THE BATTLE OF STALINGRAD - In Photos, Maps, Analysis And Original Documents

Almost 400 pages!

The Battle of Stalingrad occurred a year after
the Germans’ invasion of the Soviet Union
in 1941 in Operation BARBAROSSA. The
aim of BARBAROSSA was to launch a massive,
surprise attack against the Soviet Union
that would capture most of the territory west
of the Urals and force Moscow to capitulate.
BARBAROSSA did achieve some profound
successes: the Germans advanced to Leningrad
in the north, the outskirts of Moscow in
central Russia, and Kharkov in the south. In
the process, they encircled and annihilated Soviet
divisions by the dozen, taking advantage
of their mobile, armored warfare, or “blitzkrieg,”
tactics. But, the Soviet or “Red”
Army’s resistance proved stronger than expected
and the campaign dragged on into
the winter, for which the German troops were
unprepared. A Soviet counteroffensive
launched in December 1941 then brought the
German advance to a halt. One reason the
German advance was thwarted was Hitler’s
decision to attack the U.S.S.R. across a broad
front from the Barents to the Black Sea,
thereby diluting the German Army’s, or
Wehrmacht’s, combat power. Of course, the
broad offensive also forced the defending
Red Army to spread its forces thin, but it was
more of a liability for the Germans because it
prevented them from concentrating enough
combat power to take Moscow—the principle
strategic objective.

There were several important outcomes of
BARBAROSSA that affected Germany’s
subsequent war effort in the East. First, since
BARBAROSSA failed to defeat the Soviet
Union, the war in the East would continue
into a second year and further tax Germany’s
military resources. Secondly, the campaign
cost Germany dearly in manpower and material,
with the Wehrmacht sustaining over a
million casualties.5 The most important outcome,
though, was that, by failing to win in
the first year, the Germans gave the Soviets
time to mobilize for war. Given the vast resources
of the U.S.S.R., this meant Germany
would face ever increasing Soviet military capabilities
as the war progressed, while her
own capabilities were expended. Although
this trend was not decisive in 1942 when the
Battle of Stalingrad began, it nonetheless
allowed the Soviets to continue the war effort
and limited Germany’s war fighting capability.
By 1943, the trend became more pronounced,
allowing the Red Army to field
many more forces than the Germans. Thus,
by the Battle of Kursk in 1943, the Red Army
had a superiority in manpower of more than
two to one.6