August 1942

Eastern Front

The 64th Army stalls both the XLVIII Panzer and IV Corps southwest of Stalingrad.

Hitler's continual interference and redirection of forces had impaced heavily upon the course of the offensive to the Don. Wasted time and lost opportunities meant the Red Army had evaded destruction in the fashion of 1941. Despite this, Hitler jumped to the conclusion that a lack of prisoners meant a lack of enemy forces. Nothing could be further from the truth. Truly the Soviet conduct of the campaign had been appalling. Hitler's own meddling having been their saving grace, but the field armies were still largely intack, if demoralized. Stalin though had changed everything with his 'Not one more step back' order. No longer would the Red Army retreat. Soviet space was no longer limitless. Germany had reached the peak of its success.

With Paulus poised on the Don, ready to strike eat to the Volga and Kleist forcing his way deeper into the Caucasus, the German armies on the southern wing found themselves advancing on broadly separate axes. Hitler's diecition to alter his olw plan to achieve both to the campaign objectives simultaneously would fundamentally alter the outcome of the 1942 summer offensive. The Ostheer would find itslelf fighting a battle it was entirely unsuited for in the city on the banks of the Volga River.