The Battle of Stalingrad (July 17, 1942-Feb. 2, 1943) , was the successful Soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd) in the U.S.S.R. during World War II. Russians consider it to be the greatest battle of their Great Patriotic War, and most historians consider it to be the greatest battle of the entire conflict. It stopped the German advance into the Soviet Union and marked the turning of the tide of war in favor of the Allies.
An Associated Press article in the February 3rd New York time said, “Aside from the huge territorial strides of the Russians, the destruction of Axis troops and equipment was regarded as even more important in the Allied fight to force the Nazis to their knees’’.
Some of the events leading up to this major
Stalingrad - Site of critical World War II Soviet victory that reversed Germany's advance to the East. In late 1942, Russian forces surrounded the Germans, and on Feb. 2, 1943, the German Sixth Army surrendered. First major defeat for the Germans in World War II.
Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-1943 is book written by the British military historian, Antony Beevor. Stalingrad covers the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II. Stalingrad was a city in Russia where Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union fought for control. This was part of Adolf Hitler’s plan to crush the Soviet Union and extend his Third Reich into Russian territory. The battle lasted from August 1942 to February 1943. However, the battle ended up with the destruction of the entire German 6th army and with a victory for the Soviet Union. Beevor has won three awards for this book. I wish to give brief summaries of the five sections of the book and give reviews on their main content.
The first of seven introduces the reader to the Battle of Stalingrad by mentioning dates, statistics, significant developments in
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major turning point in World War II. The Soviet Union would successfully protect one of its major industrial cities from German siege. The battle would have a lasting impact on the remainder of the war, as Germany struggled to recover from the loss. The defeat and many subsequent effects of it were due large in part to the mistakes of Germany’s leader Adolf Hitler. The statement that Hitler’s biggest mistake was how he conducted the Battle of Stalingrad is true due to his refusal to surrender despite facing dire circumstances, the lack of preparation his army had, and the effect his ego had on his decision making, even in the most crucial situations.
After air cover was provided tank and infantry attacks were spread throughout the Russian defence. In the first day of battle the Germans gained 6 miles of land but at the cost of a slaughter. 25,000 men were wounded or killed with 200 tanks and artillery lost and 200 aircraft. This became a pattern over the next couple of days. By July 10th Germany had lost two thirds of her tanks. On July 12th they lost 350 tanks and 10,000 men in an attack on Prokhorovka. They could not break the Russian defence. By this time the German strength had waned and the Russians decided it was time to launch a counter-offensive
World War II was full of conflicts between countries all over the world. Although most people only know things about the holocaust or Hitler 's affect on the World War II, there are other important events that have affected many countries. The Battle of Moscow was a major battle between the Soviet Union and Germany. Ironically, the Soviet Union and Germany previously had a secret agreement (the nonaggression pact) not to go to war on each other, but the promises turned to be broken when Germany 's plan to capture Moscow went into action. (German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact, History Site)
The battle of Stalingrad raged from August 1942 until the German surrender on 2 February 1943. Significantly, it was the first catastrophic defeat to befall the Wermacht Army who not only lost the battle but were severely humiliated. Indeed, the German Army never fully recovered from this blow to its morale. Upwards of 270,000 troops were killed and 91,000 prisoners were taken by the Red Army; included in this latter number were 23 German Generals. Conversely, morale in the Red Army soared as a consequence of Stalingrad giving the Russians increased strength and confidence. This battle represented a turning point in the Second World War.
First let’s take a look at the Battle of Stalingrad and the importance it had on World War II. The Battle of Stalingrad lasted 199 days from July 17th 1942 to February 2nd 1943. During that time Hitler divided
World War 2 reshaped our world geographically, economically, and politically. During this time, Nazi Germany annihilated almost any opposition who challenged them. The German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact was signed on August 23, 1939 shortly before World War 2. In this document, both countries promised to take no military action against each other for the next 10 years. However, during the war, Hitler found Russia a necessity to enhance his world power through the Volga River. For six months Germans and Russians fought scrupulously. Nazi troops fought their way into the heart of Stalingrad yet, with winter arriving, they found themselves cold, starving, and low on ammunition. Attempts at rescue by airdrops failed and the Russians enclosed their enemy. Approximately 91,000 German soldiers were taken prisoner and Russians claimed victory on August 23, 1942.
It was the first major German loss during World War Two (it significantly decreased their front line power and determination): Prior to Stalingrad the German’s had been on an immense roll since the beginning of the war, and their defeat proved to the Allies that Germany wasn’t invincible. After Stalingrad, there was not any significant German victory in the war. Hitler commented: “the God of war has gone over to the other side”(1943).
The Battle of Berlin, which lasted from April 16, 1945 to May 2,1945, marked the final major battle of World War II in Europe. There was virtually no hope for the city of Berlin defenders against the superior and dominant Red Army, but nevertheless, the city defenders put up a fierce and substantial battle, turning it into the second most ferocious battle following the Battle of Stalingrad. The heavy resistance was fueled with the Nazi propaganda regarding the Soviets. After the unsuccessful Ardennes Offensive in late 1944 and early 1945, which was a last-ditch effort, the Nazis were left with insufficient forces to defend its border against the Western Allies and the Soviet forces. Hoping that a decisive victory would impel the Western Allies into peace negotiations and enable him to deal with the Red Army, Hitler made a few changes and put all his reserves onto the Western front. However, the Western Allies repulsed the German
It was nearly unimaginable to the world when Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrendered his German forces to the Soviet Union on February 2, 1943. The Battle of Stalingrad, a major Second World War battle began with the German’s offensive on July 17, 1942 and ended with the German surrender on February 2, 1943. It was on August 5, 1942 that Adolf Hitler ordered an attack on the city of Stalingrad. This battle went down as one of the bloodiest battles in history, taking large tolls on both sides and most importantly marking the turning point for Hitler in the Second World War. The “master race” had taken its first major blow, proving to the world that they were not invincible. And in fact, Germany would not rise again after this truly
The Battle of Verdun and the Battle of Stalingrad may well be the most gruesome battles in recent history. Both are excellent examples of how important morale is in winning a war. If either of these cities would have fallen to the Germans, history might have unfolded in a very different way than what we see here today.
The Battle of Stalingrad in 1942 was one of the major turning points in World War Two. It was a major turning point for a number of reasons, the first being that Germany lost considerable amounts of manpower and equipment in this battle; losses from which they never recovered. In addition, the Battle of Stalingrad had a sizeable effect on the German’s and the Allies moral that ultimately led to Nazi Germany’s downfall. Moreover, the Battle of Stalingrad stopped the German advance into Russia, denying them access to the Caucasus oil wells, exacerbating Germany’s fuel crisis and crippling the German army. Finally, the Battle
During World War II, the battle of Stalingrad began in the city of Stalingrad, Russia and was fought between August of 1942 and February of 1943. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad It is still considered today to be one of Russia’s greatest battles in which the Russian army defended itself from invasion by the German army. This battle essentially stopped Germany’s determined advance into Russian territory. This marked a huge turning point in the war for the Allies. It was a very important war because it crippled the German offensive as well as destroying much of its army.