On This Day: Soviet forces enter Berlin, 1945

April 21: Soviet forces stormed into Berlin on this day in 1945 during the final months of the Second World War.

After a day of heavy shelling the Red Army captured the suburbs of the German city from the east and the north.

Berlin was besieged by Soviet forces from the east and the threat of American forces pushing towards the capital from the west. It was clear Berlin would soon fall despite desperate fighting by the remains of the German army.

Josef Goebbels, the Nazi minister of propaganda, issued a statement declaring the city would be defended to the last. But any German who showed cowardice or a white flag would be treated as outlaws and would meet a painful demise.

The battle for Berlin signaled the end of the war on the European front. Just 10 days after forces entered Berlin Adolf Hitler shot himself inside his Berlin bunker, at the Reich Chancellery, as Soviet troops circled the area.

In this Pathé clip an aerial shot shows burning buildings while chunks of others are completely missing. Rubble, street signs and burnt-out cars litter the streets and well known landmarks are unrecognisable as the total damage of the battle is made evident.

Victorious Russian troops walk through the ruin of the once proud city.

The Red Army were not sympathetic to Germans when they took control of the city. Vengeful troops raped an estimated 100,000 women in the days and months after the city surrendered and many Berliners starved.