Karl Rudolf von Rundstedt1941
Ordered to clear the Black Sea coast, take Rostov, the Maikop oil fields & Stalingrad
Germany · Warfare / World War, 2nd. Chronological records rendered directly from the World History Database.
Ordered to clear the Black Sea coast, take Rostov, the Maikop oil fields & Stalingrad
Extends Operation Blue for the 6th Army to occupy Stalingrad & invade the Caucasus
The splitting of Army Group South enabled the launching of Operation Edelweiss and Operation Fischreiher, the two main thrusts of the Army Groups. Both groups had to achieve their objectives simultaneously.
The success of the initial advance was such that Hitler ordered the 4th Panzer Army south to assist the First Panzer Army to cross the lower Don river.
This assistance was not needed and Kleist later complained that 4th Panzer Army clogged the roads and that if they had carried on toward Stalingrad, they could have taken it in July.
When it turned north again two weeks later, the Soviets had gathered enough forces together at Stalingrad to check its advance
A relief operation called Operation Winter Storm began. Spearheaded by some of the first Tiger tanks, the offensive got within 48 km (30 mi) of the southern 6th Army front, but the Germans made no attempt to break out. The failure was followed by a siege that lasted for almost three months, during which 6th Army was destroyed
The German troops are "liquidated"
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