Turning Point 1943: Stalingrad, Kursk, El Alamein
- Germans want the oil fields of the Caucasus region
- Begin Sept. 1, 1942
- Germans capture much of the city in street to street fighting
- November 23, 1942, Germans get trapped in the city
- German Commander Von Poulus ordered to fight to the death
- Between January 31 and February 2, 300,000 German troops surrender
“The street is no longer measured by meters but by corpses ... Stalingrad is no longer a town. By day it is an enormous cloud of burning, blinding smoke; it is a vast furnace lit by the reflection of the flames. And when night arrives, one of those scorching howling bleeding nights, the dogs plunge into the Volga and swim desperately to gain the other bank. The nights of Stalingrad are a terror for them. Animals flee this hell; the hardest stones cannot bear it for long; only men endure.”
-Max Hastings
-Max Hastings
Subjunctive Question
Is their any other major turning points in the Second WWII you can think of that made a big impact on the war ?
Summary
Turning points include Germany attempt to take over the oil fields in Stalingrad and the Caucasus region. It turned into a blood bath filled with street fighting. Another point being the Battle of Kursk. The battle Alamein stopped the Axis forces from advancing into Egypt. Throughout WWII the Axis proved to be a major threat, until 1942. During this time, three turning points occurred which included Operation Barbarossa,British cutting Germans off from Middle East oil, and giving the Allies more of a chance and led them to winning the war.