By Iain MacGregor
Wednesday 27th May 2026
St John’s Place, Lower Road, Bemerton, SP2 9NP
7.30-9.30pm
The sacrifices that enabled the Soviet Union to defeat Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–45 are sacrosanct, and nowhere was the foundation of that victory more decisively laid than at Stalingrad on the banks of the Volga, where Germany’s catastrophic defeat marked the beginning of its eventual demise and the long road to the Red Army raising its flag over the Reichstag two years later. Widely regarded as the pivotal battle of the Second World War, Stalingrad consumed more than two million civilians and combatants killed, wounded, or captured amid the brutal winter of 1942–43 and savage house-to-house fighting reminiscent of the Great War.
At the heart of this life-and-death struggle stood a key frontline building, codenamed ‘The Lighthouse,’ where a small garrison of Red Army guardsmen endured relentless aerial bombardment and daily assaults by German infantry and armour. Seized upon by Soviet wartime media as a symbol of resilience when the situation seemed beyond salvation, the story of the building gathered momentum after the war to inspire national reconstruction, evolving into the legend of ‘Pavlov’s House,’ named after the sergeant said to have led its defence—yet how much of this story was true?
In this talk, historian Iain MacGregor will revisit the battle through the experiences of the men who fought over five harrowing months and the officers who commanded them, drawing on German and Russian archives he visited to uncover unpublished memoirs and eyewitness testimony from soldiers and civilians alike, celebrating the real heroes while offering a more truthful account of how this mighty battle was ultimately decided.
Entrance for members is included in your annual subscription. For non-members, entrance is £10 (cash, card or cheque) at the door.
There is a small car park and lay-by opposite St John’s Place on Lower Road (for approx. 20 cars). Parking is also allowed on single yellow lines on Lower Road after 6pm. Alternative car parking is available at The Clubhouse, Salisbury and South Wilts Sports Club (SP2 9NY) and a pathway connects to St John’s Place.