electricthink

[electricthink]

Stalingrad: The Commissar's House (Historical Doc

 [Narrator] The campaign began with a German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 known as Operation Barbarossa. After initial successes, the Soviets halted the German advance at the gates of Moscow. The next year the German high command developed a new command called Case Blue, which focused on seizing the valuable Russian oil fields in the Caucasus region. 

Once again, the German campaign began with great advances, however the Caucasus offenses soon ground to a halt, and by mid-September, Stalingrad became a new major objective for the attacking German forces in southern Russia. On 13th September, 1942, the German's sixth army under General Friedrich Paulus began it's assault on the city. Lieutenant General Vasily Chuikov and his Soviet 62nd Army defended Stalingrad. 

Within two weeks, the Germans cleared much of the south and central portions of the city although the Soviets stubbornly clung to a few small enclaves. Nonetheless, Paulus considered the center and south fighting to be over and began the fight to take the northern factory district. After a surprisingly rapid and successful assault on the tractor factory on 14 and 15 October, the Germans open the attack on the Barrikady factory on the following day. The Barrikady factory was a sprawling complex. 

The factory grounds were roughly 2,500 meters long, by 1,500 meters wide. The major factory halls were massive structures and many made excellent defensive positions with good fields of fire even from within. By the time the German army launched its assault on the factory, it's structures and grounds had already experienced a tremendous amount of destruction. German bombardments and artillery barrages inflicted heavy damage to most of the buildings and rubble was everywhere. 

The remnants of damaged and destroyed factory products, shell holes and Soviet fighting positions littered the grounds. The area was an ideal location for defenders and therefore very difficult terrain for attacking forces. This apocalyptic scene typifies the urban battlefield and illustrates U.S. army doctrine which further explains that the three dimensional urban terrain makes identifying, reporting and targeting of enemy locations difficult. This is the environment faced by the German attacking force which consisted of several divisions and well over 10,000 solidiers who attack from the north. For more than two weeks, this force pushed deep into the complex with the Volga River as its objective. 

The Red Army fiercely defended each building and ultimately stopped the German onslaught just 400 meters from the Volga on the outskirts of the factory's lower settlement and the complex's administrative area, which the Red Army heavily fortified. The lower settlement was the last bastion of the Soviet defense in the Barrikady factory. Current joint and army doctrine can trace it's origins in lessons learned in previous wars and military actions executed throughout history. The eastern front in World War II, and specifically the battles within the city limits of Stalingrad, highlight the complexities of urban warfare. Understanding current doctrine is key to successful integration of forces, synchronization of assets and execution of complex orders. 

 In peacetime, the lower settlement served as the Barrikady factory administrative area and one of the residential districts for factory workers. About 400 meters beyond the settlement were the cliffs of the Volga River, the German 305th Infantry Division's final objective. Within the lower settlement, a number of port locations held significance to either the Germans, the Soviets or both. Key locations included Theater Park, the cinema booth, the Barrikady factory fuel depot, the Index Finger Ravine, the transformer hut, and the Volga River. 

Key German locations were Hall 6E, which served as the headquarters for the 576th Grenadier Regiment. Hall four served as the headquarters for the 577th Grenadier Regiment. House 53 served as the headquarters for the 578th Grenadier Regiment. Key Soviet locations were Colonel Ivan Lyudnikov's command post bunker for the 138th Rifle Division. The red house wish functioned as Colonel Lyudnikov's personal observation post. 

The apothecary, also referred as the pharmacy, a Soviet strong point. And the Commissar's house, which originally served as the main administration building for the Barrikady factory and was now a Soviet strong point as well. The defense of the lower settlement was primarily the responsibility of Colonel Lyudnikov's 138th Rifle Division. Though the 241st Regiment of the 95th Rifle Division was responsible for the defense of the area between the apothecary and the fuel depot. By this time, the 138th Rifle Division consisted of three diminished regiments with a total combat strength of about 1,000 soldiers. Attached to the division was the sole remaining element of the 37th Guards Division, the 250 men of the 118th Guards Rifle Regiment. The 768th Rifle Regiment of the 138 Rifle Division in the north, helped positions largely within an apartment complex. The 344th Rifle Regiment held another apartment complex near the massive Hall Four, which stretched south to the vicinity of Theater Park. The 650th Rifle Regiment also held part of the apartment complex near Theater Park, several other buildings east of there and the Commissar's house itself. (threatening music) The Commissar's house was a massive brick structure within the lower settlement. The house, completed in 1916, and solidly constructed with red bricks from the nearby brick factory possessed an appropriately castle-like appearance. It's construction consisted of massive, three-foot thick walls, a reinforced concrete cellar, and was two stories in height. 

It was relatively clear fields of fire around the building in all directions and the Germans considered this structure key terrain, a crucial defensive position within the 138th Rifle Division's defensive zone. The United States Army doctoral manual, ADP 3-90, defines key terrain as an identifiable characteristic whose seizure or retention affords a marked advantage to either combatant. Due to its obvious strength, the building earlier served as Lyudnikov's headquarters until the German advance forced him to move his command post to a bunker below the bluffs of the Volga River. The Barrikady workers officially recognized the building as the factory administration building. The Germans would refer to this building as the Commissar's house. 

[electricthink]

Life on a Destroyer - At The Helm (Full Documentary)