22nd June 1941: Operation Barbarossa begins as German forces and their allies invade the Soviet Union during the Second World War

**Scott Allsop** (0:00)
On the 22nd of June 1941, Operation Barbarossa began when German forces and their allies invaded the Soviet Union during the Second World War. Welcome to HistoryPod.
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union had signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939, which included a non-aggression clause and secret territorial arrangements. Nevertheless, ideological hostility remained between the two states, with Adolf Hitler regarding the Soviet Union as both a political enemy and a target for territorial expansion. By the end of 1940, Hitler had authorised the invasion, with the intention of securing agricultural land and raw materials, alongside the eradication of communism. German forces were directed towards Leningrad, Moscow and Ukraine respectively. The operation relied on rapid movement, concentrated armoured attacks and air superiority, reflecting tactics previously used in campaigns in Poland and Western Europe. Although Soviet intelligence received warnings of a possible invasion, the scale and timing of the attack remained uncertain, and many Soviet units remained unprepared. In the early hours of 22 June 1941, German aircraft attacked Soviet airfields and infrastructure while ground forces crossed the frontier. More than 3 million Axis troops advanced across a front extending from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, encircling and capturing large numbers of Soviet troops. Civilian populations were affected by bombardment, occupation and mass displacement, while systematic violence targeted political officials, prisoners and Jewish communities.
Although Germany achieved major territorial gains in 1941, the invasion ultimately failed to secure a decisive victory. Meanwhile, the human cost made it one of the deadliest operations in modern history.