Stalingrad Turning Point

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Stalingrad was not just another battle but the turning point would eventually lead to the demise of Adolf Hitler. In order to understand how this came to be one must first understand where it all started. It was very much afraid of Joseph Stalin. Joseph Stalin was probably the most horrific ruler the world has ever seen. On August 23, 1939, Hitler and Stalin signed the nonaggression pact, also named the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact, from the two foreign ministers who sign the papers in Moscow. This pact was signed on the promise that Hitler would not invade the Soviet Union. The alliance that was formed made for a quick invasion of Poland by both the Soviet Red Army in the German Nazis. On September 1 1939, Hitler begins his invasion of Poland…show more content…
The interesting piece is that Stalingrad has no real military or tactical signifcance, only a name. Hitler knows that the oil fields to the south of Stalingrad, on the Volga River, are extremely valuable to the Soviet war machine and the center of communications for southern Russia. However, Hitler really wants Stalingrad as much as Stalin, if nothing else because of the name, turning this battle into a battle of egos. Hitler is extremely confident in his army’s capabilities, so he orders the 5th army to take the oil fields to the south and the 6th army to take Stalingrad, instead of having both armies attack the oil fields and then move north for Stalingrad. The 6th army was so good that they were advancing far beyond their supply chains. All of their food, fuel and bullets were far behind them. The 5th army expected to use the fuel produced from the oil fields but the Russians must have known they were coming and lit everything on…show more content…
This was the beginning of The War of Rats (Rattenkrieg). The German war machine was excellent at combat in open ground but had little experience or expertise in this type of battle. The Russians found this type of fighting to be the only way to stop the German advance, and it was working. So began the legends of the Russians Sniper, who was really an excellent hunter and stalker of his prey. One such incredible sniper was Chief Master Sergeant Vasily Gregorievich Zaitsev, who amassed two hundred and forty two Germans killed in this battle alone. The building remains of Stalingrad found one floor of German soldiers and the Russian soldiers on the second, both sides to afraid to move for fear of death. This type of fighting continues for

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