Great research! I'm actually a Red October district resident, and here in Volgograd we care about our history very much, because noone must forget of how the Victory was achieved. This is very important for us. We have WWII memorials almost on every street. You did just a gigantic job, describing defence of the "Factory Area". With a great respect from City-Hero Volgograd, Russia.
thanks for saving the world, but no thanks for changing a fascist regime with a communist one in eastern europe countries, same horror, worse civilization and behavior from occupying soviet *heroes*.....
Toader Spanache Soviet Union Times we’re not that bad, nowhere near the horror of Nazis. Life after ww2 was pretty good and by 1960s it was comparable to the west at that time.
@@toaderspanache8571 Romanian fascist, learn that: Romania was the shithole of Europe during the Kingdom, in say 1940, as during communism in say 1985. If anything, communists industrialized and modernized the country which in 1940 was 80% peasant illiterate. By 1970's, Romania was fully industrialized and the standard of living improved greatly. USSR has nothing to do with Romania being a shithole even today, it was even a worse shithole before the communists.
@@toaderspanache8571 The only thing the Russians saved were themselves. They never talk about how they were just fine with being allies of the Germans until June 0f 1941 when Hitler decided he didn't need a partner anymore.
As a WW2 historical junkie who has literally watched hundreds of Docs on the subject I have never seen anything so amazing as this. The way this video was created in such detail left me hanging on the Narator's every word. I have watched hundreds of hrs of info on Stalingrad alone so it is quite satisfying to be able to see the entire city layout and learn the exact way the battle unfolded in various areas including which units were attacking where and even down to the exact casualties they received in specific actions. I cant say enough, truly incredible.
Hes so bloody accurate, being a british vet lol at 35 his taste for detail is amazing, the reason why the germans dodnt win was pride and emotion, they should of flattend it 2 weeks of heavy bombardment followed by a ww1 style artillery walk infanty assault, would have stopped fireing postions being reinforced.
I know it's 3 years later, but I would recommend highly the history channel TIKhistory on the battle of Stalingrad. The now 48th episode series is still ongoing, but it's providing superb context from the highest level of command on both sides to the lowest, but also breaking some myths and legends, and offering new insights.
My Dad brought my brother and myself to see the movie "Stalingrad" when it came out here in Minnesota. There was only one theater which showed the movie, and that theater was very old and the boiler wasn't working, so there was no heat in the building. The bitter cold made the movie hit different. Whenever the winter chill sets in each November, my thoughts return to those soldiers on both sides at Stalingrad.
These animations of what it might have looked during the attack are amazing! It's really hard to comprehend what battlefields looked like during battle and it's one of the major problems when trying to explain a battle because you have to be able to imagine the layout of cities or fields. You did a terrific job on this. This makes understanding what actually happened at Stalingrad so much easier. Thanks for the brain food!
Very interesting and informative. My grand fought there for 2.5 months being a lieutenant in 66 Army, commanded a 80mm mortar squad. Was wounded from an artillery shell and that same day was in close quarters melee fight and got 3 bullets in shoulder, survived and after that day the war for him was mostly over. That is why I exist now. It makes me crazy to just think about it.
@@fiddlersgreen2433 If you've never been to see the war memorial and statue you should try to go. You won't regret it. It was an unforgettable experience for me.
Taking those shops was deceiving at first. Mostly ruined and blasted away. But the maneuver and attack,in those blds. Was a nightmare. I had no idea the complexity and terror of such battle.
The lion's share of the research has been done by Ret. Col. David Glantz who painstakingly went through unit records to reconstruct the battle in his 5 volumes, 10k pages Stalingrad "triology".
@@bushyrho1674 I've found all of them on EBay for great prices; there's usually several copies for sale of each title. If you're not willing to wait on the bid process, you can get a copy off Amazon - there's always used editions for sale. Many of them are in 'like new' condition.
On behalf of all military history buffs, WWII history buffs in particular, ever….. thank you for making this. Videos like this are pretty much the best thing ever. I love the detail. I could seriously watch this sort of stuff all day every day, and never be bored.
One of the biggest problems during this entire Battle for Stalingrad was that of supply, and I'm not talking about the Airlift after the encirclement, I mean during the entire battle. Rail lines were the key to operational success for the German Army in WW2 and rail gauging conversion operations were critical for the continued advances as well as resupply operations. When Case Blue was 1st developed, it encompassed both the 1st & 4th Panzer Army's driving south into the Oil Regions. The 1st Pz Army followed the line Rostov-Armavir and the 4th Pz Mororzsk-Salsk. But when then the 4th Pz Army was turned to the NE to attacj Stalingrad from the south, then all southern regauging operations for the 4th Pz were redirected to the NE towards Kokeinkovo. This place would later become famous for the launching point for Operation Winter Storm as it was the last place on any rail line safe from Soviet air attack to unload flatcars full of tanks and AFV's as well as major amounts of supplies. This was also the main corridor for supplies coming into Stalingrad for the 4th Pz Army as it was a split unit at this time. The main RR bridge for supply of the 6th Army was at Kalach, However it had been damaged so much that it could not be used for any rail service and was only used as a road bridge during the advance and subsequent encirclement battles. The main railroad line running from Morozovsk-Kalack-Stalingrad was unusable except as far Surovikino. Thus the Germans built a supply depot here and trains this far and unloading all 6th Army supplies to be reloaded onto trucks for transport into the city for use. I have read about the Germans using a "Loop" track for turning trains at Surovikino, but i doubt this. A simple run-around track would have sufficed. Also there was a Wye track in Morozovsk for turning any engines as well as a Wye track. This amother reason why the Germans has a hard time fighting the battle of Stalingrad, all of their supplies were on a string budget, only 2- rail lines and 1 was split, then a trans-loading situation on both ends requiring time, manpower and more fuel to get the food and ammunition up to the battle. This battle could have gone a 50-50 way up until Morozsk fell. Once that major bridgehead fell, both Airlife line and also the railroad switching point, All was lost then. Everyone had to be evacuated via a 1-rail mainline route thru Rostov, the 1st & 4th Panzer Armies and the 17th retreated to the Kuban. Even in today's military environment, How long would you last without a resupply of ammunition, food, or fuel? 6th Army lasted 44-days !!
This was the best treatment of this battle that I have ever seen or read, and Stalingrad has been one of my obsessions for about 40 years now. Well done!
@@ArmyUniversityPress I must agree with the OP - I've read and watched countless videos and books on Stalingrad, and the visual approach here is fantastically thorough and illuminating.
@@ArmyUniversityPress - You will be complimented by people who don't watch a lot of alternatives, or have not read in depth on the subject. In fact I'm annoyed by the shallow lists of battalion numbers ie complete lack of depth of analysis, and even more annoyed by the repeating clips of vid and pointless vidgame quality - pointless guesswork graphics. I suggest you read John Keegan's "The Face of Battle" to learn to describe an attack in real terms. Your commentary style: "101 attacked on the right, 102 attacked on the left" etc says NOTHING. It's so dry as to be useless. It's a dull reading of lists. The pity is that plenty of memoirs exist for this battle, use real remembrances of real men who were on scene to describe the scene.
John Smith - Since you were so dissatisfied with this video is it safe to assume that these are the last and only comments i'm going to have to read from you on this channel ? Correct ? I mean, these cretins who did this video, their vision and abilities are so inferior to your masterful knowledge and expectations of what a proper production would entail. Hope you go way in disgust and stay away.
Ive been constantly watching and reading up on WW2 ever since adulthood, over 20 yrs ago. Stories of battles over a building or small area are by far my favorite by a large margin. Pavlov's House is the most famous. If anyone out there that know of other stories where the enemies take and lose and take and lose a spot would be greatly appreciated. I couldn't imagine being stuck on the 4th floor and you booby trap every entrance possible and have to try to get ur couple hours of sleep while it's your turn and trying to close your eyes knowing the enemy is on the floor above and below ya. You're almost out of ammo and the only way to resupply is to take it off the person that you just killed. BRUTAL!
1:1721:42 The apartment buildings are still standing in 2019. Between Atlasova and Tarifnaya, northwest of Ulitsa Marshala Eremenko. 1:5913:3223:49 Looking west across Stalingrad South. Some of the buildings are still standing in 2019. 2:02 The Square of Fallen Fighters in Stalingrad Center. 2:03 & 34:06 Ulitsa Gogolya, in the direction of the main railway terminal. 2:1152:42 Stalingrad South. View west across Ulitsa Raboche-Krestyanskaya, and along Ogareva. The (L-shaped) building catercorner is the House for River Port Workers. Still there in 2019. The vantage point is up in the (L-shaped) House of Canning Factory Workers--still standing in 2019. 52:48 The building a block away is the House for Hydrolytic Plant Workers. Many of the buildings further left are still standing. 5:18 (inset), 50:4651:07 The courtyard of the apartment house (in Stalingrad South) for workers of the hydrolytic plant. The building is still standing southwest of Kozlovskaya & Barrikadnaya. The courtyard is mostly enclosed, but can be entered with Google Maps. 5:4614:26 Germans in the north corner of the Barrikady factory. 8:0514:36 The church on Bolshievitskaya Ulitsa in Stalingrad Center. 8:5644:15 Power station of Red October. 13:2323:46 From up on the church by Dvinskaya Ulitsa, (uphill from the main railyard), looking downtown. 13:4416:15 Krasnyi Oktyabr' Metallurgicheskiy Zavod in the Spring after the Battle. 14:16 In Stalingrad South, looking northeast. The trestle bridge across the Tsaritsa is in the foreground of the bright white building right of center. (--Shown more clearly (at 4:43) in YT video "Battle of Stalingrad 1942/1943 - Nazi Germany vs Soviet Union." 14:45 At the flight school. 14:4819:13 Germans arriving at the main railyard in Stalingrad Center. Mid-September! 15:0117:18 Staged in Krasnoarmeysk, south of Stalingrad. The building at right is still standing by Arsenyeva Ulitsa. 17:0118:59 Footbridge across the main railyard. Terminal building at right. 18:4344:03 Looking northeast toward the Martenovskii Shop. At right is Halle 7. At left is a raised concrete octagon. 23:03 Halle 7 is beyond 6. The octagon between them is at extreme right. 51:09 Main railway terminal building in Stalingrad Center. Many Stalingrad fotos have been identified in books authored or published by Jason Mark. Alexander Trofimov is very expert at identifying Stalingrad locations in fotos. The special Stalingrad issue of "After the Battle" magazine has some of his many astute identifications. "Stalingrad Aerial Scans" online has interesting fotos of Stalingrad. Views of the Martenovskii Workshop are in the film "Stalingrad Restarts" at the British Pathé website.
Wow, that was awesome. I’ve read about it, and seen maps, but the way you guys show the front lines, and movements of the regiments was really great. Thank you!
Check out Close Combat 3, and Close Combat 5, the Stalingrad mod, and CC5, the CC5: Der Kessel mod. They all have detailed maps, based on similar maps to this one, of the factories in Stalingrad. Google the game if you're unfamiliar with it. I guarantee you'll enjoy it if you're keen on strategic small unit warfare tactics.
Thanks very much for providing students of the battle with a tour de force of a video. Compelling viewing and will need to be watched and studied again and again.
Remarkably well done. Anyone who has played Close Combat 3, or the CC5 mods like the Stalingrad mod or Der Kessel mod, will recognise having spent hours fighting in these very factory complexes. I am impressed with how accurate the Close Combat maps are, particularly the Stalingrad and the Der Kessel modification.
This is very well done, and thanks for it. This video has never been on my recommended list before today. By a very odd coincidence, today I received my copy of the Advanced Squad Leader "Red Factories" module, which covers this same battle.
What an amazing documentary. It strikes me that in an area of such size, the carnage must have been indescribable. I mean, there would have been bodies and body parts everywhere. It surely would have been nearly impossible to recover casualties, especially for the attacking forces.
Stalingrad campaign has every type of WWII combat; beginning with a sweeping panzerblitz along hot Dusty roads and warfare of movement through stubborn street battles of colossal size; and ends with urban warfare and an attacking army besieged in winter blizzard conditions. The citys distance from Germany is astounding. Both sides fought heroicly and gave it all they had.
Check out Close Combat 3, and Close Combat 5, the Stalingrad mod, and CC5, the CC5: Der Kessel mod. They all have detailed maps, based on similar maps to this one, of the factories in Stalingrad. Google the game if you're unfamiliar with it. I guarantee you'll enjoy it if you're keen on strategic small unit warfare tactics.
Wow! Whatever your background and education is, you have done a fabulous job preseting these events as clearly and well explained, that not only could I - a mere civilian - follow the development but even found it very interesting and really exciting. I have seen quite a few documentaries and done a fair amount of studying into the Stalingrad battle, but your immense reseach and fine visualizations of this one battle area really put blood and bone on this key moment in WWII. I'm amazed how much closer an idea I got from your straight and dry presentation - how insanely close and bitter the fight was and how absolutely horrible it must have been for the poor men doing that fighting (not to mention in winter conditions). More vivid than any major account I've seen before. Two big thumbs up to you, my good Sir!
Excuse me for my English, I write as good as I was taught in school. First of all, hats off to those who made a research into Stalingrad battle, unbelievable details. You are watching this and wondering, how come, these Americans know more details than we, soviet soldiers descendants know? Amazing job. You watch this film and understand that our grandfathers were just cannon meat in somebody’s games. When sovient archieves for WW2 open up, we will realize that half of our losses could have been avoided. But this is not the worst feeling in those who are direct descendants of great red army soldiers, the funnies thing is that our grandfathers were living and died in much worse conditions than those whose asses we kicked in 1945).
Since before recorded history - for the most part people are people the world over. All we want is food on our table, a roof over our heads and a decent education for our children. If we are fortunate, we are blessed with good health. Its governments that screw things up.
The sacrifices of your grandfathers were not trivial. The Germans were unable to take the city due to extremely high levels of Soviet tenacity. Stalingrad is a great example of the effectiveness of tough-minded battle leadership.
You are correct about the Soviet high command did not care about the Russian soldiers. Part of the problem was that many Soviet generals were shot by Stalin for losing battles. When generals are worried about being shot for failure they dint really worry too much about casualties.
I've been fascinated by this battle for years and this video is by far the best I have ever seen at bringing it to life. In fact, I'd say this is the best video I've ever watched discussing detailed troop movements in any conflict. Thank you for this.
Excellent. Many of the terrain features , buildings, etc are still clearly visible on Google Maps. Going back and forth from the animations to the present day satellite view, I cannot even begin to imagine just how close the Germans came to the Volga and how hard the Soviets must have fought to hold them back.
Semi-relevant but interesting factoid: The Red October Factory was designed by the eminent American Industrial architect Albert Kahn of Detroit who also designed, among other notable buildings, Ford’s River Rouge complex and Ford’s Willow Run Plant where B-24 Liberator bombers were built. In a sense his work impacted, albeit indirectly 2 major WWII battles...Stalingrad and the European bomber campaign. Kahn was the undisputed “dean” of 20th century industrial architecture and did much work in the Soviet Union in the 1930s. Coincidentally his chief structural engineer was Harry Ellsberg, father of Dan Ellsberg.
DataWaveTaGo Willow Run was built by Ford but no Ford auto products were produced there. Ford apparently sold it to the government and leased it back for the B24 program. GM bought the plant in the early 1950s.
That is interesting. Parts of Detroit today look a lot like Stalingrad did in December 1942. If anyone ever wanted to make another film about Stalingrad, they could film it in Detroit.
Amber Maynard Perhaps! I will say this though. With this “polar vortex” due to bring near-zero to sun-zero temperatures to the Midwest this week one will get a small taste of “Stalingrad conditions”...on a “warm” day that is. Any “Stalingrad reenactors” up for a camp out at River Rouge this Wednesday...LOL? Don’t forget to bring the lice!
Same here, I am so interested in the stalingrad battle. One of my biggest wish would be to travel back in time to witness it. Unfortunately there are very little footage of the battle. The german movie Stalingrad and Enemy at the Gate help get a better understanding of what it looked like.
Absorbing and truly fascinating. My late Father (who retired as a Major in the British Army) fought in the Far East in WW2. I have enough interested in things military since I played with my first Toy Soldiers. I am always fascinated by the history of WW2 especially. Loved this insight into history and military tactics. Will certainly subscribe to this channel.
In the past war Germany school teacher asks. "children what is the biggest city in the world?" Greta, "New York" Teacher, "very nice, who knows more big cities?" Hans, "Stalingrad!" Teacher, "how come little Hans?" Hans, "my daddy told me, it took them a whole month just to walk down one street!"
19:25 Felt really surprised to realize I have been there already! Red Orchestra 2, RedOctoberFactory , detailed map, based on photos of the fight involving combats in blocks 10, 9 8, 8a and partially 5.
The inside (after the Battle) is also shown in some British Pathé films. Two are on UA-cam: "Leningrad Restarts Aka Stalingrad Restarts," and "Stalingrad After the War."
@@stray_dog3960 I got the game a Lil bit ago, now that is some realistic game. Bullet drop, you get shot once you bleed out can die. My favorite thing was seeing the artillery rain down and it effected the soldiers in the game to.
Amazing analysis of this key piece of battle for Stalingrad. Heroic defense of Martevovski bounded the bulk of 6th Army inside Stalingrad, enabling Zhukov to complete preparations for Operation Uranus. Germans were disciplined and methodical, but Russians shown great motivation and courage. It appears that Russian units were not ordinary soldiers, but the best of the best, specially selected and trained for this task. In this "battle of wills", the German will cracked, and was not able to recover further on. I'd like to visit Stalingrad some time, to pay tribute to these heroic defenders
That was fascinating thank you very much. I’ve wanted to see videos like this showing in detail how strategic objectives affect unit movement on the battlefield. Very informative on such a historically significant moment in the war. Many would argue that Germany had lost the war after it’s defeat at Moscow in so much as resource wise it would never now out produce the Soviets and as a fighting force it’s teeth were significantly blunted. Militarily that might be very true but it’s fair to say Stalingrad was the loss of the ideological war. Watching this video and the battle raging over building four, troop numbers down to a couple of hundred on both side involved in savage fighting. It all came down to this! If the Germans had held the ground when they attacked and managed to reinforce and eventually captured the building they would have straightened the line and certainly pushed to the river. Building eight would have been systematically destroyed and perhaps helping to avoid the crushing defeat the 6th army would suffer a few months later. In those few meters of space where the Germans entered arguably is the turning point of the battle for Stalingrad, the Soviets would always now have a bridgehead on the wast bank of the river and this was naturally very significant in their victory.
It's eerie to think about to the amount of violence, suffering, and loss of life that occurred during the changes of the frontline shown in this video..
I’m so enjoying your programs, I’m a retired marine, just 4 years, but I love the history of the Russian army, but we still kick the most ass. Keep it up
This series is the best I have ever seen about : WW2 Eastern Fron Barbarossa Stalingrad Uranus Bagration If our USA military and cadets study both the strategic and tactical aspects discussed by this Combined Arms documentary series , they will become more informed and benefit.
@@rvpixie Whose oil have we taken? And I'll tell you something else pal, the U.S. military attempts to limit civilian casulties harder and better than any army.
HANds DOWN THE GREATEST, BEST Military HìStORY Documentary Series I've ever witnessed,. ONLY The United States ARMY Could Do Such an Incredible Job as ThìS💯
I like the way they just present the facts and dont play favorites, or throw in politics, as tho that mattered to the poor devil hiding in the ruins.On either side.
I love this series. The narrative that America came in late and saved Europe that I grew up with in "American History", I realized glossed over the Soviet Union's contributions. It is too bad politics ruined the alliance we once had over a common foe. The Russian people are tough as hell. Certainly America has never wanted to be communist, but we are all not speaking German either. The animation really puts you on the scene.
Excellent production and concept, although I do enjoy the first two episodes more than the last two...what is the music played at the very beginning...thank you
Heavily overstated use of the MG42 in Stalingrad, since it was used at Div HQ's primarily. German units made distinction between "Leichter" (light mg) and "Schwerer" (heavy mg) MG's (without tri-pods for "Leichte" and with tri-pods for "Schwere") www.fireonthevolga.com/IR54-MG42.JPG
Good video. Why dont you make video of Stalingrad buildings or locations that the germans were able to capture? Such as the tractor factory, Or even better the grain elevator? Both these locations had prolonged fighting. Also i would like to suggest putting in some german and soviet soldiers in the 3D parts it would give the videos a more sinister feel to see dead bodies laying around as well as living ones fighting.
Full misunderstanding of strategic aspects. Stalingrad was the last defensible position for the Soviets for hundreds of kilometers , both East and North. And for Germans keeping troops in and around the city was a question of denying both Soviet oil supply and southern lend lease route.
Michael Kovalchuk Well, afaik Soviet decision to defend the city as it was stated in Stavka documents was dictated by the fact that Stalingrad was a) already turned into a logistical hub that supported the left flank of 1942 winter-spring offensive b) no significant reinforcements could be moved to the Low Volga area to form another defensive position in appropriate time c) nearest railway river crossing point is Saratov 235 miles away, nearest existing boat crossing point is about half way there and is significantly weaker then one in Stalingrad or Saratov. There were no cities, hills or significant rivers on the left bank for at least 400 miles, and there were only one railway line there. So the situation was that either the troops retreated from Rostov-on-Don and naturally assembled in Stalingrad would hold it long enough for Stavka to prepare a substantial counter offensive, or the Germans would get full control over the Southern Russia with their mobile units. From the German perspective it was, afaik, the situation when they had 3 significantly weakened but still somewhat combat effective Soviet armies assembled at the left flank of the army group A. So they had a choice to either go to Astrakhan and mount a defensive or try to crush this threat. Moreover, logistics on Rostov-Stalingrad line was slightly better then on Rostov-Astrakhan.
Fantastic presentation. Its a shame more information wasn't presented about the heroic efforts of the Red Army and how through attrition they delayed the German advance to the point where they held the last strategic positions near the river thus granting Stavka the time and resources to launch operation Uranus 19-23 Nov thus sealing the city and dooming the fascists and their allies.
Thank you for watching! To view more of our films, check out our full collection at www.armyupress.army.mil/Films/Feature-Film-Catalog/
Great research! I'm actually a Red October district resident, and here in Volgograd we care about our history very much, because noone must forget of how the Victory was achieved. This is very important for us. We have WWII memorials almost on every street.
You did just a gigantic job, describing defence of the "Factory Area".
With a great respect from City-Hero Volgograd, Russia.
thanks for saving the world, but no thanks for changing a fascist regime with a communist one in eastern europe countries, same horror, worse civilization and behavior from occupying soviet *heroes*.....
Toader Spanache Soviet Union Times we’re not that bad, nowhere near the horror of Nazis. Life after ww2 was pretty good and by 1960s it was comparable to the west at that time.
@@toaderspanache8571 Romanian fascist, learn that: Romania was the shithole of Europe during the Kingdom, in say 1940, as during communism in say 1985. If anything, communists industrialized and modernized the country which in 1940 was 80% peasant illiterate. By 1970's, Romania was fully industrialized and the standard of living improved greatly. USSR has nothing to do with Romania being a shithole even today, it was even a worse shithole before the communists.
@@toaderspanache8571 The only thing the Russians saved were themselves. They never talk about how they were just fine with being allies of the Germans until June 0f 1941 when Hitler decided he didn't need a partner anymore.
@@eh5048 Yeah. Standing in line for hours hoping to get bread or toilet paper wasn't a problem, right?
As a WW2 historical junkie who has literally watched hundreds of Docs on the subject I have never seen anything so amazing as this. The way this video was created in such detail left me hanging on the Narator's every word. I have watched hundreds of hrs of info on Stalingrad alone so it is quite satisfying to be able to see the entire city layout and learn the exact way the battle unfolded in various areas including which units were attacking where and even down to the exact casualties they received in specific actions. I cant say enough, truly incredible.
Hes so bloody accurate, being a british vet lol at 35 his taste for detail is amazing, the reason why the germans dodnt win was pride and emotion, they should of flattend it 2 weeks of heavy bombardment followed by a ww1 style artillery walk infanty assault, would have stopped fireing postions being reinforced.
@@theforlanjoker4457 it for sure wasn’t pride and emotion, the wehrmacht was one of the most pride filled militaries at the time.
@@hanzsolo5460
Lol seriously. Wth is joker talking about
I know it's 3 years later, but I would recommend highly the history channel TIKhistory on the battle of Stalingrad. The now 48th episode series is still ongoing, but it's providing superb context from the highest level of command on both sides to the lowest, but also breaking some myths and legends, and offering new insights.
Check out TIKs 50+ hour documentary here on youtube
What an incredible amount of research, the horrors that these men faced shouldn't be forgotten. Thank you for keeping history alive!
My Dad brought my brother and myself to see the movie "Stalingrad" when it came out here in Minnesota. There was only one theater which showed the movie, and that theater was very old and the boiler wasn't working, so there was no heat in the building. The bitter cold made the movie hit different. Whenever the winter chill sets in each November, my thoughts return to those soldiers on both sides at Stalingrad.
These animations of what it might have looked during the attack are amazing! It's really hard to comprehend what battlefields looked like during battle and it's one of the major problems when trying to explain a battle because you have to be able to imagine the layout of cities or fields. You did a terrific job on this. This makes understanding what actually happened at Stalingrad so much easier. Thanks for the brain food!
Did you ever think of what it must have smelled like when it got warm ? Human waste and rotten meat
@@harrybriscoe7948 I couldnt even imagine.
Yes it is much easier to get an idea what is going on looking at these illustrations than the actual pictures
It looked like hell warmed up
Very interesting and informative. My grand fought there for 2.5 months being a lieutenant in 66 Army, commanded a 80mm mortar squad. Was wounded from an artillery shell and that same day was in close quarters melee fight and got 3 bullets in shoulder, survived and after that day the war for him was mostly over. That is why I exist now. It makes me crazy to just think about it.
Your grandfather fought for the Soviets? There was a 62nd Soviet army in the battle, but there were no 80 mm mortars.
@@johnrltr he was in 66-th army, 84-th rifle division, right north to the city, not inside the city itself.
@@fiddlersgreen2433 If you've never been to see the war memorial and statue you should try to go. You won't regret it. It was an unforgettable experience for me.
@@johnrltr I'm an American now, not sure when there will be a chance to visit those places.
Taking those shops was deceiving at first. Mostly ruined and blasted away. But the maneuver and attack,in those blds. Was a nightmare. I had no idea the complexity and terror of such battle.
I'm amazed at the amount of research that went into this.
The lion's share of the research has been done by Ret. Col. David Glantz who painstakingly went through unit records to reconstruct the battle in his 5 volumes, 10k pages Stalingrad "triology".
Imagine if msm put this much effort in
@@VT-mw2zb Do you know where I can find a full set. I have looked and can not find one. Thanks!
@@bushyrho1674
I've found all of them on EBay for great prices; there's usually several copies for sale of each title. If you're not willing to wait on the bid process, you can get a copy off Amazon - there's always used editions for sale. Many of them are in 'like new' condition.
On behalf of all military history buffs, WWII history buffs in particular, ever….. thank you for making this. Videos like this are pretty much the best thing ever. I love the detail. I could seriously watch this sort of stuff all day every day, and never be bored.
One of the biggest problems during this entire Battle for Stalingrad was that of supply, and I'm not talking about the Airlift after the encirclement, I mean during the entire battle. Rail lines were the key to operational success for the German Army in WW2 and rail gauging conversion operations were critical for the continued advances as well as resupply operations.
When Case Blue was 1st developed, it encompassed both the 1st & 4th Panzer Army's driving south into the Oil Regions. The 1st Pz Army followed the line Rostov-Armavir and the 4th Pz Mororzsk-Salsk.
But when then the 4th Pz Army was turned to the NE to attacj Stalingrad from the south, then all southern regauging operations for the 4th Pz were redirected to the NE towards Kokeinkovo. This place would later become famous for the launching point for Operation Winter Storm as it was the last place on any rail line safe from Soviet air attack to unload flatcars full of tanks and AFV's as well as major amounts of supplies. This was also the main corridor for supplies coming into Stalingrad for the 4th Pz Army as it was a split unit at this time.
The main RR bridge for supply of the 6th Army was at Kalach, However it had been damaged so much that it could not be used for any rail service and was only used as a road bridge during the advance and subsequent encirclement battles.
The main railroad line running from Morozovsk-Kalack-Stalingrad was unusable except as far Surovikino. Thus the Germans built a supply depot here and trains this far and unloading all 6th Army supplies to be reloaded onto trucks for transport into the city for use.
I have read about the Germans using a "Loop" track for turning trains at Surovikino, but i doubt this. A simple run-around track would have sufficed. Also there was a Wye track in Morozovsk for turning any engines as well as a Wye track.
This amother reason why the Germans has a hard time fighting the battle of Stalingrad, all of their supplies were on a string budget, only 2- rail lines and 1 was split, then a trans-loading situation on both ends requiring time, manpower and more fuel to get the food and ammunition up to the battle.
This battle could have gone a 50-50 way up until Morozsk fell. Once that major bridgehead fell, both Airlife line and also the railroad switching point, All was lost then.
Everyone had to be evacuated via a 1-rail mainline route thru Rostov, the 1st & 4th Panzer Armies and the 17th retreated to the Kuban.
Even in today's military environment, How long would you last without a resupply of ammunition, food, or fuel? 6th Army lasted 44-days !!
This was the best treatment of this battle that I have ever seen or read, and Stalingrad has been one of my obsessions for about 40 years now. Well done!
I highly recommend this one:
ua-cam.com/video/Gf8Rmf4m8rs/v-deo.html
Unprecedented approach to the battle. Very informative. Thank you for the invested effort and time
@@ArmyUniversityPress I must agree with the OP - I've read and watched countless videos and books on Stalingrad, and the visual approach here is fantastically thorough and illuminating.
@@ArmyUniversityPress - You will be complimented by people who don't watch a lot of alternatives, or have not read in depth on the subject. In fact I'm annoyed by the shallow lists of battalion numbers ie complete lack of depth of analysis, and even more annoyed by the repeating clips of vid and pointless vidgame quality - pointless guesswork graphics. I suggest you read John Keegan's "The Face of Battle" to learn to describe an attack in real terms. Your commentary style: "101 attacked on the right, 102 attacked on the left" etc says NOTHING. It's so dry as to be useless. It's a dull reading of lists. The pity is that plenty of memoirs exist for this battle, use real remembrances of real men who were on scene to describe the scene.
@@gowithgroove - Nonsense. But then you've saved "Ram Jam - Black Betty" lol!
John Smith - Since you were so dissatisfied with this video is it safe to assume that these are the last and only comments i'm going to have to read from you on this channel ? Correct ? I mean, these cretins who did this video, their vision and abilities are so inferior to your masterful knowledge and expectations of what a proper production would entail. Hope you go way in disgust and stay away.
@@hey_joe7069 - Stupid Tucker Carlson Rush Shitbag fans says what?
Ive been constantly watching and reading up on WW2 ever since adulthood, over 20 yrs ago. Stories of battles over a building or small area are by far my favorite by a large margin. Pavlov's House is the most famous. If anyone out there that know of other stories where the enemies take and lose and take and lose a spot would be greatly appreciated.
I couldn't imagine being stuck on the 4th floor and you booby trap every entrance possible and have to try to get ur couple hours of sleep while it's your turn and trying to close your eyes knowing the enemy is on the floor above and below ya. You're almost out of ammo and the only way to resupply is to take it off the person that you just killed. BRUTAL!
1:17 21:42 The apartment buildings are still standing in 2019. Between Atlasova and Tarifnaya, northwest of Ulitsa Marshala Eremenko.
1:59 13:32 23:49 Looking west across Stalingrad South. Some of the buildings are still standing in 2019.
2:02 The Square of Fallen Fighters in Stalingrad Center.
2:03 & 34:06 Ulitsa Gogolya, in the direction of the main railway terminal.
2:11 52:42 Stalingrad South. View west across Ulitsa Raboche-Krestyanskaya, and along Ogareva. The (L-shaped) building catercorner is the House for River Port Workers. Still there in 2019. The vantage point is up in the (L-shaped) House of Canning Factory Workers--still standing in 2019. 52:48 The building a block away is the House for Hydrolytic Plant Workers. Many of the buildings further left are still standing.
5:18 (inset), 50:46 51:07 The courtyard of the apartment house (in Stalingrad South) for workers of the hydrolytic plant. The building is still standing southwest of Kozlovskaya & Barrikadnaya. The courtyard is mostly enclosed, but can be entered with Google Maps.
5:46 14:26 Germans in the north corner of the Barrikady factory.
8:05 14:36 The church on Bolshievitskaya Ulitsa in Stalingrad Center.
8:56 44:15 Power station of Red October.
13:23 23:46 From up on the church by Dvinskaya Ulitsa, (uphill from the main railyard), looking downtown.
13:44 16:15 Krasnyi Oktyabr' Metallurgicheskiy Zavod in the Spring after the Battle.
14:16 In Stalingrad South, looking northeast. The trestle bridge across the Tsaritsa is in the foreground of the bright white building right of center. (--Shown more clearly (at 4:43) in YT video "Battle of Stalingrad 1942/1943 - Nazi Germany vs Soviet Union."
14:45 At the flight school.
14:48 19:13 Germans arriving at the main railyard in Stalingrad Center. Mid-September!
15:01 17:18 Staged in Krasnoarmeysk, south of Stalingrad. The building at right is still standing by Arsenyeva Ulitsa.
17:01 18:59 Footbridge across the main railyard. Terminal building at right.
18:43 44:03 Looking northeast toward the Martenovskii Shop. At right is Halle 7. At left is a raised concrete octagon.
23:03 Halle 7 is beyond 6. The octagon between them is at extreme right.
51:09 Main railway terminal building in Stalingrad Center.
Many Stalingrad fotos have been identified in books authored or published by Jason Mark.
Alexander Trofimov is very expert at identifying Stalingrad locations in fotos. The special Stalingrad issue of "After the Battle" magazine has some of his many astute identifications.
"Stalingrad Aerial Scans" online has interesting fotos of Stalingrad.
Views of the Martenovskii Workshop are in the film "Stalingrad Restarts" at the British Pathé website.
Wow, that was awesome. I’ve read about it, and seen maps, but the way you guys show the front lines, and movements of the regiments was really great. Thank you!
Check out Close Combat 3, and Close Combat 5, the Stalingrad mod, and CC5, the CC5: Der Kessel mod.
They all have detailed maps, based on similar maps to this one, of the factories in Stalingrad.
Google the game if you're unfamiliar with it. I guarantee you'll enjoy it if you're keen on strategic small unit warfare tactics.
Very impressed with the presentation thank you Striking how small the actual sharp end forces were in these key battles.
Thanks very much for providing students of the battle with a tour de force of a video. Compelling viewing and will need to be watched and studied again and again.
Remarkably well done. Anyone who has played Close Combat 3, or the CC5 mods like the Stalingrad mod or Der Kessel mod, will recognise having spent hours fighting in these very factory complexes. I am impressed with how accurate the Close Combat maps are, particularly the Stalingrad and the Der Kessel modification.
This is very well done, and thanks for it. This video has never been on my recommended list before today. By a very odd coincidence, today I received my copy of the Advanced Squad Leader "Red Factories" module, which covers this same battle.
Brilliant research, detail and presentation. 👍🏻
What an amazing documentary.
It strikes me that in an area of such size, the carnage must have been indescribable. I mean, there would have been bodies and body parts everywhere. It surely would have been nearly impossible to recover casualties, especially for the attacking forces.
Stalingrad campaign has every type of WWII combat; beginning with a sweeping panzerblitz along hot Dusty roads and warfare of movement through stubborn street battles of colossal size; and ends with urban warfare and an attacking army besieged in winter blizzard conditions. The citys distance from Germany is astounding. Both sides fought heroicly and gave it all they had.
I AM EXTREMELY IMPRESSED! As a German operational maneuver warfare aficionado/armchair/bookworm/ history freak this is exceptional work. Bravo!
Rather than this poorly written cartoon quality review of the battle try this excellent well written piece: ua-cam.com/video/3kJE-6HeLZE/v-deo.html
Check out Close Combat 3, and Close Combat 5, the Stalingrad mod, and CC5, the CC5: Der Kessel mod.
They all have detailed maps, based on similar maps to this one, of the factories in Stalingrad.
Google the game if you're unfamiliar with it. I guarantee you'll enjoy it if you're keen on strategic small unit warfare tactics.
@@johnsmith1474 This shows the battle in much more detailed scale, describibg owens, roofs etc.
Its two completely different things.
@@1PPPete - None of it is accurate, it's bullshit. It plays on the video game mentality, not history. Junk presentation.
@@johnsmith1474 Maybe if you had little bit of decency, somebody could take you seriously.
Frankly, this is the best documentary I have ever seen about this battle. Thank you.
Have you seen this?
I was amazed.
ua-cam.com/video/Gf8Rmf4m8rs/v-deo.html
This is an excellent documentary!
Wow! Whatever your background and education is, you have done a fabulous job preseting these events as clearly and well explained, that not only could I - a mere civilian - follow the development but even found it very interesting and really exciting. I have seen quite a few documentaries and done a fair amount of studying into the Stalingrad battle, but your immense reseach and fine visualizations of this one battle area really put blood and bone on this key moment in WWII. I'm amazed how much closer an idea I got from your straight and dry presentation - how insanely close and bitter the fight was and how absolutely horrible it must have been for the poor men doing that fighting (not to mention in winter conditions). More vivid than any major account I've seen before. Two big thumbs up to you, my good Sir!
Excuse me for my English, I write as good as I was taught in school. First of all, hats off to those who made a research into Stalingrad battle, unbelievable details. You are watching this and wondering, how come, these Americans know more details than we, soviet soldiers descendants know? Amazing job. You watch this film and understand that our grandfathers were just cannon meat in somebody’s games. When sovient archieves for WW2 open up, we will realize that half of our losses could have been avoided. But this is not the worst feeling in those who are direct descendants of great red army soldiers, the funnies thing is that our grandfathers were living and died in much worse conditions than those whose asses we kicked in 1945).
Since before recorded history - for the most part people are people the world over. All we want is food on our table, a roof over our heads and a decent education for our children. If we are fortunate, we are blessed with good health. Its governments that screw things up.
The sacrifices of your grandfathers were not trivial. The Germans were unable to take the city due to extremely high levels of Soviet tenacity. Stalingrad is a great example of the effectiveness of tough-minded battle leadership.
Hi! When will the archives open up?
Мне чисто интересно,а какие именно архивы говорят о том,что половины жертв можно было избежать?
Или это из серии правды о войне от эха москвы?
You are correct about the Soviet high command did not care about the Russian soldiers. Part of the problem was that many Soviet generals were shot by Stalin for losing battles. When generals are worried about being shot for failure they dint really worry too much about casualties.
Very good commentary. I've studied this battle for years and I very much enjoyed the detail in which you discussed it. Thank you for your hard work.
I've been fascinated by this battle for years and this video is by far the best I have ever seen at bringing it to life. In fact, I'd say this is the best video I've ever watched discussing detailed troop movements in any conflict. Thank you for this.
Excellent. Many of the terrain features , buildings, etc are still clearly visible on Google Maps. Going back and forth from the animations to the present day satellite view, I cannot even begin to imagine just how close the Germans came to the Volga and how hard the Soviets must have fought to hold them back.
Well researched and delivered. Thank you for your time and effort.
Excellent video ! very informative. I am looking forward to further videos analyzing more battles.
Wow, this is outstanding!! More and more please!!
Absolutely incredible production, well done and thank you.
Incredible, thank you.
I've seen a lot of videos on this battle but I like this one the best.
Very well narrated and produced!!!! Can't wait for more videos in the near future.
Glad I found this video. This really was street war, having to assign troops to hallways and capture rooms, schools and strong points.
Semi-relevant but interesting factoid:
The Red October Factory was designed by the eminent American Industrial architect Albert Kahn of Detroit who also designed, among other notable buildings, Ford’s River Rouge complex and Ford’s Willow Run Plant where B-24 Liberator bombers were built. In a sense his work impacted, albeit indirectly 2 major WWII battles...Stalingrad and the European bomber campaign.
Kahn was the undisputed “dean” of 20th century industrial architecture and did much work in the Soviet Union in the 1930s.
Coincidentally his chief structural engineer was Harry Ellsberg, father of Dan Ellsberg.
re: "Ford’s Willow Run Plant where B-24 Liberator bombers were built." Wasn't that a GM plant? The Corvair was built there from 1960 - 1969.
DataWaveTaGo
Willow Run was built by Ford but no Ford auto products were produced there. Ford apparently sold it to the government and leased it back for the B24 program. GM bought the plant in the early 1950s.
@@165Dash Thanks!
That is interesting. Parts of Detroit today look a lot like Stalingrad did in December 1942. If anyone ever wanted to make another film about Stalingrad, they could film it in Detroit.
Amber Maynard
Perhaps!
I will say this though. With this “polar vortex” due to bring near-zero to sun-zero temperatures to the Midwest this week one will get a small taste of “Stalingrad conditions”...on a “warm” day that is.
Any “Stalingrad reenactors” up for a camp out at River Rouge this Wednesday...LOL? Don’t forget to bring the lice!
Good show.
I listened to it at work, i will have to actually watch it at home.
I played a few scenarios of ASL in this complex.
These Stalingrad docs are absolutely phenomenal! I have a macabre fascination with this battle and the detail provided here is chilling.
Same here, I am so interested in the stalingrad battle. One of my biggest wish would be to travel back in time to witness it. Unfortunately there are very little footage of the battle. The german movie Stalingrad and Enemy at the Gate help get a better understanding of what it looked like.
Absorbing and truly fascinating. My late Father (who retired as a Major in the British Army) fought in the Far East in WW2. I have enough interested in things military since I played with my first Toy Soldiers. I am always fascinated by the history of WW2 especially. Loved this insight into history and military tactics. Will certainly subscribe to this channel.
Excellent. Well done.
In the past war Germany school teacher asks. "children what is the biggest city in the world?"
Greta, "New York"
Teacher, "very nice, who knows more big cities?"
Hans, "Stalingrad!"
Teacher, "how come little Hans?"
Hans, "my daddy told me, it took them a whole month just to walk down one street!"
Stupid tale
@@zamanium7517 Ты слишком умный, чтобы понять
@@firstlast1047
Что там понимать . Идиотский анекдот .
19:25 Felt really surprised to realize I have been there already!
Red Orchestra 2, RedOctoberFactory , detailed map, based on photos of the fight involving combats in blocks 10, 9 8, 8a and partially 5.
I was so excited to have seen that same photo, it made the game that much better for me.
The inside (after the Battle) is also shown in some British Pathé films. Two are on UA-cam: "Leningrad Restarts Aka Stalingrad Restarts," and "Stalingrad After the War."
@@stray_dog3960 I got the game a Lil bit ago, now that is some realistic game. Bullet drop, you get shot once you bleed out can die. My favorite thing was seeing the artillery rain down and it effected the soldiers in the game to.
@@markprange4386 Could you link it?
@@jackt7331: Two of the British Pathé films are on eBay: "Leningrad Restarts Aka Stalingrad Restarts" and "Stalingrad After The War."
Great video. Love the way the FMs are tied into the tactical presentation.
This is one of the most comprehensive and informative videos I've seen on a topic; nice graphics and storytelling.
Excellent. This explains everything in a way that anyone can understand. Thank you.
I love these. Thanks for posting and putting them together.
Amazing analysis of this key piece of battle for Stalingrad. Heroic defense of Martevovski bounded the bulk of 6th Army inside Stalingrad, enabling Zhukov to complete preparations for Operation Uranus. Germans were disciplined and methodical, but Russians shown great motivation and courage. It appears that Russian units were not ordinary soldiers, but the best of the best, specially selected and trained for this task. In this "battle of wills", the German will cracked, and was not able to recover further on. I'd like to visit Stalingrad some time, to pay tribute to these heroic defenders
Amazing work!!! I love how you brought this battle into perspective for us history nerds!
Thank you for this great work.
Greetings from Slovenia
Really great video, I enjoyed it immensely and learned a lot.
thanks for this. One of the most intelligent videos I've seen on UA-cam. And no suffocating mood music - a breath of fresh air.
Amazing series. Well done!
Great breakdown, great watch, thanks for this video.
That was fascinating thank you very much. I’ve wanted to see videos like this showing in detail how strategic objectives affect unit movement on the battlefield. Very informative on such a historically significant moment in the war.
Many would argue that Germany had lost the war after it’s defeat at Moscow in so much as resource wise it would never now out produce the Soviets and as a fighting force it’s teeth were significantly blunted. Militarily that might be very true but it’s fair to say Stalingrad was the loss of the ideological war.
Watching this video and the battle raging over building four, troop numbers down to a couple of hundred on both side involved in savage fighting. It all came down to this! If the Germans had held the ground when they attacked and managed to reinforce and eventually captured the building they would have straightened the line and certainly pushed to the river. Building eight would have been systematically destroyed and perhaps helping to avoid the crushing defeat the 6th army would suffer a few months later. In those few meters of space where the Germans entered arguably is the turning point of the battle for Stalingrad, the Soviets would always now have a bridgehead on the wast bank of the river and this was naturally very significant in their victory.
Great documentary. Good animation work.👍
Absolutely fascinating and well produced and documentary!
This is an absolutely terrific job, well done!!!
Excellent presentation, very informative. Thanks!
These videos seem v well done and expand our knowledge of events.
It's eerie to think about to the amount of violence, suffering, and loss of life that occurred during the changes of the frontline shown in this video..
Superb video..........................no more words!!!!!
Incredible detail and great use of graphics!
I enjoyed this format....well presented.
Fantastic work. Thank you so much for the in depth details.
I’m so enjoying your programs, I’m a retired marine, just 4 years, but I love the history of the Russian army, but we still kick the most ass. Keep it up
What ass did you kick
This series is the best I have ever seen about :
WW2 Eastern Fron
Barbarossa
Stalingrad
Uranus
Bagration
If our USA military and cadets study both the strategic and tactical aspects discussed by this Combined Arms documentary series , they will become more informed and benefit.
I'm really impressed. Excellent presentation.
Wow the attention to detail rivals the Battlefield series. Very impressive. Great use of 3D mapping. Overall must’ve been a ton of work.
Excellent presentation.
Very well done, along with your other stalingrad videos. Please consider doing a video on the battle for pavlov's house or the grain elevator battles
They have done the grain elevator battle, please search on this channel.
Red Army lost more soldiers k.i.a. at Stalingrad than the American army lost k.i.a. in the ENTIRE war!
We dont waste our soldiers.
about 3 times more. lol
@@davidjackson6152 You DO waste your soldiers fighting oil wars and us army likes to waste civilians.
@@rvpixie
Whose oil have we taken? And I'll tell you something else pal, the U.S. military attempts to limit civilian casulties harder and better than any army.
They should teach their soldiers to duck especially the ones in "punishment" units.
Very interesting and very informative
Exelente trabajo, felicitaciones desde Buenos Aires.
HANds DOWN THE GREATEST, BEST Military HìStORY Documentary Series I've ever witnessed,. ONLY The United States ARMY Could Do Such an Incredible Job as ThìS💯
This is such a great job!
Absolutely fantastic thank you.
3:33 that would make for an excellent 4'x6' gaming table layout, but unit scale--- so many troops fighting in that small area!
Pretty good job on making this doco.
The research is incredible, the details, looking at it if you were the wermacht worst than the jungles of Vietnam or any of the pacific wars.
Awesome Job, thanks very much
Excellent , really well done 👍
Really good. Especially for researchers.
I like the way they just present the facts and dont play favorites, or throw in politics, as tho that mattered to the poor devil hiding in the ruins.On either side.
I love this series. The narrative that America came in late and saved Europe that I grew up with in "American History", I realized glossed over the Soviet Union's contributions. It is too bad politics ruined the alliance we once had over a common foe. The Russian people are tough as hell. Certainly America has never wanted to be communist, but we are all not speaking German either. The animation really puts you on the scene.
And the Colonel Professor says to the cheerful cadets....Now it's off to Fallujah...
There is no comparison.
@@ziblot1235 absolutely NO comparison. Millions killed in this single battle alone. Just about the only similarity Is they were both battles lol.
well done!
Excellent production and concept, although I do enjoy the first two episodes more than the last two...what is the music played at the very beginning...thank you
Amazing video, new sub.
Thank - you . Excellent .
Excellent commentary, dont think that this cannot happen again, history has away of repeating..
No way
Wow, well done on the research.
Heavily overstated use of the MG42 in Stalingrad, since it was used at Div HQ's primarily.
German units made distinction between "Leichter" (light mg) and "Schwerer" (heavy mg) MG's (without tri-pods for "Leichte" and with tri-pods for "Schwere")
www.fireonthevolga.com/IR54-MG42.JPG
Good video. Why dont you make video of Stalingrad buildings or locations that the germans were able to capture? Such as the tractor factory, Or even better the grain elevator? Both these locations had prolonged fighting. Also i would like to suggest putting in some german and soviet soldiers in the 3D parts it would give the videos a more sinister feel to see dead bodies laying around as well as living ones fighting.
Yeah dont expect the 3d editing
I'd love to see that, people don't realize just how much bodies can pile up and it really drives home the human cost of warfare like this.
Full misunderstanding of strategic aspects. Stalingrad was the last defensible position for the Soviets for hundreds of kilometers , both East and North.
And for Germans keeping troops in and around the city was a question of denying both Soviet oil supply and southern lend lease route.
Michael Kovalchuk Well, afaik Soviet decision to defend the city as it was stated in Stavka documents was dictated by the fact that Stalingrad was a) already turned into a logistical hub that supported the left flank of 1942 winter-spring offensive b) no significant reinforcements could be moved to the Low Volga area to form another defensive position in appropriate time c) nearest railway river crossing point is Saratov 235 miles away, nearest existing boat crossing point is about half way there and is significantly weaker then one in Stalingrad or Saratov.
There were no cities, hills or significant rivers on the left bank for at least 400 miles, and there were only one railway line there.
So the situation was that either the troops retreated from Rostov-on-Don and naturally assembled in Stalingrad would hold it long enough for Stavka to prepare a substantial counter offensive, or the Germans would get full control over the Southern Russia with their mobile units.
From the German perspective it was, afaik, the situation when they had 3 significantly weakened but still somewhat combat effective Soviet armies assembled at the left flank of the army group A. So they had a choice to either go to Astrakhan and mount a defensive or try to crush this threat. Moreover, logistics on Rostov-Stalingrad line was slightly better then on Rostov-Astrakhan.
Fantastic presentation. Its a shame more information wasn't presented about the heroic efforts of the Red Army and how through attrition they delayed the German advance to the point where they held the last strategic positions near the river thus granting Stavka the time and resources to launch operation Uranus 19-23 Nov thus sealing the city and dooming the fascists and their allies.
Nice job!!
Best ive seen video covers it in detail.