This Date in History: October 17

 

At Stalingrad on October 17, 1942, bombers and dive-bombers from the Luftwaffe VIII Air Corps pounded enemy positions in the northern half of Stalingrad.  The Sixth Army headquarters was located at Golubinskaya.  The OKH informed Hitler that German forces had captured the Dzerzhinsky Tractor Factory on October 15 and the Barrikady Gun Factory on October 16.  Major Gerhard Engel, one of Hitler’s Army Adjutants, arrived at the army headquarters to gather personnel observations of the battle.  (Stalingrad: The Death of the German Sixth Army on the Volga, 1942-1943)

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On October 17, 1346 Robert Stewart, High Steward of Scotland and later King of Scotland, was defeated at the Battle of Neville’s Cross near Durham, England by the English Lord Neville, during the Second War of Scottish Independence.  Research into the family tree indicates that Robert Stewart was my 17th great-grandfather.  Researching your family history can provide a lifetime of adventure.  It also shows you that you may be distantly related to almost everyone you know.  You’ll find a few significant historical figures in your family tree, find a few scoundrels, and perhaps find out more about yourself.