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Figure 1.--The popular image of the German force invading the Soviet Union is the Panzers and motorized infantry. Often forgotten are the 750,000 horses that carried the Wehrmacht east. The massive NAZI force in fact was not a fully motorized army. Here apparently Russian boys were recruited to help care for the horses. I am not sure how willing they were. The German soldiers seem to be having fun at shaving the boy's head to delouse him. The photograph is undated, but was probanly taken in late-November 1941, just before the Red Army counter attack before Moscow. Hitler assembled what Goebbels claimed was the greatest concentation of forces in world history. They were correct. The Germans invasion force totaled 153 divisions and more than 3 million men. It was not an all-German force, but it was except for the Finns, titally under Hitler's control. The Barbarossa invasion force was the high point of the NAZI war effort. It was a much more powerful force than had struck in the West. And Hitler would never again be able to assemble a force of such magnitude. The Axis divisions were equipped with 600,000 million motorized vehicles, 3,580 tanks, 7,184 artillery pieces, and 2,740 air planes. Finish, Hungarian, and Romanian divisions accompanied the Whermacht and were soon joined by Italian divisions and the Spanish Blue Dvision. Hitler had wanted the French to participate, but Petain had refused. Even so, it was the most powerful military force ever assembled up to that time. And the heart of the force were the German Panzer forces, capable of rapidy driving deep into enemy lines and surrounding string points. The Luftwaffe was at the time the most powerful air frce in the world. The Barbarossa strike force included 2,000 planes. The Luftwaffe was, however, to be less of a factor on the vast battlefield in the East. There the Luftwaffe's size meant that it would not prove as critical as it had on the smaller battlefields in the West. The NAZI force, however, had an even more serious weakness. Despite the superb Panzer divisions, the Germans did not have a fully motorized army. And the trucks and other vehicles cobbeled together from all over Europe werevof many different types, greatly complicating logistics and maintenance. Even worse, many units were not not yet motorized. Entering the Soviet Uniion with the Germans were 750,000 horses. Horse power still played an importat role in the Wehrmact, both for transport and artillery. And as the weather turned cold, the Germans discovered that their horses did not have the stmina for the rigors of the Russian winter.
[i]Figure 1.--The popular image of the German force invading the Soviet Union is the Panzers ... their horses did not have the stmina for the rigors of the Russian winter.
Would it have been easier to post a link rather than plaigerize? I could care less about the TOS on copyright, although they are clear. I am more concerned in posters getting lazy and not posting thoughts or conclusion on their own.
The USSR had the largest army out of necessity, because their country was being invaded rapidly and they had no other choice. Every able-bodied male was drafted into the Soviet army to defend their country, no matter how poorly trained. I'm sure if the Nazi's had invaded the U.S., we would also have fielded a much larger army in the 20+ million range. The U.S. never had its back against the wall like the Russians did.
The largest invading force in history was Operation Barbarossa when the Nazi's invaded the Soviet Union. The invading army had approximately 5-6 million troops. The Germans accounted for only 3-4 million of those troops. Finland, Italy, and Bulgaria devoted a large number of troops as well. Remember, Russia attacked Finland shortly before WW2 broke out, so, the Finns gladly joined the Nazi's in Operation Barbarossa.
Also, do not discount WW1 troop numbers. I believe Germany, France, and Russia each had over 20 million troops mobilized during the course of the war. The British and the Austrians had at least 15 million troops mobilized. The U.S. drafted 2.8 million men and the overall force was probably around 5 million by the war's end.
I know this is an old one but I wanted to know if anyone knows or can post the peak size of the WWI armies. I know about the WWII armies as how the USSR mobilized somewhere from 20 to 30 million and the peak size of their armed forces was about 13 million at the end of WWII. And the US mobilized 16.4 million with a peak at 12.3 million at the end of WWII. Germany I have read mobilized as many as 17.9 million with a peak size about 10 million. I always figured the USSR and USA had the two largest armed forces ever as I know there were large armies in WWI but I thought I read none peaked more then about 12 million ?? But I am not sure if thats correct. Ron
The USSR had the largest army out of necessity, because their country was being invaded rapidly and they had no other choice. Every able-bodied male was drafted into the Soviet army to defend their country, no matter how poorly trained. I'm sure if the Nazi's had invaded the U.S., we would also have fielded a much larger army in the 20+ million range. The U.S. never had its back against the wall like the Russians did.
The largest invading force in history was Operation Barbarossa when the Nazi's invaded the Soviet Union. The invading army had approximately 5-6 million troops. The Germans accounted for only 3-4 million of those troops. Finland, Italy, and Bulgaria devoted a large number of troops as well. Remember, Russia attacked Finland shortly before WW2 broke out, so, the Finns gladly joined the Nazi's in Operation Barbarossa.
Also, do not discount WW1 troop numbers. I believe Germany, France, and Russia each had over 20 million troops mobilized during the course of the war. The British and the Austrians had at least 15 million troops mobilized. The U.S. drafted 2.8 million men and the overall force was probably around 5 million by the war's end.
It was 3 months after the outbreak of WWII when the Russians and Finns fought for territorial lands. The Russians wanted the land to protect a key city, Leningrad.
1st usa during ww2 1945 [url=http://www.nationalww2museum.org/learn/education/for-students/ww2-history/ww2-by-the-numbers/us-military.html]The National WWII Museum | New Orleans: Learn: For Students: WWII by the Numbers: US Military[/url] 8.26 million
2nd USSR dring ww2 6.7 million [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Front_(World_War_II[/url])
3rd Chinese during 2nd sino-japanses war 5.6 million [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Sino-Japanese_War]Second Sino-Japanese War - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/url]
I know this is an old one but I wanted to know if anyone knows or can post the peak size of the WWI armies. I know about the WWII armies as how the USSR mobilized somewhere from 20 to 30 million and the peak size of their armed forces was about 13 million at the end of WWII. And the US mobilized 16.4 million with a peak at 12.3 million at the end of WWII. Germany I have read mobilized as many as 17.9 million with a peak size about 10 million. I always figured the USSR and USA had the two largest armed forces ever as I know there were large armies in WWI but I thought I read none peaked more then about 12 million ?? But I am not sure if thats correct. Ron
Are you talking about land armies strictly? Or total forces including army, navy, and air forces? In WW2, about 1/2 of U.S. forces were Navy/air forces. So the U.S. peaked at 12 million, but only 6 million were army ground troops. This was especially true for the British who's navy dwarfed their land forces at the outbreak of war. The British army increased in size significantly as the war progressed, but they drew heavily from colonial troops.
For WW1, the total mobilized forces for each significant country were (approximate):
Russia- 12 million
Germany- 11 million
France- 8 million
England- 8 million
Austria-Hungary- 8 million
Italy- 5 million
U.S.- 5 million
Turkey- 3 million
Bulgaria-2 million
Romania- 1 million
Japan- 800,000
Serbia- 750,000
In total, the Central Powers fielded about 22 million troops and the Allies 42 million. The Allies mobilized almost twice as many troops during the course of WW1, but it should be noted that not all Allied powers fought throughout the entire war. The U.S. did not enter the war until 1917, and did not field significant numbers of troops until 1918. By that time, Russia had already exited the war. Likewise, at the beginning of the war, England's army was a minor force supporting the larger French army. Germany's army greatly outnumbered the British. The Central Powers actually had a numerical advantage at the start of the war.
Last edited by Nolefan34; 06-09-2014 at 08:33 PM..
Are you talking about land armies strictly? Or total forces including army, navy, and air forces? In WW2, about 1/2 of U.S. forces were Navy/air forces. So the U.S. peaked at 12 million, but only 6 million were army ground troops. This was especially true for the British who's navy dwarfed their land forces at the outbreak of war. The British army increased in size significantly as the war progressed, but they drew heavily from colonial troops.
For WW1, the total mobilized forces for each significant country were (approximate):
Russia- 12 million
Germany- 11 million
France- 8 million
England- 8 million
Austria-Hungary- 8 million
Italy- 5 million
U.S.- 5 million
Turkey- 3 million
Bulgaria-2 million
Romania- 1 million
Japan- 800,000
Serbia- 750,000
In total, the Central Powers fielded about 22 million troops and the Allies 42 million. The Allies mobilized almost twice as many troops during the course of WW1, but it should be noted that not all Allied powers fought throughout the entire war. The U.S. did not enter the war until 1917, and did not field significant numbers of troops until 1918. By that time, Russia had already exited the war. Likewise, at the beginning of the war, England's army was a minor force supporting the larger French army. Germany's army greatly outnumbered the British. The Central Powers actually had a numerical advantage at the start of the war.
Yes I was talking about total armed forces as I know the British peaked about 4.6 million in WWII as I remember their army was 2.9 million at its peak and their air force was about a million and their navy around 750,000 I believe. I do know that the US had a total army of 8.3 million at its peak with 2.3 million in the army air force and about 3 million combat troops but only just over 2 million were overseas and about 3 million service troops. And of course the US navy with the marines and the 170,000 coast gaurd that did fight overseas had a peak just over 4 million.
What I have never found out it just how many Soviet troops in WWII were air force and navy and how many army troops were combat. The best I have read is one of my books says a Soviet writer stated in January 1945 they had about 555 divisions and he says it was about 5.7 million men ?? That would have to be only combat front line troops and even at that its only an average of 10,000 men per division. I have also read they had 6 million troops on the eastern front and I dont know if thats all combat troops or not. And another book states they had about 1 million or just over that in their navy and air force. If thats true then they had about 11 to 12 million ground troops and if 6 million were front line combat troops then a good 5 million were service troops. But no books I have read really get to much into detail like the figures I can get on the US forces.
Thank you for the figures on the WWI forces as I knew they were large. I am surprised to see 8 million troops from England in WWI only because I know they were pretty tapped out in man power in WWII at just under 5 million with a population around 46 million in WWII. Did they have a larger population at the start or WWI ? Thanks again. Ron
Yes I was talking about total armed forces as I know the British peaked about 4.6 million in WWII as I remember their army was 2.9 million at its peak and their air force was about a million and their navy around 750,000 I believe. I do know that the US had a total army of 8.3 million at its peak with 2.3 million in the army air force and about 3 million combat troops but only just over 2 million were overseas and about 3 million service troops. And of course the US navy with the marines and the 170,000 coast gaurd that did fight overseas had a peak just over 4 million.
What I have never found out it just how many Soviet troops in WWII were air force and navy and how many army troops were combat. The best I have read is one of my books says a Soviet writer stated in January 1945 they had about 555 divisions and he says it was about 5.7 million men ?? That would have to be only combat front line troops and even at that its only an average of 10,000 men per division. I have also read they had 6 million troops on the eastern front and I dont know if thats all combat troops or not. And another book states they had about 1 million or just over that in their navy and air force. If thats true then they had about 11 to 12 million ground troops and if 6 million were front line combat troops then a good 5 million were service troops. But no books I have read really get to much into detail like the figures I can get on the US forces.
Thank you for the figures on the WWI forces as I knew they were large. I am surprised to see 8 million troops from England in WWI only because I know they were pretty tapped out in man power in WWII at just under 5 million with a population around 46 million in WWII. Did they have a larger population at the start or WWI ? Thanks again. Ron
Those numbers I provided include TOTAL troops meaning army, navy, and air force. Is it possible you are confusing total troop numbers with army troop numbers? This may explain partly why the WW2 numbers are much smaller for the British.
Another explanation is that the British started WW2 with a very small standing army. They began a draft in 1939, much later than the other powers. There was less of a need for a large standing army since England was surrounded by water and had the huge Royal Navy protecting them. The idea was that in the event of war, the small British Expeditionary Force would deploy to France to compliment the much larger French army. As the war progressed, the British would gradually build up their land forces as needed as they had in WW1. Due to the quick collapse of France in May, 1940, this gradual buildup never materialized, so there was no chance to send millions of troops to continental Europe. In WW1, the British had 4 years of static fighting where constant troop replacements were required to maintain the war effort.
The Soviets in WW2 had a much larger % of their forces as land troops compared to the U.S. and Britain. In 1941, during Operation Barbarossa, the Soviets supposedly had about 3 million troops on the Eastern Front and perhaps another 1-2 million elsewhere. The Axis invaded with about 5 million troops. As the war progressed, the Soviets did an unbelievable job of creating entire armies from scratch to replace their massive losses. By 1945, the Soviets had a 12 million man army. By some estimates, they fielded over 20 million troops throughout the course of WW2. I have no idea how large their navy or air force was, but the ground army was a juggernaut. Also, the Soviet armies were concentrated on a single theater as opposed to U.S. and British forces that were split between multiple theaters.
What I was asking about the British was that I read their total armed forces around the end of WWII was about 4.6 million including the army , air force and navy. And I read that they were tapped out in man power only because they were a nation of 46 million. Thats why I thought even 8 million was a good bit for them as it seems they put more troops in their forces in WWI. Now I know there forces were 4.6 million at the wars end but I know they mobilized more then that as I read they mobilized a total of 5.9 million. I guess thats why I wondered if they were getting tapped out at 5.9 total mobilized that the 8 million for WWI seems like alot for them which is good as I dont mean anything by it as I am just curious why they could mobilize more in WWI ? Thanks , Ron
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Figure 1.--The popular image of the German force invading the Soviet Union is the Panzers and motorized infantry. Often forgotten are the 750,000 horses that carried the Wehrmacht east. The massive NAZI force in fact was not a fully motorized army. Here apparently Russian boys were recruited to help care for the horses. I am not sure how willing they were. The German soldiers seem to be having fun at shaving the boy's head to delouse him. The photograph is undated, but was probanly taken in late-November 1941, just before the Red Army counter attack before Moscow. Hitler assembled what Goebbels claimed was the greatest concentation of forces in world history. They were correct. The Germans invasion force totaled 153 divisions and more than 3 million men. It was not an all-German force, but it was except for the Finns, titally under Hitler's control. The Barbarossa invasion force was the high point of the NAZI war effort. It was a much more powerful force than had struck in the West. And Hitler would never again be able to assemble a force of such magnitude. The Axis divisions were equipped with 600,000 million motorized vehicles, 3,580 tanks, 7,184 artillery pieces, and 2,740 air planes. Finish, Hungarian, and Romanian divisions accompanied the Whermacht and were soon joined by Italian divisions and the Spanish Blue Dvision. Hitler had wanted the French to participate, but Petain had refused. Even so, it was the most powerful military force ever assembled up to that time. And the heart of the force were the German Panzer forces, capable of rapidy driving deep into enemy lines and surrounding string points. The Luftwaffe was at the time the most powerful air frce in the world. The Barbarossa strike force included 2,000 planes. The Luftwaffe was, however, to be less of a factor on the vast battlefield in the East. There the Luftwaffe's size meant that it would not prove as critical as it had on the smaller battlefields in the West. The NAZI force, however, had an even more serious weakness. Despite the superb Panzer divisions, the Germans did not have a fully motorized army. And the trucks and other vehicles cobbeled together from all over Europe werevof many different types, greatly complicating logistics and maintenance. Even worse, many units were not not yet motorized. Entering the Soviet Uniion with the Germans were 750,000 horses. Horse power still played an importat role in the Wehrmact, both for transport and artillery. And as the weather turned cold, the Germans discovered that their horses did not have the stmina for the rigors of the Russian winter.
