The Germans thought that if they captured Stalingrad, it would help the northern and western parts of the German armies to attack Baku. The city was important, because it was named after Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union. He made occupying Stalingrad one of the goals. On July 23, 1942, Hitler changed the goals for the 1942 attack. The German operations were initially very successful. Capturing the river would make it hard for the Soviets to use the river to transport goods. The river was a route between the Caspian Sea and northern Russia. The Germans also wanted to block the Volga River. The Germans wanted to destroy Stalingrad's industries. The Germans decided that their summer campaign in 1942 would be directed at the southern parts of the Soviet Union. Stalin was expecting German summer attacks to again be directed against Moscow. Army Groups North and South had also not had a hard time over the winter. 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. Hitler was confident that he could beat the Red Army after the winter of 1941. 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. In the east, they had captured land including Leningrad in the north and Rostov-on-Don in the south. 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. 3.1 Operation Uranus: the Soviet offensiveīy the spring of 1942, the German Operation Barbarossa did not defeat the Soviet Union.The Battle of Stalingrad was the largest and deadliest battle in the history of warfare. Also, the Germans failed to get control of Russian oil fields.Ībout one quarter of the German Sixth Army's soldiers were Russian volunteers called HIWIs. They had killed so many Germans that Hitler's overall plan to conquer the Soviet Union, started with Operation Barbarossa, was seriously weakened. There were more Russian deaths than German, but it was a victory for the Russians. 1.6 million people dead or wounded in battle were reported. The battle lasted five months, one week, and three days. Rather than freeze, they surrendered, knowing the Soviets were usually cruel to their prisoners. By February 1943, the German forces in Stalingrad had no ammunition and food. The German air force tried to supply them by air. On 19 November 1942, the Red Army launched an attack which surrounded the Stalingrad area. They both ordered that anyone who retreated would be shot on the spot for treason. Hitler and Stalin sent in large numbers of soldiers. However, the rubble made hiding places from which Russian snipers could attack the Germans. With bombs and fire the German Luftwaffe turned the city into ruins. By the end of July the German army had reached Stalingrad. In June 1942, Adolf Hitler launched an attack in southern Russia.
Hitler also wanted to capture Stalingrad because it was named after Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, thus it would embarrass him. It was an important industrial city, and the Volga was an important transport route. Stalingrad, now Volgograd, was a city on the Volga River.
It is reported that, due to limited supplies, soldiers and civilians had to resort to eating rats, mice, and even cannibalism. The Battle of Stalingrad has often been recorded as an example of how brutal a war can be. Hitler even blamed his defeat partly on Stalingrad. It was one of the most important battles of the war because it marked the end of Germany's advances. The battle was fought between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943. They were fighting for control of the city of Stalingrad. The Battle of Stalingrad was fought during the Second World War between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.