Battle of Stalingrad

Overview:

Leading up to the Battle of Stalingrad, Germany had a string of victories beginning in 1939. The Nazis had defeated virtually the entire continent of Europe. Adolf Hitler had always intended to expand to the East, and in 1941, he broke a treaty with Stalin and invaded the Soviet Union. At first, the Nazis won victory after victory reaching the gates of Moscow. However, the winter stopped the Nazi advance just outside of Moscow. Hitler made a crucial decision to split his army and also attacked the city of Stalingrad. The battle of Stalingrad became a turning point in the war. At first, the attack proved successful, however, after months of fighting, the German army was surrounded by the Russian forces. The Nazi generals hoped that they could mount a counterattack and fight their way out. But then the winter of 43’ arrived. The Germans were not prepared for the freezing cold. By January, half of the German army had died and the German generals begged Hitler for permission to surrender, however, Hitler denied the request. Hitler sent in more planes and supplies, costing him much of his Luftwaffe. Russia responded by fighting even more harshly until the Germans had only 90,000 troops left. On February 2, 1943, the German army surrendered. Stalingrad marked the beginning of the end for the Nazi war machine.

How Stalingrad connects to Train:

In the novel Train, Wolf listened to the British broadcasts on the BBC and heard that the Germans were losing the Battle of Stalingrad. The loss of Stalingrad may have been one reason that the Germans released the prisoners from Rosenstrasse, as they were concerned about growing dissention in Berlin during this crucial time period.

Timeline:

June 22, 1941

In a mission called Operation Barbarossa Germany invaded Russia in the largest operation for Germany in WWII.

Summer 1942

The Wehrmacht scored major victories Russia. Russia had not yet scored a major victory against Germany.

August 23 1942

The Wehrmacht invades Stalingrad which is a major stronghold in the Soviet Union. Stalingrad was symbolically important as it was named after their leader, Josef Stalin.

September 1942

The Soviet Union had been pushed back into small areas along the west bank, so far Germany had been winning the battle.

September 12 1942

The Soviet 62nd army were reduced to a small percentage of the artillery and supplies that they had come into the battle with.

September 27 1942

The battle was a stalemate with Germany controlling the southern portion of the city while the Soviets controlled the center and northern parts.

Early October 1942

The battle shifted to the north into the industrial districts.

October 14 1942

Germany unleashed an ferocious attack against the Soviets 62nd division which split it into two and captured a major factory. The Soviets suffered heavy losses.

November 19 1942

The Soviets launched operation Uranus which was the counterattack on Germany during the winter because German soldiers was ill prepared for the winter. This operation lasted until the end of the battle.

November 20 1942

The fighting at the Volga River was crucial for the Soviets as the Germans lost 60,000 men during the battle.

December 23 1942

The Soviets successfully attacked the first German airfield. Attacks on airfields were critical because during the winter the German army received their supplies from Luftwaffe.

January 18 1942

Russia successfully attacked another airfield called Zverev. At the end of the attack more than 450 German planes were damaged or demolished.

February 2 1943

Germany surrenders and Russia recaptures Stalingrad. After this battle Germany never won another major battle. The allied powers went on to win the war and the Nazis were defeated.

Map:

Wikipedia--Battle of Stalingrad