Heads of state in the Second World War. Who fought in World War II, which countries participated in the conflict and who was on which side

The Second World War has no equal in the number of states that took part in it. Of course, all countries were involved in military conflict in different ways. Let us highlight the 7 most exotic states that took part in this war.

The Tuvan People's Republic (TPR) entered World War II on the side of the Anti-Hitler coalition three days after the USSR. A de jure independent state, but actually dependent on the Soviet Union, without hesitation, on June 22, 1941, adopted a declaration proclaiming the readiness of the Tuvan people “without sparing life, to participate with all forces and means in the struggle of the Soviet people against the fascist aggressor.”
Already from the first days of the war, the TPR provided active material assistance to the USSR, in particular, transferring to it its entire gold reserve, amounting to 30 million Soviet rubles. The total amount of voluntary financial assistance The population of the republic amounted to 60 million rubles.
In May 1943, the first 11 Tuvan volunteers joined the ranks of the Red Army: after passing intensive course training, they were enrolled in the 25th separate tank regiment. In total, about 8 thousand Tuvans took part in World War II.
The Tuvan cavalry, which fought in Galicia and Volyn, made a great impression on the German troops. A captured Wehrmacht officer admitted during interrogation that his subordinates “subconsciously perceived these barbarians as the hordes of Attila and lost all combat effectiveness.”

New Zealand

On September 3, 1939, New Zealand, simultaneously with Great Britain, declared war fascist Germany. New Zealand made available to the British Army its navy and transferred 30 Vickers Wellington bombers.
But the New Zealanders themselves actively participated in combat operations on the fronts of World War II. In particular, the New Zealand Expeditionary Force fought in Crete, Greece, North Africa, Italy and Yugoslavia. In total, about 200 thousand people were put under arms, almost 12 thousand of them died.
If in Greece, Crete and North Africa the New Zealand troops cannot boast of great successes, then in Italy from October 1943 to April 1945 they achieved several local victories, in particular, they liberated a number of cities from Italian troops - Castel Frentano, Arezzo , Faenza and Padua.
New Zealanders also had achievements at sea. Thus, the cruiser Achilles took part in the sinking of the German raider Admiral Graf Spee in the battle of La Plata, and the light cruiser Linder destroyed the Italian auxiliary cruiser Ramb I in the Maldives region.

He took part in battles on the fronts of World War II and the Maori Battalion. He took part in the Greek and Cretan operations, as well as in the North African and Italian campaigns. The Maori fought, according to eyewitnesses, “selflessly and bravely.”

With war looming, Great Britain announced the full mobilization of its colonies. However, in Sudan the number of British military personnel did not exceed 10 thousand people, so the entire burden of the defense of Sudan rested with the Sudanese themselves.
Sudan entered the war in June 1940 after British air strikes on Italian positions in Ethiopia. And a month later, Italian troops crossed the border of Sudan and launched attacks on Sudanese cities on a wide front.
The battles were especially stubborn for Kassala, where a 6.5 thousand-strong group of Italian ground forces, supported by tanks and aircraft, attacked a combined battalion of the Sudanese armed forces.
Until the end of 1941, the advantage was on Italy's side, until the combined Allied forces managed to push the Italian army back from Northeast Africa. After its involvement in hostilities, Sudan continued to play a prominent role in World War II, serving as part of the "African Line of Communication" and providing airfields to the American and British air forces.

Thai hostilities during World War II began in November 1940 during the Franco-Thai conflict, when, with the support of Japanese diplomacy, royal troops invaded French Indochina.
The Kingdom of Thailand officially entered World War II on the side of the Axis powers on January 25, 1942. However, Thailand's further participation in the war was limited to supplying food, building roads and supplying Japanese soldiers fighting in Burma. And after Japan captured British Malaya, the kingdom annexed the states of Terengganu, Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis.

Brazil

Brazil is the only country South America, whose armed forces took part in the fighting on the fronts of World War II. Presenter active trading with Germany, Brazil declared its neutrality at the beginning of the war. The Brazilian leadership hesitated until January 1942, after which it joined the Anti-Hitler coalition.
The initial intention of the Brazilian command to form 4 divisions was not realized due to difficulties with weapons and transportation. As a result, an expeditionary force of 25 thousand people was formed, consisting of an infantry division and an aviation group. In July 1944, the first batch of Brazilian expeditionary force arrived in Naples, where she joined the 5th US Army, which fought on the Italian front.
Brazil's losses at the end of the war amounted to 1,889 military personnel, 3 warships, 22 fighter aircraft and 25 commercial vessels. The war did not bring satisfaction to the Brazilian elite: hopes for the redistribution of the colonies European countries and the annexation of Guiana was never justified.

The Kingdom of Tonga, a British protectorate, officially announced its participation in World War II a week after Great Britain. Unlike the First World War, the Tongans did not fight Germany - clashes took place exclusively in the Pacific region with Japanese troops.
By November 1941, the Tongan armed forces numbered just over 400 men. In the event of an attack by Germany or Japan, they expected to defend only the largest island of the state, Tongatapu.
But the enemy landing on land never happened. All clashes with the Japanese military were limited to the territorial waters of the kingdom and its airspace. Only in 1943, when the number of Tongan troops was increased to 2000 people, they, together with the New Zealand army, took part in the battles for the Solomon Islands.

Mongolia

The close relationship between the USSR and Mongolia provided the country with support from its southern neighbor in the war against fascism. Mongolia, like Tuva, provided large-scale economic assistance to the Soviet Union, which came through the specially created “Red Army Assistance Fund”.
Already in October 1941, the first train with gifts was sent to the USSR, which, among other things, included 15 thousand sets of winter uniforms and 3 thousand individual parcels. Regular dispatch of aid trains lasted until the beginning of 1945.
In January 1942, fundraising began in the Mongolian People's Republic for the purchase of tanks, and by the end of the year, 53 tanks (32 T-34 and 21 T-70) were delivered to the Naro-Fominsk area. And in 1943 Soviet Union received from the MPR 12 La-5 combat aircraft, which were part of the Mongolian Arat squadron.
The Mongolian army joined hostilities on August 10, 1945, declaring war on Japan. 80 thousand people were sent to the front to participate in the Manchurian Operation. These were mainly cavalry units that were part of the Soviet-Mongolian cavalry mechanized group. As a result of the hostilities, three MPR servicemen were awarded the title of Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic.

When it comes to a global conflict, it is somehow strange to be interested in who fought in World War II, because it seems that everyone took part. But to obtain such status, every person on the planet does not have to be involved, and over the past years it is easy to forget who was on whose side in this conflict.

Countries that adhere to neutrality

It’s easier to start with those who chose to remain neutral. There are as many as 12 such countries, but since the bulk are small African colonies, it is worth mentioning only “serious” players:

Spain- contrary to popular belief, the regime, which sympathized with the Nazis and fascists, did not provide real assistance with regular troops;
Sweden- was able to avoid involvement in military affairs, avoiding the fate of Finland and Norway;
Ireland- refused to fight the Nazis for the stupidest reason, the country did not want to have anything to do with Great Britain;
Portugal- adhered to the position of its eternal ally in the person of Spain;
Switzerland- remained faithful to wait-and-see tactics and a policy of non-intervention.

There is no question of true neutrality - Spain formed a division of volunteers, and Sweden did not prevent its citizens from fighting on the side of Germany.

The trio of Portugal, Sweden and Spain actively traded with all sides of the conflict, sympathizing with the Germans. Switzerland was preparing to repel the advance of the Nazi army and was developing a plan for conducting military operations on its territory.

Even Ireland did not enter the war only because of political convictions and even greater hatred of the British.

Germany's European allies

The following took part in the fighting on Hitler's side:

Third Reich;
Bulgaria;
Hungary;
Italy;
Finland;
Romania;
Slovakia;
Croatia.

Most of the Slavic countries on this list did not take part in the invasion of the territory of the Union. The same cannot be said about Hungary, whose formations were twice defeated by the Red Army. It's about about more than 100 thousand soldiers and officers.

The most impressive infantry corps belonged to Italy and Romania, which on our soil managed to become famous only due to the cruel treatment of the civilian population in the occupied territories. In the zone of Romanian occupation were Odessa and Nikolaev, together with the adjacent territories, where the mass extermination of the Jewish population took place. Romania was defeated in 1944, the fascist regime of Italy was forced to withdraw from the war in 1943.

There is not much to say about the difficult relations with Finland since the 1940 war. The most “significant” contribution is closing the ring of the siege of Leningrad with north side. The Finns were defeated in 1944, as was Romania.

USSR and its allies in Europe

The Germans and their allies in Europe were opposed by:

Britannia;
USSR;
France;
Belgium;
Poland;
Czechoslovakia;
Greece;
Denmark;
Netherlands;

Considering the losses suffered and the liberated territories, it would be incorrect not to include the Americans in this list. The Soviet Union, along with Britain and France, took the main blow.

For each country, the war had its own form:

Great Britain tried to cope with constant enemy air raids in the first stage and missile attacks from continental Europe in the second;
The French army was defeated with amazing speed, and only the partisan movement made a significant contribution to the final result;
The Soviet Union suffered the greatest losses, the war consisted of massive battles, constant retreats and advances, and a struggle for every piece of land.

The Western Front opened by the United States helped accelerate the liberation of Europe from the Nazis and saved millions of lives of Soviet citizens.

War in the Pacific

Fought in the Pacific:

Australia;
Canada;
USSR.

The Allies were opposed by Japan, with all its spheres of influence.

The Soviet Union entered this conflict at the final stage:

Provided the transfer of ground forces;
Defeated the remaining Japanese army on the mainland;
Contributed to the surrender of the Empire.

The Red Army soldiers, seasoned in battle, were able to defeat the entire Japanese group, deprived of supply routes, with minimal losses.

Major battles in previous years took place in the sky and on the water:

Bombing of Japanese cities and military bases;
Attacks on ship convoys;
Sinking of battleships and aircraft carriers;
Battle for the resource base;
Application nuclear bomb for the civilian population.

Given the geographical and topographical features, there was no talk of any large-scale ground operations. All the tactics were:

In control of key islands;
Cutting off supply routes;
Enemy resource limitations;
Knocking out airfields and ship anchorages.

The chances of victory for the Japanese from the first day of the war were very slim. Despite the success due to surprise and the unwillingness of the Americans to lead fighting overseas.

How many countries are involved in the conflict?

Exactly 62 countries. Not one more, not one less. There were so many participants in the Second World War. And this is out of 73 states that existed at that time.

This involvement is explained by:

The crisis brewing in the world;
Involvement of “big players” in their spheres of influence;
The desire to solve economic and social problems by military means;
The presence of numerous alliance treaties between the parties to the conflict.

You can list all of them, indicate the side and years of active action. But such a volume of information will not be remembered and the next day will not leave a trace behind. Therefore, it is easier to identify the main participants and explain their contribution to the disaster.

The results of World War II have long been summed up:

The culprits have been found;
War criminals punished;
Appropriate conclusions have been drawn;
“Memory organizations” were created;
Fascism and Nazism are prohibited in most countries;
Reparations and debts for the supply of equipment and weapons have been paid.

The main task is not repeat something like that .

Today, even schoolchildren know who fought in World War II and what consequences this conflict had for the world. But too many myths persist that need to be dispelled.

Video about the participants in the military conflict

This video very clearly demonstrates the entire chronology of the events of the Second World War, which countries took what part:

World War II in facts and figures

Ernest Hemingway from the preface to the book "A Farewell to Arms!"

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Having left the city, halfway to the front headquarters, we immediately heard and saw desperate shooting across the entire horizon with tracer bullets and shells. And they realized that the war was over. It couldn't mean anything else. I suddenly felt bad. I was ashamed in front of my comrades, but in the end I had to stop the Jeep and get out. I started having some kind of spasms in my throat and esophagus, and I started vomiting saliva, bitterness, and bile. I don't know why. Probably from nervous release, which expressed itself in such an absurd way. During all these four years of war, under different circumstances, I tried very hard to be a restrained person and, it seems, I really was one. And here, at the moment when I suddenly realized that the war was over, something happened - my nerves gave way. The comrades did not laugh or joke, they were silent.

Konstantin Simonov. "Different days of the war. A writer's diary"

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Surrender of Japan

The terms of Japan's surrender were put forward in Potsdam Declaration, signed on July 26, 1945 by the governments of Great Britain, the United States and China. However, the Japanese government refused to accept them.
The situation changed after atomic bombings Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the USSR's entry into the war against Japan (August 9, 1945).
But even despite this, members of the Supreme Military Council of Japan were not inclined to accept the terms of surrender. Some of them believed that the continuation of hostilities would lead to significant losses of Soviet and American troops, which would make it possible to conclude a truce on terms favorable to Japan.
On August 9, 1945, Japanese Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki and a number of members of the Japanese government asked the emperor to intervene in the situation in order to quickly accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. On the night of August 10, Emperor Hirohito, who shared the Japanese government's fear of the complete destruction of the Japanese nation, ordered the Supreme Military Council to accept unconditional surrender. On August 14, the emperor's speech was recorded in which he announced Japan's unconditional surrender and the end of the war.
On the night of August 15, a number of officers of the Ministry of the Army and employees of the Imperial Guard attempted to seize the imperial palace, place the emperor under house arrest and destroy the recording of his speech in order to prevent the surrender of Japan. The rebellion was suppressed.
At noon on August 15, Hirohito's speech was broadcast by radio. This was the first address of the Emperor of Japan to ordinary people.
The Japanese surrender was signed on September 2, 1945, on board the American battleship Missouri. This put an end to the bloodiest war of the 20th century.

LOSSES OF PARTIES

Allies
USSR
From June 22, 1941 to September 2, 1945, about 26.6 million people died. Total material losses - $2 trillion 569 billion (about 30% of all national wealth); military expenses - $192 billion in 1945 prices. 1,710 cities and towns, 70 thousand villages and hamlets, 32 thousand were destroyed. industrial enterprises.
China
From September 1, 1939 to September 2, 1945, from 3 million to 3.75 million military personnel and about 10 million civilians died in the war against Japan. In total, during the years of the war with Japan (from 1931 to 1945), China's losses amounted, according to official Chinese statistics, to more than 35 million military and civilians.
Poland
From September 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945, about 240 thousand military personnel and about 6 million civilians died. The territory of the country was occupied by Germany, and resistance forces operated.
Yugoslavia
From April 6, 1941 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 300 thousand to 446 thousand military personnel and from 581 thousand to 1.4 million civilians died. The country was occupied by Germany, and resistance units were active.
France
From September 3, 1939 to May 8, 1945, 201,568 military personnel and about 400 thousand civilians died. The country was occupied by Germany and there was a resistance movement. Material losses - 21 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
United Kingdom
From September 3, 1939 to September 2, 1945, 382,600 military personnel and 67,100 civilians died. Material losses - about 120 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
USA
From December 7, 1941 to September 2, 1945, 407,316 military personnel and about 6 thousand civilians died. The costs of military operations are about 341 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Greece
From October 28, 1940 to May 8, 1945, about 35 thousand military personnel and from 300 to 600 thousand civilians died.
Czechoslovakia
From September 1, 1939 to May 11, 1945, according to various estimates, from 35 thousand to 46 thousand military personnel and from 294 thousand to 320 thousand civilians died. The country was occupied by Germany. Volunteer units fought as part of the Allied armed forces.
India
From September 3, 1939 to September 2, 1945, about 87 thousand military personnel died. The civilian population did not suffer direct losses, but a number of researchers consider the deaths of 1.5 to 2.5 million Indians during the famine of 1943 (caused by an increase in food supplies to the British army) to be a direct consequence of the war.
Canada
From September 10, 1939 to September 2, 1945, 42 thousand military personnel and about 1 thousand 600 merchant seamen died. Material losses amounted to about 45 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.

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I saw women, they were crying for the dead. They cried because we lied too much. You know how survivors return from war, how much space they take up, how loudly they boast of their exploits, how terrible they portray death. Of course! They might not come back either

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. "Citadel"

Hitler's coalition (Axis countries)
Germany
From September 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 3.2 to 4.7 million military personnel died, civilian losses ranged from 1.4 million to 3.6 million people. The costs of military operations are about 272 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Japan
From December 7, 1941 to September 2, 1945, 1.27 million military personnel were killed, non-combat losses - 620 thousand, 140 thousand were wounded, 85 thousand people were missing; civilian casualties - 380 thousand people. Military expenses - 56 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Italy
From June 10, 1940 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 150 thousand to 400 thousand military personnel died, 131 thousand were missing. Civilian losses ranged from 60 thousand to 152 thousand people. Military expenses - about 94 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Hungary
From June 27, 1941 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 120 thousand to 200 thousand military personnel died. Civilian casualties are about 450 thousand people.
Romania
From June 22, 1941 to May 7, 1945, according to various sources, from 300 thousand to 520 thousand military personnel and from 200 thousand to 460 thousand civilians died. Romania was initially on the side of the Axis countries; on August 25, 1944, it declared war on Germany.
Finland
From June 26, 1941 to May 7, 1945, about 83 thousand military personnel and about 2 thousand civilians died. On March 4, 1945, the country declared war on Germany.

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It is still not possible to reliably assess the material losses suffered by the countries on whose territory the war took place.
Over the course of six years, many large cities were subjected to total destruction, including some state capitals. The scale of destruction was such that after the end of the war these cities were built almost anew. Many cultural values were irretrievably lost.

RESULTS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, US President Franklin Roosevelt and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin (from left to right) at the Yalta (Crimean) Conference (TASS Photo Chronicle)

The allies in the anti-Hitler coalition began to discuss the post-war structure of the world even at the height of hostilities.
On August 14, 1941, on board a warship in the Atlantic Ocean near Fr. Newfoundland (Canada), US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed the so-called. "Atlantic Charter"- a document declaring the goals of the two countries in the war against Nazi Germany and its allies, as well as their vision of the post-war world order.
On January 1, 1942, Roosevelt, Churchill, as well as the USSR Ambassador to the USA Maxim Litvinov and the Chinese representative Song Tzu-wen signed a document that later became known as "Declaration of the United Nations". The next day, the declaration was signed by representatives of 22 other states. Commitments were made to make every effort to achieve victory and not to conclude a separate peace. It is from this date that the United Nations traces its history, although the final agreement on the creation of this organization was reached only in 1945 in Yalta during a meeting of the leaders of the three countries of the anti-Hitler coalition - Joseph Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. It was agreed that the UN's activities would be based on the principle of unanimity of the great powers - permanent members of the Security Council with the right of veto.
In total, three summits took place during the war.
The first one took place in Tehran November 28 - December 1, 1943. The main issue was the opening of a second front in Western Europe. It was also decided to involve Turkey in the anti-Hitler coalition. Stalin agreed to declare war on Japan after the end of hostilities in Europe.

The Second World War was not just the most terrible event in human history, but also one of the greatest geopolitical confrontations. Many countries became participants in this terrible military conflict. Of course, the war did not start out of nowhere, and all the countries that took part in it wanted to achieve some of their goals. Some states wanted to expand their influence in any territory, others planned to extract certain economic benefits, and many sought to expand the territory. But the main desire of most states throughout the war remained the protection of existing borders and their population.

The aspirations of many countries coincided, and in order to achieve the goals that were set for the leaders of states, many governments began to unite in military-political alliances or, more precisely, in coalitions. At the time of the outbreak of World War II, history already knew examples of such alliances, for example, the Entente, which included Great Britain, France and Russia during the First World War, as well as Triple Alliance, which included Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary.

As mentioned above, each country pursued its own goals, and those whose aspirations coincided united in coalitions. But there are also cases in history when such blocs included states whose desires and views on the world order were antagonistic. Who were the main and minor participants in World War II? This article presents to your attention a list of all states that took some part on one side or another of the conflict.

Countries included in the Axis group

To begin with, it is worth considering those countries that are officially recognized in the world community as the instigators of hostilities, that is, aggressors. Their symbol- “Axis”.

States of the Tripartite Pact

Most Prominent representatives The states that were part of the "Axis" are the countries that concluded the Berlin or Tripartite Pact in September 1940.

Germany was the most important and strongest state in this union. She acted as the main glue of the coalition. This country caused the greatest damage to humanity in the war against the anti-Hitler campaign. The state launched hostilities in 1939.

Germany was aided in its takeover of the world by Italy as the strongest ally in Europe. She joined the war in the 40th year of the twentieth century.

Japan was the third signatory to the Berlin Pact. Her plans included acquiring complete dominance in the Asian Pacific region. Its entry into the war dates back to 1941.

Minor Axis members

Serbia, Vietnam, Croatia and Cambodia are traditionally included among the Axis members who played a minor role. These countries also took part in hostilities. Although they were not considered the main aggressors.

Anti-Hitler Union

This coalition represents a list of countries that fought on the battlefield against the Axis states. The formation of this bloc of allied countries occurred throughout the Second World War. In this military conflict, it was this bloc that won. You can see the list of participants in World War II below:

USSR;
Canada;
Union of South Africa;
Netherlands;
Nicaragua;
Costa Rica;
United Kingdom;
British Indian Empire;
Panama;
Australia;
China;
Luxembourg;
Salvador;
New Zealand;
Guatemala;
Honduras;
Cuba;
Haiti;
Dominican Republic;
Belgium;
Greece;
Czechoslovakia;
expatriate governments of Norway;
Poland;
Yugoslavia.

People against fascism

We have also prepared for you a list of people who participated in World War II. These individuals can be called real heroes without hesitation. This excerpt contains the most famous representatives of that war period.

In February 1930, Valya Kotik, one of the youngest Heroes of the USSR, was born. His main activity is partisanship.
Petya Klyp - a brave scout, participated in the defense of the Brest Fortress.
The brightest representative of the partisan movement of that time was Victor Cakmak. This young man defended his homeland, despite heart disease.
Ivan Razin is a brave pilot, who has more than a hundred combat missions and blown up tanks of World War II participants.
Amireli Saidbekov died in Poland under the pressure of fascist troops.

And if you have a relative or acquaintance who also took part in this military conflict, but you do not know his name and patronymic, then now it is possible to search by the last name of participants in the Second World War. Many websites have been created for this purpose.

Conclusions

It is impossible to overestimate the importance and tragedy of such an event as the Second World War. Over the entire period of hostilities, 62 states took part in them. This number of countries is amazing if you keep it in mind. At that time, there were only 72 countries that had sovereignty. In general, there was not a single power that was not affected by the horrors of this war. And today’s younger generation must always remember the mistakes made by our ancestors, so that our grandchildren can live under a peaceful sky above their heads.

62 states took part in the Second World War (48 on the side of the anti-Hitler coalition and 14 on the side of the fascist bloc). Some of them were actively involved in military operations, others helped their allies with food supplies, and many participated in the war only nominally.

Fascist bloc Anti-Hitler coalition

1. Germany 1. USSR
2. Italy 2. USA
3. Japan 3. UK
4. Romania
5. Finland
6. Hungary

Leaders of the fascist bloc

1. Adolf Hitler 2. Benito Mussolini 3. Hirokito

Leaders of the anti-Hitler coalition

1. Joseph Stalin 2. Franklin Roosevelt 3. Winston Churchill
2. Main stages and events of the war

The most brutal and destructive conflict in human history was the Second World War. Only during this war were nuclear weapons used. 61 states took part in the Second World War. It began on September 1, 1939 and ended on September 2, 1945.

The causes of World War II are quite varied. But, first of all, these are territorial disputes caused by the results of the First World War and a serious imbalance of power in the world. The Versailles Treaty of England, France and the USA, concluded on extremely unfavorable terms for the losing side (Turkey and Germany), led to a constant increase in tension in the world. But the so-called policy of appeasing the aggressor, adopted by England and France in the 1030s, led to the strengthening of Germany's military power and led to the start of active military operations.

IN anti-Hitler coalition included: USSR, England, France, USA, China (leadership of Chiang Kai-shek), Yugoslavia, Greece, Mexico and so on. On the side of Nazi Germany, the following countries took part in the Second World War: Japan, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Albania, Finland, China (leadership of Wang Jingwei), Iran, Finland and other states. Many powers, without taking part in active hostilities, helped with the supply of necessary medicines, food and other resources.

Here are the main stages of the Second World War, which researchers highlight today.

This bloody conflict began on September 1, 1939. Germany and its allies carried out a European blitzkrieg.

The second stage of the war began on June 22, 1941 and lasted until mid-November of the following 1942. Germany attacks the USSR, but Barbarossa's plan fails.

The next period in the chronology of the Second World War was the period from the second half of November 1942 to the end of 1943. At this time, Germany is gradually losing its strategic initiative. At the Tehran Conference, which was attended by Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill (late 1943), a decision was made to open a second front.

The fourth stage, which began at the end of 1943, ended with the capture of Berlin and the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany on May 9, 1945.

The final stage of the war lasted from May 10, 1945 to September 2 of the same year. It was during this period that the United States used nuclear weapons. Military operations took place on Far East and in Southeast Asia.

The beginning of the Second World War of 1939 - 1945 occurred on September 1. The Wehrmacht launched an unexpected large-scale aggression directed against Poland. France, England and some other states declared war on Germany. But, nevertheless, real help was not provided. By September 28, Poland was completely under German rule. On the same day, a peace treaty was concluded between Germany and the USSR. Nazi Germany thus provided itself with a fairly reliable rear. This made it possible to begin preparations for war with France. By June 22, 1940, France was captured. Now nothing prevented Germany from beginning serious preparations for military action directed against the USSR. Even then, the plan for a lightning war against the USSR, “Barbarossa,” was approved.

It should be noted that on the eve of World War II, the USSR received intelligence information about preparations for the invasion. But Stalin, believing that Hitler would not dare to attack so early, never gave the order to put the border units on combat readiness.

The actions that took place between June 22, 1941 and May 9, 1945 are of particular importance. This period is known in Russia as the Great Patriotic War. Many of the most important battles and events of World War II took place on the territory modern Russia, Ukraine, Belarus.

By 1941, the USSR was a state with a rapidly developing industry, primarily heavy and defense. Much attention was also paid to science. Discipline on collective farms and in production was as strict as possible. A whole network of military schools and academies was created in order to fill the ranks of officers, more than 80% of whom had been repressed by that time. But these personnel could not receive full training in a short time.

For the world and Russian history The main battles of the Second World War are of great importance.

September 30, 1941 - April 20, 1942 - the first victory of the Red Army - the Battle of Moscow.
July 17, 1942 - February 2, 1942 - a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War, the Battle of Stalingrad.
July 5 - August 23, 1943 - Battle of Kursk. During this period the largest tank battle World War II - near Prokhorovka.
April 25 - May 2, 1945 - the Battle of Berlin and the subsequent surrender of Nazi Germany in World War II.

Events that had a serious impact on the course of the war occurred not only on the fronts of the USSR. Thus, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 led to the US entry into the war. It is worth noting the landing in Normandy on June 6, 1944, after the opening of the second front and the use of nuclear weapons to strike Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

September 2, 1945 marked the end of World War II. After the Kwantung Army of Japan was defeated by the USSR, an act of surrender was signed. The battles and battles of World War II claimed at least 65 million lives. The USSR suffered the greatest losses in World War II, taking the brunt of Hitler's army. At least 27 million citizens died. But only the resistance of the Red Army made it possible to stop the powerful military machine of the Reich.

These terrible results of the Second World War could not help but horrify the world. For the first time, war threatened the existence of human civilization. Many war criminals were punished during the Tokyo and Nuremberg trials. The ideology of fascism was condemned. In 1945, at a conference in Yalta, a decision was made to create the UN (United Nations). The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the consequences of which are still felt today, ultimately led to the signing of several pacts on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

The economic consequences of the Second World War are also obvious. In many countries of Western Europe, this war provoked a decline in the economic sphere. Their influence has declined while the authority and influence of the United States has grown. The significance of the Second World War for the USSR is enormous. As a result, the Soviet Union significantly expanded its borders and strengthened the totalitarian system. Friendly communist regimes were established in many European countries.

3. Great Patriotic War (1941-1945)

As a result of the global economic crisis, the National Socialist Party NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers' Party) came to power in Germany and launched intensive training to revenge for defeat in the First World War. The victorious countries in the First World War (USA, UK and France) with their policy of non-intervention contributed to the fact that Germany ceased to comply with the restrictions imposed on the growth of its military potential by the Treaty of Versailles. Germany freely introduced its troops into the demilitarized Rhine zone and used military force in Spain to support the fascist putsch. American and British corporations actively invested in the German economy and actually contributed to the creation of a powerful military-economic potential of Nazi Germany.

In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria (Anschluss), and the Munich Treaty was concluded in September of the same year between Germany, Italy, England and France. The Munich Agreement allowed the Nazis to occupy Czechoslovakia (with the participation of Poland).

In August 1939, the USSR concluded a non-aggression pact with Germany, known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (similar agreements had already been concluded by Germany with Poland and some other European countries). According to the secret protocols to the pact (published in 1948 from a copy and in 1993 from the original), the USSR and Germany divided zones of influence in Eastern Europe: the USSR received Estonia, Latvia, Finland and Bessarabia and the east of Poland (up to the Vistula), Germany - Lithuania and western Poland (in September Lithuania was exchanged for the Lublin Voivodeship of Poland).

After the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, Germany occupied western part Poland, and the USSR - the eastern part (Western Ukraine and Western Belarus). In 1940-1941 Germany captured Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, part of France, Denmark, Norway, Yugoslavia, and Greece (shared with Italy); entered into military alliances with Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia. For its part, the USSR annexed the Baltic countries, the Vyborg province of Finland, Bessarabia and Bukovina. The militarization of the economy and the entire life of Germany, the seizure of industry and reserves of strategic raw materials of other countries, the forced use of cheap labor from the occupied and allied states significantly increased the military-economic power of Nazi Germany.

On the eve of the Great Patriotic War, Germany, together with the occupied territories and satellite countries, produced 439 million tons of coal, 32 million tons of steel, 11 thousand guns and mortars, 11 thousand aircraft, 4200 tanks per year.

June 22, 1941 - November 18, 1942 of the year - Battle for Moscow, Kharkov and Crimean operation, Defense of Stalingrad
November 19, 1942 - 1943 - Counter-offensive at Stalingrad, Battle of Kursk, Battle of the Dnieper
1944 - May 9, 1945 year - Liberation territories of the USSR and Eastern European countries from fascist occupation, the defeat of Nazi Germany