Lend-lease: Crafty numbers or Devil in the details

[DARPA]

The theme for the lend-lease deliveries repeatedly discussed. One can argue arguing the pros and cons of lend-lease. Here's one look at it. Text a lot, but in essence.



Lend-lease: Crafty numbers or Devil in the details

One of the most controversial topics in relation to the Great Patriotic War is the contribution of the Lend-Lease to the Soviet victory over Germany. Unfortunately, this purely historical question has been the subject of speculation, and in some cases - of information attacks designed to diminish the role of the USSR in the war and falsify history. Anniversary of Victory was no exception: around the Lend-Lease again cross swords.
Annual entertaining arithmetic counting rifles, tanks, cannons, trucks and locomotives delivered us allies in the Great Patriotic War, will inevitably end by May 9 statement "The victory was not Stalin, won the lend-lease!". Today, it is quite obvious that it's not Stalin, not Zhukov (who also "did not win ...") and not in Konev, not Tymoshenko. We just punctually before the holiday on a par with the thesis that "the corpses piled" and "prisoners of repressed" compulsively pushing another, only slightly covered with "an attempt to understand." "The contribution of the Allies to victory was so great that it even appropriate to talk about our victory?" - So this thesis sounds.
In general, Russia has been a couple of decades, persistently trying to "educate" on this topic. This year, it started outside the box - with the buttons. Ordinary buttons sweatshop of 1943 with a sickle, a hammer and a brand manufacturer on the back side. And there is clearly readable - Chicago. "One button says the Lend-Lease more than all Soviet textbooks!" - Rejoiced "Enlightenment" and gleefully smashed the news all over the blogosphere.

Crafty digits

Fight against attempts to falsify history, and first of all - the history of the Great Patriotic War, started long ago, it appeared then a presidential commission "to combat ..." (whose documents should be limited to the establishment and abolition), the Russian military-historical society iministr Culture Vladimir Medina. The movement went "from below", from the forums and from the blogosphere, from fans of military equipment, military history, search engines, modelers, and re-enactors. Many of them have become recognized by historians, writers, publicists. And somehow it happened that they, deep and often painful immersed in the topic 15 years ago in this field gave the first fight.

They're first on the forums, and then in books dismantled to pieces "motorway tanks" with the concept of "Icebreaker" Rezun-Suvorov, responded to the accusations "intelligence report on June 22" and seriously considered the extent of reducing the combat capability of the Red Army as a result of the pre-war Stalinist "cleansings ". And at the same time - and assessed the extent of the role of Lend-Lease. And if today serious historian (released from those of "of forum") wrote in his review of the book of another historian, "school assignment Lend-Lease and percentage done well", it means that the job is really "school" and arguments with counterarguments were announced more than once.

Including and therefore need not to overload the material surplus figures and calculations, enough to give as examples only the brightest and most controversial moments. Thus, the Allies put the USSR on lend-lease nearly two thousand railway locomotives and diesel locomotives, steam locomotives. When compared with its own Soviet-made, the situation is just shocking. During 1941-1945 years the Union has produced only 800 locomotives. And a little more than 700 of them - if you approach the issue is not critical, it can be concluded that almost all the Soviet locomotives wartime Allied supplies was achieved. But the devil is in the details, to assess the actual extent of aid under Lend-Lease American and British enough tables to the nomenclature of goods. And the fact that the pre-war locomotives of the Soviet Union was 25 thousand units against the set of two, speaks for itself.

Also, Moscow has received lend-lease 11,000 rail cars at our own production during WWII only 1092 units. Again, the ratio of which can be turned in any direction. Note that the pre-war car fleet in the USSR was 600 thousand units. But for the sake of diversity can be applied another criterion for comparison: only in 1943-1944, the Red Army had taken over 26 thousand captured wagons.
Was the aid of allies in the field of railway transport significant? Sure, and thank them for this great. But whether it was decisive, so large-scale that had reason to declare "victory of the Lend-Lease"? No, and no again.

Another controversial aspect of the eternal - the supply of road transport. Lend-Lease, we received nearly 500,000 trucks and passenger SUVs. And just to the front during the war it was delivered about 750 thousand units of new vehicles. Total: the share of "imports" - 64 percent. Then begin rhetorical questions - "What would be the mobility of the Red Army?" And "What would have reached Berlin?".

The honest truth: the automotive industry in the Soviet Union and the western significantly inferior in quality and product range, and the number of produced vehicles. However, the fleet of the Red Army to the beginning of the war, there were almost 300,000 cars and trucks, after mobilization - almost 500 thousand. Even the huge losses of the first period of the war could not knock the whole road transport, besides the production did not stop, and during World War II - plants produced 265 thousand. Machines. As a result, the percentage of "their" and "foreign", according to estimates of modern historians, is as follows: in 1943, the army of foreign cars was 5.4%, in 1944 - 19%, the spring of 1945 - 32.8%. So - would be reached. And do not forget the captured vehicles 232 573 - this is the number of trophies at the end of 1944 - beginning of 1945. Nevertheless, car delivery allies were very significant. For what it once again many thanks.

But the fact that "educators" do not like to mention: in the framework of the Lend-Lease US put in the USSR 45,000 tons or 216,000 miles, or 347,544,000 meters of barbed wire.

"On the crucial role of the supply can not speak"

Main Lend-Lease to the Soviet Union fell in the second half of 1943 and beyond. The share of supplied equipment, equipment, goods, raw materials and food for years distributed as follows: 1941 - less than 1% of total shipments, 1942 - 28%, 1943-1945 - more than 70%. Thus, the lion's share of aid came in the years when the turning point in the Great Patriotic War was already evident. In the most difficult years of war supplies were minimal.

Also do not forget that until October 1941, aid to the Soviet Union by the United States was carried out on a fee basis. Still, supply continuously frustrated. Here he writes about it, Edward Stettinius, US Secretary of State under Presidents Roosevelt and Truman: "Before the end of October, Russian continued to pay cash for everything we bought ... All in all, from 23 June Amtorg (Trade Promotion Agency of the USSR) paid us 92 million; but in reality it was in Russia for the same period of the goods delivered only 41 million dollars. "
By the way, no malicious intent here is not, purely American pragmatist. Stettinius wrote about it quite frankly: "June 22, many in military circles and in society in general have stated that do not believe in the duration of the Soviet resistance. Many among the participants in the discussions were those who even said that Russia surrender by August 1, and if so, it is likely all the weapons that we will send to Russia, fell into the hands of Hitler ... As was under discussion issue in society, and our understanding of the situation in Russia was becoming clearer, we are able to adapt our program to the changing environment. "

Georgy Zhukov in "Memories and Reflections" gave this assessment of the Lend-Lease, "the total number of weapons that the Soviet people to equip its army during the war, Lend-Lease averaged four percent. Therefore, the decisive role of the supply can not speak. "
But all this is, again, concerns for the most part known and theses times chewed. But the button, which is "one says the Lend-Lease more than all Soviet textbooks" - this is something new. By the way, why one? 257 723 000 498 - just enough buttons, according to US sources, was delivered to the Soviet Union during the war. A lot or a little? What relate? Not so easy now to find out the standards of production of buttons Soviet enterprises in the years of the Second World War. But the way it is.

We will not burden the reader with a detailed description of the Red Army uniforms - tunic, breeches, cloak, cotton trousers, padded jacket ... Take a word - to outfit every soldier was required more than 30 buttons. During the four years of the war it was mobilized 29,574,900 people. In total for this period we put the form (taking into account already served the beginning of the war), 34,476,700 people. To equip walking to the front of people, it took 1 billion 34,301,000 buttons. Just to equip. In fact, of course, much more: buttons -Material consumables, they tend just to be torn off. And this, too - a feat economic feat. And these figures - they also show the entire global war in which we won.

It remains to say thank you gentlemen, "Teachers'". For that drew attention to it.