The Logistics Nightmare That Ended Operation Barbarossa: Trucks, Trains & 750,000 Horses

Описание: The Iron Road to Moscow: German Logistics on the Eastern Front (1941)

Educational documentary examining the logistical collapse that doomed Operation Barbarossa through primary sources, military archives, and soldier testimonies.

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TOPICS COVERED:
• Railway gauge conversion and Eisenbahntruppen operations
• Motor transport vs horse logistics (625,000-750,000 horses)
• Fuel, ammunition, and food supply failures
• Rasputitsa mud season impact
• Winter equipment failures and cold-weather problems
• Army Groups North, Center, South challenges
• Rollbahn supply system breakdown

PRIMARY SOURCES:
Soldiers of Barbarossa (Luther & Stahel, 2020)
Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton (van Creveld, 1977)
German military archives and quartermaster reports
Soldier letters: Karl Fuchs, Wilhelm Pruller, Hans Roth
Wehrmacht transportation statistics
Imperial War Museums archives
National WW2 Museum collection
German Federal Military Archives

KEY STATISTICS:
750,000 casualties June-December 1941
63% truck losses, 74% tank losses by December
180,000 horses died in winter months
Supply delivery: 40% of minimum requirements by December
3.8 million Axis troops invaded across 2,900km front
600,000 motor vehicles started campaign
Railway gauge: 1,435mm (German) vs 1,520mm (Soviet)

Operation Barbarossa (June-December 1941) was history's largest invasion and a study in logistical failure. This analysis explores how supply problems, not battlefield defeats, halted the advance on Moscow.

ADDITIONAL CONTEXT:
Examines the Rollbahn system, forward supply dumps (Versorgungslager), Eisenbahntruppen railway conversion (5-10km per day), impact of rasputitsa mud season, winter lubricant failures at -30C, and the gap between panzer spearheads and infantry support.

Features soldier testimonies from Karl Fuchs (KIA November 21, 1941), quartermaster reports, and Wehrmacht transportation data showing systemic collapse from June optimism to December crisis.

EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE: Military logistics analysis, strategic planning study, operational warfare examination. Historical education and academic documentation.

#MilitaryHistory #WW2 #OperationBarbarossa #Logistics #EasternFront #Documentary

DISCLAIMER: Historical analysis for educational purposes. Does not promote or glorify any ideology or conflict. Academic examination of military logistics and strategy.

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Music By:
'Decoherence' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au