Why Is Stalingrad So Important?

[Friedrich H]

Another thing that helped the Russians win was the fact that Stalingrad had some major emotional value to Stalin himself. If Stalin had lost the city that was named after him it would be terribly humiliating, therefore he used whatever resources he could to defend that city. It may have been a small factor but indeed it helped in some ways.

Stalin knew that it would have been a great propaganda victory for the Germans, but he knew (and that was more important to him), that, the more resources Hitler threw in, the less resources he threw elsewhere (or, even better, the more resources he withdrew from elsewhere).

In other words, whilst Hitler was concentrating his largest and most powerful army in the entire eastern front in that useless city, bleeding the Wehrmacht, the Red Army defended Stalingrad with little resources, whilst its numbers, experience and technology grew.

Hitler kept reinforcing the VI Army within the city's ruins, whilst the Red Army prepared itself for a gigantic counter-offensive in the weakened Moscow front and a gigantic counter-offensive around Stalingrad.

Stalin knew this, and he exploited it.

[WorldWarFreak]

Even though Stalin was a war criminal he was most definatly a military genious.

[Friedrich H]

Not a military genious at all. But a political genious, without a doubt. And one of his best skills at politics was precisely letting the generals do their work, supporting and/or shooting them when needed…

[MaxPower]

The military genious was Zukov

He was also the only man brave enough to argue with Stalin to his face and One of few men that Stalin listened to

Friedrich H where have you studied ?

[Gestapo]

Im a man who fight in the first 20 days in Stalingrad on german side and i was shot by a sharshoter in my leg so thats why i get back in Berlin ( i could say that im a lucker that i have get the hell out fo Stalingrad).The answer is easy if Stalingrad have fall the Russia lose the war.Stalingrad was like sybol.Look at the name of the city Stalingrad the name of there leader Stalin.Stalingrad didnt have big strategy point it was a cold city near Volga river.After a bombing the city was fully destroyed we fight only for the ground.The civil people have die and the survivers have been hiding in the sewers.The russian soldiers have been with low moral they wear scare.They win thx to the cold winter.The winter in Stalingrad was -40 i hope you understand what this mean (it mean that if you fell asleap then your dead).This city was vittal part of USSR and vital part for the moral of the german army.

[jimbotosome]

(Gestapo @ Jan 24 2006, 03:31 PM) [post=44803]Im a man who fight in the first 20 days in Stalingrad on german side and i was shot by a sharshoter in my leg so thats why i get back in Berlin ( i could say that im a lucker that i have get the hell out fo Stalingrad).The answer is easy if Stalingrad have fall the Russia lose the war.Stalingrad was like sybol.Look at the name of the city Stalingrad the name of there leader Stalin.Stalingrad didnt have big strategy point it was a cold city near Volga river.After a bombing the city was fully destroyed we fight only for the ground.The civil people have die and the survivers have been hiding in the sewers.The russian soldiers have been with low moral they wear scare.They win thx to the cold winter.The winter in Stalingrad was -40 i hope you understand what this mean (it mean that if you fell asleap then your dead).This city was vittal part of USSR and vital part for the moral of the german army.
[/b]

Gestapo, why was it believed by Hitler that if Stalingrad had fallen that Russia would have surrendered or fallen? Important to the moral? Yes, but going to stop Russia from defending their homeland? That's another story. Why was it believed that Stalingrad would have stopped the Russians? If London had fallen, the British would have fought in other cities...why would the Russians have not done the same?

[Gestapo]

(jimbotosome @ Jan 24 2006, 09:35 PM) [post=44807]

Gestapo, why was it believed by Hitler that if Stalingrad had fallen that Russia would have surrendered or fallen? Important to the moral? Yes, but going to stop Russia from defending their homeland? That's another story. Why was it believed that Stalingrad would have stopped the Russians? If London had fallen, the British would have fought in other cities...why would the Russians have not done the same?
[/b]

As i say Stalingrad was a symbol for Russia and the two leaders Hitler and Stalin put all there power (all new tanks even tanks that they are testing).Hitler have forget about outher battles in the west front all his attention has been taget in the battle for Stalingrad.All best soldiers and best SS devisions wear heading to Stalingrad mine devision too and when we enter we wear fighting against mashingun nests.No one even thougnt what is to fight in the sewers in the dark and cold in the water without light.When we wear entering one flametrower was shoting for secounds to show us the path infront uf us we didnt see much.In those sewers we'v seen only civil womans with childrens but no mans any one was fighting even the small boys.The was part of the Russian army was the part fighting in Stalingrad this was the last big wave of soldiers.And if we beat them Stalin will capitulate or just escape from Russia.Moscow was the capital but it wasnt so vital like Stalingrad.I could say only one thing that any biger empere that attack Russia has lose but i thing that SS devision do theyre best to stop the russians and if germany has win the east europe has to be beter place.

[Exxley]

(Gestapo @ Jan 25 2006, 08:44 AM) [post=44816]

All best soldiers and best SS devisions wear heading to Stalingrad mine devision too and when we enter we wear fighting against mashingun nests.[/b]

And maybe we might know which SS Divisions were really heading for Stalingrad ?

[Gotthard Heinrici]

Exx, now come on! Dont tell me you've been reading books by "historians" again have you? everyone knows that the SS were crawling all over Stalingrad. Dont read those books that say that there were no SS in Stalingrad!!! [img]images/smilies/default/tongue.gif[/img]

[Exxley]

Lol so true. I suppose it's indeed better to stick to a former "SS officer and Gestapo official" that was "wounded at Stalingrad by a sharpshooter" than to listen to what Glantz, Ziemke, Erickson, Beevor can tell us [img]images/smilies/default/biggrin.gif[/img]