Detailed map of Stalingrad 1942. Battle of Stalingrad defense of the Soviet troops. Map of the Battle of Stalingrad

Taking into account the tasks to be solved, the peculiarities of the conduct of hostilities by the parties, the spatial and temporal scale, as well as the results, the Battle of Stalingrad includes two periods: defensive - from July 17 to November 18, 1942; offensive - from November 19, 1942 to February 2, 1943

The strategic defensive operation in the Stalingrad direction lasted 125 days and nights and included two stages. The first stage is the conduct of defensive combat operations by the troops of the fronts on the distant approaches to Stalingrad (July 17 - September 12). The second stage is the conduct of defensive operations to hold Stalingrad (September 13 - November 18, 1942).

The German command delivered the main blow with the forces of the 6th Army in the direction of Stalingrad along the shortest path through the large bend of the Don from the west and southwest, just in the defense zones of the 62nd (commander - major general, from August 3 - lieutenant general , from September 6 - major general, from September 10 - lieutenant general) and the 64th (commander - lieutenant general V.I. Chuikov, from August 4 - lieutenant general) armies. The operational initiative was in the hands of the German command with almost double superiority in forces and means.

defensive fighting troops of the fronts on the distant approaches to Stalingrad (July 17 - September 12)

The first stage of the operation began on July 17, 1942, in a large bend of the Don, with combat contact between units of the 62nd Army and the forward detachments of German troops. Fierce battles ensued. The enemy had to deploy five divisions out of fourteen and spend six days to approach the main line of defense of the troops of the Stalingrad Front. However, under the onslaught of superior enemy forces, Soviet troops were forced to retreat to new, poorly equipped or even unequipped lines. But even under these conditions, they inflicted significant losses on the enemy.

By the end of July, the situation in the Stalingrad direction continued to be very tense. German troops deeply covered both flanks of the 62nd Army, reached the Don in the Nizhne-Chirskaya area, where the 64th Army held the defense, and created the threat of a breakthrough to Stalingrad from the southwest.

Due to the increased width of the defense zone (about 700 km), by the decision of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, the Stalingrad Front, commanded by Lieutenant General from July 23, was divided on August 5 into the Stalingrad and South-Eastern fronts. In order to achieve closer interaction between the troops of both fronts, from August 9, the leadership of the defense of Stalingrad was united in one hand, in connection with which the Stalingrad Front was subordinated to the commander of the troops of the South-Eastern Front, Colonel General.

By mid-November, the advance of the German troops was stopped on the entire front. The enemy was forced to finally go on the defensive. On this strategic defensive operation Battle of Stalingrad ended. The troops of the Stalingrad, South-Eastern and Don fronts fulfilled their tasks, holding back the powerful offensive of the enemy in the Stalingrad direction, creating the prerequisites for a counteroffensive.

During the defensive battles, the Wehrmacht suffered huge losses. In the struggle for Stalingrad, the enemy lost about 700,000 killed and wounded, over 2,000 guns and mortars, over 1,000 tanks and assault guns, and over 1,400 combat and transport aircraft. Instead of a non-stop advance to the Volga, the enemy troops were drawn into protracted, exhausting battles in the Stalingrad region. The plan of the German command for the summer of 1942 was frustrated. At the same time, the Soviet troops also suffered heavy losses in personnel - 644 thousand people, of which 324 thousand people were irretrievable, and 320 thousand were sanitary people. The losses of weapons amounted to: about 1400 tanks, more than 12 thousand guns and mortars and more than 2 thousand aircraft.

Soviet troops continued to advance

178. Soviet machine-gun crew changes firing position in a broken house in Stalingrad. 1942

179. Soviet soldiers hold the line in a broken house in Stalingrad. 1942

180. German soldiers surrounded near Stalingrad.

181. The attack of Soviet soldiers on a destroyed house captured by German troops in Stalingrad. 1942

182. The assault group of the 13th Guards Division is clearing houses in Stalingrad, destroying enemy soldiers. 1942

183. Mortar I.G. Goncharov and G.A. Gafatulin firing at German positions in the Stalingrad area from a 120-mm mortar. 1942

184. Soviet snipers go to a firing position in a destroyed house in Stalingrad. January 1943

185. Commander of the 62nd Army of the Stalingrad Front, Lieutenant General t Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov (with a stick) and a member of the military council of the Stalingrad Front, Lieutenant General t Kuzma Akimovich Gurov (according to left hand Chuikov) near Stalingrad. 1943

186. Captured Germans on the streets of Stalingrad.

187. German prisoners walk past the frozen corpse of a German soldier. Stalingrad. 1943

188. The German self-propelled guns Marder III abandoned near Stalingrad. 1943

189. Soviet signalmen are laying a telephone line in the Stalingrad area. 1943

190. A Soviet officer inspects a German tank Pz.II Ausf. F, captured by Soviet troops on the farm Sukhanovsky. Don front. December 1942

191. Member of the Military Council N.S. Khrushchev inspects a captured German tank Pz.Kpfw. IV in Stalingrad. December 28, 1942

192. German gunners move the LeIG 18 gun in the battle in Stalingrad. September 1942

193. Railway platforms with Soviet bombs found by the Germans in the courtyard of one of the destroyed factories in Stalingrad. November 1942

194. The corpse of a German soldier at the direction signs near Stalingrad. February 1943

195. Broken German fighter Messerschmitt Bf.109 near Stalingrad. 1943

196. Captured German aircraft near Stalingrad and ... a samovar. 1943

197. Romanian prisoners of war taken prisoner in the area of the village of Raspopinskaya near the city of Kalach. On November 24, 1942, the troops of the Southwestern Front, having defeated the Romanian troops surrounded there, took 30 thousand prisoners and captured a lot of equipment.

198. Soviet assault group before the attack in Stalingrad. 1942

199. Soviet soldiers in battle in Stalingrad. Autumn 1942

200. A string of German prisoners of war near Stalingrad. February 1943

201. A German soldier cleans his carbine during a short break between battles in Stalingrad. Autumn 1942.

202. Soviet soldiers on the streets of Stalingrad, hiding under a tarpaulin. February 1943

203. Frost-covered bodies of two German soldiers in positions near Stalingrad. 1942

204. Soviet aircraft technicians remove machine guns from a German fighter Messerschmitt Bf.109. Stalingrad. 1943

205. German assault group on the ruins of a factory in Stalingrad. Late September - early October 1942.

206. First Heroes Soviet Union in the 16th Air Army, awarded 01/28/1943. From left to right: V.N. Makarov, I.P. Motor and Z.V. Semenyuk. All of them served in the 512th Fighter Aviation Regiment.

207. Killed German soldiers near Stalingrad, winter 1942-1943

208. Medical Girl The teacher accompanies a wounded soldier in Stalingrad. 1942

209. Soviet soldiers in battle among the destroyed buildings in Stalingrad. 1942

210. Soviet troops in battle in Stalingrad. January 1943

211. Killed soldiers of the 4th Romanian army near Lake Barmatsak, Stalingrad region. 11/20/1942

212. The command post of the 178th Artillery Regiment (45th Rifle Division), Major Rostovtsev, in the basement of the calibration shop of the Krasny Oktyabr plant. December 1942

213. Captured in good condition German tank Pz.Kpfw. IV. The territory of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant. 02/01/1943

214. The retreat of the German units of Army Group "Don" after an unsuccessful attempt to deblock Stalingrad. January 1943

215. Stalingrad after the end of the Battle of Stalingrad. The skeleton of a downed German He-111 bomber from the KG.55 "Greif" bomber group (griffin on the emblem). 1943

216. Feldmar General shal Friedrich Paulus (left), commander of the 6th Wehrmacht army encircled in Stalingrad, chief of his staff, lieutenant general t Arthur Schmidt (Arthur Schmidt) and his adjutant Wilhelm Adam (Wilhelm Adam) after surrendering. Stalingrad, Beketovka, headquarters of the Soviet 64th Army. 01/31/1943

217. Fight in one of the shops of the plant "Red October". December 1942

218. Taking the oath at the banner by marching reinforcements in the 39th Guards Rifle Division on the banks of the Volga, behind the Red October plant. On the left is the commander of the 62nd Army, Lieutenant General t V.I. Chuikov (39th division was part of the 62nd army), the banner is held by the commander of the division, Major General S.S. Guriev. December 1942

219. Gun crew of sergeant A.G. Serov (45th Infantry Division) in one of the shops of the Red October plant in Stalingrad. December 1942

220. Commander of the 65th Army of the Don Front, Lieutenant General t P.I. Batov with officers in the Stalingrad area. Winter 1942/43.

221. Frontline road near the village of Gorodishche near Stalingrad, an abandoned armored car and a dead German soldier.

222. Evacuation of wounded Soviet soldiers. Plant "Barricades", Stalingrad. December 1942

223. Captured Germans from the 11th Infantry Corps, Colonel General ka Karl Strecker, who surrendered on February 2, 1943. District of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant. 02/02/1943

224. German transport aircraft Ju-52, captured by Soviet troops near Stalingrad. November 1942

225. Warming up Ju-52 engines with a heat gun at the Pitomnik airfield (Stalingrad region). January 1943

226. The reconnaissance group of the 39th Guards Rifle Division leaves for a combat mission. Plant "Red October". Stalingrad. 1943

227. Rally in the liberated Stalingrad. February 1943

228. The calculation of the Soviet 14.5-mm anti-tank gun Degtyarev PTRD-41 in the Stalingrad region. 1943

How did the victory of the Soviet Union in the Battle of Stalingrad affect the course of the war. What role did Stalingrad play in the plans of Nazi Germany and what were the consequences. The course of the Battle of Stalingrad, losses on both sides, its significance and historical results.

The Battle of Stalingrad - the beginning of the end of the Third Reich

During the winter-spring campaign of 1942, the situation on the Soviet-German front was unfavorable for the Red Army. A number of unsuccessful offensive operations were carried out, which in some cases had a certain small-town success, but on the whole ended in failure. The Soviet troops failed to take full advantage of the winter offensive of 1941, as a result of which they lost very advantageous bridgeheads and areas. In addition, a significant part of the strategic reserve, intended for major offensive operations, was involved. The headquarters incorrectly determined the directions of the main attacks, assuming that the main events in the summer of 1942 would unfold in the northwest and center of Russia. The southern and southeastern directions were given secondary importance. In the autumn of 1941, orders were given to build defensive lines on the Don, the North Caucasus and the Stalingrad direction, but they did not have time to complete their equipment by the summer of 1942.

The enemy, unlike our troops, had full control of the strategic initiative. His main task for the summer - autumn of 1942 was to capture the main raw materials, industrial and agricultural regions of the Soviet Union. The leading role in this was assigned to Army Group South, which suffered the least losses since the beginning of the war against the USSR and had the greatest combat potential.

By the end of spring, it became clear that the enemy was rushing to the Volga. As the chronicle of events has shown, the main battles will unfold on the outskirts of Stalingrad, and later in the city itself.

The course of the battle

The Battle of Stalingrad of 1942-1943 will last 200 days and will become the largest and most bloody battle not only of the Second World War, but in the entire history of the 20th century. The course of the Battle of Stalingrad is divided into two stages:

defense on the outskirts and in the city itself;
strategic offensive operation of the Soviet troops.

The plans of the parties to the beginning of the battle

By the spring of 1942, Army Group South was divided into two parts - A and B. Army Group "A" was intended to attack the Caucasus, this was the main direction, Army Group "B" - to deliver a secondary blow to Stalingrad. The subsequent course of events will change the priority of these tasks.

By mid-July 1942, the enemy captured the Donbass, pushed our troops back to Voronezh, captured Rostov and managed to force the Don. The Nazis entered the operational space and created a real threat to the North Caucasus and Stalingrad.

Map of the "Battle of Stalingrad"

Initially, Army Group A, advancing into the Caucasus, was given an entire tank army and several formations from Army Group B to emphasize the importance of this direction.

Army Group "B" after forcing the Don was intended to equip defensive positions, simultaneously occupy the isthmus between the Volga and the Don and, moving in the interfluve, strike in the direction of Stalingrad. The city was instructed to occupy and then advance with mobile formations along the Volga to Astrakhan, finally violating transport connection along the main river of the country.

The Soviet command decided to prevent the capture of the city and the exit of the Nazis to the Volga with the help of stubborn defense of four unfinished lines in engineering terms - the so-called bypasses. Due to the untimely determination of the direction of the enemy's movement and miscalculations in the planning of military operations in the spring-summer campaign, the Stavka was unable to concentrate the necessary forces in this sector. The newly created Stalingrad Front had only 3 armies from the deep reserve and 2 air armies. Later, it included several more formations, units and formations of the Southern Front, which suffered significant losses in the Caucasus direction. By this time, major changes had taken place in command and control of the troops. The fronts began to report directly to the Stavka, and its representative was included in the command of each front. On the Stalingrad front, this role was performed by General of the Army Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov.

The number of troops, the balance of forces and means at the beginning of the battle

The defensive stage of the Battle of Stalingrad began difficult for the Red Army. The Wehrmacht had superiority over the Soviet troops:

in personnel by 1.7 times;
in tanks by 1.3 times;
in artillery by 1.3 times;
in aircraft more than 2 times.

Despite the fact that the Soviet command continuously increased the number of troops, gradually transferring formations and units from the depths of the country, it was not possible to fully occupy the defense zone with a width of more than 500 kilometers. The activity of enemy tank formations was very high. At the same time, aviation superiority was overwhelming. The German Air Force had complete air supremacy.

Battle of Stalingrad - fighting on the outskirts

On July 17, the forward detachments of our troops entered into battle with the enemy's vanguard. This date was the beginning of the battle. During the first six days, the pace of the offensive was slowed down, but it still remained very high. On July 23, the enemy made an attempt to encircle one of our armies with powerful blows from the flanks. The command of the Soviet troops in a short time had to prepare two counterattacks, which were carried out from July 25 to 27. These strikes prevented the encirclement. By July 30, the German command threw all the reserves into battle. The offensive potential of the Nazis was exhausted. The enemy went over to a forced defense, waiting for reinforcements to arrive. Already on August 1, the tank army, transferred to Army Group A, was returned back to the Stalingrad direction.

During the first 10 days of August, the enemy was able to reach the outer defensive line, and in some places even break through it. Due to the active actions of the enemy, the defense zone of our troops grew from 500 to 800 kilometers, which forced our command to divide the Stalingrad Front into two independent ones - the Stalingrad and the newly formed South-East, which included the 62nd Army. Until the end of the battle, the commander of the 62nd Army was V. I. Chuikov.

Until August 22, hostilities continued on the outer defensive bypass. Stubborn defense was combined with offensive actions, but it was not possible to keep the enemy at this line. The enemy overcame the middle bypass practically on the move, and on August 23 the fighting began on the inner defensive line. On the near approaches to the city, the Nazis were met by the NKVD troops of the Stalingrad garrison. On the same day, the enemy broke through to the Volga north of the city, cutting off our combined arms army from the main forces of the Stalingrad Front. German aircraft inflicted enormous damage that day with a massive raid on the city. The central regions were destroyed, our troops suffered serious losses, including an increase in the number of deaths among the population. There were more than 40 thousand dead and died from wounds - the elderly, women, children.

On the southern approaches the situation was no less tense: the enemy broke through the outer and middle defensive lines. Our army launched counterattacks, trying to restore the situation, but the Wehrmacht troops methodically advanced towards the city.

The situation was very difficult. The enemy was in close proximity to the city. Under these conditions, Stalin decided to strike a little to the north in order to weaken the onslaught of the enemy. In addition, it took time to prepare the city defensive bypass for combat operations.

By September 12, the front line came close to Stalingrad and passed 10 kilometers from the city. It was necessary to urgently weaken the onslaught of the enemy. Stalingrad was located in a semicircle, covered from the northeast and southwest by two tank armies. By this time, the main forces of Stalingrad and Southeastern Fronts occupied the city defensive bypass. With the withdrawal of the main forces of our troops to the outskirts, the defensive period of the Battle of Stalingrad on the outskirts of the city ended.

City defense

By mid-September, the enemy had practically doubled the number and armament of his troops. The grouping was increased due to the transfer of formations from the west and the Caucasian direction. A significant proportion of them were the troops of Germany's satellites - Romania and Italy. Hitler, at a meeting at the headquarters of the Wehrmacht, which was located in Vinnitsa, demanded that the commander of Army Group B, General Weikhe, and the commander of the 6th Army, General Paulus, take over Stalingrad as soon as possible.

The Soviet command also increased the grouping of its troops, pushing reserves from the depths of the country and replenishing the already existing units with personnel and weapons. By the beginning of the struggle for the city itself, the balance of power was still on the side of the enemy. If parity was observed in terms of personnel, then the Nazis outnumbered our troops by 1.3 times in artillery, 1.6 times in tanks, and 2.6 times in aircraft.

On September 13, with two powerful blows, the enemy launched an attack on the central part of the city. These two groups included up to 350 tanks. The enemy managed to advance to the factory areas and come close to Mamayev Kurgan. The actions of the enemy were actively supported by aviation. It should be noted that, having command of the air, the German planes inflicted enormous damage on the defenders of the city. Aviation of the Nazis for the entire period of the Battle of Stalingrad made an unimaginable number, even by the standards of the Second World War, sorties, turning the city into ruins.

Trying to weaken the onslaught, the Soviet command planned a counterattack. To accomplish this task, a rifle division was brought in from the Headquarters reserve. On September 15 and 16, its soldiers managed to complete the main task - to prevent the enemy from reaching the Volga in the center of the city. Two battalions occupied Mamaev Kurgan - the dominant height. On the 17th, another brigade from the Stavka reserve was transferred there.
Simultaneously with the fighting in the city north of Stalingrad, the offensive operations of our three armies continued with the task of drawing part of the enemy forces away from the city. Unfortunately, the advance was extremely slow, but forced the enemy to continuously condense the defenses in this sector. Thus, this offensive played its positive role.

On September 18, two counterattacks from the Mamaev Kurgan area were prepared, and on the 19th, two counterattacks were delivered. The strikes continued until September 20, but did not lead to a significant change in the situation.

On September 21, the Nazis resumed their breakthrough to the Volga in the center of the city with fresh forces, but all their attacks were repulsed. The fighting for these areas continued until 26 September.

The first assault on the city by Nazi troops from 13 to 26 September brought them limited success. The enemy reached the Volga in the central regions of the city and on the left flank.
From September 27, the German command, without weakening the onslaught in the center, concentrated on the outskirts of the city and factory areas. As a result, by October 8, the enemy managed to capture all the dominant heights on the western outskirts. From them, the city was completely visible, as well as the channel of the Volga. Thus, the crossing of the river became even more complicated, the maneuver of our troops was constrained. However, the offensive potential of the German armies was coming to an end. A regrouping and replenishment was needed.

At the end of the month, the situation demanded that the Soviet command reorganize the control system. The Stalingrad Front was renamed the Don Front, and the South-Eastern Front was renamed the Stalingrad Front. The 62nd Army, proven in battle in the most dangerous sectors, was included in the Don Front.

In early October, the Wehrmacht headquarters planned a general assault on the city, having managed to concentrate large forces on almost all sectors of the front. On October 9, the attackers resumed their attacks on the city. They managed to capture a number of Stalingrad industrial settlements and part of the Tractor Plant, cut one of our armies into several parts and reach the Volga in a narrow section of 2.5 kilometers. Gradually, the activity of the enemy faded. On November 11, the last assault attempt was made. After the losses suffered, the German troops went on the defensive on November 18. On this day, the defensive stage of the battle ended, but the Battle of Stalingrad itself was only approaching its climax.

Results of the defensive stage of the battle

The main task of the defensive stage was completed - the Soviet troops managed to defend the city, bled the enemy's strike groups and prepared the conditions for the start of a counteroffensive. The enemy suffered unprecedented losses before. According to various estimates, they amounted to about 700 thousand killed, up to 1000 tanks, about 1400 guns and mortars, 1400 aircraft.

The defense of Stalingrad gave invaluable experience to commanders of all levels in command and control. Methods and methods of conducting combat operations in the conditions of the city, tested in Stalingrad, subsequently turned out to be in demand more than once. The defensive operation contributed to the development of Soviet military art, revealed the military leadership qualities of many military leaders, and became a school of combat skill for every soldier of the Red Army without exception.

Soviet losses were also very high - about 640 thousand personnel, 1400 tanks, 2000 aircraft and 12000 guns and mortars.

The offensive stage of the Battle of Stalingrad

The strategic offensive operation began on November 19, 1942 and ended on February 2, 1943. It was carried out by the forces of three fronts.

To make a decision on a counteroffensive, at least three conditions must be met. First, the enemy must be stopped. Secondly, he should not have strong immediate reserves. Thirdly, the availability of forces and means sufficient to carry out the operation. By mid-November, all these conditions were met.

The plans of the parties, the balance of forces and means

On November 14, according to Hitler's directive, the German troops went over to strategic defense. Offensive operations continued only in the Stalingrad direction, where the enemy stormed the city. The troops of Army Group "B" took up defenses from Voronezh in the north to the Manych River in the south. The most combat-ready units were near Stalingrad, and the flanks were defended by the Romanian and Italian troops. In reserve, the commander of the army group had 8 divisions, due to the activity of the Soviet troops along the entire length of the front, he was limited in the depth of their application.

The Soviet command planned to carry out the operation with the forces of the Southwestern, Stalingrad and Don fronts. Their tasks were as follows:

South-Western Front - a strike force consisting of three armies, go on the offensive in the direction of the city of Kalach, defeat the 3rd Romanian army and reach the connection with the troops of the Stalingrad Front by the end of the third day of the operation.
The Stalingrad Front - a strike force consisting of three armies, go on the offensive in the north-western direction, defeat the 6th Army Corps of the Romanian Army and unite with the troops of the South-Western Front.
Don Front - by strikes of two armies in converging directions to surround the enemy with subsequent destruction in a small bend of the Don.

The difficulty was that in order to carry out encirclement tasks, it was necessary to use significant forces and means to create an internal front - to defeat the German troops inside the ring, and an external one - to prevent the release of those surrounded from the outside.

Soviet counter planning offensive operation began in mid-October, at the height of the battles for Stalingrad. By order of the Headquarters, the front commanders managed to create the necessary superiority in personnel and equipment before the start of the offensive. On the Southwestern Front, Soviet troops outnumbered the Nazis in personnel by 1.1, in artillery by 1.4 and in tanks by 2.8 times. In the zone of the Don Front, the ratio was as follows - in personnel 1.5 times, in artillery 2.4 times in favor of our troops, in tanks parity. The superiority of the Stalingrad Front was: in personnel - 1.1, in artillery - 1.2, in tanks - 3.2 times.

It is noteworthy that the concentration of strike groups took place covertly, only at night and in bad weather conditions.

A characteristic feature of the developed operation was the principle of massing aviation and artillery in the directions of the main attacks. It was possible to achieve an unprecedented density of artillery - in some areas it reached 117 units per kilometer of the front.

Difficult tasks were assigned to the engineering units and subdivisions. A huge amount of work had to be done to clear mine areas, terrain and roads, and build crossings.

The course of the offensive operation

The operation began as planned on 19 November. The offensive was preceded by a powerful artillery preparation.

In the first hours, the troops of the Southwestern Front wedged into the enemy defenses to a depth of 3 kilometers. Developing the offensive and introducing fresh forces into battle, our strike groups advanced 30 kilometers by the end of the first day, and thereby enveloped the enemy from the flanks.

Things were more complicated at the Don Front. There, our troops encountered stubborn resistance in conditions of extremely difficult terrain and saturation of the enemy defenses with mine-explosive barriers. By the end of the first day, the wedging depth was 3-5 kilometers. Subsequently, the troops of the front were drawn into protracted battles and the 4th tank enemy army managed to avoid encirclement.

For the Nazi command, the counteroffensive came as a surprise. Hitler's directive on the transition to strategic defensive actions was dated November 14, but they did not have time to go over to it. On November 18, in Stalingrad, the Nazi troops were still on the offensive. The command of Army Group "B" erroneously determined the direction of the main attacks of the Soviet troops. On the first day, it was at a loss, only sending telegrams to the Wehrmacht headquarters with a statement of facts. The commander of Army Group B, General Weikhe, ordered the commander of the 6th Army to stop the offensive in Stalingrad and to allocate the necessary number of formations in order to stop the Russian pressure and cover the flanks. As a result of the measures taken, resistance in the offensive zone of the Southwestern Front increased.

On November 20, the offensive of the Stalingrad Front began, which once again came as a complete surprise to the leadership of the Wehrmacht. The Nazis urgently needed to find a way out of the current situation.

On the first day, the troops of the Stalingrad Front broke through the enemy defenses and advanced to a depth of 40 kilometers, and on the second day to another 15. By November 22, a distance of 80 kilometers remained between the troops of our two fronts.

On the same day, units of the Southwestern Front crossed the Don and captured the city of Kalach.
The headquarters of the Wehrmacht did not stop trying to find a way out of a difficult situation. Two tank armies were ordered to be transferred from the North Caucasus. Paulus was ordered not to leave Stalingrad. Hitler did not want to put up with the fact that he would have to retreat from the Volga. The consequences of this decision will be fatal both for the army of Paulus and for everyone. Nazi German troops.

By November 22, the distance between the forward units of the Stalingrad and Southwestern fronts had been reduced to 12 kilometers. At 16.00 on November 23, the fronts connected. The encirclement of the enemy grouping was completed. In the Stalingrad "cauldron" were 22 divisions and auxiliary units. In the same day Romanian corps numbering almost 27 thousand people were taken prisoner.

However, a number of difficulties arose. The total length of the outer front was very large, almost 450 kilometers, and the distance between the inner and outer fronts was insufficient. The task was to move the external front as far west as possible in the shortest possible time in order to isolate the encircled Paulus grouping and prevent its deblockade from the outside. At the same time, it was necessary to create powerful reserves for stability. At the same time, the formations on the internal front had to start destroying the enemy in the "cauldron" in a short time.

Until November 30, the troops of three fronts tried to cut the encircled 6th Army into pieces, while simultaneously squeezing the ring. To this day, the area occupied by enemy troops has decreased by half.

It should be noted that the enemy stubbornly resisted, skillfully using reserves. In addition, an assessment of his strength was incorrectly made. The General Staff assumed that there were approximately 90,000 Nazis surrounded, while the actual number exceeded 300,000.

Paulus turned to the Fuhrer with a request for independence in decision-making. Hitler deprived him of this right, ordered him to remain surrounded and wait for help.

The counteroffensive did not end with the encirclement of the grouping, the Soviet troops seized the initiative. Soon it was necessary to complete the defeat of the enemy troops.

Operation Saturn and the Ring

The headquarters of the Wehrmacht and the command of Army Group "B" began the formation in early December of the Army Group "Don", designed to release the group, which was surrounded near Stalingrad. This group included formations deployed from near Voronezh, Orel, the North Caucasus, from France, as well as parts of the 4th tank army that escaped the environment. At the same time, the balance of forces in favor of the enemy was overwhelming. In the breakthrough area, he outnumbered the Soviet troops in men and artillery by 2 times, and in tanks by 6 times.

Soviet troops in December had to start solving several tasks at once:

Developing the offensive, defeat the enemy on the Middle Don - Operation Saturn was developed to solve it
Prevent the breakthrough of Army Group "Don" to the 6th Army
Eliminate the encircled enemy grouping - for this they developed the operation "Ring".

On December 12, the enemy launched an offensive. At first, using a large superiority in tanks, the Germans broke through the defenses and advanced 25 kilometers in the first day. For 7 days of the offensive operation, enemy forces approached the encircled grouping at a distance of 40 kilometers. The Soviet command urgently activated the reserves.

Map of Operation Little Saturn

In the current situation, the Headquarters made adjustments to the plan for Operation Saturn. The troops of the South-Western part of the forces of the Voronezh Front, instead of attacking Rostov, were ordered to move it to the southeast, take the enemy in pincers and go to the rear of the Don Army Group. The operation was called "Little Saturn". It began on December 16, and in the first three days it was possible to break through the defenses and penetrate to a depth of 40 kilometers. Using the advantage in maneuverability, bypassing pockets of resistance, our troops rushed behind enemy lines. Within two weeks, they fettered the actions of the Don Army Group and forced the Nazis to go on the defensive, thereby depriving the last hope of the Paulus troops.

On December 24, after a short artillery preparation, the Stalingrad Front launched an offensive, delivering the main blow in the direction of Kotelnikovsky. On December 26, the city was liberated. Subsequently, the troops of the front were given the task of eliminating the Tormosinsk grouping, which they coped with by December 31. From this date, a regrouping began for an attack on Rostov.

As a result of successful operations in the Middle Don and in the Kotelnikovsky area, our troops managed to thwart the plans of the Wehrmacht to release the encircled group, defeat large formations and units of the German, Italian and Romanian troops, move the external front from the Stalingrad "cauldron" by 200 kilometers.

Aviation, meanwhile, took the encircled grouping into a tight blockade, minimizing attempts by the Wehrmacht headquarters to supply the 6th Army.

Operation Saturn

From January 10 to February 2, the command of the Soviet troops carried out an operation code-named "Ring" to eliminate the encircled 6th Army of the Nazis. Initially, it was assumed that the encirclement and destruction of the enemy grouping would take place in a shorter time, but the lack of forces of the fronts affected, which on the move failed to cut the enemy grouping into pieces. The activity of the German troops outside the cauldron delayed part of the forces, and the enemy himself inside the ring had by no means weakened by that time.

The Stavka entrusted the operation to the Don Front. In addition, part of the forces was allocated by the Stalingrad Front, which by that time had been renamed the Southern Front and received the task of advancing on Rostov. The commander of the Don Front in the Battle of Stalingrad, General Rokossovsky, decided to dismember the enemy grouping and destroy it piece by piece with powerful cutting blows from west to east.
The balance of forces and means did not give confidence in the success of the operation. The enemy outnumbered the troops of the Don Front in personnel and tanks by 1.2 times and was inferior in artillery by 1.7 and aviation by 3 times. True, due to a lack of fuel, he could not fully use motorized and tank formations.

Operation Ring

On January 8, a message was brought to the Nazis with a proposal for surrender, which they rejected.
On January 10, under the cover of artillery preparation, the offensive of the Don Front began. During the first day, the attackers managed to advance to a depth of 8 kilometers. Artillery units and formations supported the troops with a new type of accompanying fire at that time, which is called the "barrage".

The enemy fought on the same defensive contours on which the Battle of Stalingrad began for our troops. By the end of the second day, the Nazis, under the onslaught of the Soviet army, began to randomly retreat to Stalingrad.

Surrender of the Nazi troops

On January 17, the width of the encirclement strip was reduced by seventy kilometers. A repeated proposal to lay down their arms followed, which was also ignored. Until the end of the Battle of Stalingrad, calls for surrender from the Soviet command came regularly.

On January 22, the offensive continued. In four days, the depth of advancement was another 15 kilometers. By January 25, the enemy was squeezed into a narrow patch measuring 3.5 by 20 kilometers. The next day, this strip was cut into two parts, northern and southern. On January 26, in the area of Mamaev Kurgan, a historic meeting of the two armies of the front took place.

Until January 31, stubborn fighting continued. On this day, the southern group stopped resisting. The officers and generals of the headquarters of the 6th Army, led by Paulus, surrendered. On the eve of Hitler awarded him the rank of field marshal. The northern group continued to resist. Only on February 1, after a powerful artillery fire raid, did the enemy begin to surrender. On February 2, the fighting stopped completely. A report was sent to Headquarters about the end of the Battle of Stalingrad.

On February 3, the troops of the Don Front began to regroup for further actions in the direction of Kursk.

Losses in the Battle of Stalingrad

All stages of the Battle of Stalingrad were very bloody. Losses on both sides were colossal. Until now, data from different sources are very different from each other. It is generally accepted that the Soviet Union lost over 1.1 million people killed. On the part of the Nazi troops, the total losses are estimated at 1.5 million people, of which the Germans make up about 900 thousand people, the rest are the losses of the satellites. Data on the number of prisoners also vary, but on average their number is close to 100 thousand people.

Equipment losses were also significant. The Wehrmacht missed about 2,000 tanks and assault guns, 10,000 guns and mortars, 3,000 aircraft, 70,000 vehicles.

The consequences of the Battle of Stalingrad became fatal for the Reich. It was from this moment that Germany began to experience a mobilization hunger.

Significance of the Battle of Stalingrad

The victory in this battle served as a turning point in the course of the entire Second World War. In figures and facts, the Battle of Stalingrad can be represented as follows. The Soviet army completely defeated 32 divisions, 3 brigades, 16 divisions were severely defeated, and it took a long time to restore their combat capability. Our troops pushed the front line hundreds of kilometers away from the Volga and Don.
A major defeat shook the unity of the allies of the Reich. The destruction of the Romanian and Italian armies forced the leadership of these countries to think about withdrawing from the war. The victory in the Battle of Stalingrad, and then the successful offensive operations in the Caucasus, convinced Turkey not to join the war against the Soviet Union.

The Battle of Stalingrad, and then the Battle of Kursk, finally secured the strategic initiative for the USSR. Great Patriotic War lasted another two years, but events no longer developed according to the plans of the fascist leadership

The beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad in July 1942 was unsuccessful for the Soviet Union, the reasons for this are well known. The more valuable and significant for us is the victory in it. Throughout the battle, previously unknown to a wide range of people, military leaders were becoming, gaining combat experience. By the end of the battle on the Volga, these were already the commanders of the great Battle of Stalingrad. Front commanders every day gained invaluable experience in managing large military formations, used new techniques and methods of using various types of troops.

The victory in the battle was of great moral importance for the Soviet army. She managed to crush the strongest opponent, inflict a defeat on him, after which he could not recover. The exploits of the defenders of Stalingrad served as an example for all the soldiers of the Red Army.

The course, results, maps, diagrams, facts, memoirs of the participants in the Battle of Stalingrad are still the subject of study in academies and military schools.

In December 1942, the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" was established. Over 700 thousand people have been awarded with it. 112 people became heroes of the Soviet Union in the Battle of Stalingrad.

The dates of November 19 and February 2 have become memorable. For the special merits of the artillery units and formations, the day the counteroffensive began became a holiday - the Day missile troops and artillery. The day of the end of the Battle of Stalingrad is marked as the Day military glory. On May 1, 1945, Stalingrad bears the title of Hero City.

Of course, 1 German soldier can kill 10 Soviet ones. But when the 11th comes, what will he do?
Franz Halder

Stalingrad was the main goal of the German summer offensive campaign. However, on the way to the city it was necessary to overcome the Crimean defenses. And here the Soviet command unwittingly, of course, but made life easier for the enemy. In May 1942, a massive Soviet offensive began in the Kharkov region. The problem is that this offensive was unprepared and turned into a terrible disaster. More than 200 thousand people were killed, 775 tanks and 5000 guns were lost. As a result, the complete strategic advantage in the southern sector of hostilities was in the hands of Germany. The 6th and 4th German tank armies crossed the Don and began to move inland. The Soviet army retreated, not having time to cling to the advantageous lines of defense. Surprisingly, for the second year in a row, the German offensive turned out to be completely unexpected for the Soviet command. The only advantage of the 42nd year was only that now the Soviet units did not allow themselves to be easily surrounded.

Beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad

On July 17, 1942, the troops of the 62nd and 64th Soviet armies entered the battle on the Chir River. In the future, it is this battle that historians will call the beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad. For a correct understanding further developments It should be noted that the successes of the German army in the offensive campaign for 42 years were so amazing that Hitler decided, simultaneously with the offensive in the South, to intensify the offensive in the North, capturing Leningrad. This is not just a historical retreat, because as a result of this decision, the 11th German army under the command of Manstein was transferred from Sevastopol to Leningrad. Manstein himself and also Halder opposed this decision, arguing that the German army might not have enough reserves for southern front. But this was very important, since Germany was simultaneously solving several problems in the south:

The capture of Stalingrad as a symbol of the fall of the leaders of the Soviet people.
capture southern regions with oil. It was a more important and more mundane task.

July 23 Hitler signs directive number 45, which indicates the main goal of the German offensive: Leningrad, Stalingrad, the Caucasus.

On July 24, Wehrmacht troops captured Rostov-on-Don and Novocherkassk. Now the gates to the Caucasus were completely open, and for the first time there was a threat of losing the entire Soviet South. The 6th German Army continued its movement towards Stalingrad. Panic was noticeable in the Soviet troops. In some sectors of the front, the troops of the 51st, 62nd, 64th armies withdrew and retreated even when enemy reconnaissance groups approached. And these are only those cases that are documented. This forced Stalin to start shuffling the generals in this sector of the front and take up general change structures. Instead of the Bryansk Front, the Voronezh and Bryansk Fronts were formed. Vatutin and Rokossovsky were appointed commanders, respectively. But even these decisions could not stop the panic and retreat of the Red Army. The Germans were advancing towards the Volga. As a result, on July 28, 1942, Stalin issued Order No. 227, which was called "not one step back."

At the end of July, General Jodl announced that the key to the Caucasus was in Stalingrad. This was enough for Hitler to make the most important decision of the entire offensive summer campaign on July 31, 1942. According to this decision, the 4th Panzer Army was transferred to Stalingrad.

Map of the Battle of Stalingrad

Order "Not a step back!"

The peculiarity of the order was to combat alarmism. Anyone who retreated without an order was to be shot on the spot. In fact, it was an element of regression, but this repression justified itself in terms of the fact that it was able to inspire fear and make Soviet soldiers fight even more courageously. The only problem was that Order 227 did not analyze the reasons for the defeat of the Red Army during the summer of 1942, but simply carried out repressions against ordinary soldiers. This order emphasizes the hopelessness of the situation that prevailed at that time. The command itself emphasizes:

Despair. The Soviet command now realized that the failure of the summer of 1942 threatened the existence of the entire USSR. Literally a few jerks and Germany will win.
Contradiction. This order simply shifted all responsibility from the Soviet generals to ordinary officers and soldiers. However, the reasons for the failures of the summer of 1942 lie precisely in the miscalculations of the command, which could not foresee the direction of the enemy's main attack and made significant mistakes.
Cruelty. According to this order, everyone was shot, indiscriminately. Now any retreat of the army was punishable by execution. And no one understood why the soldier slept - they shot everyone.

Today, many historians say that Stalin's order No. 227 became the basis for the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad. In fact, it is impossible to answer this question unambiguously. History, as you know, does not tolerate the subjunctive mood, but it is important to understand that by that time Germany was at war with almost the whole world, and its advance to Stalingrad was extremely difficult, during which the Wehrmacht troops lost about half of their headcount. To this it must be added that soviet soldier knew how to die, which is repeatedly emphasized in the memoirs of Wehrmacht generals.

The course of the battle

In August 1942, it became absolutely clear that the main target of the German attack was Stalingrad. The city began to prepare for defense.

In the second half of August, reinforced troops of the 6th German Army under the command of Friedrich Paulus (then still just a general) and troops of the 4th Panzer Army under the command of Hermann Gott moved to Stalingrad. On the part of the Soviet Union, armies took part in the defense of Stalingrad: the 62nd under the command of Anton Lopatin and the 64th army under the command of Mikhail Shumilov. In the south of Stalingrad was the 51st Army of General Kolomiets and the 57th Army of General Tolbukhin.

August 23, 1942 was the most terrible day of the first part of the defense of Stalingrad. On this day, the German Luftwaffe launched a powerful air strike on the city. historical documents indicate that more than 2,000 sorties were flown on that day alone. The next day, the evacuation of the civilian population across the Volga began. It should be noted that as early as August 23, German troops in a number of sectors of the front managed to reach the Volga. It was a narrow strip of land north of Stalingrad, but Hitler was delighted with the success. These successes were achieved by the 14th Panzer Corps of the Wehrmacht.

Despite this, the commander of the 14th Panzer Corps, von Wittersgjen, turned to General Paulus with a report in which he said that it was better for the German troops to leave this city, since it was impossible to succeed with such enemy resistance. So strongly von Wittershyen was struck by the courage of the defenders of Stalingrad. For this, the general was removed from command immediately and was put on trial.

On August 25, 1942, fighting began in the vicinity of Stalingrad. In fact, the Battle of Stalingrad, which we briefly consider today, began on this very day. Fights were fought not only for every house, but literally for every floor. Often there was a situation when "puff pies" were formed: German troops were on one floor of the house, and Soviet troops were on the other floor. Thus began the urban battle, where the German tanks no longer have their decisive advantage.

On September 14, the troops of the 71st Infantry Division of Germany, commanded by General Hartmann, managed to reach the Volga in a narrow corridor. If we recall what Hitler said about the reasons for the offensive campaign of 1942, then the main goal was achieved - navigation along the Volga was stopped. However, the Fuhrer, under the influence of successes during the offensive campaign, demanded that the Battle of Stalingrad be completed with the complete defeat of the Soviet troops. As a result, a situation developed when the Soviet troops could not retreat because of Stalin's order 227, and the German troops were forced to advance because Hitler maniacally wanted this.

It became obvious that the Battle of Stalingrad would be the place where one of the army was completely killed. The general balance of power was clearly not in favor of the German side, since the army of General Paulus had 7 divisions, the number of which was declining every day. At the same time, the Soviet command transferred 6 fresh divisions here in full force. By the end of September 1942, in the Stalingrad area, 7 divisions of General Paulus were opposed by about 15 Soviet divisions. And these are only the official army units, which do not take into account the militias, of which there were a lot in the city.

On September 13, 1942, the battle for the center of Stalingrad began. Fights were fought for every street, for every house, for every floor. In the city there were no more not destroyed buildings. To demonstrate the events of those days, it is necessary to mention the summary for September 14:

7 hours 30 minutes. German troops came to the Academic street.
7 hours 40 minutes. The first battalion of the mechanized forces is completely cut off from the main forces.
7 hours 50 minutes. Fierce fighting is going on in the area of Mamaev Kurgan and the station.
8 ocloc'k. The station was taken by German troops.
8 hours 40 minutes. We managed to recapture the station.
9 hours 40 minutes. The station is again captured by the Germans.
10 hours 40 minutes. The enemy is half a kilometer from the command post.
13 hours 20 minutes. The station is ours again.

And this is only half of one typical day in the battles for Stalingrad. It was a city war, for all the horrors that Paulus' troops were not ready for. In total, from September to November, it was reflected in more than 700 attacks by German troops!

On the night of September 15, the 13th Guards Rifle Division, commanded by General Rodimtsev, was transferred to Stalingrad. Only on the first day of the fighting of this division, she lost more than 500 people. The Germans, at that time, managed to significantly advance towards the city center, and also to capture the height of "102" or easier - Mamaev Kurgan. The 62nd Army, which fought the main defensive battles, these days had command post, which was located at a distance of only 120 meters from the enemy.

During the second half of September 1942, the Battle of Stalingrad continued with the same ferocity. At that time, many German generals were already wondering why they were fighting for this city and for every street in it. At the same time, Halder repeatedly emphasized by this time that the German army was in an extreme degree of overwork. In particular, the general spoke of an inevitable crisis, including due to the weakness of the flanks, where the Italians fought very reluctantly. Halder openly addressed Hitler, saying that the German army did not have the reserves and resources for a simultaneous offensive campaign in Stalingrad and the northern Caucasus. On September 24, Franz Halder was removed from his post as head of general staff German army. He was replaced by Kurt Zeisler.

During September and October, there was no significant change in the state of affairs at the front. Similarly, the Battle of Stalingrad was one huge cauldron in which Soviet and German troops destroyed each other. The confrontation reached its climax, when the troops were a few meters apart, and the battles went literally to the bayonet. Many historians note the irrationality of the conduct of hostilities during the Battle of Stalingrad. In fact, this was the moment when it was not military art that came to the fore, but human qualities, the desire to survive and the desire to win.

For the entire period of the defensive stage of the Battle of Stalingrad, the troops of the 62nd and 64th armies almost completely changed their composition. From what did not change, there were only the name of the army, as well as the composition of the headquarters. As for ordinary soldiers, it was later calculated that the lifetime of one soldier during the Battle of Stalingrad was 7.5 hours.

Start of offensive operations

In early November 1942, the Soviet command already understood that the German offensive against Stalingrad had exhausted itself. The Wehrmacht troops no longer had that power, and were pretty battered in battle. Therefore, more and more reserves began to flow to the city in order to conduct a counter-offensive operation. These reserves began to secretly accumulate in the northern and southern outskirts of the city.

On November 11, 1942, the Wehrmacht troops, consisting of 5 divisions, commanded by General Paulus, made the last attempt at a decisive assault on Stalingrad. It is important to note that this offensive was very close to victory. In almost all sectors of the front, the Germans managed to advance to such a stage that no more than 100 meters remained to the Volga. But the Soviet troops managed to hold back the offensive, and in the middle of November 12 it became clear that the offensive had exhausted itself.

Preparations for the counteroffensive of the Red Army were carried out in the strictest secrecy. This is quite understandable, and it can be clearly demonstrated with the help of one very a simple example. Until now, it is absolutely unknown who is the author of the contour of the offensive operation near Stalingrad, but it is known for certain that the map of the transition of Soviet troops to the offensive existed in a single copy. Also noteworthy is the fact that literally 2 weeks before the start of the offensive of the Soviet troops, the postal communication between families and fighters was completely suspended.

On November 19, 1942, at 6:30 am, artillery preparation began. After that, the Soviet troops went on the offensive. Thus began the famous operation Uranus. And here it is important to note that this development of events was completely unexpected for the Germans. At this point, the disposition was as follows:

90% of the territory of Stalingrad was under the control of Paulus' troops.
Soviet troops controlled only 10% of the cities located near the Volga itself.

General Paulus later stated that on the morning of November 19, the German headquarters was convinced that the Russian offensive was purely tactical. And only by the evening of that day, the general realized that his entire army was under the threat of encirclement. The response was lightning fast. An order was given to the 48th Panzer Corps, which was in the German reserve, to immediately advance into battle. And here Soviet historians they say that the late entry of the 48th army into the battle was due to the fact that the field mice gnawed through the electronics in the tanks, and precious time was lost for the period of its repair.

On November 20, a massive offensive began in the south of the Stalingrad Front. The leading edge of the German defense was almost completely destroyed thanks to a powerful artillery strike, but in the depths of the defense, the troops of General Eremenko met with terrible resistance.

On November 23, in the area of the city of Kalach, a German group of troops with a total strength of about 320 people was surrounded. Later, within a few days, it was possible to completely surround the entire German grouping located in the Stalingrad region. Initially, it was assumed that about 90,000 Germans were surrounded, but it soon became clear that this number was disproportionately higher. The total encirclement was about 300 thousand people, 2000 guns, 100 tanks, 9000 trucks.

Hitler had an important task ahead of him. It was necessary to determine what to do with the army: leave it surrounded or make attempts to get out of it. At this time, Albert Speer assured Hitler that he could easily provide the troops that were in the Stalingrad encirclement with everything they needed through aviation. Hitler only waited for such a message, because he still believed that the Battle of Stalingrad could be won. As a result, the 6th army of General Paulus was forced to take up a circular defense. In fact, this strangled the outcome of the battle. After all, the main trump cards of the German army were on the offensive, not on the defensive. However, the German grouping, which went on the defensive, was very strong. But at that time it turned out that Albert Speer's promise to equip the 6th Army with everything necessary was unrealistic.

Capturing the positions of the 6th German army, which was on the defensive, turned out to be impossible. The Soviet command realized that a long and difficult assault was ahead. At the beginning of December, it became obvious that a huge number of troops, which had enormous strength, had fallen into the encirclement. In such a situation, it was possible to win only by attracting no less force. Moreover, very good planning was needed to succeed against the organized German army.

At this moment, in early December 1942, the German command created the Don Army Group. The command of this army was taken over by Erich von Manstein. The task of the army was simple - to break through to the troops who were surrounded in order to help them get out of it. 13 panzer divisions moved to the troops of Paulus to help. The operation, called "Winter Thunderstorm", began on December 12, 1942. Additional tasks of the troops that moved in the direction of the 6th Army were: the defense of Rostov-on-Don. After all, the fall of this city would speak of a complete and decisive failure on the entire southern front. The first 4 days this offensive of the German troops was successful.

Stalin, after the successful implementation of Operation Uranus, demanded that his generals develop a new plan to encircle the entire German group, located in the Rostov-on-Don region. As a result, on December 16, a new offensive of the Soviet army began, during which the 8th Italian army was defeated in the first days. However, the troops failed to reach Rostov, since the movement of German tanks towards Stalingrad forced the Soviet command to change its plans. At this time, the 2nd Infantry Army of General Malinovsky was withdrawn from its positions and was concentrated in the area of the Meshkova River, where one of the decisive events of December 1942 took place. It was here that Malinovsky's troops managed to stop the German tank units. By December 23, the thinned tank corps could no longer move forward, and it became obvious that they would not get to Paulus's troops.

Surrender of German troops

On January 10, 1943, a decisive operation began to destroy the German troops that were surrounded. One of major events These days refers to January 14, when the only German airfield was captured, which at that time was still functioning. After that, it became obvious that the army of General Paulus did not even have a theoretical chance of getting out of the encirclement. After that, it became absolutely obvious to everyone that the Battle of Stalingrad was won by the Soviet Union. These days, Hitler, speaking on German radio, announced that Germany needed a general mobilization.

On January 24, Paulus sent a telegram to the German headquarters, where he said that the catastrophe near Stalingrad was inevitable. He literally demanded permission to surrender in order to save those German soldiers who were still alive. Hitler forbade surrender.

On February 2, 1943, the Battle of Stalingrad was completed. Over 91,000 German soldiers surrendered. 147,000 dead Germans lay on the battlefield. Stalingrad was completely destroyed. As a result, in early February, the Soviet command was forced to create a special Stalingrad group of troops, which was engaged in cleaning the city of corpses, as well as mine clearance.

We briefly reviewed the Battle of Stalingrad, which introduced a radical change in the course of the Second World War. The Germans had not only suffered a crushing defeat, but they were now required to make incredible efforts in order to keep the strategic initiative on their side. But this has not happened.

Fascist troops carried out an unceasing offensive, shelling the city from the air, which very soon turned into ruins.

In September 1942, the fascist army was already in the Mamaev Kurgan area, it was for this height that 138 days of battle out of 200 were fought over the entire period of the Battle of Stalingrad. The strategic height several times passed into the hands of the enemy. The Soviet troops stood in the direction of the Volga with the goal of preventing the German soldiers from breaking through to the river.

Soviet troops, defending themselves from the German armies in the Stalingrad direction, thwarted the strategic plan of the Nazi command to seize the Caucasus with its powerful natural resources, large agricultural regions of the Don, Kuban, Lower Volga region, and seize the Volga as the main water artery of the Soviet Union.

The heroic everyday life of the fighters, soldiers and officers who defended Stalingrad is reflected in thousands of wartime documents. Each award sheet contains a description of the feat. In the texts of the combat journals there are separate episodes about the courage and fearlessness of those who defended Stalingrad.

The writer, a war correspondent for the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, “from the first days of the war, has been fearlessly working in the advanced units of the Red Army ... At present, he is the only writer who participates in the battles for Stalingrad and often travels to the city in battalions, companies, where he collects literary material…. Examples of heroism, courage shown by Comrade. Grossman can cite an innumerable number.

Khvastantsev Mikhail Polikarpovich
Hero of the Soviet Union
Killed
Place of burial: Volgograd region, Svetloyarsky district, with. D. Ravine

“Neglecting the danger, Sergeant KhVASTANTSEV raises people who, together with him, stand at the gun and open fire on moving tanks. Gun fire knocked out one heavy and one medium tank.

The tanks continued to move towards the battery, they were already separated by 100-150 meters. The shells have run out. Around the wounded and dead comrades. Khvastantsev decides to evacuate the wounded and cover their retreat. With an anti-tank rifle, he lay down in front of the guns and knocked out the tank in front with five shots, the rest, breaking into two groups, bypassed the battery in a semicircle. Several tanks, approaching the location of the battery, were met by KhVASTANTSEV, who rushed to one of them and shouted "You WON'T PASS, YOU SCARE!" threw a grenade under the caterpillar. The knocked out, but not destroyed, tank continued to move towards the gunner hero while firing. Tov. KhVASTANTSEV rushed into the nearest trench, which was immediately driven by an enemy tank. The second grenade thrown by HVASTANTSEV from the trench after the tank made him immobile. An enemy bullet from an enemy tank struck down a guardsman-artilleryman who died under the caterpillars of tanks ... "

“In three days of fighting, the regiment has killed and wounded - 483 people. On this day, the fighters and commanders withstood a series of fierce attacks by a brutal enemy. The defenders of Stalingrad proved to be worthy successors to the heroes of TSARITSYN. The enemy in his own skin felt the force of the Guards strike ...

Especially examples of courage and heroism were shown on this day by the fighters of the 114th Guards Rifle Regiment. Over the past day, the regiment destroyed more than 300 Nazis, knocked out 9 tanks, suppressed 6 firing points, 5 heavy machine guns, 8 bunkers.

Captain BABAK, who with a group of 15 soldiers knocked out 2 tanks, repelled 5 enemy attacks, especially distinguished himself in repelling a tank attack of the enemy of the Guard. Red Army gunner PTR NECHAYEV, who, together with his second number, knocked out 1 armored vehicle and 1 enemy tank.

“... Daredevils - the group commander, Sergeant LISATU, the fighters DOROSHCHUK and SHEVCHENKO crawled up to the barn, from where the Nazis fired, throwing grenades at them. The machine-gun burst of junior lieutenant ZHELDAK destroyed an officer throwing grenades. Clutching the ring, they rushed into hand-to-hand combat. This bold move decided the outcome of the battle. The fight lasted 45 minutes. As a result of the battle, 40 Nazis were destroyed, 25 were wounded. Trophies were captured ... our losses: 4 fighters, 2 partisans were killed, 7 people were wounded. , missing 1."

“... The soldiers and commanders of the 114th Guards Rifle Regiment staunchly and selflessly defend every piece of their native land. Occupying the OP in the houses, they allowed the enemy to close range and shot him point-blank.

Without moving a single step of the guardsmen of the 114th regiment, the enemy from the tanks lit the houses with thermite fires, but the fighters fought fiercely in the burning houses, and only after the houses turned into a pile of ruins, the defenders of Stalingrad occupied new houses. In this battle, many fighters and commanders died the death of the brave ... "

“The personnel of the regiment showed massive heroism, true heroes were born here - the battalion commander Captain NARYTNYAK, the battery commander Lieutenant MASALYZHIN, the armor-piercers of Lieutenant POYARKOV, where Comrade himself. POYARKOV showed examples of valor and heroism, knocking out 2 enemy tanks. At this time, both of his legs were torn off, being in the heat of anger of Comrade. POYARKOV grabbed an armor-piercing machine lying nearby and knocked out 2 more enemy tanks.

“... 33 soldiers of 1379 joint venture showed an unparalleled feat - 70 enemy tanks went against them and up to a regiment of German infantry. Having shown steadfastness and courage, defending Stalingrad, 33 Stalingrad heroes with anti-tank rifles, bottles of fuel and anti-tank grenades destroyed 27 enemy tanks and over 150 Nazis - they defended the height - the Russian land.