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182-652: The invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War or Operation 25 , was a German -led attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II . The order for the invasion was put forward in " Führer Directive No. 25", which Adolf Hitler issued on 27 March 1941, following a Yugoslav coup d'état that overthrew the pro-Axis government. The invasion commenced with an overwhelming air attack on Belgrade and facilities of

364-476: A pervasive cult of personality around Adolf Hitler to influence public opinion. The government controlled artistic expression, promoting specific art forms and banning or discouraging others. Genocide , mass murder , and large-scale forced labour became hallmarks of the regime; the implementation of the regime's racial policies culminated in the Holocaust . After the initial success of German invasion of

546-404: A cavalry regiment, a Bersaglieri motorcycle battalion, three Border Guard battalions, one Finance Guard battalion, a motorised artillery regiment of three battalions, a military police battalion, and a tank company equipped with Fiat M13/40 light tanks. The Librazhd Sector included a motorised artillery regiment of four battalions, a bicycle-mounted Bersaglieri regiment, a cavalry regiment,

728-488: A communist uprising. The Reichstag Fire Decree , imposed on 28 February 1933, rescinded most civil liberties, including rights of assembly and freedom of the press. The decree also allowed the police to detain people indefinitely without charges. The legislation was accompanied by a propaganda campaign that led to public support for the measure. Violent suppression of communists by the SA was undertaken nationwide and 4,000 members of

910-457: A compromise, informed Hitler that evening that Hungary would abide by the treaty, though it would likely cease to apply should Croatia secede, and Yugoslavia cease to exist. Upon the proclamation of an Independent State of Croatia in Zagreb on 10 April, this scenario was realized, and Hungary joined the invasion, its army crossing into Yugoslavia the following day. The invasion was spearheaded by

1092-579: A continuously growing market, but the pay rate for employees is lower than expected. There are four McDonald's restaurants in Ploiești and three KFCs . The German retailer Tengelmann built a depot in Ploiești to support a €200 million regional expansion plan. With its Interex ( ro ) operation, the French independent retailer Intermarché intends to become a distribution leader in the Balkans. In Romania

1274-468: A further 600 aircraft from France, Africa, and Sicily into Romania and Bulgaria in a period of ten days. The fighter and reconnaissance craft were sent to fields in Arad , Deva , and Turnu Severin . On 12 February Britain broke off diplomatic relations with Romania on the grounds that it was an enemy-occupied country. Two events in early November 1940 convinced Hitler of the need to station troops, especially

1456-470: A great loss, without producing any significant delay in operation or production. Soviet Red Army troops captured Ploiești on 24 August 1944. Following the war, the new Communist régime of Romania nationalised the oil industry , which had largely been privately owned, and made massive investments in the oil- and petroleum-industry in a bid to modernise the country and to repair the war damage. The population of Ploiești went from 56,460, as indicated by

1638-513: A hostile state. Hitler took the coup as a personal insult, and was so angered that he was determined, in his words, "to destroy Yugoslavia militarily and as a state" ( Jugoslawien militärisch und als Staatsgebilde zu zerschlagen ) and to do so "with pitiless harshness" and "without waiting for possible declarations of loyalty of the new government". Hungary had joined the Tripartite Pact on 20 November 1940. On 12 December, it also concluded

1820-618: A large part of the Serbian population as well as liberals and Communists. Military officers (predominantly Serbs) executed a coup d'état on 27 March 1941, forced the Regent to resign, and declared 17-year-old King Peter II to be of age. Upon hearing news of the coup in Yugoslavia, Hitler called his military advisers to Berlin on 27 March. On the same day as the coup he issued Führer Directive 25 , which called for Yugoslavia to be treated as

2002-633: A machine gun battalion, a motorised anti-aircraft battalion (less one battery), an engineer battalion, a company of Blackshirts, and a company of L3/35 tankettes. The Yugoslav forces consisted of more than 33 divisions of the Royal Yugoslav Army ( Serbo-Croatian Latin : Vojska Kraljevska Jugoslavije , VKJ), four air brigades of the Royal Yugoslav Air Force ( Serbo-Croatian Latin : Vazduhoplovstvo Vojske Kraljevine Jugoslavije , VVKJ) with more than 400 aircraft, and

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2184-595: A manufacturing licence. The sole operator was 3 vazduhoplovni puk (3rd bomber regiment) composed of two bomber groups; the 63rd Bomber Group stationed at Petrovec airfield near Skopje and the 64th Bomber Group stationed at Milesevo airfield near Priština . Other auxiliary airfields had also been prepared to aid in dispersal. During the course of hostilities, the State Aircraft Factory in Kraljevo managed to produce six more aircraft of this type. Of

2366-580: A massive secret rearmament program , forming the Wehrmacht (armed forces). The return to economic stability boosted the regime's popularity. Germany made increasingly aggressive territorial demands, threatening war if they were not met. Germany seized Austria in the Anschluss of 1938, and demanded and received the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia. Germany signed a non-aggression pact with

2548-510: A motorised anti-aircraft battalion, a sapper assault battalion and a road construction battalion. VI Corps included four motorised artillery regiments with a total of sixteen battalions, two machine gun battalions (one motorised, one pack animal) and a motorised anti-aircraft regiment. XI Corps included one motorised artillery regiment comprising four battalions, three machine gun battalions (one motorised, one pack animal and one static), and six Blackshirt legions of battalion size. The Motorised Corps

2730-652: A navigational error) and one Rogozarski R 313 fighters, 69 Dornier Do 17 K (including 40 plus licence-built), 61 Bristol Blenheim Mk I (including some 40 licence-built) and 40 Savoia Marchetti SM-79 K bombers. Army reconnaissance units consisted of seven Groups with 130 obsolete Yugoslav-built Breguet 19 and Potez 25 light bombers. There were also some 400 trainer and auxiliary aircraft. The Naval Aviation units comprised 75 aircraft in eight squadrons equipped with, amongst other auxiliary types, 12 German-built Dornier Do 22 K and 15 Rogozarski SIM-XIV-H locally designed and built maritime patrol float-planes. The aircraft of

2912-657: A non-aggression pact with Poland. In March 1939, Hitler demanded the return of the Free City of Danzig and the Polish Corridor , a strip of land that separated East Prussia from the rest of Germany. The British announced they would come to the aid of Poland if it was attacked. Hitler, believing the British would not take action, ordered an invasion plan should be readied for September 1939. On 23 May, Hitler described to his generals his overall plan of not only seizing

3094-578: A plain forest, made up predominantly of pedunculate oak trees ( Quercus robur ). Other varieties of oak trees such as the sessile oak ( Quercus petraea ) also existed. Remnants of the old forest still exist and some trees are currently protected, such as two old oak trees in Ghighiu , on the southern periphery of the city. In current times the vegetation is typical of urban settlements, made up of ornamental plants, plantations of chestnuts , aspen and black locust . Parks and other green areas are limited:

3276-474: A protectorate of France under the condition that its residents would later decide by referendum which country to join, and Poland became a separate nation and was given access to the sea by the creation of the Polish Corridor , which separated Prussia from the rest of Germany, while Danzig was made a free city . Germany regained control of the Saarland through a referendum held in 1935 and annexed Austria in

3458-503: A quick cessation of hostilities, and fifth column activities by groups of Croatians, Slovenians, and ethnic Germans . The latter has been questioned by scholars who have suggested that the fifth column had little effect on the ultimate outcome. The invasion ended when an armistice was signed on 17 April 1941, based on the unconditional surrender of the Yugoslav army, which came into effect at noon on 18 April. The Kingdom of Yugoslavia

3640-518: A rapid pace because of the intense economic development of the area. In 1810, during the years of the Ottoman occupation, there were only around 2,024 inhabitants in the present-day city. In 1837 this grew to 3,000 inhabitants, 11 years after the Union in 1859 the population was 26,458, while in 1884 the number stood at 32,000. During the early 20th century, the population of Ploiești grew even more, due to

3822-459: A second national anthem. Germany was still in a dire economic situation, as six million people were unemployed and the balance of trade deficit was daunting. Using deficit spending , public works projects were undertaken beginning in 1934, creating 1.7 million new jobs by the end of that year alone. Average wages began to rise. The SA leadership continued to apply pressure for greater political and military power. In response, Hitler used

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4004-608: A shortage of coal. Hungarian officials tried to meet all German demands without going further than the governments had agreed. Even sabotage was used on occasion to prevent having to give the Germans more support than required. On 18 January 1941 an agreement was reached to store German supplies in Hungarian warehouses under Hungarian guard, with only a German officer in Budapest to serve as a liaison. These supplies were to be used in

4186-734: A strength of 1,875 officers and 29,527 other ranks, including some 2,000 pilots, had over 460 front-line aircraft of domestic (notably the IK-3 ), German, Italian, French, and British origin, of which most were modern types. Organized into 22 bomber squadrons and 19 fighter squadrons, the main aircraft types in operational use included 73 Messerschmitt Bf 109 E , 47 Hawker Hurricane Mk I (with more being built under licence in Yugoslavia), 30 Hawker Fury II , 11 Rogožarski IK-3 fighters (plus more under construction), 10 Ikarus IK-2 , 2 Potez 63 , one Messerschmitt Bf 110 C-4 (captured in early April due to

4368-713: A substantial minority of Germans, who lived mostly in the Sudetenland . Under pressure from separatist groups within the Sudeten German Party , the Czechoslovak government offered economic concessions to the region. Hitler decided not just to incorporate the Sudetenland into the Reich, but to destroy the country of Czechoslovakia entirely. The Nazis undertook a propaganda campaign to try to generate support for an invasion. Top German military leaders opposed

4550-490: A system of 50 auxiliary airfields that had previously been prepared. However, many of these airfields lacked facilities and had inadequate drainage which prevented the continued operation of all but the very lightest aircraft in the adverse weather conditions encountered in April 1941. Despite having, on paper at any rate, a substantially stronger force of relatively modern aircraft than the combined British and Greek air forces to

4732-626: A thousand people (out of a population of around 16,000) committed suicide in Demmin around 1 May 1945 as the 65th Army of 2nd Belorussian Front first broke into a distillery and then rampaged through the town, committing mass rapes, arbitrarily executing civilians, and setting fire to buildings. High numbers of suicides took place in many other locations, including Neubrandenburg (600 dead), Stolp in Pommern (1,000 dead), and Berlin, where at least 7,057 people committed suicide in 1945. Estimates of

4914-659: A total length of 415.46 km (258.15 mi); two trolley-bus lines having a total length of 19.9 km (12.4 mi) and two tram lines having a total length of 23.8 km (14.8 mi). Ploiești is home to the Ploiești Philharmonic Orchestra —one of the top-rated philharmonic orchestras in Romania, a prominent football club , FC Petrolul Ploiești , women handball club CSM Ploiești from Liga Națională and basketball team CSU Asesoft . There are many cultural and architectural monuments, including

5096-677: A total of 22 divisions and 666 aircraft to the operation. The Hungarian 3rd Army also participated in the invasion, with support available from over 500 aircraft. During the April War, the Führer Headquarters (FHQ) was codenamed Frühlingssturm (Spring Storm) and consisted of the Führersonderzug (Special Führer 's Train) codenamed "Amerika" stationed in Mönichkirchen alongside the special train "Atlas" of

5278-459: A total of 22 divisions to the operation, comprising around 300,000 troops. The Italian 2nd Army (Italian: 2° Armata ) was commanded by Generale designato d’Armata (acting General) Vittorio Ambrosio , and consisted of one fast (Italian: celere ) corps ( Celere Corps ), one motorised corps ( Motorised Corps ) and three infantry corps ( V Corps , VI Corps , and XI Corps ), and was assembled in northeastern Italy, attacking from Istria and

5460-467: A treaty with Yugoslavia calling for "permanent peace and eternal friendship". The Hungarian leadership was split after Germany's War Directive 25 was delivered on 27 March 1941. Regent Miklós Horthy and the military favoured taking part in the invasion of Yugoslavia and mobilized the following day. Prime Minister Pál Teleki sought to prevent German troops passing through Hungary and cited the peace treaty with Yugoslavia as an impediment to co-operation with

5642-561: A villa owned by the Pirzio Biroli family at Brazzacco, near Moruzzo , in order to be close to the front. Germany attacked Yugoslavia from bases in three countries besides itself: Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria. German troops entered each of these countries under different pretenses and at different times. The first country to receive a German military mission was Romania. Ostensibly to train the Romanian armed forces, its real purpose

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5824-896: A war fought on two fronts. The invasion conquered a huge area, including the Baltic states, Belarus , and west Ukraine . After the successful Battle of Smolensk in September 1941, Hitler ordered Army Group Centre to halt its advance to Moscow and temporarily divert its Panzer groups to aid in the encirclement of Leningrad and Kyiv . This pause provided the Red Army with an opportunity to mobilise fresh reserves. The Moscow offensive, which resumed in October 1941, ended disastrously in December . On 7 December 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor , Hawaii. Four days later, Germany declared war on

6006-515: A war of conquest to obtain more territory. The Saarland , which had been placed under League of Nations supervision for 15 years at the end of World War I, voted in January 1935 to become part of Germany. In March 1935, Hitler announced the creation of an air force, and that the Reichswehr would be increased to 550,000 men. Britain agreed to Germany building a naval fleet with the signing of

6188-636: Is 748.2 mm (29.46 in). The city lies on the Wallachian Plain , having an average altitude of 150 m (490 ft). The surrounding landscape is influenced by its position around the Prahova River, whose stream bed lies 25 km (16 mi) to the west. The Teleajen River passes through the city while the Dâmbu River passes through the north-eastern neighbourhoods. The vegetation of Ploiești used to be characterised by

6370-452: Is also an important transport hub , linking the capital with the regions of Transylvania and Moldavia . The city has direct access to Prahova Valley , one of the most important alpine tourism areas in Romania. WWII refineries (monthly metric tonnes) : Though likely settled much earlier, Ploiești first appeared in documents in the 16th century during the reign of Michael the Brave ,

6552-757: Is run by TCE Ploiești and includes an extensive network of buses, trolleybuses and trams/ streetcars . Ploiești's distinctive yellow bus fleet is one of the most modern in Southeastern Europe, providing connections to all areas within the city, for a daily average of 150,000 passengers. The municipal roads comprise over 800 streets with a total length of 324 km (201 mi), 241 km (150 mi) being modern. Around 5,300 vehicles transit Ploiești each day, with East and West ring belts diverting much traffic. The municipal vehicle fleet comprised 256 buses, 36 trams and 25 trolleybuses carrying about 70 millions passengers annually. There are 33 bus lines, with

6734-620: Is situated on the A3 motorway , the main route to Romania's northern and western provinces and the Western EU. Henri Coandă International Airport is 45 km (28 mi) distant, and the ski resorts of the Prahova Valley can be reached in an hour's drive. Ploiești is the second most important railway center in the country after Bucharest , linking Bucharest with Transylvania and Moldavia . The city's public transportation system

6916-466: The Schutzstaffel (SS) and Gestapo to purge the entire SA leadership. Hitler targeted SA Stabschef (Chief of Staff) Ernst Röhm and other SA leaders who—along with a number of Hitler's political adversaries (such as Gregor Strasser and former chancellor Kurt von Schleicher )—were arrested and shot. Up to 200 people were killed from 30 June to 2 July 1934 in an event that became known as

7098-579: The Völkisch movement . The party, especially its paramilitary organisation Sturmabteilung (SA; Storm Detachment), or Brownshirts, used physical violence to advance their political position, disrupting the meetings of rival organisations and attacking their members as well as Jewish people on the streets. Such far-right armed groups were common in Bavaria , and were tolerated by the sympathetic far-right state government of Gustav Ritter von Kahr . When

7280-699: The 1st and 2nd Armies, defended the region between the Iron Gates and the Drava River . The 1st Army Group with the 4th and 7th Armies, composed mainly of Croatian troops, was in Croatia and Slovenia defending the Italian, German (Austrian) and Hungarian frontiers. The strength of each "Army" amounted to little more than a corps , with the Army Groups consisting of the units deployed as follows: On

7462-444: The 2021 census data, Ploiești had a population of 180,540. The majority of the inhabitants are ethnic Romanians (90.64%), but a Roma minority (2.4%) is present in several neighborhoods of the city—predominantly Bereasca, Mimiu and Radu de la Afumați. For 6.65% of the population, the ethnicity is unknown. Most of the people living in Ploiești declare themselves as Orthodox Christians (90.7%). The population of Ploiești grew at

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7644-541: The 6th Army could be supplied by air, but this turned out to be infeasible. Hitler's refusal to allow a retreat led to the deaths of 200,000 German and Romanian soldiers; of the 91,000 men who surrendered in the city on 31 January 1943, only 6,000 survivors returned to Germany after the war. Losses continued to mount after Stalingrad, leading to a sharp reduction in the popularity of the Nazi Party and deteriorating morale. Soviet forces continued to push westward after

7826-690: The Anglo-German Naval Agreement on 18 June 1935. When the Italian invasion of Ethiopia led to only mild protests by the British and French governments, on 7 March 1936 Hitler used the Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance as a pretext to order the army to march 3,000 troops into the demilitarised zone in the Rhineland in violation of the Versailles Treaty. As the territory was part of Germany,

8008-634: The Anschluss of 1938. The Munich Agreement of 1938 gave Germany control of the Sudetenland, and they seized the remainder of Czechoslovakia six months later. Under threat of invasion by sea, Lithuania surrendered the Memel district in March 1939. Between 1939 and 1941, German forces invaded Poland , Denmark , Norway , France , Luxembourg , the Netherlands , Belgium , Yugoslavia , Greece , and

8190-575: The Battle of Berlin (16 April – 2 May 1945), Hitler and his staff lived in the underground Führerbunker while the Red Army approached. On 30 April, when Soviet troops were within two blocks of the Reich Chancellery , Hitler and his wife Eva Braun committed suicide . On 2 May, General Helmuth Weidling unconditionally surrendered Berlin to Soviet General Vasily Chuikov . Hitler

8372-668: The Biscaccianti Blackshirt group which incorporated two Blackshirt regiments with a total of five battalions, the regimental-sized Agostini Blackshirt Forest Militia, and the Briscotto group, a regimental-sized formation consisting of one Alpini battalion and two Finance Guard battalions. The Zara garrison numbered about 9,000 men under the overall command of Generale di Brigata (Brigadier) Emilio Giglioli. The garrison consisted of two main groupings and an assortment of supporting units. The two main groupings were

8554-738: The Communist Party of Germany were arrested. On 23 March 1933, the Enabling Act , an amendment to the Weimar Constitution , passed in the Reichstag by a vote of 444 to 94. This amendment allowed Hitler and his cabinet to pass laws—even laws that violated the constitution—without the consent of the president or the Reichstag. As the bill required a two-thirds majority to pass, the Nazis used intimidation tactics as well as

8736-647: The Dalmatian coast . On the same day, Hungarian forces entered Yugoslav Bačka and Baranya , but like the Italians they faced practically light resistance. A Yugoslav attack into the northern parts of Italian-controlled Albania met with initial success, but was ultimately repelled into Dalmatia. Scholars have proposed several theories to explain the sudden collapse of the Royal Yugoslav forces , including poor training and equipment, generals eager to secure

8918-633: The German Empire (1871–1918) as the second. Severe setbacks to the German economy began after World War I ended, partly because of reparations payments required under the 1919 Treaty of Versailles . The government printed money to make the payments and to repay the country's war debt, but the resulting hyperinflation led to inflated prices, economic chaos, and food riots. When the government defaulted on their reparations payments in January 1923, French troops occupied German industrial areas along

9100-512: The Hague Convention , industrial firms in the Netherlands, France, and Belgium were put to work producing war materiel for Germany. The Nazis seized from the French thousands of locomotives and rolling stock, stockpiles of weapons, and raw materials such as copper, tin, oil, and nickel. Payments for occupation costs were levied upon France, Belgium, and Norway. Barriers to trade led to hoarding, black markets , and uncertainty about

9282-514: The Julian March along the border with Slovenia and Croatia. The 2nd Army was supported by a motorised engineer regiment including three bridging battalions, a chemical battalion, fifteen territorial battalions, and two garrison battalions. V Corps support units included three motorised artillery regiments comprising thirteen battalions, four machine gun battalions (two motorised and two pack animal), three Blackshirt legions of battalion size,

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9464-535: The Kingdom of Greece only to be forced back into Italian-occupied Albania . German dictator Adolf Hitler recognised the need to go to the aid of his ally, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini . Hitler did this not only to restore diminished Axis prestige, but also to prevent Britain from bombing the Romanian Ploiești oilfields from which Nazi Germany obtained most of its oil. In 1940 and early 1941, Hungary , Romania , and Bulgaria all agreed to adhere to

9646-511: The League of Nations in October, claiming its disarmament clauses were unfair if they applied only to Germany. In a referendum held in November , 95 per cent of voters supported Germany's withdrawal. In 1934, Hitler told his military leaders that rearmament needed to be complete by 1942, as by then the German people would require more living space and resources, so Germany would have to start

9828-402: The Low Countries . They quickly conquered Luxembourg and the Netherlands and outmanoeuvred the Allies in Belgium , forcing the evacuation of many British and French troops at Dunkirk . France fell as well, surrendering to Germany on 22 June . The victory in France resulted in an upswing in Hitler's popularity and an upsurge in war fever in Germany. In violation of the provisions of

10010-420: The Luftwaffe , in Bulgaria. The first was false reports that the British were constructing an airfield on Lemnos , from which they could bomb Ploiești . The second was the beginning of British air raids originating from Greek bases against Italian shipping on 6 November. Planning for the German invasion of Greece from Bulgaria began on 12 November. Already on 13 November, the Soviets were (incorrectly) accusing

10192-420: The Nazi euthanasia program . Political courts called Sondergerichte sentenced some 12,000 members of the German resistance to death, and civil courts sentenced an additional 40,000 Germans. Mass rapes of German women also took place. As a result of their defeat in World War I and the resulting Treaty of Versailles, Germany lost Alsace-Lorraine , Northern Schleswig , and Memel . The Saarland became

10374-499: The Night of the Long Knives . On 2 August 1934, Hindenburg died. The previous day, the cabinet had enacted the " Law Concerning the Head of State of the German Reich ", which stated that upon Hindenburg's death the office of Reich President would be abolished and its powers merged with those of Reich Chancellor. Hitler thus became head of state as well as head of government and was formally named as Führer und Reichskanzler ("Leader and Chancellor"), although eventually Reichskanzler

10556-471: The Royal Yugoslav Air Force (VVKJ) by the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) and attacks by German land forces from southwestern Bulgaria . These attacks were followed by German thrusts from Romania , Hungary and the Ostmark (modern-day Austria , then part of Germany). Italian forces were limited to air and artillery attacks until 11 April, when the Italian Army attacked towards Ljubljana (in modern-day Slovenia ) and through Istria and Lika and down

10738-409: The Ruhr and widespread civil unrest followed. The National Socialist German Workers' Party ( Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei ), commonly known as the Nazi Party, was founded in 1920. It was the renamed successor of the German Workers' Party (DAP) formed one year earlier, and one of several far-right political parties then active. The Nazi Party platform included destruction of

10920-399: The Soviet Union and invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, launching World War II in Europe . In alliance with Italy and other Axis powers , Germany conquered most of Europe by 1940 and threatened Great Britain. Racism , Nazi eugenics , anti-Slavism , and especially antisemitism were central ideological features of the regime. The Germanic peoples were considered by the Nazis to be

11102-416: The Tripartite Pact and thus join the Axis. Hitler then pressured Yugoslavia to join as well. The Regent, Prince Paul , yielded to this pressure, and declared Yugoslavia's accession to the Pact on 25 March 1941. This move was highly unpopular with the Serb -dominated officer corps of the military, Serbian organizations such as National Defense and the Chetniks Association , the Serbian Orthodox Church ,

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11284-571: The cession of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina to the Soviet Union, proposed in a letter to Adolf Hitler on 2 July 1940 that Germany send a military mission to Romania. The Romanian government asked that a mission be sent urgently on 7 September 1940, the day after Carol's abdication. The decision to aid Romania was taken on 19 September, and Hungary was asked to provide transit to German soldiers on 30 September. The first troops entered Romania on 10 October. They entered Bucharest two days later (12 October) to shouts of Heil! The official explanation for

11466-414: The federal election of 1932 , the party was the largest in the Reichstag , holding 230 seats with 37.4 per cent of the popular vote. Although the Nazis won the greatest share of the popular vote in the two Reichstag general elections of 1932, they did not have a majority. Hitler refused to participate in a coalition government unless he was its leader. Under pressure from politicians, industrialists, and

11648-437: The world's first large refinery in Ploiești in 1856–1857. History also remembers the city as the site of the self-styled Republic of Ploiești , a short-lived 1870 revolt against the Romanian monarchy . During World War I , Ploiești's oil production made it a target when the Central Powers invaded Romania in 1916 , a British Army operation commanded by Colonel John Griffiths destroying production and sabotaging much of

11830-671: The " master race ", the purest branch of the Aryan race. Jews , Romani people , Slavs , homosexuals , liberals , socialists , communists , other political opponents, Jehovah's Witnesses , Freemasons , those who refused to work , and other "undesirables" were imprisoned, deported , or murdered. Christian churches and citizens that opposed Hitler's rule were oppressed and leaders imprisoned. Education focused on racial biology , population policy, and fitness for military service. Career and educational opportunities for women were curtailed . Nazi Propaganda Ministry disseminated films, antisemitic canards , and organized mass rallies; fostering

12012-425: The 19th Century. The zone extends from the flysch on the north to the Moesian Platform on the south. The zone is marked by alternating deposits of Clay , Marl , Shale and Sand , conglomerate , Salt and Limestone . Structural traps and stratigraphic traps are formed from Salt Diapirism which gave rise to anticline folds and faulting. There are four major alignments of the anticlines, all parallel to

12194-407: The Allied bombing campaign became even more devastating. By targeting oil refineries and factories, they crippled the German war effort by late 1944. On 6 June 1944, American, British, and Canadian forces established a front in France with the D-Day landings in Normandy . On 20 July 1944 , Hitler survived an assassination attempt. He ordered brutal reprisals, resulting in 7,000 arrests and

12376-444: The Armed Forces Operations Staff ( Wehrmachtführungsstabes , WFSt). "Atlas" did not arrive at Mönichkirchen until 11 April, well after operations were underway, and "Amerika" only arrived the following day. Mönichkirchen was chosen because a nearby rail tunnel could provide shelter in the event of air attack. Both trains returned to Berlin on 26 April. After the Italian invasion in the northwest began, King Victor Emmanuel III moved to

12558-405: The British and French governments did not feel that attempting to enforce the treaty was worth the risk of war. In the one-party election held on 29 March, the Nazis received 98.9 per cent support. In 1936, Hitler signed an Anti-Comintern Pact with Japan and a non-aggression agreement with Mussolini, who was soon referring to a "Rome-Berlin Axis". Hitler sent military supplies and assistance to

12740-586: The British had declared that "if Hungary were to permit German troops to pass through Hungarian territory against Yugoslavia, Britain would break off diplomatic relations, indeed might declare war on us." The first German troops began their passage through Hungary on 8 October. Despite some official denials, the troops movements were reported by Reuters and the American ambassador received a full report. According to contemporary British intelligence, three divisions had passed through Hungary to Romania by 2 November. On 20 November, Hungarian Prime Minister Pál Teleki signed

12922-437: The Carpathian Range. Pliocene sands are the main oil and gas producers, in particular the Meotian (60%) and Dacian (29%), followed by the Miocene Sarmatian (5%) but some oil exists in Miocene Helvetian and Oligocene sandstones. Major producing structures include Moreni-Gura Ocniței, Băicoi-Țintea and Boldești. Ploiești lies in the center of Muntenia , in the central-northern part of the Wallachian Plain . It lies close to

13104-832: The Cultural Palace; the Clock Museum, featuring a collection of clocks and watches gathered by Nicolae Simache; the Oil Museum; the Ploiești Art Museum , donated by the Quintus family; and the Hagi Prodan Museum, dating to 1785: the property of a merchant named Ivan Hagi Prodan, it contains elements of old Romanian architecture and for a short time after World War I it hosted the first museum in Ploiești, "Prahova Museum". In August 2011, Ploiești hosted

13286-609: The Danube from Lake Balaton to Barcs , and twelve brigades (nine on the front and three in reserve) for an offensive in Bačka ( Bácska ). The Danube Flotilla was to cover the flanks, and the air force was to stand by for orders. The "Carpathian Group", composed of Eighth Corps , the 1st Mountain Brigade and the 8th Border Guard ( Chasseur ) Brigade, was mobilized on the Soviet border, with

13468-557: The Danube from Romania on 28 February, a day before Bulgaria joined the pact. The greater part of the 12th Army, augmented by VIII. Fliegerkorps , crossed the Danube on 2 March. They were welcomed by the Russophile population, who believed that Germany and the Soviet Union were allied. The 12th Army was originally deployed solely for an attack on Greece. After receiving Directive No. 25, which projected an invasion of Yugoslavia in

13650-407: The December 1912 census, up to 252,715 in January 1992. However, since the fall of Communism , the city's population continues to gently fall due to both emigration and a declining birth rate. At the 2002 census, the population was reduced to 232,527. As of the 2011 census data, Ploiești had a population of 209,945, while the proposed Ploiești metropolitan area would number 266,457 persons. As of

13832-466: The German 2nd Army with elements of the 12th Army , First Panzer Group , and an independent panzer corps combined with overwhelming Luftwaffe support. The 19 German divisions included five panzer divisions , two motorised infantry divisions and two mountain divisions. The German force also included three well-equipped independent motorised infantry regiments and was supported by over 750 aircraft. The Italian 2nd Army and 9th Army committed

14014-819: The German National People's Party – their former coalition partners – which then disbanded on 29 June. The remaining major political parties followed suit. On 14 July 1933 Germany became a one-party state with the passage of the Law Against the Formation of Parties , decreeing the Nazi Party to be the sole legal party in Germany. The founding of new parties was also made illegal, and all remaining political parties which had not already been dissolved were banned. Further elections in November 1933 , 1936 , and 1938 were Nazi-controlled, with only members of

14196-594: The German state in the Nazi era are "Nazi Germany" and the "Third Reich", which Hitler and the Nazis also referred to as the "Thousand-Year Reich" ( Tausendjähriges Reich ). The latter, a translation of the Nazi propaganda term Drittes Reich , was first used in Das Dritte Reich , a 1923 book by Arthur Moeller van den Bruck . The book counted the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806) as the first Reich and

14378-458: The Germans of having troops in neutral Bulgaria. On 18 November, Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria met with Hitler and promised to participate in an attack on Greece, but only at the last moment. Shortly thereafter a secret German team under Colonel Kurt Zeitzler entered Bulgaria to establish fuel depots, arrange for troop billeting and scout the terrain. They were soon followed by hundreds of Luftwaffe personnel to establish air observation stations. By

14560-577: The Germans to begin operations, with the use of Hungarian territory and communications, on 12 April and the Hungarians to complete mobilization by 6 April and begin their offensive on the 15th. A meeting of the Supreme Defense Council was convened for 1 April to discuss Werth's request. After a long debate, it approved his mobilization plan, but refused to place Hungarian troops under German command and restricted Hungarian operations to

14742-633: The Germans. On 1 April, Yugoslavia redesignated its Assault Command as the Chetnik Command , named after the Serb guerrilla forces from World War I , which had resisted the Central Powers . The command was intended to lead a guerrilla war if the country was occupied. Its headquarters was transferred from Novi Sad to Kraljevo in south-central Serbia on 1 April. On 2 April, the German ambassador having already been recalled for "talks",

14924-580: The Golden Carpathian European Film & Fair and Goran Bregovic concert. Several prominent writers have been affiliated with the city, including Ion Luca Caragiale , Constantin Dobrogeanu-Gherea , Ioan A. Bassarabescu , Nichita Stănescu , Geo Bogza , Radu Tudoran , composer Paul Constantinescu and philosopher Petre P. Negulescu . Three graduates of the "Sfinții Petru și Pavel" High school were presidents of

15106-569: The Hungarian legation in Berlin had granted over 6,500 transit visas to Germans traveling to Romania. On 30 September, shortly after the signing of the Tripartite Pact, Ribbentrop and General Keitel asked the Hungarian foreign minister, István Csáky , who was in Vienna, to grant the Germans use of transit facilities for German military "study groups" to pass through to Romania. They were still awaiting final confirmation on 3 October. The arrangement agreed

15288-628: The Italians. On 14 and 15 April, King Peter and the government flew out of the country, and the Yugoslav Supreme Command was captured by the Germans near Sarajevo . The surrender was signed on 17 April and came into effect at noon on 18 April. Following the Belgrade Coup on 27 March 1941, the Yugoslav armed forces were put on alert, although the army was not fully mobilised for fear of provoking Hitler. The VVKJ command decided to disperse its forces away from their main bases to

15470-489: The Mobile Corps held in reserve. These arrangements were agreed to by Werth, he later claimed, "on the basis of the authorization received" on 28 April—although this was not the government's view of what had been authorized. Werth applied for permission to mobilize on 1 April, since a mobilization order had to be approved by the cabinet and issued by the regent over the signature of the minister of defense. Werth expected

15652-676: The Nationalist forces of General Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War , which began in July 1936. The German Condor Legion included a range of aircraft and their crews, as well as a tank contingent. The aircraft of the Legion destroyed the city of Guernica in 1937. The Nationalists were victorious in 1939 and became an informal ally of Nazi Germany. In February 1938, Hitler emphasised to Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg

15834-632: The Nazi claim that Nazi Germany was the successor to the earlier Holy Roman Empire (800/962–1806) and German Empire (1871–1918). The Third Reich, which the Nazis referred to as the Thousand-Year Reich , ended in May 1945, after only 12 years, when the Allies defeated Germany and entered the capital, Berlin , ending World War II in Europe . After Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany by

16016-473: The Party and a small number of independents elected. All civilian organisations had their leadership replaced with Nazi sympathisers or party members, and either merged with the Nazi Party or faced dissolution. The Nazi government declared a "Day of National Labor" for May Day 1933, and invited many trade union delegates to Berlin for celebrations. The day after, SA stormtroopers demolished union offices around

16198-468: The Polish Corridor but greatly expanding German territory eastward at the expense of Poland. He expected this time they would be met by force. The Germans reaffirmed their alliance with Italy and signed non-aggression pacts with Denmark, Estonia, and Latvia whilst trade links were formalised with Romania, Norway, and Sweden. Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop arranged in negotiations with

16380-592: The President of the Weimar Republic Paul von Hindenburg on 30 January 1933, the Nazi Party began to eliminate political opposition and consolidate power. Hindenburg died on 2 August 1934, and Hitler became dictator by merging the powers of the chancellery and presidency. A 1934 German referendum confirmed Hitler as sole Führer (leader). Power was centralised in Hitler's person, and his word became

16562-503: The Prince of Wallachia ( r.  1593–1601 ). It flourished as a center for trade and handicraft-manufacturing in the 17th and 18th centuries. The road connecting Ploiești to Brașov was opened in 1864, and the railway arrived in 1882. Many schools and hospitals date from this period. In the mid-19th century, the region of Ploiești became one of the world's leading oil -extraction and -refinery sites. The Mehedințeanu brothers opened

16744-451: The RAF in what became known as the Battle of Britain , and by the end of October, Hitler realised that air superiority would not be achieved. He permanently postponed the invasion, a plan which the commanders of the German army had never taken entirely seriously. Several historians, including Andrew Gordon , believe the primary reason for the failure of the invasion plan was the superiority of

16926-523: The Romanian Academy: Andrei Rădulescu , Mihai Drăgănescu and Eugen Simion . The first school in Ploiești was opened in 1777 and by 1832 several other elementary schools are opened. Secondary education is first offered in 1864. Ploiești is home to the following universities and colleges: Important secondary schools in Ploiești are: The Mio- Pliocene Zone in the Ploiești region has been exploited for hydrocarbons and coal since

17108-777: The Royal Navy, not the actions of the RAF. In February 1941, the German Afrika Korps arrived in Libya to aid the Italians in the North African Campaign . On 6 April, Germany launched an invasion of Yugoslavia and Greece . All of Yugoslavia and parts of Greece were subsequently divided between Germany, Hungary, Italy, and Bulgaria. On 22 June 1941, contravening the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, about 3.8 million Axis troops attacked

17290-604: The Slovenes did not feel abandoned, defences were built on Yugoslavia's northern border when the natural line of defence was much further south, based on the rivers Sava and Drina. The only effective opposition to the invasion was from wholly Serbian units within the borders of Serbia itself. The Germans, thrusting north-west from Skopje , were held up at Kacanik Pass and lost several tanks (P39, Buckley C "Greece and Crete 1941" HMSO 1977). In its worst expression, Yugoslavia's defenses were badly compromised on 10 April 1941, when some of

17472-481: The Soviet Union . Germany annexed parts of northern Yugoslavia in April 1941, while Mussolini ceded Trieste , South Tyrol , and Istria to Germany in 1943. Ploie%C8%99ti The area of Ploiești is around 60 km (23 sq mi), and it borders the Blejoi commune in the north, Bărcănești and Brazi communes in the south, Târgșoru Vechi commune in the west, and Bucov and Berceni communes in

17654-664: The Soviet Union a non-aggression pact, the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , signed in August 1939. The treaty also contained secret protocols dividing Poland and the Baltic states into German and Soviet spheres of influence. Germany's wartime foreign policy involved the creation of allied governments controlled directly or indirectly from Berlin. They intended to obtain soldiers from allies such as Italy and Hungary and workers and food supplies from allies such as Vichy France . Hungary

17836-573: The Soviet Union attacked from the east on 17 September. Reinhard Heydrich , chief of the Sicherheitspolizei (SiPo; Security Police) and Sicherheitsdienst (SD; Security Service), ordered on 21 September that Polish Jews should be rounded up and concentrated into cities with good rail links. Initially the intention was to deport them further east, or possibly to Madagascar . Using lists prepared in advance , some 65,000 Polish intelligentsia, noblemen, clergy, and teachers were murdered by

18018-722: The Soviet Union in 1941, Nazi Germany attempted to implement the Generalplan Ost and Hunger Plan , as part of its war of extermination in Eastern Europe. The Soviet resurgence and entry of the US into the war meant Germany lost the initiative in 1943 and by late 1944 had been pushed back to the 1939 border. Large-scale aerial bombing of Germany escalated and the Axis powers were driven back in Eastern and Southern Europe. Germany

18200-498: The Soviet Union. In addition to Hitler's stated purpose of acquiring Lebensraum , this large-scale offensive—codenamed Operation Barbarossa —was intended to destroy the Soviet Union and seize its natural resources for subsequent aggression against the Western powers. The reaction among Germans was one of surprise and trepidation as many were concerned about how much longer the war would continue or suspected that Germany could not win

18382-587: The Tripartite Pact after a meeting with Hitler in Berchtesgarden . At the meeting, Hitler spoke of his intention to aid Italy against Greece, thereby preparing the Hungarians for his future demands. On 13 December 1940—the day after the Hungaro-Yugoslav Non-Aggression Pact and the day Hitler issued Führer Directive No. 20 —major German troop movements began. The Germans had initially promised to supply 180 locomotives for

18564-572: The Tripartite Pact. At the time Germany informed Romania that she would not be expected to participate in an attack on Greece, but that Germany wanted to use Romanian territory to provide a base for a German attack. On 24 November, Antonescu met with Wilhelm Keitel , chief of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht , to discuss common defense. As a result of this meeting, the 16th Panzer Division was sent to Romania in late December. The 12th Army and First Panzer Group, along with heavy bridging equipment for

18746-644: The United States of America in the months just preceding the invasion. Fully mobilized, the Yugoslav Army fielded 28 infantry divisions, three cavalry divisions, and 35 independent regiments. Of the independent regiments, 16 were in frontier fortifications and 19 were organized as combined regiments, or "Odred", around the size of a reinforced brigade. Each Odred had one to three infantry regiments and one to three artillery battalions, with three organised as "alpine" units. The German attack, however, caught

18928-482: The United States. Food was in short supply in the conquered areas of the Soviet Union and Poland, as the retreating armies had burned the crops in some areas, and much of the remainder was sent back to the Reich. In Germany, rations were cut in 1942. In his role as Plenipotentiary of the Four Year Plan , Hermann Göring demanded increased shipments of grain from France and fish from Norway. The 1942 harvest

19110-562: The Weimar Republic, rejection of the Treaty of Versailles, radical antisemitism , and anti- Bolshevism . They promised a strong central government, increased Lebensraum ("living space") for Germanic peoples, formation of a national community based on race, and racial cleansing via the active suppression of Jews , who would be stripped of their citizenship and civil rights. The Nazis proposed national and cultural renewal based upon

19292-824: The Yugoslav Army; the XLI Panzer Corps from Romania towards Belgrade, the XLVI Panzer Corps from Hungary across the Drava , the LI Infantry Corps from Austria towards Zagreb , and the XLIX Mountain Corps from Austria towards Celje . By the end of that day, the Yugoslav Army was disintegrating, and was in retreat or surrendering right across the country, with the exception of the forces on the Albanian frontier. Italy and Hungary joined

19474-665: The Yugoslav airline Aeroput , consisting mainly of six Lockheed Model 10 Electras , three Spartan Cruisers , and one de Havilland Dragon were mobilised to provide transport services to the VVKJ. The KJRM was equipped with one elderly ex-German light cruiser (suitable only for training purposes), one large modern destroyer flotilla leader of British design, three modern destroyers of French design (two built in Yugoslavia plus another still under construction), one seaplane tender , four modern submarines (two older French-built and two British-built) and 10 modern motor torpedo boats (MTBs), of

19656-413: The army still mobilizing, and only some 11 divisions were in their planned defense positions at the start of the invasion. The Yugoslavs had delayed full mobilisation until 3 April in order not to provoke Hitler. The units were filled to between 70 and 90 percent of their strength as mobilization was not completed. The Yugoslav Army was about 1,200,000 in total as the German invasion commenced. The VVKJ had

19838-451: The blockade, imports into Germany declined by 80 per cent. To safeguard Swedish iron ore shipments to Germany, Hitler ordered the invasion of Denmark and Norway , which began on 9 April. Denmark fell after less than a day , while most of Norway followed by the end of the month. By early June, Germany occupied all of Norway . Against the advice of many of his senior military officers, in May 1940 Hitler ordered an attack on France and

20020-520: The business community, President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor of Germany on 30 January 1933. This event is known as the Machtergreifung ("seizure of power"). On the night of 27 February 1933, the Reichstag building was set afire . Marinus van der Lubbe , a Dutch communist, was found guilty of starting the blaze. Hitler proclaimed that the arson marked the start of

20202-477: The campaign against Greece. On 27 March 1941, Hitler informed the Hungarian ambassador, Döme Sztójay , and gave an official proposal to Hungary for participation in the attack on Yugoslavia. Hitler confidentially told Miklós Horthy that Germany fully recognizes the Hungarian territorial claims in relation to Yugoslavia and that he can take Bačka and Banat, and added "take as much as you want". Horthy mostly agreed and accepted Hitler's suggestions. A Hungarian response

20384-499: The capital city Bucharest and it had close connections with the capital city throughout the centuries. Ploiești lies at the 25°E meridian and the 44°55’N parallel (north). The city occupies a total surface of around 60 km (23 sq mi), out of which 35 km (14 sq mi) is suburban settlements. There exist two rivers in the proximity of the city: the Prahova River , on the south-west, briefly passes through

20566-513: The churches. The Nazi regime abolished the symbols of the Weimar Republic—including the black, red, and gold tricolour flag —and adopted reworked symbolism. The previous imperial black, white, and red tricolour was restored as one of Germany's two official flags; the second was the swastika flag of the Nazi Party, which became the sole national flag in September 1935. The Party anthem " Horst-Wessel-Lied " ("Horst Wessel Song") became

20748-683: The city through the Brazi settlement and the Teleajen River passes through the Blejoi , Bucov , Berceni villages. The city lies on Dâmbu River , which springs from the hills around the Băicoi town. Nowadays the Dâmbu River does not have a high flow rate. The climate is similar to that of the nation's capital, Bucharest . According to the Köppen climate classification , the city falls within

20930-564: The construction of the new food plant is part of this plan. In 1950, as a milestone in the development of the petroleum, hydrocarbon processing , and petrochemical industries , the Engineering and Design Institute for Oil Refineries and Petrochemical Plants , SC IPIP SA , a Romanian company with a large range of capabilities and experience, was established at Ploiești. In Ploiești there are four local television channels: Ploiești TV, Valea Prahovei TV, Wyll TV and Prahova TV. Ploiești

21112-551: The country; all trade unions were forced to dissolve and their leaders were arrested. The Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service , passed in April, removed from their jobs all teachers, professors, judges, magistrates, and government officials who were Jewish or whose commitment to the party was suspect. This meant the only non-political institutions not under control of the Nazis were

21294-579: The direction of Belgrade on 8 April, the force was redeployed in three groups: one along the Turkish border, one along the Greek border and one along the Yugoslav border. Motorized transport was brought in from Romania to achieve this feat in a few days. Although German troops had been refused the right to transit Hungary for the invasion of Poland in 1939, they were permitted to pass through Hungary as civilians on their way to Romania in 1940. In September 1940

21476-402: The east. According to the 2021 census , Ploiești is the tenth most populous city in the country with a population of 180,540. The city grew beginning with the 17th century on an estate bought by ruler Michael the Brave from the local landlords, gradually replacing nearby Wallachian fairs of Târgșor , Gherghița , and Bucov. Its development was accelerated by heavy industrialisation during

21658-563: The electorate in a plebiscite . Most Germans were relieved that the conflicts and street fighting of the Weimar era had ended. They were deluged with propaganda orchestrated by Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels , who promised peace and plenty for all in a united, Marxist-free country without the constraints of the Versailles Treaty. The Nazi Party obtained and legitimised power through its initial revolutionary activities, then through manipulation of legal mechanisms,

21840-529: The end of 1939 in an attempt to destroy Poland's identity as a nation. Soviet forces advanced into Finland in the Winter War , and German forces saw action at sea. But little other activity occurred until May, so the period became known as the " Phoney War ". From the start of the war, a British blockade on shipments to Germany affected its economy. Germany was particularly dependent on foreign supplies of oil, coal, and grain. Thanks to trade embargoes and

22022-511: The end of December over a thousand German troops in civilian clothing were active in Bulgaria, although the latter's government continued to deny it. Bombers and dive-bombers were also gradually moved into Bulgaria, beginning in November. By the end of March 1941, the Luftwaffe had 355 aircraft in the country. On 17 February 1941, Bulgaria signed a non-aggression pact with Turkey , paving

22204-602: The establishment of the Nuremberg Laws of 1935, which stripped them of their basic rights. The Nazis would take from the Jews their wealth, their right to intermarry with non-Jews, and their right to occupy many fields of labour (such as law, medicine, or education). Eventually the Nazis declared the Jews as undesirable to remain among German citizens and society. As early as February 1933, Hitler announced that rearmament must begin, albeit clandestinely at first, as to do so

22386-423: The eve of invasion, clothing and footwear were available for only two-thirds or so of the potential front-line troops and only partially for other troops; some other essential supplies were available for only a third of the front-line troops; medical and sanitary supplies were available for only a few weeks, and supplies of food for men and feed for livestock were available for only about two months. In all cases there

22568-473: The execution of more than 4,900 people. The failed Ardennes Offensive (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945) was the last major German offensive on the western front, and Soviet forces entered Germany on 27 January. Hitler's refusal to admit defeat and his insistence that the war be fought to the last man led to unnecessary death and destruction in the war's closing months. Through his Justice Minister Otto Georg Thierack , Hitler ordered that anyone who

22750-518: The expansion of the petrol industry. Even though the city was bombed during World War II, the population of Ploiești recovered, numbering 95,632 inhabitants in January 1948. After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Ploiești experienced rapid economic loss. The city is situated at just 60 km (37 mi) north of Bucharest , with promising infrastructure projects currently underway. It is a strong industrial center, focused especially on

22932-859: The failed German offensive at the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943. By the end of 1943, the Germans had lost most of their eastern territorial gains. In Egypt, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel 's Afrika Korps were defeated by British forces under Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery in October 1942. The Allies landed in Sicily in July 1943 and were on the Italian peninsula by September. Meanwhile, American and British bomber fleets based in Britain began operations against Germany . Many sorties were intentionally given civilian targets in an effort to destroy German morale. The bombing of aircraft factories as well as Peenemünde Army Research Center , where V-1 and V-2 rockets were being developed and produced, were also deemed particularly important. German aircraft production could not keep pace with losses, and without air cover

23114-456: The final three, two were delivered to the VVKJ on 10 April and one was delivered on 12 April 1941. Nazi Germany Nazi Germany , officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich , was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictatorship . The Third Reich , meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", referred to

23296-441: The first Interex store was opened in June 2002 in Ploiești. The Interex depot and facilities were bought by Penny Market XXL in 2014. Unilever has a detergent plant in Ploiești. By transferring their food production to Ploiești, the company will concentrate all its activities in Romania at the same location. At the beginning of March 2006, Unilever announced they would invest money to build one production center in Romania, and

23478-617: The future. Food supplies were precarious; production dropped in most of Europe. Famine was experienced in many occupied countries. Hitler's peace overtures to the new British Prime Minister Winston Churchill were rejected in July 1940. Grand Admiral Erich Raeder had advised Hitler in June that air superiority was a pre-condition for a successful invasion of Britain , so Hitler ordered a series of aerial attacks on Royal Air Force (RAF) airbases and radar stations, as well as nightly air raids on British cities, including London , Plymouth , and Coventry . The German Luftwaffe failed to defeat

23660-485: The giant redwood ( Sequoiadendron giganteum ) from the garden of the "Paul Constantinescu" museum. There also exist trees that have adapted to the local climate, such as figs . In some neighbourhoods more fruit trees and flowers are currently being planted. The Ploiești Town Council, elected in the 2020 local elections , is made up of 27 councillors, with the following party composition: There exist approximatively 88,104 flats that are located in 21,172 buildings. 93% of

23842-441: The ground offensive on 11 April. The Italian part in the ground offensive began when their 2nd Army attacked from northeastern Italy towards Ljubljana and down the Dalmatian coast, meeting virtually no resistance. On the same day, the Hungarian 3rd Army crossed the Yugoslav border and advanced toward Novi Sad , but like the Italians, they met no serious resistance. On 12 April, German troops captured Belgrade, and Ljubljana fell to

24024-445: The hard pressed Yugoslav Army by strafing attacking troop and mechanized columns in Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia (sometimes taking off and strafing the troops attacking the very base being evacuated). After a combination of air combat losses, losses on the ground to enemy air attack on bases and the overrunning of airfields by enemy troops, after 11 days the VVKJ almost ceased to exist. However, continued domestic aircraft production during

24206-403: The highest law. The government was not a coordinated, cooperating body, but rather a collection of factions struggling to amass power. In the midst of the Great Depression , the Nazis restored economic stability and ended mass unemployment using heavy military spending. Financed by deficit spending , the regime undertook extensive public works projects, including the Autobahnen (motorways) and

24388-451: The households have access to clean water, 90% have access to the sewage network, 98% have access to electricity and 78% are connected to the district heating system. The metropolitan area of Ploiești comprises 13 satellite towns. The area will become an important transit for two Pan-European motorway and rail corridors. The central administration of the area will coordinate the communication and transport networks, technological development and

24570-409: The infrastructure of the industry. Although badly damaged after the November 1940 earthquake , the city functioned as a significant source of oil for Nazi Germany during much of World War II . The Allies made Ploiești a target of the oil campaign of World War II and bombed it repeatedly, such as during the HALPRO (Halverson Project, June 1942) and Operation Tidal Wave (1 August 1943) at

24752-454: The invasion and resultant fighting into two phases. The first phase encompasses the Luftwaffe ' s devastating air assault on Belgrade and airfields of the Royal Yugoslav Air Force of 6 April, and an initial thrust of the German XL Panzer Corps from Bulgaria towards Skopje that commenced the same day. This was followed by the assault of the German XIV Panzer Corps from Bulgaria towards Niš on 8 April. On 10 April, four more thrusts struck

24934-409: The invasion comprising the Srem , Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as the Croatian lands. Along with Italy 's stalled invasion of Greece on 28 October 1940, and the German-led invasion of Greece (Operation Marita) and invasion of Crete (Operation Merkur), the invasion of Yugoslavia was part of the German Balkan Campaign (German: Balkanfeldzug ). In October 1940, Fascist Italy had attacked

25116-409: The invasion supplied the VVKJ with an additional eight Hurricane Is, six Dornier Do 17 Ks, four Blenheim Is, two Ikarus IK 2s , one Rogozarski IK-3 and one Messerschmitt Bf 109 from the local aeronautical industry's aircraft factories and workshops. At the beginning of the April war, the VVKJ was armed with some 60 German designed Do 17Ks, purchased by Yugoslavia in the autumn of 1938, together with

25298-548: The main attack on Subotica ( Szabadka ), with a secondary operation east of the river Tisza . Because of Romania's request that Hungarian troops not operate in the Banat , Paulus modified the Hungarian plan and kept their troops west of the Tisza. This final plan "was put down in map form", according to Paulus' account, and must have been telephoned to Berlin immediately so as to make into Operational Order No. 25, issued by Walther von Brauchitsch that same day. This final plan committed one Hungarian corps of three brigades west of

25480-413: The main boulevard area, the park next to the Sala Sporturilor, the park from the northern part of the city, the "Mihai Viteazul" park and another park next to the Bucov barrier. These occupy only around 85.5 ha (211 acres), resulting in 3.2 m (34 sq ft) of green space per inhabitant. Around the city one can also observe several endangered trees, which are protected by law. These include

25662-427: The mid-19th century, with the world's first large-scale petroleum refinery being opened between 1856 and 1857. Following massive exploitation of the oil deposits in the area, Ploiești earned the nickname of "the Capital of Black Gold". In the present, a significant part of its economic activity is still based on oil processing, the city having three large refineries and other industries related to this branch. Ploiești

25844-407: The need for Germany to secure its frontiers. Schuschnigg scheduled a plebiscite regarding Austrian independence for 13 March, but Hitler sent an ultimatum to Schuschnigg on 11 March demanding that he hand over all power to the Austrian Nazi Party or face an invasion. German troops entered Austria the next day, to be greeted with enthusiasm by the populace. The Republic of Czechoslovakia was home to

26026-413: The occupation of territory abandoned by the Yugoslavs. On 2 April Germany responded that the Paulus–Werth agreement was final, and German staff officers began arriving in Budapest that day. That same day the British informed Hungary that she would be treated as an enemy state if Germany made use of her territory or facilities in an attack on Yugoslavia. On the morning of 3 April, Pál Teleki committed suicide;

26208-767: The oil production and refining industry. Although oil production in the region is declining steadily, there is still a thriving processing industry with four operating oil refineries , linked by pipelines to Bucharest , the Black Sea port of Constanța and the Danube port of Giurgiu . Ploiești also has a long history as a textile manufacturing center. The city has become a hub of foreign investment. Companies such as OMV - Petrom , Lukoil , Shell Gas , Timken , Yazaki , Coca-Cola , Efes Pilsener , British American Tobacco , Federal-Mogul , and Interbrew have operations there, and retailers like Carrefour , Metro , Selgros , Kaufland , Billa , Bricostore , Lidl , Obi , Auchan , Profi , and Mega Image have found in Ploiești

26390-411: The older vessels, there were six ex-Austrian Navy medium torpedo boats, six mine-layers, four large armoured river monitors and various auxiliary craft. The Yugoslav Army was organized into three army groups and the coastal defense troops. The 3rd Army Group was the strongest with the 3rd, 3rd Territorial, 5th and 6th Armies defending the borders with Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. The 2nd Army Group with

26572-431: The plan, as Germany was not yet ready for war. The crisis led to war preparations by Britain, Czechoslovakia, and France (Czechoslovakia's ally). Attempting to avoid war, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain arranged a series of meetings, the result of which was the Munich Agreement , signed on 29 September 1938. The Czechoslovak government was forced to accept the Sudetenland's annexation into Germany. Chamberlain

26754-438: The planned crossing of the Danube, followed in January 1941. By January 1941 the total number of German effectives in Romania was 170,639. Those elements of the 12th Army that were to invade Yugoslavia from Romania assembled near Timișoara (Temeschwar). Between November 1940 and February 1941, the Luftwaffe gradually moved 135 fighters and reconnaissance aircraft into Romania (in 22–26 squadrons). In early April 1941 they moved

26936-481: The presence of German troops was that they were there to train the Romanian army. Hitler's directive to the troops on 10 October had stated that "it is necessary to avoid even the slightest semblance of military occupation of Romania." In the second half of October, the Romanian leader, Ion Antonescu , asked that the military mission be expanded. The Germans happily obliged the request, since the oil fields and refineries at Ploiești were vital to their war effort. Romania

27118-407: The provisions of the Reichstag Fire Decree to keep several Social Democratic deputies from attending, and the Communists had already been banned. The Enabling Act would subsequently serve as the legal foundation for the dictatorship the Nazis established. On 10 May, the government seized the assets of the Social Democrats, and they were banned on 22 June. On 21 June, the SA raided the offices of

27300-564: The regent immediately cancelled the mobilization order already given except for the Border Guard and the Mobile Corps, which prompted Werth to resign. Horthy then authorized the mobilization of the Fourth and Fifth Corps and the Mountain Brigade, and Werth withdrew his resignation. This occurred so late in the day that zero hour for mobilization to begin was given as midnight of 5 April. On the morning of 3 April, German units, including tanks and aircraft, bound for Romania passed openly through Budapest. The Italian 2nd Army and 9th Army committed

27482-448: The regimental-sized Fronte a Terra (Land Front), which comprised three static machine gun battalions and a bicycle-mounted Bersaglieri battalion, and the battalion-strength Fronte a Mare (Sea Front), which consisted of two machine gun companies, an anti-aircraft battery, a coastal artillery battery and a naval artillery battery. Supporting units consisted of an artillery regiment of three battalions, two independent artillery battalions,

27664-418: The remaining embassy staff were ordered to leave the capital and to warn the embassies of friendly nations to likewise evacuate. That sent the unmistakable message that Yugoslavia was about to be invaded. On 3 April, Hitler issued War Directive 26 detailing the plan of attack and command structure for the invasion as well as promising Hungary territorial gains. The same day Teleki killed himself. Horthy, seeking

27846-435: The small Royal Yugoslav Navy ( Serbo-Croatian Latin : Kraljevska Jugoslovenska Ratna Mornarica , KJRM) centred around four destroyers and four submarines based on the Adriatic coast and some river monitors on the Danube . The VKJ was heavily reliant on animal-powered transport , was only partly mobilised at the time of the invasion, and had only 50 tanks that could engage German tanks on an equal basis. The VVKJ

28028-614: The south, the VVKJ could simply not match the overwhelming Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica superiority in terms of numbers, tactical deployment and combat experience. The bomber and maritime force hit targets in Italy, Germany (Austria), Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania and Greece, as well as attacking German, Italian and Hungarian troops. Meanwhile, the fighter squadrons inflicted not insignificant losses on escorted Luftwaffe bomber raids on Belgrade and Serbia, as well as upon Regia Aeronautica raids on Dalmatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina and Montenegro. The VVKJ also provided direct air support to

28210-460: The stock market in the United States crashed in 1929 , the effect in Germany was dire. Millions were thrown out of work and several major banks collapsed. Hitler and the Nazis prepared to take advantage of the emergency to gain support for their party. They promised to strengthen the economy and provide jobs. Many voters decided the Nazi Party was capable of restoring order, quelling civil unrest, and improving Germany's international reputation. After

28392-699: The temperate humid continental climate (Dfa) of the hot summer type. The average annual temperature is 10.5 °C (50.9 °F), with record minimum registered on 25 January 1952 of −30 °C (−22 °F) while record maximum was registered on 19 July 2007 of 43 °C (109 °F). On average, around 17 days are very cold, 26 cold, 99 warm and 30 tropical, while the rest have a moderate temperature. Average annual precipitations are 600 mm (24 in); 30–40 mm (1.2–1.6 in) in January and 88 mm (3.5 in) in June. Precipitations range between 963.9 mm (37.95 in) registered in 1901 and 305.3 mm (12.02 in) registered in 1930. Throughout

28574-529: The total German war dead range from 5.5 to 6.9 million persons. A study by German historian Rüdiger Overmans puts the number of German military dead and missing at 5.3 million, including 900,000 men conscripted from outside of Germany's 1937 borders. Richard Overy estimated in 2014 that about 353,000 civilians were killed in Allied air raids. Other civilian deaths include 300,000 Germans (including Jews) who were victims of Nazi political, racial, and religious persecution and 200,000 who were murdered in

28756-476: The transfers, but later the Hungarians were complaining that only 130 had arrived. On 24 December, István Horthy , President of Hungarian State Railways (HSR), demanded negotiations before implementing requested German increases, but Ambassador Otto von Erdmannsdorf informed him that it had all been settled in Vienna by Keitel and Csáky. The German traffic was so large that on 28 December the HSR had to suspend travel on all its trains for several days on account of

28938-456: The units in the Croatian-manned 4th and 7th Armies mutinied, and a newly formed Croatian government hailed the entry of the Germans into Zagreb the same day. The Serbian General Staff were united on the question of Yugoslavia as a "Greater Serbia", ruled, in one way or another, by Serbia. On the eve of the invasion, there were 165 generals on the Yugoslav active list. Of these, all but four were Serbs. Professor Jozo Tomasevich and others divide

29120-421: The use of police powers, and by taking control of the state and federal institutions. The first major Nazi concentration camp , initially for political prisoners, was opened at Dachau in 1933. Hundreds of camps of varying size and function were created by the end of the war. Beginning in April 1933, scores of measures defining the status of Jews and their rights were instituted. These measures culminated in

29302-510: The various models often lacked proper repair and maintenance facilities. The only mechanized units were six motorized infantry battalions in the three cavalry divisions, six motorized artillery regiments, two tank battalions equipped with 110 tanks, one of which had Renault FT models of First World War origin and the other 54 modern French Renault R35 tanks, plus an independent tank company with eight Czech T-32 (Š-I-D) tank destroyers. Some 1,000 trucks for military purposes had been imported from

29484-431: The war drew to a close. Suicide rates in Germany increased, particularly in areas where the Red Army was advancing. Among soldiers and party personnel, suicide was often deemed an honourable and heroic alternative to surrender. First-hand accounts and propaganda about the uncivilised behaviour of the advancing Soviet troops caused panic among civilians on the Eastern Front, especially women, who feared being raped. More than

29666-439: The way for its adherence to the Tripartite Pact, which was signed by Prime Minister Bogdan Filov in Vienna on 1 March. When Ivan V. Petrov, member of the National Assembly from Yablanitsa , asked why the Assembly had not been consulted, Filov pointed out that the constitution only required parliamentary approval prior to ratification. The signing was ratified by a vote in the Assembly of 140 to 20. The first German troops crossed

29848-484: The year, there are on average 104 days with rain, 26 with snow, 112 with clear skies, 131 with clouds and 122 with no sunshine. The climate of Ploiești is influenced by the winds coming from north-east (40%) and south-east (23%), having an average speed of 3.1 m/s (10 ft/s). On average, there are 11 days throughout the year with wind speed exceeding 11 m/s (36 ft/s) and only two days characterised by winds over 16 m/s (52 ft/s). Atmospheric pressure

30030-437: Was a powerful ally, the relationship was distant, with little co-ordination or co-operation. For example, Germany refused to share their formula for synthetic oil from coal until late in the war. Germany invaded Poland and captured the Free City of Danzig on 1 September 1939, beginning World War II in Europe. Honouring their treaty obligations, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. Poland fell quickly, as

30212-549: Was also an important launching point for an attack on the Soviet Union, which made the presence of German troops a violation of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 23 August 1939. By the middle of November, the 13th Motorised Infantry Division had been assembled in Romania and reinforced by the 4th Panzer Regiment , engineers and signal troops, as well as six fighter and two reconnaissance Luftwaffe squadrons, and some antiaircraft artillery. A total of seventy batteries of artillery were moved into Romania. On 23 November, Romania signed

30394-445: Was conquered by the Soviet Union from the east and the other Allies from the west, and capitulated on 8 May 1945. Hitler's refusal to admit defeat led to massive destruction of German infrastructure and additional war-related deaths in the closing months of the war. The Allies initiated a policy of denazification and put many of the surviving Nazi leadership on trial for war crimes at the Nuremberg trials . Common English terms for

30576-417: Was dropped. Germany was now a totalitarian state with Hitler at its head. As head of state, Hitler became Supreme Commander of the armed forces. The new law provided an altered loyalty oath for servicemen so that they affirmed loyalty to Hitler personally rather than the office of supreme commander or the state. On 19 August, the merger of the presidency with the chancellorship was approved by 90 per cent of

30758-745: Was equipped with a range of aircraft of Yugoslav, German, Italian, French and British design, including less than 120 modern fighter aircraft . Formed after World War I , the VKJ was still largely equipped with weapons and material from that era, although some modernization with Czech equipment and vehicles had begun. Of about 4,000 artillery pieces, many were aged and horse-drawn, but about 1,700 were relatively modern, including 812 Czech 37mm and 47mm anti-tank guns. There were also about 2,300 mortars, including 1600 modern 81mm pieces, as well as twenty-four 220 and 305mm pieces. Of 940 anti-aircraft guns, 360 were 15 mm and 20 mm Czech and Italian models. All of these arms were imported, from different sources;

30940-462: Was good, and food supplies remained adequate in Western Europe. Germany and Europe as a whole were almost totally dependent on foreign oil imports. In an attempt to resolve the shortage, in June 1942 Germany launched Fall Blau ("Case Blue"), an offensive against the Caucasian oilfields. The Red Army launched a counter-offensive on 19 November and encircled the Axis forces, who were trapped in Stalingrad on 23 November. Göring assured Hitler that

31122-473: Was greeted with cheers when he landed in London, saying the agreement brought "peace for our time". Austrian and Czech foreign exchange reserves were seized by the Nazis, as were stockpiles of raw materials such as metals and completed goods such as weaponry and aircraft, which were shipped to Germany. The Reichswerke Hermann Göring industrial conglomerate took control of steel and coal production facilities in both countries. In January 1934, Germany signed

31304-409: Was hammered out in council and delivered the following day (28 March). On 30 March, General Friedrich Paulus arrived in Budapest and met with Henrik Werth , chief of the Hungarian general staff, and Major General László Deseő . The Hungarians proposed they mobilize five divisions for the attack on Yugoslavia. Two were to be held in reserve, while the First , Fifth and Mobile Corps were to conduct

31486-415: Was in violation of the Versailles Treaty. On 17 May 1933, Hitler gave a speech before the Reichstag outlining his desire for world peace and accepted an offer from American President Franklin D. Roosevelt for military disarmament, provided the other nations of Europe did the same. When the other European powers failed to accept this offer, Hitler pulled Germany out of the World Disarmament Conference and

31668-433: Was little or no possibility of replenishment. Beyond the problems of inadequate equipment and incomplete mobilization, the Yugoslav Army suffered badly from the Serbo-Croat schism in Yugoslav politics. "Yugoslav" resistance to the invasion collapsed overnight. The main reason was that none of the subordinate national groups, including Slovenes and Croats, were prepared to fight in defence of a Serbian Yugoslavia. Also, so that

31850-432: Was not prepared to fight should be court-martialed, and thousands of people were executed. In many areas, people surrendered to the approaching Allies in spite of exhortations of local leaders to continue to fight. Hitler ordered the destruction of transport, bridges, industries, and other infrastructure—a scorched earth decree—but Armaments Minister Albert Speer prevented this order from being fully carried out. During

32032-489: Was succeeded by Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz as Reich President and Goebbels as Reich Chancellor. Goebbels and his wife Magda committed suicide the next day after murdering their six children . Between 4 and 8 May 1945, most of the remaining German armed forces unconditionally surrendered. The German Instrument of Surrender was signed 8 May, marking the end of the Nazi regime and the end of World War II in Europe . Popular support for Hitler almost completely disappeared as

32214-413: Was supported by a cavalry regiment, three Border Guard battalions, a Finance Guard battalion and two military police (Italian: Carabinieri Reali ) battalions. The XVII Corps included the Diamanti Blackshirt group which incorporated six Blackshirt regiments comprising two battalions each, the Albanian-raised Skanderbeg Blackshirt regiment of two battalions, another Blackshirt regiment of two battalions,

32396-404: Was supported by a motorised artillery regiment consisting of three battalions, and a motorised engineer battalion. In Albania, the elements of the Italian 9th Army (Italian: 9° Armata ) that were involved in the campaign were commanded by Generale d’Armata (General) Alessandro Pirzio Biroli , and consisted of two infantry corps and some sector troops assembled in northern Albania. XIV Corps

32578-409: Was that six trains would pass through Hungary at night carrying German soldiers in sealed cars. They would not be allowed out, and they would not have any rail transportation officers (RTOs) or supply officers with them. According to György Barcza , the Hungarian ambassador in London, answering the British government's query, it was Romania that had made the request. In his notes, Barcza indicated that

32760-502: Was the fourth nation to join the Axis, signing the Tripartite Pact on 27 September 1940. Bulgaria signed the pact on 17 November. German efforts to secure oil included negotiating a supply from their new ally, Romania , who signed the Pact on 23 November, alongside the Slovak Republic. By late 1942, there were 24 divisions from Romania on the Eastern Front, 10 from Italy, and 10 from Hungary. Germany assumed full control in France in 1942, Italy in 1943, and Hungary in 1944. Although Japan

32942-405: Was then occupied and partitioned by the Axis powers. Most of Serbia and the Banat became a German zone of occupation while other areas of Yugoslavia were annexed by neighboring Axis countries, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Albania and Bulgaria. Croatia became the Independent State of Croatia ( Serbo-Croatian Latin : Nezavisna Država Hrvatska , or NDH), an Axis puppet state created during

33124-482: Was to protect Romania's petroleum resources and prepare for an attack on the Soviet Union. The Wehrmacht entered Bulgaria more circumspectly, first with the intention of providing aerial defense against any force attacking Romania's oilfields and later with that of invading Greece in support of Italy. German troops did not enter Hungary until the attack on Yugoslavia was already planned and Hungary's participation had been secured. King Carol II of Romania , starting from

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