The turning point in the course of World War II was the great battle of Stalingrad. The summary of events is not able to convey the special spirit of unity and heroism of the Soviet soldiers who participated in the battle.
Why was Stalingrad so important to Hitler? Historians highlight several reasons why the Führer at all costs wanted to take over Stalingrad and did not give an order to retreat even when the defeat was obvious.
A large industrial city on the banks of the longest river in Europe - the Volga. The transport hub of important river and land routes, uniting the center of the country with the southern regions. Hitler, having captured Stalingrad, would not only cut the important transport artery of the USSR and create serious difficulties with the supply of the Red Army, but would also reliably cover the German army advancing in the Caucasus.
Many researchers believe that the presence of the name of the city of Stalin in the name of the city made its capture important for Hitler from an ideological and propaganda point of view.
There is a point of view according to which there was a secret agreement between Germany and Turkey on its entry into the ranks of the allies immediately after the passage for the Soviet troops along the Volga was blocked.
Battle of Stalingrad. Summary of events
- The time frame of the battle: 07/17/42 - 02/02/43.
- Participated: from Germany - the reinforced 6th army of Field Marshal Paulus and the Allied forces. On the part of the USSR, the Stalingrad Front, created on 07/12/42, under the command of first Marshal Tymoshenko, from 07.23.42 - Lieutenant General Gordov, and from 09.08.42 - Colonel General Eremenko.
- Periods of the battle: defensive - from 17.07 to 11.11.42, offensive - from 11.19.42 to 02.02.43.
In turn, the defensive stage is divided into battles on distant approaches to the city in the bend of the Don from 07.17 to 08.10.42, battles on distant approaches in the interfluve of the Volga and Don from 08/11 to 12.09.42, battles in the suburbs and the city itself from 13.09 to 18.11 .42 years.
Losses on both sides were colossal. The Red Army lost almost 1 million 130 thousand soldiers, 12 thousand guns, 2 thousand aircraft.
Germany and allied countries lost nearly 1.5 million soldiers.
Defensive stage
- July 17 is the first serious collision of our troops with enemy forces on the banks of the tributaries of the Don.
- August 23 - enemy tanks came close to the city. German aviation began to regularly bomb Stalingrad.
- September 13 - storming the city. The glory of the workers of the Stalingrad factories and factories, which under fire repaired damaged equipment and weapons, thundered throughout the world.
- October 14 - The Germans launched an offensive military operation off the coast of the Volga in order to capture Soviet bridgeheads.
- November 19 - our troops launched a counterattack according to the plan of Operation Uranus.
Throughout the second half of the summer of 1942 there was a hot battle of Stalingrad. The summary and chronology of defense events indicate that our soldiers, with a shortage of weapons and a significant superiority in manpower from the enemy, accomplished the impossible. They not only defended Stalingrad, but also went on the counterattack in difficult conditions of exhaustion, lack of uniforms and severe Russian winter.
Offensive and victory
As part of Operation Uranus, Soviet soldiers managed to encircle the enemy. Until November 23, our soldiers strengthened the blockade around the Germans.
- December 12 - the enemy made a desperate attempt to escape from the environment. However, a breakthrough attempt failed. Soviet troops began to compress the ring.
- December 17 - The Red Army recaptured German positions on the Chir River (the right tributary of the Don).
- December 24th - ours advanced 200 km into operational depth.
- December 31 - Soviet soldiers advanced another 150 km. The front line stabilized at the Tormosin-Zhukovskaya-Komissarovsky line.
- January 10 - our offensive in accordance with the "Ring" plan.
- January 26 - The 6th German army is divided into 2 groups.
- January 31 - the southern part of the former 6th German army is destroyed.
- February 2 - the northern group of fascist troops was liquidated. Our soldiers, the heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad, won. The enemy capitulated. Field Marshal Paulus, 24 generals, 2,500 officers, and nearly 100,000 emaciated German soldiers were captured.
Huge destruction brought the battle of Stalingrad. Photos of war correspondents captured the ruins of the city.
Heroism of Soviet soldiers
All the soldiers who took part in the significant battle proved themselves to be courageous and brave sons of the Motherland.
Sniper Zaitsev Vasily, Hero of the Soviet Union, with targeted shots destroyed 225 opponents.
Nikolai Panikakha - threw himself under an enemy tank with a bottle of fuel mixture. He sleeps with an eternal sleep on the Mamaev Kurgan.
Nikolay Serdyukov - covered the embrasure of the enemy bunker with himself, silencing the firing point.
Matvey Putilov, Vasily Titaev - signalmen who made contact by gritting the ends of the wire with their teeth.
Gulya Koroleva, a nurse, carried dozens of seriously wounded soldiers from the battlefield near Stalingrad. Participated in a height attack. The mortal wound did not stop the brave girl. She continued to shoot until the last minute of her life.
The names of many, many heroes - infantrymen, artillerymen, tankmen and pilots - were given to the world by the Battle of Stalingrad. Summary of the course of hostilities is not able to perpetuate all the exploits. Entire volumes of books are written about these brave people who gave their lives for the freedom of future generations. Their names are streets, schools, factories. The heroes of the battle of Stalingrad should never be forgotten.
The significance of the battle of Stalingrad
The battle was not only of grandiose proportions, but also of extremely significant political significance. A bloody war continued. The battle of Stalingrad became its main turning point. It is no exaggeration to say that it was precisely after the victory at Stalingrad that mankind gained hope of victory over fascism.