5. The Sheer Number of Russian Deaths
Considering that World War II was a truly global conflict, the statistics reveal that Stalin's Russia suffered a great deal more than virtually any other nation involved in the six year war. While the figures vary slightly depending on source, it is accepted that the Russian's lost around
24 million lives. This staggering figure is made even more so when the casualties of other key nations are considered. For example, Russia's allies; Great Britain and the United States collectively lost
less than 1 million lives. Even Germany whose cities were bombarded night and day towards the end of the war lost
less than 8 million people to the war. A major factor in the vast number of Russian casualties is the high number of civilian deaths. The Germans were ruthless in their advancement into the Soviet Union, killing the majority of Russians they found on their travels. Equally the policy of scorched earth - whereby upon retreat an army would burn the land - employed by both Stalin and Hitler led to a lack of food, shelter and supplies, killing many.