Rats in a Factory

By October 1942, Stalingrad had become a matter of personal prestige for both Stalin and Hitler, and the sole focal point of the Campaign in the East, above and beyond any strategic military consideration. In mid-October, the Luftwaffe intensified its …

1942-10-14

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By October 1942, Stalingrad had become a matter of personal prestige for both Stalin and Hitler, and the sole focal point of the Campaign in the East, above and beyond any strategic military consideration. In mid-October, the Luftwaffe intensified its efforts against the remaining Red Army positions holding the west bank. Luftflotte 4 flew 2,000 sorties on 14 October and 600 tons of bombs were dropped by German Stukas. The same day, three infantry divisions and two Panzer divisions, supported by battalions of combat engineers, surrounded the three northern factories. Their attack was directed against the center of the Soviet line. The 14th Panzer pushed forward and broke through. With the Tractor Factory nearly surrounded, the intensity of the attack effectively split the Soviet 62nd Army in two. Knowing that the loss of the Tractor Factory would lead to the collapse of the Soviet's right flank, General von Paulus ordered fresh troops forward to dislodge the last Soviet troops entrenched there. At the same time, the German forces in the center began to turn south toward the Red Barricades...

Stalingrad, Russia

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.

Wikipedia: Battle of Stalingrad

German

Russian

Game Type: Overlord

Board Type: Countryside

Website Access: Classified