WW2 From the Romanian Perspective | Animated History

After the First World War, Romania was awarded new territories despite suffering military defeats at the hands of the Central Powers. The map was redrawn not due to its victories, but through the defeats of its enemies. This turn of fortune, however, would later become their undoing. The collapse of the Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires allowed Romania concessions to lands This dramatic expansion was more than a geopolitical shift. It was the fulfillment of the long-cherished dream of a Greater Romania. However, these newly acquired regions each came at the cost of ethnic division and brewing geopolitical tensions. Suddenly, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Jewish, Romani, and German minorities comprised about 30% of the population. In some of the newly acquired areas, Romanians themselves were in the minority. Diplomatically, Romania's expansion led to entanglements with neighboring countries. Hungary coveted Transylvania's return. Bulgaria aimed to regain southern Dobrogea, and the Soviet Union set its sights on Bessarabia. Given this precarious situation, border security became a top priority. The Romanian government thought that their best chance of securing these borders was through joining the League of Nations, alongside aligning with France's Eastern European security system. To counter Hungarian threats, Romania also allied with Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia to form the Little Entente in 1920. A mutual defense treaty with Poland in 1921 aimed to safeguard against the Soviet Union. However, the 1930s brought a resurgence of German and Soviet power. Germany backed Hungarian claims on Transylvania, while the Soviet Union, coveting Bessarabia, was viewed as an unreliable ally due to Romania's strong anti-communist sentiment. The Second World War was a conflict unlike any other in human history, forcing many of the smaller powers, like Romania, to choose between the Axis or the Allies. 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France, a key ally of Romania, appeared increasingly powerless against German aggression, beginning with Hitler's re-militarization of the Rhineland in 1936. Similarly, the League of Nations appeared ineffective. Isolated and seeking a powerful backer, Romania cautiously shifted its stance toward Germany. The Führer, requiring Romanian oil for Germany's impending war efforts, redirected Hungary's focus to Czechoslovakia, thus temporarily reducing tensions with Romania. Hitler also made conciliatory gestures, promising to respect Romania's borders in exchange for economic cooperation. Despite strengthening ties with Germany, Romania maintained a balanced foreign policy, preserving good relations with France and establishing new connections with Great Britain, seen as a counterbalance to France's diminishing influence. Against the backdrop of shifting alliances, two pivotal forces dominated Romania's internal politics, King Carol II and the Radical Iron Guard. King Carol ascended to the throne in 1930 under unusual circumstances and aimed to consolidate power, aspiring toward a royal dictatorship. His rule deepened internal conflicts, especially regarding ethnic minorities. In contrast to Carol's tolerance of diverse ethnicities, the Iron Guard strongly opposed moderate views on minorities. This fascist organization, emerging from a group of nationalist university students, criticized the political system for being too accommodating toward Jews and Hungarians. It advocated for a Romania centered on ethnic Romanians and proposed a radical, brutal solution to the minority problem, purifying the nation by eliminating those they viewed as undesirable, with a particular focus on Jews, whom they accused of undue influence and ties to the Soviet Union. The tension between King Carol's authoritarian ambitions and the Iron Guard's radical nationalism led to a volatile political climate in Romania. The Iron Guard, seeing an increasingly powerful rival in Carol II, engaged in a power struggle, directly challenging the king's authority. This internal conflict unfolded as Romania's external alliances wavered, illustrating a nation struggling with its identity and direction at the very moment Europe was descending into war. Even before German armies stormed into Poland in September 1939, Romania strived for neutrality. Following the Munich Agreement in 1938, it had secured a commitment to its independence from both Great Britain and France, similar to Poland's guarantee. However, Romania's position during the early stages of the war was a delicate balancing act. While leaning toward the West, Romania welcomed Polish refugees, yet simultaneously inked beneficial trade agreements with Germany under threat of conflict, much to the Allies' dismay. Internally, King Carol opposed the Iron Guard, even though he employed similar paramilitary and anti-Semitic tactics. His abolishment of the 1923 constitution strengthened his grip on power. However, tensions escalated when Carol ordered the execution of Iron Guard leader Corneliu Codraniu in 1938, prompting the group to assassinate Prime Minister Armand Kalinescu in 1939. In retaliation, Carol then executed hundreds of Iron Guard members. These efforts to suppress the fascist movement were complicated by geopolitical shifts in the summer of 1940. With France, a crucial ally, succumbing to German invasion, Carol turned to Germany for support, softening his position against the Iron Guard and implementing anti-Semitic laws. Oblivious to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Romania was confronted with Soviet demands for Bessarabia and northern Bokovina. Under German pressure, Romania ceded these territories, resulting in the capture of over 40,000 Romanian troops stationed there. Smelling blood, Hungary and Bulgaria then pressed their own territorial claims on Romania. To maintain regional stability, Hitler brokered the Second Vienna Award in August 1940, resulting in Romania ceding northern Transylvania to Hungary and southern Dobrogea to Bulgaria. This territorial cession in 1940 soon sparked a political crisis, undermining King Carol's authority. In an attempt to stabilize his reign, Carol appointed General Ion Antonescu as Prime Minister. Though this soon backfired as Antonescu ousted the king in a coup d'etat, forming a new government with the Iron Guard in September 1940. The fragile coalition between General Antonescu and the Iron Guard crumbled quickly. Their government, fixated on excluding Jews from Romanian society, saw a clash in approaches. Antonescu favored a systematic exploitation of Jewish properties, whereas the Iron Guard, in disarray from previous purges, resorted to anarchic violence against Jews and other minorities. This culminated in a horrific pogrom in January 1941, where the Iron Guard's rebellion in Bucharest led to unspeakable acts of violence against Romanian Jews. Antonescu, more concerned about lawlessness and his authority, quashed the uprising and expelled the Iron Guard from power. Antonescu's purge of the Iron Guard did not leave Jews any safer, however. Instead, his regime perpetrated widespread massacres and deportations in Bessarabia, Bocavina, and Transnistria. This Romanian-led genocide, separate from the Nazis' final solution, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Jews. Characterized by its brutality and efficiency, these actions reflected the deep-seated anti-Semitism of the time and Romania's willingness to autonomously persecute Jews, far from Nazi coercion. Aligning closely with Nazi Germany, Antonescu permitted German troop movements through Romania for campaigns against Yugoslavia and Greece. Esteemed by Hitler, Antonescu's regime gained stability and stronger ties with Germany after removing the Iron Guard. His ultimate aim was to recover Romania's lost territories, especially northern Transylvania, still controlled by Hungary. By supporting Germany's war effort against the Soviet Union, Antonescu hoped to leverage his loyalty and persuade Germany to compel Hungary into returning northern Transylvania back to Romania. Joining Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, Romania committed more troops than all of Germany's other allies combined, with nearly 900,000 men by October. The campaign's early success included reclaiming Bessarabia and northern Bocavina from Soviet control, sparking public jubilation in Romania. Romanian soldiers, often motivated by aspirations to restore pre-war borders and indoctrinated to believe they were fighting Judeo-Bolshevism, were initially enthusiastic. For some, this fervor was rooted in a mix of religious fervency and prevalent anti-Semitic and anti-Communist sentiments. After recapturing Bessarabia, Romania, urged by Germany, pressed further into the Soviet Union. General Antonescu, driven by the ambition to reclaim further lost territories, approved sending Romanian forces into the arduous siege of Odessa from August to October 1941. Confronted with robust Soviet defenses, the Romanian army relied on traditional infantry tactics, facing high casualties and strategic challenges. The siege, marked by intense combat and significant Soviet counteroffensive, underscored the Romanian military's limitations. German air support became crucial, especially in countering Soviet advances, highlighting Romania's dependence on its Axis allies in this critical campaign. The fall of Odessa led to a heinous pogrom against Jews by Romanian troops. Declared the capital of the new Transnistria Governorate, the city experienced severe oppression under its Romanian occupiers. The primarily Ukrainian region suffered from food extraction and forced labor, and also served as a dumping ground for deported Romanian Jews, with up to 120,000 dying in the harsh winter of 1941-42. These actions reflected Romania's independent policies, rather than German coercion. The pace of advance slowed into 1942, yet Antonescu committed more troops, notably in Crimea and the Caucasus, aiming for Stalingrad. In the grim winter of 1942, Romanian troops, aligned with Germany in the Battle of Stalingrad, faced a dire situation. With divisions like the 1st Infantry operating at a mere quarter of their required strength, they confronted a relentless Soviet offensive. Fierce artillery barrages and brutal cold of minus 20 Celsius battered the Romanian lines. Their anti-tank guns, largely ineffective against Soviet armor, left them relying on grenades and Molotov cocktails. Despite initial resistance, they faced retreat or encirclement. The general Lascar group, encircled and refusing surrender, was decimated, with only a single battalion managing a desperate escape. The 4th Romanian Army, trapped in the encirclement at Calac-Nadano, witnessed six infantry divisions and a cavalry division fall. The aftermath of Stalingrad was devastating. Romania suffered 181,000 casualties. This number represented 16 of the 18 engaged divisions, amounting to half of its active military forces. Additionally, the Romanian Air Corps lost 73 aircraft. A subsequent Soviet counteroffensive further devastated Romania's military capabilities, severely weakening its frontline forces by February 1943. Post-Stalingrad, the alliance between Germany and Romania began to deteriorate. The Germans unfairly blamed the Romanians for the setback, which fueled increasing skepticism in Romania about the outcome of the war. Although the Romanian Army, greatly weakened by the Stalingrad disaster, received modern German equipment, it was not enough to make up for the substantial losses in manpower and materiel. In 1943, while much of the Romanian Army retreated back home, some units remained, notably around 66,000 soldiers in Crimea for anti-partisan operations. Their evacuation, delayed by Hitler's refusal, began only in April 1944 amidst a Soviet offensive, resulting in further Romanian casualties. By spring 1944, the conflict reached Romanian soil. A Soviet offensive in March pushed German and Romanian forces from Ukrainian territories and parts of Bukovina and Bessarabia. Temporary German support stabilized the front, but the Soviet's August offensive shattered the Romanian units. The reconstituted 6th Army, under Romanian command, was encircled and destroyed, further weakening Romania's already battered military forces. As Romania faced mounting losses in 1944, the inevitability of defeat dawned upon many, but Antonescu resisted surrender. Opposition leaders, along with King Michael I, a figurehead until then, launched a coup d'état on August 23rd, ousting Antonescu and signaling a dramatic shift in Romania's position in the war. King Michael declared democratic restoration and formed a new government, demanding German withdrawal. When refused, Romanian forces expelled German troops, a swift reversal unanticipated by Germany. After aligning with the Allies, Romania contributed over half a million troops to the fight against their former Axis allies, and successfully reclaimed northern Transylvania by October. Despite heavy casualties, Romanian forces advanced into Central Europe. Concurrently, the USSR established a communist regime, culminating in a dominant communist victory by late 1946. The final peace treaty, signed on February 10th, 1947, ceded Bessarabia and northern Bokovina to the USSR and southern Dobrogea to Bulgaria, while restoring northern Transylvania to Romania. Navigating shifting alliances, Romania's wartime choices, marked by antisemitism and also reflecting a genuinely difficult geopolitical position, led to significant consequences. The costly shift to the Allies culminated in post-war territorial losses and a transition to communist rule, reshaping Romania's political and social landscape for decades to come. Thanks again to the sponsor of today's video, Call of War. Enjoy rewriting history in this free online PvP strategy game by signing up using our link in the description within the next 30 days and receive 13,000 gold and 1 month of premium subscription for free.