WW2 mass grave with 1,800 German soldiers killed in brutal Battle of Stalingrad unearthed in Russia

A MASS grave has been uncovered 75 years after the Battle of Stalingrad, arguably the bloodiest and deadliest episode of World War Two.

The grave contains almost 2,000 German soldiers and was discovered accidentally by Russian workmen laying a new water pipe in Volgograd.

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As soon as the shocking discovery was made, the workmen notified authorities as well as the German War Graves Commission.

A careful excavation took place to recover the remains.

Military archaeologists who uncovered the late German troops found 1,837 bodies in the mass grave in the district of Angarsky in Volgograd.

Among those found were the remains of horses killed alongside the troops in the biggest battle in World War Two.

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Around two million men were killed, wounded, or captured during the Battle of Stalingrad.

Military archaeologists are currently identifying the troops, and are hoping that the relatives of these troops can be traced.

The dead German soldiers will be given a special burial at a military ceremony in the city.

A spokesman for the German War Graves Commission said they initially thought that 800 bodies were buried in the mass grave.

The figure rose by over 1,000 following the excavations in the grave, which measures 430ft long, 23ft wide and 7ft deep.

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The spokesman said: “the beginning of October we reported 800 German war dead, in the former Stalingrad, today Volgograd.

“The (excavation) work is now complete. Instead of the assumed 800, it was in the end 1,837 war dead.

“We found numerous killed soldiers along with horse carcasses hastily buried. Due to the threat of epidemic at that time there was a rush to remove the countless corpses of men and animals as soon as possible.

“Earth holes, gorges and streams became mass graves.

“Every year in the former Stalingrad on average three to four mass graves are found. The finding on this scale is quite special.”

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ID tags are currently being recovered and cleaned before the identification process begins, according to the spokesman.

He added: “Usually the relatives are relieved to know what happened and pleased the body of their grandpa or uncle will be buried. It is very important.”

According to a historian and expert on the Battle of Stalingrad, the mass grave is consistent with accounts of the victorious Soviet Red Army hurriedly burying the German dead in a gorge towards the end of the conflict.