Attack on Soviet Union happened without a declaration of war in the morning hours of June 22, 1941. Despite the long preparations for war, the attack was completely unexpected for the USSR, since the German leadership did not even have a pretext for an attack.

The military events of the first weeks inspired full hope for the success of the next "blitzkrieg". Armored formations advanced quickly and occupied vast expanses of the country. V major battles and surrounded by the Soviet Army suffered millions of losses in killed and captured. A large number of military equipment was destroyed or captured as trophies. Again, it seemed that the doubts and feelings of fear that had spread in Germany, despite careful ideological preparation, had been disproved by the successes of the Wehrmacht. The Church Board of Trustees of the German Evangelical Church expressed the feelings that gripped many, assuring Hitler by telegraph that "he is supported by all the evangelical Christianity of the Reich in the decisive battles with the mortal enemy of order and Western Christian culture."

The successes of the Wehrmacht evoked various reactions from the Soviet side. There were manifestations of panic and confusion, the soldiers left their military units. And even Stalin first addressed the population only on July 3. In areas captured or annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939/40. part of the population welcomed the Germans as liberators. Nevertheless, from the first day of the war, Soviet troops offered unexpectedly strong resistance even in the most hopeless situations. And the civilian population actively participated in the evacuation and movement of militarily important industrial facilities beyond the Urals.

Persistent Soviet resistance and the heavy losses of the German Wehrmacht (until December 1, 1941, about 200,000 killed and missing, almost 500,000 wounded) soon disproved the German hopes for an easy and quick victory. Autumn mud, snow and a terrible cold in winter interfered with the military operations of the Wehrmacht. The German army was not prepared for the war in winter conditions, it was believed that by this time victory would have been achieved. An attempt to capture Moscow as political center The Soviet Union collapsed, although German troops approached the city at a distance of 30 kilometers. In early December, the Soviet Army unexpectedly launched a counteroffensive, which was successful not only near Moscow, but also in other sectors of the front. Thus, the concept of blitzkrieg was finally wrecked.

In the summer of 1942, new forces were accumulated to advance in a southerly direction. Although the German troops managed to capture large territories and advance as far as the Caucasus, they could not fortify anywhere. The oil fields were in Soviet hands, and Stalingrad became a foothold on the western bank of the Volga. In November 1942, the line of the German fronts in the territory of the Soviet Union reached its greatest extent, but there could be no question of a decisive success.

Chronicle of the war from June 1941 to November 1942

29/30.6.41 The Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks (b) declares war a "patriotic" war of all the people; formation of the State Defense Committee.

July August. The German offensive along the entire front, the destruction of large Soviet formations in the environment (Bialystok and Minsk: 328,000 prisoners, Smolensk: 310,000 prisoners).

September. Leningrad is cut off from the rest of the country. Over 600,000 captured east of Kiev Soviet soldiers that are in the environment. The general offensive of the German troops, which are suffering heavy losses, is slowed down due to the constant resistance of the Soviet Army.

2.10.41. The beginning of the offensive on Moscow, some sections of the front line at the end of November were 30 km from Moscow.

5.12.41. The beginning of the Soviet counter-offensive with fresh forces near Moscow, the German retreat. After the intervention of Hitler, the stabilization of the defensive positions of Army Group Center in January 1942 at the cost of heavy losses. Soviet success on South.

12/11/41. Germany declares war on the USA.

In 1941, the Soviet Army lost 1.5 - 2.5 million soldiers killed and about 3 million prisoners. The number of civilian deaths is not precisely established, but it is estimated in the millions. Losses of the German army - about 200,000 people killed and missing.

January - March 1942 A wide winter offensive of the Soviet Army, partly successful, but not reaching its goals due to heavy losses. The losses of the German army in manpower and equipment were also so great that the continuation of the offensive on a broad front turned out to be impossible at the moment.

May. The failure of the Soviet offensive near Kharkov; during the counteroffensive, 250,000 Soviet soldiers were surrounded and taken prisoner.

June July. The capture of the fortress of Sevastopol and thus the entire Crimea. The beginning of the German summer offensive, with the aim of reaching the Volga and capturing oil fields in the Caucasus. The Soviet side, in view of the new victories of Germany, is in a state of crisis.

August. German troops reach the Caucasus Mountains, but fail to inflict a decisive defeat on the Soviet troops.

September. The beginning of the battles for Stalingrad, which in October was almost completely captured by the Germans. Nevertheless, the Soviet bridgehead on the western bank of the Volga under the command of General Chuikov could not be destroyed.

9.11.42. Beginning of the Soviet counter-offensive at Stalingrad.

50 The Soviet population listens in the street to the government message about the beginning of the war, 22.6.1941.

Text 33
From a speech on the radio by People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov on 22 June 1941

Today, at 4 o'clock in the morning, without declaring any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed our cities - Zhitomir, Kiev, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others, moreover, more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from the Romanian and Finnish territories. This unheard-of attack on our country is treachery unparalleled in the history of civilized peoples. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that a non-aggression pact was concluded between the USSR and Germany, and the Soviet government fulfilled all the conditions of this pact in all good faith. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that during the entire period of the validity of this treaty the German government could never make a single claim against the USSR regarding the fulfillment of the treaty. All responsibility for this robbery attack on the Soviet Union will fall entirely on the German fascist rulers. [...]

This war was imposed on us not by the German people, not by the German workers, peasants and intelligentsia, whose sufferings we understand very well, but by a clique of bloodthirsty fascist rulers of Germany who enslaved the French, Czechs, Poles, Serbs, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Greece and other peoples . [...]

This is not the first time our people have had to deal with an attacking, conceited enemy. At one time, our people responded to Napoleon's campaign in Russia with a Patriotic War, and Napoleon was defeated and came to his own collapse. The same will happen to the arrogant Hitler, who has announced a new campaign against our country. The Red Army and all our people will once again wage a victorious patriotic war for the Motherland, for honor, for freedom.

Text 34
An excerpt from the diary of Elena Scriabina dated 22.6.1941 about the news of the German attack.

Text 35
Excerpts from the diary of NKVD major Shabalin from 6 to 19 October 1941

Diary
Major NKVD Shabalin,
head of the special department of the NKVD
at 50 army

for the accuracy of transmission
Chief of Staff of the 2nd Tank Army
Signed Frh.f. Liebenstein
[...]

The army is not what we used to think and imagine at home. Huge lack of everything. The attacks of our armies are disappointing.

We are interrogating a red-haired German prisoner, a shabby guy, covered in shrouds, extremely stupid. [...]

The situation with the personnel is very difficult, almost the entire army consists of people whose native places have been captured by the Germans. They want to go home. Inactivity at the front, sitting in the trenches demoralize the Red Army. There are cases of drunkenness of command and political personnel. People sometimes do not return from reconnaissance. [...]

The enemy has encircled us. Continuous cannonade. Duel of artillerymen, mortarmen and submachine gunners. Danger and fear almost the whole day. I'm not talking anymore about the forest, the swamp and the lodging for the night. Since the 12th I have not slept any more, since October 8th I have not read a single newspaper.

Creepy! I wander, around the corpses, the horrors of war, continuous shelling! Again hungry and without sleep. He took a bottle of alcohol. Went to the forest to explore. Our complete annihilation is evident. The army is defeated, the convoy is destroyed. I am writing in the woods by the fire. In the morning I lost all the Chekists, I was left alone among strangers. The army collapsed.

I spent the night in the forest. I haven't eaten bread for three days. There are a lot of Red Army soldiers in the forest; there are no commanders. Throughout the night and in the morning the Germans shelled the forest with weapons of all kinds. At about 7 o'clock in the morning we got up and went north. Shooting continues. At the halt, I washed up. [...]

All night we walked in the rain through the swampy terrain. Endless darkness. I was soaked to the skin, my right leg was swollen; terribly hard to walk.

Text 36
Field mail letter from non-commissioned officer Robert Rupp to his wife dated July 1, 1941 about the attitude towards Soviet prisoners of war.

Text 37
Diary entry of the former ambassador Ulrich von Hassell dated 18.8.1941 regarding the war crimes of the Wehrmacht.

18. 8. 41 [...]

The whole war in the east is terrible, the general savagery. One young officer received an order to destroy 350 civilians driven into a large barn, among whom were women and children, at first refused to do this, but he was told that this was a failure to comply with the order, after which he asked for 10 minutes to think and finally did it , sending together with some other machine-gun bursts in open door shed into a crowd of people, and then, finishing off the still alive from machine guns. He was so shocked by this that later, having received a slight wound, he firmly decided not to return to the front.

Text 38
Excerpts from the order of the commander of the 17th Army, Colonel General Hoth, dated 11/17/1941, regarding the basic principles of warfare.

2. The campaign to the East must end differently than, for example, the war against the French. This summer it becomes more and more clear to us that here, in the East, two internally irresistible views are fighting against each other: the German sense of honor and race, the centuries-old German army against the Asiatic type of thinking and primitive instincts, fueled by a small number of mostly Jewish intellectuals: fear of whip, disregard for moral values, equalization of the lower, neglect of one's life of no value.

51 German Junkere Ju-87 (Shtukas) dive bombers take off from a field airfield in the Soviet Union, 1941.

52 German infantry on the march, 1941

53 Soviet prisoners dig their own grave, 1941.

54 Soviet prisoners before execution, 1941. Both photographs (53 and 54) were in the wallet of a German soldier who died near Moscow. The place and circumstances of the execution are unknown.

6. I demand that every soldier of the army should be imbued with pride in our successes, with a sense of unconditional superiority. We are the masters of this country which we have conquered. Our feeling of dominance is expressed not in satiety, not in contemptuous behavior, and not even in selfish abuse of power by individuals, but in a conscious opposition to Bolshevism, in strict discipline, inflexible determination and tireless vigilance.

8. There should be absolutely no place for sympathy and gentleness towards the population. The Red soldiers brutally killed our wounded; they dealt cruelly with the prisoners and killed them. We must remember this if the population, which once endured the Bolshevik yoke, now wants to receive us with joy and worship. The Volksdeutsche should be treated with a sense of self-awareness and with calm restraint. The fight against impending food difficulties should be left to the self-government of the enemy population. Any trace of active or passive resistance, or any machinations of Bolshevik-Jewish instigators, must be eradicated immediately. The need for harsh measures against elements hostile to the people and our policy must be understood by the soldiers. [...]

Behind everyday life, we should not lose sight of the worldwide significance of our struggle against Soviet Russia. The Russian masses have been paralyzing Europe for two centuries now. The need to take Russia into account and the fear of its possible attack constantly dominated political relations in Europe and slowed down peaceful development. Russia is not a European, but an Asian state. Each step into the depths of this dull, enslaved country allows you to see this difference. From this pressure and from the destructive forces of Bolshevism, Europe and especially Germany must be liberated forever.

For this we fight and work.

Commander Hoth (signed)
Send to the following parts: shelves and separate battalions, including construction and service units, to the commander of the patrol service; distributor 1a; reserve = 10 copies.

Text 39
Report of the commander of the rear of the 2nd Panzer Army, General von Schenckendorff dated 24. 3. 1942 regarding looting.

1) The commander of the rear of the 2nd Panzer Army in a daily report dated 23.2.42: “Unauthorized requisition by German soldiers near Navlya is increasing. From Gremyachey (28 km southwest of Karachev), soldiers from the area of ​​Karachevo took away 76 cows without a certificate, from Plastovoye (32 km southwest of Karachev) - 69 cows. Not a single head of cattle remained in either place. In addition, the Russian law enforcement service was disarmed in Plastovoi; the next day the settlement was occupied by partisans. In the area of ​​Sinezerko (25 km south of Bryansk), the soldiers of the platoon commander, Fellow Sebastian (code 2), wildly requisitioned cattle, and in a neighboring village they shot at the village headman and his assistants. [...]

Increasingly, these cases are being reported. In this regard, I especially point out the issued orders on the conduct of troops and their supply in the country in accordance with the order. They are once again reflected in the application.

The Great Patriotic War- the war of the USSR with Germany and its allies in - years and with Japan in 1945; component Second World War .

From the point of view of the leadership of Nazi Germany, the war with the USSR was inevitable. The communist regime was regarded by him as alien, and at the same time capable of striking at any moment. Only the rapid defeat of the USSR gave the Germans the opportunity to ensure dominance on the European continent. In addition, he gave them access to the rich industrial and agricultural regions of Eastern Europe.

At the same time, according to some historians, Stalin himself, at the end of 1939, decided on a preemptive attack on Germany in the summer of 1941. On June 15, Soviet troops began strategic deployment and advance to the western border. According to one version, this was done in order to strike at Romania and German-occupied Poland, according to another, to frighten Hitler and force him to abandon plans to attack the USSR.

The first period of the war (June 22, 1941 - November 18, 1942)

The first stage of the German offensive (June 22 - July 10, 1941)

On June 22, the mobilization of those liable for military service born in 1905-1918 was carried out in the USSR, and from the first days of the war, a mass registration of volunteers began. On June 23, in the USSR, an emergency body of the highest military administration, the Headquarters of the High Command, was created to direct military operations, and there was also a maximum centralization of military and political power in the hands of Stalin.

On June 22, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill made a radio statement supporting the USSR in its struggle against Hitlerism. On June 23, the US State Department welcomed the efforts Soviet people to repel the German invasion, and on June 24, US President F. Roosevelt promised to provide the USSR with all kinds of assistance.

On July 18, the Soviet leadership decided to organize a partisan movement in the occupied and frontline regions, which gained momentum in the second half of the year.

In the summer-autumn of 1941, about 10 million people were evacuated to the east. and more than 1350 large enterprises. The militarization of the economy began to be carried out with harsh and energetic measures; all the material resources of the country were mobilized for military needs.

The main reason for the defeats of the Red Army, despite its quantitative and often qualitative (T-34 and KV tanks) technical superiority, was the poor training of privates and officers, the low level of operation of military equipment and the lack of experience among the troops in conducting large-scale military operations in conditions modern war. The repressions against the high command in 1937-1940 also played a significant role.

The second stage of the German offensive (July 10 - September 30, 1941)

On July 10, Finnish troops launched an offensive and on September 1, the 23rd Soviet Army on the Karelian Isthmus withdrew to the line of the old state border, occupied before the Finnish war of 1939–1940. By October 10, the front had stabilized along the line Kestenga - Ukhta - Rugozero - Medvezhyegorsk - Lake Onega. - river Svir. The enemy was unable to cut the communication lines of European Russia with the northern ports.

On July 10, the Army Group "North" launched an offensive in the Leningrad and Tallinn directions. August 15 fell Novgorod, August 21 - Gatchina. On August 30, the Germans reached the Neva, cutting off the railway communication with the city, and on September 8 they took Shlisselburg and closed the blockade ring around Leningrad. Only the tough measures of the new commander of the Leningrad Front, G.K. Zhukov, made it possible to stop the enemy by September 26.

On July 16, the Romanian 4th Army took Kishinev; the defense of Odessa lasted about two months. Soviet troops left the city only in the first half of October. In early September, Guderian crossed the Desna and on September 7 captured Konotop ("Konotop breakthrough"). Five Soviet armies were surrounded; the number of prisoners was 665 thousand. Left-bank Ukraine was in the hands of the Germans; the way to the Donbass was open; Soviet troops in the Crimea were cut off from the main forces.

The defeats on the fronts prompted the Headquarters to issue order No. 270 on August 16, qualifying all soldiers and officers who surrendered as traitors and deserters; their families were deprived of state support and were subject to exile.

The third stage of the German offensive (September 30 - December 5, 1941)

On September 30, Army Group Center launched an operation to capture Moscow (Typhoon). On October 3, Guderian's tanks broke into Orel and took to the road to Moscow. On October 6-8, all three armies of the Bryansk Front were surrounded south of Bryansk, and the main forces of the Reserve (19th, 20th, 24th and 32nd armies) - west of Vyazma; the Germans captured 664,000 prisoners and more than 1,200 tanks. But the advance of the 2nd tank group of the Wehrmacht to Tula was thwarted by the stubborn resistance of the brigade of M.E. Katukov near Mtsensk; The 4th Panzer Group occupied Yukhnov and rushed towards Maloyaroslavets, but was held up near Medyn by Podolsk cadets (October 6–10); the autumn thaw also slowed down the pace of the German offensive.

On October 10, the Germans attacked the right wing of the Reserve Front (renamed the Western Front); On October 12, the 9th Army captured Staritsa, and on October 14 - Rzhev. On October 19, a state of siege was declared in Moscow. On October 29, Guderian tried to take Tula, but was repulsed with heavy losses for himself. In early November, the new commander of the Western Front, Zhukov, with an incredible effort of all forces and constant counterattacks, managed, despite huge losses in manpower and equipment, to stop the Germans in other directions.

On September 27, the Germans broke through the defense line of the Southern Front. Most of the Donbass was in the hands of the Germans. During the successful counter-offensive of the troops of the Southern Front, Rostov was liberated on November 29, and the Germans were driven back to the Mius River.

In the second half of October, the 11th German Army broke into the Crimea and by mid-November captured almost the entire peninsula. Soviet troops managed to hold only Sevastopol.

Counteroffensive of the Red Army near Moscow (December 5, 1941 - January 7, 1942)

On December 5-6, the Kalinin, Western and Southwestern fronts switched to offensive operations in the northwestern and southwestern directions. Successful promotion Soviet troops forced Hitler on December 8 to issue a directive on the transition to defense along the entire front line. On December 18, the troops of the Western Front launched an offensive in the central direction. As a result, by the beginning of the year, the Germans were pushed back 100–250 km to the west. There was a threat of coverage of the army group "Center" from the north and south. The strategic initiative passed to the Red Army.

The success of the operation near Moscow prompted the Headquarters to decide on the transition to a general offensive along the entire front from Lake Ladoga to the Crimea. The offensive operations of the Soviet troops in December 1941 - April 1942 led to a significant change in the military-strategic situation on the Soviet-German front: the Germans were driven back from Moscow, Moscow, part of the Kalinin, Oryol and Smolensk regions were liberated. There was also a psychological turning point among the soldiers and the civilian population: faith in victory was strengthened, the myth of the invincibility of the Wehrmacht was destroyed. The collapse of the lightning war plan gave rise to doubts about the successful outcome of the war, both among the German military-political leadership and among ordinary Germans.

Luban operation (January 13 - June 25)

The Lyuban operation was aimed at breaking through the blockade of Leningrad. On January 13, the forces of the Volkhov and Leningrad fronts launched an offensive in several directions, planning to link up at Lyuban and encircle the enemy's Chudov grouping. On March 19, the Germans launched a counterattack, cutting off the 2nd shock army from the rest of the forces of the Volkhov Front. Soviet troops repeatedly tried to release it and resume the offensive. On May 21, the Stavka decided to withdraw it, but on June 6 the Germans completely closed the encirclement. On June 20, soldiers and officers were ordered to leave the encirclement on their own, but only a few managed to do this (according to various estimates, from 6 to 16 thousand people); commander A.A. Vlasov surrendered.

Military operations in May-November 1942

Having defeated the Crimean Front (almost 200 thousand people were taken prisoner), the Germans occupied Kerch on May 16, and Sevastopol in early July. On May 12, the troops of the Southwestern Front and the Southern Front launched an offensive against Kharkov. For several days it developed successfully, but on May 19 the Germans defeated the 9th Army, pushing it back behind Seversky Donets, went to the rear of the advancing Soviet troops and on May 23 took them into pincers; the number of prisoners reached 240 thousand. On June 28-30, the German offensive began against the left wing of the Bryansk and the right wing of the Southwestern Front. On July 8, the Germans captured Voronezh and reached the Middle Don. By July 22, the 1st and 4th tank armies had reached the Southern Don. On July 24, Rostov-on-Don was taken.

In the conditions of a military catastrophe in the south, on July 28, Stalin issued order No. 227 “Not a step back”, which provided for severe punishments for retreating without instructions from above, detachments to deal with unauthorized leaving positions, penal units for operations on the most dangerous sectors of the front. On the basis of this order, during the war years, about 1 million military personnel were convicted, of which 160 thousand were shot, and 400 thousand were sent to penal companies.

On July 25, the Germans crossed the Don and rushed south. In mid-August, the Germans established control over almost all the passes in the central part of the Main Caucasian Range. In the Grozny direction, the Germans occupied Nalchik on October 29, they failed to take Ordzhonikidze and Grozny, and in mid-November their further advance was stopped.

On August 16, German troops launched an offensive against Stalingrad. On September 13, fighting began in Stalingrad itself. In the second half of October - the first half of November, the Germans captured a significant part of the city, but could not break the resistance of the defenders.

By mid-November, the Germans established control over the Right Bank of the Don and most of the North Caucasus, but did not achieve their strategic goals - to break into the Volga region and Transcaucasia. This was prevented by the counterattacks of the Red Army in other directions (the Rzhev meat grinder, the tank battle between Zubtsov and Karmanovo, etc.), which, although unsuccessful, nevertheless did not allow the Wehrmacht command to transfer reserves to the south.

The second period of the war (November 19, 1942 - December 31, 1943): a radical change

Victory at Stalingrad (November 19, 1942 - February 2, 1943)

On November 19, units of the Southwestern Front broke through the defenses of the 3rd Romanian Army and on November 21 took five Romanian divisions in pincers (Operation Saturn). On November 23, units of the two fronts joined at the Soviet and surrounded the Stalingrad enemy grouping.

On December 16, the troops of the Voronezh and Southwestern Fronts launched Operation Little Saturn on the Middle Don, defeated the 8th Italian Army, and on January 26, the 6th Army was cut into two parts. On January 31, the southern grouping led by F. Paulus capitulated, on February 2 - the northern one; 91 thousand people were captured. The Battle of Stalingrad, despite the heavy losses of the Soviet troops, was the beginning of a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War. The Wehrmacht suffered a major defeat and lost the strategic initiative. Japan and Turkey abandoned their intention to enter the war on the side of Germany.

Economic recovery and transition to the offensive in the central direction

By this time, a turning point had also occurred in the sphere of the Soviet military economy. Already in the winter of 1941/1942 it was possible to stop the decline in engineering. In March, ferrous metallurgy began to rise, and in the second half of 1942, energy and the fuel industry began to rise. By the beginning there was a clear economic superiority of the USSR over Germany.

In November 1942 - January 1943, the Red Army launched an offensive in the central direction.

Operation "Mars" (Rzhev-Sychevskaya) was carried out in order to eliminate the Rzhev-Vyazma bridgehead. The formations of the Western Front made their way through railway Rzhev - Sychevka and raided the enemy rear, however, significant losses and a lack of tanks, guns and ammunition forced them to stop, but this operation did not allow the Germans to transfer part of their forces from the central direction to Stalingrad.

Liberation of the North Caucasus (January 1 - February 12, 1943)

On January 1–3, an operation began to liberate the North Caucasus and the Don bend. On January 3, Mozdok was liberated, on January 10-11 - Kislovodsk, Mineralnye Vody, Essentuki and Pyatigorsk, on January 21 - Stavropol. On January 24, the Germans surrendered Armavir, on January 30 - Tikhoretsk. On February 4, the Black Sea Fleet landed troops in the Myskhako area south of Novorossiysk. On February 12, Krasnodar was taken. However, the lack of forces prevented the Soviet troops from encircling the enemy's North Caucasian grouping.

Breakthrough of the blockade of Leningrad (January 12–30, 1943)

Fearing the encirclement of the main forces of Army Group Center on the Rzhev-Vyazma bridgehead, the German command began on March 1 their systematic withdrawal. On March 2, units of the Kalinin and Western fronts began pursuing the enemy. On March 3, Rzhev was liberated, on March 6 - Gzhatsk, on March 12 - Vyazma.

The campaign of January-March 1943, despite a number of failures, led to the liberation of a huge territory ( North Caucasus, lower reaches of the Don, Voroshilovgrad, Voronezh, Kursk regions, part of the Belgorod, Smolensk and Kalinin regions). The blockade of Leningrad was broken, the Demyansky and Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledges were liquidated. Control over the Volga and Don was restored. The Wehrmacht suffered huge losses (about 1.2 million people). The depletion of human resources forced the Nazi leadership to carry out a total mobilization of seniors (over 46 years old) and younger ages(16–17 years old).

Since the winter of 1942/1943, an important military factor has become partisan movement in the German rear. The partisans caused serious damage to the German army, destroying manpower, blowing up warehouses and trains, disrupting the communications system. The largest operations were the raids of the detachment of M.I. Naumov in Kursk, Sumy, Poltava, Kirovograd, Odessa, Vinnitsa, Kiev and Zhytomyr (February-March 1943) and S.A. Kovpak in Rivne, Zhytomyr and Kiev regions (February-May 1943).

Defensive battle on the Kursk Bulge (July 5–23, 1943)

The Wehrmacht command developed Operation Citadel to encircle a strong group of the Red Army on the Kursk ledge through counter tank strikes from the north and south; if successful, it was planned to carry out Operation Panther to defeat the Southwestern Front. but Soviet intelligence unraveled the plans of the Germans, and in April-June a powerful defensive system of eight lines was created on the Kursk ledge.

On July 5, the German 9th Army launched an attack on Kursk from the north, and the 4th Panzer Army from the south. On the northern flank, already on July 10, the Germans went on the defensive. On the southern wing, Wehrmacht tank columns reached Prokhorovka on July 12, but were stopped, and by July 23, the troops of the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts pushed them back to their original lines. Operation Citadel failed.

The general offensive of the Red Army in the second half of 1943 (July 12 - December 24, 1943). Liberation of Left-Bank Ukraine

On July 12, units of the Western and Bryansk fronts broke through the German defenses at Zhilkovo and Novosil, by August 18, Soviet troops cleared the Orlovsky ledge from the enemy.

By September 22, units of the Southwestern Front pushed the Germans back beyond the Dnieper and reached the approaches to Dnepropetrovsk (now the Dnieper) and Zaporozhye; formations of the Southern Front occupied Taganrog, on September 8, Stalino (now Donetsk), on September 10 - Mariupol; the result of the operation was the liberation of Donbass.

On August 3, the troops of the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts broke through the defenses of Army Group South in several places and captured Belgorod on August 5. On August 23 Kharkov was taken.

On September 25, by means of flank attacks from the south and north, the troops of the Western Front captured Smolensk and by the beginning of October entered the territory of Belarus.

On August 26, the Central, Voronezh and Steppe Fronts launched the Chernigov-Poltava operation. The troops of the Central Front broke through the enemy defenses south of Sevsk and occupied the city on August 27; On September 13, they reached the Dnieper at the Loev–Kiev section. Parts of the Voronezh Front reached the Dnieper in the Kiev-Cherkassy sector. The formations of the Steppe Front approached the Dnieper in the Cherkasy-Verkhnedneprovsk section. As a result, the Germans lost almost all of Left-Bank Ukraine. At the end of September, Soviet troops crossed the Dnieper in several places and captured 23 bridgeheads on its right bank.

On September 1, the troops of the Bryansk Front overcame the Wehrmacht's defense line "Hagen" and occupied Bryansk, by October 3, the Red Army reached the line of the Sozh River in Eastern Belarus.

On September 9, the North Caucasian Front, in cooperation with the Black Sea Fleet and the Azov military flotilla, launched an offensive on the Taman Peninsula. Having broken through the Blue Line, Soviet troops took Novorossiysk on September 16, and by October 9 they completely cleared the peninsula of the Germans.

On October 10, the Southwestern Front launched an operation to eliminate the Zaporozhye bridgehead and on October 14 captured Zaporozhye.

On October 11, the Voronezh (since October 20 - 1st Ukrainian) Front began the Kiev operation. After two unsuccessful attempts to take the capital of Ukraine with an attack from the south (from the Bukrinsky bridgehead), it was decided to launch the main attack from the north (from the Lyutezhsky bridgehead). On November 1, in order to divert the attention of the enemy, the 27th and 40th armies moved to Kiev from the Bukrinsky bridgehead, and on November 3rd, the shock group of the 1st Ukrainian Front suddenly attacked him from the Lyutezhsky bridgehead and broke through the German defenses. On November 6, Kiev was liberated.

On November 13, the Germans, having pulled up their reserves, launched a counteroffensive against the 1st Ukrainian Front in the Zhytomyr direction in order to recapture Kiev and restore the defense along the Dnieper. But the Red Army held the vast strategic Kiev bridgehead on the right bank of the Dnieper.

During the period of hostilities from June 1 to December 31, the Wehrmacht suffered huge losses (1 million 413 thousand people), which it was no longer able to fully compensate for. A significant part of the territory of the USSR occupied in 1941–1942 was liberated. The plans of the German command to gain a foothold on the Dnieper lines failed. Conditions were created for the expulsion of the Germans from the Right-Bank Ukraine.

Third period of the war (December 24, 1943 - May 11, 1945): defeat of Germany

After a series of failures throughout 1943, the German command abandoned attempts to seize the strategic initiative and switched to a tough defense. The main task of the Wehrmacht in the north was to prevent the breakthrough of the Red Army into the Baltic states and East Prussia, in the center to the border with Poland, and in the south to the Dniester and the Carpathians. The Soviet military leadership set the goal of the winter-spring campaign to defeat the German troops on the extreme flanks - on Right-Bank Ukraine and in Leningrad.

Liberation of Right-Bank Ukraine and Crimea

On December 24, 1943, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front launched an offensive in the western and southwestern directions (Zhytomyr-Berdichev operation). Only at the cost of great effort and significant losses did the Germans manage to stop the Soviet troops on the Sarny-Polonnaya-Kazatin-Zhashkov line. On January 5–6, units of the 2nd Ukrainian Front struck in the Kirovograd direction and captured Kirovograd on January 8, but on January 10 they were forced to stop the offensive. The Germans did not allow the connection of the troops of both fronts and were able to keep the Korsun-Shevchenkovsky ledge, which posed a threat to Kiev from the south.

On January 24, the 1st and 2nd Ukrainian fronts launched a joint operation to defeat the enemy's Korsun-Shevchensk grouping. On January 28, the 6th and 5th Guards Tank Armies joined at Zvenigorodka and closed the encirclement. Kanev was taken on January 30, Korsun-Shevchenkovsky on February 14. On February 17, the liquidation of the "cauldron" was completed; more than 18 thousand Wehrmacht soldiers were taken prisoner.

On January 27, units of the 1st Ukrainian Front struck from the Sarn region in the Lutsk-Rivne direction. On January 30, the offensive of the troops of the 3rd and 4th Ukrainian fronts began on the Nikopol bridgehead. Having overcome the fierce resistance of the enemy, on February 8 they captured Nikopol, on February 22 - Krivoy Rog, and by February 29 they reached the river. Ingulets.

As a result of the winter campaign of 1943/1944, the Germans were finally driven back from the Dnieper. In an effort to make a strategic breakthrough to the borders of Romania and prevent the Wehrmacht from gaining a foothold on the Southern Bug, Dniester and Prut rivers, the Headquarters developed a plan to encircle and defeat Army Group South in Right-Bank Ukraine through a coordinated strike of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts .

The final chord of the spring operation in the south was the expulsion of the Germans from the Crimea. On May 7–9, the troops of the 4th Ukrainian Front, with the support of the Black Sea Fleet, stormed Sevastopol, and by May 12 they defeated the remnants of the 17th Army that had fled to Chersonese.

Leningrad-Novgorod operation of the Red Army (January 14 - March 1, 1944)

On January 14, the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts launched an offensive south of Leningrad and near Novgorod. Having inflicted a defeat on the German 18th Army and pushed it back to Luga, they liberated Novgorod on January 20. In early February, units of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts reached the approaches to Narva, Gdov and Luga; On February 4 they took Gdov, on February 12 - Luga. The threat of encirclement forced the 18th Army to hastily retreat to the southwest. On February 17, the 2nd Baltic Front carried out a series of attacks against the 16th German Army on the Lovat River. In early March, the Red Army reached the defensive line "Panther" (Narva - Lake Peipsi - Pskov - Ostrov); was released most of Leningrad and Kalinin regions.

Military operations in the central direction in December 1943 - April 1944

As the tasks of the winter offensive of the 1st Baltic, Western and Belorussian fronts, the Stavka set the troops to reach the Polotsk-Lepel-Mogilev-Ptich line and liberate Eastern Belarus.

In December 1943 - February 1944, the 1st PribF made three attempts to capture Vitebsk, which did not lead to the capture of the city, but exhausted the enemy's forces to the limit. The offensive actions of the Polar Front in the Orsha direction on February 22-25 and March 5-9, 1944 were not successful either.

On the Mozyr direction, the Belorussian Front (BelF) on January 8 dealt a strong blow to the flanks of the 2nd German Army, but thanks to a hasty retreat, it managed to avoid encirclement. The lack of forces prevented the Soviet troops from encircling and destroying the Bobruisk enemy grouping, and on February 26 the offensive was stopped. Formed on February 17 at the junction of the 1st Ukrainian and Belorussian (since February 24, the 1st Belorussian) fronts, the 2nd Belorussian Front began the Polessky operation on March 15 with the aim of capturing Kovel and breaking through to Brest. Soviet troops surrounded Kovel, but on March 23 the Germans launched a counterattack and on April 4 released the Kovel group.

Thus, in the central direction during the winter-spring campaign of 1944, the Red Army was unable to achieve its goals; On April 15, she went on the defensive.

Offensive in Karelia (June 10 - August 9, 1944). Finland's exit from the war

After the loss of most of the occupied territory of the USSR, the main task of the Wehrmacht was to prevent the Red Army from entering Europe and not to lose its allies. That is why the Soviet military-political leadership, having failed in their attempts to reach a peace agreement with Finland in February-April 1944, decided to start the summer campaign of the year with a strike in the north.

On June 10, 1944, LenF troops, with the support of the Baltic Fleet, launched an offensive on the Karelian Isthmus, as a result, control was restored over the White Sea-Baltic Canal and the strategically important Kirov Railway connecting Murmansk with European Russia. By early August, Soviet troops had liberated all of the occupied territory east of Ladoga; in the Kuolisma area, they reached the Finnish border. Having suffered a defeat, Finland on August 25 entered into negotiations with the USSR. On September 4, she broke off relations with Berlin and ceased hostilities, on September 15 she declared war on Germany, and on September 19 she concluded a truce with the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. The length of the Soviet-German front was reduced by a third. This allowed the Red Army to free up significant forces for operations in other directions.

Liberation of Belarus (June 23 - early August 1944)

Successes in Karelia prompted the Headquarters to conduct a large-scale operation to defeat the enemy in the central direction with the forces of three Belorussian and 1st Baltic fronts (Operation Bagration), which became the main event of the summer-autumn campaign of 1944.

The general offensive of the Soviet troops began on June 23–24. The coordinated strike of the 1st PribF and the right wing of the 3rd BF ended on June 26–27 with the liberation of Vitebsk and the encirclement of five German divisions. On June 26, units of the 1st BF took Zhlobin, on June 27–29 they surrounded and destroyed the Bobruisk grouping of the enemy, and on June 29 they liberated Bobruisk. As a result of the rapid offensive of the three Belorussian fronts, an attempt by the German command to organize a line of defense along the Berezina was thwarted; On July 3, the troops of the 1st and 3rd BF broke into Minsk and took the 4th German army in pincers south of Borisov (liquidated by July 11).

The German front began to crumble. Formations of the 1st PribF occupied Polotsk on July 4 and, moving downstream of the Western Dvina, entered the territory of Latvia and Lithuania, reached the coast of the Gulf of Riga, cutting off Army Group North stationed in the Baltic states from the rest of the Wehrmacht forces. Parts of the right wing of the 3rd BF, having taken Lepel on June 28, broke through into the valley of the river in early July. Viliya (Nyaris), reached the border on August 17 East Prussia.

The troops of the left wing of the 3rd BF, having made a swift throw from Minsk, took Lida on July 3, on July 16, together with the 2nd BF - Grodno, and at the end of July approached the northeastern ledge of the Polish border. The 2nd BF, advancing to the southwest, captured Bialystok on July 27 and drove the Germans across the Narew River. Parts of the right wing of the 1st BF, having liberated Baranovichi on July 8, and Pinsk on July 14, at the end of July they reached the Western Bug and reached the central section of the Soviet-Polish border; On July 28 Brest was taken.

As a result of Operation Bagration, Belarus, most of Lithuania and part of Latvia were liberated. The possibility of an offensive in East Prussia and Poland opened up.

Liberation of Western Ukraine and offensive in Eastern Poland (July 13 - August 29, 1944)

Trying to stop the advance of Soviet troops in Belarus, the Wehrmacht command was forced to transfer formations there from other sectors of the Soviet-German front. This facilitated the operations of the Red Army in other areas. On July 13–14, the offensive of the 1st Ukrainian Front began in Western Ukraine. Already on July 17, they crossed the state border of the USSR and entered South-Eastern Poland.

On July 18, the left wing of the 1st BF launched an offensive near Kovel. At the end of July, they approached Prague (the right-bank suburb of Warsaw), which they managed to take only on September 14th. In early August, the resistance of the Germans intensified sharply, and the advance of the Red Army was stopped. Because of this, the Soviet command was unable to provide the necessary assistance to the uprising that broke out on August 1 in the Polish capital under the leadership of the Home Army, and by the beginning of October it was brutally suppressed by the Wehrmacht.

Offensive in the Eastern Carpathians (September 8 - October 28, 1944)

After the occupation of Estonia in the summer of 1941, the Tallinn Metropolitan. Alexander (Paulus) announced the separation of the Estonian parishes from the Russian Orthodox Church (the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church was established on the initiative of Alexander (Paulus) in 1923, in 1941 the bishop repented of the sin of schism). In October 1941, at the insistence of the German General Commissar of Belarus, the Belarusian Church was established. However, Panteleimon (Rozhnovsky), who headed it in the rank of Metropolitan of Minsk and Belarus, retained canonical communion with the Patriarchal Locum Tenens, Met. Sergius (Stragorodsky). After Metropolitan Panteleimon was forcibly retired in June 1942, Archbishop Filofei (Narko), who also refused to arbitrarily proclaim a national autocephalous Church, became his successor.

Given the patriotic position of the Patriarchal Locum Tenens, Met. Sergius (Stragorodsky), the German authorities initially hindered the activities of those priests and parishes who claimed to belong to the Moscow Patriarchate. Over time, the German authorities became more tolerant of the communities of the Moscow Patriarchate. According to the invaders, these communities only verbally declared their loyalty to the Moscow center, but in reality they were ready to assist the German army in the destruction of the atheistic Soviet state.

In the occupied territory, thousands of churches, churches, prayer houses of various Protestant denominations (primarily Lutherans and Pentecostals) have resumed their activities. This process was especially active on the territory of the Baltic States, in the Vitebsk, Gomel, Mogilev regions of Belarus, in the Dnepropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporozhye, Kiev, Voroshilovgrad, Poltava regions of Ukraine, in the Rostov, Smolensk regions of the RSFSR.

The religious factor was taken into account when planning domestic policy in areas of traditional spread of Islam, primarily in the Crimea and the Caucasus. German propaganda declared respect for the values ​​of Islam, presented the occupation as the liberation of peoples from the "Bolshevik godless yoke", guaranteed the creation of conditions for the revival of Islam. The invaders willingly went to the opening of mosques in almost every locality"Muslim regions", provided the Muslim clergy with the opportunity to contact believers through radio and print. Throughout the occupied territory where Muslims lived, the positions of mullahs and senior mullahs were restored, whose rights and privileges were equated with the heads of administrations of cities and settlements.

When forming special units from among the prisoners of war of the Red Army, much attention was paid to confessional affiliation: if representatives of the peoples who traditionally professed Christianity were mainly sent to the "army of General Vlasov", then to such formations as the "Turkestan Legion", "Idel-Ural", they sent representatives of the "Islamic" peoples.

The "liberalism" of the German authorities did not extend to all religions. Many communities were on the verge of destruction, for example, in Dvinsk alone, almost all of the 35 synagogues that had operated before the war were destroyed, up to 14 thousand Jews were shot. Most of the Evangelical Christian Baptist communities that found themselves in the occupied territory were also destroyed or dispersed by the authorities.

Forced to leave the occupied territories under the onslaught of Soviet troops, the Nazi invaders took out liturgical objects, icons, paintings, books, items made of precious metals from prayer buildings.

According to far from complete data of the Extraordinary State Commission for the Establishment and Investigation of Atrocities Nazi German invaders 1670 Orthodox churches, 69 chapels, 237 churches, 532 synagogues, 4 mosques and 254 other prayer buildings were completely destroyed, looted or desecrated in the occupied territory. Among those destroyed or desecrated by the Nazis were priceless monuments of history, culture and architecture, incl. relating to the XI-XVII centuries, in Novgorod, Chernigov, Smolensk, Polotsk, Kiev, Pskov. Many prayer buildings were converted by the invaders into prisons, barracks, stables, and garages.

The position and patriotic activities of the Russian Orthodox Church during the war

On June 22, 1941, the Patriarchal Locum Tenens Met. Sergius (Stragorodsky) compiled a "Message to the Shepherds and Flocks of the Orthodox Church of Christ", in which he revealed the anti-Christian essence of fascism and called on the faithful to defend themselves. In their letters to the Patriarchate, believers reported that voluntary collections of donations for the needs of the front and the defense of the country had begun everywhere.

After the death of Patriarch Sergius, according to his will, Met. Alexy (Simansky), unanimously elected at the last meeting of the Local Council on January 31-February 2, 1945, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. The Council was attended by Patriarchs of Alexandria Christopher II, Antioch Alexander III and Georgian Kallistrat (Tsintsadze), representatives of the Constantinople, Jerusalem, Serbian and Romanian Patriarchs.

In 1945, the so-called Estonian schism was overcome, and Orthodox parishes and the clergy of Estonia were accepted into communion with the Russian Orthodox Church.

Patriotic activities of communities of other faiths and religions

Immediately after the start of the war, the leaders of almost all religious associations of the USSR supported the liberation struggle of the peoples of the country against the Nazi aggressor. Addressing the faithful with patriotic messages, they called for worthy fulfillment of their religious and civic duty to defend the Fatherland, to provide all possible material assistance to the needs of the front and rear. The leaders of most religious associations in the USSR condemned those representatives of the clergy who consciously went over to the side of the enemy and helped to impose a "new order" on the occupied territory.

The head of the Russian Old Believers of the Belokrinitsky hierarchy, Archbishop. Irinarkh (Parfyonov), in his Christmas message of 1942, called on the Old Believers, a considerable number of whom fought on the fronts, to serve valiantly in the Red Army and to resist the enemy in the occupied territory in the ranks of the partisans. In May 1942, the leaders of the Unions of Baptists and Evangelical Christians addressed the believers with a letter of appeal; the appeal spoke of the danger of fascism "for the cause of the Gospel" and called for "brothers and sisters in Christ" to fulfill "their duty to God and to the Motherland", being "the best soldiers at the front and the best workers in the rear." Baptist communities were engaged in tailoring, collecting clothes and other things for the soldiers and families of the dead, helped in the care of the wounded and sick in hospitals, and took care of orphans in orphanages. Funds raised in the Baptist congregations were used to build a Merciful Samaritan ambulance to transport seriously wounded soldiers to the rear. The leader of Renovationism, A. I. Vvedensky, repeatedly made patriotic appeals.

With regard to a number of other religious associations, the policy of the state during the war years remained invariably tough. First of all, this concerned “anti-state, anti-Soviet and savage sects”, which included the Dukhobors.

• http://www.pravenc.ru/text/150063.html

Despite the fact that more than seven decades have passed since the days when the Great Patriotic War ended, the Battle of Rzhev to this day does not cease to attract the attention of both professional researchers and everyone who wants to preserve the memory of past years. Many of the materials related to it have become available to the general public only in recent years, and have made it possible to see the events in greater detail.

Enemy foothold on the outskirts of Moscow

As evidenced by materials on the history of the Great Patriotic War, the offensive of Soviet troops on Western front in the period 1941-1942 led to the formation of the so-called Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge. By this term it is customary to understand the territory occupied by the Germans, which measured 200 km along the front and went almost 160 km deep. Due to its strategically advantageous position, it was considered by the German command as the most convenient springboard for a general offensive against Moscow.

To this end, the Nazis concentrated on the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge 2/3 of all the forces of the "Center" army. In this situation, the Rzhev battle of 1942-1943, which lasted for 13 months with minor interruptions, was that large-scale military operation, thanks to which the enemy's plans were not destined to come true. It was carried out by the forces of the Kalinin and Western fronts.

Important strategic operation

The term adopted today - the Rzhev battle, includes a number of separate offensive operations, the purpose of which was to push the Germans as far as possible from Moscow, and, having cleared the territory of the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge from them, thereby depriving them of a strategic advantage.

Fulfilling the task assigned to them, the Soviet troops already in the first months of the operation liberated Mozhaisk, Kirov, Lyudinovo, Vereya, Medyn and Sukhinichi from the enemy, which allowed them, developing the offensive, to divide the German forces into several separate groups and then destroy.

Tragic mistakes of command

However, such a favorable development of events was prevented by Stalin's unexpected decision to transfer a significant part of the 1st shock army under the command of Kuznetsov and almost the entire 16th army of Rokossovsky to other directions. The remaining units, immensely weakened by such an untimely redeployment of the main forces, failed to complete the operation that had begun, as a result of which the initiative passed to the enemy, and the Rzhev battle bogged down.

Trying to rectify the situation, in the last days of January 1942, Stalin ordered significant reinforcements to be sent near Rzhev, and the 33rd Army of Lieutenant General M.G. was urgently transferred there. Efremov. However, instead of the planned breakthrough of the enemy’s defense, this grouping of troops itself found itself surrounded, as a result of which it was destroyed, and its commander was a hero in the past. civil war, committed suicide.

This failed operation resulted in real tragedy, which brought huge losses to the Soviet army. Only according to official data, there were about 273 thousand killed, missing or captured. Only a little more than eight hundred fighters of the destroyed Efremov's army were able to escape from the enemy ring.

Liberation of Rzhev

However, despite such a tragic failure, the Rzhev battle continued. At the beginning of June 1942, the Headquarters of the Supreme Command set the task of liberating a number of key cities of the Kalinin region from the Germans, and primarily Rzhev. The forces of two fronts were involved in its implementation. As before, it was Western, commanded by G.K. Zhukov, and Kalininsky - I.S. Konev.

The attack on Rzhev began on July 30, and the first blow of the united fronts was so powerful that very soon the troops approached the city at a distance of 6 km. It seemed that the goal was achieved and the Rzhev battle, the significance of which was so great, was close to a victorious end. But meanwhile, overcoming this last line of defense of the enemy took almost a month, and cost several thousand soldiers' lives.

When, finally, at the end of August, the advanced units of the Soviet troops entered the city, the political department of the front decided to invite the official representatives of the American President Roosevelt, who were then in the country, to flash before them the victory that the Battle of Rzhev had brought. However, as it soon became clear, the triumph was premature. A few days later, pulling up reinforcements, the Germans regained their previous positions.

Planning Operation Mars

Having changed tactics, the Soviet command set the task for the forces of the united fronts to overcome the line of defense of the Center group, and thereby create the prerequisites for the elimination of all enemy troops gathered on the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge. The area of ​​the lowest concentration of enemy forces was chosen as the place for delivering a decisive blow. It was located between the rivers Osuga and Gzhat. Attacks on it have not yet been undertaken. The operation was codenamed Mars.

The planned offensive also pursued another important goal - with its help, the high command intended to divert significant German forces from Stalingrad, where the battle was entering its decisive phase. To this end, in the form of misinformation, the Germans were planted with information in which the number of Soviet troops sent to break through the defense of the Center group was significantly overestimated.

An offensive that turned into a new tragedy

At this stage, the Rzhev battle, in which losses already exceeded 300 thousand people, began, as before, with temporary successes. The forces of the 39th Army drove the enemy out of the village of Molodoy Tud with a lightning strike, and, continuing the offensive, cleared the Tula region of enemies. At the same time, the 1st Mechanized Corps dealt a significant blow to the enemy in the area of ​​the city of Bely. But very soon this attempt to change the course of the battle turned into incalculable losses and blood for our soldiers.

Having stopped the offensive of the Soviet troops with a powerful and unexpected counterattack, the Nazis destroyed the 20th Army and surrounded two corps - the 6th Tank and 2nd Guards Cavalry. Their fate was equally tragic. G.K. Zhukov tried to save the situation. He insisted on continuing the offensive, but, despite all his efforts, new attempts to break through the enemy's defenses also bogged down.

By December, the results of the Battle of Rzhev were disastrous. Only, according to official data, the failed operation "Mars" cost the lives of 100 thousand Soviet troops. Many researchers believe that these data are also very incomplete. The year 1942, which was coming to an end, did not bring the long-awaited victory near Rzhev.

"Buffalo" is losing ground

Analyzing the current situation, the German command understood that the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge formed during the previous battles was their most vulnerable place, and sooner or later, the troops on its territory would be surrounded. In this regard, Colonel-General Kurt Zeitzler, who commanded this grouping of troops, turned to Hitler with a request to be allowed to withdraw the units entrusted to him to the new line of defense that passed through the city of Dorogobuzh.

After receiving the corresponding order from Berlin, the Germans began to carry it out. This large-scale operation to withdraw troops received the code name "Wuffel", which means "Buffalo" in translation. The enemy managed to carry it out practically without losses, which, according to military historians, was the result of well-thought-out and well-planned actions.

Liberation of the city of Rzhev

By the end of March 1943, the Germans left the entire Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge, the fighting for which continued throughout last year. After their departure, they left the cities completely burned and destroyed: Vyazma, Gzhatsk, Olenino and Bely.

Pursuing the retreating enemy, the Soviet troops moved forward, and on March 3, 1943, the 30th Army, completely re-equipped after the losses suffered earlier, entered Rzhev. The city turned out to be practically empty, only the rearguard of the 9th Wehrmacht Army, which had retreated by that time, remained in position, creating the illusion of the presence of the Germans.

Leaving behind Rzhev, the Soviet troops continued to develop the offensive, and were forced to stop only when they reached the city of Dorogobuzh, where the enemy had created a powerful line of defense. It became obvious that at this stage further advancement was impossible, and the fighting took on a positional character. It was only in the summer of 1943 after the successful completion of the operation near Kursk that the enemy was driven out of the line he had occupied.

The price of victory in the Battle of Rzhev

According to historians, the events that unfolded in the period 1942-1943 on the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge are one of the bloodiest episodes of the Great Patriotic War. Not without reason among the people they received the name "Rzhev meat grinder" and "Prorva".

The truth about the Battle of Rzhev, and about the losses that were the result of rash and hasty decisions of the command and Stalin personally, was hidden for many years. And she was truly intimidating. Dead Losses Soviet troops, which include the dead, missing, captured and died of wounds in hospitals, amounted to the most modest estimates of 605 thousand people. And this bloody statistics only reflects the picture of the battles of 1942-1943 on the Rzhev-Vyazemsky ledge.

Dead city

The city of Rzhev, which had been in the center of hostilities for 13 months, by the time the Germans finally left it, was completely destroyed by both German shells and Soviet artillery and air strikes inflicted during attempts to liberate it. Of the 5442 residential buildings, only 298 remained relatively intact.

There were also huge casualties among the civilian population. It was established that out of 20 thousand inhabitants of the city who found themselves in occupation, by March 1943, only 150 people remained alive. All these data allow us to imagine how expensive the Battle of Rzhev was won, the events of which will never be erased from the memory of the people.

The result of the battle

However, one should not lose sight of the great importance that the Battle of Rzhev had during the war. Thanks to the stubborn offensive actions of the Soviet troops, the Germans were forced to retreat, which made it possible to move the front line from Moscow by more than 160 km. In addition, the battle near Rzhev pulled over significant enemy forces and contributed to the successful completion Battle of Stalingrad. It is also impossible not to take into account the moral factor, since the news of the liberation of Rzhev had a beneficial effect on the fighting spirit of the entire Soviet army.

The winter campaign of 1942/43, which lasted four and a half months, was of great military and political significance. In this campaign, the Red Army, having launched a counteroffensive near Stalingrad, seized the strategic initiative, launched an offensive on a huge front, and advanced 600-700 km westward. The mass expulsion of the enemy from Soviet soil began. The Stalingrad, Voronezh, Rostov regions, part of the Voroshilovgrad (Lugansk), Smolensk and Oryol regions, almost the entire North Caucasus, Stavropol and Krasnodar Territory, began the liberation of the north-eastern regions of Ukraine. During this campaign, large strategic enemy groupings on the southern flank of the Soviet-German front (Army Groups "B" and "A") were defeated, and a serious defeat was inflicted on the Army Groups "Don", "North", "Center". All this significantly worsened the position of the Nazi troops. The defeat of the Italian, Hungarian and two Romanian armies on the Soviet-German front significantly weakened the forces of the fascist coalition. Authority Nazi Germany among its allies was significantly undermined. The main type of military operations in the campaign was a strategic offensive, which was carried out by conducting operations of groups of fronts interconnected in purpose, place and time. Offensive operations launched near Stalingrad on a front of 400 km began to bear a consistent character. By the end of March 1943, the strategic offensive front had reached 2,000 km. Where can I return the catalyst chelyabinsk.sdaykat.ru.

In total, six operations of strategic importance were carried out in the campaign. They deployed in a band 200-250 to 350-650 km wide and developed 150-400 km deep. The duration of operations ranged from 20 to 76 days, and the average rate of advance was within 20-25 km per day. Their features were as follows:

1. To solve strategic tasks, the Red Army used the most decisive forms of operations - the encirclement of large enemy groupings.

2. It was important that for the first time in campaign operations they began to use artillery offensive and a barrage of fire, which ensured more reliable suppression of the enemy.

3. A qualitatively new phenomenon was the massive use in offensive operations armored and mechanized formations and formations, which allowed the fronts and armies to quickly complete the breakthrough of enemy defenses and develop success at a high rate in operational depth.

4. In the first half of 1943, the role in achieving victories increased air force who began to interact more closely with ground forces. In operations, they began to plan an air offensive.

During the winter campaign of 1942/43, the Wehrmacht and Germany's allies lost 1,700,000 men, more than 3,500 tanks, 24,000 guns and 4,300 aircraft.

After the end of the winter campaign of 1942/43, a three-month strategic pause began, which lasted until the end of June 1943. The parties stopped active hostilities and began comprehensive preparations for summer battles.

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