....stalingrad continued.
The "Deafening Roar Of Battle".
The German Sixth Army under the command of General Paulus reached the outskirts of Stalingrad in August. The Germans captured more than half of the city.
On October 14, Paulus launched a major offensive to crush the Soviets still holding out around the tractor factory and the Red October factory. General Chuikov who was in command of these men, the 62nd Soviet Army, described the German onslaught.
"That morning you could not hear the separate shots or explosions: the whole merged into one continuous deafening roar." With their backs to the river Chuikov attempted to inspire his men to hold out with the words: "There is no land across the Volga." For those who did not get the message, firing squads dealt with the deserters, hundreds of whom were shot.
The Germans were unable to dislodge Chuikov and his men who had entrenched themselves in cellars, in burnt out buildings and amongst the rubble. German units to the north and south of the city were brought into Stalingrad in an attempt to force a victory but even this failed.
As attempts to take the city began to swallow up more and more German men and resources Stalin and his generals saw a chance to turn the table on the Nazis. The Sixth Army's flanks to the north and south of the city were only defended by Germany's Italian and Romanian allies. These units were much weaker than their German or Soviet counterparts. Stalin's generals ordered a swift counter-attack. They broke through the Romanian and Italian lines which collapsed under the ferocity of the Red Army's advance.
By November 23, the whole of the German Sixth Army, a quarter of a million men, had been completely encircled. If they did not withdraw now, while they still could, they faced annihilation.
Tomorrow: The Horror of Stalingrad.
The "Deafening Roar Of Battle".
The German Sixth Army under the command of General Paulus reached the outskirts of Stalingrad in August. The Germans captured more than half of the city.
On October 14, Paulus launched a major offensive to crush the Soviets still holding out around the tractor factory and the Red October factory. General Chuikov who was in command of these men, the 62nd Soviet Army, described the German onslaught.
"That morning you could not hear the separate shots or explosions: the whole merged into one continuous deafening roar." With their backs to the river Chuikov attempted to inspire his men to hold out with the words: "There is no land across the Volga." For those who did not get the message, firing squads dealt with the deserters, hundreds of whom were shot.
The Germans were unable to dislodge Chuikov and his men who had entrenched themselves in cellars, in burnt out buildings and amongst the rubble. German units to the north and south of the city were brought into Stalingrad in an attempt to force a victory but even this failed.
As attempts to take the city began to swallow up more and more German men and resources Stalin and his generals saw a chance to turn the table on the Nazis. The Sixth Army's flanks to the north and south of the city were only defended by Germany's Italian and Romanian allies. These units were much weaker than their German or Soviet counterparts. Stalin's generals ordered a swift counter-attack. They broke through the Romanian and Italian lines which collapsed under the ferocity of the Red Army's advance.
By November 23, the whole of the German Sixth Army, a quarter of a million men, had been completely encircled. If they did not withdraw now, while they still could, they faced annihilation.
Tomorrow: The Horror of Stalingrad.