Stalingrad, now Volgograd, was a city on the Volga River. It was an important industrial city, and the Volga was an important transport route. Hitler also wanted to capture Stalingrad because it was named after Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, thus it would embarrass him.
In June 1942, Adolf Hitler launched an attack in southern Russia. By the end of July the German army had reached Stalingrad. With bombs and fire the German Luftwaffe turned the city into ruins. However, the rubble made hiding places from which Russian snipers could attack the Germans. Hitler and Stalin sent in large numbers of soldiers. They both ordered that anyone who retreated would be shot on the spot for treason.
On 19 November 1942, the Red Army launched an attack which surrounded the Stalingrad area. Hitler ordered the army to stay there. The German air force tried to supply them by air. By February 1943, the German forces in Stalingrad had no ammunition and food. Rather than freeze, they surrendered, knowing the Soviets were usually cruel to their prisoners.
The battle lasted five months, one week, and three days. 1.6 million people dead or wounded in battle were reported. There were more Russian deaths than German, but it was a victory for the Russians. They had killed so many Germans that Hitler's overall plan to conquer the Soviet Union, started with Operation Barbarossa, was seriously weakened. Also, the Germans failed to get control of Russian oil fields.
About one quarter of the German Sixth Army's soldiers were Russian volunteers called HIWIs. The Battle of Stalingrad was the largest and deadliest battle in the history of warfare.
By the spring of 1942, the German Operation Barbarossa did not defeat the Soviet Union. The war was still going well for the Germans: the U-boat offensive in the Atlantic had been very successful and Rommel had just captured Tobruk.
In the east, they had captured land including Leningrad in the north and Rostov in the south. There were a number of places where Soviet attacks had pushed the Germans back (to the northwest of Moscow and south of Kharkov) but this did not threaten the Germans. Hitler was confident that he could beat the Red Army after the winter of 1941. Even though Army Group Centre had heavy losses near Moscow the previous winter, 65% of its infantry had not fought and had been rested and given new equipment. Army Groups North and South had also not had a hard time over the winter. Stalin was expecting German summer attacks to again be directed against Moscow.
The Germans decided that their summer campaign in 1942 would be directed at the southern parts of the Soviet Union. The Germans wanted to destroy Stalingrad's industries. The Germans also wanted to block the Volga River. The river was a route between the Caspian Sea and northern Russia. Capturing the river would make it hard for the Soviets to use the river to transport goods.
The German operations were initially very successful. On July 23, 1942, Hitler changed the goals for the 1942 attack. He made occupying Stalingrad one of the goals. The city was important, because it was named after Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union. The Germans thought that if they captured Stalingrad, it would help the northern and western parts of the German armies to attack Baku. The Germans wanted to capture Baku because it had a lot of oil.
The Soviets were aware of the German plan to attack. The Soviets ordered that anyone strong enough to hold a rifle be sent to fight.
On the 23 of August the 6th Army reached the edge of Stalingrad. They were following the 62nd and 64th Armies, which had gone back into the city. Kleist later said after the war:
The Soviets had enough warning of the German attack to move all the city's grain, cattle, and railway cars across the Volga. But most civilian residents stayed in the city. The city lacked food even before the German attack. The "Luftwaffe" air attacks made the Soviets unable to use the River Volga to bring supplies into the city. Between 25 and 31 July, 32 Soviet ships were sunk in the River Volga.
The battle began with the heavy bombing of the city by "Luftflotte 4". A 1,000 tons of bombs were dropped. Much of the city turned to rubble. Some factories continued to produce goods.
Stalin moved troops to the east bank of the Volga. All the regular ferries were destroyed by the Luftwaffe. The Luftwaffe also attacked troop barges. Many civilians were moved out of the city across the Volga. Stalin prevented most civilians from leaving the city because he thought that this would make the Soviet armies fight harder. Civilians, including women and children, were told to dig trenches. Massive German bombing on 23 August caused a firestorm. It killed thousands and turned Stalingrad into rubble and ruins. Between 23 and 26 August, 955 people were killed and another 1,181 wounded from the bombing.
The Soviet Air Force, the "Voenno-Vozdushnye Sily" (VVS), was destroyed by the Luftwaffe. The Soviets lost 201 aircraft between 23 and 31 August. They brought in another 100 aircraft in August. The Soviets continued to bring new planes into Stalingrad in late September, but they were destroyed by the Germans.
The city was briefly defended by the 1077th Anti-Aircraft Regiment, an all-women's regiment that was actually able to halt an entire German division due to their massive firepower. The Germans eventually swarmed and killed them, but were shocked to discover that this whole time they were being held back by young women that seemed fresh out of high school. In the battle, the NKVD organized "Workers' militias" who were often sent into battle without rifles.
By the end of August, Army Group South (B) had reached the Volga. By 1 September, the Soviets could only supply their forces in Stalingrad by crossing the Volga under constant bombing by artillery and aircraft.
On 5 September, the Soviet 24th and 66th Armies organized an attack against XIV Panzer Corps. The "Luftwaffe" helped stop the attack by attacking Soviet artillery and soldiers. The Soviets had to pull back. Of the 120 tanks the Soviets had sent into battle, 30 were lost to air attack.
The Soviets were always being attacked by the "Luftwaffe". On 18 September, the Soviet 1st Guards and 24th Army attacked VIII Army Corps . "VIII. Fliegerkorps" sent Stuka dive-bombers to prevent the Soviets from advancing. The Soviet attack was stopped. The Stukas destroyed 41 of the 106 Soviet tanks that were destroyed that morning. German Bf 109s destroyed 77 Soviet aircraft.
In the wrecked city, the Soviet 62nd and 64th Armies, which included the Soviet 13th Guards Rifle Division, used houses and factories to hide in.
Fighting in city was very violent. Stalin's Order No. 227 of 27 July 1942 decreed that all commanders who retreated without being told to do so would have to go to a military tribunal. "Not a step back!" was the slogan. The Germans attacking Stalingrad had many dead and wounded.
After three months of slow advance, the Wermacht finally reached the river banks. The Germans captured 90% of the ruined city and split the Soviet forces into two parts. Ice on the Volga river made it impossible for the Soviets to bring in supplies by boat.
German troops were not ready for fighting during the winter of 1942. The Stavka did a number of attacks between November 19, 1942 and February 2, 1943. These operations started the Winter Campaign of 1942-1943 (19 November 1942 – 3 March 1943), which involved 15 armies.
In autumn, the Soviet generals Georgy Zhukov and Aleksandr Vasilevsky gathered their soldiers in the north and south of the city. The northern side was defended by Hungarian, and Romanian troops. The Don river had never been defended well by the German side. The Soviet plan was to attack and surround the German forces in the Stalingrad region.
The operation was code-named "Uran". It started with Operation Mars, aimed at Army Group Center.