Some of the most horrific fighting of WWII took place in 1942 as Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union began to grind to a halt. Letters from German soldiers in the east during this critical year reveal what life was like on the frontline
Throughout 1942, the Wehrmacht undertook a number of major military offensives against the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front, and the soldiers there experienced some of the most brutal and deadly fighting of the war. Notable examples include Case Blue, which was launched in June 1942 and was a large-scale offensive aimed at capturing the oilrich Caucasus region and the city of Stalingrad. The Siege of Sevastopol had begun back in October 1941, with the German forces laying siege to the port city on the Crimean Peninsula. The series of engagements that became known as the Battle of Rzhev began in January 1942, and continued for several months, with both sides suffering heavy losses. During the series of battles fought in the city of Kharkov in eastern Ukraine, the Germans initially captured the city in May 1942, but the Soviets launched a counteroffensive that pushed them back. The Wehrmacht made significant gains in the early stages of 1942, but ultimately suffered several significant defeats that marked a turning point in the war on the Eastern Front.
The front itself stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea, and was the largest and bloodiest theatre of the war, with up to 80 per cent of German military casualties occurring there. As the war dragged on, soldiers faced increasingly difficult conditions. The fighting did not relent in the long and brutal winter weather, with temperatures plummeting well below freezing. Supply lines were stretched thin, making it difficult to provide adequate food, clothing and medical care to the troops. Diseases such as typhus and dysentery were rampant, and many soldiers suffered from frostbite and other cold-related issues. By the end of the war, German soldiers on the Eastern Front had suffered enormous casualties, with estimates of military deaths ranging from 3.5 to 5.5 million. It was also the site of some of the most horrific war crimes of the conflict, with German troops regularly carrying out mass executions.
But what of the Wehrmacht soldiers who were fighting these battles? We can get a glimpse into the thoughts, attitudes, fears and impressions of some of those men from their private letters that were sent to families and friends back home. The Feldpost, the German military mail service, was invaluable to the soldiers as well as their loved ones, as it was the only way to stay in touch during months of separation. Providing soldiers with the means to write letters was an important way to maintain the morale and connections of the fighting troops
