Armed Forces in World War II. Romanian troops

In the United States, the construction of complexes of new military enterprises has begun. The old ones were expanded and reconstructed at a rapid pace. The scale of the increase in the capacities of the military industry is given at least by the fact that the number of workers only at aircraft assembly plants by the middle of 1941 increased by 4.5 times compared to June 1939 and reached 268 thousand people, and the number of plants themselves increased from 28 to 63 (528).

The creation of new capacities in the military industry was carried out by 75 percent at the expense of the state. From June 1940 to April 1941, more than 1,600 military enterprises were under construction or expansion. $2.8 billion was spent on this, of which $2.1 billion was public funds (529). The costs of creating new capacities in the US military industry and the ratio of public and private funds in these costs can be judged from the data given in Table 10 (530).

Military enterprises built at the expense of the state were leased by the government to private firms, and the rent was purely symbolic - a dollar a year. The American monopolies made huge profits from military production. American corporate profits in 1941 (before taxes) were $17.2 billion, up from $9.3 billion in 1940 (531), an increase of 85 percent in a year.

The expansion of military construction caused an increase in industrial and agricultural production, as can be seen from table 11.

Particularly rapid during this period were the growth of engineering products, aluminum and steel smelting, the production of electricity, vehicles and ships.

In 1941, for example, 75.1 million tons of steel were smelted (in 1939 - 47.8 million tons), 280.4 thousand tons of aluminum (in 1939 - 148 thousand tons), 208.3 billion kWh of electricity (in 1939 - 161.3 billion kWh), produced 1,060 thousand trucks and 3,779 thousand cars (533). Only in a year (from July 1, 1940 to June 30, 1941) 752 new ships were built in the USA, including 33 combat ships, 20 tankers, 58 dry cargo ships and over 600 auxiliary ships (534). The output of armaments and other military products in 1941 increased by 8.7 times compared to 1939.

The build-up of the military-industrial power of the United States was accompanied in 1940-1941. a significant increase in the size of the armed forces. Beginning in May 1940, proposals were repeatedly made by the War Department and Army Headquarters to increase the US ground forces. On May 16, the government turned to Congress with a request to increase the number of privates and non-commissioned officers of the regular army to 242 thousand people. On June 4, General Marshall asked the Secretary of War to raise with the President the question of increasing the regular army to 400,000 men. A few days later, the figure was 530 thousand people (536). Calculations showed that such a number of ground forces could not be provided only on the basis of recruitment of the armed forces on the principle of hiring, as was done in the United States in the interwar period. At the urging of the War Department, on June 20, 1940, the government submitted to the Senate a bill on selective military service and military training. On September 16, the law was approved by Congress. For the first time in US history, conscription was introduced in peacetime.

With the adoption of the new law, the US ground forces increased rapidly - from 269 thousand on June 30, 1940 to 1,462 thousand by June 30, 1941, including the personnel of the Air Force, which was then part of the army, increased from 43 thousand up to 167 thousand people.

The number of US naval forces during this time increased from 189 thousand to 339 thousand people (538). As of June 30, 1941: The US Navy had 15 battleships, 6 aircraft carriers, 1 escort aircraft carrier, 18 heavy cruisers, 19 light cruisers, 168 destroyers, 113 submarines and more than 400 ships and auxiliary vessels (539). By June 30, 1941, the US ground forces had 33 divisions (26 infantry, 2 cavalry, 1 motorized and 4 tank) and 215 regiments or equal units of field and anti-aircraft artillery, engineering troops, signal troops and other reinforcement units. By this time, the US Air Force had 54 groups of combat aircraft and 6 groups of transport aircraft (the air group included three squadrons).

The armed forces were rapidly equipped with new military equipment. During the year, from July 1940 to June 1941, the army received 8,639 aircraft, 963 tanks, 7,599 artillery pieces, 4,852 mortars, 15,971 machine guns of various types, and 92,973 vehicles.

The experience of the war in Europe was taken into account in the deployment and especially in the combat training of the American armed forces. “Fighting abroad,” said the report of the US Army Chief of Staff to the Secretary of War on July 1, 1941, “is a great laboratory for improving and testing the organization of our army and its military equipment ... We have carefully studied the successes of military affairs abroad, in as a result of which our armed forces are undergoing continuous change and development. In the construction of the armed forces, emphasis was placed on increasing the mechanized troops and the air force. If on January 1, 1940 there was not a single tank division in the US Army, then a year and a half later there were already four.

In order to train specialists for the armored forces, a school was opened in Fort Knox in November 1940, in which 6 thousand officers, sergeants and privates were trained at the same time, and in early 1941 a tank training center was created for the primary training of 9 thousand drafted into the army of soldiers. The number of flight schools for two years (1939 - 1941) increased from 3 to 40. The release of pilots during this time increased by 7 times. But even this, according to the American command, was not enough to meet the growing needs of the Air Force. In the spring of 1941, a decision was made to train 30,000 pilots and 100,000 mechanics annually (544).

In the same year, a platoon of volunteer paratroopers was formed at Fort Benning, Georgia. This marked the beginning of the creation of the US Airborne Forces. The combat training of the troops was reorganized taking into account the requirements for organizing the interaction of ground forces with aviation and the navy.

The increase in the size of the armed forces forced the US ruling circles to pay more attention to the indoctrination of the American military personnel and the population. On March 14, 1941, a propaganda service was created at the War Department, directly subordinate to the Chief of Staff of the US Army. This service was entrusted with the task of determining the most effective forms and methods of indoctrination of personnel. The posts of propaganda officers were introduced to the headquarters of formations and associations, who acted as consultants to commanders who were responsible to the government for the state of morale of the troops.

In order to consolidate the efforts of the main political parties in the United States, Roosevelt introduced two prominent Republicans to the Democratic government. In July 1940, F. Knox was appointed Minister of the Navy, who in 1936 was nominated as a candidate for Vice President from the Republican Party, and G. Stimson, who served as Secretary of State in the office of Republican President H. Hoover, was appointed Secretary of War ( 547). Major representatives of monopoly capital were appointed to key positions in state bodies in charge of military production. The directorate for the production of industrial materials was headed by the president of the corporation General Motors, W. Nadsen, the directorate of transport was headed by the president of the railway company, R. Budd, etc.

The activities of the Roosevelt government provided the Democratic Party with broad support from US business circles during the election campaign of 1940. Sales Management, a monopoly organ, noted that there was an “almost complete absence” of votes at industrial conventions “with condemnation of the guy from the White House” (548). In the elections in November 1940, Roosevelt, nominated for the third time as a candidate for the presidency of the Democratic Party, defeated the Republican candidate W. Wilkie. Roosevelt received a mandate to carry out a policy, the main outlines of which were determined in the summer and autumn of 1940. His government faithfully and skillfully served the interests of the American bourgeoisie in the conditions of the outbreak of world war and, in fact, pursued a foreign policy pleasing to both parties.

Conclusion: The US bourgeoisie was united by a common desire to use military force to expand its sphere of influence in the world.

2. Pacific Theater of Operations

On the morning of December 7, 1941, 441 Japanese aircraft taking off from six aircraft carriers (these are: Akagi, Hiryu, Kaga, Shokaku, Soryu and Zuikaku) attacked the American military base Pearl Harbor. 4 battleships, 2 cruisers and 1 mine layer were sunk. Among the battleships was the battleship Arizona. The Americans lost 2,403 men.

Six hours after the attack, the American warships and submarines were ordered to begin combat operations in the ocean against Japan. President Franklin Roosevelt delivered a speech to Congress and declared war on Japan. December 11 Germany and Italy, and December 13 - Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria - declare war on the United States. On December 10, 1941, the Japanese launched an invasion of the Philippines, and captured them by April 1942, most of the American and Filipino troops were captured.

From the beginning of 1942, Japanese aircraft attacked the port of Darwin on the northern coast of Australia. There were major naval battles involving aircraft carriers in the Coral Sea on May 8 and off Midway Atoll on June 4, where the Americans scored their first victories over the Japanese. The Battle of Midway Atoll was a turning point in the Pacific War.

On the island of New Guinea, the Japanese advanced in the direction of Port Moresby, but the American-Australian troops under the command of General Douglas MacArthur stopped them. On August 7, 1942, US Marines landed on the island of Guadalcanal and captured the Japanese airfield. In October-November 1942, the Japanese launched several counterattacks, but to no avail. On February 9, 1943, the Americans completely captured Guadalcanal; in July-August 1943, they captured the southern and central part of the Solomon Islands; in November-December, they partially captured the islands of Bougainville and New Britain. On November 20-23, US Marines captured the Gilbert Islands (Tarawa Atoll), and in January and February 1944 landed on the Marshall Islands (Roy, Kwajelein and Majuro Islands).

In accordance with military doctrines, the construction of the armed forces of the capitalist states was also carried out.

British Armed Forces consisted of ground forces (army), naval (navy and naval aviation) and air forces. The regular armed forces were staffed by volunteers aged 18 to 25 years. In July 1939, a law on compulsory military service came into force in the metropolis, according to which all men who had reached the age of twenty had to serve for six months in the regular army, after which they were enrolled in the territorial army for three and a half years ( E. Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army. London, 1950, p. 373-375.). The dominions of Great Britain had their own national armed forces, which also consisted of three types and were staffed by volunteers. In the most important strategic points and bases of the empire, there were British units that performed police functions. All other parts of the English Empire contained colonial troops from local residents, which the government could use outside their territories. Data on the strength of the British armed forces by their types are given in table 15.

The king was nominally considered the supreme commander of the armed forces of the British Empire, in fact they were led by the Prime Minister of Great Britain, who headed the committee of imperial defense.

With regard to the dominions, the committee limited itself to general instructions on the development of the armed forces. The order of construction of armed forces of the colonies was completely determined by him. All decisions on this issue in the colonies were carried out by the respective ministers of war (army, navy and air force) through the governors general of the colonies, and in India - through the viceroy.

Proceeding from the general military doctrine, the main attention in the development of the armed forces was given to the fleet and the air force.

By the beginning of World War II, the British fleet consisted of 15 battleships and battlecruisers, 7 aircraft carriers, 64 cruisers, 184 destroyers, 45 minesweepers and coastal defense ships, 58 submarines ( Encyclopedia Britannica. Vol. 23. Chicago-London, 1973, p. 780 C.). Some ships, including 2 battleships, were reconstructed, 4 obsolete battleships could only be used for escort service. Coastal Command Aviation had 232 combat aircraft, grouped into 17 squadrons ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, page 46.); about 500 aircraft were on aircraft carriers and 490 in reserve ( PRO. Cab., 23/97, p. 126.).

Organizationally, the British fleet included the fleet of the mother country, the Mediterranean, the eastern and the reserve. In addition, there were fleets and formations of ships in the dominions. As part of the fleets, the ships were consolidated into squadrons of battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, fleets of destroyers and submarines.

Most of the mother country's fleet was based at Scapa Flow, and some of its ships were at the Humber and Portland naval bases. The West Indian station operated in the Western Atlantic (4 cruisers), and the South Atlantic station (8 cruisers) operated in the South Atlantic. The Mediterranean Fleet was based in Gibraltar and Alexandria, the Eastern Fleet was stationed mainly in Singapore. A detachment of light forces operated in the Red Sea. In addition, there was an East Chinese station (4 cruisers) in the waters of China.

The military leadership of Great Britain believed that superiority over the fleets of Germany and Italy in large surface ships would ensure the safety of sea communications, and expected to overcome the possible threat from German submarines with the help of new means of detecting them, which were introduced on the ships of the British fleet. The plans of the British Admiralty took into account that if Japan entered the war, the British fleet, located in the Far East, would be much weaker than the enemy fleet.

After the revision of the "air doctrine" in connection with the emergence of new views on the use of aviation in the late 30s, the rearmament and reorganization of the air force began. In 1936, three commands were organized in their composition: fighter, bomber and coastal ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 179.). In November 1938, Plan M was approved in Great Britain, according to which it was supposed to have 163 squadrons (2549 first-line combat aircraft) in the metropolis in the coming years, and 49 squadrons (636 aircraft) at overseas bases ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, page 53.).

However, Plan M could not be fully implemented, and by the beginning of the Second World War, there were 78 squadrons in the metropolis (1456 combat aircraft, including 536 bombers). About 2 thousand cars were in reserve ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). The Overseas Air Force had 34 squadrons (435 aircraft), of which 19 squadrons were based in the Middle East, 7 in India and 8 in Malaya ( Ibidem; D. Richards, X. Conders. British Air Force in World War II 1939-1945. Translation from English. M., 1963, p. 45.). Bomber Command had only 17 squadrons of Whitleys, Wellingtons and Hampdens, 10 squadrons of Blenheims and 12 squadrons of obsolete Battles. By the beginning of the war, most of the fighter aviation was armed with quite modern Spitfire, Hurricane and Blenheim aircraft ( R. Bigham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). But in general, in terms of the number and training of the flight crew, the British aviation was somewhat inferior to the German one.

The country's air defense plan was approved in 1938. The overall direction of air defense was carried out by a committee headed by the prime minister. The head of the air defense of the metropolis was the commander of fighter aircraft, to whom all air defense systems were operationally subordinate.

The territory of the British Isles was divided into four air defense areas: the first area covered the southeastern part of the country, the second - the southwest, the third - the central, the fourth - the northern part of the country and Scotland. In organizational terms, the air defense troops were reduced to three divisions (with the exception of fighter aircraft). One air defense division defended London, the other - the cities located in the center and in the north of the country, the third - the cities of Scotland.

The ground forces were subdivided into regular, territorial armies and reserves. Their basis was the regular army, which included all types of troops. The territorial army was a kind of reserve of the first stage and was recruited at the expense of persons who had mainly served in the regular army. The reserve consisted of demobilized officers and persons who had served in the territorial army.

In 1936, the British government began a radical reorganization of the ground forces. The focus of their construction was on motorization. The creation of the first motorized and armored units and formations began ( E Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 373-375.).

The lack of a clearly developed theory and tactics for the use of armored forces in combat operations led to the fact that before the war the British army was armed with the most diverse types of tanks in terms of their tactical and technical data. Even at the beginning of 1939, the General Staff could not finally decide what kind of tanks the army needed: it was believed that light vehicles were needed for colonial wars, and heavy vehicles for sending to France, slow-moving, well-armored ones for infantry support, and for mobile warfare - light cruiser tanks ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army 1509-1970, p. 419.). Nevertheless, by the beginning of the war, the process of motorization of regular army formations was basically completed.

The territorial army, which was also entrusted with the task of air defense of the metropolis, also underwent a radical reorganization. For this purpose, 7 divisions were allocated from its composition ( ). On March 29, 1939, the British government decided to increase the number of territorial divisions from 13 to 26, as a result of which the total number of divisions of the ground forces increased to 32 (of which 6 were regular) ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army. 1509-1970, p. 420.). In fact, by the beginning of the war, Great Britain had 9 regular and 16 territorial divisions, 8 infantry, 2 cavalry and 9 tank brigades ( Calculated from: H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Seconal World War 1939-1945. Vol. I-II. London, 1960.). Territorial divisions were hastily transferred to regular states. India had seven regular divisions and a significant number of independent brigades; Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa - several separate brigades each.

An English infantry division in 1939 consisted of a headquarters, three infantry brigades, a mechanized regiment, three field regiments, an anti-tank artillery regiment, three anti-tank companies, and support and maintenance units. The total number of personnel was 14.5 thousand people, of which 500 officers. The division was armed with 140 armored personnel carriers, 28 light tanks, 156 tractors, 147 guns, 810 trucks, 644 light and 56 heavy machine guns, 126 mortars, 10,222 rifles, 361 anti-tank rifles and other equipment ( H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Second World War 1939-1945, vol. I, p. 131.).

The organization of higher formations and associations of the British ground forces by the beginning of the war had not yet finally taken shape. Due to the lack of officers, weapons, military equipment and equipment, the British did not begin to deploy corps and armies. To assist France in repelling possible aggression from Germany, the command of the British Expeditionary Forces was created, to which the divisions scheduled for dispatch to the European continent were subordinate, as well as the command of the British Armed Forces in the Near and Middle East, at the disposal of which were allocated two infantry and one armored divisions (not yet fully manned) ( E Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 375.). The main forces of the ground forces on the eve of the war were stationed in the metropolis.

All the calculations of the British command were based on the assumption that if Germany undertook a war against France, military operations would proceed slowly. In accordance with this, the first British infantry divisions were to arrive in France only 33 days after the announcement of mobilization, two armored divisions - after 8 months, and subsequently 2-3 divisions with an interval of 6-8 months.

According to Field Marshal Montgomery, at the end of August 1939, the British ground forces were allegedly completely unprepared for large-scale military operations: they experienced a shortage of tanks, guns, had weak anti-tank artillery, imperfect communications, poor logistics, and were insufficiently trained ( The War on Land. The British Army in World War II. New York, 1970, p. 6-7.).

However, in reality, despite many omissions and shortcomings in the organization and equipment of its armed forces, Great Britain had, at the beginning of the war, large naval and air forces and some ground forces in the mother country, sufficient reserves in the empire. This allowed her, together with France and Poland, to successfully wage an armed struggle against fascist Germany.

French Armed Forces consisted of three types: land army, air force and navy. Their organization and construction were based on official military doctrine.

In accordance with the law "On the organization of the nation in times of war" of July 11, 1938, all supreme political and military power was concentrated in the hands of the government. To solve the fundamental issues of preparing the country for war, the supreme council of national defense was reorganized, which included all members of the cabinet of ministers, Marshal Petain and the chief of the general staff, General Gamelin, and, with the right of an advisory vote, the commanders-in-chief of the branches of the armed forces and the chief of staff of the colonial troops.

In wartime, to direct the armed forces in all theaters of military operations, it was planned to create a military committee. The chairman of the committee and the supreme commander was the President of the Republic.

On the eve of the Second World War, there were ministries in France: national defense, army, aviation and navy. The ministries of national defense and the army had a single governing body - the general staff, other ministries - the main headquarters of the branches of the armed forces. The chief of the general staff was at the same time the commander of the ground forces located in the metropolis and colonies.

The commanders of aviation and the navy did not report to the chief of the general staff; he only coordinated the actions of the aviation and navy with the actions of the ground forces.

According to the law "On the organization of the nation in times of war", the territory of France was divided into three fronts: northeast, southeast and the Pyrenees. The commanders of these fronts reported directly to the Chief of the General Staff ( Les evenements survenus en France de 1933 a 1945. Annexes, t. III, p. 811.).

There were 20 military districts in the country, each with 1-2 personnel divisions. In case of war, the mobilization plan provided for the deployment of 80-100 divisions of type "A" and "B" on the basis of these formations ( Division "A" was staffed by 75 percent of the personnel, the rest were reservists of young ages. Equipped mainly with modern weapons, it had a high combat capability. Division "B" consisted of 45 percent of the personnel and replenished to the norm at the expense of reservists of older ages. The armament was mostly obsolete. The combat effectiveness of such a division was low.).

The armed forces were recruited on the basis of universal military service. In 1936, the term of service was increased from one year to two, for sailors and soldiers of the colonial troops it remained the same - three years. After the introduction of a two-year service life, the French armed forces had about 700 thousand people of variable composition. In case of war, up to 6 million reservists could be mobilized. However, the contingents, from which, according to the plan, it was supposed to form numerous units and formations, did not undergo thorough combat training. Until the middle of the 1920s, retraining of those liable for military service was not carried out at all. Later, they began to be called up for training camps, which, however, were too short, and the number of called-up reservists was clearly insufficient. As a result, the reserve formations did not have high military-technical and tactical training, which had a negative impact on their combat capability.

The French armed forces in peacetime numbered over 1 million people, including in the ground forces - 865 thousand (550 thousand - the metropolitan army, 199 thousand - expeditionary forces and 116 thousand - colonial formations), in the air force - 50 thousand, navy - 90 thousand people.

By the end of August 1939, after a series of extraordinary appeals, the number of armed forces increased to 2,674 thousand people (2,438 thousand in the ground forces, 110 thousand in the air force and 126 thousand in the navy ) ( M. Gamelin. Servir. Le prologue du drama, p. 448.). The land army consisted of 108 divisions, including 1 tank, 2 mechanized, 5 cavalry and 13 divisions of fortress areas. The tank and 8 infantry divisions were not yet fully equipped by the time France entered the war.

France had 14,428 guns (excluding railway platforms and fortress artillery) ( Archives nationales de France. Cour de Riom. W 11 . Serie XIX, cartone 48, doc. nine.); in the land army, there were 3100 tanks ( "Revue d" histoire de la deuxieme guerre mondiale", 1964, No. 53, p. 5.), most of them were in 39 separate tank battalions ( J. Boucher. Armored weapons in war. Translation from French. M., 1956, pp. 83-86.).

The infantry divisions of both types ("A" and "B") had the same organization: three infantry and two artillery (light and medium artillery) regiments, an anti-tank division, units and subunits of support and maintenance ( Ibid., pp. 86-87.). In total, the division had 17.8 thousand people, 62 75-mm and 155-mm guns, 8 47-mm anti-tank guns and 52 25-mm universal guns.

Light mechanized divisions were reorganized in 1932 from cavalry formations. Each of them had tank and motorized brigades, reconnaissance and artillery regiments, support and maintenance units and subunits, 11,000 personnel, 174 tanks, and 105 armored vehicles (mostly obsolete designs).

The cavalry division consisted of two brigades (cavalry and light mechanized) and an artillery regiment. In total, there were 11.7 thousand people, 22 tanks and 36 armored vehicles ( La campagne de France. Mai - juin 1940, p. 21.).

The serious shortcomings in the technical equipment that existed in the French army significantly reduced its combat effectiveness. Although the armament for the most part met modern requirements, many weapons remained from the First World War. The artillery was represented mainly by a 75 mm gun, which was significantly inferior to the German 105 mm howitzer. The French heavy and high powered artillery was numerous and outgunned the corresponding German artillery.

The French Air Force, including naval aviation, consisted of 3335 combat aircraft. By the beginning of the war, their armament and organization were still in their infancy. The highest association of the Air Force was the mixed air army (there were three in total), which consisted of a bomber division and several fighter brigades. In the French Air Force, fighters accounted for 36 percent, scouts for 25 percent, and bombers for 39 percent of the total aircraft fleet. The leadership of the French air force, in contrast to the German, was decentralized. Each army corps, army and front had its own aviation, which was based on airfields located in the rear areas of military formations and associations.

France possessed a significant navy, ranked fourth among the fleets of the capitalist countries. It included 7 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 19 cruisers, 32 destroyers, 38 destroyers, 26 minesweepers and 77 submarines ( R. Auphan, J. Mordal. La Marine Francaise pendant la seconde guerre mondiale. Paris, 1958, p. 481 - 511.).

Thus, by the beginning of the Second World War, France had significant armed forces, sufficiently equipped with military equipment and weapons, including modern ones. However, as a result of a policy that sought to direct aggression towards the Soviet Union and the betrayal of the national interests of France by her ruling circles, as well as due to serious shortcomings in the preparation of the country for war, the French armed forces inevitably had to face great difficulties in the fight against a strong enemy.

The armed forces of the United States of America consisted of the army and the navy. The Air Force was part of the Army.

The Supreme Commander was the President of the United States, who led the armed forces through the War and Navy Departments. The armed forces were recruited on a voluntary basis.

The size of the American army in 1939 was only 544.7 thousand people, of which 190 thousand were in the regular army, 200 thousand in the national guard and 154.7 thousand in the navy ( The Information Please Almanac, 1950. New York, 1951, p. 206; R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 419.). The military-political leadership believed that, being at a sufficient distance from possible theaters of military operations, the United States would have time, if necessary, to quickly deploy its armed forces to the required number and enter the war at a decisive moment.

In accordance with the military doctrine of the United States, the main attention in the development of the armed forces was given to the navy, mainly powerful battleships and aircraft carriers. By the beginning of World War II, the US Navy had more than 300 warships, including 15 battleships, 5 aircraft carriers, 36 cruisers, 181 destroyers, 99 submarines, 7 gunboats and 26 minesweepers ( W. Churchill. The Second World War. Vol. I. The Gathering Storm. New York, 1961, p. 617.). The fleet also had a large number of auxiliary ships for various purposes. However, many destroyers and submarines were obsolete.

In organizational terms, before the Second World War, the ships were consolidated into two fleets - the Pacific and the Atlantic, in which there were formations of battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, submarines, auxiliary and amphibious forces. The structure of naval aviation included about 300 aircraft.

The main forces of the navy were based in Norfolk (Atlantic coast), San Diego (Pacific coast) and Pearl Harbor (Hawaiian Islands).

The US Navy was basically ready to carry out the tasks assigned to them in the defense of the American continent and to ensure the transfer of ground forces for landings on other continents.

The few ground forces consisted of the regular army, the national guard and organized reserves. The units and formations of the regular army were more prepared. The National Guard was a militia army of individual states, designed primarily to maintain internal order and was not subordinate to the federal government. The organized reserves consisted of reserve officers and persons who had served a certain period in the regular army.

On the eve of World War II, the regular army had only three fully and six partially manned infantry divisions, two cavalry divisions, an independent armored brigade and several independent infantry brigades ( M. Kreidberg, M. Henry. History of Military Mobilization in the United States Army, 1775-1945. Washington, 1955, p. 548-552.). There were 17 divisions in the National Guard. These military formations and units were combined into four armies stationed in the continental part of the country. Small garrisons of ground forces were located in Alaska, Hawaii and other Pacific islands.

In December 1936, a directive from the chief of staff of the ground forces announced the start of the development of a "plan for the mobilization of covering forces", which was completed by 1939. The plan provided for the deployment within 90 days from the date of the announcement of the mobilization of 730,000 well-equipped ground forces. Then, in a short time, the army must deploy up to 1 million people. Until 1940, all calculations for the production of weapons for the army were based on this number of ground forces ( R. Smith. The Army and Economic Mobilization, p. 54, 127 - 128.).

In the 1930s, the American army was armed mainly with light tanks. Only in 1939, taking into account the lessons of the war in Spain, did the Americans begin to create medium tanks ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 411.).

The general leadership of aviation, which was part of the ground forces, was carried out by the Minister of War through his assistant for aviation, and operational management through the general staff. On the eve of the war, the army air force had 1,576 combat aircraft. Since the beginning of World War II, the US Congress has allocated additional funds for the development of aircraft construction. Aircraft production was planned to be increased to 5500 aircraft per year ( The War Reports of General of the Army G. Marshall, Chief of the Staff; General of the Army H. Arnold, Commanding General, Army Air Forces; Fleet Admiral E. King, Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations. Philadelphia-New-York, 1947, p. 308; The Army Almanac. Washington, 1950, p. 214.). At the same time, it was planned to train 20 thousand pilots, navigators and shooters. Air bases were built at an accelerated pace in Panama, Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands.

The air forces of the army were divided into tactical and defense of the continent. In their construction, the main attention was paid to strategic aviation, while the importance of tactical aviation was underestimated. By the beginning of the war, the United States had a good heavy bomber B-17 ("flying fortress"), but did not have equal fighters and attack aircraft necessary to support the ground forces ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 414.). In terms of the quantity and quality of military equipment and weapons, American aviation was generally inferior to the British and German.

For the purposes of air defense, the territory of the United States was divided into four districts, in which the air force commander of these districts, subordinate to the commander of the Army Air Forces, was entrusted with ensuring the interaction of fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft artillery, air warning service and air barrage balloons.

Thus, the state of the US armed forces in 1939 basically corresponded to the requirements imposed on them by the military-political leadership. However, significant funds and time were needed to implement the plans for the deployment of the armed forces outlined by the American government.

Polish Armed Forces consisted of the ground forces and the navy. According to the constitution of 1935, the president was the supreme commander in chief, but in fact the armed forces, like all power in the country, after the death of Pilsudski were in the hands of the military and political dictator, the general inspector of the armed forces, Marshal E. Rydz-Smigly.

The army and navy were recruited on the basis of the law on universal conscription adopted on April 9, 1938. As of June 1, 1939, the armed forces of Poland numbered 439,718 people, of which 418,474 were in the ground forces, 12,170 in aviation and military navy - 9074 people ( This number does not include parts of the Border Guard Corps. The border troops consisted of regiments and brigades. In May 1939 they numbered 25,372. Calculated on the basis of monthly reports on the actual state of the Polish Armed Forces: Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe. Departament Dowodztwa Ogolnego MS Wojsk., t. 4393. L. dz. 8838/tj. z dn. 14.8.1939; Akta Departamentu Art. MS Wojsk., t. 11, Akta gisz, t. 287-667, 960.). The number of trained reserves reached 1.5 million people ( W. Iwanowski. Wysilek Zbrojny Narodu Polskiego w czasie II Wojny Swiatowej. T. I. Warszawa, 1961, str. 66.).

In social terms, the Polish army in the vast majority (about 70 percent) consisted of peasants with a small stratum of workers. Up to 30-40 percent were representatives of national minorities (Ukrainians, Belarusians, Lithuanians and others). The recruitment system for the armed forces had a pronounced class character and was designed to make them an obedient weapon in the struggle against the revolutionary movement and in the war against the Soviet socialist state.

The ruling circles of Poland have for a long time educated the army in a spirit of hostility towards the Soviet Union and the working people of Poland itself. The troops were often used to suppress the revolutionary uprisings of the masses of Poland, the national liberation movement of Belarusians, Ukrainians and Lithuanians. Separate garrisons had special units specially designed for these purposes ( S. Rowecki. Walki uliczne. Warszawa, 1928, str. 286.).

The Polish bourgeoisie counted on a carefully thought-out system of indoctrination of personnel to ensure the reliability of their armed forces, to protect them from the penetration of revolutionary ideas and sentiments.

The system of training and education of soldiers and officers was aimed at smoothing out the existing contradictions between the social composition of the army and its purpose, isolating the soldiers from the masses, distracting them from politics, dulling class consciousness and turning them into blind executors of the will of the ruling classes. Having declared the army out of politics, the military leadership forbade soldiers and officers to be members of political parties, participate in rallies, meetings and other social and political events and campaigns ( See art. 55 § I Dekretu about sluzbie wojskowej oficerow. Warzawa, 1937.). The reactionary government mercilessly persecuted military personnel for participating in the revolutionary movement and persistently inspired them with the supposedly established by God and religion need to protect the bourgeois-landlord system of Poland, blindly obeying its laws.

The main organizing force of the Polish army was the officers and non-commissioned officers. The officer corps was almost entirely selected from persons belonging to the ruling and privileged strata and classes. The leading role in the army among the Polish officers belonged to Pilsudchik, mostly former legionnaires. In 1939, out of 100 generals, 64 were legionnaires, more than 80 percent of the positions of army inspectors and commanders of corps districts were staffed by Pilsudski's associates ( P. Stawecki. Nastepcy commandanta. Warszawa, 1969, str. 76.). The most important command positions in the army were occupied by people whose military knowledge did not go beyond the experience of the anti-Soviet war of 1920. It was Pilsudchiki who were the most outspoken bearers of the bourgeois-landlord ideology and policy of the reactionary regime in the army.

Since the Polish military doctrine considered the future war as predominantly continental, the main role in it, and consequently in the development of the armed forces, was assigned to the ground forces. The ground forces included infantry, cavalry, border guard corps, and aviation.

The ground forces were based on infantry divisions, distributed over corps districts ( The corps districts, which were military-administrative units in peacetime, were disbanded during the war.). The infantry division consisted of three infantry regiments, a light regiment and a heavy artillery battalion, support and maintenance units. It numbered up to 16 thousand people. Compared to the German infantry division, it did not have enough artillery (42-48 guns and 18-20 mortars, mostly of obsolete designs). The division had 27 37 mm anti-tank guns, significantly fewer than in the German division. The air defense was also weak - only four 40-mm anti-aircraft guns.

Polish military theory considered the cavalry as the main means of maneuvering to achieve decisive goals. The cavalry was supposed to make up for the lack of technical vehicles in the army. It was she, the "Queen of the Army", who was entrusted with the task of breaking the enemy's will to resist, paralyzing him psychologically, and weakening morale.

All cavalry formations were consolidated into 11 brigades; the staff strength of each brigade was 3427 people. Unlike infantry divisions, the staffing of cavalry brigades during the war period remained almost the same as in peacetime. The strike force of the cavalry brigade was small: its firepower was equal to the strength of the fire volley of one Polish infantry regiment ( T. Rawski, Z. Stupor, J. Zamojski. Wojna Wyzwolencza Narodu Polskiego w latach 1939-1945, str. 104.).

The armored forces included: a motorized brigade (formed in 1937), three separate battalions of light tanks, several separate reconnaissance tank and armored car companies, as well as units of armored trains.

The motorized brigade consisted of two regiments, anti-tank and reconnaissance battalions, as well as service units. It numbered about 2800 people. The brigade was armed with 157 machine guns, 34 guns and mortars, 13 reconnaissance tanks ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 172.). For the duration of the war, the brigade was reinforced by a tank battalion from the reserve of the main command and other units.

In total, in the Polish armed forces in July 1939, there were 887 light tanks and tankettes, 100 armored vehicles, 10 armored trains ( Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe, Akta DDO MS Wojsk., t. 27.). The main part of the tank fleet, according to its tactical and technical data, was unsuitable for effective use in combat conditions.

Military aviation consisted of six aviation regiments, two separate aeronautical battalions and two naval aviation divisions. In total, by the beginning of the war, there were 824 combat aircraft of all types in the air fleet ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 238; Mala Encyklopedia Wojskowa. T. 2. Warszawa, 1970, str. 693-694.), most of them were inferior to the aircraft of the main European states in their flight performance. In 1939, Polish-made elk-type bombers with higher flying qualities entered service, but by the beginning of the war there were only 44 of them in the troops.

Aviation was intended primarily to escort infantry and tanks in battle and cavalry in its raids. However, in all cases, the role of army aviation was reduced mainly to shallow reconnaissance of the enemy, and in some cases - to bombing attacks on his troops. The use of aviation for independent operations was not actually envisaged. The capabilities of bomber aircraft were underestimated, they were not given due attention ( See A. Kurowski for the general directive of the Chief of Staff on the use of aviation. Lotnictwo Polish w 1939 Warszawa, 1962, str. 333-335.).

The naval forces were subdivided into the navy (ships) and coastal defense. They included 4 destroyers, 5 submarines, a minelayer, 6 minesweepers and 8 coastal defense battalions armed with 42 field and 26 anti-aircraft guns ( A. Rzepniewski. Obrona Wybrzeza w 1939 r. Warszawa, 1970, str. 134-143, 241-242; M. Porwit. To omentarze do historii polskich dziatan obronnych 1939 roku. Cz. I. Warszawa, 1969, str. 65.).

The fleet was not ready to perform tasks in the war against Nazi Germany. It lacked vessels for operations in coastal waters, there were no escort ships. In shipbuilding, the main attention was paid to the construction of expensive heavy ships. The Polish command did not attach much importance to the problem of defending bases from land and air.

Conducted by the main headquarters in 1935-1936. An analysis of the combat effectiveness of the army in comparison with the armies of the USSR, Germany and France showed that the Polish armed forces were at the level of 1914 and lagged far behind in all key indicators.

The plan for the modernization and development of the army developed in Poland, designed for six years (1936-1942), provided for a significant strengthening of the main types of armed forces, the expansion of the country's industrial and raw material base, the construction of defensive structures, etc. ( Z. Landau, J. Tomaszewski. Zarys historii gospodarczej Polski 1918-1939. Warszawa, 1960, str. 166-191; Zeszyty science. wap. Seria economiczna. Warszawa, 1970, no. 13, str. 158-165.). However, the absence of a pre-established unified concept for the development and modernization of the army ultimately led to the implementation of only individual measures of this plan.

During the first three years of the implementation of this plan, there was only a slight quantitative change in the armament and equipment of the army, but the proportions of the combat arms remained the same. All types of weapons and military equipment, with the exception of the materiel of the navy, were largely worn out and obsolete. There were not enough aircraft, tanks, field artillery and small arms.

Thus, the size and organizational structure of the army, its weapons, the system of recruitment, training and education of personnel did not meet the requirements of preparing the country for defense in the conditions of the impending war.

On the eve of the Second World War, the most aggressive grouping of imperialist states (Germany, Italy, Japan) adopted the doctrine of total "blitzkrieg" war. This doctrine provided for the mobilization of all the resources of the state and the infliction of sudden lightning strikes on the front and rear of the enemy in order to achieve victory in the shortest possible time. The early militarization of the economy and all public life, the use of surprise in treacherous attacks, bestial cruelty, the establishment of a "new order" in the world, and colonial slavery for the vanquished were placed at the service of this strategy.

Another grouping of capitalist states (England, France, USA, Poland), which had a huge economic potential, was guided by military doctrines that were more inclined towards a strategy of attrition. As a result, the economic and financial possibilities of Britain, France and the USA were not used to train the armed forces to the same extent as was done in the countries of the fascist bloc.

The fascist German war machine turned out to be much better prepared for the Second World War. Hitler's army, which received high professional training and had an experienced, carefully selected command staff, equipped with the latest military equipment and weapons for that time, posed a mortal threat to humanity.

If you do not take into account the dress uniform, then the most important component of military uniforms is its functionality. During combat operations, soldiers must be provided with uniforms and equipment for convenience and practicality. Since ancient times, by the uniform they recognize their own and others. The goal is pursued one - to be seen where to shoot and recognize their comrades and the enemy.

In ancient times, when the uniform of a warrior was pretentious and replete with decorations and decorations, there were curious cases. A historical fact is the case of a partisan of the Patriotic War of 1812, Denis Davydov. The peasants, who were poorly versed in uniforms, mistook his detachment for French marauders or food masters and fought back, which almost cost the life of the brave partisan and his subordinates. The whole thing was in the hussar uniform, which was similar to the hussar uniform of the French. After that, Denis Davydov was forced to change into a Cossack, which was the uniform of Russian Cossacks.

During World War II the personnel of the army of the warring parties were uniformed in accordance with the traditions and economic capabilities of a particular state. At the same time, it should be noted that uniforms and equipment changed depending on the time of year and the theaters of hostilities.

Workers' and Peasants' Red Army

On the equipment and uniforms Red Army soldiers were influenced by the Winter (Soviet-Finnish) War of 1939-1940. It was during the fighting on the Karelian Isthmus and north of Lake Ladoga that it turned out that the soldiers of the Red Army were not equipped for winter conditions. “The equipment of the troops, primarily riflemen, did not meet the conditions of the winter, and even as severe as the past one. There were few felt boots, there were not enough sheepskin coats, mittens; the old helmet turned out to be of little use for wearing in great cold and it needed to be replaced with a hat with earflaps.

The soldiers of the Red Army were equipped according to the time of year. In the summer, caps and helmets were used. The most common was a steel helmet. In the initial period of the war, the old SSH-40 helmet was still used, which had an overlay on its top. It was provided in order to protect the head from a saber strike. According to legend, Marshal of the Soviet Union Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny took part in its development. However, it was replaced by a lighter and more comfortable steel helmet. The war has shown That the enemy will not reach saber attacks.

The personnel of the rifle units were shod in cowhide boots or boots with canvas windings. During mass mobilization, cowhide boots were replaced with tarpaulin boots.

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0 - Soldiers of the Red Army during the fighting in Stalingrad

2 - Soldiers of the Red Army at the end of the war

In winter, hats with earflaps were introduced with falling earmuffs that protected the neck and ears from frost. The lightweight uniform also included cotton tunics with breast welt pockets, trousers, and a cloth overcoat with hooks. The overcoat was adjusted taking into account her socks on a quilted padded jacket.

for storage property a satchel or duffel bag was used. However, even during the Finnish campaign, it was noted that there were not enough satchels for supply, which was more convenient as an item of equipment. But its production (leather or tarpaulin was used) was expensive. Therefore, the soldiers of the rifle units were equipped with duffel bags.

Water was carried in an aluminum flask. To save aluminum, flasks of the same shape began to be made from bottle glass with a stoppered (rather than screw) cork. These flasks are also hanging in a bag from the belt. But neither convenience nor practicality, they did not possess. At the end of the Great Patriotic War, their production was almost curtailed.

Grenades and cartridges were worn on the belt - in special pouches. In addition, the outfit included a bag for a gas mask. The Red Army wore raincoats, which could be used to design individual and group tents. The tent set included an aluminum peg and a coil of hemp rope. In winter, the uniform was supplemented with a short fur coat, a padded jacket or padded jacket, fur mittens, felt boots and padded pants.

Thus, the uniform of the Red Army seemed to have been thought out to the smallest detail: in the duffel bag of the 1942 model there was even a compartment for an ax. It follows from the documents that the uniform of a Red Army soldier was of high quality and practical. Numerous pockets, bags for ammunition greatly facilitated the conduct of hostilities.

Army of Nazi Germany (Wehrmacht)

field uniform a Wehrmacht soldier included: a steel helmet with a double-sided cover, an overcoat, a gas mask case, a harness, rifle or automatic pouches, a cape, a bowler hat. A leather satchel was used to store property. German soldiers put on leather boots. Moreover, by the beginning of the German attack on the Soviet Union, the leather and footwear industry throughout Europe was working for the needs of the Third Reich. Wehrmacht uniforms were produced at the Hugo Boss factory and were complete for European territories. The calculation for a lightning war did not provide for the procurement of warm clothes (short coats, fur products, felted boots and hats). The eastern front, with its frosts, required a completely different approach. The first winter the soldiers froze.

First of all, warm clothes save you from frost. Troops provided with uniforms for the season are able to withstand any frost. Analyzing the memoirs of German servicemen relating to this period, you understand how unsatisfactorily the Wehrmacht army was provided, buried in the winter of 1941. “The lack of warm clothes became our main misfortune in the next few months and caused our soldiers a lot of suffering ...” - recalls the commander of the 2nd tank army (group), Colonel-General G. Guderian.

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1 - Wehrmacht soldiers in summer uniform 1941
2 - Wehrmacht soldiers in winter uniform after 1943.

By the second winter, things had changed. AT uniform insulated jackets, quilted pants were introduced, as well as woolen gloves, sweaters and socks. But this was not enough. To solve the problem of supplying the troops with warm uniforms and footwear and to save their soldiers from the cold, the troops began to make straw boots that are worn over ordinary boots. However, in the memoirs of German soldiers, which have now appeared on the bookshelves, one can find a comparative assessment of the uniforms of Soviet and German soldiers. This assessment was not in favor of the latter's uniform. Most of all, there are complaints about German soldier's overcoats, sewn from fabric that is not adapted to any frost due to the low wool content.

British Royal Armed Forces

The British soldiers did not have a single field uniform. It was different depending on the parts of the country that are part of the Commonwealth countries. The personnel of the dominion units had elements and distinctive features in uniforms, including field uniforms. Field uniform included: a collared blouse or woolen shirt, a steel helmet, loose trousers, a gas mask bag, a holster with a long belt, black boots and overcoats (jackets). By the beginning of hostilities in Europe, a uniform was adopted that differed from the previous one in separate elements. In connection with the mass call of recruits, the form was simplified and became more universal.

During the war, there were minor changes, in particular, a lining appeared at the collar and other elements of clothing that prevented the rough twill from rubbing against exposed skin. Buckles began to be produced with teeth. Instead of boots, British soldiers were provided with boots with short windings. British soldiers had to wear a heavy down-lined tropal cloak. Knitted balaclavas were worn under helmets in cold weather. In the conditions of the African desert, the uniform was lightweight and often consisted of shorts and shirts with short sleeves.

It should be noted that the uniforms of the British army were intended for the European theater of operations. When landing in Norway, soldiers of special units were provided with Arctic uniforms, but this was not widespread.

1 - Sgt. Territorial Guard of Wales. England, 1940
2 - Sgt. 1st Command, 1942

United States military

field uniform American soldiers for many years was considered the most convenient and thoughtful in the conditions of World War II. The uniform included a woolen shirt, a light field jacket, trousers with linen spats, low brown boots, a helmet or cap. Functionality was distinguished by all the clothes of US soldiers. The jacket was fastened with a zipper and buttons and was equipped with slit pockets on the sides. The best equipment allowed the Americans to become arctic kit, consisting of a warm parka jacket, lace-up boots with fur. The command of the US Armed Forces was convinced that the American soldier had the best equipment. This statement is controversial, however, it has its own reason.

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3 - Officer of the 10th Mountain Division

Japanese Imperial Army

During World War II, the Japanese had three types of uniform. Each of them included a uniform, trousers, an overcoat and a cape. For warm weather, a cotton version is provided, for cold weather - woolen. The outfit also included a helmet, boots or boots. Warm uniforms were provided by servicemen operating in the north of China, Manchuria and Korea.

For a more severe climate, such uniforms were not suitable, because the uniform included overcoats with fur cuffs, woolen quilted trousers, and underpants. It was suitable only for certain latitudes with a tropical climate.

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2 - Japanese army infantryman in tropical uniform.

Italian army

Outfit Italian soldiers were more suited to the southern European climate. For operations in severe weather conditions of 1941-943, the uniform of the Italian military was completely unsuitable. During the Second World War, soldiers of the Italian Armed Forces wore a shirt and tie, a single-breasted tunic with a waist belt, breeches with windings or wool knee-high socks, ankle boots. Some soldiers were more comfortable using breeches.

A uniform not suitable for winter campaigns. The overcoat was sewn from cheap coarse cloth, which did not warm at all in the cold. The army was not equipped with winter clothing. Insulated options were available only to representatives of the mountain troops. The Italian newspaper "Provincia Como" in 1943 noted that only a tenth of the soldiers during their stay in Russia were provided with a suitable uniform for this.

Italian command statistics report that 3,600 soldiers suffered from hypothermia during the first winter alone.

1 - Private Army Group "Albania"

Army of France

French soldiers fought in colored uniform. They were outfitted in single-breasted button-down tunics, double-breasted overcoats with side pocket flaps. The floors of the overcoat could be buttoned back to make it easier to walk. The clothes had belt loops. Foot troops wore breeches with windings. There were three types of hats. The most popular was the kepi. Adrian's helmets were also actively worn. Their distinguishing feature is the presence of an emblem on the front.

In very cold weather, the French uniform expanded its range to a sheepskin coat. Such clothes can hardly be called optimal for different weather conditions.

1 - Private of the Free French Army
2 - Private Moroccan troops "Free France"

Determine which dress was exemplary difficult. Each army was provided depending on the economic opportunities and the planned regions of the troops' operations. However, there were often miscalculations when the calculation was based on a lightning war, and the troops had to operate in severe cold conditions.

ARMED FORCES OF THE KINGDOM OF ROMANIA IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR 1939 - 1945 The main goal of Romania's foreign policy was the return of territories transferred in 1940 to the Soviet Union, Hungary and Bulgaria. Despite the tense relations with the last two states, in reality, Romania, under the auspices of Germany, could only claim the return of the lands (Northern Bukovina and Bessarabia) occupied by the USSR. In addition, she had the opportunity to increase her territory at the expense of the southwestern regions of the Soviet Union that were not previously Romanian.

Until 1940, Romanian military thought and military practice were guided by the French military school. However, after the defeat of France in June 1940, the Romanian military began to give preference to the German school. In October of the same year, a permanent German mission arrived in Romania. Its main goal was to prepare the Romanian army for war, with the greatest attention being paid to the fight against tanks and the training of junior officers.

The modernization program was only partially successful. The Czech-made 7.92-mm rifle replaced the old 6.5-mm Mannlicher system, and the cavalry received the light Czech ZB 30 assault rifle. At the same time, there were still many obsolete weapons in the army. Anti-tank artillery was weak, although the Germans supplied the Romanians with captured 47-mm guns. Only the mountain rifle corps received modern Skoda artillery pieces. Most of the field guns have been in service since the beginning of the First World War, although the army also received captured French and Polish 75-mm guns. Most of the artillery was still horse-drawn.

On September 1, 1939, the Romanian army consisted of 1 guard and 21 infantry divisions. In 1940, the intensive formation of new compounds began.

The general management of military construction was carried out by the Supreme Defense Council, chaired by the Prime Minister. With the outbreak of war, this post was taken by the leader (conductor) Ion Victor Antonescu (Ion Victor Antonescu).

The military ministry directly led the armed forces (through the general staff).

The armed forces of Romania consisted of the ground forces, air force and navy, as well as the border guard corps, the gendarmerie and the construction corps.

The ground forces included 3 combined arms armies (21 infantry divisions and 14 brigades). They were armed with 3850 guns, up to 4 thousand mortars, 236 tanks.

The infantry division of Romania in the state of 1941 included 3 infantry regiments, 1 artillery brigade (2 regiments), a battery of anti-aircraft guns, a company of anti-tank guns and machine guns, a reconnaissance squadron, a communications battalion, an engineering battalion and service units. In total, the division had 17,715 people, it had 13,833 rifles, 572 machine guns, 186 guns and mortars (75 mm field guns, 100 mm howitzers, 37 mm and 47 mm anti-tank guns).

The regiments of the regular army wore numbers from the 1st to the 33rd and from the 81st to the 96th, and the regiments of the first group were traditionally called "grenadiers" - "dorobants" (Dorobanti). Some divisions had Vanatori regiments, i.e. riflemen, who wore numbers from 1 to 10.

After the First World War, elite mountain units, like the "Alpine Riflemen", were formed according to the Italian model. Each of these 4 brigades had 1 artillery and 2 rifle regiments, as well as a reconnaissance squadron.

Detachment of skiers from the Romanian mountain shooters. 1941

Romanian mountain arrows in positions in the Crimea. 1942

Attack of the Romanian mountain shooters. Crimea, 1942

considered especially strong Romanian cavalry. In addition to the horse guards for the summer of 1941, there were 25 more linear cavalry regiments.

Romanian cavalry in the Ukrainian steppes. 1941

In 1941, the only separate tank regiment (which existed since 1939) was merged with a motorized rifle regiment into an armored brigade. Basically, the Romanian army was armed with Skoda LTvz 35 tanks at the beginning of the war, and for reconnaissance in parts there were a number of light CKD tanks. Most of the Skodas were lost in the battles near Stalingrad (some later converted to self-propelled 76 mm guns), and they were replaced by the German PzKpfw 38 (t) and T-IV.

Romanian Air Force included 11 aeroflotillas: fighter - 3, bomber - 3, reconnaissance - 3, seaplanes - 1, balloons - 1. In total, the Air Force had 1050 aircraft, of which about 700 were combat: fighters - 301, bombers - 122, others - 276.

The Romanian naval forces consisted of the Black Sea Fleet and the Danube Flotilla. By the beginning of the war, the Romanian Black Sea Fleet had 2 auxiliary cruisers, 4 destroyers, 3 destroyers, a submarine, 3 gunboats, 3 torpedo boats, 13 minesweepers and minelayers. The Danube river flotilla included 7 monitors, 3 floating batteries, 15 armored boats, 20 river boats and auxiliary vessels.

In the summer of 1941, to attack the Soviet Union, Romania allocated 2 field armies (3rd and 4th), which included 13 infantry divisions, 5 infantry, 1 motorized and 3 cavalry brigades, about 3 thousand guns and mortars, 60 tanks.

The offensive of the ground forces was supposed to be supported by 623 combat aircraft. In total, 360,000 troops were involved in the war against the Soviet Union.
Romanian military uniform.

1st stage of the war against the USSR

To wage war against the Soviet Union, the Romanian army used mainly infantry weapons of its own production. In 1941, 2.5 thousand light machine guns, 4 thousand machine guns, 2250 60-mm and 81.4-mm mortars, 428 75-mm artillery pieces, 160 47-mm anti-tank guns, 106 37-mm mm and 75 mm anti-aircraft guns, over 2.7 million mines and shells.

The German command entrusted the Romanian troops with the task of ensuring the deployment of the 11th German Army in Romania and its offensive in Right-Bank Ukraine. 4 infantry divisions, 3 mountain rifle and 3 cavalry brigades were reassigned to the headquarters of the 11th Army from the 3rd Romanian Army. The rest of the Romanian troops, reduced to the 4th Army, were deployed on the extreme right wing of the Soviet-German front.

For combat operations in the Black Sea, Germany, not having its own warships there, used the Romanian navy.

The 3rd Romanian Army included mountain rifle (1st, 2nd and 4th mountain rifle brigades) and cavalry (partially motorized 5th, 6th and 8th cavalry brigades) corps. The 4th army included the first three of the divisions trained by German instructors (5th, 6th and 13th) and other selected formations (guards division, border and armored brigades).

During the siege of Odessa (August 5 - October 16, 1941), the Romanian troops received significant reinforcements and eventually began to include the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th, 8th, 10th -th, 11th, 14th, 15th, 18th and 21st infantry and 35th reserve divisions, 1st, 7th and 9th cavalry brigades; in addition, separate German units were attached to the armies.

Near Odessa, due to poor training and lack of weapons, the Romanian units suffered heavy losses - on September 22, 2 infantry divisions were defeated. After the Odessa garrison was evacuated from October 1 to October 16, 1941, the 4th Romanian Army had to be sent for reorganization.

Military units from the 3rd Army (as well as the 1st, 2nd, 10th and 18th Infantry Divisions) remained at the front, although they came under the command of German generals. The mountain rifle corps fought in the Crimea as part of the 11th German army, and the cavalry corps as part of the 1st tank army. Smaller units, such as the Romanian Mechanized Regiment and Ski Squads, also operated in conjunction with the German units during the winter campaign.

2nd stage of the war against the USSR

In the summer of 1942, there was an increase in Romanian forces on the Eastern Front. The mountain rifle corps (later the 18th infantry and 1st mountain rifle divisions) was involved in the offensive against Sevastopol. In 1942, the brigade was reorganized according to the standards of the Wehrmacht and created the 1st armored division (later called "Greater Romania").

In August, a strong Romanian corps (which included the 18th and 19th infantry, 8th cavalry and 3rd mountain rifle divisions) fought across the Kerch Strait. At the same time, the 2nd mountain rifle division, which had been on vacation since the end of 1941, was transferred to the North Caucasus, where it became part of the 3rd German tank corps. The 3rd army of General Dumitrescu reappeared at the front (5th, 6th, 9th, 13th, 14th and 15th infantry, 1st and 7th cavalry, 1st armored divisions ) and in October occupied the area north of Stalingrad. Meanwhile, the Romanian corps reached the front lines on the southern flank.

In November 1942, it was replenished with other units, and then transferred to the 4th German tank army (6 Romanian divisions in total: 1st, 2nd, 4th and 18th infantry, 5th and 8th cavalry ). Hitler proposed that most of the units of the 4th German Panzer Army should be transferred to the 4th army of General Constantinescu, and then, together with the 3rd Romanian and 6th German armies, form a new army group "Don" under the command of Marshal Antonescu.

The 4th Army moved forward and began to deploy just at the moment when the Soviet troops began the operation to encircle the Stalingrad group. Most of the Romanian divisions were defeated, and two (20th Infantry and 1st Cavalry) ended up inside the Stalingrad Cauldron. The remnants of the units were assembled into hastily organized army groups "Goth" (1st, 2nd, 4th and 18th infantry, 5th and 8th cavalry divisions) and "Hollyd" (7th, 9th I, 1 1st and 14th Infantry, 7th Cavalry and 1st Armored Divisions), but they suffered such heavy losses that by February 1943 they were taken to reform.

The morale of the Romanian military dropped significantly. This allowed the Soviet command to start in the fall of 1943 the creation of former prisoners Romanian formations in the Soviet army.

3rd stage of the war against the USSR

The counteroffensive of the Soviet troops led to the fact that many Romanian divisions were under the threat of encirclement in the Kuban bridgehead and in the Crimea (10th and 19th infantry, 6th and 9th cavalry, 1st, 2nd, 3rd I and the 4th mountain rifle divisions). The Germans sought to remove them from the front line and throughout 1943 used the Romanians mainly to defend the coastline and fight the partisans.

In April 1944, the 10th Infantry and 6th Cavalry Divisions, which were considered "persistent", were defeated in the Crimea. Most of the units were withdrawn from the fighting and returned to Romania for reorganization. The troops withdrawn to Romania were used to defend Bessarabia.

4th stage of the war against the USSR

By May 1944, the 3rd and 4th armies went to the front. Now the Romanians managed to insist on the establishment of a certain parity in the distribution of command quarters in the German-Romanian group. On the right flank, as part of the Dumitrescu army group, were the 3rd Romanian and 6th German armies (the 2nd, 14th and 21st infantry, 4th mountain rifle and 1st cavalry Romanian divisions fought here).

The 4th Romanian army, together with the 8th German army, formed the Weller army group (it included the following Romanian formations: guards, 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 11 1st, 13th and 20th Infantry, 5th Cavalry and 1st Armored Divisions). With the beginning of the offensive of the Soviet troops in August 1944, this front collapsed.

Romania in the war against Germany and Hungary (1944 - 1945)

King Mihai arrested Antonescu, and Romania joined the anti-Hitler coalition. Her participation in the war on the side of Germany ended. At the same time, some the number of convinced Romanian fascists voluntarily joined the SS troops.

After some hesitation, the Soviet command decided use Romanian formations at the front. The 1st Army (created on the basis of divisions and training units withdrawn from the Crimea) and the new 4th Army (almost entirely made up of training units) again began hostilities in Transylvania. In the fighting against the German-Hungarian troops the Romanian Air Force actively showed itself.

In total, Romania lost 350 thousand people in battles with Soviet troops, and at the end of the war another 170 thousand in battles with German and Hungarian troops.

About UFOs, Antarctica and the Third Reich.

“In the late forties, Stalin was presented with American intelligence data that Adolf Hitler was alive and hiding in New Schwabeland, at a secret Nazi base in Antarctica, in the area of ​​Queen Maud Land. Soviet and Western intelligence completely missed the creation of this base, which consisted of The German Navy regularly made expeditions to Antarctica beginning in 1938. According to the German scientific theory, which was followed by the Nazi leadership, the Earth is hollow inside, it was in the Antarctic region that there were entrances to giant underground cavities with warm air. Underground cavities was the famous submariner Admiral Denis.The Germans, who explored Antarctica, called the underground caves a paradise.Since 1940, on the personal instructions of Hitler, the construction of two underground bases on Queen Maud Land began.

Similar bases were built before the Second World War and in the Soviet Union. One was built in the Kuibyshev area, now Samara, now the shelter has been declassified, and there is a museum "Stalin's Headquarters" in it. Another, in the Ural Mountains, is still operating, and its location is a state secret. Similar facilities were built and are being built by the United States. For several decades, Japan has been building a repository of its civilization on the territory of Canada, where it stores all the most valuable: scientific forecasts regarding Japan are very pessimistic, and the Japanese are afraid of geological cataclysms.

Since 1942, the transfer of future residents of scientists and specialists of the Ahnenerbe SS complex scientific center began to New Schwabeland, the leaders of the Nazi party and the state were later evacuated there, and production facilities were also created there. The construction of secret settlements was carried out by the hands of prisoners of war, and fresh forces were regularly supplied to replace those who were out of action. The bases were guarded by SS troops equipped with the latest submarines, jet aircraft were based at underground airfields, and rocket launchers equipped with nuclear warheads were on alert. German science, in conditions of military isolation, managed to create nuclear weapons at the end of the war based on other physical principles than those used by US and Russian scientists. These were nuclear charges, based on "implosive" physics. At their bases and facilities in the Amazon and Argentina, the Germans worked out the latest jet aircraft and tested an implosive nuclear charge.

According to the information of American intelligence, which became known to our special services, at the end of 1944, the Nazis placed five V-5 ballistic missiles on combat duty in Queen Maud Land. They were created and managed to be tested by the designer Wernher von Braun, for shelling the territory of Great Britain and the USA in the last months of the war. Then, on the basis of these developments, the US and the USSR built their missile forces.

Despite the fact that the Americans knew about the existence of a Nazi shelter in Antarctica, at first it was decided not to touch them. But then, out of fear that the high technologies known to them could spread from Schwabeland and fall into the hands of neo-Nazis who were thirsting for revenge, they wanted to destroy the Fuhrer's secret hideout. In January 1947, the US Navy sent a squadron of ships with an aircraft carrier under the command of Rear Admiral Byrd to the Antarctic region. Sea and air battles took place along the ice-covered shores. There were losses on both sides. The American landing on the base was repulsed and Schwabeland held out. The Americans equipped punitive expeditions twice, the last one in 1949. Only the threat of the German Nazis on the open air radio to use nuclear weapons during the second operation forced the Americans to retreat. The war in Antarctica was strictly classified, information about it is still not known to the world.

The existence of Hitler's last refuge in Antarctica became a US and Soviet state secret. The secret stay of Adolf Hitler in Antarctica suited the great powers quite well. Adolf Hitler had a mass of revealing materials that could destabilize the situation in the world, and they did not touch him.

In Antarctica, "scientific" research began urgently. Soviet polar explorers from Antarctica were popular for a long time as the first cosmonauts. The Soviet Union and the United States created dozens of "scientific" stations: under their cover, a ring of tracking points was formed, but it was not possible to organize a complete blockade. Even modern satellite control in this region of the planet is very limited in its capabilities. The implosive nuclear weapons created in New Schwabeland until recently made it possible to deter any aggressor. In addition, German scientists already at the end of the war developed combat lasers and "flying saucers", devices that use other physical principles to move in space. Many discoveries and developments of German scientists, which went to the countries of the winners, remain classified in our time.

According to the Nazis, Adolf Hitler died at a base in Antarctica in 1971. According to other sources, he lived until 1982. Hitler only once made a trip to the "mainland" in the town of Heliopolis on the outskirts of Cairo, which is located on the island of Zemelek. In 1953, he had a meeting with Martin Bormann and his personal pilot Hans Baur, who was released from a Soviet prison specifically for this. At this meeting, Hitler was given an oral message from the head of the Soviet intelligence services, Lavrenty Beria. Beria informed the Fuhrer about his plans to transfer the Soviet zone of occupation of Germany to the Western Allies and about the project of German reunification. He asked for the support of secret Nazi organizations, his far-reaching plans. Principal consent to support such actions of Beria from the Fuhrer was received. By the way, Beria reported to the members of the Politburo about his plans for the reunification of Germany, but did not receive support. Beria's opponents involved the military intelligence of the GRU. What army wants to give back what they have won? As soon as the leadership settled down, they just began to live in villas and carry clothes to devastated Russia. It is no longer a secret that our generals and marshals, including the legendary Georgy Zhukov, transported furniture, libraries and other belongings from the occupied zone of Germany by wagons. This "trough" for the military ended with General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, who gave the go-ahead for a united Germany 40 years later. The actions of the military, led by Marshal Zhukov, thwarted Beria's plans, he was accused of espionage and treason, and destroyed in the basement of the NKVD prison without trial or investigation.

In the early eighties, both the USSR and the USA dismantled the tracking points for Schwabeland. Interest in the ice continent temporarily faded. This was due to the fact that all the old Nazis died out, and the new ones, according to rumors, did not want to live there. According to some reports, Schwabeland was destroyed by the Nazis themselves, according to others, the Americans created a nuclear submarine base in its place.