Second World War did.
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Japan's on the march.
Germany's on the march.
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No one can imagine
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the nightmare they're about
to unleash.
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The most destructive war
in human history.
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Suddenly the world
is turned upside down,
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and all hell is let loose.
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The West is stunned
by the speed of the advance.
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You get the Allies,
led by the big three:
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Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin.
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Men who are dealing with
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immensely
complicated questions.
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It's the biggest military
operation of human history.
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The Allies have to
come together
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not just militarily,
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but industrial scale
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it's a global perspective.
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They have to fight
in every climate
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from the Arctic to the jungles
of the Pacific
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to the deserts of Africa
and the depths of the ocean.
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But there was
no certainty of victory.
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It was going to be
a horrific bloodbath.
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We see humans
at their absolute worst,
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how they treat
other human beings
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and we see them
at their absolute best
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willing to give their lives
that others might live.
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World War II was a struggle
in which there could be
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one victor and one vanquished.
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As war between Great Britain
and Germany continues,
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from his offices deep
within the Kremlin,
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Soviet leader Joseph Stalin
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is confident the
non-aggression pact
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he made with the Germans
will hold
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and that he will soon have
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even more influence
around the world.
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Stalin's ideal plan was that
the British and French
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would fight off the Germans,
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and that those two sides
could fight it out
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as much as they liked
while Stalin watched
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from the sidelines
as they exhausted themselves.
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Since he was
a young revolutionary,
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Stalin hoped that conflict
in the West
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would ultimately
provide an opportunity
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for communism to spread
throughout Europe.
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Vissarionovich Jughashvili,
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the man that
we know as Stalin,
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is Georgian by birth
and origin.
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He comes
from a particular milieu
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marked by, among other things,
feuding and banditry
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and a certain code of honor,
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a code of vengeance
and vendetta.
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In the 1920s,
Stalin became the leader
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of the Soviet Union...
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and quickly suppressed
any opposition to his rule.
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In 1936, he launched a purge
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that became known
as the Great Terror,
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targeting political opponents,
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then expanding it
to high-level army officers.
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Stalin supervised, through
the NKVD secret police,
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the killing
of millions of people,
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the destroying of families.
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Millions were deported
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and sent to concentration
camps known as the gulags.
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He turned the country into
a totalitarian police state.
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A few years later in 1939,
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Stalin makes a deal
with Adolf Hitler.
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Even though Germany and the
Soviet Union are hostile,
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Stalin signs an agreement
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known as the
Molotov-Ribbentrop pact
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with the Nazis.
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As a result of the pact,
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Hitler and Stalin not only
carve up Eastern Europe
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and together invade Poland,
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Stalin also commits
to supplying vast quantities
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of raw materials
to the German Reich.
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The Soviet Union is
providing Adolf Hitler
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massive amounts
of natural resources,
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which is funding
the economic engine
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to build the military machine
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that Adolf Hitler is using
around the rest of the world.
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By 1940, it looks as if
the pact has paid off,
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certainly for Stalin.
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He's got this agreement
with the Nazis
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that he doesn't have
to worry about a war
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on their western front.
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Then in late September,
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Germany, Italy, and Japan
signed a military alliance
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called the Tripartite Pact.
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In Berlin, Hitler welcomed
Japan to his gang,
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the three-power treaty,
Germany, Italy, Japan.
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Dictator nations falling
in step for world domination.
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It was not clear what
the role of the Soviet Union
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might be in this new pact.
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Would it become
a quadruple pact
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instead of simply
a Tripartite Pact?
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Would the Soviet Union
become a full partner?
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These were all still open
questions in the fall of 1940.
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In November,
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Stalin sends one of the few
people he trusts to Berlin,
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his foreign minister,
Vyacheslav Molotov.
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Molotov means "hammer"
in Russian.
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His nickname was Iron Ass
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because he could sit
for so long doing work.
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He was intelligent,
he was ruthless,
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and Stalin trusted him.
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Hitler receives Molotov
in the chancellery.
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There's an amazing scene
as he enters,
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huge, blond, giant SS men
in their gleaming black,
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death head's uniform salute.
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In walks this little
Russian diplomat,
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and Hitler greets him warmly.
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And they have
two big sessions of chats.
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Hitler is at an impasse
in this war,
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has conquered
everything within reach.
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He's trying to talk
to the Soviets
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about some tighter level
of cooperation.
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Hitler wants to get
the Soviets on board
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for some kind of global war
against the British Empire.
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The Germans propose
that the Soviets join
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the Tripartite Pact
and offer India as a prize
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for when the British are
defeated.
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Molotov doesn't
take this seriously.
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Iron Ass is not impressed
with Hitler.
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And the conversations
become increasingly awkward.
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German Foreign Minister
von Ribbentrop
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is hosting a reception
for Molotov
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when the Royal Air Force
begins a raid on Berlin.
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In the middle
of the banquet...
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The air raid sirens
start to sound
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and they have to go down into
Ribbentrop's air raid shelter.
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And during the air raid,
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Ribbentrop starts to boast
that Britain is defeated
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and it's only a matter of time
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before Britain surrenders
and the war is won.
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Ribbentrop,
trying to make the best
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of an obviously
embarrassing situation,
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jokes that the
British are complaining
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that they have not been
invited to the party.
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Molotov, however,
is not charmed
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by the German's attempt
at humor.
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And he says, well,
if the war is over,
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then why are we
in this bomb shelter
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and whose bombs
are falling on us?
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The next morning,
Foreign Minister Molotov
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returns to Moscow...
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Unaware that Hitler
and his military leaders
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are planning
a secret operation.
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Hitler is capable of,
you know, shaking your hand
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and looking you in the eye
and saying everything is OK
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while planning
to stab you in the back.
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And that is clearly
what's going on
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between Molotov and Hitler.
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One month
after Molotov's Berlin visit,
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on December 18th,
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Hitler signs off on
Fuehrer Directive Number 21...
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A plan for a massive invasion
of the Soviet Union
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the following year.
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The invasion is
given a code name
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after a red-bearded
medieval German emperor.
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The stage is now set
for the biggest
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military invasion in history,
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Operation Barbarossa.
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In the last weeks of 1940,
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Adolf Hitler
tours German weapons factories
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as preparations progress
for Operation Barbarossa.
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His plan is to attack
and conquer the Soviet Union,
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to establish more lebensraum,
living space,
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for the new German empire
in the East.
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The operation is top-secret.
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But within days, sources have
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fed the information to the
Soviet intelligence services.
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Stalin is
receiving information
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from nearly every quarter
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right from the belly
of the beast in Berlin,
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from the American
military attaché,
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from the British,
and from his spy in Tokyo.
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But Stalin doesn't believe
what he's hearing.
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Stalin is paranoid
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that what is happening here
is a very high-level game
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on the part
of the Western powers.
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They're trying to maneuver him
into a one-on-one war
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with the previously
undefeated Wehrmacht,
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that he does not believe
he's ready for at the moment,
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and he is bound and determined
to avoid being maneuvered.
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You can get all
the intelligence in the world,
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but if you are
predisposed not to believe it,
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it doesn't really make
that much difference.
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And when he receives
a report from his master agent
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in the German air force
that Hitler is planning
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an imminent invasion
of Russia...
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He says Hitler
would not be so stupid
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because he doesn't
even realize
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what he's dealing with,
the scale of the Soviet Union.
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Both Stalin and Hitler have
read deeply into history.
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Stalin has studied
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the great German Prussian
statesman Bismarck.
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Bismarck thought that
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a war on two fronts was
an extremely bad idea.
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Germany remains at war
with Great Britain,
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and Stalin doesn't believe
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Hitler would open
a second front.
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Stalin thinks
it very unlikely
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that Hitler will invade
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because he thinks Hitler
is a sort of rational,
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Bismarckian player.
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And in that sense,
he misread Hitler.
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But Hitler believes
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that he is destined
to lead Germany to greatness.
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Hitler is nothing
if not arrogant.
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He believes
he's better than Bismarck,
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better than just
about anybody else
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who's ever lived before him.
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Hitler finalizes the details
of Operation Barbarossa,
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proposed date of invasion,
May 1941.
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The plan is to overwhelm
the Red Army
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and topple the regime
within two months,
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well before
the Russian winter sets in.
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A lightning blow
against the Russians
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that will prove
once and for all
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that he, Hitler, and Germany,
are unconquerable.
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The offensive is divided
into three giant army groups,
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each with
a specific objective.
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Going from north to south,
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the first army group
is Army Group North,
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which moves along the Baltic,
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and its final
operational goal is Leningrad.
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The center of the invasion
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is Army Group Center.
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It's the largest force by far
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and it is going toward Moscow.
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Army Group South
is moving through
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what we would now call Ukraine
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to secure resources
and eventually,
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the historic Ukrainian capital
of Kiev.
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But in the spring of 1941,
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the Nazis face a challenge
in the Balkans
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in Southeastern Europe.
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Hitler is forced to send
an army into Yugoslavia
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to crush an anti-Nazi coup.
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His infantry then marches
into neighboring Greece
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to help his Italian ally,
Benito Mussolini.
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Hitler has been cleaning up
this mess in the Balkans.
258
00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:04,630
And so it's now
a five-week delay
259
00:15:04,630 --> 00:15:06,570
in the start
of Operation Barbarossa.
260
00:15:08,500 --> 00:15:10,970
The Kremlin receives
more intelligence
261
00:15:10,970 --> 00:15:13,970
that the Germans are
preparing an invasion.
262
00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:21,370
Stalin dismisses it all.
263
00:15:21,370 --> 00:15:24,330
And he doesn't stop
sending Soviet grain,
264
00:15:24,330 --> 00:15:27,070
oil, and steel into Germany.
265
00:15:36,230 --> 00:15:39,370
June 22nd, 1941.
266
00:15:39,370 --> 00:15:43,400
As dawn breaks,
over 3 million German soldiers
267
00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:47,200
poured across the border
into Soviet territory.
268
00:15:49,230 --> 00:15:53,370
Operation Barbarossa
is launched.
269
00:16:09,270 --> 00:16:12,030
It's the biggest
invasion force
270
00:16:12,030 --> 00:16:14,200
in the history
of human warfare.
271
00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:16,430
It's just so vast,
272
00:16:16,430 --> 00:16:19,170
it's difficult
to get one's mind around it.
273
00:16:22,930 --> 00:16:25,400
If you just take
the Eastern Front,
274
00:16:25,400 --> 00:16:26,900
it's like trying to invade
the United States
275
00:16:26,900 --> 00:16:29,100
from San Diego to Seattle.
276
00:16:29,100 --> 00:16:32,900
It is by itself the largest war
that's ever happened.
277
00:16:32,900 --> 00:16:34,270
That's crazy.
278
00:16:37,570 --> 00:16:40,300
It's 3,000 tanks,
279
00:16:40,300 --> 00:16:41,830
2,700 aircraft,
280
00:16:41,830 --> 00:16:44,270
another 7,000
artillery pieces,
281
00:16:44,270 --> 00:16:45,670
600,000 vehicles.
282
00:16:48,370 --> 00:16:52,100
It is massive on a scale no
one else has ever seen before.
283
00:16:56,470 --> 00:16:59,670
This is the largest army
that's ever been organized
284
00:16:59,670 --> 00:17:01,700
in modern European terms.
285
00:17:01,700 --> 00:17:03,300
This is 3 million men
286
00:17:03,300 --> 00:17:06,300
spread across a couple
thousand miles of front.
287
00:17:06,300 --> 00:17:10,970
300 divisions, including
19 Panzer divisions.
288
00:17:10,970 --> 00:17:12,530
This is a big force.
289
00:17:17,130 --> 00:17:21,700
This is German manpower
moving east.
290
00:17:21,700 --> 00:17:25,830
This is the culmination
of all of the dreams,
291
00:17:25,830 --> 00:17:29,700
the hopes that Hitler has
put into his leadership.
292
00:17:29,700 --> 00:17:33,770
This is going to be the future
of Germany in the East.
293
00:17:35,470 --> 00:17:38,530
Hitler thinks that
the Soviet system is so rotten
294
00:17:38,530 --> 00:17:40,330
that he just has to kick
in the barn door
295
00:17:40,330 --> 00:17:41,970
and the whole structure
is going to collapse.
296
00:17:44,400 --> 00:17:48,330
The Wehrmacht moves fast.
297
00:17:48,330 --> 00:17:50,170
In just a few hours,
298
00:17:50,170 --> 00:17:54,070
miles of Soviet territory
is overrun.
299
00:17:57,070 --> 00:18:01,030
The invasion seems
to be going according to plan.
300
00:18:12,330 --> 00:18:14,930
On the morning
of the invasion,
301
00:18:14,930 --> 00:18:18,730
Stalin is awoken
by his chief of staff.
302
00:18:21,170 --> 00:18:23,270
The phone rings
in Stalin's bedroom
303
00:18:23,270 --> 00:18:25,170
and Stalin answers it.
304
00:18:25,170 --> 00:18:28,370
And he just says,
the war has started.
305
00:18:28,370 --> 00:18:29,530
And then silence
306
00:18:29,530 --> 00:18:32,100
and he can just
hear Stalin breathing
307
00:18:32,100 --> 00:18:35,270
as he kind of wakes up
and absorbs this information.
308
00:18:43,770 --> 00:18:48,030
The German advance is fast,
it's furious,
309
00:18:48,030 --> 00:18:50,870
it's efficient, it's brutal.
310
00:18:55,570 --> 00:18:57,770
Adolf Hitler today
launched his fast,
311
00:18:57,770 --> 00:19:00,970
mobile Panzer divisions
against what may be
312
00:19:00,970 --> 00:19:03,230
the largest mass army
of the world,
313
00:19:03,230 --> 00:19:05,100
the Red Army
of communist Russia.
314
00:19:10,130 --> 00:19:12,730
The Red Army
and the Soviet Air Force
315
00:19:12,730 --> 00:19:14,530
are caught unprepared.
316
00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:27,770
On the very first day...
317
00:19:27,770 --> 00:19:29,870
the German Luftwaffe
report that
318
00:19:29,870 --> 00:19:33,070
they've destroyed nearly
the 2,000 Soviet aircraft
319
00:19:33,070 --> 00:19:36,330
both in the air
and on the ground.
320
00:19:36,330 --> 00:19:39,630
Russian airfields
were bombed.
321
00:19:39,630 --> 00:19:43,470
Russian cities were bombed.
322
00:19:43,470 --> 00:19:45,670
All hell was let loose.
323
00:19:55,270 --> 00:19:58,530
The Soviets do resist bravely.
324
00:19:58,530 --> 00:20:02,330
But they are
constantly outmaneuvered,
325
00:20:02,330 --> 00:20:05,300
captured almost immediately.
326
00:20:05,300 --> 00:20:09,000
The vast Soviet army
is already in freefall.
327
00:20:14,830 --> 00:20:17,700
The opening days of
Barbarossa are Hitler's dream.
328
00:20:17,700 --> 00:20:19,100
It goes incredibly well.
329
00:20:19,100 --> 00:20:23,400
The forces are racing through
former Poland,
330
00:20:23,400 --> 00:20:25,300
they go across Byelorussia,
331
00:20:25,300 --> 00:20:28,500
they get through
the Baltic states.
332
00:20:28,500 --> 00:20:30,000
It's just amazing.
333
00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:31,470
It's like a hot knife
cutting through butter.
334
00:20:33,870 --> 00:20:37,700
In just the first week,
the Wehrmacht pushed 300 miles
335
00:20:37,700 --> 00:20:42,570
into Soviet territory,
capturing over 400,000 troops.
336
00:20:44,730 --> 00:20:46,870
The Russians are
simply being stampeded
337
00:20:46,870 --> 00:20:49,400
by a much more savvy
German force.
338
00:20:52,430 --> 00:20:54,130
During the Great Terror,
339
00:20:54,130 --> 00:20:57,430
Stalin dismantled
the leadership of the army,
340
00:20:57,430 --> 00:21:01,570
executing thousands of
experienced military officers.
341
00:21:06,500 --> 00:21:08,600
It is on a colossal scale.
342
00:21:08,600 --> 00:21:13,930
3 of 5 field marshals,
13 of 15 army commanders,
343
00:21:13,930 --> 00:21:18,330
50 of 57 corps commanders,
45% of all brigadier generals,
344
00:21:18,330 --> 00:21:22,530
50% of all colonels
have been executed.
345
00:21:22,530 --> 00:21:27,500
The leadership of the Soviet
armed forces is not in place.
346
00:21:29,500 --> 00:21:32,270
Stalin had decapitated
his own army.
347
00:21:32,270 --> 00:21:34,000
He put younger men
in their place,
348
00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:36,030
but they weren't experienced
and sometimes, they
349
00:21:36,030 --> 00:21:39,530
were little more than Stalin
loyalists or party hacks.
350
00:21:39,530 --> 00:21:40,830
They're rookies.
351
00:21:40,830 --> 00:21:42,830
This is an army
that has suddenly been
352
00:21:42,830 --> 00:21:45,770
reduced to kind of
the teething level.
353
00:21:49,170 --> 00:21:54,130
Some Soviets initially
welcome the Germans.
354
00:21:55,600 --> 00:21:57,900
They even tear down
Communist statues
355
00:21:57,900 --> 00:22:00,200
raised in Stalin's honor.
356
00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:11,500
On June 28th,
357
00:22:11,500 --> 00:22:14,300
Hitler's Army Group Center
reaches Minsk,
358
00:22:14,300 --> 00:22:16,370
the capital of Belorussia,
359
00:22:16,370 --> 00:22:19,830
just over 400 miles
from Moscow.
360
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:24,400
The Germans keep coming.
361
00:22:24,400 --> 00:22:28,470
Those 3 million Nazi troops
keep advancing ruthlessly.
362
00:22:28,470 --> 00:22:31,230
And Stalin is ordering
counterattacks
363
00:22:31,230 --> 00:22:32,870
that never happen.
364
00:22:32,870 --> 00:22:35,400
It's just chaos out there.
365
00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:38,700
There was now
a very palpable sense
366
00:22:38,700 --> 00:22:42,200
of paranoia and fear
that the Germans
367
00:22:42,200 --> 00:22:47,830
now might be able to advance
as far as Moscow.
368
00:22:49,930 --> 00:22:53,630
At the Kremlin,
the news reaches Stalin.
369
00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:58,370
Stalin suddenly realizes
370
00:22:58,370 --> 00:23:01,030
that he's lost control
of the Soviet Union.
371
00:23:01,030 --> 00:23:03,630
He's lost control
of the invasion.
372
00:23:03,630 --> 00:23:05,870
He turns to Molotov
and he just says,
373
00:23:05,870 --> 00:23:07,570
everything's lost.
374
00:23:07,570 --> 00:23:09,670
So many lands have been lost.
375
00:23:11,670 --> 00:23:13,470
He's not simply
talking about the army.
376
00:23:13,470 --> 00:23:15,430
He's talking about
the revolution.
377
00:23:15,430 --> 00:23:17,330
He's talking about the first
proletarian dictatorship,
378
00:23:17,330 --> 00:23:18,930
the birthplace of communism.
379
00:23:18,930 --> 00:23:22,600
All this, he says, has been
flushed down the toilet.
380
00:23:22,600 --> 00:23:24,700
,
he says.
381
00:23:26,570 --> 00:23:28,970
Stalin retreats
to his dacha,
382
00:23:28,970 --> 00:23:32,400
his country home
outside Moscow,
383
00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:36,270
and shuts himself off
completely.
384
00:23:36,270 --> 00:23:46,270
At this crucial moment, the
Soviet Union has no leader.
385
00:23:48,770 --> 00:23:53,400
As the Wehrmacht tears
through Soviet territory,
386
00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:58,430
Stalin has not left
his country house.
387
00:23:58,430 --> 00:24:00,100
Some of his closest aides
388
00:24:00,100 --> 00:24:03,700
fear he's suffering
a nervous breakdown.
389
00:24:03,700 --> 00:24:06,970
Back in the Kremlin,
there's total panic.
390
00:24:06,970 --> 00:24:08,500
So finally, Molotov says,
391
00:24:08,500 --> 00:24:10,730
we've all got to go out
to see Stalin
392
00:24:10,730 --> 00:24:11,900
and to tell him to come back.
393
00:24:13,130 --> 00:24:16,830
So they drive out, and Stalin
is sitting in a chair,
394
00:24:16,830 --> 00:24:20,330
pale, thinner, exhausted.
395
00:24:20,330 --> 00:24:22,670
He says,
what have you come for?
396
00:24:22,670 --> 00:24:24,900
They say, come back.
Lead us.
397
00:24:24,900 --> 00:24:26,170
We can't do this without you.
398
00:24:28,500 --> 00:24:33,100
Molotov persuades Stalin
to return to the Kremlin,
399
00:24:33,100 --> 00:24:36,530
where he speaks directly
to the Soviet people.
400
00:24:39,170 --> 00:24:42,030
But instead of
talking about communism,
401
00:24:42,030 --> 00:24:45,200
he evokes their sense
of history, honor,
402
00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:47,630
and national pride.
403
00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:58,170
Stalin appeals
to Mother Russia.
404
00:24:58,170 --> 00:25:02,130
He appeals to the sorts
of attitudes
405
00:25:02,130 --> 00:25:04,230
and spirit of the people.
406
00:25:04,230 --> 00:25:05,970
He could have been the tsar
407
00:25:05,970 --> 00:25:09,070
in the way that the tsar might
have appealed to the people.
408
00:25:27,330 --> 00:25:30,000
This is a really smart,
canny move.
409
00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:32,300
This is a wonderful way
to unite the society
410
00:25:32,300 --> 00:25:35,530
in a way that
brings people together.
411
00:25:35,530 --> 00:25:37,730
We have the same enemy
412
00:25:37,730 --> 00:25:39,500
and Mother Russia
is at stake here,
413
00:25:39,500 --> 00:25:41,100
so rally to the cause.
414
00:25:44,770 --> 00:25:46,930
Tens of millions
of Soviet peoples
415
00:25:46,930 --> 00:25:49,770
are moved by Stalin's words.
416
00:25:49,770 --> 00:25:52,530
He appoints himself
supreme commander-in-chief,
417
00:25:52,530 --> 00:25:56,270
and he takes complete control
of the war effort.
418
00:25:58,030 --> 00:26:02,070
The Soviets also begin
to receive unexpected support
419
00:26:02,070 --> 00:26:04,030
from the West.
420
00:26:04,030 --> 00:26:07,170
The Soviet Union
is now acquiring sympathy
421
00:26:07,170 --> 00:26:09,430
from Winston Churchill
in London,
422
00:26:09,430 --> 00:26:11,970
from President Roosevelt
in Washington.
423
00:26:11,970 --> 00:26:14,800
These countries
will offer Stalin aid.
424
00:26:16,730 --> 00:26:20,600
Roosevelt sends to Moscow
his closest advisor,
425
00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:22,600
Harry Hopkins, to find out
426
00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:26,070
how America can support
the Soviet Union.
427
00:26:26,070 --> 00:26:28,100
At the airport,
our camera filmed the arrival
428
00:26:28,100 --> 00:26:30,500
of Mr. Harry Hopkins,
who conferred with Stalin
429
00:26:30,500 --> 00:26:32,830
on Russia's immediate need.
430
00:26:32,830 --> 00:26:34,400
But it will be some time
431
00:26:34,400 --> 00:26:36,630
before Western aid
will arrive.
432
00:26:49,730 --> 00:26:53,970
By mid-July, the Red Army
has lost nearly 4,000 tanks
433
00:26:53,970 --> 00:26:57,000
and over 6,000 aircraft.
434
00:26:59,600 --> 00:27:03,730
2 million soldiers have
been captured or killed.
435
00:27:05,800 --> 00:27:10,400
Troops taken prisoner are
sent to German work camps
436
00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:12,270
or left to starve.
437
00:27:16,370 --> 00:27:20,400
It becomes the most pitiless
campaign ever launched,
438
00:27:20,400 --> 00:27:22,330
I think, in modern history.
439
00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:25,870
They were rounded up
in their thousands
440
00:27:25,870 --> 00:27:27,630
and hardly given any food.
441
00:27:27,630 --> 00:27:30,030
In fact, they would just throw
loaves over the barbed wire
442
00:27:30,030 --> 00:27:32,700
and laugh when the prisoners
fought amongst themselves
443
00:27:32,700 --> 00:27:35,030
because they were starving.
444
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:45,070
The Nazis also
target civilians.
445
00:27:45,070 --> 00:27:47,930
Both the army and the SS
are ordered to eradicate
446
00:27:47,930 --> 00:27:49,630
all resistance.
447
00:27:49,630 --> 00:27:52,800
Hitler's guidelines
for the conduct of his troops
448
00:27:52,800 --> 00:27:55,370
issued ahead of Barbarossa
demand ruthless
449
00:27:55,370 --> 00:27:58,600
and energetic measures
against political agitators,
450
00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:00,970
saboteurs, and Jews.
451
00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:06,130
They give the army
carte blanche
452
00:28:06,130 --> 00:28:09,830
to do exactly what they want
to the populations
453
00:28:09,830 --> 00:28:13,200
as they swarm over
the borderlands.
454
00:28:14,630 --> 00:28:15,700
This is where
we start to talk about
455
00:28:15,700 --> 00:28:17,300
the idea of total war.
456
00:28:17,300 --> 00:28:20,730
We are now gonna literally
target civilians on purpose.
457
00:28:30,530 --> 00:28:34,670
But the Soviets begin
to fight back.
458
00:28:34,670 --> 00:28:37,200
Partisans raid
German outposts
459
00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:41,800
and Stalin demands
a scorched earth policy.
460
00:28:41,800 --> 00:28:45,730
People are told to burn
everything as they flee,
461
00:28:45,730 --> 00:28:49,430
depriving the Nazis
of food and shelter
462
00:28:49,430 --> 00:28:51,270
as the German army marches
463
00:28:51,270 --> 00:28:56,300
into the immensity
of the Soviet Union.
464
00:28:56,300 --> 00:28:59,000
The terrain
in this part of Russia
465
00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:01,270
is like the Great Plains
of the United States.
466
00:29:01,270 --> 00:29:05,670
I mean, it's like being
in Nebraska or Iowa,
467
00:29:05,670 --> 00:29:08,030
flat seas of grass.
468
00:29:10,070 --> 00:29:12,600
When you start with a front
a thousand miles long,
469
00:29:12,600 --> 00:29:16,000
and as they advance,
it gets to 2,000 miles,
470
00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:17,670
they don't know how
to deal with an area
471
00:29:17,670 --> 00:29:22,230
where the armies are operating
like ships at sea.
472
00:29:22,230 --> 00:29:23,970
There is no running
out of territory
473
00:29:23,970 --> 00:29:25,570
when you're fighting
the Soviets.
474
00:29:25,570 --> 00:29:28,730
There's always more territory
to retreat to.
475
00:29:30,930 --> 00:29:32,430
By the end of July,
476
00:29:32,430 --> 00:29:35,970
the German army has
progressed over 400 miles.
477
00:29:35,970 --> 00:29:37,670
But their advance is slowing
478
00:29:37,670 --> 00:29:40,870
and supply lines are
being stretched.
479
00:29:40,870 --> 00:29:45,130
Every army has to understand
that if it advances rapidly,
480
00:29:45,130 --> 00:29:47,330
it can outrun its supplies.
481
00:29:47,330 --> 00:29:50,300
They always say, you know,
amateurs talk tactics,
482
00:29:50,300 --> 00:29:52,830
professionals talk logistics.
483
00:29:52,830 --> 00:29:57,730
Tank repair, replenishment
of ammunition, food, uniforms,
484
00:29:57,730 --> 00:30:01,570
it just consumed
the German armed forces.
485
00:30:01,570 --> 00:30:04,330
Eventually, every force
will reach what's called
486
00:30:04,330 --> 00:30:06,100
a culminating point
487
00:30:06,100 --> 00:30:08,530
where you've simply
exhausted the men,
488
00:30:08,530 --> 00:30:09,900
outrun the supplies,
489
00:30:09,900 --> 00:30:11,830
hit something
you can't overcome.
490
00:30:11,830 --> 00:30:14,530
Your combat power
has been expended.
491
00:30:16,800 --> 00:30:18,370
As German commanders
and their men
492
00:30:18,370 --> 00:30:22,530
confront the magnitude
of their task,
493
00:30:22,530 --> 00:30:24,200
Hitler faces perhaps
494
00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:31,470
the greatest test
of his leadership.
495
00:30:38,370 --> 00:30:40,930
It's been six weeks
since German troops
496
00:30:40,930 --> 00:30:44,500
stormed into Soviet territory.
497
00:30:44,500 --> 00:30:47,270
Hitler visits his men
on the front.
498
00:30:49,770 --> 00:30:53,900
He meets with his commanders
to discuss strategy.
499
00:30:53,900 --> 00:30:58,870
The army groups are no longer
moving at the same pace.
500
00:31:00,170 --> 00:31:04,130
Army Group Center has
pushed too far ahead.
501
00:31:04,130 --> 00:31:08,670
It is only about 200 miles
outside Moscow.
502
00:31:08,670 --> 00:31:14,070
But its supply lines
are perilously thin.
503
00:31:14,070 --> 00:31:16,630
That's a real problem if
you're a operational planner.
504
00:31:16,630 --> 00:31:22,270
You have one thrust that's
hanging out there on a limb.
505
00:31:22,270 --> 00:31:27,230
The German high command is
divided about what to do next.
506
00:31:27,230 --> 00:31:29,930
Some of Hitler's generals
want to continue pushing
507
00:31:29,930 --> 00:31:35,570
towards Moscow and capture the
capital before winter sets in.
508
00:31:35,570 --> 00:31:37,970
Hitler believes if he
and the German armies
509
00:31:37,970 --> 00:31:42,100
can overrun Ukraine, it'll
undercut the economic basis
510
00:31:42,100 --> 00:31:45,200
of Stalin's dictatorship
and undercut the economic basis
511
00:31:45,200 --> 00:31:47,800
of the Soviets
continuing the war.
512
00:31:49,670 --> 00:31:51,270
And so the decision is made
513
00:31:51,270 --> 00:31:54,430
to hold the tanks from
their thrust against Moscow,
514
00:31:54,430 --> 00:31:58,430
then send a vast force
into the Ukraine.
515
00:32:06,870 --> 00:32:08,670
On September 18th,
516
00:32:08,670 --> 00:32:12,600
the city of Kiev
is encircled by the Nazis.
517
00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:14,400
Kiev is enormously important
518
00:32:14,400 --> 00:32:17,030
because Kiev in and of itself
is the control of Ukraine.
519
00:32:17,030 --> 00:32:18,230
And what's Ukraine?
520
00:32:18,230 --> 00:32:20,400
Ukraine is the breadbasket
of Europe.
521
00:32:22,730 --> 00:32:25,330
So there's a huge
encirclement battle at Kiev,
522
00:32:25,330 --> 00:32:29,400
one of the biggest battles
thus far in the war.
523
00:32:29,400 --> 00:32:30,900
Feuer.
524
00:32:46,070 --> 00:32:49,370
With the Panzer groups
coming from the north,
525
00:32:49,370 --> 00:32:52,100
from the central axis,
526
00:32:52,100 --> 00:32:55,330
and also in the south.
527
00:32:55,330 --> 00:32:59,730
They capture 600,000 troops.
It's staggering.
528
00:32:59,730 --> 00:33:03,730
One's never imagined a battle
like that in the past.
529
00:33:03,730 --> 00:33:06,830
Hitler keeps on saying
they can't go on providing
530
00:33:06,830 --> 00:33:09,970
more troops for us to surround
in this particular way.
531
00:33:09,970 --> 00:33:11,370
They're gonna collapse
at any moment.
532
00:33:17,130 --> 00:33:20,070
With over half his
forces resupplied...
533
00:33:25,230 --> 00:33:27,200
Hitler turns to Moscow.
534
00:33:35,170 --> 00:33:38,800
The Wehrmacht forces
progress very, very rapidly.
535
00:33:38,800 --> 00:33:41,570
They get so close
to the city of Moscow,
536
00:33:41,570 --> 00:33:45,330
you can actually see the towers
of the city center.
537
00:33:45,330 --> 00:33:47,870
People were, obviously,
scared at the prospect
538
00:33:47,870 --> 00:33:49,400
of what was likely to happen.
539
00:33:49,400 --> 00:33:51,000
But at the same time, by now,
540
00:33:51,000 --> 00:33:52,970
there was a determination
to fight back.
541
00:33:55,800 --> 00:33:58,900
They are preparing
the defenses of the city.
542
00:33:58,900 --> 00:34:02,530
Men and women are
out digging ditches.
543
00:34:02,530 --> 00:34:06,600
Everything is ready for a
last-ditch defense of Moscow.
544
00:34:06,600 --> 00:34:09,400
That is,
Moscow will be defended
545
00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,270
to the last drop of blood.
546
00:34:13,130 --> 00:34:16,170
Stalin considers evacuating
the Soviet government
547
00:34:16,170 --> 00:34:21,170
to a city on the River Volga,
over 500 miles away,
548
00:34:21,170 --> 00:34:26,530
Stalin's staff begin to
prepare his own library,
549
00:34:26,530 --> 00:34:32,300
his own houses, to be evacuated
and to abandon Moscow.
550
00:34:32,300 --> 00:34:35,800
But Stalin is very aware
of appearance.
551
00:34:35,800 --> 00:34:38,370
He's always thinking
about history.
552
00:34:38,370 --> 00:34:43,330
He knows if Stalin leaves
Moscow, Moscow will fall.
553
00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:49,070
Many people think that the
regime is about to collapse.
554
00:34:49,070 --> 00:34:51,830
For the first time, it looks
like the Communist Party
555
00:34:51,830 --> 00:34:53,970
is actually about
to be toppled.
556
00:34:56,330 --> 00:35:00,270
At the last moment,
Stalin decides to stay.
557
00:35:04,670 --> 00:35:10,770
The German army is poised
to capture Moscow.
558
00:35:10,770 --> 00:35:12,930
But Stalin has an ally.
559
00:35:17,830 --> 00:35:20,170
General Winter.
560
00:35:30,730 --> 00:35:34,530
Four months into the
invasion of the Soviet Union,
561
00:35:34,530 --> 00:35:38,630
the German army
faces a new enemy.
562
00:35:38,630 --> 00:35:40,730
It was always said
that Russia's greatest general
563
00:35:40,730 --> 00:35:42,370
was General Winter.
564
00:35:42,370 --> 00:35:44,970
So the Russians were
much better prepared
565
00:35:44,970 --> 00:35:48,000
for winter than the Germans.
566
00:35:51,670 --> 00:35:53,100
So what happens
in the Soviet Union,
567
00:35:53,100 --> 00:35:54,670
if you're on the path
toward Moscow,
568
00:35:54,670 --> 00:35:57,000
as invaders have found
over the centuries,
569
00:35:57,000 --> 00:35:59,070
the weather turns bad,
it rains,
570
00:35:59,070 --> 00:36:01,030
and a very inadequate
road network
571
00:36:01,030 --> 00:36:02,970
now gets turned into mud.
572
00:36:02,970 --> 00:36:06,500
The Russians call it
rasputitsa, the roadless time.
573
00:36:09,830 --> 00:36:11,500
This is not like normal mud.
574
00:36:11,500 --> 00:36:15,600
You can't move and you
can't bring supplies forward.
575
00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:18,400
General Mud
slows the German advance
576
00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:21,370
at a time when they're trying
to beat the clock here.
577
00:36:21,370 --> 00:36:23,600
Then when it gets really cold,
578
00:36:23,600 --> 00:36:27,070
you see an entirely different
situation.
579
00:36:27,070 --> 00:36:30,300
The soldiers start freezing.
580
00:36:30,300 --> 00:36:32,800
By November,
temperatures are plummeting
581
00:36:32,800 --> 00:36:36,470
to as low as -40 degrees
Fahrenheit,
582
00:36:36,470 --> 00:36:41,430
devastating the Wehrmacht's
men and supply lines.
583
00:36:41,430 --> 00:36:43,600
These German
soldiers were fighting
584
00:36:43,600 --> 00:36:46,830
with frozen steel
with their bare hands,
585
00:36:46,830 --> 00:36:49,630
unable to service
their weapons,
586
00:36:49,630 --> 00:36:51,270
so the weapons jam,
587
00:36:51,270 --> 00:36:54,900
the lubricants freeze
on the tanks,
588
00:36:54,900 --> 00:36:58,230
they have to build fires
under the tanks at night
589
00:36:58,230 --> 00:37:00,670
to keep the oil loose enough.
590
00:37:00,670 --> 00:37:05,100
Everything degrades
their combat performance.
591
00:37:05,100 --> 00:37:08,300
Hitler told them they were
going to be the all-conquering
592
00:37:08,300 --> 00:37:10,170
master race of Europe.
593
00:37:10,170 --> 00:37:11,970
They're cold,
and they're tired,
594
00:37:11,970 --> 00:37:14,970
and they probably haven't had
a square meal in two weeks.
595
00:37:16,800 --> 00:37:19,770
An invading army has
been here before.
596
00:37:19,770 --> 00:37:24,470
Napoleon Bonaparte had tried
to seize Russia in 1812.
597
00:37:24,470 --> 00:37:27,570
Napoleon invades Russia,
takes Moscow,
598
00:37:27,570 --> 00:37:30,470
but as winter comes,
is defeated
599
00:37:30,470 --> 00:37:34,700
by the unconquerable vastness
of Russia and the cold.
600
00:37:34,700 --> 00:37:37,500
And in the end,
the retreat from Moscow
601
00:37:37,500 --> 00:37:39,970
really destroys
Napoleon's empire.
602
00:37:43,400 --> 00:37:46,800
But Hitler ignores
the lessons of history.
603
00:37:46,800 --> 00:37:51,000
He orders his troops forward
to take Moscow.
604
00:37:53,570 --> 00:37:55,370
Stalin still has
a fear that there'll
605
00:37:55,370 --> 00:37:58,330
be some breakthroughs into
the heart of Moscow itself.
606
00:37:58,330 --> 00:38:00,700
But, you know, something
happens in this period.
607
00:38:00,700 --> 00:38:03,500
A piece of intelligence
comes across his desk
608
00:38:03,500 --> 00:38:06,830
that for once,
he's willing to listen to.
609
00:38:06,830 --> 00:38:09,270
And it comes from his agent
in Japan.
610
00:38:16,100 --> 00:38:19,270
The intelligence from
Stalin's agent in Tokyo
611
00:38:19,270 --> 00:38:21,730
suggests that Japan
will not attack
612
00:38:21,730 --> 00:38:24,430
the Soviets' eastern border.
613
00:38:24,430 --> 00:38:29,070
Instead, Japan is planning
to move south against British,
614
00:38:29,070 --> 00:38:34,270
French, and Dutch colonies
in Asia, and perhaps against
615
00:38:34,270 --> 00:38:38,330
the United States
in the Philippines.
616
00:38:38,330 --> 00:38:41,570
So Stalin transfers
400,000 troops
617
00:38:41,570 --> 00:38:46,130
that were stationed in the
Soviet Far East to Moscow.
618
00:38:48,500 --> 00:38:51,170
A whole new army.
619
00:38:51,170 --> 00:38:55,230
Fresh, untouched, fully manned,
tanks, howitzers, planes.
620
00:38:57,630 --> 00:38:59,930
This is
the Siberian reserve.
621
00:38:59,930 --> 00:39:04,130
These are troops dressed in
heavy white parkas, ski troops.
622
00:39:04,130 --> 00:39:06,870
They're used to operating
in the cold.
623
00:39:10,500 --> 00:39:12,100
In November,
624
00:39:12,100 --> 00:39:15,370
with some German units
just 21 miles from Moscow...
625
00:39:18,570 --> 00:39:20,700
Stalin celebrates
the anniversary
626
00:39:20,700 --> 00:39:25,100
of the Russian Revolution
in Red Square.
627
00:39:44,370 --> 00:39:48,670
Marching in the parade are
Stalin's Siberian divisions.
628
00:39:52,300 --> 00:39:55,430
They were not raw recruits
being sent to the front.
629
00:39:55,430 --> 00:39:58,770
They were trained and
experienced hard-line soldiers.
630
00:40:00,770 --> 00:40:05,730
The defense of Moscow
is largely in their hands.
631
00:40:30,600 --> 00:40:34,900
On December 5th, Stalin
launches his counteroffensive.
632
00:40:49,700 --> 00:40:54,400
It catches the Germans at
their worst possible moment.
633
00:40:54,400 --> 00:40:56,470
They're tired, they're hungry,
they're sick,
634
00:40:56,470 --> 00:40:59,800
they're freezing to death,
they're out of supplies.
635
00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:07,430
And the Soviet offensive
sweeps all before it.
636
00:41:21,430 --> 00:41:23,630
The Germans are
completely stunned
637
00:41:23,630 --> 00:41:26,800
and they are thrown back
over 100 miles.
638
00:41:26,800 --> 00:41:29,930
It's an astonishingly
successful counteroffensive
639
00:41:29,930 --> 00:41:32,730
and Moscow is safe.
640
00:41:35,070 --> 00:41:36,530
Over the next weeks,
641
00:41:36,530 --> 00:41:40,200
Soviet troops
halt the Wehrmacht
642
00:41:40,200 --> 00:41:42,530
and begin
to push the Germans back.
643
00:41:46,430 --> 00:41:49,870
Stalin has stemmed the tide.
644
00:41:51,770 --> 00:41:53,970
The defeat of the German
drive on Moscow
645
00:41:53,970 --> 00:41:55,800
and the near-destruction
of the Germans
646
00:41:55,800 --> 00:41:59,000
is a sea change
for both Hitler and Stalin.
647
00:41:59,000 --> 00:42:01,870
Hitler now has to look
at a scene of desperation
648
00:42:01,870 --> 00:42:06,870
and trying to rebuild his army
in the Soviet Union.
649
00:42:06,870 --> 00:42:10,570
Stalin now not only knows
that he's going to survive,
650
00:42:10,570 --> 00:42:13,000
he also knows that he's going
to be able to launch
651
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:17,170
one hammer blow after the
other against the Germans.
652
00:42:19,870 --> 00:42:22,570
Designed to be another
victorious blitzkrieg,
653
00:42:22,570 --> 00:42:26,600
Operation Barbarossa descends
into a deadly stalemate
654
00:42:26,600 --> 00:42:28,030
for the Germans.
655
00:42:28,030 --> 00:42:29,870
In the free West,
President Roosevelt
656
00:42:29,870 --> 00:42:31,630
and Prime Minister Churchill
657
00:42:31,630 --> 00:42:36,100
provide support to the Red Army
to wear down the Nazi invaders.
658
00:42:36,100 --> 00:42:38,070
Across the Pacific,
659
00:42:38,070 --> 00:42:41,830
a new power has been
building its own empire,
660
00:42:41,830 --> 00:42:45,500
one that will attempt
to destroy American forces
661
00:42:45,500 --> 00:42:50,530
in a single day of infamy.