When did Operation Uranus begin?
Operation Uranus began at 07:20 Moscow time on the 19th of November 1942. Soviet forces assaulted the northern flank of Axis forces at Stalingrad to initiate the offensive.
Questions about Operation Uranus
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who planned and commanded Operation Uranus?
The Stavka placed command of Operation Uranus under General Aleksandr Vasilevsky in September 1942. The operation involved over 1,100,000 personnel allocated by the Red Army for the assault.
What were the results of Operation Uranus on Axis forces?
Operation Uranus trapped between 250,000 and 300,000 Axis soldiers within an encirclement stretching from east to west and north to south. The pocket contained four infantry corps, a panzer corps belonging to the Fourth Panzer and Sixth Armies, and surviving elements of two Romanian divisions.
How many tanks and artillery pieces did Operation Uranus use?
The Red Army allocated 804 tanks and 13,400 artillery pieces for Operation Uranus. These assets supported the assault that breached communication lines and destroyed forward observation points during the initial phase.
Why did Hitler order the Sixth Army to hold position instead of breaking out?
Hitler designated forces between the Don and Volga rivers as Fortress Stalingrad rather than allow the Sixth Army to attempt to break out. He decided to hold the position and attempt to resupply the Sixth Army by air despite the depleted Luftwaffe being in no condition to carry out the task.