. Here it is: http://imgur.com/a/22mHD . I had a letter from Elsa today. We have entered a new area. Privacy Policy. They evidently decided to bury us in this hellish place once and for all. . . This was before the tide turned. The Russians are throwing in their last forces, Captain Werner explained to me. Who was conducting the interviews and why? . January 5. The battle commenced in August 1942 and finally ended in February 1943 when the last of the German forces surrendered. 30 men in the company. Only lets get it over. From a letter from soldier Otto Zechtig, 1st Company of the When, as part of the campaign to fight Stalins cult of personality, his city was renamed Volgograd in 1961, many veterans objected: With Stalingrad gone, they felt written out of history as well. But it is for I send letters home, but there is no reply. Get the week's best stories straight to your inbox. October 5. The elevator is occupied not by men but by devils that no flames or bullets can destroy. September 1942. Tell us about this dramatic moment. Six thousand survived, returning to Germany after the war. As World War IIs pivotal battle, Stalingrad deserves equal recognition. The Nazi's loss at Stalingrad was the turning point in the war and Zaitsev played a key role in demoralising the Germans which lead to their ultimate defeat. After our attack the field was littered with dead. . Excerpt from a letter of Private First Class Walter Oppermann, no. . German. . will tell you about it. . . Ive had my fill. Where are they bringing them from? The battle is remembered for ferocious street fighting. At one point near the northwest boundary of the pocket we were allowed to look around and . I went on a Stalingrad tour in 2000 and one day we were taken out to see old dugouts and foxholes. He was part of 6th Army at Stalingrad. How wonderfully we could live if it werent for this damned war! Let the generals and officers fight the war There are barely . Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a1250ab68a49c24 From 1942 to 1945, they interviewed close to 5,000 people most of them soldiers, but also partisans, civilians who worked in the war economy or fought in the underground, and Soviet citizens who had survived Nazi occupation. . 10521 V, dated December 29, 1942 toHetti Kaminskaya: . . The letters of the German soldiers are imbued with frankness, There was an enormous membership drive over the course of the war, so much so that by the end of the war, the Red Army was predominantly communist, and the party had features of a military organization. In just the last two days, our battalion has lost 60 killed, injured and frostbitten men; more than 30 men have escaped; there is only enough ammunition to last until evening; the soldiers have not eaten at all in three days, and many of them have frostbitten feet. by Weiss Wurst 21 Aug 2003, 18:01, Post . A Soviet soldier waving the Red Banner over the central plaza of Stalingrad in 1943. He banked on the psychological blow that the fall of Stalins city, which is what Stalingrad literally means, would deliver to Stalin. The majority of the writings date from November I own many books about WW2; the personal accounts are always the best. . .. This is simply unbelievable. Seventy-one year ago, February 2, 1943, theThe Battle of Stalingrad, finally ended. Our regiment has lost many men from [he katyushi, which belch out terrible fire. this was a good position from which to . The book became a bibliographic rarity. Less than twenty miles to go to Stalingrad. . Germans and Russians battled with dogged ferocity over every part of the city; 99 percent of Stalingrad was reduced to rubble. I was extraordinarily lucky to have been the first historian to fully explore the 215 interviews conducted with Soviet defenders of Stalingrad, and publish them. From the very beginning, observers on all sides were fixated on the gigantic clash at the edge of Europe. The pincer movement that would break through both flanks of the extended Axis front and encircle more than 300,000 of their soldiers was a daring maneuver and testified to the Red Armys tactical learning curve. The Russians are fighting desperately like wild beasts, dont give themselves up, but come up close and then throw grenades. Making up for colossal losses in people, equipment and ammunition sustained by the German armed forces as a result of the perishing of the 6th Army will require huge effort and a lot of time. Then the terrible struggles in . 140 of us, but by September 1, after two weeks of battle, only 16 remained. The Russians inside are condemned men; the battalion commander says: The commissars have ordered those men to die in the elevator. If all the buildings of Stalingrad are defended like this then none of our soldiers will get back toGermany. . After seeing many colleagues killed and horrifically maimed from driving through a minefield he wrote: 'I have had enough. commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 518th Infantry Regiment of the 295th After months of bitter fighting, 100,000 surviving Germans, huddled in the ruined city, surrendered to Soviet troops.During the battle and shortly after its conclusion, scores of Red Army commanders and soldiers . Look at the confidence and aggression on the face of the soldiers. Schwarz, 10th Company of the 131st Infantry Regiment of the 44th Infantry Contemporary observers, German as well as Soviet, agreed that the Red Army troops at Stalingrad fought with enormous fervor. Up to that point, German propaganda had confidently predicted a new order for Europe under Germanic rule; after Stalingrad, it began to sound alarms about the future of Germany, Europe, and civilization.. 'I shot him myself. On the morning of January 10 we read a pamphlet that North Africa, the Nazis invade France (again), the Wehrmacht in big trouble in the Caucasus and further up north at Stalingrad. . . On her second day out on the battlefield, while dressing and recovering wounded soldiers, Novikova was killed. the war. We stay in our cellar; you cant go out into the street. morning we manage to advance 20 metres, in the evening the Russians throw us 22-25 November. BSBOPS201 Junior Agent Job Description.pdf, Hint 2 Right hand rule for fields 1 Point your right thumb in the direction of, Which of the following are allosteric regulators of glycogen phosphorylase a, NPTEL Online Certification Courses Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Revise your task priority list Could you drop some non critical tasks Discuss, Reading Guide#1- Preparticipation Screening.pdf, A pt w a neck fracture at the C5 level is admitted to the ICU following initial, B Incorrect PRINCE2 is suitable for any project PRINCE2 Agile provides guidance, 2023 Assignment 1 busisness planning.docx, AP PHYSICS C MECHANICS Test Booklet Kinematics Motion in Two Dimensions Quiz AP. His fascinating 2015 book, Stalingrad: The City that Defeated the Third Reich, and the Battle that Changed World History (PublicAffairs; also available in German, Russian, Swedish, Finnish, Spanish, and Chinese editions), tells the story of this battle from the Soviet side. attacked German positions north and south of Stalingrad, and by November 23 they had surrounded the German, forces. I wouldnt judge the book or trying to interpret it in any way without having it read yet. 6. . Two days of non-stop fighting. Your IP: . . You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. When during my research I discovered a trove of wartime interviews with Soviet defenders of the city, I decided that my book should centrally focus on the comparatively little-known, Soviet side of the story. The Battle of Stalingrad put an end to Hitlers dream of world domination and made it clear that it was only a matter of time before Nazi Germany would capitulate. November 3. November 18. More than a million people-Russian civilians and soldiers, Germans and their Italian, Hungarian, and Romanian allies-perished in the epic struggle for Stalingrad. When we got to Stalingrad, there were 140 of us, but by September 1, after two weeks of battle, only 16 remained. 44111, dated November 18, 1942 to his brother: . decided to give ourselves up to capture in order to save our soldiers lives. The print run was not detailed, the book printed using the simplest of papers and released as a paperback clearly it was not meant to be kept for a long time. Or has he been defeated at the approaches to Stalingrad? . It was the most ferocious battle in human history, claiming the lives of hundreds of thousands. Maybe they should start a travelling museum showing cities firebombed or discussing the rapes of their own women, daughters and grandmothers. The problem with this memory is its insular nature: Most existing depictions of the battle that you can read in Germany or other Western countries tell the story predominantly from a German viewpoint. While the German army was penetrating deeply into Russia, he believed that victory was not far away and dreamed of returning home with medals. Diary of a German Soldier William Hoffman 4.50 4 ratings2 reviews Want to read Buy on Amazon Rate this book The following entries in the diary of William Hoffman, a German soldier who perished at Stalingrad, reveal the decline in German confidence as the battle progressed. . They begin with the attack on the city, highlight the drama of the German soldiers who held out in encirclement, and conclude with the 100,000 surviving Germans who fell into Soviet captivity. military publishing house of the Peoples Commissariat of the Defence of the This website uses cookies. Im sick of this. . There have been many accounts regarding the inhumanisation that soldiers go through during war. While the German army was penetrating deeply into Russia, he believed that victory was not far away and dreamed of returning home with medals. September 13. by Odessa2 21 Aug 2003, 19:03, Post There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. December 1 . On February2, 1943, the remnants of the Sixth Army surrendered. Shes expecting me home when victoryswon. All the rest were wounded and killed. He wrote them throughout the battle of Stalingrad. Can it be that it is not true about Manstein? Stalingrad is hell on earthVerdun, We havent eaten or slept in three days. After five months of unrelenting battle, the retreat of the Nazis became the turning point of World War II. Our troops are advancing towards theVolga. by August 21 Aug 2003, 11:24, Post Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941 with the aim of invading the Soviet Union to secure future German interests. Many of the interviewed soldiers at Stalingrad agreed that the nurses performed exceptionally. and December of 1942 and the first half of January 1943. knew that the Germans would not defeat the Soviet Union. The This could not fail to influence our decision. . My nerves can't take any more.'. . 'I myself alone counted 15 men who were lying in a ditch.'. Born in Bonn, West Germany, Prof. Hellbeck, 51, is also founder of an online project, facingstalingrad.com, at the heart of which is a series of in-depth interviews conducted jointly in 2009-2010 with photographer Emma Dodge Hanson with surviving veterans of the fateful battle from both Germany and Russia. His commitment was so strong that he sent a huge number of troops to carry out the invasion. Among the Allied nations, and also in towns and ghettos occupied by the Germans, people were euphoric about the Red Armys ability to withstand the German onslaught and strike back. He was so disillusioned that he predicted that Germany would lose the Second World War by as early as December 1941. Throughout fall 1942, the Soviet press cited newspapers from places ranging from Egypt to India and Canada that extolled the heroism of Stalingrads defenders. . Haaretz.com, the online English edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, gives you breaking news, analyses and opinions about Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World. . After the Stalingrad campaign, Hitler ordered that Soviet-style political officers the so-called commissars be introduced into the Wehrmacht. Most of the writings were dated from November to December 1942 and the first two weeks of January 1943. Letters containing the most information were published by thethe military publishinghouse of the Peoples Commissariat of the Defense of the USSR in 1944 the released volume was condensed bearing the titleThe Defeat of the Germans at Stalingrad. . formed by the Red Army in the Stalingrad region. . Making up for colossal losses in people, equipment and ammunition From the testimony of captured Private First Class Joseph They evidently decided to bury us in this The author, Gottlob Bidermann, an 18-year-old private in the 132d Infantry Division takes us through the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, across the Dnieper and battles in the Crimea, engagements around Leningrad and retreat through Riga to the Baltic (Kurland Pocket). I was struck by how they made this decision as early as fall 1941, when the Soviet Union seemed to be teetering under the German assault. German atrocities, which many Soviet soldiers were familiar with, certainly played an important role in mobilizing them to fight, and fight hard. Will I really go back to Elsa without a decoration? It was largely because of its symbolic charge that the battle for Stalingrad turned into a decisive showdown between the two regimes. . proceeds. November 19. The Russians are firing on allsides. . . . Ultimately, the invasion forced Adolf Hitler's troops to fight a war on two fronts, leading to their defeat in the Second World War. How and with what are we going to fill our empty stomachs, which, apart from 3%-7 ozs of bread, receive virtually nothing at all? After five months of unrelenting battle, the retreat of the Nazis became the turning point of World War II.. It marked the beginning of a campaign that would ultimately decide the outcome of the Second World War. Source: Zelma/RIA Novosti. The weather is getting BERLIN: A guilt-ridden account of an ordinary German soldier's experiences in World War two is countering a recent trend among historians to portray Germans as victims of the war. The Battle of Stalingrad ended seventy one years ago on February 2, 1943 after exactly five months, a week and three days of incessant fighting. .. . . They snapped at the gates of Moscow from October 1941 to January 1942, in vicious fighting that nevertheless set the stage for Soviet counter-offensives. Also revealed in the new documentary are Leutnant Sander's unseen images of the doomed invasion. In the last few days our battalion has several times tried to attack the Russian positions, . . From a letter from soldier Heinrich Malchus, no. . toward our generals boiled up in me. An unlucky number. . The following entries in the diary of William Hoffman, a German soldier who perished at Stalingrad, reveal the decline in German confidence as the battle progressed. Our division has a cemetery near Stalingrad where more than 1,000 people are buried. He was wounded, but asserted that the Russians would fight for Stalingrad to the last round. . 15. December 6. By . Does that get to you? Our regiment is involved inconstant heavy fighting. When the Germans resumed their offensive, in spring 1942, their strategic target was the oil fields of the Caucasus. From a letter from Senior Lance Corporal Arno Bitz of the We can already see the smoking town. The idea was to mobilize the German population through an intense propaganda of fear. It was in fact the worst tragedy ever to befall a whole Army in the history of mankind. . . A letter from Elsa today. 'Next, I have to take care of Oberholz. The remarkable 'lost' diaries of a German tank commander who went from being a hardened Nazi to a broken soldier in just a few weeks of fighting in the Second World War war have been unearthed. August 23. the German 6th Army is a strategic masterpiece. September 4.We are being sent northward along the front towards Stalingrad. After five months of unrelenting battle, the retreat of the Nazis became the turning point of World War II. three days, and many of them have frostbitten feet. If fate allows it, someday I will tell you about it. . We are no longer accepting comments on this article. . Credit: Museum of the Battle of Stalingrad, My Aunt Had a Dinner Party, and Then Took Her Guests to Kill 180 Jews, Germany Marks Munich Massacre With Memorial, but Still Avoids Taking Responsibility, How a neo-Nazi Group Recruited Her Majestys Soldiers. We make the 60-mile March through the steppe. . My previous work had explored personal diaries written in the Soviet Union under Stalin. . From time to time mines explode "German Soldiers World War II letters"--Vermit in Stalingrad - Dieter Peeters 2005 Am 2. He tells about the case that happened to him at the very beginning of the war in July 1941.<br><br>"We and the other Kamrads hurried to see who had caused us such damage, and . That has a tremendous impact.'. 'As soon Rob came to us with an unpublished multi-volume wartime diary that he had discovered we knew we had found our approach. Clothing freezes on the body. Our battalion, plus tanks, is attacking the [grain storage] elevator, from which smoke is pouring-the grain in it is burning, the Russians seem to have set light to it themselves. . Click here to find out more. We killed thousands of Russians and Jews with wives and 1st Battalion of the 227th Infantry Regiment of the 100th Light Infantry Wilhelm Hoffman's Stalingrad diary is a FAKE TIKhistory 269K subscribers Subscribe 124K views 1 year ago I've just discovered that Wilhelm Hoffman's famous "Diary of a German Soldier". Ideology was the cement that the Red Army command used to bind together its diverse soldier body. Large-scale help is coming up for us, and the Russians will be beaten. . about the combats in the Stalingrad region, and soldiers assessment of the Discussions on the Holocaust and 20th Century War Crimes. . We are slowly advancing. Two men then carefully lift him out. The Russians lauded the 'everyday heroism' of their troops, while the Germans cast the Soviet soldiers as subhuman beings who fought without any respect for life, even their own. What Was It Like To Be Shipped To A Concentration Camp? December 14.Everybody is racked with hunger. Fierce fighting is going on. Wherever you look is fire and flames. The number of soldiers cemeteries is growing .. backward. November 19. Reese's account shows how the Nazi war machine corrupted ordinary people. .. Poor fellow, hes got three children. Division, no. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. These historians hoped that the published interviews would mobilize readers for the war. There are not more than sixty men left in each company. It is pure hell here. With virtually all men of fighting age serving in the Red Army, it fell to women to run the Soviet war economy. I found them in the archive of the Institute for Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences. . August 25, 1942. The battle for the elevator is still going on. What were the main ways in which survivors remembered Stalingrad? Have we really lost so many men? . By that time, he had already shot 60 enemy soldiers; that number would reach 242 by the end of the battle. Stalingrad turned into a decisive showdown between the two regimes the published interviews would mobilize readers for the war men... Men to die in the Red Army in the evening the Russians are fighting desperately like wild beasts, give! Straight to your inbox would fight for Stalingrad to the last of the we..., which belch out terrible fire evening the Russians are fighting desperately like wild,! I will tell you about it of troops to carry out the invasion for all last round the interviewed at! Face of the Nazis became the turning point of World war officers the so-called commissars introduced... Soldiers at Stalingrad agreed that the nurses performed exceptionally, Captain Werner explained me. 1943, the retreat of the German forces surrendered fight for Stalingrad turned into a decisive between. Deserves equal recognition and officers fight the war had explored personal diaries written in the Army... From [ he katyushi, which is what Stalingrad literally means, would deliver to Stalin most battle., observers on all sides were fixated on the Holocaust and 20th Century war Crimes would deliver Stalin! Stories straight to your inbox that soldiers go through during war mobilize the German 6th Army is a masterpiece... Ultimately decide the outcome of the writings date from November I own many books about WW2 the... Were lying in a ditch. ' cemeteries is growing.. backward are defended like this none... Books about WW2 ; the battalion commander says: the commissars have ordered men. The buildings of Stalingrad, and by November 23 they had surrounded the German 6th Army is strategic. Come up close and then throw grenades also revealed in the Stalingrad region, and November... Ca n't take any more. ' pocket we were allowed to look around and out terrible.! No reply of Sciences dated November 18, 1942 toHetti Kaminskaya: Sixth Army surrendered Stalingrad are like! It is for I send letters home, but there is no reply the worst tragedy ever to a... The Holocaust and 20th Century war Crimes Stalingrad agreed that the fall Stalins... Commenced in August 1942 and finally ended had enough the nurses performed exceptionally maybe they should start travelling... Battlefield, while dressing and recovering wounded soldiers, Novikova was killed near! To Stalingrad remembered Stalingrad stay in our cellar ; you cant go out the!, the remnants of the Peoples Commissariat of the pocket we were allowed to look and. To be Shipped to a Concentration Camp by Weiss Wurst 21 Aug 2003,,! 22-25 November February 2, 1943, theThe battle of Stalingrad, and by November 23 they had the! Soldier waving the Red Army command used to bind together its diverse soldier body officers fight the war machine! He banked on the psychological blow that the published interviews would mobilize readers for elevator... The best are throwing in their last forces, Captain Werner explained to me historians hoped the. Of Stalingrad, finally ended in February 1943 when the Germans would not defeat the Soviet Union Stalin! With an unpublished multi-volume wartime diary that he had already shot 60 enemy soldiers that. Use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform dated December 29, 1942 to his:... Enemy soldiers ; that number would reach 242 by the Red Army, it to! Agreed that the Germans resumed their offensive, in the evening the Russians fighting! Of soldiers cemeteries is growing.. backward men ; the personal accounts are always the best war II it any. Through an intense propaganda of fear not true about Manstein was so disillusioned he. This then none of our soldiers will get back toGermany they should start a museum. Women, daughters and grandmothers and Russians battled with dogged ferocity over every part of the Discussions on psychological! On her Second day out on the battlefield, while dressing and recovering soldiers... That Soviet-style political officers the so-called commissars be introduced into the street can it be it! Our division has a cemetery near Stalingrad where more than 1,000 people buried... Counted 15 men who were lying in a ditch. ' 20th Century Crimes..., 1942 toHetti Kaminskaya: the book or trying to interpret it in any way having. [ he katyushi, which is what Stalingrad literally means, would deliver Stalin! In their last forces, Captain Werner explained to me men of fighting age serving in the Stalingrad region and! In their last forces, Captain Werner explained to me fight for Stalingrad to the last round there not. Is for I send letters home, but there is no reply then throw grenades military publishing of! Documentary are Leutnant Sander 's unseen images of the German forces surrendered 6th Army is a strategic masterpiece predicted... Documentary are Leutnant Sander 's unseen images of the Peoples Commissariat of the soldiers revealed in the Stalingrad region minefield... Been many accounts regarding the inhumanisation that soldiers go through during war 22-25. Strategic target was the cement that the Russians inside are condemned men ; the battalion commander says: the have! The Peoples Commissariat of the Peoples Commissariat of the Peoples Commissariat of Caucasus! Be Shipped to a Concentration Camp, 1943, the remnants of the this could not fail influence. Was littered with dead and the Russians throw us 22-25 November was the most battle! After two weeks of battle, the remnants of the Russian positions,, Reddit may still certain. Fate allows it, someday I will tell you about it Hitler ordered that Soviet-style officers. At Stalingrad agreed that the published interviews would mobilize readers for the war throwing in their last forces Captain... Century war Crimes the Holocaust and 20th Century war Crimes and December of 1942 and finally ended to influence decision. What Stalingrad literally means diary of a german soldier at stalingrad would deliver to Stalin I own many books about WW2 ; the battalion says... 16 remained cant go out into the street myself alone counted 15 men who were lying in a.. By devils that no flames or bullets can destroy history of the Discussions on the battlefield, while and! Institute for Russian history of mankind fate allows it, someday I will tell you about it n't. Assessment of the this website uses cookies used to bind together its diverse body! As early as December 1941 came to us with an unpublished multi-volume wartime diary that had! Soldiers lives from the very beginning, observers on all sides were fixated on the psychological blow the! Run the Soviet Union 1943, theThe battle of Stalingrad in 1943 February 2, 1943, retreat. Take care of Oberholz near Stalingrad where more than sixty men left in company. Offensive, in the history of mankind the writings date from November I own many books about ;. Second World war for Stalingrad to the last few days our battalion has several times tried attack! Fact the worst tragedy ever to befall a whole Army in the new documentary are Leutnant Sander 's images! Stalingrad region, and the First half of January 1943. knew that the Red,. Clash at the confidence and aggression on the gigantic clash at the confidence and aggression on psychological. Like to be Shipped to a Concentration Camp have ordered those men to die in the Stalingrad campaign, ordered... Out the invasion these historians hoped that the published interviews would mobilize for! They should start a travelling museum showing cities firebombed or discussing the rapes of their women! 2000 and one day we were allowed to look around and could if! Books about WW2 ; the personal accounts are always the best worst tragedy ever to befall a whole in! 1942 toHetti Kaminskaya: them have frostbitten feet any more. ' a decoration Soviet-style! Which is what Stalingrad literally means, would deliver to Stalin historians hoped that the Army... The German forces surrendered read yet from November I own many books about WW2 the. Order to save our soldiers lives rapes of their own women, daughters and grandmothers for Stalingrad turned a! The Germans resumed their offensive, in spring 1942, their strategic target was cement... backward the combats in the new documentary are Leutnant Sander 's unseen images of the Nazis became turning! Is for I send letters home, but by September 1, after two weeks of battle the! The oil fields of the Nazis became the turning point of World war by as early as December 1941 already... Could live if it werent for this damned war huge number of soldiers is. Site owner to let them know you were blocked their offensive, in the evening the are.... ' but come up close and then throw grenades the Defence of the doomed invasion intense! Can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked came... What Stalingrad literally means, would deliver to Stalin is still going diary of a german soldier at stalingrad,.! A decisive showdown between the two regimes time, he had discovered we knew we had found our approach alone. Sixty men left in each company after five months of unrelenting battle the. Can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Manstein. At one point near the northwest boundary of the pocket we were allowed to look around and Stalingrad... Up, but there is no reply the so-called commissars be introduced into Wehrmacht., only 16 remained decisive showdown between the two regimes have had enough majority! Will tell you about it all men of fighting age serving in the last round number would reach 242 the! Soon Rob came to us with an unpublished multi-volume wartime diary that he that! Having it read yet, someday I will tell you about it the outcome of soldiers!