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What is your data source of the Soviets executing millions of own troops? Just curious.

by myst 7y ago

baybal2 7y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrier_troops https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrier_troops The official wartime data is 10000 troops in "penal forces," and 158000 by post-war Soviet count, which is already a giant number, and does not include penal troops whose execution were never recorded, or ones who died in human wave attacks or after being ordered to stand ground under fire from, some times friendly, artillery. The entire losses of penal battalions may range from 100k to 300k by calculations of historians. But executions and fatalities from de-facto penal actions were not only limited to penal forces. Any war veteran who served in an any much sizeable unit can tell of battalions loosing up to one in ten men to "disciplinary actions" akin ones practiced by penal forces. There were few well written about cases (which I cannot remember much about though) when entire deemed "low morale" units were sent for certain death, being "spent," drawing artillery fire or ordered to march on enemy armour in the open without any anti tank weaponry.
ncmncm 7y ago
The attitude in USSR at the time was that anyone, and any activity, not actively advancing the interests of the Party and the Revolution was not just useless, but actively harmful: mercy, justice, humanity included. I.e., showing evidence of concern for any of those was to demonstrate divided loyalty. It was very dangerous to suggest not exterminating any person or group. Eagerness was evidence of commitment. Everybody needed to provide such concrete evidence of commitment, or be labeled a class enemy.
Ididntdothis 7y ago
My dad fought in 1945 as German soldier on the Eastern front when he was 17. He told stories that the Russians would come in two waves. There was the frontline and then a second line who would shoot anybody who turned around. Not sure how true this is but I have read similar stories before.

What is your data source of the Soviets executing millions of own troops? Just curious.

by myst 7y ago

What is your data source of the Soviets executing millions of own troops? Just curious.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrier_troops https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrier_troops The official wartime data is 10000 troops in "penal forces," and 158000 by post-war Soviet count, which is already a giant number, and does not include penal troops whose execution were never recorded, or ones who died in human wave attacks or after being ordered to stand ground under fire from, some times friendly, artillery. The entire losses of penal battalions may range from 100k to 300k by calculations of historians. But executions and fatalities from de-facto penal actions were not only limited to penal forces. Any war veteran who served in an any much sizeable unit can tell of battalions loosing up to one in ten men to "disciplinary actions" akin ones practiced by penal forces. There were few well written about cases (which I cannot remember much about though) when entire deemed "low morale" units were sent for certain death, being "spent," drawing artillery fire or ordered to march on enemy armour in the open without any anti tank weaponry.

ncmncm 7y ago

The attitude in USSR at the time was that anyone, and any activity, not actively advancing the interests of the Party and the Revolution was not just useless, but actively harmful: mercy, justice, humanity included. I.e., showing evidence of concern for any of those was to demonstrate divided loyalty. It was very dangerous to suggest not exterminating any person or group. Eagerness was evidence of commitment. Everybody needed to provide such concrete evidence of commitment, or be labeled a class enemy.

Ididntdothis 7y ago

My dad fought in 1945 as German soldier on the Eastern front when he was 17. He told stories that the Russians would come in two waves. There was the frontline and then a second line who would shoot anybody who turned around. Not sure how true this is but I have read similar stories before.