Street Fighting, Scorched Earth Retreats, and German River Assaults in the 1941 Blitzkrieg Push Into Soviet Cities
About This Footage
Reel 2 of this German wartime series continues the story of Operation Barbarossa, chronicling the Wehrmacht’s brutal advance deeper into Soviet territory. German forces reach the outskirts of a major Russian city and shell infrastructure, including a tall smokestack that collapses dramatically. Infantry and tanks push into the city, engaging in intense street fighting as buildings burn. Surrendering Russian snipers are shown with hands raised. In a psychological tactic, German loudspeakers demand surrender while Russians enact their scorched earth policy, destroying their own city before retreating. The reel depicts large groups of Soviet POWs under German interrogation, as the blitzkrieg continues. Luftwaffe bombers destroy a Russian supply train, and German troops move through devastated areas en route to Leningrad. German officers strategize on the battlefield; communication lines are established amid a shattered landscape. A nighttime offensive gives way to a river crossing assault on another Russian city, where engineers repair a damaged bridge as troops secure the area. The final scenes contrast the dry summer roads that aided the German advance with the muddy, rain-soaked September terrain that stalled Hitler’s plans for a quick capture of Moscow. A vivid and chilling portrayal of warfare on the Eastern Front.