The battle of Stalingrad, September 1942 to February 1943, was a crucial point of strategy for Germany and the central powers in World War II. Confusing matters was the recent entry of the United States following Germany’s declaration of war in support of its Japanese ally. The new Anglo-American Allies stated that their first priority was Germany. Hitler wanted to end the fighting on the Eastern Front, or at least minimize it, before the Americans had a chance to get deeply involved in the war in Europe. For this reason, Hitler chose to pursue the capture of Stalingrad because it would have expanded German rule into southern Russia and destroyed any form of transportation southern Russia had with northern Russia over the Volga River.1 Unfortunately
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His strategic goal was to secure the oil fields in the Caucasus and to do this, Paulus was ordered by Hitler to take Stalingrad. Adolph Hitler, leading Germany in World War II, saw the capture of Stalingrad important for many reasons. The main purpose of the German advance in the summer of 1942 was to bypass Moscow toward the east cut it off from the Volga and the Ural rear, and then attack it.2 Stalingrad was viewed as a strategic point connecting the armies in the north and south, and the capture of the city would implement German expansion into the Caucasus region, which was rich in oil. Stalingrad was also an important target as it was Russia’s centre of communications in the south as well as being a centre for manufacturing producing tanks, among other equipment, for the Soviet war effort.3 The German command desired to command this important territory as quickly as possible, therefore they planned to capture Stalingrad on July …show more content…
Soviet improvements in supply were countered by overwhelming German superiority in the air and in armor. German air power also drove tactical doctrine of ordering troops to close with the Germans as much as possible, reducing the danger of air attack due to the fear of accidentally targeted their own troops.
Tanks played a significant role in the battle at Stalingrad. The value of tanks in an urban setting far outweighs their disadvantages. The Soviet 1936 field manual made countering tanks the keystone of defensive warfare, holding that “Modern defense must constitute first of all an antitank defense,” with the organization of men, weaponry, and natural and artificial barriers centered on the tank threat.9 The general principle of anti-tank defense was paramount even in Stalingrad.
The German Army was broken down into two groups, Army South Group A and Army South Group B. German units included, Italian and Croatian troops along with the sixth Army under Paulus, the second Hungarian Army, and the fourth Panzer Army. The Red Army, led by Zhukov, was comprised of mainly Russian soldiers. The Red Army, at this stage of the war, was less capable of highly mobile operations than the German Army; however, the prospect of combat inside a large urban area, which would be dominated by short-range firearms rather than armored and mechanized tactics, minimized the Red Army’s disadvantages against the
His strategic goal was to secure the oil fields in the Caucasus and to do this, Paulus was ordered by Hitler to take Stalingrad. Adolph Hitler, leading Germany in World War II, saw the capture of Stalingrad important for many reasons. The main purpose of the German advance in the summer of 1942 was to bypass Moscow toward the east cut it off from the Volga and the Ural rear, and then attack it.2 Stalingrad was viewed as a strategic point connecting the armies in the north and south, and the capture of the city would implement German expansion into the Caucasus region, which was rich in oil. Stalingrad was also an important target as it was Russia’s centre of communications in the south as well as being a centre for manufacturing producing tanks, among other equipment, for the Soviet war effort.3 The German command desired to command this important territory as quickly as possible, therefore they planned to capture Stalingrad on July …show more content…
Soviet improvements in supply were countered by overwhelming German superiority in the air and in armor. German air power also drove tactical doctrine of ordering troops to close with the Germans as much as possible, reducing the danger of air attack due to the fear of accidentally targeted their own troops.
Tanks played a significant role in the battle at Stalingrad. The value of tanks in an urban setting far outweighs their disadvantages. The Soviet 1936 field manual made countering tanks the keystone of defensive warfare, holding that “Modern defense must constitute first of all an antitank defense,” with the organization of men, weaponry, and natural and artificial barriers centered on the tank threat.9 The general principle of anti-tank defense was paramount even in Stalingrad.
The German Army was broken down into two groups, Army South Group A and Army South Group B. German units included, Italian and Croatian troops along with the sixth Army under Paulus, the second Hungarian Army, and the fourth Panzer Army. The Red Army, led by Zhukov, was comprised of mainly Russian soldiers. The Red Army, at this stage of the war, was less capable of highly mobile operations than the German Army; however, the prospect of combat inside a large urban area, which would be dominated by short-range firearms rather than armored and mechanized tactics, minimized the Red Army’s disadvantages against the