The house was a four-story building in the center of
Stalingrad, built perpendicular to the embankment of the river
Volga and overseeing the "9th January Square", a large square named for
Bloody Sunday. In late September 1942, between 30 and 50 soldiers of the 42nd Guards Regiment,
13th Guards Rifle Division secured the large apartment blocks from German control, following its recapture by four soldiers four days beforehand, which Yakov Pavlov led. For better internal communication, Pavlov's soldiers breached the walls in the basement and upper floors, and dug a communications trench to Soviet positions outside. Supplies were brought in via the trench or by boats crossing the river, defying German air raids and shelling. Nevertheless, food and especially water was in short supply. Lacking beds, the soldiers tried to sleep on insulation wool torn off pipes but were subjected to
harassing fire every night in order to try to break their resistance. The Germans attacked the building several times a day. Each time German infantry or tanks tried to cross the square and to close in on the house, Pavlov's men laid down a withering barrage of machine gun and AT rifle fire from the basement, the windows and the roof. The defenders, as well as the civilians hiding in the basement, were eventually relieved by counter-attacking Soviet forces after holding out from 27 September to 25 November 1942. It has been argued that whilst the house was heavily fortified, there were limited assaults against it. It was amongst the first buildings in Stalingrad to be restored after the war, having received comparatively limited damage. German archives do not support the claim for heavy fighting for the building, and Soviet military archives attach no particular importance to the house as a defensive structure. While the building was originally captured by Pavlov, the commander of the position was Lieutenant Afanasiev. The garrison was disbanded on the night of 24 November, with troops returning to their original units. These units were then sent on the offensive with Pavlov and Afansiev. Many members of the house's garrison were killed and wounded while assaulting the German-held "Milk House" on 26 November 1942. == Uncertainty on dates ==