Liveblogging World War II: September 21, 1942
From Glantz and House, Armageddon in Stalingrad:
Even at this desperate stage in the fighting there was one bright spot for Chuikov. Having finally found necessary transport, the first regiment (1043rd) of Batiuk's 284th Rifle Division reached the western bank of the Volga on the night of 21-22 Septeber. Batiuk's division totaled about 10000 men but lacked many of its authorized weapons. In fact, for a time it had sufficient rifles to arm only one of its three regiments. Once across the Volga, the 1043r... serve[d] as 62nd Army's only reserve....
Colonel Nikolai Filippovitch Batiuk had risen from the ranks during a 15-year military career to take command of 284th Rifle Division on 2 February 1942. Thereafter, he commanded the division with distinction during the heavy fighting west of Veronezh during July, after which the division's survivors were transported to the Urals to rest and refit in early august. Before that process was complete, in early September Batiuk's division received order to move to Stalingrad...
