Downfall (Der Untergang) a film based on the actual memories of Adolf Hitler’s personal secretary, Traudl Junge. The interviews with Traudl is featured during the first and the last part of the movie. This movie is probably most famous for the scenes of Adolf Hitler’s outrage onto his generals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBWmkwaTQ0k&t=185s
Adolf Hitler is so outrageous onto his generals because Felix Steiner, a Waffen SS commander that is expected to be most loyal to Hitler’s orders didn’t commence an attack on the Soviet Union to relief the strain on Berlin. How and why did Adolf Hitler, who as once the most notorious tyrant of Europe got stuck in a bunker in such desperation and ultimately commit suicide and go through a such a ‘downfall’?
The Soviet Union’s victory at the battle of Stalingrad was a major turning point on the easter front during World War II. Under a major campaign named ‘Case Blue’ (‘Fall Blau’ in German) the German military was targeting the oil fields of the Caucasus region and the fertile granary fields of the Ukraine. During this campaign, Stalingrad was an industrial complex also important for shipping along the Volga River which was the longest river in Europe, and the name ‘Stalingrad’ stood as a strong symbol for the Soviet Union. Due to such political and strategic importance, the German forces and Soviet Union forces brawled each other in a bloodbath for Stalingrad.
Although the Soviet Union suffered great losses since their first clash with the Germans, the forces of the Soviet Union realizes that the flanks of the German 6th Army which was the German’s main spearhead was protected by the relatively weaker German ally which was the Romanian forces. The Soviet Union mobilizes nearly 1 million personnel and crush through the Romanian forces and the flanks to encircle the German 6th Army by ‘Operation Uranus’. Eventually, the German 6th Army surrenders to the Soviet Unions.
The victory of Stalingrad by Operation Uranus turned the tides of the slight advantages the Germans had in the Eastern front. Through a series of major battles between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany forces including the third battle of Kharkov, battle of Kursk and Smolensk, now the Soviet Union had the edge over the German forces.
After and during such clashes, around the end of 1943, Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union, Franklin Roosevelt of the United States of America, and Winston Churchill of Great Britain met in person in Tehran, Iran to discuss matters of the war. Upon Stalin’s request, the three leaders promised to form a second front for the Germans in 1944 which would force the Germans to scatter their military forces.[1] This meeting is later known as the Tehran Conference.
The Allied forces of the west initiate Operation Overlord, which is also most known as the landing of Normandy on 6th, June 1944. Due to Operation Overlord, the German command was forced to open a second front on the western regions of Germany, forming two battle fronts which was a terrible foreshadow of World War 1. Almost right after the landings of Normandy, on the 22nd of June 1944, the Soviet Union commenced ‘Operation Bagration’, which was a full-scale assault with at least 1.5 million personnel targeting to obliterate the middle of the German’s eastern front (Army group Center). These full-scale operations were the decisive death sentence to the Third Reich of Germany.
During a short cease-fire for recovery for all forces after series of major and minor battles, Adolf Hitler was foolish enough to perceive that both fronts on the west and east were stabilized and stagnant although both fronts were barely able to hold the lines.
Hitler tried to drive off the Allied forces on the western front first and deal with the more massive Soviet Union later. Available panzer(armored/tank) units of the Waffen SS and Germany military from both the western and eastern fronts in the winter of 1944 were assembling for this offensive.
Under the name of ‘Operation Autumn Mist’ (Herbstnebel by German) about 400,000 personnel commenced a surprise counterattack through the thick woods of Ardennes, Belgium. This battle is more known as the Battle of the Bulge. The German forces miserably failed the even reach their primary objectives at the cost of precious panzer(armored/tank) units and experience personnel. The loss of equipment and men severely weakened both fronts lead to an even steeper downfall of the Third Reich of Germany.
In February 1945, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin gather again in a small town named ‘Yalta’ located in the Crimea peninsula to discuss the future of Europe and further matters on the Pacific on the premise that Germany is already defeated. This is also known as the Yalta Conference.[2] Already, the three knew that Germany is at its endpoint, and they were planning ahead to stabilize Europe. Now, it just became a race for the Allied forces and the Soviet Union on who is going to reach Berlin first.
In January 1945, the Soviet Union High Command (STAVKA) commenced the Vistula-Oder offensive and the East Prussia offensive. East Prussia is the north-east region of Poland while the Vistula River is the river located in the almost the exact center of Poland, and the Oder River is located along the border of Poland and Germany. These series of assault meant that the Soviet Union was finally pushing into the mainland of the Third Reich, Germany. Marshal Ivan Chernyakhovsky’s 3rd Belorussian front (army group), Bagramyan’s 1st Baltic front, marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky’s 2nd Belorussian front, marshal Georgy Zhukov’s 1st Belorussian front and marshal Ivan Konev’s 1st Ukrainian front were up and ready to push through Poland and Germany.[3]
East Prussia was a symbolically significant region for conservative rights and German military officers. East Prussia was the foundation grounds for the Prussia state. This region was the home ground of the Brandenburg-Prussia state which was formed by merger of the Brandenburg state and Prussia state which becomes in short the ‘Prussia State’ later on in the future. The Prussia state was the first state ever to unify all the states of Germany. It was also the roots of the Kaiser’s bloodline (German emperor’s bloodline) and many traditional military official inheritances as well.
Currently, this region is a part of Poland. Königsberg, which was the former capital of Prussia, is current day Kaliningrad, Russia which is a crucial military naval base of the Russia’s Baltic fleet. It may look odd as it is Russian territory squeezed between current day Lithuania and Poland. Regardless of the current status of this region, taking over the East Prussia region was not only a loss of a physical landscape but also a devastating symbolic rip-off for the Germans.
The breakthrough to the Vistula and Oder River by the Soviet Union eventually liberates Poland from Germany and provides an entrance point to the mainland of the Third Reich. As the Soviet Union successfully seizes its objective, the Allied forces also secures the Ruhr on the west of Germany. Now, the Soviet Union and the Allied Forces are on a competing race to Berlin. Stalin orders Georgy Zhukov’s 1st Belorussian Front and Ivan Konev’s 1st Ukrainian Front to compete and head for Berlin. The race between the Allied Forces and the Soviet Union and the race within the Soviet Union was on.[4]
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Eventually, Georgy Zukhov’s 1st Belarusian Front was the first to strike onto Berlin. It wasn’t only the Soviet Union breaking through main land Germany, but also Hungary, East Prussia, Norway, and all over Europe. The Germans were constantly shifting and reorganizing their forces as the Soviet Union broke through everywhere in 1945. Most German forces were depleted of equipment, consisted with any available remnants of already obliterated military units and had to even mobilize civilians as the Volkstrumm(people’s storm, consisting of noncombatants such as elderly people, youngsters. A desperation of resistance).
The film ‘Downfall’ starts with Soviet Union settling in Marzahn which is about 12kim from Berlin and bombarding Reichstag (the congress council of the Third Reich of Germany) and Hitler’s bunker.
“That was an order, where is Steiner?” cries Hitler while he headbutts into his generals. Constantly through the film, Hitler cries out for Steiner, but who is Steiner and why where such desperate moments relying on him? Felix Steiner, was a SS-Obergruppenführer officer(equivalent to a general lieutenant in an army rank system) of the Waffen SS, which was the Nazi party’s military force that branched from the paramilitary force, SS(Schutzstaffel).
Felix Steiner, former World War 1 veteran was a contributor to the formation of the Waffen SS before it branched from the allgemeine SS(allgemeine means ‘normal’, ’general). He lead the SS Verfügungstruppe(V-Truppe which was the experimental unit and predecessor of the Waffen SS) during the invasion of Poland, served as the division commander of Wiking, 5th Waffen SS division, commanded the 3rd SS panzer corps, appointed the commander of the 11th army to defend against the 2nd Belarusian front.
After numerous battles, eventually, Felix Steiner is designated as commander of Armeegruppe Steiner, which only had 15,000 poorly equipped men. Adolf Hitler ordered Steiner to attack the Zhukov’s 1st Belorussian Front and relieve Berlin from encirclement. Eventually Steiner refuses to attack. The refusal of Hitler’s orders by a high-ranking Waffen SS official, which was the paramilitary force of the Nazi party and under direct command of Hitler, must have crushed all of Hitler’s already diminishing hope and trust to his staff members. [5] This might explain why Hitler was so furious when he found out Steiner didn’t take any action to relieve Berlin.
The 9th Army of Germany was once the spearhead of the German’s offence that was first ever to attack Moscow. Now it just a depleted force lead by Theodor Busse. Initially Theodor Busse’s 9th Army was ordered to hold the line along the Oder River. However, as dire situations became only worse, Hitler desperately hoped that Busse’s 9th Army could drive off the Soviet Union and save Berlin from its encirclement with Steiner’s ‘Army Group Steiner’ and Walther Wenck’s 12th Army. Busse’s 9th Army tried hold the line and push forward but unfortunately it couldn’t resist no longer and retreated a bit west. Busse’s 9th Army was encircled between Marshal Zhukov’s 1st Belorussian Front and Marshal Ivan Konev’s 1st Ukrainian Front in Halbe. This is later known as the Halbe pocket.
Walther Wenck’s 12th Army was initially ordered to hold off the Western Allied Forces at the Elbe River, however after Berlin’s encirclement, Adolf Hitler urgently orders Walther Wenck’s 12th Army to break through Berlin’s encirclement and relief Berlin. Walther Wenck’s 12th Army countered the Soviet Union forces, but it eventually halted in Potsdam, 27km west from Berlin.[6] Both Wenck’s 12th Army and Busse’s 9th Army couldn’t reach Berlin. After Hitler’s death, Busse’s 9th Army trapped in the Halbe pocket and Wenck’s 12th Army desperately fight their way through to link up with each other at the cost of many lives. Both armies eventually head to the Elbe River together to surrender to the western Allied Forces.[7]
April 21st, 1945, Soviet Artillery started to directly strike the Führerbunker. The artillery were shelling on Berlin were positioned in Marzahn, which was only about 13km(8miles) far from the chancellery of Hitler. On the same day general Reymann, commander of the defense forces of Berlin was relieved leaving the defenses of Berlin without even a commander.[8]
Helmuth Weidling was originally the commander of the 56th Panzer Corp which was attached to Theodor Busse’s 9th Army. Eventually, on the 23rd of April 1945, Weidling was summoned to be executed for retreating his headquarters to the west which wasn’t true. As Weidling made his point to the high command at the Führerbunker, he was immediately appointed as the commander of the defense of Berlin. The 56th Panzer Corp was also relocated into Berlin leaving the 9th Army’s left flank exposed.[9]
Wilhelm Mohnke, SS-Brigadeführer, (which is equivalent as a general brigadier in army ranking) of the Waffen SS was appointed commander for the defense of the center district of Berlin(zitadelle sector), the last line of defense of the Reich Chancellery and Hitler’s bunker.
Women, children, the elderly and all possible personnel were sent to the front with the remaining navy, air force (Luftwaffe), army(heer), Waffen-SS personnel to drive the Soviet forces off from Berlin. Adolf Hitler was informed on April 29th that Mussolini was executed by the angry Italian mob. After Adolf Hitler was briefed that it was only a matter of time for the Soviet Union to take over the Reichstag and Führerbunker, Hitler commits suicide in his bunker on the 30th of April with his wife Eva Braun (they were wed in the bunker before their suicide). On the 2nd of May 1945 Helmuth Weidling officially broadcasts to all German personnel defending Berlin to cease fire while informing the death of Hitler and the surrender of Germany.
The movie Downfall, Der Untergang takes film of the memories of Hitler’s secretary Traudl Junge’s memories from the first day she met Hitler and from the 21st of April 1945 throughout the 2nd of May 1945. It might have been difficult to comprehend with all the names and events going on throughout the film. Upon understanding the downfall road of the Third Reich of Germany, no wonder why Hitler was furious and unable to keep the remaining sanity upon his insanity.
[1] U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of State, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/tehran-conf.
[2] U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of State, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/yalta-conf.
[3] Gnam, Carl. “The Soviet Winter Offensive: From the Vistula to the Oder.” Warfare History Network, 15 July 2020, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/the-soviet-winter-offensive-from-the-vistula-to-the-oder/.
[4] Kagan, Neil, and Stephen Hyslop. “The Battle of Berlin Was the Soviet Victory That Ended WWII.” History, National Geographic, 3 May 2021, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/history-magazine/article/soviet-victory-battle-berlin-finished-nazi-germany.
[5] says:, Peter Kadel. “Waffen SS General Felix Steiner's WWII Legacy.” Warfare History Network, 25 Sept. 2020, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/waffen-ss-general-felix-steiners-wwii-legacy/.
[6] Chen, C. Peter. “Walther Wenck.” WW2DB, https://ww2db.com/person_bio.php?person_id=200.
[7] Msw, and Msw. “Wenck's 12th Army April-May 1945.” Weapons and Warfare, 11 June 2020, https://weaponsandwarfare.com/2020/07/05/wencks-12th-army-april-may-1945/.
[8] Robinson, Matt. “The Battle of Berlin: April 21st, 1945 - Red Army Troops Reach Berlin.” Berlin Experiences, 24 May 2022, https://www.berlinexperiences.com/the-battle-of-berlin-april-21st-1945-red-army-troops-reach-berlin/.
[9] Robinson, Matt. “The Battle of Berlin: April 23rd 1945 - Stalin Changes the Plan.” Berlin Experiences, 24 May 2022, https://www.berlinexperiences.com/the-battle-of-berlin-april-23rd-1945-stalin-changes-the-plan/.
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