The Battle of Moscow, 1941-1942

The Battle of Moscow (Russian: Bitva za Moskvu) refers to the Soviet defense of Moscow and the subsequent Soviet counter-offensive that occurred between October 1941 and January 1942 on the Eastern Front of World War II against German forces. Adolf Hitler considered Moscow, which was the capital of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and the largest Soviet city, to be the primary military and political objective for the Axis forces in their invasion of the Soviet Union. A separate German plan was codenamed Operation Wotan.

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The Battle of Stalingrad, 1942-1943

The Battle of Stalingrad was the most important turning point of World War II and is considered the bloodiest battle in human history, with more combined casualties suffered than any battle before or since. The battle was marked by brutality and disregard for military and civilian casualties on both sides. The battle is taken to include the German siege of the southern Russian city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd), the battle inside the city, and the Soviet counter-offensive which eventually trapped and destroyed the German Sixth Army and other Axis forces around the city. Total casualties for both sides are estimated to be over two million. As a result of the battle, the Axis powers suffered roughly 850,000 casualties, 1/4 of their strength on the Eastern Front, as well as a huge amount of supplies and equipment. The Axis forces were never able to recover from this loss and were eventually forced into a long retreat out of Eastern Europe. For the Soviets, who also suffered great losses during the battle, the victory at Stalingrad marked the start of the liberation of the Soviet Union leading to eventual victory over Nazi Germany in 1945.

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