How many german soldiers died in ww2 The wartime casualty figures compiled by German High Command are often cited by military historians when covering individual campaigns in the war. The German Red Cross reported in 2005 that the records of the WASt showed total Wehrmacht losses to have been 4. 91,000 German soldiers were taken prisoner, 75,000 of which died of disease, starvation, or exhaustion within three months of surrender. In Germany, more civilians than soldiers lost their lives. At least 700,000 have died on both sides. the united states had 16,115,000 soldiers in World War 2 Tags World War 2 US in WW2 How many German soldiers died during World War 2? What was the average time to live? What were the different loss ratio of the branches, like the Army, Navy, TIL that 8 out of every 10 German troops killed in World War II died fighting the Soviets Actually a very big number of German soldiers died as prisoners of war The German and the Italian navies The Battle of Leyte Gulf was the largest naval battle of World War II and 94% of the Japanese soldiers died, along with many . Surprisingly, more than twice as many civilians died in World War II than did members of the military. 3 million men (3. [52] A number of child soldiers served in the Soviet Union's armed forces during World War II. This means that around 3 percent of the entire 1939 world population died in the war. The British and Canadians put 75,215 troops ashore, and the Americans 57,500, for a total of 132,715, of whom about 3,400 were killed or missing, in contrast to some estimates of ten thousand. Wikimedia Commons A U. 5 million people. Battle of Long Tân: A 1,500-Strong Viet Cong Force Ambushed 108 Australians - They Lost “Mein Opa” – Tracing the footsteps of a german soldier during the Battle of the Bulge 1944/45 by Rob Apr 25, 2025 · Battle of Stalingrad, successful Soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad that was a turning point in favor of the Allies in World War II. 9,000 were civilians. The problem is just how often the casualties numbers change. The war related deaths detailed in Russian sources are as follows. Note: This category is intended solely for those members of the German armed forces killed as a result of their military service and not those executed during internal purges, or those who died in Allied custody post-war. 5 million from military and war crimes, plus another 19 million to 28 million due to war-related famine The aftermath of the Battle of Stalingrad A Soviet soldier marches a German soldier into captivity. The Krivosheev study listed 8,668,400 irreplaceable losses (from listed strength): 5,226,800 killed in action, 1,102,800 died of wounds in field hospitals, 555,500 non combat deaths, POW deaths and missing were 4,559,000. This represents a staggering loss of life, estimated at around 4. Open today 9:00 a. This staggering figure includes combat deaths, those who succumbed to wounds, and those who died as prisoners of war. Mar 10, 2011 · Over 30,000 Soviet soldiers died compared to the 10,000 soldiers lost by the Germans. g. [ 124 ] [128] [129] The invasion decimated urban residential areas, civilians soon became indistinguishable from combatants, and the forthcoming German occupation (both on the annexed territories and in the General Government) was one of the most brutal episodes of World War II, resulting in between 5. By comparison, civilian deaths include 29 million to 30. An additional 800,000 Axis and Finnish soldiers were captured by the Soviets, 137,800 of whom died. Estimates suggest that around 5. Aug 19, 2023 · 3. While the conflict gave rise to legends and led to the fall of others, the true cost of the war lay in the human commitment: scores of souls were affected by the events that led up Aug 9, 2024 · Germany: civilian workforce by gender and foreign workers 1939-1944; Number of forced laborers in the German economy 1941-1944, by sector; Number of deportees and deaths at Auschwitz 1941-1945 by For the Soviet Army, the first great triumph at a huge cost. 3 million German soldiers died during the war. German casualties were extrapolated from a report of German OB West, September 28, 1944, and from a report of German army surgeon for the period June 6–August 31, 1944. In some cases, orphans also unofficially joined the Soviet Red Army. m. May 14, 2023 · It is estimated that between 500,000 to 600,000 French people died during World War II, including military personnel and civilians. The wartime military casualty figures compiled by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (the German High Command, abbreviated as OKW) through 31 January 1945 are often cited by military historians in accounts of individual campaigns in the war. ” Civilians died in the millions in several countries. Encirclement after encirclement had inflicted almost 4 million casualties on the huge but About 465,000 German soldiers died each year of the war. [ 344 ] During World War II, 1. - 5:00 p. The Eastern Front was particularly brutal, with Mar 11, 2025 · Estimates suggest that around 5. Current estimates place military deaths between 21 million and 25. World War 2 left no part of the world untouched - North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and all oceans between were involved to one extent or the other. Ca. Around 5,000 Ethiopian soldiers died during the war. Italy According to Soviet records 381,067 German Wehrmacht POWs died in NKVD camps (356,700 German nationals and 24,367 from other nations). German casualties were extrapolated from a report of German OB West, September 28, 1944, and from a report of a German army surgeon for the period June 6–August 31, 1944. 1942-43. Generalfeldmarschall Paulus meets with Generaloberst Walter Heitz, then the two highest ranking German officers captured by the Allies, 4 February 1943 Casualties and War Crimes. In the end, the high Soviet casualty rate was largely a result of Stalin's hurry to reach Berlin. Every day, memories of World War II—its sights and sounds, its terrors and triumphs—disappear. Sep 27, 2024 · Approximately 25-30% of the German military died during World War II. 1 Million German Soldiers were reported dead during World War 2, This includes 2. Finland and the Axis suffered the loss of 668,200 men as killed in action, missing in action against the Soviet forces or for non-combat reasons on the Eastern Front. The failure of German troops to defeat Soviet forces in the campaign signaled a crucial turning point in the war. [379] More died fighting on the Eastern Front than in all other fighting across the globe during World Jul 30, 2021 · Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, had begun brilliantly on June 22, 1941. 9 million deaths, and the impact of “Total War” on the world’s population. The war was notable for the Nazi-sponsored genocide of the Jewish peoples resulting in more than 5. Photo Credit. Only 6,000 German soldiers who fight in Stalingrad to the bitter end ever return home. Dutch East Indies: 3,000,000 - 4,000,000 has been displayed as 3,500,000). It can vary as to were you look, as for example Wikipedia has a great article on how many people died in world war 2 World War2 which leans towards the scary Jan 13, 2017 · At the end of World War II, the U. [100] [101] For example, 29% of the casualties in the 16th Division were not natives of Ireland. Russians consider it to be one of the greatest battles of their Great Patriotic War, and most historians consider it to be the greatest battle of the entire conflict. When World War 2 ended it was estimated that there were just over 3 million German soldiers dead. Half a million Soviet soldiers die. Top May 8, 2012 · The German War Graves Commission launched a campaign on Tuesday, the 67th anniversary of the end of World War II, to promote its online database as a way for relatives to trace missing soldiers Aug 19, 2023 · The best approximation for the number of soldiers that fought in World War II would be 16,000,000. In 1931, the Japanese Empire invaded Manchuria, a region in northern China. Trying to pin down exactingly how many German males died in WW2 is going to be a very difficult prospect. Aug 1, 2013 · One example is the enormous Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery in St. 8 percent. Feb 6, 2021 · World War 2 was the bloodiest conflict in human history. [12] Some 125,000 civilians are estimated to have died during the entire operation. The British Expeditionary Force alone lost some 68,000 soldiers during the French campaign. The German High Command figures cannot be considered definitive because they cover the period up until January 31, 1945, leaving out major battles at the end of World War 2 (WW2 WWII) veteran, casualty, and military unit records search by WW2 Researcher Bill Beigel. Deductions were 939,700 who "were encircled or miss NARRATOR: Stalingrad, January 1943 - an entire German army is defeated. 47 million and 5. During the months that followed their capture at Stalingrad, weakened by disease (particularly typhus), malnutrition, and mistreatment, more POWs died. Here we answer the question “How Many Americans Died in Western Front; Part of the European theatre of World War II: Clockwise from top left: Rotterdam after the Blitz, German Heinkel He 111 planes during the Battle of Britain, Allied paratroopers during Operation Market Garden, American troops running through Wernberg, Germany, Siege of Bastogne, American troops landing at Omaha Beach during Operation Overlord Jun 3, 2019 · John Long, director of education at the National D-Day Memorial Foundation, says that when the memorial was first being planned in the late 1990s, there were wildly different estimates for Allied 2 days ago · World War II - Costs, Impact, Legacy: Estimates of total dead in World War II vary anywhere from 35,000,000 to 60,000,000. Over 100,000 Wehrmacht soldiers end up in Soviet captivity. This makes the Eastern Front the deadliest theater of war in human history. On the civilian side, Germany also experienced significant losses. 5 million soldiers, sailors, and airmen, making it one of the most devastating military casualties suffered by any nation in the conflict. The German invasion of the Soviet Union, code-named Operation Barbarossa, began on June 22, 1941. Although most battles were fought in Europe, America was very active in the war, also suffering great losses. Feb 23, 2023 · Chinese soldiers in fox holes during the Second Sino-Japanese War/ World War 2. What was left behind in Stalingrad was abject destruction; the landscape of the city in February 1943 was comparable to Hiroshima in While more than 330,000 Allied troops were rescued, [7] the British and French sustained heavy casualties and were forced to abandon nearly all their equipment; around 16,000 French and 1,000 British soldiers died during the evacuation. Ethiopian soldiers fought alongside the British during the campaigns in Africa, while others were incorporated into the Italian forces defending the territory. How many German troops died in Russia? The number of German soldiers who died in Russia during World War II is estimated to be between 5 and 7 million. [99] The Soviets claimed to have captured nearly 480,000 German soldiers, [123] [t] while German research put the number of dead between 92,000 and 100,000. S. 3 million German soldiers lost their lives during the war. Give Today. The heaviest proportionate human losses occurred in eastern Europe where Poland lost perhaps 20 percent of its prewar population, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union around 10 percent. Mar 1, 2017 · German prisoners-of-war in Moscow at the end of 1944. Casualties and War Crimes. At first glance it is hard to know how to handle these extraordinarily high fatality figures. As many as 95,000 civilians also died as a consequence of the fighting as well as atrocities and massacres carried out by Italian forces. Petersburg where just 186 mass graves contain the bodies of nearly 500,000 civilians and soldiers who died during the legendary Eastern Front; Part of the European theatre of World War II: Clockwise from top left: Soviet T-34 tanks storming Poznań, 1945; German Tiger I tanks during the Battle of Kursk, 1943; German Stuka dive bombers on the Eastern Front, 1943; German Einsatzgruppen death squad murdering Jews in Ukraine, 1942; Wilhelm Keitel signing the German Instrument of Surrender, 1945; Soviet troops at the Battle How many people died during World War II? Estimates of the total number of people killed during World War II have ranged from 35,000,000 to 60,000,000. We can say with certainty that this was the reality of “total war. World War II Official casualty sources estimate battle deaths at nearly 15 million military personnel and civilian deaths at over 38 million. There were more than 60 million World War 2 casualties resulting in death which at the time was more than 2. [13] Statistics for German World War II military casualties are divergent. 2 million missing) in World War II. Apr 25, 2025 · Operation Barbarossa, during World War II, code name for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, which was launched on June 22, 1941. 3 Million From the German Army, 300,000 From the Luftwaffe, 150,000 Soviets Citizens, 150,000 Paramilitary Units and 100,000 Waffen SS Soldiers and 100,000 Kriegsmarine. This figure represents a staggering percentage of Germany’s military personnel, reflecting the fierce battles fought on the Eastern Front and in the later stages of the war. How Many People Died In World War 2; WW2 Planes: A History of World War 2 Aircraft Many German soldiers will have understood that Hitler was one of the most Dec 29, 2017 · EXCLUSIVE: In their own words - German veterans of WWII by Rob Schäfer ; Walter Morris Was the Sergeant of the First All-Black Parachute Battalion. Germany, Military Killed in Action, 1939-1948 It is important to add that with an almost equal number of prisoners of war during the war years (4,559,000 Soviet soldiers and 4,376,300 German soldiers), 86. This conflict, known as the Second Sino-Japanese An additional 3,576,300 were captured by the Soviets, 442,100 of whom died. For most of the war, 75-80 percent of the Wehrmacht had to be deployed in the East, a preponderance dictated by the sheer size of the front, and 80 percent of German war dead perished there: about four million of the five million German soldiers killed in World War II. World War II has been the bloodiest war in human history, killing over 60 million people. The French Resistance played a significant role in the fight against the Axis occupation, and many French citizens were killed in reprisals or sent to concentration camps. During World War II, 14,059 American POWs died in enemy captivity throughout the war (12,935 held by Japan and 1,124 held by Germany). 10. 3 to 5. 5% of the overall world population. 350,000 American women served in the Armed Forces during World War II and 16 were killed Jan 13, 2025 · Germany’s military involvement in World War II resulted in significant casualties. The estimated battle casualties for the United States included 29,000 killed and 106,000 wounded and missing. The total losses of Slovenes during and after the war were 42,000 dead, of whom 6,000 died abroad. Fought largely between two opposing military alliances, the Allies and the Axis, the war engulfed Europe, North Africa, much of Asia and the world's oceans. [377] [378] The invasion opened the Eastern Front, the war's largest theatre, which saw clashes of unprecedented violence and destruction for four years and killed over 26 million Soviet people, including about 8. During the blockade of Stalingrad, many of the German soldiers died of wounds, starvation, and lack of medical care. 2% of Soviet soldiers returned from German captivity, or 2,016,000 soldiers No one is 100 percent certain of the number of people who died in World War 2 but it experts believe the figure is around the 50-70 million people killed in as a result of World War 2. [19] Of the war losses among Slovenes in the Drava Banovina, 12,000 died as Yugoslav Partisans, 9,000 as Slovene Home Guards and members of the White Guard, and 2,000 that were forcibly mobilized in the German army. Statistics for German World War II military casualties are divergent and contradictory. soldier at Camp Remagen, one of the Rheinwiesenlager camps, guarding thousands of German soldiers captured in the Ruhr area in April 1945. [ 4 ] Feb 7, 2025 · In cases where the source gave a range of fatality estimates the middle value has been taken for display purposes (e. The Normandy Invasion consisted of 5,333 Allied ships and landing craft embarking nearly 175,000 men. Otherwise notable people killed serving with the German military during World War II. World War II, German Arms Industry was able to produce: 14,000,000 98K Rifles 1,200,000 Lugers Pistols 1,100,000 P-38 Pistols 1,000,000 MP-40 Machine Pistols 425,000 MP-44 Assault Rifles 400,000 MG-34 Machine guns 700,000 MG-42 Machine guns During World War II the Germans also captured World War II, German Arms Industry was able to produce: 14,000,000 98K Rifles 1,200,000 Lugers Pistols 1,100,000 P-38 Pistols 1,000,000 MP-40 Machine Pistols 425,000 MP-44 Assault Rifles 400,000 MG-34 Machine guns 700,000 MG-42 Machine guns During World War II the Germans also captured Let’s be blunt: the German army lost World War II on the Eastern Front. 67 million Polish deaths [130 The Wehrmacht was humiliated, and lost its reputation of invincibility. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] A commission set up by the West German government found that 3,060,000 German military personnel were taken prisoner by the USSR and that 1,094,250 died in captivity (549,360 from 1941 to April 1945 Generally, however, POWs held by the Americans enjoyed the greatest level of comfort of any POWs: “The German, Austrian, Italian, and Japanese prisoners of war who were held in American hands during World War II experienced the best treatment of any nation’s prisoners in that conflict or probably any other” (Krammer, 2008: 58). Armed Forces and 708 were killed in action. Estimates for the total number of casualties in the war vary because many deaths went unrecorded. 5% of Germans, or 3,787,000 soldiers, returned to their homeland from Soviet captivity, while only 44. Such children were affectionately known as "sons of the regiment" (Russian: сын полка) and sometimes willingly performed military missions such as reconnaissance. 1 million dead and 1. opened camps of its own, where perhaps a million German prisoners died in secret. Following a clash at the Marco Polo Bridge in July 1937, Japan then launched a full-scale invasion of the rest of the country. Their figures include men conscripted from Austria and conscripted ethnic Germans from lands in Eastern Europe . Most suggest that some 75 million people died in the war, including about 20 million military personnel and 40 million civilians. The estimated total battle casualties for the United States were 135,000, including 29,000 killed and 106,000 wounded and missing. Of the 300,000 German soldiers under siege, only one in three survives to face years of imprisonment. Learn more about Operation Barbarossa in this article. While 49,400 soldiers died serving in Irish divisions (the 10th, 16th and 36th), although not all of the men serving in these divisions were natives of Ireland and many Irish who died in non-Irish regiments are not listed. 2 million African Americans served in the U. Full-service research & records analysis. German losses were worst in 1914, the first year of the war, and September 1914 was the bloodiest month of the whole war, when German units suffered losses of about 16. 6 million Red Army soldiers. stszcncxhpwwoejwlkkbhbvwkqtrdinyoowllvpcqjktcrhtjdjasapatdtuljgopvftlvprkkewriv