Remembering the day Mother Russia said stop, no further

Today is a special date in Russian history also a day to remember in the history of World War II.

On November 19, 1942 the Soviet Union put into play Operation Uranus. Under the leadership of  Marshal Georgy Zhukov the Red Army encircled Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus’ Sixth Army on the outskirts of Stalingrad.

It was the beginning of the end for Germany. Operation Uranus proved successful, it split up the German forces. The outcome ended with the surrender of Paulus’ Sixth Army on February 12 1943. The first ever German field marshal to surrender.

It was the first major defeat for Germany. It was the turning of the tide. It stopped the Germans gaining access to the oil in the Caucasus. 

Once the victory at Stalingrad was accomplished the Soviet Union turned its sights on Berlin. Its army literally raced to the German capital, where it arrived in April 1945. En route they liberated the German death camp at Auschwitz.

Stalingrad can be considered the turning point in the war. Up to the time of the battle  the Red Army had kept retreating. The Volga was their final stop.

Has the West ever properly accepted the role and indeed the sacrifice the Russian people made in stopping the barbarism of Germany?

Approximately two million troops were killed at Stalingrad.