The Battle of Berlin: Part Two

The Amount of destruction that the Soviets unleashed during the Battle of Berlin was astounding, but was the magnitude of this destruction necessary for success?

 

 

 

I believe the magnitude of destruction that the Soviets was more personal than necessary. The Nazis were surrounded on all sides without any method of exiting the city, but the Soviets destroyed, not just a small portion of the city, but almost the entire city. I do not believe the Soviets goal was ever to simply defeat the Nazis, but instead crush the Nazis in an effort to make them pay for their crime of attacking the Soviet Union. However, the SS remaining in Berlin were the best the Nazis had to offer and were superior to the Soviets, so some artillery would have been necessary to break defensive lines and advance forward. But, this looks like payback in a similar manner to what the Nazis did to Leningrad. By surrounding Berlin the Soviets had secured their victory, but the battle that took place in Berlin itself, truly demonstrates that the Soviets were driven by a personal vendetta against the Nazis that did not stop until they were decimated.