Over 450, 000 German troops were lost in the January of 1945 as they fought to keep Russia back from their eastern border. That is higher than the total number of casualties lost by Britain or America in all theatres during the entire war. Hitler and his army fought to the bitter end, declaring war on America before being crushed by the allied forces, its military machine smashed and its leadership destroyed. But what about the average German citizen? What challenges faced the families left torn apart, the fatherless children, the widows andthose left homeless. Richard Bessel explores the fate of the average German as he outlines the story about the turning point in modern German history.