The Battle of Stalingrad was a real shock for the entire world; in Germany, after the defeat at Stalingrad, a three-day mourning was declared.

The losses of Hitler’s Germany and its allies amounted to more than 1.5 million people killed, wounded and captured. The losses in equipment amounted to: about 2,000 tanks and assault guns, more than 10,000 guns and mortars, up to 3,000 combat and transport aircraft and over 70,000 cars. Germany had never known such a crushing defeat.

On January 30, 1943, Hitler promoted Friedrich Paulus, commander of the German 6th Army, to the highest military rank, field marshal. Hitler’s radiogram to Paulus stated that “no German field marshal has ever been captured.” Paulus surrendered the following day.

Field Marshal Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Paulus, commander of the 6th Army of the Wehrmacht encircled in Stalingrad, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Arthur Schmidt and adjutant Colonel Wilhelm Adam near Stalingrad after surrendering. Photographed on Janurary 31, 1943. Author: Georgy Lipskerov, photojournalist for the 64th Army newspaper “For the Motherland!”

Denmark resisted Hitler for 6 hours, the Netherlands for 6 days, Belgium for 8 days, Poland for 36 days, and France for 43 days. The defenders of Pavlov’s House in Stalingrad fought for 58 days.