News Archive
Prof Geoffrey Roberts on Newstalk’s “Talking History”
Prof Geoffrey Roberts participated in an expert panel discussion on “Operation Barbarossa” and the significance of the Battle of Kursk, broadcast over the June bank holiday weekend. Listen back on Talking History
At the end of June 1941 Nazi Germany invaded Soviet Russia, beginning a new phase of the Second World War. Called "Operation Barbarossa" this invasion had initially been scheduled to start on 15th May 1941. Delays soon set in, however, as Germany was forced to send troops to quell an uprising in Yugoslavia and support their Italian allies in Albania.
Although many of Hitler's advisors spoke against invading Russia, so late in the year, Hitler pushed ahead with “Operation Barbarossa”. This invasion would prove the downfall of the Third Reich signified Russian soldiers raising the red flag over Berlin in 1945. Though the impact of the delay of "Operation Barbarossa" has been contested by historians there has been little doubt of the importance on the Battle of Kursk.
Listen back on Talking History