Who was Alfred Liskow, and why was he forgotten by world history?

Who was Alfred Liskow, and why was he forgotten by world history? Alfred Liskow was a German soldier during World War II who defected to the Soviet side on June 21, 1941, just before Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, the massive invasion of the Soviet Union. Liskow’s story is notable because he was one of the first to warn the Soviet military of the imminent invasion. After crossing into Soviet territory, he attempted to inform Soviet officers that the German army was planning a surprise attack the following morning.

The Soviet authorities were skeptical of Liskow’s warning. Due to Stalin’s distrust of such intelligence and his conviction that Hitler would not invade, Liskow’s defection was largely disregarded. When Operation Barbarossa began the next day, the warning proved true, but it was too late to change the outcome.

Liskow disappeared from history after his defection. Some accounts suggest he was interned by the Soviets and died later in the war, although details of his fate remain unclear. The combination of Soviet distrust, lack of a clear record, and the overwhelming chaos of World War II contributed to Liskow’s story fading from public consciousness. He became a footnote in the annals of history, overshadowed by the enormity of the events that followed.