Nazi Germany carried out Operation Barbarossa in 1941.
Nazi Germany . Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 , the tide gradually turned against the Nazis , who suffered major military defeats in 1943 . Operation Barbarossa ( German : Unternehmen Barbarossa ) was the code name for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II , which was launched on Sunday 22 June 1941 .