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blitzkrieg
blitzkrieg, (‘lightning war’) a German word, now Anglicized, which has been attributed to Hitler, and was probably coined for intimidation purposes. First used in the Polish campaign in September 1939 it combined air power, tanks, and subversive warfare actuated by dynamic command and control through radio and rapidly laid line communications. Simultaneous with air attacks upon enemy airfields and lines of communications, a campaign of lies and half-truths was aimed at the opposing side's morale as concentrated land forces, supported by bombing, either broke through or outflanked their defences. Sometimes, as in the Norwegian campaign in April and in the Netherlands in May 1940 (see FALL GELB), airborne warfare was also used when paratroops were landed at vital centres in the rear of the front and held them until relieved by deep penetration thrusts by fast-moving armoured columns (see Eben Emael, for example), so that the opposing forces were outpaced and enveloped. Such disorder was created that, in the fighting which led to the fall of France in June and in the Balkan campaign of April 1941, national resistance collapsed. But when the Nazis invaded the USSR in June 1941 (see BARBAROSSA) blitzkrieg failed because, for the first time, German logistics were unable to maintain their momentum to sufficient depth to achieve ultimate victory. Thereafter German blitzkrieg was countered by similar methods in which surprise, flexibility, and concentration of force were as potent in defence as attack.
Kenneth Macksey |
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Cite this article
I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "blitzkrieg." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "blitzkrieg." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-blitzkrieg.html I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "blitzkrieg." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-blitzkrieg.html |
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Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg (German, ‘lightning war’) A military tactic employed by the Germans in World War II, which was especially successful in campaigns against Poland, France, Greece, and the Soviet Union. It employed fast-moving tanks and motorized infantry, supported by dive-bombers, to throw superior but slower enemy forces off balance and thereby win crushing victories rapidly and with small expenditure of men and materials. In Britain, where it was known as ‘the Blitz’, it consisted of an air assault on British cities in 1940. After 1941, Germany's enemies were better prepared and new battlefields in the Soviet Union and Africa were less suited to the technique.
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Cite this article
"Blitzkrieg." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Blitzkrieg." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-Blitzkrieg.html "Blitzkrieg." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-Blitzkrieg.html |
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Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg ˈblitsˌkrēg the integration of infantry, armor, artillery, and aircraft in a highly mobile team to quickly drive through and defeat enemy forces arrayed in a linear or positional defense. Originally applied to the German conquest of Poland in 1939 and France in 1940, the term “Blitzkrieg” has come to be use for any rapid, violent, and successful military action involving combined arms.
World War II: from German, literally ‘lightning war.’ |
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Cite this article
"Blitzkrieg." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Blitzkrieg." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-Blitzkrieg.html "Blitzkrieg." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-Blitzkrieg.html |
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blitzkrieg
blitz·krieg / ˈblitsˌkrēg/ • n. an intense military campaign intended to bring about a swift victory. |
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Cite this article
"blitzkrieg." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "blitzkrieg." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-blitzkrieg.html "blitzkrieg." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-blitzkrieg.html |
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Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg
•fatigue, Grieg, intrigue, league, renege
•colleague
•Blitzkrieg, Sitzkrieg
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Cite this article
"Blitzkrieg." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Blitzkrieg." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Blitzkrieg.html "Blitzkrieg." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Blitzkrieg.html |
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