Bitva o Stalingrad německýma očima – Trigg Jonathan (2025)

Five months, one week, and three days of hell. The German offensive aimed at capturing Stalingrad began in August 1942, involving Friedrich Paulus's 6th Army and parts of the 4th Panzer Army. The attack was supported by intense bombing, which turned much of the city into ruins. The battle devolved into fighting for every house. Both sides fought fiercely and passionately for the city on the Volga. By mid-November, the Germans were on the brink of victory, while the Soviet defenders clung to the last narrow strips of land along the western bank of the river. However, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus at that time, targeting the weaker Romanian armies protecting the flanks of the 6th Army. The poorly equipped Romanian units were overwhelmed, and the 6th Army was cut off and encircled. Hitler was determined to hold the city at all costs and forbade the 6th Army from attempting a breakout. He insisted that they be supplied by air. The result was a German defeat. In February 1943, about 91,000 starving and lice-infested Germans surrendered to Soviet troops without food and ammunition. The losses on both sides were enormous – the Soviets alone had nearly half a million dead and over 650,000 sick or wounded.

Author Jonathan Trigg reveals human suffering in his unique style…