Fill in each blank in the following paragraph with the appropriate words and phrases from the text. When Hitler decided to launch his of Russia, he thought that nothing could of his armies. , it seemed, was inevitable. He had surprise on his side, __________ Stalin by his attack without a________ of war. Hitler expected the to last only a few months. In the event, it was to for much longer. Like Napoleon before him, he had made a fatal mistake in failing to ___________ the severity of the Russian weather. Many German soldiers were to ____________ the cold as winter set in, the German advance _______________.