The Battle of Stalingrad is thought to have claimed more lives than any other single conflict of the Second World War. In 1942, April 5, Hitler ordered a massive military offensive that was called Operation Blue. Army Group A and B to sweep to Stalingrad, Grozny, Astrakan, and the Caspian Sea. If Germany captured Stalingrad, it meant the Soviet army would be cut off from oil supply. Stalin then ordered the 64th and the 62nd Armies to take positions eight miles from Stalingrad. The first assault on Stalingrad occured on August 19. The Germans attacked using 22 divisions with more than 700 planes, 500 tanks, 1,000 mortars, and 1,200 guns. By August 23, the German forces had reached the Volga River, north of Stalingrad. By September the fighting was now being fought street by street, house by house. Despite what seemed overwhelming odds, the 62nd Army, commanded by General Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov held on. This was in fact the beginning of the turning point in WW11. It was the start of the End For Hitler. A brilliant plan called Operation Uranus was devised. The Red Army secretly mobilized one million troops, 1,350 aircraft, 14,000 heavy guns, and 979 tanks to attack German flanks that were protected by weak Axis powers. On November 19, Soviet forces attacked Romanian, Italian , and Hungarian positions. The front collapsed and the Soviet troops began encircling German Army Group B from the North and South. Within four days the German 6th and 4th Panzer armies were surrounded. The Germans were locked in. Supplies had to be airlifted in to the German troops. Finally, with little food and supplies, the Germans were on the verge of starvation. Temperatures dropped to minus 30 degrees Centigrade. Starving German soldiers were forced to slaughter their horses and later still to dig up their frozen carcasses to eat the bones. German Field Marshall Paulus was forced to surrender, the 6th Army and 4th Panzer Army. Estimates on the German lost are from 150,000 to 500,000 men, 91,000 were taken prisoner. The Soviet Army lost 500,000 men. Hitler himself said, ‘The god of war has gone over to the other side’.
Battle of Stalingrad was one of the most horrified battle occurred during the history of second world war.The number of casualties crossed 1.5 million. Hitler wanted to capture stalingrad mainly to take control over the oil fields in this area.But the German Army defeated at Stalingrad.This defeat of Germany was a turning point in world war II.
If I Recall correctly Zhukov had his main aim at Army Group Center and Rzhev area. It was pointing at Moscow and thus had to be eliminated. However the offensive in the South was going very well instead of AGC operation and Zhukov decided to continue south . AlSo the main Red Army Reserves were around Moscow and Untill the 6th Army turned south at Volga then Stalin finally believed Hitler was not going for Moscow in 1942. Kph
