#OTD 24 Nov 1942, at #Stalingrad Hitler orders the Sixth Army to dig in and await rescue, in the city, the fighting intensified for the 71st ID, as I capture in the unpublished diaries of Lt Col Fritz Roske: Thread …
‘Stalingrad, November 24
Since the day before yesterday, the Russian has been trying to break into my left flank. [They] penetrated two of the larger houses [fortresses], the “Alex” and the “School,” during the night.…
‘In the “Alex” they came over collapsed parts of the sixth floor; my men remained on the ground floor and in the cellar. In the “School” he [the Russian] was on the top floor, and part of the ground floor; we remained on the ground floor and in the cellar…’
I ordered more men and a PAK be brought to me and had those parts of the building in Russian hands be shot to pieces. The places where the Russians were above us, I ordered to be blown up. We used hand grenades continuously. The Russians held out for a further twelve hours …
… after having repulsed several of our attacks. We had to throw 5-kg loads of explosive through the windows. When this still didn’t work as we hoped for, I called for help from the other building, who joined with my men to blow holes through the adjoining walls & attack that way
… It was almost impossible to protect the artilleryman, whom we had quickly tried to train in our assault tactics. They couldn’t keep up, didn’t fully understand the situation, & it was difficult to instill strength & maintain their morale with all the blood & death around us.’
… after having repulsed several of our attacks. We had to throw 5-kg loads of explosive through the windows. When this still didn’t work as we hoped for, I called for help from the other building, who joined with my men to blow holes through the adjoining walls & attack that way
… It was almost impossible to protect the artilleryman, whom we had quickly tried to train in our assault tactics. They couldn’t keep up, didn’t fully understand the situation, & it was difficult to instill strength & maintain their morale with all the blood & death around us.’
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Col. Roske's writes to his wife from #Stalingrad 25 November, 1942: It was soon going to be morning. I was sleeping when my Adjutant, Hindenlang, reported:“The Russians were still occupying the School.” I make plans to recapture it. My main concern: are they in the cellars, too?
'... I give an order for a raiding patrol—our regimental reserve force, including our regimental musicians too, who have been trained recently to shoot properly. I called Captain Münch (Commander of the 3rd Battalion) to lead it ...
'... I later report [to Maj Gen von Hartmann] that Combat Post E and the ruins of the School are [back] in our hands. The Russian have left behind many dead—no prisoners at all. In the past thirty-six hours—four Officers lost. And 3rd Battalion’s adjutant (Lieutenant Koch) ...