Blitzkrieg, Nazi Germany's successful warfare strategy in World War II, aimed to prevent the enemy from establishing a solid defense through rapid and sudden attacks, followed by swift destruction. It was developed as a response to the trench warfare of World War I. Particularly, the swift occupation of France was achieved thanks to this strategy, which overcame the heavily relied upon Maginot Line.
With the advancement of tanks, aircraft, and chemical warfare, trench warfare was abandoned in favor of more mobile defense. All of Germany's war machinery in World War II was produced based on this doctrine. For Blitzkrieg to be successful, four crucial conditions were required: favorable terrain, air support, and efficient logistics. While the Blitzkrieg strategy proved highly effective on the Western Front, it failed on the Eastern Front due to the challenging terrain of Soviet territory, characterized by snow, mud, and logistical difficulties.
Blitzkrieg is built upon two main principles. One of them is the use of tanks as the primary combat vehicle. In conventional military thinking, tanks are seen as supporting infantry. However, in Blitzkrieg, infantry is tasked with facilitating the advancement of tanks, rather than the other way around. This means that tank units take the forefront, and all other combat vehicles and infantry brigades support the tank units' operations.
Blitzkrieg aims not for the destruction of enemy forces on the battlefield, but rather for the indirect strategy of undermining the enemy's will and means to continue the war. It penetrates the enemy's front line and strikes from behind.
In Nazi Germany, the objective of this doctrine was to move much faster and maintain this mobility despite enemy fire. It necessitates driving the attack deep into enemy territory, achievable only through the element of surprise, which the tank provides. This tactic proved highly effective in the invasion of Poland and the acquisition of Czechoslovakia. In the Polish campaign, the renowned Nazi commander Heinz Guderian applied the Blitzkrieg tactic very successfully.
Blitzkrieg relies heavily on intense aerial bombardment. The success of the lightning campaign is doomed without achieving air superiority. Meanwhile, artillery fire and tank attacks are conducted all along the front to prevent the enemy from discerning the source of the fire. Assault units, supported by heavy tanks, clear obstacles on the main attack line, and mechanized units advance through the breaches. At the forefront of the advancing units are, of course, tanks and mounted infantry. As these units progress inward, the following infantry and anti-tank units fan out to the sides, safeguarding the rear of the advancing line. They don't waste time dealing with formidable obstacles; instead, they leave them for the infantry coming from behind. The goal, as the name suggests, is to move like lightning.
Blitzkrieg warfare was unsuccessful on the Eastern Front due to the challenging terrain of the Soviet Union and in the West due to the loss of air superiority. The territories gained were lost just as quickly.
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