it was the summer of 1940 and against
all common sense hitler opened a war of
two fronts
the red army soldiers were surprised but
not entirely taken off guard for they
were in position along an impossibly
long front line
however many dispersed units learned of
the incoming enemy invasion a little too
late
one day as his comrades risked their
lives on a nearby battlefield soviet
army cook ivan pavlovich serraida was
ordered to stay in the encampment and
prepare dinner for those who returned
while he executed his basic but vital
task he heard the noise of vehicles
approaching
three tanks rolled towards his kitchen
and a stunned serrated noticed the white
cross emblems on their sides
then as two of the german ponzers passed
him by the cook quickly found shelter
but the danger was not over and as the
third panzer advanced towards him serena
looked around and grabbed the only
weapon in his reach a firewood axe he
would not let the germans take over
without a fight
war of the races
as documented in his political manifesto
and autobiography mein kampf adolf
hitler planned to invade the soviet
union within the first quarter of the
20th century
in his vision he asserted that german
people needed to secure leben's realm or
living space that would ensure their
survival for generations
then in early 1939 months before the
outbreak of world war ii
the fuhrer told his army commanders that
the next war would be quote purely a war
of veldenshengen worldviews totally a
people's war
nazi ideology specifically its racial
policy portrayed all eastern europe as a
land occupied by sub-humans or non-aryan
intervention
furthermore the corrupted territories
were ruled by jewish bolsheviks the two
most despised enemies of the third reich
in his infamous book hitler claimed that
germany's destiny was to quote turn to
the east as it did 600 years ago
although somewhat secretive several
documents show how nazi policies sought
the assassination deportation or
enslavement of the vast majority of
russian and other slavic populations to
replace them with pure germanic peoples
in a 1940 secret memorandum by heinrich
himmler titled reflections on the
treatment of peoples of alien races in
the east
the author outlined a germanization
procedure for the east and detailed
plans for the slavic populations
hitler maintained the cleansing would be
completed when quote in the east dwell
only men with truly german germanic
blood
shortly after in 1941 the secret general
plan for the east or general plan host
was prepared comprising a so-called new
order of ethnographical relations in the
occupied territories
the procedure was two-fold
first a small plan kleine plano covered
the actions that would take place during
wartime
then after the war was won the larger
grossa plano would be implemented
gradually for about three decades
as stated by general eric hepner the
germans were fighting in the name of
europe as a whole and the war against
the soviet union was quote an essential
part of the designs conf the german
people's struggle for existence
and what's more quote the struggle must
aim at the annihilation of today's
russra and must therefore be waged with
unparalleled harshness
central to nazi ideology racial
motivation strongly galvanized the
planning for operation barbarossa as
jews and communists were regarded as
equivalent enemies of the third reich
the regime's imperialist ambitions
dismissed the supposedly inferior groups
shared humanity and declared a
pheniktungskrieg or a war of
annihilation
two fronts
two years prior to the invasion of the
soviet union both sides signed political
and economic agreements for strategic
purposes
but beneath the apparent cordial
relations between berlin and moscow deep
hatred grew with each passing day
then in july of 1940 the soviet union
occupied bessarabia and northern
bukovina in romania and shortly after
the german high command began plotting
the invasion of the northern giant
by the end of that year hitler
authorized the implementation of the
plan
over the course of operation auto over
3.8 million access personnel the largest
invasion force in history mobilized
toward the western soviet union along a
1 800 mile front for non-combat
operations
the episode marked the escalation of the
war in geographic terms but also
solidified the allied coalition
including the soviet union
thus the eastern front was opened with
no less than six hundred thousand motor
vehicles and another six hundred
thousand horses
eventually the region would see some of
the most massive battles in its history
as well as the most terrible atrocities
and the number of casualties would
exceed what both sides had ever
experienced before
as the tensions on the border escalated
the german armies would capture about 5
million red army troops
to make matters worse the nazi forces
deliberately starved or otherwise
executed more than three million
prisoners of war and millions of
civilians
meanwhile political and military leaders
drafted a plan to implement nazi
germany's ideological objectives
named after 12th century holy roman
emperor and german king frederick
barbarossa operation barbarossa called
for the nazis to take over the soviet
union in the summer of 1941.
early that year nazi troops began
assembling on the romanian soviet border
as the luftwaffe flew surveillance
missions over the soviet union
although the soviet leader joseph stalin
remained suspicious of the german's
intentions he was reluctant to believe
an invasion was imminent with germany
engaged west with the british it seemed
impossible that hitler would open
another theater in the east
but on sunday june 22nd the unimaginable
happened the soviet military went on
high alert and around 1am all forces
were mobilized for combat
two hours later the germans crossed the
border and launched the invasion but
many soviet units on the front line
received the warning too late or did not
receive it at all due to a lousy
communications infrastructure
still by noon most of the unaware soviet
population learned of the danger from a
radio announcement by foreign minister
via cheslav molotov
as some 3 million german elements made
their way into the motherland a smaller
soviet force would come to meet them and
they would have to deploy every single
element at their disposal
even a humble cook
call to arms
ivan pavlovich sereda was born on july 1
1919 in the ukrainian village of
aleksandrivka now part of the city of
kramatorsk
his peasant family then moved to the
bigger village of golitsynovka looking
for better opportunities
as a young man serena opted out of
college and instead enrolled in the
donetsk food training center
he wanted to become a cook and upon
graduating he would indeed become one
but not in the way he had imagined
early in world war ii in november of
1939 sereda was drafted into the red
army
he underwent training and was later
assigned to the 91st tank regiment 46th
tank division of the 21st mechanized
corps
there he would offer his culinary
services to a starving army
despite their low status within the
military hierarchy cooks were a vital
part of the war effort for they did not
merely feed the weary troops but also
boosted their morale
but one day sarita followed a higher
call and distinguished himself for his
valor against the brutal and relentless
enemy in times of need
in only the second week of the war the
21st mechanized corps of major general
law yushenko were holding their
positions on the northwestern front near
dubinsk after an unsuccessful attempt to
recapture the city the unit was
struggling to prevent the german's 55th
corps from breaking through their lines
and into operational space
in his memoirs fellow soldier v
besvetelnove recalled it on june 30th
the germans fell especially hard tanks
and self-propelled guns pulled up there
was a threat of encirclement a liaison
officer ran to the economic platoon
which was stationed in a hollow and
transmitted the order of the battalion
commander to advance the combat
positions and repulsed the attack on the
left flank
the platoon commander led the fighters
to carry out a combat mission ordering
ivan to provide security and food for
the personnel
left alone in the encampment with his
porridge corporal serra wished he could
be of service to his comrades but in
besville tel nova's words quote the
order in war is the law
suddenly serrata heard something three
tanks rolled in line were coming towards
him and the cook wondered how many men
he would have to feed
then an abrupt realization hit him
those were not red army tanks they were
fascists but their white crosses proudly
displayed on their sides
the right thing to do
the cook quickly unharnessed the horses
and led them to a nearby fishing line
then he hid behind the kitchen hoping to
go unnoticed
indeed two of the tanks passed by
unconcerned with the encampment but the
third advanced imposing me toward his
hiding spot
as its hatch cover snapped open and a
tanker leaned out a delighted german
soldier observed the abandoned kitchen
and cackled triumphantly admiring the
many supplies
at that moment the cook was overtaken by
adrenaline and grabbed an axe that was
used to chop firewood
without hesitating he sprinted towards
the german tank while yelling at the top
of his lungs
as the frightened german tanker saw the
screaming maniac figure charging toward
him he climbed back into the hatch and
closed the lid
within seconds the tank opened machine
gun fire but the cook was already on top
of the tank by then
serrata then pummeled the gun barrel
with his axe and hacked away at it until
it bent
subsequently the germans revved the tank
up to escape but serrata stuffed the
peepholes with a piece of tarpaulin to
halt the german's view of the outside
the brave cook then carried on with his
hammering while he pretended to ask his
comrades to throw tent grenades he would
then answer back using different voices
running around the tank as he hid it
with his axe
terrified and thought to be outnumbered
the germans finally surrendered
a hero
the german soldiers got out of the tank
at rifle point with raised hands and
serrata then ordered them to tie each
other
when his platoon completed their mission
and returned to the camp they were
astonished to find a captured german
ponzer and four lined-up soldiers in the
kitchen major general yushenko was
impressed saying quote with his brave
actions he set an outstanding example of
heroism
serena was subsequently appointed a
scout
within weeks of his first exploit the
cook turned hero came across yet another
german tank chasing after a group of his
comrades
as the vehicle stopped to reconnoiter
serrata made his way to the tank and
threw a grenade inside
after the blow he climbed into the cabin
and fired the remaining german forces
before they were able to react forcing
them to surrender
for this extraordinary feat cerreida was
promoted to platoon commander of the 4th
infantry regiment 46th infantry division
of the first shock army
having proven impressive skills sireda
continued to serve with the red army
throughout the war seeing combat in the
siege of leningrad that fall and later
in the battle of moscow until early 1942
by the time he was discharged at the end
of the war zoraida held the rank of
lieutenant
among several awards he was named hero
of the soviet union and was bestowed
with the order of lenin
unfortunately his time in the war effort
took a massive toll on his body and
shortly after world war ii the legendary
soldier passed away from his injuries
and ill health at the age of 31.
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