Europe 1941: Eve of Barbarossa

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Political map of Europe & the Mediterranean on 21 Jun 1941 (World War II: Blitzkrieg: Eve of Barbarossa), showing the following events: Territory of Military Commander in Serbia; Anglo-Iraqi War; Treaties of Rome; Battle of Crete; Sinking the Bismarck; Operation Exporter; Final Preparations for Barbarossa.

Bismarck

22 Apr 1941German military adm.
set up in Serbia

2–31 May 1941British invade
& occupy Iraq

18 May 1941Italian-Croatian
border defined

20 May–1 Jun 1941German paratroopers
take Crete

26–27 May 1941British sink
the Bismarck

8 Jun–12 Jul 1941British and Free French invade
Syria and Lebanon

15–22 Jun 1941Germans move into position
for invasion of Russia

21 June 1941

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31 Dec 6AD

Sep 9AD

1 Sep 16AD

1 Oct 18AD

30 Jun 26AD

29 Feb 36AD

23 Jan 41AD

16 Aug 43AD

30 Apr 47AD

31 Aug 49AD

15 Jan 54AD

31 Jul 59AD

15 Oct 60AD

15 Nov 62AD

3 Oct 66AD

7 Jun 68AD

14 Jan 69AD

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24 Oct 69AD

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2 Aug 84AD

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18 Sep 96AD

5 Jul 102

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19 Oct 113

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30 Nov 132

26 Apr 142

31 Oct 161

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27 Aug 170

3 May 175

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30 Dec 192

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28 Jan 198

Dec 202

sum 210

Sep 213

sum 216

8 Jun 218

28 Apr 224

6 Apr 227

fall 232

fall 235

2 Apr 238

26 Sep 1815

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14 Sep 1826

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26 Feb 1831

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21 Dec 1832

6 May 1833

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20 Jun 1837

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27 Nov 1840

10 Sep 1844

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29 May 1860

22 Oct 1860

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8 Apr 1904

31 Mar 1906

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25 May 1940

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15 Jun 1977

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World War II: Blitzkrieg

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Eve of Barbarossa

16 Sep 1939 Invasion of Poland 11 Mar 1940 Winter War 21 Apr 1940 Invasion of Denmark and Norway 25 May 1940 Blitzkrieg in the West 21 Jun 1940 Fall of France 7 Sep 1940 Battle of Britain 3 Nov 1940 Italian Offensives 26 Feb 1941 Italian Fiascos 16 Apr 1941 Germany in the Mediterranean 21 Jun 1941 Eve of Barbarossa 31 Aug 1941 Operation Barbarossa 4 Dec 1941 Battle of Moscow 20 Jan 1942 The War Expands 27 Jun 1942 Western Desert Campaign 16 Sep 1942 Case Blue

British forces successfully ended German influence in Iraq and Syria, but narrowly failed to defeat a German airborne invasion of Crete. For Hitler though, this was all a sideshow—his focus was now on his 3-million-man military build-up for the invasion of the Soviet Union.

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Main Events

22 Apr 1941 Territory of Military Commander in Serbia ▲

As part of the dismantling of Yugoslavia, Serbia and the Banat is placed under the supreme authority of the German military commander in Serbia, with the day-to-day administration of the territory under the control of the chief of the military administration staff. Bulgarian troops assisted in the occupation and two weak puppet governments carried out administrative tasks under German supervision: the Commissioner Administration (30 April–29 August 1941) and the Government of National Salvation (29 August 1941–October 1944). in wikipedia

2–31 May 1941 Anglo-Iraqi War ▲

On 1 May 1941 the RAF airbase at Habbaniyah discovered it was being surrounded by Iraqi forces with artillery and responded with airstrikes the following day, driving back the Iraqis by 6 May. Meanwhile, under German orders, Vichy Syria began supplying arms to Iraq while the British in Transjordan and Basra launched a full-scale invasion. The British captured Baghdad on 31 May, bringing the war to an end just days after the pro-Axis Prime Minister Rashid Ali’s escape to Iran. in wikipedia

18 May 1941 Treaties of Rome ▲

The Independent State of Croatia signed the three Treaties of Rome with the Kingdom of Italy at the Palazzo Venezia in Rome. The treaties recognized Croatia as a sovereign state under Italian protection and defined its borders with Italy, allowing for the creation of the Italian Governorate of Dalmatia and completing the dismemberment of Yugoslavia. in wikipedia

20 May–1 Jun 1941 Battle of Crete ▲

On the morning of 20 May 1941, Germany began an airborne invasion of the island of Crete—where Greek and Allied forces had gathered following the German conquest of mainland Greece. The battle saw the first mass use of paratroops, with German Fallschirmjäger seizing control of Maleme airfield on 21 May despite suffering heavy casualties. Forced south in the face of German reinforcements, the Allies evacuated the island on 28 May–1 June. in wikipedia

26–27 May 1941 Sinking the Bismarck ▲

With her fuel tanks damaged after the Battle of Denmark Strait, the German battleship Bismarck was making for the port of Brest in German-occupied France when she was intercepted on 26 May by torpedo bombers from the British aircraft carrier Ark Royal, whose strikes disabled her steering gear. The following day, she was sunk in a full-on attack by British battleships and cruisers. in wikipedia

8 Jun–12 Jul 1941 Operation Exporter ▲

In Operation Exporter, British, Australian, Indian, and Free French forces under Archibald Wavell crossed the Palestine border into Vichy French Syria and Lebanon in June 1941. At the same time, British troops from Iraq invaded Syria from the east. Damascus fell on 12 June, but the local Vichy French leader General Henri Dentz held out in the north for another month before surrendering. in wikipedia

15–22 Jun 1941 Final Preparations for Barbarossa ▲

After a gradual build up starting in 1940, on 30 April 1941 Adolf Hitler set the launch date of Operation Barbarossa to 22 June 1941. On 15 June this date and the time of 0330 were confirmed to the German higher formation commanders and German units began moving into forward positions for the invasion of the Soviet Union. The Soviets responded by ordering a black-out in cities along the border and deploying troops in forward positions, but did not deploy for defense. in wikipedia