The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth at the Centre of WWII's Greatest Battle

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A thrilling, vivid, and "compelling" ( Wall Street Journal ) account of the epic siege during one of World War II's most important battles, told by the brilliant British editor-turned-historian and author of Checkpoint Charlie. By contrast, Stalingrad was a more impressive triumph, making it “the ultimate touchstone for any Russian leader,” Mr. Nikolai Chuikov continued: “My grandfather, of course, remembered and talked about veterans all his life, until the very last days, when, after multiple strokes, he was already very unwell. Chuikov’s wife, Valentina Petrovna, and extended family stood alongside local Party bosses and the veteran sniper and hero of the Soviet Union Vasily Zaitsev. Every ruined house or apartment block, or demolished school or railway station, became a bunker – think of the recent scenes in Mariupol or Severodonetsk.

The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth at the Centre The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth at the Centre

And more important, Brezhnev had counted on his support when the time came to oust the erratic leader and take control of the Central Committee himself in 1962. MacGregor vividly describes the frantic Soviet efforts to beat back Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus’s Sixth Army as it reached the city. The foundation of the Soviets’ hard-won victory was laid during the battle for the city of Stalingrad, resting on the banks of the Volga River. The atmosphere was now charged as they brought their old general to his final resting place and the ceremonial music filled the air.

The often devious story of how the legend was created is fascinating, but equally so is MacGregor's consequent contribution to the Stalingrad narrative. Representing the Soviet Armed Forces was the defense minister Dimitry Ustinov, who amiably talked to the younger man on his right, a rising star of the Party, recently elevated to secretary of the Central Committee—Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev.

The Lighthouse of Stalingrad by Iain MacGregor review — the The Lighthouse of Stalingrad by Iain MacGregor review — the

MacGregor zeroes in on one of Stalingrad’s most legendary episodes: the Red Army’s push to take control of a strategic building codenamed “The Lighthouse. Moisture rising from the flowing river created an eerie mist along the riverbank, adding to the funereal scene. Most of our PDFs are also available to download and we're working on making the final remaining ones downloadable now.The ferocious fighting for control of the city on the Volga, now known as Volgograd, lasted from early September 1942 to Feb. By the end of the war, the story of this building would gather further momentum to inspire Russians to rebuild their destroyed towns and cities until it became the legend it is today, renamed after the simple sergeant who had supposedly led the defence –‘Pavlov’s House’. As we talk on the phone, Nikolai Chuikov’s voice suddenly breaks, lost in his memories of the day the citizens came out onto the streets of the city that had decided the fate of the Second World War in Europe, to say farewell to their adopted son. In the midst of Moscow's bloody war on Ukraine, with Putin invoking 'glorious victories' of World War II to inspire his country, Iain MacGregor's vivid, dramatic, day-by-day account reminds us that the awful reality of Stalingrad for soldiers on both sides was: 'The lucky ones bled, froze or starved to death in temporary field hospitals in bunkers or cellars.