Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, the man who would oversee the planned rescue of the Stalingrad garrison, also questioned Paulus’ motives. “The only possibility would have been to present Hitler with the fait accompli of the army’s departure from Stalingrad,” Manstein later speculated, “especially if the supreme command shrouded itself in silence for 36 hours, as in fact happened. It is of course possible that such a course of action would have cost Paulus, among others, his head. One can assume, however, that it was not worry over such an outcome that prevented Paulus from doing unilaterally what he saw as correct. Rather it was his loyalty to Hitler that led him to seek permission for the army to break out.”

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Immediately after word of the Soviet attack reached the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW), or German high command, orders were sent to Manstein, the conqueror of Sevastopol, to take command of the Stalingrad sector. Manstein had been engaged in the siege of Leningrad until a few weeks before, and his headquarters was now located in Vitebsk. Because of inclement weather, he was forced to travel south by train.

Manstein’s new command, designated Army Group Don, was composed of the Sixth Army, Army Group Hoth (the VI and VII Romanian Army Corps, LVII Panzer Corps and XLVIII Panzer Corps), the battered Third Romanian Army, and Army Detachment Hollidt, which consisted of one panzer division, one Romanian tank division and three German and four Romanian infantry divisions. Army Detachment Hollidt was holding a tenuous line on the Chir River, some 60 kilometers from Stalingrad.

General Karl Hollidt’s forces were the nearest to Stalingrad, but he could do little to help the entrapped Sixth Army. Hollidt later recalled his position: “A success was not possible, at that moment, for a relief of Stalingrad because there were not enough vehicles on hand. Also, Army Detachment Hollidt was itself forced into a defensive position by superior enemy forces, which were attempting to force their way through to Rostov.”

Manstein decided that Army Group Hoth, which was located about 100 kilometers southwest of Stalingrad, would be his main striking force, but he needed time to receive the necessary reinforcements and to prepare for the counterattack. As he considered the Romanian corps all but useless, Manstein had to rely on his German divisions. Reinforcements for the LVII Panzer Corps headquarters arrived in the form of three panzer divisions: the 17th, the 23rd and the 6th. The 11th Panzer Division was also transferred from Army Group Center to reinforce the XLVIII Panzer Corps.

For the approximately 250,000 men trapped inside the Stalingrad pocket, each day of waiting brought new privations. Rations were cut, and then cut again. Horse meat became a prized commodity. The troops scavenged for extra food, and they began to show signs of physical deterioration. The Soviets were relentless in their attacks, and casualties soon mounted to serious levels. The wounded lay in filthy hallways, and cellars were soon converted into makeshift operating rooms. At that point, however, morale was still fairly good, for the troops knew that Manstein was now in charge of getting them out.

It took 18 days for Manstein to assemble his forces and finalize his plans. He was in constant teletype communication with Paulus, who had been promoted to colonel general on November 30. The relief attempt was code-named “Winter Tempest.” Once the attack began, plans were also made for the Sixth Army to attempt a breakout to link up with the advancing armored columns under the code name “Thunderclap.”

Winter Tempest began on December 12, with Manstein sending Hoth’s panzer divisions to smash through a line held by infantry divisions from General N.I. Trufanov’s Fifty-first Army. The weather in southern Russia was still fairly good, as the usually harsh winter had not yet set in. Manstein used the weather to good effect, concentrating air attacks from his meager Luftwaffe support on key Soviet positions.

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