World War II refers to the fighting that took place in various theaters of operations from September 1, 1939 to September 2, 1945.
The beginning of World War II is considered to be the German attack on Poland on September 1, 1939, and its end is the signing of the unconditional surrender of Japan on board the American battleship Missouri on September 2, 1945.
2. Lasting six years and one day Second World War knows no analogues in world history in terms of scale. In one form or another, 61 states out of 73 that existed at that time on the planet took part in it. 80% of the population was involved in the war the globe, and the fighting was carried out on the territory of three continents and in the waters of four oceans.
3. Six states during the Second World War took part in it on the side of both the Nazi bloc and anti-Hitler coalition are Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Finland and Iraq. The last of this list to join the fight against Nazism was Finland - September 19, 1944. Finland entered the war on the side of Germany on June 26, 1941, having attacked the USSR.
4. The participation of the Soviet Union in World War II is divided into two periods: the Great Patriotic War (June 22, 1941 - May 9, 1945) and the Soviet-Japanese War (August 9 - September 2, 1945).
In Soviet historiography, it was not customary to include such episodes in World War II as the Polish campaign of the Red Army in 1939, Soviet-Finnish war 1939-1940 and the conflict at Khalkhin Gol in 1939.
5. Of the "Big Three" of the anti-Hitler coalition (USSR, USA, Great Britain), the United States was the last to enter World War II, which declared war on Japan on December 8, 1941.
6. World War II remains the only armed conflict in which atomic weapons were used.
On August 6, 1945, a bomb called "Kid" was dropped by American aircraft on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, and on August 9, a charge called "Fat Man" was dropped by the US Air Force on Nagasaki. The total death toll ranged from 90 to 166 thousand people in Hiroshima and from 60 to 80 thousand people in Nagasaki.
7. Despite the fact that 68 years have passed since the end of World War II, a peace treaty has not been concluded between Russia and Japan. This happened because of the territorial dispute over the four islands of the South Kuril ridge - Kunashir, Iturup, Hibomai and Shikotan. Thus, formally, the state of war between Russia, as the legal successor of the USSR, and Japan remains to this day.
During the Second World War, the participating countries mobilized a total of more than 110 million people into the army, of which about 25 million people died.
The total number of deaths in World War II, including civilians, was more than 65 million people. Accurate data on the number of deaths have not been finally established to this day.
Only in the Soviet Union were destroyed 1710 cities, more than 70 thousand villages, 32 thousand plants and factories.
The total financial losses of states in World War II are estimated, according to various sources, at between 1.5 and 4 trillion dollars. Material costs reached 60-70 percent of the national income of the warring states.
In the photo: the head of the USSR delegation at the conference in San Francisco, A.A. Gromyko signs the UN charter. June 26, 1945.
10. On the basis of the anti-Hitler coalition formed during the Second World War, the United Nations was created, the main task of which was to prevent world wars in the future. The name "United Nations" was first used in the Declaration of the United Nations, signed on January 1, 1942. The UN Charter was approved and signed at the San Francisco Conference on June 26, 1945 by representatives of 50 states.
World War II in facts and figures
Ernest Hemingway from the preface to A Farewell to Arms!
Having left the city, still halfway to the headquarters of the front, we immediately heard and saw desperate firing all over the horizon with tracer bullets and shells. And they realized that the war was over. It couldn't mean anything else. I suddenly felt bad. I was ashamed in front of my comrades, but in the end I had to stop the Jeep and get out. I started having some spasms in my throat and esophagus, I began to vomit with saliva, bitterness, bile. I don't know why. Probably from a nervous discharge, which was expressed in such an absurd way. All these four years of the war, in various circumstances, I tried very hard to be a restrained person and, it seems, I really was. And here, at the moment when I suddenly realized that the war was over, something happened - my nerves gave out. The comrades did not laugh or joke, they were silent.
Konstantin Simonov. "Different days of the war. Writer's diary"
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Japanese surrender
The terms of Japan's surrender were put forward in the Potsdam Declaration, signed on July 26, 1945 by the governments of Great Britain, the United States and China. However, the Japanese government refused to accept them.
The situation changed after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as the USSR's entry into the war against Japan (August 9, 1945).
But, even so, the members of the Supreme Military Council of Japan were not inclined to accept the terms of surrender. Some of them believed that the continuation of hostilities would lead to significant losses of Soviet and US troops, which will allow a truce to be concluded on favorable terms for Japan.
On August 9, 1945, Japanese Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki and a number of members of the Japanese government asked the emperor to intervene in the situation in order to quickly accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. On the night of August 10, Emperor Hirohito, who shared the Japanese government's fear of the complete annihilation of the Japanese nation, ordered the Supreme Military Council to agree to unconditional surrender. On August 14, the emperor's speech was recorded, in which he announced the unconditional surrender of Japan and the end of the war.
On the night of August 15, a number of officers of the Ministry of the Army and employees of the Imperial Guard made an attempt to seize the imperial palace, place the emperor under house arrest and destroy the recording of his speech in order to prevent the surrender of Japan. The rebellion was put down.
At noon on August 15, Hirohito's speech was broadcast over the radio. This was the first appeal of the emperor of Japan to ordinary people.
Japan's surrender was signed on September 2, 1945 aboard the USS Missouri. This put an end to the bloody war XX century.
LOSSES OF THE PARTIES
Allies
USSR
From June 22, 1941 to September 2, 1945, about 26.6 million people died. General material losses - $2 trillion 569 billion (about 30% of all national wealth); military spending - $ 192 billion in 1945 prices. 1,710 cities and towns, 70 thousand villages and villages, 32 thousand industrial enterprises were destroyed.
China
From September 1, 1939 to September 2, 1945, from 3 million to 3.75 million military personnel and about 10 million civilians died in the war against Japan. In total, during the years of the war with Japan (from 1931 to 1945), China's losses amounted, according to official Chinese statistics, to more than 35 million military and civilians.
Poland
From September 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945, about 240 thousand military personnel and about 6 million civilians were killed. The territory of the country was occupied by Germany, resistance forces acted.
Yugoslavia
From April 6, 1941 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 300 thousand to 446 thousand military personnel and from 581 thousand to 1.4 million civilians died. The country was occupied by Germany, resistance units were active.
France
From September 3, 1939 to May 8, 1945, 201,568 servicemen and about 400,000 civilians were killed. The country was occupied by Germany, there was a resistance movement. Material losses - 21 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Great Britain
From September 3, 1939 to September 2, 1945, 382,600 military personnel and 67,100 civilians died. Material losses - about 120 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
USA
From December 7, 1941 to September 2, 1945, 407,316 servicemen and about 6,000 civilians were killed. The cost of military operations is about 341 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Greece
From October 28, 1940 to May 8, 1945, about 35 thousand military personnel and from 300 to 600 thousand civilians were killed.
Czechoslovakia
From September 1, 1939 to May 11, 1945, according to various estimates, from 35 thousand to 46 thousand military personnel and from 294 thousand to 320 thousand civilians died. The country was occupied by Germany. Volunteer units fought as part of the Allied armed forces.
India
From September 3, 1939 to September 2, 1945, about 87 thousand military personnel were killed. The civilian population did not suffer direct losses, but a number of researchers consider the death of 1.5 to 2.5 million Indians during the famine of 1943 (it was caused by an increase in food supplies to the British army) as a direct consequence of the war.
Canada
From September 10, 1939 to September 2, 1945, 42 thousand military personnel and about 1 thousand 600 sailors of the merchant fleet were killed. Material losses amounted to about 45 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
I saw women crying for the dead. They cried because we lied too much. You know how the survivors return from the war, how much space they occupy, how loudly they boast of their exploits, how terrible death is portrayed. Still would! They might not come back either.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery. "Citadel"
Hitler's coalition (Axis countries)
Germany
From September 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 3.2 to 4.7 million military personnel were killed, civilian losses ranged from 1.4 million to 3.6 million people. The cost of military operations is about 272 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Japan
From December 7, 1941 to September 2, 1945, 1.27 million military personnel were killed, non-combat losses- 620 thousand, 140 thousand injured, 85 thousand people missing; losses of the civilian population - 380 thousand people. Military spending - US$56 billion in 1945 prices
Italy
From June 10, 1940 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 150 thousand to 400 thousand military personnel were killed, 131 thousand went missing. Losses of the civilian population - from 60 thousand to 152 thousand people. Military spending - about 94 billion US dollars in 1945 prices.
Hungary
From June 27, 1941 to May 8, 1945, according to various sources, from 120 thousand to 200 thousand military personnel died. Losses of the civilian population - about 450 thousand people.
Romania
From June 22, 1941 to May 7, 1945, according to various sources, from 300 thousand to 520 thousand military personnel and from 200 thousand to 460 thousand civilians died. Romania was originally on the side of the Axis countries, on August 25, 1944 it declared war on Germany.
Finland
From June 26, 1941 to May 7, 1945, about 83 thousand military personnel and about 2 thousand civilians were killed. On March 4, 1945, the country declared war on Germany.
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Until now, it is not possible to reliably assess the material losses suffered by the countries on whose territory the war was fought.
For six years, many major cities, including some state capitals. The scale of destruction was such that after the end of the war, these cities were built almost anew. Many cultural values were irretrievably lost.
RESULTS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, US President Franklin Roosevelt and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin (left to right) at the Yalta (Crimea) conference (TASS photo chronicle)
The allies in the anti-Hitler coalition began to discuss the post-war structure of the world even in the midst of hostilities.
August 14, 1941 aboard a warship in Atlantic Ocean near about. Newfoundland (Canada), US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed the so-called. "Atlantic Charter"- a document declaring the goals of the two countries in the war against Nazi Germany and its allies, as well as their vision of the post-war world order.
On January 1, 1942, Roosevelt, Churchill, as well as Soviet Ambassador to the United States Maxim Litvinov and Chinese representative Sun Tzu-wen signed a document that later became known as "Declaration of the United Nations". The next day, the declaration was signed by representatives of 22 other states. Commitments were made to make every effort to achieve victory and not to conclude a separate peace. It is from this date that the United Nations has its chronicle, although the final agreement on the creation of this organization was reached only in 1945 in Yalta during a meeting of the leaders of the three countries of the anti-Hitler coalition - Joseph Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. It was agreed that the UN would be based on the principle of unanimity among the great powers - permanent members of the Security Council with the right of veto.
In total, three summit meetings took place during the war.
The first one took place in Tehran November 28 - December 1, 1943. The main issue was the opening of a second front in Western Europe. It was also decided to involve Turkey in the anti-Hitler coalition. Stalin agreed to declare war on Japan after the end of hostilities in Europe.
To date, it is not known exactly how many people died in World War II. Less than 10 years ago, statistics claimed that 50 million people died, data for 2016 says that the number of victims exceeded the mark of 70 million. Perhaps, after some time, this figure will be refuted by new calculations.
The number of deaths during the war
The first mention of the dead was in the March issue of the Pravda newspaper for 1946. At that time, the figure of 7 million people was officially announced. To date, when almost all archives have been studied, it can be argued that the losses of the Red Army and the civilian population of the Soviet Union totaled 27 million people. Other countries that are part of the anti-Hitler coalition also suffered significant losses, or rather:
- France - 600,000 people;
- China - 200,000 people;
- India - 150,000 people;
- United States of America - 419,000 people;
- Luxembourg - 2,000 people;
- Denmark - 3,200 people.
Budapest, Hungary. Monument on the banks of the Danube in memory of the Jews shot in these places in 1944-45.
At the same time, the losses on the German side were noticeably smaller and amounted to 5.4 million soldiers and 1.4 million civilians. The countries that fought on the side of Germany suffered the following human losses:
- Norway - 9,500 people;
- Italy - 455,000 people;
- Spain - 4,500 people;
- Japan - 2,700,000 people;
- Bulgaria - 25,000 people.
The least dead in Switzerland, Finland, Mongolia and Ireland.
During which period did the greatest losses occur?
The most difficult time for the Red Army was 1941-1942, it was then that the losses amounted to 1/3 of the dead during the entire period of the war. The armed forces of Nazi Germany suffered the greatest losses in the period from 1944 to 1946. In addition, 3,259 civilians in Germany were killed at this time. Another 200,000 German soldiers did not return from captivity.
The United States lost the most people in 1945 in air attacks and evacuations. Other countries participating in hostilities have experienced the most scary times and colossal casualties in the closing stages of World War II.
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Civilian casualties and total German population losses in World War II
A great difficulty is the determination of the losses of the civilian German population. For example, the death toll from the Allied bombing of Dresden in February 1945 ranges from 25,000 to 250,000, as the city hosted a significant but undetermined number of West German refugees whose number was impossible to count. Now the most probable death toll in Dresden in February 1945 is 25 thousand people. The victims of air raids within the borders of the Reich in 1937 were, according to official figures, 410 thousand civilians and another 23 thousand police and civilian employees of the armed forces. In addition, 160 thousand foreigners, prisoners of war and displaced persons from the occupied territories died from the bombings. Within the borders of 1942 (but without the protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia), the number of victims of air raids increases to 635 thousand people, and taking into account the victims of civilian employees of the Wehrmacht and policemen - up to 658 thousand people. The losses of the German civilian population from ground combat operations are estimated at 400 thousand people, the losses of the civilian population of Austria - at 17 thousand people (the latter estimate seems to be underestimated by 2-3 times). The victims of Nazi terror in Germany were 450 thousand people, including up to 160 thousand Jews, and in Austria - 100 thousand people, including 60 thousand Jews. It is more difficult to determine how many Germans became victims of hostilities in Germany, as well as how many Germans who were deported from the Sudetenland, Prussia, Pomerania, Silesia, and also from the Balkan countries in 1945-1946 died. In total, more than 9 million Germans were evicted, including 250 thousand from Romania and Hungary and 300 thousand from Yugoslavia. In addition, up to 20,000 war criminals and Nazi functionaries were executed after the war in the zones of occupation of Germany and Austria, mainly in the Soviet one, and another 70,000 internees died in camps. There are other estimates of the victims of the civilian population of Germany (without Austria and other annexed territories): about 2 million people, including 600-700 thousand women aged 20 to 55 years, 300 thousand victims of Nazi terror, including 170 thousand Jews. The most reliable estimate of the dead among the expelled Germans is the figure of 473 thousand people - this is the number of people whose death is confirmed by eyewitnesses. It is not possible to determine the exact number of victims of land hostilities in Germany, as well as the possible number of deaths from starvation and disease (excess deaths during the war).
It is also impossible to estimate today the total irretrievable losses of Germany, as well as the losses of the civilian population. Estimates that sometimes appear of 2-2.5 million civilians who died during the Second World War are conditional, not supported by any reliable statistics or demographic balances. The latter are practically impossible to build due to significant changes in borders and population migrations after the war.
If we assume that the number of victims of hostilities in Germany among the civilian population was approximately equal to the number of victims of aerial bombing, i.e., about 0.66 million people, then the total loss of the civilian population of Germany within the borders of 1940 can be estimated at about 2.4 million people, excluding victims of excess natural mortality. Together with the armed forces, this will give a total loss of 6.3 million people, if we take the estimate of the losses of the armed forces made by B. Müller-Gillebrand. Overmans determines the number of dead German soldiers called up from the territory of Austria at 261 thousand people. Since we consider his estimate of the irretrievable losses of the Wehrmacht to be overestimated by about 1.325 times, then in the same proportion it is necessary to reduce his estimate of the losses of the Austrians in the Wehrmacht - to 197 thousand people. The number of victims of aerial bombardment of Austria was small, since this country had never been the main object of Allied air operations. The population of Austria was no more than one-twelfth the population of the Reich in the 1942 borders, and given the lower intensity of the bombing of the Austrian territory, the losses of the Austrians from the bombing can be estimated at about one-twentieth of total number victims, i.e. 33 thousand people. We estimate the number of victims of hostilities on the territory of Austria at no less than 50 thousand people. Thus, the total losses of Austria can be estimated, together with the victims of Nazi terror, at 380 thousand people.
It must be emphasized that the figure of total German losses of 6.3 million people cannot be compared with the total losses of the USSR of 40.1-40.9 million people, since the figure of German losses was obtained without taking into account the excess non-violent death of the civilian population. Only the losses of the armed forces can be compared. Their ratio is 6.73:1 in favor of Germany.
From the book Results of the Second World War. Conclusions of the vanquished author Specialists German MilitaryHuman losses in the Second World War During the two world wars, humanity suffered enormous damage, exceeding all the usual concepts that financial and economic statistics operate on. Against the background of those figures that reflect the material losses of a particular people,
From the book Technique and weapons 2001 02 authorCOMPARATIVE TABLE OF POPULATION (IN THOUSANDS) OF EUROPEAN COUNTRIES PARTICIPATED IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR (EXCEPT GERMANY AND THE SOVIET UNION))
