Battle of Stalingrad

The battle of Stalingrad was a huge turning point of World War II. It began on August 23rd, 1942, and it began with nightly bombing raids from the Luftwaffe. Considering that the city was named after the USSR dictator, Joseph Stalin, he demanded they protect the city at all costs. He said, "Not one step backward." It wasn't until November 19th till the Soviets began counterattacks. At this time, Germany had controlled over 90% of Stalingrad. However, the Soviets then trapped the Germans, and cut them off from their supplies. Once trapped, General Friedrich begged Hitler to retreat, he would not allow. Then on February 2nd, 1943, the frostbitten German army was forced to surrender to the Soviets.