German Assault on Rostov-On-Don Summer (1941)

Synopsis

Created for the home market in Germany in 1942, this silent newsreel "Storm on Rostov" shows the actions that occurred around Rostov-On-Don in the summer of 1942. The film shows German halftracks and Panzer tanks on the road to Rostov, with German infantry hitching rides on tanks at 1:00. At 1:11 motorcycles lead the way into battle. At 1:36 an artillery piece is pushed down a road by soldiers. At 1:59 a boat ferries troops across the Don. At 2:20 an artillery piece is revealed as camouflage is removed. At 2:34 anti-aircraft guns fire against a Soviet aircraft, and it is shot down. At 2:50 the muzzle of a howitzer fires and an artillery strike follows. German troops wait at the front patiently for the artillery to take effect. At 3:58 horses move from a debris-strewn area that appears to have been hit by shellfire. At 4:17 soldiers dig a ditch so that Panzers can advance across a Soviet irrigation ditch. At 5:00 a sign points the way toward Rostov, and a Panzer idles past. At 5:10 a large smokestack is shown of one of the factories in Rostov. At 5:30 Panzers move past burning wreckage. At 5:58 troops advance through a shattered factory. The film ends at 6:00 on the 23rd of June, with "Rostov in our hands". (It would actually be another month until the German Army officially occupied the city.) Rostov-on-Don lies at the mouth of the Don River where it flows into the Sea of Azov, a part of the Black Sea. It was strategically placed and an important target for the Germans as…

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Details

Running time

6 minutes

Collection

Ephemeral Films

Subjects on the Internet Archive

• Stock Footage