The Rise of the Third Reich

"Get up, slaves who are hungry and cold! Get up, people who are suffering all over the world! The blood in your heart has boiled, and you have to fight for the truth! The old world is in ruins, slaves, get up, get up! Don't say that we have nothing, we want to be the world's leader. Owner……"

The loud international song sounded in the compartment of the Ford truck aided by the United States. Yakov Fedotovich Pavlov, the machine gun squad leader from the countryside of Novgorod, and his comrades were fighting for the best time in their lives. Singing the Internationale with excitement - this is the war song of the world revolution and the national anthem of the Soviet motherland now.

As Soviets who grew up under the red flag, Pavlov and his comrades were trained as warriors of the world revolution.

As they bid farewell to their innocent childhood years, they tied bright red scarves around their necks and solemnly swore "always be ready" in front of the bright red Young Pioneers flag. They are already little communist fighters, and they are ready to dedicate their entire lives and energy to the most magnificent cause in the world - the struggle for human liberation!

In layman's terms, the oath taken by the Young Pioneers is an oath of war, an oath to launch a world war to liberate all mankind!

After many years, this oath gradually became a mere formality and was almost forgotten after it was announced. No one was really prepared to fight a world war to liberate all mankind.

But Pavlov and his comrades were all the first-generation Soviets, not the old youtiaos and young youtiaos who came later. They really believed in GC doctrine and were really ready to liberate all mankind.

After their generation took the solemn oath, the Soviet education department continued to instill in them the lofty ideal of liberating mankind with the greatest revolutionary enthusiasm and expectations for the victory of the world revolution.

He also told them that 90% to 60% of the working people in the world (this proportion had two major changes due to the revolution in East Asia in the 1930s) were still living in dire straits, looking forward to and singing songs day and night. The Soviet Communist fighters of the Internationale came to rescue them.

Pavlov, who grew up under this kind of ideological education, regarded joining the Red Army to liberate mankind as his lifelong career since he was a child. This ideal was finally partially realized when he turned 21, and he became a glorious Red Army soldier in 1938.

And today, at 6 pm on May 31, 1942, he and his comrades waited for the order to start the world revolution!

"Ula! Ula! Ula..."

Pavlov's mind still flashes back to that scene. When everyone learned from the company instructor Comrade Turetsky that the world revolution had begun, everyone in the company cheered - although everyone was surprised by the attack on Germany, a former socialist comrade and brother, no one was To think more. This is the highest instruction from a fatherly leader, who would doubt it? How could Stalin, the fatherly leader, be wrong?

"Dear Maria, this morning, I received the news from Comrade Vatutin, Comrade Z of the Military and Political Group, that the world revolution will begin on June 1st. This is such an exciting moment. We are becoming revolutionary partners. We have longed for this solemn and sacred moment together before, and now this moment has finally arrived!

It's a pity that I can't share the joy and excitement of this moment with you, because my troops will be the first to cross the Bug River and set foot on the land of white Poland. There are 30 million people in dire straits waiting for us to liberate and save them. This is also the mission that history has given our generation of Soviets.

Now I am going to complete my mission, please wait for my triumphant return. Please don't feel sorry for me if I unfortunately die on my way to victory. As a glorious Bolshevik member and Red Army political cadre, I should devote my life to the cause of human liberation.

In addition, by the time you read this letter, all the commanders and fighters of the 205th Division and I should have arrived at the gates of Warsaw. Maybe we have liberated Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

If this is the case, dear Maria, please cheer for our victory, please cheer for the liberation and freedom of the Polish people!

————————Love you Ilya Oktyabrysky. "

The political commissar and regimental political commissar of the 205th Division of the Soviet Red Army where Pavlov belonged, Oktyabryski, was thinking about the letter he had written to his wife Maria while driving in a rickety car on the uneven and simple road. on the highway.

In front and behind him, various vehicles lined up for more than ten kilometers. Thanks to the Ford trucks provided by the Americans, the 205th Division of the Red Army was motorized in early 1942 and could now operate alongside mechanized and cavalry units.

Moreover, there was not only one Soviet infantry division that was motorized, the 205th Division, but as many as 154! These 124 motorized infantry divisions, together with 116 cavalry divisions and 31 tank corps, constitute the most powerful mobile strike force of the Soviet Red Army. Calculated purely in terms of quantity, this is also the most powerful mechanized army in the world!

Political Commissar Ilya Oktyabryski, who was well aware of the powerful strength of the Soviet Army, certainly had reason to be confident at the beginning of this world revolution.

…

"How many armored divisions do we have now? How many armored regiments do we have?"

On the night of May 31, the lights were on in the Ministry of Defense building at 73 Wilhelm Street, and an emergency meeting of the High Command was being held. At the beginning of the meeting, Adolf Hitler asked about the number of armored forces - this number kept changing, so that Hitler sometimes couldn't figure out the exact data.

"There are 21 armored divisions," Defense Minister Hersmann replied, "and 31 armored regiments."

The German Wehrmacht expanded the armored forces after the end of the Western Front campaign, and the number of armored divisions increased from 10 to 21. However, the number of armored regiments did not increase to 42 accordingly (according to 1 armored division with 2 armored regiments, it should be 42 regiments). The newly built armored divisions after the Western Front campaign now have only 1 armored regiment, so the German Wehrmacht now has only 31 armored regiments.

In addition, all the armored divisions, armored grenadier divisions (motorized infantry divisions) and infantry divisions of the German Wehrmacht Army have shrunk from 2 brigades and 4 regiments to 3 regiments.

"Leader, although the number of armored regiments is not full, the establishment of each armored regiment is sufficient." Seeing Hitler frowning, Hersmann hurriedly comforted him, "Each regiment has 2 tank battalions, and each tank battalion has 4 tank companies. The army's 31 armored regiments have a total of 62 battalions and 248 companies. Each company has 22 tanks in service, and these 31 armored regiments have a total of 5456 tanks in service. All are Type 4H tanks. The 16 armored grenadier divisions currently being reorganized (the original motorized infantry divisions or brigades, now being expanded and reorganized into armored grenadier divisions as planned) also have a tank battalion. The 16 tank battalions belonging to the armored grenadier divisions have a total of 1408 tanks in service, all of which are Type 4H tanks. .

The Wehrmacht Army also has 9 heavy tank battalions, each with 44 powerful Tiger or Panther tanks. There are a total of 396 tanks in service.

In addition, the Wehrmacht now has a large number of Type 3 assault guns. Each armored grenadier division has an assault gun battalion, and each armored grenadier regiment (armored divisions and armored grenadier divisions have armored grenadier regiments) has an assault gun company. Each infantry division's artillery unit also has a Type 3 assault gun battalion.

In addition, the Marine Corps and the Airborne Corps also have 8 tank companies each, equipped with Type 3 tanks and 38t tanks respectively. "

Since the Western Front Campaign, the German Wehrmacht has shifted its focus to the navy and air force, so the resources allocated to the army are limited. As a result, the current armored forces owned by the German Army are not much different in quantity from the same period in history. The total number of tanks that can be used for front-line operations (excluding training, testing and spare vehicles) is 7,260, but the quality has improved a bit. The Type 4H became the absolute main force, and the Tiger and Panther also began to be equipped in small quantities.

In addition to the Type 4 tank, the Type 3 assault gun also became another main armored weapon relied on by the German Wehrmacht Army, just as in history.

As of the end of May 1942, there were more than 240 assault gun battalions equipped with Type 3 assault guns, nearly 90 assault gun companies assigned to the Armored Grenadiers Regiment, and nearly 4,900 Type 3 assault guns in service.

"12,160 tanks and assault guns..." Hitler had already calculated the approximate data, and he asked, "What about the Soviet Union? How many tanks does the Soviet Union currently have?"

"It has been found that there are 31 tank armies, 7 mechanized armies, a total of 100 tank brigades, 200 tank regiments, and about 25,000 tanks." Hersmann said, "The number is twice as much as ours, and 80% of them are concentrated on the western battlefield. Now most of these tanks are likely preparing to attack Warsaw!"

There are 20,000 tanks preparing to crush Warsaw and Berlin! Even Hitler couldn't help but feel his heart beating faster when he heard the news.

"Can we defeat the Soviets?" he asked Hersmann.

"Of course," Hersmann smiled, "There are now more than 10,000 tanks and Type 3 assault guns that can be used on the Eastern Front. There are more than 170 divisions belonging to the Wehrmacht and the SS. In addition, there are 138 brigades and 115 border defense battalions of the Polish Defense Forces, the Ukrainian Defense Forces, and the Lithuanian Defense Forces. These defense forces are quite combat-capable, especially the Ukrainian Defense Forces, which are our right-hand men. So our strength on the Eastern Front is not weaker than that of the Russians, and victory is entirely expected."