What was the Soviet reaction to German invasion?

Stalin’s initial reaction to the surprise attack was to go into hiding for two weeks as he did not know how to handle the 1000’s of innocent people being killed.  After his two weeks of hiding Stalin found himself with a renewed confidence in the Russian army and came out with a much more positive outlook on war.  Stalin used many different techniques to motivate and convince the people of Russia that all was not lost.  The State Defence Committee was set up to avoid the mistakes made by Tsar Nicholas and this meant that civilian experts were allowed to help organise supplies which left the army free to fight.  Supreme Command was set up to run the armed forces.  Great moving speeches were another way he managed to keep the people positive and encourage them to fight for their country. Stalin renamed the war ‘The Great Patriotic War’.  The ‘Scorched earth policy’ proved to be one of Stalin’s best tactics.  This was when the Russian people would set fire to and burn fields and other areas where the Nazis might have been able to get food. This meant that fighting became very difficult for the Germans because all the crops had been burned and starvation began to kick in.  Guerrilla and sabotage groups were set up and finally, churches were also reopened and used to encourage people to fight in the war.  This led to Stalin being in total control.

People and industry played a major role in the war.  Almost all factories were now used to provide food and equipment for those fighting for their country.  Workers would often have to walk 3 to 6 miles to and from work and then work a 12 to 15 hour shift and they would do this without complaining as they knew they were doing it for their country that was in desperate need of help at the present time.  10 million people then moved east to beyond the Ural Mountains and took 15oo factories with them.  As factories had to be so efficient and were very important as they produced all war goods, they were often able to be dismantled and up and running within a week

The initial reaction of the army was to retreat as they were seriously unprepared.  Compared to the German army the Russians were ill equipped, their weapons were outdated, poor and low in number.  The German leadership was far superior and the Nazis had had far better training.  Stalin then became quite paranoid and felt he couldn’t trust some of his leading generals.  This situation lead to purges and 2 out 5 generals, as well as many other officers, were removed from their position.  Despite all this the Russian army showed great determination, they were heroic, and they were patriotic and this was enough for them to come out on top.

In conclusion, it is clear that overall the Soviet’s reacted in a very positive way to the German invasion.  The Russian victory was a result of many factors, most of all a leader who proved his and his supporters capabilities in winning the war.