Eisiger Kriegswinter 1941/42

Agenda: 00:15 – Key data of this cold winter 01:58 – What are homogenized temperature data? 02:29 – 250 years of winter temperatures in Vienna 03:06 – How cold was this winter in Europe? 04:06 – Today's mild European winters 05:13 – Temperature comparison 1941/42 to today 05:46 – Air pressure anomalies 06:51 – The large-scale weather patterns are the key: Enormous changes! 07:34 – Could 1941/42 repeat itself? 08:00 – World War II: "Operation Barbarossa" or "Russian Campaign" 10:00 – Are there any stories or anecdotes in your family? 10:32 – My conclusion 12:00 – Are you interested in the slide set? Many thanks to Christian Zenkl ("Wettercafe Innsbruck") for his advice on the weather patterns and charts (reconstructions). This video describes the winter of 1941/42. It is considered one of the last major cold winters in Europe to date. It was particularly cold in Northern and Eastern Europe – in some places, centuries-old cold records may have been broken. The weather in 1941/42 influenced the German Wehrmacht's "Operation Barbarossa" in World War II. Hitler ordered a war of annihilation against the Soviet Union to conquer "living space in the East." How much did the weather contribute to the legendary German defeat in the Battle of Moscow? Compared to the winters of 2022/23 to 2024/25, the winter of 1941/42 was 6 to 10 degrees Celsius colder in large parts of Europe, and even about 15 degrees Celsius colder in the European part of Russia. Responsible for this extreme weather phenomenon was a persistent, or rather, repeatedly forming, powerful high-pressure system over Fennoscandia, which transported bitterly cold continental air masses as far as Central, Western, and Southern Europe. The interplay between the extremely cold winter in Eastern Europe and Hitler's German invasion of the Soviet Union ("Russian Campaign") is legendary in contemporary history. Operation Barbarossa failed catastrophically in the icy Battle of Moscow. Do you have any stories or anecdotes in your family or circle of acquaintances about the winter of 1941/42 or about the fates of soldiers at the front during the "Russian Campaign"? Perhaps you still have any field post letters? Share your stories in the comments. This YouTube video could become the largest collection of anecdotes on the German-language internet. That would be fantastic! Do you have any family or friends who have any stories or anecdotes about the winter of 1941/42 or about the fates of soldiers at the front during the "Russian Campaign"? Unfortunately, I can't contribute anything: One of my grandfathers was born in 1922 and therefore too young for Operation Barbarossa. He was drafted for basic training in the autumn of 1941 and then served on the Eastern Front from 1942/43. We know that my second grandfather was in the war from 1939 to 1945, and nothing more. He never spoke about it, and there are no written records. If you are interested in the complete set of slides with even more information and all the sources, please feel free to email me at [email protected]. In return, I would appreciate a donation for future research projects. The video was recorded and produced in January 2026 in Fieberbrunn (Tyrol) by the company "Bildmaterial." Many thanks to Martin Hautz, Hanna Issa, and Markus Schennach for their work.