How Stalin Defeated Hitler in the Deadliest Battle in History

In the winter of 1942, the armies of Hitler and Stalin went head to head in the bloodiest battle of the Second World War. Fought over five months through the bitter Russian Winter, the Battle for Stalingrad would serve as a turning point in the course of the Second World War and would mark a drastic change in the fortunes of the two dictators and the men who fought for them. But how did an industrial city on the banks of the Volga come to play such a decisive role in the course of the Second World War? In this series (‘Hitler vs Stalin’), historians James Holland, Guy Walters, author of The Lighthouse of Stalingrad Iain MacGregor and Research Fellow Sarah Ashbridge explore the personalities behind the battle to uncover the key moments, decisions and motivations that lead to this decisive moment. In this episode 1, we uncover the personalities and psychology of the two Tyrants, Hitler and Stalin and their Generals Paulus and Zhukov as they enter a new season of campaigning against