Misconcepetion.

This is coolbert:

Here is another misconception from World War Two [WW2].

In December 1941, Moscow, the Soviet capital, was threatened by German forces. The Soviets mobilized their last remaining troopsin preparation for a last ditch effort to save the capitol and the brave Soviet soldiers triumphed, against the odds. This was also a victory for "General Winter". The cold of the winter of December 1941 was such that German troops were unprepared, and the Soviet soldier was prepared.

Now, this representation is both correct and incorrect. More incorrect than correct. The Soviet capitol was threatened, the Soviets did counter-attack successfully, and the cold did play it's part. But this is not the full story.

In truth, the Soviet counter-attack [7 December 1941] was not merely to defend the Soviet capital from capture.

The goal of the counter-attack was the total destruction of German Army Group Center [German forces invading the Soviet Union consisted of three army groups [collection of armies]. These groups were labeled North, South, and Center. [Center was the army group opposite Moscow]. The Soviet commanders [led by Marshal Zhukov] had been carefully husbanding their artillery, their rocket launchers [katushya], and most elite units. These latter units were the Siberian divisions. Ski mounted troops [moved forward using ski-joring, being pulled along by T-34 tanks], inured to the cold, and each man armed with a sub-machinegun.

In a previous post, I have mentioned and referenced the artillery tactics used by the Germans in the latter days of World War One.

Theorized and perfected by Colonel Bruchmuller. Well, the Soviets had carefully studied these techniques, and under the leadership of their artillery commander, Marshal Voronov, put Bruchmuller's ideas to good use in their counter-offensive to destroy German Army Group Center. "It is said that more artillery guns fired in this one counter-offensive of the Soviets than were fired by all the combatants on the Western Front put together in World War One"!?" [this would of course include mortars of equal to or greater than 122 mm caliber. The Soviets classify these as artillery].

And the Soviet counter-offensive of December 1941 nearly did succeed.

Catastrophic losses were inflicted on the Germans opposite Moscow. Not only was Moscow saved, but the entire German Army Group Center was in danger of annihilation! It was only through the most energetic and inspired command that German Army Group Center was not annihilated. The German generals were able to stabilize the situation, contain the breakthrough of Soviet forces, and inflict very heavy casualties on the Soviet attacker. This was one of the two things the German generals excelled at during the Second World War [stabilizing a situation, containing a breakthrough, and inflicting heavy casualties on the attacker in this case].

After the counter-offensive of the Soviets had run it's course, both sides in the conflict suffered a down. The Germans now realized that a protracted war with the Soviets was at hand. NO quick victory as had been realized in previous campaigns. And the Soviets, now realizing that Army Group Center could not be destroyed, also had to now plan for a protracted war, with much of the Soviet Union's most valuable real estate being in the hands of the German invader.

coolbert.