Stalingrad

** A Little Bit about Stalingrad ** The battle of Stalingrad began in the winter of 1942 and went on until January 30th 1943. Stalingrad was named after Stalin and was on the River Volga. Stalingrad was important because if the German army captured the city and continued moving east, the USSR would be cut in half. The Battle of Stalingrad was the largest in history, over two million men fought in it.
 * __ Stalingrad __**
 * **__ German Army __** || **__ Russian Army __** ||
 * ** Led by Paulus ** || ** Led by [|Zhukov] **  ||
 * ** 1,011,500 men ** || ** 1,000,500 men **  ||
 * ** 10,290 artillery guns ** || ** 13,541 artillery guns ** ||
 * ** 675 tanks ** || ** 894 tanks ** ||
 * ** 1,216 planes ** || ** 1,115 planes ** ||

** Timeline ** ** September, 1942 ** ** January 1943 ** ** Supreme Commander to 6 Army, January 24, 1943 ** · On January 31st the 6th Army surrendered its remaining 91,000 men. ** The German Prisoners ** For the 91,000 German soldiers captured by the Russians their troubles had just begun. The Germans were forced to march to Siberia, on foot, without proper clothing or medical care. 45,000 Germans died in the march to the camps. Only 7,000 of the prisoners who made it to the camps returned home after the war. http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/battle_of_stalingrad.htm http://users.telenet.be/stalingrad/ http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/RUSstalingrad.htm http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/stalingrad/default.aspx http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/background/52495.stm http://www.2worldwar2.com/stalingrad.htm
 * Aerial and artillery bombardment of Stalingrad begins by the Germans.
 * German forces launch their first major attacks against the city and take the city’s center, penning the Russians against the Volga River.
 * The rattenkrieg (rat’s war) begins with the gains measured by singular houses.
 * October, 1942 **
 * The rattenkrieg continues with soldiers and commanders alike under great strain from the fighting.
 * Heavy casualties suffered by both sides.
 * [[image:file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTodd%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_image006.jpg width="300" height="229"]]
 * November, 1942 **
 * Operation Uranus is launched by the Russians as a counter offensive to trap the German Army in Stalingrad.
 * The offensive consists of six Soviet Armies consisting of a million men.
 * 250,000-300,000 Germans are cut off in Stalingrad.
 * The Luftwaffe begins to attempt an airlift to supply troops in Stalingrad until German armies could relieve them.
 * December, 1942 **
 * Russian troops continue to push the Germans back in an ever shrinking pocket of resistance.
 * The German airlift to supply the 6th Army fails miserably.
 * The German counter offensive to save the 6th Army fails.
 * Germans receive this message from Hitler:
 * "Surrender is forbidden. 6 Army will hold their positions to the last man and the last round and by their heroic endurance will make an unforgettable contribution towards the establishment of a defensive front and the salvation of the Western world." **
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