The German Retreats on the Eastern Front, 1941-1945

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Ulrich Herbert, since 1/2020
• Subject Area: Modern and Contemporary History
• Term: from 2019 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 412596526

In the West, the second half of the war against the Soviet Union (1943-1945), which was marked by the retreats of the Wehrmacht, has been studied much less than the German offensives from 1941 to 1943. Studies by Russian-speaking researchers, while focused on the period 1943-1945, have accentuated the victorious Soviet advance. In consequence, systematic research on war crimes committed by German troops during their retreats remains an important desideratum. So far, there has been no comprehensive investigation of the way, extent, and motivation of the German retreats as well as of the destructions and deportations committed during the latter. Likewise, these retreats are not yet adequately contextualised within a number of research fields, like the global history of the Second World War or the history of National Socialist war crimes. The sub-project reacts to this desideratum by a systematic study of the conduct of the Wehrmacht during its retreats in Eastern Europe. This will happen on a broad empirical basis including hitherto unused source material – like e.g. the relevant files which are to be found in CAMO.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Professor Dr. Nikolaus Katzer, until 12/2019