Sage-Tips

How did the Soviets move factories?

When war started all equipment and workforce was transferred to prepared worksites and was simply switched on. 2600 factories were transported by railroads alone (peculiar statistic I found in Wikipedia), and immediately put to work. Beria was in charge of construction of “doubles” as it was his idea basically.

When did Stalin move the factories East?

Evacuation of industrial plants began in August 1941 and continued until the end of the year. The GKO oversaw the relocation of more than 1500 plants of military importance to areas such as the Urals, Siberia, and Central Asia.

How many factories did the Soviet Union have in ww2?

In total 2,593 industrial enterprises, more than 12 million people, about 2.4 million livestock, significant food reserves, agricultural machinery and objects of cultural value were evacuated.

What actions did the Soviet Union take during ww2?

The bulk of Soviet fighting took place on the Eastern Front—including a continued war with Finland—but it also invaded Iran (August 1941) in cooperation with the British and late in the war attacked Japan (August 1945), with which the Soviets had border wars earlier up until in 1939.

Did Stalin evacuate Stalingrad?

The Soviets had enough warning of the German advance to ship grain, cattle, and railway cars across the Volga out of harm’s way, but Stalin refused to evacuate the 400,000 civilian residents of Stalingrad. This “harvest victory” left the city short of food even before the German attack began.

Was Stalingrad evacuated?

Most of inhabitants of Stalingrad were evacuated. About 100 000 stayed for various reasons, it is documented that at least 42 754 of them were killed, died from wounds or hunger.

How many Soviet civilians died in WWII?

World War II losses of the Soviet Union from all related causes were about 27,000,000 both civilian and military, although exact figures are disputed. A figure of 20 million was considered official during the Soviet era.

How much did the Soviet Union spend on WWII?

According to them, the Soviet Union defense expenditures during World War II were as follows: 1941 – 70.9 billion rubles4, in 1942 – 108.4 billion rubles36, 1943 – 124.7 billion rubles37, 1944 – 128.5 billion rubles38, in 1945 – 137.9 billion rubles39.

Why did the Soviet Union shut down so many factories?

Much of Soviet industry was endangered by the German advance, and so the Soviets undertook a titanic effort to dismantle their factories and transport them to safer sectors in Siberia and the Caucasus. In the European part of the Soviet Union (everything west of the Urals), heavy industry was concentrated in several key locations.

How did the Soviet Union lose the four industrial zones?

Three German Army Groups plunged deeply into the European part of the Soviet Union; one was aimed at Leningrad, one at Moscow, and one at the Ukraine and southern Russia, threatening the four western industrial zones by the end of November. Had the German drive not faltered, the Soviets might easily have lost all four western industrial zones.

How did geography help the Soviet Union during WW2?

In many ways geography served to protect the Soviets during the German invasion in 1941. The extremities of the Russian climate are best known, but the huge expanses of territory were another major consideration, and that was exacerbated by a lack of roads.

What happened to the Siberian industries after WW2?

The Siberian industries relied on their coal mines and copper deposits in the Kuznetzk coal basin for continuing the support of the Soviet war machine. But evidence shows that some evacuations, the transfer of machine tools and skilled workers to “shadow factories” in the east, began much earlier.