The Battle Of Stalingrad was a turning point in WW2 on the Eastern front. Stalingrad (modern-day Volgograd) is located on the Volga river inside of Russia. Hitler wanted it because he believed capturing it would demoralize the Russians heavily. The battle lasted a little over five months. It is one of the bloodiest battle in modern warfare with an estimated combined loss of two million. The battle was fought between the German Army Group B which consisted of the German 6th army, 4th Panzer army, Rumanian 3rd and 4th army, the Hungarian 5th, and the Croatian Legion. The Germans fought the Russian Stalingrad Front which consisted of the Soviet 8th, 28th, 51nd, 57th, 62nd, and 64th. The battle started August 23rd 1942 when the German army group B marched in and was met with stiff Soviet resistance. The Soviets knew the Germans tactics required speed, mobility, and all army branches working together. So they adopted a tactic of keeping their lines as close to the German line as possible. This made artillery and air support dangerous for the Germans to use for risk of hitting their own lines. Much of the city was destroyed the day the battle started due to a massive German strategic bombing started a firestorm. On november 19th 1942 the Soviets launched Operation Uranus which was to route the Hungarian, Croatian, Italian, and Rumanian divisions guarding the German flanks. Thus starting to encircle the German 6th army inside of Stalingrad. General Paulus who was command of the German 6th army pleaded with Hitler to allow a retreat before they were fully encircled. Hitler refused every time; he would not have his men retreat from an enemy he believed filled of inferior people.