Clausewitz and Torgau: Link-Up on the Elbe

Abstract

There has been a great deal of speculation and questions raised as to why the United States and the Western Allies allowed the Soviets to capture the Nazi capital of Berlin. This study will address a number of reasons why the United States did not challenge the Soviets for Berlin. In prosecuting World War II, the Soviets never forgot Clausewitz's dictum that war is a continuation of politics by other means. Stalin, who was determined to liberate every East European capital, suspected that the Allies might try a headlong rush to Berlin in April and May 1945. He therefore decided to take diplomatic and military steps to make sure the Allies would not participate in the capture of the German capital. Recent translated material made available through "glasnost" provides evidence that the top USSR priority in the closing days of World War II in Europe was to block the Allied advance first, and only then systematically capture the city of Berlin.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 15, 1992
Accession Number
ADA251208

Entities

People

  • Howard S. Perry Iii

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • C4I
  • Human Systems
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Air Force
  • Artillery
  • Civil War
  • Classification
  • Communication Systems
  • Europe
  • International Organizations
  • New York
  • Second World War
  • Self Propelled Guns
  • Students
  • United States
  • Ussr
  • War
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies