This is to be a list of referancs to Soviet strength, and the knowledge there of by the Axis forces. I will post others as I find them. I found this one researching another topic.

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Cheers,
Daniel

From 'Paulus and Stalingrad' by Walter Goerlitz.

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Cheers,
Daniel

By Glanz:

Colonel Reinhardt Gehlen's intelligence organization, Foreign Armies East [Fremde Heere Ost], had noted increased Soviet activity in the central sector of the front since late August 1942. In September, however, he altered this assessment and predicted the Soviets would launch counteroffensives somewhere in southern Russia. Gehlen reversed himself once again in early October when he concluded, "The Russian forces assembling around Ninth Army [at Rzhev] are combat forces." In mid-October General Alfred Jodl, the chief of the Armed Forces Staff [OKW], also admitted a limited attack was probable against the base of the Rzhev salient, while Gehlen stated a Soviet assault was probable against German Army Group Center's Third Panzer and Ninth Armies. Finally, in early November Gehlen hedged his bet and predicted likely attacks against both German Army Groups Center around Rzhev and "B" in the Stalingrad region.

Predictably, the intelligence organs of the German Ninth Army and its subordinate corps and divisions sensed the Soviet build-up more keenly. After 19 November, however, their warning cries were drowned out by the sounds of terrible battle raging in southern. None-the-less, German tactical commanders did all in their power to prepare for the anticipated Soviet blow. Unfortunately, they knew neither the precise time of the expected Soviet assault nor, in the case of the Belyi front, the precise location of the impending attacks. This explains why the German XXXIX Panzer Corps was attacked while conducting a relief-in-place of its forward 5th Panzer Division and why the German division defending south of Belyi was not reinforced prior to the Soviet attack.

http://www.battlefield.ru/library/ba...ttle12_03.html

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Not only interesting in my opinion is the fact that Hitler knew the Red Army was not running away everywhere as we see from the following example, and definitely not was "dead" like he kept repeating in autumn 1942.

From Glanz "Zhukov´s greatest defeat"

Now , in August (1942 ), Zhukov was once again implementing his "northern strategy", designed to crush German Army Group Center once and for all. A month before, he had launched an unsuccessful offensive with Western Front´s left wing north of Briansk, but that offensive had done little damage.He resolved that the new attack near Rzhev would do more, and it did.

In extremely heavy fighting, Konev´s 30th and 29th Armies had ground up Germand forces northeast of Rzhev and advanced steadily on the city. To the south Zhukov committed his 31st and 20th Armies, and on 6 August his fresh 6th and 8th Tank Corps and 2nd Guards cavalry Corps joined battle and began to exploit the lead armies´success. For THREE DAYS A MAJOR TANK BATTLE RAGED as German operational reserves tried to close the breech and halt the Soviet advance. Halt it they did, but only after losing Zubtsov and falling back to new defence lines along the Vazuza river, just east of Sychevka. The bitter and costly operation petered out after 23 August, and although Ninth army held, it did so only barely.Next time the attack would be more extensive and, Zhukov believed, would end with the destruction of the German army group.

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At the same time Hitler was trying to get to Stalingrad. If AGC fights for its life for up to three weeks how can Hitler think the Red Army is totally out of the picture anywhere....???

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Perhaps Hitler believed his own propaganda. At this time he begain his tirade against the Army Generals blaming them for the catastrophies. So perhaps he thought the German Army (Generals) were spineless and were not fighting up to Hitler's standards not even thinking about the Russians at all. Now, Hitler did for once take blame for the Stalingrad disaster but only once. He had to since he relieved von Kleist and was commander of Army Group A of which the 6th Armee was a part of.

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