End of Stalingrad battle, 02 Feb 1943 ?

[Wolfsangel]

Hi all

I've searched the forums to see if this query has already been posted - couldn't find a post like it (but apologies if this topic has already been covered).

According to every Stalingrad or WW2 history book I have ever read, including the recent & highly regarded "Stalingrad" by Antony Beevor, german resistance at Stalingrad ended on 2nd February 1943, when the northern pocket of defenders surrendered, 2 days after the southern pocket gave in.

A few years ago there was a news item on ABC (Australia) that said recently opened secret soviet archives revealed that german resistance had actually continued in Stalingrad for a couple of months longer. The news story said the soviets had kept this secret, probably so as not bolster german fighting morale. I havent been able to find this story again in their website, seems to have been archived.

Only other thing I have ever read in print that could posibly confirm this, was a report by an english reporter who was allowed into Stalingrad to see and write a news story weeks after the official end of fighting. He heard a series of noises not far away that sounded like artillery, and when he asked (as he knew the front line was too far away for artillery to be fired from or at Stalingrad) he was told it was engineers blasting holes to bury the dead, which he did not see, but he accepted the explanation.

Is their any other evidence or other reports that german resistance at Stalingrad continued after 2 February 1943 ?

[Ironmachine]

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stalingrad

According to the German documentary film Stalingrad, over 11,000 German and Axis soldiers refused to lay down their arms at the official surrender, seemingly believing that fighting to the death was better than what seemed like a slow end in Soviet camps. These forces continued to resist until early March 1943, hiding in cellars and sewers of the city with their numbers being diminished at the same time by Soviet forces clearing the city of remaining enemy resistance.

[Jan-Hendrik]

Yes, this was presented by Evil Knopp....but until now no one presented primary sources for this claim by hin

Jan-Hendrik

[Mikko H.]

See also the earlier discussion here:

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic. ... 5&t=119027

[Knickebein]

Anthony Breevor mighty now he wrote Stalingrad partly based on personal diaries. There are some reference in literature. In his novel "Stalingrad" Sven Hassel makes mention of straglers escaping from Stalingrad much later, end February. He describes how he was treated after his escape. He claims these are his own experiences but hearsay is also possible.

[ML59]

I wouldn't rely on Sven Hassel as a reliable source if only to know calendar days, let's imagine historical facts. It's possible that few isolated men didn't surrender immediately after final capitulation, but that could happen only for lack of communications between such supposedly resisting posts and 6th Army HQ and, in any case, could not go on for long, given the dire conditions of the troops into the pocket. How could 10.000 men resist and fight for more that one month, hiding in cellars and the sewage system, without food, weapons, ammunitions, drugs, defy any imagination. But you know, there are people believing that the moon landing never happened, I do not surprise myself anymore.....

[Art]

The story is just a fantasy, as testified by many Soviet documents. There wasn't anything more than a mop-up meeting small scattered groups of dozens men after 2 February.

[AHK]

The final issue of the Glantz Stalingrad multi-volume mentions mopping up operations for a couple of months by the Soviets. Lists captives and war materials.
AHK