The Fall of the Third Reich/Nazi Germany:

From Major Military Defeats to Hitlers Unstable Condition

Didwania 2 Table of Contents Major Defeats Russia..........................................................................................................4/5 Major Defeats Normandy ...................................................................................................5 Major Defeats Berlin...........................................................................................................5/6 Nazi Conspirators...................................................................................................................6 Hitlers Mental Status ............................................................................................................5/6

Didwania 3 Outline I. Introduction A. Hook B. Thesis Statement II. Major Battles A. Advancement from east red army i. Battles throughout Russia(Separate Paragraph) B. Advancement from the west(America/British) o Battle of Normandy(Separate Paragraph) C. Battle at Berlin i. (Separate Paragraph) III. Conspiracy against Hitler A. Group of Conspirators i. Group of high generals B. Overcoat and other failed plots C. July Plot i. D. Valkyrie Plots IV. Hitlers Mental Stability A. At turning point i. Refused to believe they lost B. During the battle at Berlin. i. Crazy/Bunker C. Hitlers Reaction/ Nazi party moral(eventually suicide) V. Conclusion A. Summarize everything B. Conclusion Statement

Didwania 4 Prateek Didwania Ms. Stephanie Murphy English Period 1 26 April 2013 The fall of the Third Reich/Nazi Germany Hitler. Nazis. Holocaust. Third Reich. Most people know who or what these are. Most people understand the horror these people and events have caused the world, but people take for granted that all of this horror ended. They dont know, understand or even care about how the Nazi Regime Fell. The fall of the Third Reich was not simple. There were three main things that lead to the fall of the Nazis: Major Military Defeats (for the Nazis), Nazi Conspirers, and Hitlers unstable mental conditions. Major Defeats - Russia December 5, 1941- the turning point for World War II. This was the day the myth of the invincibility of the German Army was broken.((General Franz Haider (high-ranking Nazi official) qtd. Shirer)) this was the day the USSR beat the Nazis. The German army lost to the USSR for many reasons. First of all their military was too divided. Second the German army was not prepared at all for the Russian monsoon, muddy water, and especially their winter. They had no coats, boots, gloves, etc. Half of the army died of frostbite and other cold related reasons. The cold and mud jammed the weapons and artillery. The trek to Moscow itself was 300 plus miles tiring the German army as they neared Moscow. The German army had virtually relived Napoleon Bonapartes darkest moment. (Shirer) That was not all. Hitler had underestimated the USSR greatly. When the Red Army/USSR retaliated against the Germans they sent out betterequipped, energized soldiers. They attacked using T-34 tanks. These tanks were impenetrable;
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Didwania 5 nothing in the German military could do any damage to these tanks. Also the Red Army was the first military power to match Germany in airfare. They sent wave after wave of planes against the German army near Moscow. (Shirer) The German general begged Hitler for allowing them to retreat. By the time Hitler allowed the German army in the east to retreat the loss was to high to ever make up. (Shirer) Major Defeats - Normandy The Invasion of Normandy, more commonly known as D-day, is another major defeat for the Nazis .The invasion of Normandy started on June 6, 1944. It was a huge amphibious assault on a 50-mile stretch of heavily fortified beach in Normandy, France. 160,000 American, British, and Canadian Soldiers took part in the invasion. (ARMY.MIL Features) The invasion took the Nazis by surprise. More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircrafts supported the D-day invasion. (ARMY.MIL Features). More than 9000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded (Olding) but D-Day is significant in that it began the Allied invasion of Europe(Badertscher) Major Defeats - Berlin The last and major battle that finally ended the Third Reich was the Battle of Berlin. It was the final chapter to the destruction of the third Reich. The Red Army (USSR) had pushed through Poland, crossed the Oder River and started invading Berlin. (The Fall of Berlin, 1945) The Battle itself lasted 2 weeks in the month of April and May of 1944. (The Fall of Berlin.) The Red Army Greatly Outnumbered the Germans. The USSR released 20 armies, 6,300 tanks, and 8,500 aircrafts on to Berlin. . (The Fall of Berlin.) 1 million USSR infantry took part in the assault. Over two million artillery was fired at Berlin. . (The Fall of Berlin.) 150 thousand Germans were killed in the battled. The Nazis were so desperate that they forced thousand extremely old and young Germans to fight. Over 45,000 of them died. By the end of the first
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Didwania 6 week the USSR was already at the chancellery. (The Fall of Berlin.) Eventually the USSR/Red Army won the last battle of World War two. Nazi Conspirators Military advancements by the allies were not the only reason the Nazis lost. Some of their own members were against what Hitler did. As the Nazi regime grew, so did a group of high-ranking Nazis that were against Hitler. Finally as the Nazis started failing they decided it was time to get rid of Hitler. They planned many plots to kill Hitler. First of all the conspirers used basic methods such as hiding bombs in overcoats and standing next to Hitler till the bomb blows up. The series of these failed attempts were called Operation Flash. (Another Plot to Kill Hitler Foiled) Unfortunately either they had a wrong bomb or Hitler changed his schedule too often. One major plot was the July Plot. A high-ranking Nazi placed a bomb on a plane in which Hitler was going to travel in to Berlin. The plan was perfect, except for the bomb. The bomb malfunctioned and didnt explode. Fortunately for the conspirers Hitler never found out. The closest ever plot was Operation Val Kyrie. (Bullock) The main guy dealing with Operation Valkyrie was Stauffenberg. (Fest) The plan was that Stauffenberg and an accomplice were to go to meeting in a bunker, the wolfs lair, and place a bomb, hidden in a briefcase next to Hitler. Everything went to plan, even the bomb exploded, but somehow Hitler survived with only a few cuts and bruise. After Operation Valkyrie, Hitler discovered most of the conspirers and ordered them assassinated. Though all these conspirers failed in killing Hitler, they succeeded in showing that Hitler was even Germanys enemy. Hitlers Mental Status As the war came close to an end Hitlers mental condition was deteriorating. He trusted no one.(Shirer)(DORPALEN). Hitler refused to believe that the Nazis were loosing. And in the

Didwania 7 times he was sane he believe that all Nazis must give up their lives for Hitler if needed. (Shirer) As the Russians approached Berlin, Hitler barricaded him in a bunker beneath the chancellery. Only High Ranking official were allowed in. There was no communication between Hitler and the outside world so even his top two high-ranking officials lied to Hitler. Hitler believed that the US president was assassinated. He believed the Nazis were still fighting, though in reality the generals were surrendering to the Allies and the USSR. As the Red Army neared the chancellery Hitler got married. 4 hours later he shot himself while his wife drank poison. Hitlers death on April 30, 1945, left the Nazis with no leader. The Nazi regime survived for only 8 more days. By May 8 the Third Reich had fallen (Shirer)(DORPALEN). The fall of the Nazis is just as complex as the rise of the Nazis. It is an important part of the History. If one of these things did not happen the Nazi Regime might have still existed. There were three main things that lead to the fall of the Nazi regime on May 8, 1945. They were the major military defeats for the Germans, Nazi conspirers, and Hitlers unstable mental conditions.