Did Stalin retaliate when Hitler never split Poland like he was supposed to once he occupied the country?

Answer 1

Um, Hitler did split Poland with Stalin. If you look at the map on the link below, orange line shows which part of Poland the Soviet Union gained in 1939, and the shaded pink area is what teh Soviet Union kept after the war.

Answer 2

While their political ideologies were incompatible, and their territorial aspirations were in conflict, Stalin did not violate the Molotov-Ribbentrob pact (non-agression pact between Germany and Russia). It was actually Hitler that commenced the war between Germany and the Soviet Union by invading Russia in 1941 (codenamed Operation Barbarossa). Stalin was more than happy to continue the non-aggression pact with Hitler, either as a stall for time as the Russian army re-armed itself, or more likely, to buy time so Stalin could determine who was more likely to eventually win the war.

The invasion of Russia was a brutal onslaught, eventually killing over 10 million Soviets (about 1/6 of the total WW2 casualties), many of them civilians. The battles were so hard fought and so bloody, that they have burned themselves into the consciousness of the entire world. The battle of Moscow (approx. 1 million dead), the Siege of Leningrad (three years long, about 500,000 dead), the Seige of Stalingrad (1.5 million dead).

Eventually, the forces of the Third Reich stalled somewhere close to Moscow, and were forced to retreat toward Germany, with a vicious and vengeful Red Army following in their footsteps. Upon surrender, very few soldiers were ever to see Germany again (after the Siege of Stalingrad only 6,000 of the almost 100,000 prisoners ever returned to Germany).

Several facts point to the reasons why Germany was forced to retreat from Russia:

1. Winter. The Germans were so confident that they would be able to defeat the Russians quickly, that many of the German divisions did not even bring winter clothing or gear with them. Most of this is hubris, based on the earlier victories over Denmark, Poland, Norway, and France.

2. Russian tenacity. Hitler seriously underestimated the will to fight of the Red Army, and dismissed them as a backward mob of peasants. While this was more accurate before the invasion, the Red Army quickly mobilized and re-organized into a very effective fighting force. There is a proverb that states that 9 times out of 10, the rabbit will outrun the wolf. This is becuase the wolf is running for his dinner, but the rabbit is running for its life.

3. Scorched Earth. When it was apparent that the wheat fields of the Ukraine were a primary destination for the Germans, the retreating Russians simply burned everything in their path, leaving nothing but ashes for the Germans. The same technique was used effectively against Napoleon in the early 19th century.

Answer 3

When Hitler reniged on splitting Poland Stalin knew that he was a dupe and would most likely be invaded by the more enpowered Nazi machine.

Answer 4

Stalin retaliate because he reneged on the contract not to fight Russia and he did killing more than 20 million Russians and did not want America and England to take everything..