Seventy-Five Years Ago The German Sixth Army Surrendered At Stalingrad

DW: Russia marks Stalingrad defeat of Nazis

Seventy-five years ago, the surrender of Nazi Germany's Sixth Army marked the end of the Battle of Stalingrad. It was a major turning point in the war, and remains important for many Russians to this day.

During World War II, Nazi Germany's Wehrmacht intended to conquer the industrial city of Stalingrad — named after then Soviet leader Joseph Stalin — before advancing onward to capture its intended goal: the Caucasus oil fields. Given the city's name, both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin afforded great symbolic meaning to the Battle of Stalingrad that transcended its strategic importance.

Due to the very long supply routes, the German Sixth Army's offensive on Stalingrad was risky from the outset. Led by General Friedrich Paulus, the attack began in mid-August 1942, roughly one year after Nazi Germany first invaded the Soviet Union.

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WNU Editor: My father fought north of the city. Sighhh .... never forget.

More News On The German Army Surrender At Stalingrad Seventy-Five Years Ago

Putin marks Stalingrad victory as tribute to Russian grit -- Washington Post
Russians take to streets in their thousands to mark 75 years since Battle of Stalingrad -- The Independent
What Happened at Stalingrad? Vladimir Putin Marks Russia's Bloodiest Battle With the Nazis -- Newsweek
Russia Marks 75th Anniversary Of Stalingrad Victory -- Radio Free Europe
Putin leads ceremonies at 75th anniversary of Stalingrad battle -- UPI
Putin praises Russia's WW2 sacrifices at Stalingrad -- BBC News
Stalingrad: the crushing of the Reich -- BBC History
Stalingrad at 75: Five ways iconic battle turned tide of WW2 -- RT

Remembering The Battle For Stalingrad

The statue of six children dancing around a crocodile became famous worldwide due to several pictures that a Soviet photographer took after the German army’s devastating bombings.

Victor Davis Hanson, NRO: Remembering Stalingrad 75 Years Later

It is now fashionable to demonize Russia, but most Americans have forgotten key aspects of 20th-century history, including the Russians’ fight to stop the march of Nazi Germany.

Seventy-five years ago this month, the Soviet Red Army surrounded — and would soon destroy — a huge invading German army at Stalingrad on the Volga River. Nearly 300,000 of Germany’s best soldiers would never return home. The epic 1942–43 battle for the city saw the complete annihilation of the attacking German 6th Army. It marked the turning point of World War II.

Before Stalingrad, Adolf Hitler regularly boasted on German radio as his victorious forces pressed their offensives worldwide. After Stalingrad, Hitler went quiet, brooding in his various bunkers for the rest of the war.

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WNU Editor: I wrote this in September .... The Battle For Stalingrad Began 75 Years Ago (September 1, 2017) ....

.... The Russian offensive to encircle the German Army at Stalingrad was my father's first major battle. When the war broke out he was part of a "press-gang" that took those who refused to enlist, and after that he was trained to command an artillery unit. He was studying math at the University of Kiev (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kiev) when the war broke out .... my guess is that his superiors probably felt that since he was good at math, he would not make that many mistakes when calculating where to point the artillery. And even though he was usually a few kilometers away from the front .... as he told me more than once .... the front was so fluid at times that he and his men sometimes found themselves behind enemy lines. Sighhh .... it is days like this that I miss him. One day .... time permitting .... I will give a brief bio of my father, especially what he saw and experienced during the Ukraine famine, the Second World War, and after the war. He definitely did not live a boring life.

The Battle For Stalingrad Began 75 Years Ago

Ian Johnson, War On The Rocks: The Motherland Calls: The Battle of Stalingrad, 75 Years Later

The most famous battle of World War II began a few days over three quarters of a century ago. More than four million combatants fought in the gargantuan struggle at Stalingrad between the Nazi and Soviet armies. Almost half – over 1.8 million people – became casualties. More Soviet soldiers died in this five-month contest than Americans died in the entire war. But months later, on February 2, 1943, when the Germans trapped in the city surrendered, it was clear that the momentum on the Eastern Front had shifted. The Nazis would never fully recover.

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WNU Editor: The Russian offensive to encircle the German Army at Stalingrad was my father's first major battle. When the war broke out he was part of a "press-gang" that took those who refused to enlist, and after that he was trained to command an artillery unit. He was studying math at the University of Kiev (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kiev) when the war broke out .... my guess is that his superiors probably felt that since he was good at math, he would not make that many mistakes when calculating where to point the artillery. And even though he was usually a few kilometres away from the front .... as he told me more than once .... the front was so fluid at times that he and his men sometimes found themselves behind enemy lines. Sighhh .... it is days like this that I miss him. One day .... time permitting .... I will give a brief bio of my father, especially what he saw and experienced during the Ukraine famine, the Second World War, and after the war . He definitely did not live a boring life.

Stalingrad: The Film That Makes Private Ryan Look Like Kids' Stuff

The Film That Makes Private Ryan Look Like Kids' Stuff: The Russians Are Coming - With A Blood-Drenched Film About The Most Savage Battle In History. But, Says MAX HASTINGS, The Reality Was Even More Barbaric -- Daily Mail

A handful of soldiers, beleaguered by a Nazi host in a wrecked city apartment building, prepare to sell their lives dearly on celluloid.

Does the scenario sound familiar? It should. For 70 years, the British and Americans have been making heroic movies about World War II, some of which are etched in our culture.

But now for something different: Russian film-makers have got in on the act.

They have created a 3D epic set for the film Stalingrad, about the most famous battle in their history, and the movie has become one of the biggest domestic box office hits of all time. Now, British audiences can see for themselves this amazingly noisy, bloody, cliche-laden, rubble-making version of the war.

3D does startling things to on-screen bomber crashes, tank attacks, ash from burning buildings that appears to float onto the cinema audience.

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My Comment: I say a pirated version of the film a few weeks ago (not 3D) .... and it is captivating. If you have a chance to see it .... take the time.

Stalingrad

A Tale of Two ‘Stalingrads’ -- David Axe, War Is Boring

Two movies about one battle—one a masterpiece, the other an embarrassment

In 1993 the Germans made a movie about the 1942 Battle of Stalingrad—a bloody turning point in the vast, apocalyptic German invasion of the Soviet Union. The film is called, simply, Stalingrad.

In 2013 the Russians also made a movie about Stalingrad and also called it, well, Stalingrad.

One of the two flicks is an anti-war masterpiece that boldly inverts the tropes of war movies and, in doing so, captures the chilly, Hellish reality of one of history’s most awful armed clashes.

The other is a silly, melodramatic celebration of war—and shot in shitty 3D, no less.

The German Stalingrad is the good one. The Russian version is awful—and by all accounts way more successful at the box office.

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My Comment: I concur .... the 1993 German version of Stalingrad is the better one .... while the 2013 version is a product for this age .... slow motion, bloody, and in 3D. My father ... who was in the Soviet Army group north of the city in 1942 .... found the 1993 version realistic to the point that he could not watch it. He passed away in 2005 .... but if he was to see the 2013 version .... I know that even though plot lines are weak, the visual images of people burning and dying would have been very difficult for him to see also. Another Stalingrad film that I like (and recommend) is "Enemy at the Gates".

Russia To Premiere It's World War II Epic 'Stalingrad'

Russia Premieres 'Stalingrad' Epic With Oscar Hopes -- Voice of Russia

Russian film director Fyodor Bondarchuk on Wednesday presented the Moscow premiere of his World War II drama "Stalingrad", an epic about one of the bloodiest battles in history, and which Russia has picked as its Oscar entry. Made with a budget of $30 million (22 million euros) including financing from the government, Bondarchuk's new film is the first Russian film to be shot entirely in 3D.

The release comes as President Vladimir Putin is seeking to play up patriotism to shore up support after returning to the Kremlin for a third term as president last year following huge protests.

The film focuses on the battlefield friendship between five Soviet soldiers who are desperately defending a strategically vital apartment building against far-better armed Nazi occupiers.

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My Comment: The above trailer is riveting .... and I suspect that the movie will be just as good. On a side note .... my father fought for the Soviet Army during the Second World War. In the battle of Stalingrad .... his artillery unit was located to the north of the city ... and it was their first real major engagement. I have always remembered my father's description of that battle .... but I will never forget his description of how bloody the entire war was. At the start of Stalingrad there were about 500 - 600 men in my father's unit  .... three years later .... and three days before the end of the war my father found himself to the west of Berlin .... with the remnants of this unit .... but that is also when German General Wenck and his 12th Army group decided to surrender to the West rather than finding themselves surrendering to the Russians. I always remember my father telling me that during those three days .... the last three days of the war .... this unit that had fought at some of the bloodiest battles of the war ended up being totally obliterated with only about two dozen surviving .... including my father.

On a personal note .... I have been to Stalingrad/Volgograd a few times .... the war memorial that is there is breath-taking.

Music For Remembering Stalingrad

The members of the Osnabrück Symphony Orchestra

For Stalingrad, With Love -- Deutsche Welle

Seventy years ago, the decisive Battle of Stalingrad came to an end. A joint concert by a German and a Russian orchestra on February 3 will be a highlight among events marking the anniversary.

German musicians with the Theater Osnabrück made thorough preparations for their trip to Russia: purchasing warm socks, tucking their instruments into their cases, and checking the exchange rate for the Russian ruble. But they also did a lot of thinking, wondering how they, as Germans, would be received in Volgograd.

Volgogradwas known as "Stalingrad" until 1961 and stands as a symbol for one of the greatest tragedies of the Second World War.

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My Comment: This is one concert that I wish I was there.

Remembering Stalingrad

Stalingrad Returns To Haunt Russia As Siege City Where Red Army Overcame The Nazis Gets Its Name Back - But Just For A Day -- Daily Mail

* Volgograd will once again be named Stalingrad on six military holidays
* The name Stalingrad is inextricably linked to bloody WWII battle
* Critics say it is an insult to millions who lost their lives in the battle

The Russian city where the Red Army decisively turned back Nazi forces in a landmark Second World War battle will once again be known as Stalingrad to mark the anniversary of the defeat.

The local government in Volgograd has decided to revive the name tomorrow, on the anniversary of the end of one of the bloodiest battles in history, along with five other key dates in the Russian military calendar.

The city was renamed Volgograd in 1961 as part of the Soviet Union's rejection of dictator Joseph Stalin's personality cult, but the name Stalingrad remains synonymous with the battle.

The decision to bring back the title, just for one day, as prompted fury from critics who say it is an insult to the memory of the almost 2 million people who lost their lives.

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More News On Remembering Stalingrad

Stalingrad returns to Russia’s map to mark celebrations -- RT
Volgograd to Be 'Stalingrad' on Military Holidays -- Moscow Times
‘Stalin buses’ to mark 70th anniversary of Battle of Stalingrad in Russia -- RT
Seventy years after the Battle of Stalingrad -- Pravda
Russia commemorates 70th anniversary of Stalingrad battle -- Voice of Russia
Stalingrad returns to haunt Russia -- The Guardian
Russian city getting back Stalin's name for war commemorations -- Reuters
Event to mark Battle of Stalingrad 70th anniversary -- BBC
Stalingrad name to be revived for anniversaries -- BBC
Stalin gets his city back as Russians celebrate dictator's triumph over Nazis -- NBC
Russia Revives the Namesake of ‘Uncle Joe’ -- New York Times
Russia: Stalin Buses, Soviet Tanks and Military Parades Swamp ‘Stalingrad’ for Victory Celebration -- IBTimes
Stalingrad anniversary: 70 years on, Russian city still gives up its WWII dead -- The Telegraph
Stalingrad anniversary: war veterans recall battle 70 years ago -- The Telegraph
Stalingrad anniversary: war veterans recall battle 70 years ago -- The Telegraph
Eyewitness accounts shed light on Stalingrad -- Deutsche Welle
Russian city gets to play ‘Stalin wasn’t so bad’ six days a year -- Kelly McParland, National Post
Remembering the horrors of Stalingrad -- Daniel Sandford, BBC
Why Stalingrad Matters Today -- Mark Perryman, Huffington Post
In pictures: 70 years since Nazi Germany's defeat at Stalingrad -- BBC

My Comment: My father was a Soviet World War II vet who fought north of Stalingrad a few weeks before the final German surrender in the city .... he was never a supporter of Stalin (he actually hated him) .... but I know that if he was alive today he would be proud that they are holding this special event in recognition of the great sacrifice of the many millions who participated in that battle .... and he would accept the name Stalingrad for those few days each year.