1 / 16

The Battle of Stalingrad

The Battle of Stalingrad. Germans begin invasions of Russian cities Leningrad and Moscow beginning June 1941. Summer 1942: Germans invade Stalingrad, a major industrial city in southern Russia (access to oil fields) First major turning point for the Allies. The Battle of Stalingrad.

aoife
Download Presentation

The Battle of Stalingrad

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Battle of Stalingrad • Germans begin invasions of Russian cities Leningrad and Moscow beginning June 1941. • Summer 1942: Germans invade Stalingrad, a major industrial city in southern Russia (access to oil fields) • First major turning point for the Allies

  2. The Battle of Stalingrad • August 1942: Germans invade Stalingrad with air raids and ground troops • Hitler’s Goals: • Capture Soviet oil fields in the Caucasus • Destroy Stalingrad (a major industrial center for the Soviets)

  3. German invasions of Russia

  4. The Battle of stalingrad • By November 1942, Germans control 9/10 of the city • Soviet officers consider abandoning city and destroying factories • Stalin ordered Soviet troops to defend the city at any cost

  5. The Battle of Stalingrad • All is nearly lost for the Soviets in Stalingrad UNTIL Winter sets in • Winter allows Soviets time to regroup and acquire fresh tanks to mount a counterattack. • Soviets closed around Stalingrad, trapping German troops and cutting off their supplies

  6. The Battle of Stalingrad

  7. The Battle of Stalingrad • Germans’ situation becomes hopeless • Soviets lost a total of 1,100,000 soldiers (more than all American deaths in the entire war) • Soviet army begins westward movement toward Germany

  8. The North African Front • While the Battle of Stalingrad raged, Stalin pressures Britain and America to open a ‘second front’ in Western Europe • Purpose: Why would Stalin want this?

  9. ‘Operation Torch’ • An invasion of Axis-controlled North Africa commanded by General Dwight D. Eisenhower • In November 1942, ~107,000 Allied troops landed in North Africa • By May 1943, Axis troops surrendered

  10. ‘Operation Torch

  11. Italian Campaign • Summer 1943: Allies capture Sicily • Mussolini is forced to resign • But Hitler is determined to stop the allied attack in Italy before they could get to Germany • ‘Bloody Anzio’ – major battle near Rome • 30,000 Axis casualties • 25,000 Allied casualties

  12. Italian Campaign • Allies faced strong resistance in Italy • Italy not freed until 1945 (near end of war)

  13. Critical Thinking #5 • Read pp. 569 – 574 in your textbook • In a two-paragraph response, describe two military turning points for the Allies (U.S., Britain, and Soviet Russia) in WWII during 1942-1943. Explain how each military victory contributed to the Allied cause. (you may want to consider the territory that was won, access to resources, importance of industry during times of war, etc.)

  14. ‘D-Day’ • Under Eisenhower’s direction, the Allies gathered a force of nearly 3 million British, American, and Canadian troops • Army is stocked with a massive amount of military supplies • Allies prepare for a massive invasion of Normandy

  15. Eisenhower’s Trickery • Sets up a ‘Phantom Army’ • Sends radio message to ‘Army’ in codes he knew the Germans could read • Orders ‘Army’ to attack Calais (strongest section of Hitler’s ‘Atlantic Wall’)

  16. ‘D-Day’ • Why would it make sense for the Allies to invade at Calais?

More Related