17 July 1942 · Day 391 of 1418

The Battle of Stalingrad begins

The Don bend

days and nights the battle lasted

200

days and nights the battle lasted

On 17 July 1942 fighting began on the distant approaches to Stalingrad. From here the enemy wanted to cut the Volga, the country’s main river, and break through to Caucasus oil. Ahead lay 200 days and nights of the war’s most important battle.

The city on the Volga mattered to both sides. Ships carried Caucasian oil and grain along the river, and the Stalingrad Tractor Factory built tanks. If the enemy cut the Volga, the country could be left without fuel.

At first the fighting was in the great bend of the Don. Soviet divisions fell back in heavy battles, winning days and weeks. Meanwhile the people of Stalingrad worked alongside the soldiers to build defences around the city.