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Pavlov - Hero of the Soviet Union

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Title
Pavlov - Hero of the Soviet Union
Description
The fighting for control of downtown Stalingrad raged on for days. Battle lines vanished. The armor-supported mobility that the German soldiers had been accustomed to during their rapid progression across the Russian steppe soon degenerated into the utter chaos and …
Subject
Publisher
Date
1942-09-24
Scenario#
5979
Scenario Description
The fighting for control of downtown Stalingrad raged on for days. Battle lines vanished. The armor-supported mobility that the German soldiers had been accustomed to during their rapid progression across the Russian steppe soon degenerated into the utter chaos and madness of urban combat as Soviet troops "hugged" their enemy to death. Each street leading to Red Square became a battlefield... and each building surrounding the square a fortress. The ?9th of January Square?, just north of city center, was one of these lethal, vicious hot spots. Soviet troops, under the command of Junior Sgt. Yakov Pavlov, barricaded themselves in a four-story apartment building - surrounding themselves with minefields and barbed wire. Each time German infantry or tanks tried to cross the square, Pavlov's anti-tank gunners laid down a withering fire, beating back one assault wave after another. After each German attack, his men had to run out and kick down piles of German corpses to keep clear firing lines across the square. Sgt. Pavlov was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union for his actions and, months after the battle, Chuikov would still joke that "more Germans died trying to capture Pavlov's House than died capturing Paris".
Location
Stalingrad, Russia
Battle Name
Battle Narrative
In the Battle of Stalingrad, Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in Southern Russia. Marked by fierce close-quarters combat and direct assaults on civilians in air raids, it is one of the bloodiest battles in the history of warfare, with an estimated 2 million total casualties. After their defeat at Stalingrad, the German High Command had to withdraw considerable military forces from the Western Front to replace their losses. The German offensive to capture Stalingrad, a major industrial and transport hub on the Volga River that ensured Soviet access to the Caucasus oil wells, began in August 1942, using the 6th Army and elements of the 4th Panzer Army. The attack was supported by intense Luftwaffe bombing that reduced much of the city to rubble. The battle degenerated into house-to-house fighting, as both sides poured reinforcements into the city. By mid-November, the Germans had pushed the Soviet defenders back at great cost into narrow zones along the west bank of the river.
Narrative Source
Combatants
German
Russian
Additional Information
Game Type: Standard
Board Type: Countryside
Website Access: Classified

Geolocation