Princess Elizabeth in Wartime

Stalingrad

German infantry pause during heavy fighting in the ruins of Stalingrad.; The initial attacks in August made good progress, but von Paulus hesitated to press the advantage and squandered an opportunity to quickly take the city. More used to operating in open country, German troops now found themselves mired in brutal house-to-house fighting. Russian snipers were particularly feared.

German infantry pause during heavy fighting in the ruins of Stalingrad.

photographs

The initial attacks in August made good progress, but von Paulus hesitated to press the advantage and squandered an opportunity to quickly take the city. More used to operating in open country, German troops now found themselves mired in brutal house-to-house fighting. Russian snipers were particularly feared.

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Stalingrad was one of the most decisive battles on the Eastern Front. The Soviet Union inflicted a catastrophic defeat on the German Army in and around this strategically important city on the Volga river, which bore the name of the Soviet dictator,...

Stalingrad was one of the most decisive battles on the Eastern Front. The Soviet Union inflicted a catastrophic defeat on the German Army in and around this strategically important city on the Volga river, which bore the name of the Soviet dictator, Josef Stalin.

In the summer of 1942, Hitler launched a major offensive into southern Russia, seeking to destroy what was left of the Soviet Army and ultimately capture the Caucasus oilfields. The initial advance went well, and the German Sixth Army under General Friedrich von Paulus was ordered to capture the city. But Stalin demanded it be defended at all costs. Every available soldier and civilian was mobilised.

Stalingrad was heavily bombed by the Luftwaffe, and the ruins became the scene for months of bitter street fighting. By October most of the city was in German hands, but the Russians clung onto the banks of the Volga, across which they ferried vital reserves. Meanwhile, Soviet General Georgi Zhukov built up fresh forces either side of the city, and in November launched a massive pincer movement to trap von Paulus’s army. Forbidden to break out by Hitler, the Sixth Army endured until February 1943, when its exhausted remnants surrendered.

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  • The Corn Silo in Stalingrad, 1942

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    The Corn Silo in Stalingrad, 1942; This huge concrete grain silo in the south of the city was one of the most bitterly contested buildings during the battle of Stalingrad and became a symbol of the fighting. For three days in September some 50 Russian soldiers and marines held out against numerous German tank and infantry assaults.

  • Soviet soldiers raise the Red Flag

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    Soviet soldiers raise the Red Flag; Soviet soldiers raise the Red Flag over a recaptured industrial building in Stalingrad. The last German pocket of resistance surrendered in the northern factory district of the city on 2 February. Sixth Army’s commander, newly promoted Field Marshal von Paulus, had already gone into captivity, incensing Hitler who preferred his vanquished generals to commit suicide.

  • German prisoners

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    German prisoners; German soldiers march into Soviet captivity through a bleak, snow-covered landscape. The Germans lost a total of 500,000 men during the Stalingrad campaign, including 91,000 taken prisoner. Of these, barely 6,000 would see their homes again.