German WWII strongholds

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Towards the end of World War II, the German leadership had not accepted defeat, but had begun to realize that a considerable attack on the Reich was inevitable. One of the tactics decided on, probably through a direct decision of Adolf Hitler to resist the advance was the creation of strongholds (called Festung or Fortresses in German) where the defenders were ordered to defend them at all costs.

In the east, Stalingrad, Warsaw, Kolberg, Königsberg, Küstrin, Danzig and Breslau were selected as strongholds whilst in the west locations included the island of Alderney.

The fate of the strongholds varied. Stalingrad, the first of the "fortresses" to fall is seen as a crucial turning point in the war and one of the key battles which lead to German defeat. In several cases (Wrocław, and Alderney for example) the fortresses were bypassed by the attackers and did not actually fall until long after they had been neutralised (though fighting in Wrocław was sustained). Warsaw was almost completely destroyed in the aftermath of the Warsaw Uprising.