(threatening music) - [Narrator] The campaign began with a German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 known as Operation Barbarossa. After initial successes, the Soviets halted the German advance at the gates of Moscow. The next year the German high command developed a new command called Case Blue, which focused on seizing the valuable Russian oil fields in the Caucasus region. Once again, the German campaign began with great advances, however the Caucasus offenses soon ground to a halt, and by mid-September, Stalingrad became a new major objective for the attacking German forces in southern Russia. On 13th September, 1942, the German's sixth army under General Friedrich Paulus began it's assault on the city. Lieutenant General Vasily Chuikov and his Soviet 62nd Army defended Stalingrad. Within two weeks, the Germans cleared much of the south and central portions of the city although the Soviets stubbornly clung to a few small enclaves. Nonetheless, Paulus considered the center and south fighting to be over and began the fight to take the northern factory district. After a surprisingly rapid and successful assault on the tractor factory on 14 and 15 October, the Germans open the attack on the Barrikady factory on the following day. The Barrikady factory was a sprawling complex. The factory grounds were roughly 2,500 meters long, by 1,500 meters wide. The major factory halls were massive structures and many made excellent defensive positions with good fields of fire even from within. By the time the German army launched its assault on the factory, it's structures and grounds had already experienced a tremendous amount of destruction. German bombardments and artillery barrages inflicted heavy damage to most of the buildings and rubble was everywhere. The remnants of damaged and destroyed factory products, shell holes and Soviet fighting positions littered the grounds. The area was an ideal location for defenders and therefore very difficult terrain for attacking forces. This apocalyptic scene typifies the urban battlefield and illustrates U.S. army doctrine which further explains that the three dimensional urban terrain makes identifying, reporting and targeting of enemy locations difficult. This is the environment faced by the German attacking force which consisted of several divisions and well over 10,000 solidiers who attack from the north. For more than two weeks, this force pushed deep into the complex with the Volga River as its objective. The Red Army fiercely defended each building and ultimately stopped the German onslaught just 400 meters from the Volga on the outskirts of the factory's lower settlement and the complex's administrative area, which the Red Army heavily fortified. The lower settlement was the last bastion of the Soviet defense in the Barrikady factory. Current joint and army doctrine can trace it's origins in lessons learned in previous wars and military actions executed throughout history. The eastern front in World War II, and specifically the battles within the city limits of Stalingrad, highlight the complexities of urban warfare. Understanding current doctrine is key to successful integration of forces, synchronization of assets and execution of complex orders. (threatening music) In peacetime, the lower settlement served as the Barrikady factory administrative area and one of the residential districts for factory workers. About 400 meters beyond the settlement were the cliffs of the Volga River, the German 305th Infantry Division's final objective. Within the lower settlement, a number of port locations held significance to either the Germans, the Soviets or both. Key locations included Theater Park, the cinema booth, the Barrikady factory fuel depot, the Index Finger Ravine, the transformer hut, and the Volga River. Key German locations were Hall 6E, which served as the headquarters for the 576th Grenadier Regiment. Hall four served as the headquarters for the 577th Grenadier Regiment. House 53 served as the headquarters for the 578th Grenadier Regiment. Key Soviet locations were Colonel Ivan Lyudnikov's command post bunker for the 138th Rifle Division. The red house wish functioned as Colonel Lyudnikov's personal observation post. The apothecary, also referred as the pharmacy, a Soviet strong point. And the Commissar's house, which originally served as the main administration building for the Barrikady factory and was now a Soviet strong point as well. The defense of the lower settlement was primarily the responsibility of Colonel Lyudnikov's 138th Rifle Division. Though the 241st Regiment of the 95th Rifle Division was responsible for the defense of the area between the apothecary and the fuel depot. By this time, the 138th Rifle Division consisted of three diminished regiments with a total combat strength of about 1,000 soldiers. Attached to the division was the sole remaining element of the 37th Guards Division, the 250 men of the 118th Guards Rifle Regiment. The 768th Rifle Regiment of the 138 Rifle Division in the north, helped positions largely within an apartment complex. The 344th Rifle Regiment held another apartment complex near the massive Hall Four, which stretched south to the vicinity of Theater Park. The 650th Rifle Regiment also held part of the apartment complex near Theater Park, several other buildings east of there and the Commissar's house itself. (threatening music) The Commissar's house was a massive brick structure within the lower settlement. The house, completed in 1916, and solidly constructed with red bricks from the nearby brick factory possessed an appropriately castle-like appearance. It's construction consisted of massive, three-foot thick walls, a reinforced concrete cellar, and was two stories in height. It was relatively clear fields of fire around the building in all directions and the Germans considered this structure key terrain, a crucial defensive position within the 138th Rifle Division's defensive zone. The United States Army doctoral manual, ADP 3-90, defines key terrain as an identifiable characteristic whose seizure or retention affords a marked advantage to either combatant. Due to its obvious strength, the building earlier served as Lyudnikov's headquarters until the German advance forced him to move his command post to a bunker below the bluffs of the Volga River. The Barrikady workers officially recognized the building as the factory administration building. The Germans would refer to this building as the Commissar's house. (threatening music) Several Soviet elements defended the Commissar's house and lower village area. These defenders were armed with light and medium machine guns, the PPSh sub-machine gun, Mosin-Nagant model rifle, hand grenades and the multi-purpose Molotov cocktail. They were also supported by the 76 millimeter anti-tank gun ZiS-3. The unit responsible for this sector of the 138th Rifle Division's area was the 650th Rifle Regiment commanded by Major Feder Pechenyuk, a severely reduced company of perhaps 40 or 50 men from the 650th Regiment defended the building. Another small element was the NKVD blocking detachment of about six men commanded by Lieutenant Leonid Pyuken. Pyuken's mission was to position his troops behind the defenders and ensure they did not desert their posts. Pyuken described the Soviet defense efforts within the building. - [Leonid] The Worker's Militia, together with soldiers, took up defense in this house. Machine guns were placed in vacant window openings. Morters were positioned on the second floor. Boxes of ammunition were delivered at night from the bank of the Volga, placed on hand near the windows were hand grenades, cartridges and bottles filled with incendiary mixture. - [Narrator] Finally there were a handful of irregular soldiers. Perhaps 15 to 20 from a Worker's Militia unit, also known as Special Gorgaze. These men had been, until recently, workers in the Barrikady factory. The quality of these troops ran the gamut from dedicated fighters to unreliable skulkers. Thus, the need for the blocking detachment troops. Overall it is likely that there were no more than 60 to 70 men defending the Commissar's house on 11 November, the day of the first attack. (threatening music) During the month of October, the 305th Infantry Division lost almost 2,900 men in the vicious fighting at the tractor and Barrikady factories. As the 305th prepared to assault the Barrikady factory's lower settlement each of its regiments possessed no more than 1,000 assault troops. The 507th Grenadier Regiment, temporarily commanded by Major Eberhard Rittenmeyer, was responsible for the central sector which included the Commissar's house. For the 11th November attack, a company of assault engineers from the 22nd Panzer Division's 50th Pioneer Battalion, commanded by Captain Irwin Gost, reinforced the 578th Regiment. On 10 November, the strength of the 50th Pioneer Battalion stood at 539 soldiers, of which only 460 were assault troops. Also attached to the regiment was an element of the 44th Stern Company. This was an ad-hoc infantry assault group formed from the elements of the 44th Infantry Division and sent to Stalingrad at the same time as the six pioneer battalions and for the same purpose. The attacking German infantry and pioneer soldiers were equipped with the Mauser 98 rifle, or the MP-40 sub-machine gun. They were supported by MG-42 machine guns, potato masher hand grenades, satchel and shape charges for breaching and assault field guns. (threatening music) The 11 November attack on the Commissar's house was part of the larger Operation Hubertus. This attack was the sixth army's plan to overrun the remaining Soviet forces defending the Barrikady and Red October factory districts. The organization of the German plan of attack demonstrated current U.S. Army doctrine for the characteristics of offensive operations founded FM 3-0. A commander must incorporate audacity, concentration, surprise and tempo when planning and executing the attack. The 305th Infantry Division's mission was to attack the lower settlement area east of the Barrikady factory. The plan consisted of three axis. To the division's south, the 576th Grenadier Regiment, reinforced by troops of the 294th Pioneer Battalion, would attack to seize the Barrikady fuel depot. To their north, the 577th Grenadier Regiment reinforced by troops of the 305th and 336th Pioneer Battalions and part of the 44th Stern Company would attack to seize the apartment buildings between house 73 and house 77 and the lower settlement area, then advance to the Volga. The 389th Infantry Divisions, 546th Infantry Regiment and the 45th Pioneer Battalion were assigned to support the 305th's left flank by attacking a small compound of warehouses to the north of the factory. In the center, the 578th Grenadier Regiment, also reinforced by pioneer battalions, was assigned the mission to capture the apothecary and the Commissar's house, and then advance to the Volga via the Index Finger Ravine. The 578th attack consisted of three assaults. The first assault would assault to seize and secure the apothecary, a heavily damaged L-shaped building to the south of the Commissar's house. Most of the 578th Grenadier Regiment would attack past the apothecary, enter the Index Finger Ravine, and reach the Volga through that route. From there, it would attack to capture house 79 and push north along the river to unhinge the Soviet defenses. Captain Gast 50th Pioneer Battalion was the third axis of the attack with it's objective to seize the Commissar's house. Gast, who considered his Panzer engineers elite troops, was reportedly the youngest battalion commander at Stalingrad. According to one historian, Gast was an ambitious young officer and wanted to demonstrate his prowess to his elders on the field of battle. When developing the plan for the 11th November attack with Rittenmeyer, Gast informed the regimental commander that his men could take the Commissar's house alone. Gast further stated that there would be no need for infantry support from the 578th Regiment, although a small element of the 44th Stern Company would participate in the attack. The seasoned Rittenmeyer was dubious because he understood that the integration of light and heavy assets at urban fighting was critical to success. Current U.S. Army doctrine reinforces this fact in ATTP 3-06.11, which highlights that infantry tank teams work together to bring the maximum combat power to bear on the enemy. As the German plan developed, it incorporated many of the stages of a deliberate attack the commander conducts a phased deliberate attack starting with reconnoitering of, moving to and isolating the objective. As part of the division plan, a massive bombardment against the Soviet positions in the factory area supported the attacks. In order to isolate the objective and limit the Soviet ability to reinforce and sustain its forces west of the Volga, Luftwaffe dive bombers would attack Soviet artillery positions across the Seitsevski Island. German artillery would also conduct counter battery fire against Soviet artillery positions on Seitsevski Island. German Nebelwerfer batteries conducted barrages against the Soviet defensive positions in the factory area and along the bluffs of the Volga, which further isolated and reduced the defensive positions. Should these various attacks achieve initial success, the units of the 305th Infantry Division and the 389th Division to the north would destroy all remaining Soviet defenses between the Barrikady lower settlement and the river. (threatening music) The artillery and air attacks began on seven November as planned. At about 0300, on 11 November, the lead assault teams of the 578th Infantry and 305th Pioneer Battalion departed from the assault positions near House 53, which served as Rittenmayer's command post. Hundreds of gray-clad soldiers stealthily made their way through the intermittent dark as explosive blasts lit up the terrain. The 578th assault troops, supported by pioneers, made their way across the short distance to the apothecary. They slipped into and out of shell holes and trenches for cover while the artillery bombardment screamed from overhead. From daily observation, the pioneers knew that they would not be able to gain access to the apothecary through normal entrances, which the Soviets obstructed and blocked with mounds of rubble. Covered by the infantry, the Sappers moved to the outer wall of the apothecary and set several large demo charges against it and moved back to the shell holes with electric wires trailing them. As they advanced on the Commissar's house, the synchronized and coordinated German attack further demonstrated the stages of deliberate urban attack, secure a foothold, suppress the objective, and execute a breach. The assault commander gave the signal. The Pioneers crank the handles and in a blinding flash blew several huge holes into the sides of the building. Soviet defenders inside the building were totally caught by surprise, most likely due to the noise of the almost constant artillery barrage over the previous four days. Within seconds, the German infantry advanced to the building and entered the structure. The teams rapidly made their way through the halls and upstairs as they eliminated or captured the Russians who were still able to resist. From the upper floors, the Germans fought downward until they were fighting the remaining Soviet defenders between the first floor and the cellar. By dawn, the apothecary was secure and the Germans had captured 45 defenders. The soldiers of the 578th Infantry now trained their guns on the massive building next door, the Commissar's house. To help with that battle, which by this time was floundering, the attack of the 50th Pioneer Battalion on the Commissar's house did not go as well. About 0315, Gost's men advance from House 56, while the small 44th Stern Company detachment left from house 72. The Commissar's house had three foot thick solid walls and the Sappers had to search for areas where the charges would make the biggest holes and had some chance of actually penetrating into the building. Reaching the outside wall from the south side, the Pioneers began searching for spots to place their charges. Unable to find suitable locations for the demolitions in the dark, Gost directed his men to move to shell holes and trenches, mostly located to the west and southwest of the building. There, they waited for the light of dawn to reveal the best locations to place their charges. As the engineers moved back into hide positions, however, someone inside of the Commissar's house spotted the movement and opened fire. The firing very quickly alerted other Soviet defenders, and soon those defenders pinned down Gost's men in the open area around the structure. In addition to heavy small arms machine gun fire, the Soviet defenders also began to throw grenades from the building towards the stranded Germans. A few Russians were able to heave grenades far enough to reach a shell hole or two and cause casualties. This, in turn, caused some of the Pioneers to jump up and flee to the rear for safety. Some made it, but most remained pinned down in their hide positions. The inability to find a suitable breach point caused Gast to lose the element of surprise and prevented seizing the initiative. U.S. Army doctrine states audacity, concentration, surprise and tempo characterize the offensive and the commanders seize, retain and exploit the initiative when performing offensive tasks. Fortunately for Gast's men, the 245th Assault Gun Battalion had just received six brand new S.I.G. 33 Bravo assault guns. These tank-like weapons had been designed and built almost overnight specifically for the type of fighting conducted in Stalingrad. The lighter shoots three assault gun, most still possessing a short barreled 75 millimeter gun capable of destroying soft skinned vehicles and light fortifications. However, they were inadequate to penetrate the heavy walls of many of the older buildings in Stalingrad. Based on lessons learned and emerging mission requirements, the S.I.G. 33 Bravo mounted a heavier 150 millimeter gun, which could penetrate the walls of buildings like the Commissar's house. Six of these new vehicles were assembled at the Barrikcady factory's front gate when the assault gun commander received a call to come to the rescue of the 50th Pioneer battalion. Similarly, U.S. Army doctrine directs commanders to plan for and employ a reserve to exploit success, defeat enemy counterattacks, or as in the case of Gast's formation, restore momentum to a stalled attack. As dawn broke, the S.I.G. 33's accompanied by several Sterm-gish-uts threes, rumbled east, heading for the Commissar's house. The plan was for all vehicles to turn left onto Lenin Prospect and line up in the Theater Park to pummel the Soviet defenders in the castle-like building. Several vehicles made the maneuver into firing positions, halted and began shelling the Commissar's house. Inexplicably, at least three guns, two of them new S.I.G. 33's rolled onto Tomayo Skias Street, where they turned left and drove directly in front of the Commissar's house. One of the guns ran over a Soviet mortar position just to the north of the building, then performed a pivot steer, which brought the vehicle back in view of the main entrance, where a Soviet anti-tank gun was positioned. Junior Lieutenant A.P. Feditov, the anti-tank company commander, manned the gun by himself because the rest of the gun crew was dead. Quickly reacting to the threat posed by the vehicle, Feditov took aim and destroyed an S.I.G. 33. Anti-tank fire or Molotov cocktails thrown by the Soviet infantry men disabled the other two assault guns across the street in Theater Park. Despite the loss of three vehicles, the bombardment from the heavier assault guns was nevertheless very effective. Pyuken recalled that the shells penetrated the thick walls and exploded inside the rooms. Canon fire raked the upper story, killing or wounding numerous Soviet defenders. The smoke and distraction provided by the assault gun attack enabled the rest of Gost's men to escape. Nevertheless, the 50th Pioneer Battalion lost 17 men killed, and another 61 wounded in the attack. By the end of the day on 11 November, many units of the 305th Infantry Division had made significant progress. The 576th Grenadier Regiment and 294th Pioneer Battalion had advanced all the way to the Volga and it captured the factorous fuel depot. Likewise, elements of the 578th Grenadier Regiment had penetrated to the banks of the Volga and captured the apothecary and house 79, but could not advance further due to the commanding position at the Commissar's house in that area. The apothecary and house 79 served as a foothold necessary for the coming German assault on the Commisser's house. The German attack plan to breach and reduce the Commissar's house reflect the U.S. Army's doctrine of the stages of a deliberate attack in urban terrain. On the division's left, the 577th Grenadier Regiment failed to capture either of its two objectives, house 66 and house 77, leaving a large salient in the German line and preventing the complete isolation and suppression of the Commissar's house. On the far left, in the 389th Infantry Division sector, the 546th Grenadier Regiment, bolstered by the 162nd Pioneer Battalion, and driven all the way to the Volga as well. These successes, however, came at a high cost since the 305th and 389th Infantry Divisions had lost a combined total of 445 men killed, wounded and missing in the assaults. Nevertheless, the Lyudnikov's 138th Rifle Division was now totally cut off from the 62nd Army except by boat, and that was only if the vessels could make it through the rapidly building ice flow of the Volga. This beach-head in the German lines soon became known as Lyudnikov's Island due to it's isolation. Because of the assaults on 11 November, the 138th Rifle Division, severely attritted, was now cut off from the rest of the 62nd Army. Like Chuikov, Lyudnikov was forced to operate out of a bunker dug in the side of the Volga River bluff just east of the red house. The division's units had taken numerous casualties. The 650th Rifle Regiment had been reduced from 167 men at the beginning of the operation to only 69 able-bodied troops by midnight on 11 November. 98 men had been killed or wounded, most of those in the Commissar's house. Other regiments had been severely afflicted as well, on the division's left, the 95th Rifle Division's 241st Regiment had been reduced to 23 men by the attacks of the 576 Grenadiers. On the right, the attached 118th guards regiment was ground down from 250 men before the attack to only 7 men by midnight and was no commanded by a Lieutenant. Although Lyudnikov was to receive almost 300 replacements on 12 November, few, if any, made it into the defenses. Lyudnikov's hold on his island was precarious at best. (threatening music) Operations in the lower settlement area on 12 November were limited to minor attacks and counter attacks, while both sides plant follow on operations. The following day, the German 577th and 578th Grenadier Regiments would attack to destroy the remaining elements of Colonel Lyudnikov's command and seize the bluffs along the Volga River. The 576th Regiment would hold its ground along the Volga and protect the German arrear, while the 577th Grenadier Regient was tasked to seize house 66 and house 77, which it had failed to accomplish the previous day. The 578th Grenadier Regiment would make several attacks in its sector. One moved along the river bluff to take the transformer hut, and push along the bluffs of the Volga to clear any defenders. Another through the open ground between the bluffs and Tomayo Skias Street. And finally, another assault on the Commissar's house, the dominating feature of the area. For the attack on the Commissar's house, Captain Gast, 50th Pioneer Battlion, would once again form the backbone of the attack. But this time, Gast was to be reinforced by the entire 44th Stern Company. Elements of the 578th Regiment and guns from the 245 Assault Gun Battalion. (threatening music) Since Gast's first attempt to capture the Commissar's house was an utter failure, he queried Rittemayer and other leaders on the best way to approach and enter the building. These men had been in the factory district for over three weeks and had developed an eye for the most effective means of attacking buildings in the area. Counterintuitively, they recommended that Gast should conduct his attack through the central courtyard and enter through the blocked main doors by blasting their way through. Gast adopted their recommendation. Gast's discussion with the commanders and seasoned veterans of the Stalingrad campaign demonstrated the ADRP 6-0's Mission Command Principle of gathering information. Commanders balance the art of command with a science of control as they assess information which must be accurate, timely, usable, complete, precise and reliable. Accordingly, Gast planned for the 13th November attack was simple and bold. The assault teams would leave the assault position in house 71, move straight into the courtyard of the Commissar's house guided and supported by troops of the 578th and destroy the front doors. From there the infantry would set up blocking positions along the wing halls and prevent the defenders from attacking into the front foyer area. Meanwhile, the Sappers would proceed to the second floor and clear the building from the top down. At 1000, the first of several assaults began. The meager number of troops of the 650th Rifle Regiment still in the building, successfully fought off the first few attempts to approach the Commissar's house. At 13:10, ten assault guns, including three of the new S.I.G. 33 Bravo vehicles, from the 245th Assault Gun Battalion arrived and began battering the building with 75 millimeter and 150 millimeter shells. The assault guns mission was to deny the upper story of the building. The heavy 150 millimeter shells reduced much of the second story to rubble and forced the survivors down to the first floor or to the cellar. Leonet Kyuken recalled the German attack. - [Leonet] The Germans formed a factory administration building, in which our civil guardsmen fought together for the soldiers of the 138th Rifle Division. The Germans fired at this bastion with artillery and mortars. Every window and breach in the walls were under the sights of hostile snipers. Flaring up in once place or the other in the building were fires, then suffocating smoke spread through every story. - [Narrator] Attacking from the vicinity of House 71, the German foothold near the Commissar's house, gas force advanced rapidly across Theater Park. Against a slackening fire, the assault teams rushed into the courtyard which under different circumstances would've made an excellent engagement area for the defenders. The German attack plan demonstrated the stages of a deliberate attack in urban terrain. Gas assault group moved along the inner-west wall of the compound with the Sappers advancing all the way to the blocked front doors. Surprisingly the German's had met little resistance from the building's defenders while advancing through the courtyard. While the infantry covered the inner-court windows, the engineers quickly set the charges against the heavily wooded doors and backed away. (exploding) The explosives readily blew a hole into the front entrance. After tossing several hand grenades through the opening, Sappers pushed into the foyer of the building followed by the assault troops of the 44th Stern Company and the 578th Grenadiers. The heavy construction of the building made movement inside an odd experience. The German soldiers left behind bright daylight and all the noise of battle on the outside and entered building that was initially silent and very gloomy, made more so by the dust and smoke from the grenades. The infantry support teams moved into the wing hallways and set up barricades to prevent attacks into the foyer area. They also shot down the hallways to prevent the defenders from escaping to the basement by using the stairwells at the west end of the building. While the infantry moved to set up the first four barricades to block Soviet attacks into the central foyer area, the Pioneers proceed upstairs to clear and secure the second floor and prepare to clear the remainder of the first floor from the rooms above. Small arms fire broke out to shatter the silence. On the second floor, two Sappers teams, one from each wing, started to clear the upper floor. After eliminating the initial resistance, the Pioneers enter the nearest rooms in the wings and place charges on the concrete floor. After blowing a hole in the floor, they dropped hand grenades into the room below to kill or maim any remaining defenders in the room. In a few cases, resistance was so stout that the Pioneers had to shoot flame throwers into the room below to be effective. In some rooms, the Soviet soldiers had knocked holes in the walls so that they could retreat or advance through the rooms more easily without venturing into the hallway. The holes also allowed them to quickly exit the room when grenades or satchel charges were dropped in from above. After each upper room was cleared, and the first floor room below it was likewise cleared, the Sapper teams advance to the next room, making their way towards the western stairwells. Soviet defenders knew that their only chance now was to move to the cellar. About 20 of them, many of whom were wounded, succeeded in escaping into the dark, smoky basement to continue the resistance there. Much as it had in the floors above the fighting continued there, with Germans continuing to blast holes in the floor, tossing down hand grenades, satchell charges, and attmpting to burn the tough, soviet defenders out with flame throwers. Germans even wrapped grenades against fuel cans, pulled the pins, and lowered the containers into the holes with rope. The detonations sent burning fuel in all directions and burned up much of the oxygen, however, the defenders held on for a while longer. To try to protect the wounded, the Soviets placed the man in the tunnel at the west end of the building. The fighting was bitter and lasted several hours. Finally, sometime after 16:00, a messenger from the Commissar's house arrived at house 53 and reported to Rettinmayer that the building was taken. And about the same time, the the 577th Grenadiers finally secured house 66 and 73 to the west as well. To the east, closer to the Volga, the attacks of the 162nd Pioneers and the 578th Grenadiers, initially made good progress. In fact, the 162nd Pioneers actually advanced almost to Lyudnikov's headquarters bunker, but the division commander, about 30 men from the division staff and an engineer detachment successfully fought off a German assault. The 162nd Poioneers and the 578th Grenadiers were both eventually driven back by Lyudnikov's counter attacks and the total yardage gain in those sectors only amounted about 70 meters for the day. Lyudnikov's actions illustrate the U.S. Army doctrine that advocates the use of counterattacks to retain the initiative, even when conducting a defense. Of the remaining 90 soldiers of the 650th Rifle Regiment defending in and near the Commissar's house on 13 November, 55 were killed or wounded. Only nine Russian defenders made it out of the building itself, one of whom was Klyuken. The wounded men in the tunnel apparently perished when it collapsed on them during the fighting. By midnight on 13 November, Lyudnikov was down to only 750 soldiers able to fight in the entire 138th Rifle Division. His island was getting smaller. The German casualties for 13 November were not clear. There were a total of 80 men killed and wounded in the entire 305th Infantry Division that day, not including any of the attached Pioneer Battalions. Some of the 305th casualties were undoubtedly from the elements of the 578th Grenadiers fighting at the Commissar's house. Gast's 50th Pioneer Battalion alone suffered another 50 men killed and wounded in the assault, most of whom were struck down on their way to, or in, the Commissar's house. The commander must plan for casualties in urban terrain which potentially inflict the highest casusalty rates. All offensive actions that do not achieve complete victory, reached a culminating point when the balance of strength shifts from the attacking force to it's opponent. When the offensive action halts the attacking unit can regain it's momentum, but normally this only happens after difficult fighting or after an operational pause. The fighting in the lower settlement area tapered off after 13 November, although the 305th Infantry Division slightly reduced the area of Lyudnikov's island. The men of the 138th Rifle Division successfully held on to their tow hold until the end of the battle. (threatening music) Operation Hubertus itself concluded on 18 November, 1942, but it was obvious before then that the effort had failed. The 62nd Army still held parts of the Red October and Barrikody factory complexes. Throughout the battle, Chuyikov's tough Soviet soldiers had held out against everything the Sixth Army could send against them, but just barely. When viewed through the lens of the current operating environment, the battle of Stalingrad provides current military professionals a superb case study for analyzing military operations in urban terrain. Although technology and tactics have changed the contemporary battlefield, one can still learn a great deal by examining the operations of two opponents who contended the city. Use a current U.S. Army doctrine to compare and contrast those operations. One can develop extremely useful insights and a greater understanding of the brutal and resource-intensive nature of city fighting. (threatening music)