"We had had to pay a high cost in men and material left on the Kalach battlefield were numerous burnt-out or shot-up German tanks. [162], On the next day, the southern pocket in Stalingrad collapsed. It is well known that for 58 days the multiethnic garrison held the building in the city center, repulsing numerous attacks by the Germans. In the porch lay the skeleton of a horse, with only a few scraps of meat still clinging to its ribs. Soviet forces offered little resistance in the vast empty steppes and started streaming eastward. Germany's Sixth Army had ceased to exist, and the forces of Germany's European allies, except Finland, had been shattered. Salsk was abandoned in turn by mid-January for a rough facility at Zverevo, near Shakhty. During the defense of Pavlovs house (from September 23 to November 25, 1942), there were civilians in the basement until the Soviet troops launched a counterattack. North of the Dolgiy and Krutoy ravines, near the oil tanks, a fierce exchange of fire was heard - the sailors from the 284th Rifle Division retook from the Germans the burning Oil Syndicate and Metalware Plant. Toward the end of the battle, the gigantic railroad gun nicknamed Dora was brought into the area. German archives do not support the claim for heavy fighting for the building, and Soviet military archives attach no particular importance to the house as a defensive structure. Millions were killed, wounded, missing, or captured in what was perhaps the most brutal battle in modern history. However, the combination of constant air support operations on the German side and the Soviet surrender of the daytime skies began to affect the strategic balance in the air. From 28 June to 20 September, Luftflotte 4's original strength of 1,600 aircraft, of which 1,155 were operational, fell to 950, of which only 550 were operational. The initial advance of the 6th Army was so successful that Hitler intervened and ordered the 4th Panzer Army to join Army Group South (A) to the south. After the fire in the State Bank, the Germans began to cover the windows of the upper floors with bed nets - the probability of burning at night from a flying bottle of copolymers or a thermite ball was very large. Bloody urban warfare began again in Stalingrad, but this time it was the Germans who were pushed back to the banks of the Volga. They assembled tanks from leftover parts at the tractor factory. Shooting the Red Army men caught unawares, the Germans seized one trench after another, moving quickly forward. The burden of the initial defence of the city fell on the 1077th Anti-Aircraft Regiment,[58] a unit made up mainly of young female volunteers who had no training for engaging ground targets. Joseph Beyrle Williamovich Most Incredible Real WW2 History? [129] The American historians Williamson Murray and Alan Millet wrote that it was Manstein's message to Hitler on 24 November advising him that the 6th Army should not break out, along with Gring's statements that the Luftwaffe could supply Stalingrad that "sealed the fate of the Sixth Army". The Stalingrad Tractor Factory continued to turn out T-34 tanks up until German troops burst into the plant. 1943. The Aftermath in Stalingrad - billdownscbs.com When a position was lost, an immediate attempt was usually made to re-take it with fresh forces. The city itself was of vital strategic importance to both, but more than that the prestige of capturing the city with Stalin . [35], The Soviets realised their critical situation, ordering everyone who could hold a rifle into the fight. [132] Manstein was tasked to conduct a relief operation, named Operation Winter Storm (Unternehmen Wintergewitter) against Stalingrad, which he thought was feasible if the 6th Army was temporarily supplied through the air. [136], The director of Luftflotte 4, Wolfram von Richthofen, tried to get this decision overturned. The prestige of Stalin, the Soviet Union, and the worldwide Communist movement was immense, and their political position greatly enhanced.[201]. Newspapers visited positions, talked with commanders and political workers, among them Leonid Koren, agitator of 42nd Guards Rifle Regiment. Pavlov was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union for his actions. Some German holdouts continued to operate in the city and resist until early March 1943. Okhlobystin. [123] A similar plan had been used a year earlier at the Demyansk Pocket, albeit on a much smaller scale: a corps at Demyansk rather than an entire army. [198], The reverse was the case on the Soviet side. The headquarters of the Rodimtsev division was very fortunate that one of the copies of the map from which the blueprint was made was available to them - staff officers of many of the units of the 62nd Army drew the schematics literally "on their knees". [93] Women staffed a great many of the anti-aircraft batteries that fought not only the Luftwaffe but German tanks. The left flank of Rodimtsev's division rested on the Volga, where the high-rise buildings of the State Bank and the House of Specialists stood on a high cliff. 227 of 27 July 1942 decreed that all commanders who ordered unauthorised retreats would be subject to a military tribunal. [2], The position was quickly fortified under the command of Lieutenant Ivan F. Afanasiev, who ordered the men to lay landmines in all approaches to the square, barbed wire around the perimeter of the apartment block, and to position multiple machine guns in the windows as well as a PTRS anti tank rifle. The building was semi-surrounded for 58 days, and during those days it sustained numerous hits from air bombs and shells. Only a few episodes were hidden for many years in the famous Stalingrad photos taken by the correspondent Georgy Zelma. [2], The importance of the building has been contested. By 27 Sept. the Germans occupied the southern portion of the city, but the Soviets held the centre and northern part. [197], At this point, the British had won the Battle of El Alamein in November 1942. The story told by the political instructor about the capture at the end of September of a four-story building on the January 9 Square was a real find for the GlavPU RKKA. For the Germans it was a mystery how the garrison on the upper floors was supplied. Hitler told Goebbels that the plight of the 6th Army was a "heroic drama of German history". [citation needed], On 22 January, Rokossovsky once again offered Paulus a chance to surrender. [11], A Russian TV documentary in 2009, Legendary Redoubt, ( ) on the Russian Channel One reported on Pavlov's House. "L-shaped house" was a five-six-story "Stalinka", from the upper floors from which German spotters could view almost the entire bridgehead of the 13th Guards Rifle Division. In the early stages of the defense, Pavlov discovered that an anti-tank riflea PTRS-41he had mounted on the roof was particularly effective when used to ambush unsuspecting German tanks; once the tanks had approached to within range of the weapon, their thin turret-roof armor was exposed to AT rifle fire from above, and they were unable to elevate their weapons enough to retaliate.[6]. The implication was clear: if Paulus surrendered, he would shame himself and would become the highest-ranking German officer ever to be captured. The positions of the units of the 13th Guards Rifle Division on September 25. The actions resulted in more than 200,000 Soviet Army casualties but did slow the German assault. The high ground dominated the surrounding area, and German spotters had a good view of the positions of the Soviet troops, the bank, and the river nearby. Pavlov's "House" was rebuilt after the battle and is still used as an apartment building today. The Soviets responded by fixing fish hooks to the grenades so they stuck to the nets when thrown. Stalingradskaya bitva, IPA: [stlnratskj bitv]; 23 August 1942 - 2 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control . 8,314 German aircraft were produced from JulyDecember 1942, but this could not keep pace with a three-front aerial war of attrition. Even with the desperate situation of the 6th Army, Army Group A continued their invasion of the Caucasus further south from 19 November until 19 December. Very close to it were huge five and six-story buildings occupied by the German infantry - the "Railwaymen's House" and "L-shaped house". At this point, the Don and Volga Rivers are only 65km (40mi) apart, and the Germans left their main supply depots west of the Don, which had important implications later in the course of the battle. On 19 November 1942, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus. Chernyshenko, sergeant I. Among the snipers of the 13th Guards Rifle Division was the commander of the department of the 39th Mountain Rifle Troop, Sergeant A.L. The wings of the 6th Army and the 4th Panzer Army met near Jablotchni along the Zaritza on 2 Sept.[67] By 1 September, the Soviets could only reinforce and supply their forces in Stalingrad by perilous crossings of the Volga under constant bombardment by artillery and aircraft. By the end of August, Army Group South (B) had finally reached the Volga, north of Stalingrad. Some of the loadouts also seemed out of place, such as the STG 44. The next two days in the division's sector were relatively calm - only to the south was frequent fire heard. [103], The German onslaught crushed the 37th Guards Rifle Division of Major General Viktor Zholudev and in the afternoon the forward assault group reached the tractor factory before arriving at the Volga River, splitting the 62nd Army into two. But, like most wartime legends created by the employees of GlavPU RKKA [Main Political Directorate of the Red Army], the official history of the defense of Pavlov's House has little to do with reality. General Zeitzler, moved by their plight, began to limit himself to their slim rations at meal times. Sensing that this was the last chance for a breakout, Manstein pleaded with Hitler on 18 December, but Hitler refused. The Soviets also had large amounts of artillery support from the opposite side of the Volga. In addition to the main attack on the Krutoy ravine, subdivisions of the 295th Infantry Division attacked the positions of the 3rd battalion of the 39th Guards Rifle Regiment on Republican street, where the battalion was struck from the side of the unfinished "Railwaymen's House" at the junction between the 3rd Battalion of the 42nd Guards Rifle Regiment and 2nd battalion of the 34th Guards Rifle Regiment. [183] Bartov reported that a great many of the soldiers were well aware that they would not be able to escape from Stalingrad, but in their letters to their families stated that they were proud to "sacrifice themselves for the Fhrer". Photo about victory, museum, chimney, brick, russia, ruins, stalingrad, history, volgograd, battle, destroyed, building . [163] When interrogated by the Soviets, Paulus claimed that he had not surrendered. Suddenly, the F-1 grenades and the PPSh decided the outcome of a fleeting battle - the house was captured. Orlyankin, with a real risk of catching a bullet - the position of the Germans was a hundred meters of open space away on Solnechnaya street. The Milk House | Greenville IL - Facebook In mid-October, after receiving reinforcements from the Caucasus theatre, the Luftwaffe intensified its efforts against the remaining Red Army positions holding the west bank. The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: the hidden truth at the centre of WWII's [28]:528 The expansion of objectives was a significant factor in Germany's failure at Stalingrad, caused by German overconfidence and an underestimation of Soviet reserves. Germany's defeat in the battle marked a turning . Hundreds of cubic meters of very high-quality brickwork and reinforced concrete were blown out of the building. The siege lasted from 27 September to 25 November 1942 and eventually the Red Army managed to relieve it from the siege. Stalingrad (1993) HD quality, English Subtitles Bronne Bruzgo 1.81K subscribers Subscribe 15K Share Save 899K views 2 years ago An HD version of the 1993 cult classic, with updated subs for. The Divisional Ensemble of the 13th Guards Rifle Division. It was not until 1955 that the last of the 5,0006,000 survivors were repatriated (to West Germany) after a plea to the Politburo by Konrad Adenauer. [citation needed], The surrounded Axis personnel comprised 265,000 Germans, Romanians, Italians,[124] and Croatians. And then, suddenly, at the far end of the yard I caught sight of a human figure. [101], After 27 September, much of the fighting in the city shifted north to the industrial district. The 51st Army Corps' 295th Infantry Division went after the Mamayev Kurgan hill, the 71st attacked the central rail station and toward the central landing stage on the Volga, while 48th Panzer Corps attacked south of the Tsaritsa River. Unsuccessful, the surviving fighters of the assault group only managed to crawl back to their trenches at night. [123] The link-up of the Soviet forces, not filmed at the time, was later re-enacted for a propaganda film which was shown worldwide. The German command rightly believed that the tasks of the infantry divisions in the center of the city were fully completed: the Volga shore was reached, the main crossing of the Russians ceased to function. The man was probably already dying. Stalingrad has been described as the greatest defeat in the history of the German Army. Paulus refused, concerned about the Red Army attacks on the flank of Army Group Don and Army Group B in their advance on Rostov-on-Don, "an early abandonment" of Stalingrad "would result in the destruction of Army Group A in the Caucasus", and the fact that his 6th Army tanks only had fuel for a 30km advance towards Hoth's spearhead, a futile effort if they did not receive assurance of resupply by air. Army Group South (A), under the command of Wilhelm List, was to continue advancing south towards the Caucasus as planned with the 17th Army and First Panzer Army. A handful of senior officers were taken to Moscow and used for propaganda purposes, and some of them joined the National Committee for a Free Germany. He said that he had been taken by surprise. The He 111 gruppen lost 165 aircraft in transport operations. ISBN: 9781472135216. Chekhov, with a gut wound, was literally forcibly transferred to a hospital on the right bank, but a few days later the sergeant reappeared at the regiment's positions and knocked off three more Germans by himself. Pavlov had already established himself as an excellent fighter - a week earlier he, along with Zabolotny and a group of fighters, cleared the military exchange from the Germans, for which he later received the medal "For Courage". If Stalingrad is one of the most significant symbols of the Great Patriotic War, then Pavlov's House is the cornerstone of thatsymbol. The offensive was repelled. The field at Zverevo was attacked repeatedly on 18 January and a further 50 Ju 52s were destroyed. Paulus requested that he be granted permission to accept the terms. Rodimtsev's 13th Guards Rifle Division had been hurried up to cross the river and join the defenders inside the city. Later, when the Tatsinskaya Airfield was also captured, the Romanian 75mm guns destroyed five more Soviet tanks. It is preserved in its bombed-out state and is one of the main landmarks of the Battle of Stalingrad. Pursuing the enemy, the fighters, among other things, were able to rescue several groups of Red Army men who had been captured earlier. Stalingrad - Pavlov's house | WW2Talk How three million Germans died after VE Day. [160], On 30 January 1943, the 10th anniversary of Hitler's coming to power, Goebbels read out a proclamation that included the sentence: "The heroic struggle of our soldiers on the Volga should be a warning for everybody to do the utmost for the struggle for Germany's freedom and the future of our people, and thus in a wider sense for the maintenance of our entire continent. The 6th Army slowly starved. Nevertheless, the German forces were determined to continue their advance and heavy fighting continued for another two months. The third battalion of the 39th Guards Rifle Regiment managed to advance and gain a foothold on the edge of Republican Street, and the soldiers of the 34th Guards Rifle Regiment managed to clear several wooden houses near the 2nd Embankment. According to Marshall Chuikov, during this time Pavlov's group killed more Germans than they lost during the capture of Paris, and General Rodimtsev wrote that this ordinary Stalingrad four-story was labeled on the personal map of Paulus as a fortress. Before the Heer reached the city itself, the Luftwaffe had cut off shipping on the Volga, vital for bringing supplies into the city. The Romanian Air Force lost 79 aircraft, most of them captured on the ground along with their airfields. Fighting was so fierce and intense during one day that the railway station changed hands 14 times in six hours. Do the Devs plan to remove weapons like the STG 44 from the . Soviet offensives in the central and northern portions of the Eastern Front tied down Luftwaffe reserves and newly built aircraft, reducing Luftflotte 4's percentage of Eastern Front aircraft from 60 percent on 28 June to 38 percent by 20 September. The B&B is situated in the basement of a seventeenth-century canal house that was once the setting for leading trade and the flamboyant Dutch aristocracy. Having slowly advanced over 10 days against strong Soviet resistance, the 51st Army Corps was finally in front of the three giant factories of Stalingrad: the Red October Steel Factory, the Barrikady Arms Factory and Stalingrad Tractor Factory. Despite the fact that the main German positions in the finished northern wing of the Railwaymen's House could not be seized, the Red Army men managed to occupy the foundation of the southern wing, predetermining the tactical plan for the next assault. The Battle of Stalingrad was fought between the German 6th Army and a large number of Soviet Armies lasted from 23 August 1942 until 2 February 1943 for control of the city of Stalingrad in the south-western Soviet Union. On September 27, 1942, as a result of bombing by German aircraft, the architect of the house, Sergei Voloshinov, and his pregnant wife were killed . [97] Women were also snipers at Stalingrad. The 16 th Panzer Division had outrun its supplies and accompanying infantry just as it approached the city. The mill was put into operation, and flour sales began on 1 August 1900. The inscription on it reads: On May 4, 1985, a memorial wall-monument was unveiled on the end wall of the house from the side of Sovetskaya Street. [45], On 25 July the Germans faced stiff resistance with a Soviet bridgehead west of Kalach. Suffering losses, the group retreated again. On that eve Pavlov had returned alive from an unsuccessful search, the task of which was to get through to the surrounded 1st Battalion. In the center of the front of the 13th Guards Rifle Division was a huge complex of departmental and residential buildings of the NKVD, which occupied a whole block. Despite this, and with no support available from other units, the AA gunners stayed at their posts and took on the advancing panzers. [166], The central pocket, under the command of Heitz, surrendered the same day, while the northern pocket, under the command of General Karl Strecker, held out for two more days. But already the enemy was attacking the station with their battle-cries of 'Urrah! The 6th Army now was beyond all hope of German relief. The defenders, as well as the civilians hiding in the basement, were eventually relieved by counter-attacking Soviet forces after holding out from 27 September to 25 November 1942. Soviet Victory Soviets still hold Red House at . The main attack (led by the 14th Panzer and 305th Infantry Divisions) attacked towards the tractor factory, while another assault led by the 24th Panzer Division hit to the south of the giant plant. In autumn, the Soviet generals Georgy Zhukov and Aleksandr Vasilevsky, responsible for strategic planning in the Stalingrad area, concentrated forces in the steppes to the north and south of the city. On September 26, the first assault on Stalingrad ended, during which the Germans destroyed the last centers of resistance of the left flank of the 62nd Army. The inability of the German blitzkrieg to make headway against such grinding and self-sacrificial attrition warfare made the failure to capture Pavlov's House (despite numerous attempts) stand out as a symbol of resistance against a supposedly superior force. This resulted in a very thin line, with some sectors where 12km (0.621.24mi) stretches were being defended by a single platoon (platoons typically have around 20 to 50 men). Another advance to the river south of the city followed, while the Soviets abandoned their Rossoshka position for the inner defensive ring west of Stalingrad. [189] He remained in the Soviet Union until 1952, then moved to Dresden in East Germany, where he spent the remainder of his days defending his actions at Stalingrad and was quoted as saying that Communism was the best hope for postwar Europe. The additional distance became another obstacle to the resupply efforts. [147], The fighting forced a total revaluation of the German situation. rata kad nemaka vojska duboko je zagazil. The situation of the Romanian tanks is known, however. 4,341 tanks (~150 by Romanians) (2530% were total write-offs. [117], Recognising that German troops were ill-prepared for offensive operations during the winter of 1942 and that most of them were redeployed elsewhere on the southern sector of the Eastern Front, the Stavka decided to conduct a number of offensive operations between 19 November 1942 and 2 February 1943.