Workers Party of Ireland commemorates the Battle of Stalingrad

The Motherland Calls Stalingrad Memorial Complex, Volgograd, USSR, 1980s

The Workers Party of Ireland marks the anniversary of the historic Battle of Stalingrad, one of the most decisive and devastating confrontations of the Second World War. By the summer of 1942 the nazis transferred substantial forces to the Soviet-German front but despite numerical superiority the nazis could not force their way into the city and it was not until mid-September that the fascist forces were able to enter the city and for 140 days and nights the heroic defenders, through unimaginable suffering, extraordinary endurance and feats of courage, engaged the enemy in street fighting to deprive the nazis of their goal.

Stalingrad became a fortress city and workers and soldiers fought heroically side by side and refused to yield. Despite heavy bombardment Soviet forces mounted a determined defence of the city. In Stalingrad’s shattered streets and frozen ruins, soldiers and civilians alike bore the full weight of total war. More than a million lives were lost. Entire neighbourhoods were reduced to rubble. Yet amid the destruction, the defenders of the city held their ground with a determination that astonished the world. Their resistance halted the advance of Nazi Germany and signalled the beginning of a long path towards the destruction of the nazis across Europe.

On 20 November 1942, the Stalingrad front moved to the offensive and encircled the enemy and the battle on the Volga ended in complete victory for the Soviet forces. The Battle of Stalingrad (July 17, 1942 – February 2, 1943) was a pivotal confrontation marking a significant turning point in the Eastern Front and resulting in a catastrophic defeat for the Nazis. The heroic resistance demonstrated the social and political unity of the Soviet people under the leadership of the Communist Party and the State Defence Committee chaired by comrade J.V. Stalin.

As we witness today the continuing hatred, expansionism and inhumanity engendered by imperialism, the Workers Party of Ireland remembers and pays tribute to the resilience of the Soviet people and recommits itself to creating a world free from the cruelty and menace of fascism and imperialist war.

Gerry Grainger

International Secretary

WP Ireland

02 February 2026