On This Day: The Soviet Counteroffensive during the Battle of Stalingrad

On November 19, 1942, the Soviet Red Army began a counteroffensive attack to move the Germans out of Stalingrad in a major turning point of World War II. That summer, the German army occupied Stalingrad in an attempt to control the Caucasus oil wells. The Red Army quickly overwhelmed the German soldiers but the onset of starvation, the cold of winter, and brutal war techniques led Stalingrad to become one of the most horrific battles of the war. The city was finally liberated when German forces surrendered in January of 1943.