The offensive of all the Baltic fronts began simultaneously on the morning of September 14, 1944. The 1st Baltic Front achieved the greatest results that day. The powerful artillery preparation and air strikes of the 3rd Air Army in the Bauska area proved to be especially effective. The troops of the 43rd Army of General A.P. Beloborodov and the 4th Shock Army of General P.F. Malyshev, who went on the offensive, moved forward, almost without meeting organized resistance. Coordinated and effective actions allowed the strike groupings to overcome the enemy's main defensive zone in an hour and a half, and the advanced units to force the Lielupe and Memele rivers. By the end of the day, the troops of the 1st Baltic Front broke through the enemy defenses in a sector of 25 km and advanced up to 14 km in some directions.
Performing combat missions, Soviet soldiers showed mass heroism and high skill. When crossing the Memele River in the Bauska area, the 4th company of the 423rd rifle regiment of the 166th rifle division of the 4th shock army especially distinguished itself. Under the command of Senior Lieutenant A.E. Shishinashvili, the fighters on the move forced a not wide, but deep water barrier and, having gone behind enemy lines, broke into the village of Bruneri, and then captured the village of Streli. During the ensuing battle, they repulsed three counterattacks of the Nazis and held the liberated settlements until the main forces of the regiment approached. At the same time, they destroyed five guns and many Nazi soldiers and officers. The commander of the company died heroically in the battle. For military prowess and courage, the communist senior lieutenant A. E. Shishinashvili was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The ashes of the hero rest in the fraternal cemetery in the ancient Latvian city of Bauska (322). An obelisk was erected on his grave.
The onslaught of the Soviet troops grew more and more. The chief of staff of the 16th German Army reported to the headquarters of Army Group North about the offensive of the 1st Baltic Front in the Bauska area: “Enemy tanks are operating everywhere. The artillery fires very intensely, reaching the artillery positions. The enemy threw into battle an especially large number of attack aircraft, which strike up to the command posts of divisions” (323) .
Events developed differently north of the Daugava, where the troops of the 2nd and 3rd Baltic Fronts were operating. Before the start of artillery preparation, the fascist German command succeeded in withdrawing the bulk of its troops from the front line to the second position of the main defensive zone. There was also a lack of shells and tanks for direct infantry support. The 3rd Baltic Front also had to force a major water line - the Emaiygi River. Therefore, on the first day of the operation, the troops of the fronts, despite the active assistance of the 14th Air Army (commander General I.P. Zhuravlev) and the 15th Air Army (commander General N.F. Naumenko), were able to overcome only the first position of the main line of defense enemy and move forward up to 1 - 3 km.
The troops of the 43rd Army of the 1st Baltic Front, building on the success achieved on September 14, broke through the rear defensive line on the second day of the operation. The advance detachment of the 3rd Guards Mechanized Corps, which rushed into the breakthrough, advanced up to 50 km by the end of September 16 and broke through to the Daugava, and the rifle formations of the 43rd Army reached the approaches to Baldone. At the same time, the 4th shock army, breaking into the enemy defenses, reached the Ietsava River. The total breakthrough front here was expanded to 80 km. The exit of Soviet troops to the Daugava and Baldone created a real opportunity for a subsequent strike on Riga from the south by the forces of the right wing and the center of the 1st Baltic Front.
The 3rd Air Army, commanded by General N. F. Papivin, provided great assistance to the ground forces. Only on the first day of the offensive, she made 1530 combat sorties. In 32 air battles, 67 German aircraft (324) were shot down.
Meanwhile, the situation on the 2nd and 3rd Baltic fronts did not improve significantly even by the end of the third day of the operation. Despite the deployment of most of the rifle divisions that made up the second echelons of the rifle corps, the troops could not yet overcome the enemy's main line of defense, although he suffered significant losses in heavy defensive battles. The commander of Army Group North, General Scherner, reported to his senior leadership that the last moment had come for the German troops in the Baltic states: all the reserves had already been put into battle, the non-attacked defense sectors were exposed to the limit, in the directions of the main attacks of the Soviet troops, losses amounted to one third up to half of the entire strength of the German divisions, the combat effectiveness of the troops falls catastrophically, that the forces of the Army Group North are already exhausted and it is not able to conduct lengthy defensive battles. In his opinion, there was only one option - to retreat. The general begged Hitler and Guderian to agree to the withdrawal of troops in the Baltic along the entire front (325). On September 16, Hitler's headquarters allowed the withdrawal of the Narva task force. The troops of the 18th Army were ordered to leave the “Valga” line and, together with the formations of the “Narva” group that had joined it, take up defensive positions at the “Cesis” line. However, the onslaught of the Soviet troops forced the enemy to retreat even further - to the defensive line "Sigulda".
The fascist German command simultaneously took urgent measures to localize the dangerous breakthrough of the 1st Baltic Front in the Bauska area. On September 16, the 3rd Panzer Army of Army Group Center (326), with the help of 12 motorized battalions, supported by 380 tanks and assault guns, began to deliver a counterattack from the area southwest of Dobele to the flank and rear of the troops of the 5th Guards Tank and 51 th armies. A counterattack against the 43rd Army in the Baldone area was being prepared by the 16th Army of Army Group North with the forces of 6 divisions, including 2 tank and 1 motorized. However, these measures did not help. The position of the Nazi troops continued to deteriorate. Under the blows of the Soviet armies, they left their borders between the Gulf of Finland and the Daugava and retreated to a considerable depth.
On the morning of September 17, on the fourth day of the operation, the troops of the Leningrad Front went on the offensive in the Tartu region. Here, too, the enemy withdrew the bulk of manpower and artillery from the forward edge for the period of artillery preparation. But this time he did not achieve a significant win. Powerful artillery preparation disorganized its defenses. The infantry and tanks of the 2nd Shock Army under the command of General I. I. Fedyuninsky quickly broke through the main line of enemy defenses, successfully forcing the deep and wide Emajygi River. By the end of the day they had advanced to a depth of 5 to 18 km (327). The greatest success was achieved by the 8th Estonian Rifle Corps of General L.A. Parn, advancing with the active support of the 25th separate brigade of river ships along the western shore of Lake Peipsi.
The troops of the 2nd shock army were effectively assisted by the 13th air army under the command of General S. D. Rybalchenko and the air force of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, commanded by General M. I. Samokhin. On the first day of the offensive, the pilots made more than 600 sorties, inflicting significant damage on the enemy (328).
The offensive of the troops of the Leningrad Front forced the German fascist command to speed up the withdrawal of the operational group "Narva". On September 18, the 2nd shock army began pursuing the retreating enemy. On the night of September 19, the 8th Army, commanded by General F.N. Starikov, began to pursue the enemy. Its troops advanced up to 90 km in two days and reached the Rakvere region. Therefore, the further advance of the 2nd shock army in the northern direction became inexpedient, and the front commander turned its main forces to the west, and transferred the mobile group of the army and the 8th Estonian rifle corps to the 8th army, which developed a strike on Tallinn.
Pursuing the retreating enemy, the troops of the Leningrad Front quickly advanced in the western and southwestern directions. On September 22, the 8th Army liberated the capital of the Estonian SSR, Tallinn. In two days of fighting, the troops of the 2nd shock army advanced from 40 to 60 km and on September 23 drove the enemy out of the cities of Viljandi and Pärnu. On September 26, the army reached the Baltic Sea and entered the territory of the Latvian SSR (329).
On enemy communications in the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea, aviation of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet intensified its operations in order to prevent the evacuation of Nazi troops from Tallinn. The 1st brigade of torpedo boats, assisting the 8th Army, landed troops in the ports of Kunda, Loksa and Tallinn. Northwest of Tallinn, the sailors captured the island of Naissar.
Events were also rapidly unfolding on the 3rd Baltic Front. Using the success of the Leningrad Front, the 67th Army, commanded by General V. Z. Romanovsky, and the 1st Shock Army of General N. D. Zakhvataev on September 21 completed the breakthrough of the enemy defense to the entire tactical depth. On September 23, formations of the 10th Panzer Corps liberated Valmiera, and the 61st Army under the command of General P. A. Belov, operating on the left wing of the front, entered the Smiltene region. Its troops, in cooperation with the formations of the 54th Army of General S. V. Roginsky, by the morning of September 26, liberated the city of Cesis.
The situation on the 2nd Baltic Front remained difficult. His troops in the course of intense fighting were able to move forward only 18 km. In a report to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief on the course of the operation in the Baltic States, Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky explained this not only by the difficult terrain conditions and the stubborn resistance of the Nazis, but also by the fact that the front poorly maneuvered infantry and artillery, put up with the attachment of troops to roads, excessively reserved infantry formations (330) .
The troops of the 1st Baltic Front at that time were busy repulsing strong enemy counterattacks. On September 22, the 43rd Army managed to drive the Nazis out of Baldone and push them back a considerable distance to the north. Only in the zone of the 6th Guards Army, which covered the left flank of the front's shock grouping, aimed at Riga from the south, did the enemy manage to penetrate the defenses of the Soviet troops up to 6 km (331).
Thus, during the operation, Army Group North suffered a heavy defeat. The troops of the Leningrad, 3rd and 2nd Baltic fronts reached the defensive line "Sigulda" north of the Daugava and ended up 60 km from Riga. The 43rd Army of the 1st Baltic Front approached the city from the southeast at a distance of about 20 km. The troops of the Leningrad and 3rd Baltic fronts liberated the entire mainland of Estonia.
The losses suffered by the enemy in nine days of fighting forced him to completely disband 37 battalions in the divisions of the 16th and 18th armies, in most of the battalions only 150 people remained, and in companies of 20 - 25 (332). At the same time, as a result of the withdrawal of the main forces of the group, the front was reduced by 300 km. This allowed her command to significantly condense the battle formations of troops in the Riga direction. At the turn of "Sigulda" with a length of 105 km between the Gulf of Riga and the northern coast of the Daugava, 17 divisions were defending, and approximately on the same front south of the Daugava to Auce - 14 divisions, including 3 tank divisions. With these forces, which occupied pre-prepared defensive lines, the Nazi command sought to delay the further advance of the Soviet troops, and in case of failure, to withdraw Army Group North to East Prussia.
The Soviet command became more and more convinced that the continuation of the offensive in the same directions could lead to heavy losses, would not ensure the cutting off of the Nazi troops from East Prussia and their final destruction. And the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command found the right way out of the situation. On September 24, she decided to move the main attack from the area north of the Daugava to the Memel direction in order to cut off Army Group North from East Prussia with a powerful offensive and put an end to it. In this regard, the commander of the 2nd Baltic Front received an order, without stopping the advance north of the Daugava, by October 3 to transfer the 3rd shock army of General M.N. Gerasimov and the 22nd army, commanded by General G.P. Korotkov, to the southern bank of the river and change here the 4th shock and 51st armies of the 1st Baltic Front. The troops of the 2nd Baltic Front, in cooperation with the 3rd Baltic Front, were to defeat the opposing enemy forces, capture Riga and clear the Baltic Sea coast from Riga to Libava (Liepai) from the enemy. The 1st Baltic Front was to conduct a new offensive operation in order to break through the Nazi defenses to the west and southwest of the city of Siauliai and reach the Baltic Sea coast in the Palanga, Memel (Klaipeda) sector, the mouth of the Neman River, thereby cutting off the Baltic grouping enemy's withdrawal route to East Prussia. The beginning of the operation was appointed by the Headquarters for October 1 - 2 (333). The 39th Army of the 3rd Belorussian Front was also involved in it.
The troops of the Leningrad Front were supposed to interact with Red Banner Baltic Fleet to clear the islands of the Moonsund Archipelago from the Nazis and complete the liberation of Soviet Estonia. On October 3, the 3rd Belorussian Front received an order from the Headquarters to prepare and conduct an offensive operation in the Gumbinnen direction, in cooperation with the 1st Baltic Front, to defeat the enemy grouping and capture the area of Königsberg (Kaliningrad) (334) . This blow was supposed to be not only a significant help to the 1st Baltic Front, but also the beginning of the struggle for East Prussia.
The Stavka entrusted the leadership of the operation of the 1st Baltic and 3rd Belorussian fronts to Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky, and the operation of the 2nd and 3rd Baltic fronts - to Marshal L.A. Govorov, without removing from him the duties of commander of the Leningrad Front .
These decisions of the Headquarters marked the beginning of a new stage in the strategic offensive operation of the Soviet troops in the Baltic.
Details
Page 6 of 13
Defense breakthrough on the Molochnaya River
In parts of the division, preparations were in full swing for redeployment, for a long march to a new direction.
The medical battalion was unloaded: convalescents were discharged to units, the wounded requiring long-term treatment were sent to an army hospital.
Soldiers, sergeants and officers, who are being treated in the medical battalion, proved to the doctors in every possible way that they feel very well and it is time for them to return to their units. Everyone wanted to keep up with the division and return to their military teams.
A dense ring surrounded the wounded head of the political department of the division, Lieutenant Colonel B. Martirosov, who arrived at the medical battalion to visit the wounded. It was difficult for him to convince them that the division would have to carry out combat missions in the coming days and the medical battalion could not take with it the wounded requiring long-term treatment, that the division would move towards the front and the command could not take responsibility for their lives, and that you must agree to move to an army hospital for treatment.
It was difficult to part with them, there were still long roads of war ahead. Some of them will eventually return to the division, while others will not be able to. Parted with friends, brothers in arms. The glory of the division was born in the battle for the Caucasus, its traditions were formed and no one wanted to part with it.
The 109th Guards Rifle Division received the task of immersing itself in the railway echelons and, as part of the 10th Guards Rifle Corps, to march by rail across the Don, to the territory of the Rostov Region. The echelons moved across the spacious fields of the Krasnodar Territory. The liberated land returned to life. The fields were harvested, the railway was restored and worked normally.
Among the personnel of the division, a fighting enthusiasm was felt. People were pleased with the redeployment of the division, anticipating new big battles to liberate their native land. The mirror-like surface of the Quiet Don appeared in the night distance. The soldiers did not sleep. The warm September night made me think. Here it is, the legendary Don! So many historical events are associated with it, its banks were abundantly watered with blood.
Here, on these shores, in the hot summer of 1942, our army in the battles against the Nazi invaders experienced a new and final tragedy. From here the enemy broke through to the Volga, broke through far to the foothills of the Caucasus. How much people's energy and blood was required to drive the enemy back beyond the Don!
On September 10, units of the division as part of the 10th Rifle Corps unloaded from the echelons and concentrated in the Novoshakhtinsk area. The division is part of the 44th Army (commanded by Lieutenant General V. A. Khomenko) of the Southern Front.
Here the division was understaffed with weapons, received a large replenishment of personnel in the amount of 2631 people (of which 81% are Russians, 7% are Ukrainians and 12% are of other nationalities).
Among the replenishment there were many Siberians and Urals. Many of them - experienced soldiers - took part in the battles on the Volga, on the Don, fought as part of the Siberian divisions, and now, after being wounded, they returned to duty again. The commanders of units and divisions were frankly glad of such replenishment. The fame of Siberians, steadfast and hardy warriors, spread along the entire front, throughout the country. They also knew about the heroism of the Siberians in the division, there were many of them in units and subunits. Among them were Guards Senior Sergeant Tsarkov, Guards Sergeant Belykh, Guards Captain Vetlugin, Guards Lieutenant Akhlyustin, Guards Private Krinitsyn, Guards Private Turnichev and many other bravely fought guardsmen.
Among the replenishment were the workers of the liberated Donbass and Taganrog. From the workers called up from Krasnodon, the personnel of the division first learned about the heroic activities of the underground youth organization "Young Guard".
The 109th Guards Division, fully equipped and put on alert, received a combat mission: to make a 400-kilometer march from Novoshakhtinsk to the area northeast of Melitopol to the Molochnaya River.
For 13 days, the division makes forced marches in the Rostov, Voroshilovgrad and Stalin regions of Ukraine.
Donetsk land was war-torn, pitted with trenches and trenches, plowed up by tanks. Burnt and dust wafted from the steppe. Abandoned military equipment and equipment of the retreating enemy were scattered along the roadsides: boxes with shells, gas masks, wagons, dead horses, cars of various brands, looted by the Germans throughout Europe and overturned from the road to the roadside by the advancing units of our army. Here passed the victorious troops of the Southern Front, who won the great battle on the Volga and liberated the Donbass. The division made a march through the destroyed industrial cities of Donbass. The German fascist invaders, retreating, took out all the valuables, and what could not be taken out was destroyed. It was a cemetery of cities and factories, a camp for the destruction of human labor. But people were already working on these factory ruins, returning factories and mines to life. Soldiers of the 312th Rifle Regiment at one of the halts saw two gray-haired miners crying near the destroyed mine. For them, the mine was never a dead, inanimate object. She was close to them, she was their life. Their labor, the labor of their fathers and grandfathers, was invested in it.
Experienced soldiers on the roads of war have already seen a lot of human grief, they have seen a lot of tears, both children's and women's. Here, in the Donbass, the soldiers saw for the first time old workers crying.
Those terrible tears!
The division parted with the Donbass as with a seriously wounded friend. The guardsmen looked at the lifeless factory chimneys, at the skeletons of the destroyed workshops, and went further along broken glass and brick, further west to avenge the Donbass. They took with them into the new battle a heavy feeling of people's grief, a new charge of rage.
During the march to the Molochnaya River, the division received replenishment of girls in the amount of 200 people. All of them in the reserve training regiment underwent military training in various specialties.
Among them were nurses, medical instructors, telephone operators, cooks and seamstresses. This was a great help to the division in solving combat and economic tasks. Many of these large female replacements marched with the division along military roads until the end of the war with Nazi Germany and imperialist Japan.
In difficult front-line conditions, the girls performed many glorious military feats, with their work they helped to carry out difficult combat missions. Together with everyone else, they endured the hardships of military life and endangered their lives, shed their blood and died for their homeland. All of them are worthy of kind words for their experiences at the front, for their self-sacrifice, for their kind souls. Everyone in the division knew the therapist Krasnobrodskaya Anna Solomonovna well. The attentive and tactful woman was loved by everyone who only knew her, and the people who met her remembered for a long time. She put all her energy, all the warmth of her soul into the struggle for the health and life of the soldiers.
Many people knew the sanitary instructor of the company of the 309th rifle regiment of the guard, foreman Irina Zhukovskaya. She carried many wounded from the battlefield, saved the lives of many soldiers.
A disciplined and diligent telephone operator, Maria Popova, was always where the rifle battalion was: she knew the price of communication in battle. Masha's photo has always been on the honor roll among courageous female warriors.
The caring female hand in the life of the division's soldiers was visible everywhere: in caring for the wounded, and in cooking, and in sleepless duty at the switchboards, and in darned, timely washed uniforms. Fellow soldiers were grateful for their work, their courageous patience.
At the same time, disaster struck in the division: an outbreak of malaria occurred among the personnel.
The disease was received in the Kuban in the area of the village of Angelinskaya, where the division was located for several days in the thickets of reeds, and was preparing for loading.
A desperate situation arose: the division went on to carry out a combat mission, and people with a temperature of up to 40 ° were out of action by the hundreds. On the first day, 55 people were diagnosed with the disease, on the second day another 150 people could not move on the march, and on the third day up to 300 people were out of order. It was necessary to take urgent measures.
The fight against malaria in the division was aggravated by the fact that there was neither time nor opportunity for inpatient treatment of such a mass of people: the division received a short time to complete the march, and upon reaching the Molochnaya River, it had to immediately join the battle. There was no question of slowing down the pace of the march.
The head of the medical service of the division of the guard, major of the medical service Danilov, and the commander of the medical battalion, captain of the medical service Bogatyrev, created 6 medical posts at a distance of 30 kilometers from one another on the way of the division.
Those with malaria stayed at these points, took antimalarial injections, then, overcoming these short distances, took a short break, took injections again and moved to the next point in order to receive treatment at the new point and move on.
Meanwhile, the division moved forward without stopping.
So, thanks to the decisive measures taken by the medical workers of the division to combat malaria in difficult field conditions, in conditions of a non-stop march, the division fulfilled its task: it arrived in the designated area on time and retained its combat capability.
To meet the formation and units of the 10th Guards Rifle Corps, making a march, arrived the chief of staff of the Southern Front, Lieutenant General Biryuzov S.S. and Commander of the 44th Army, Lieutenant General Khomenko V.A.
By this time, the troops of the Southern Front had approached the enemy's powerful defensive line along the Molochnaya River and were now preparing for new offensive battles.
Formations and parts of the corps were concentrated in the area of the village of Kopon, 50 kilometers from the front line. In this area, the leadership of the corps, divisions, regiments was assembled.
Lieutenant General Biryuzov S.S. made a report on the tasks performed by the troops of the front, gave a detailed description of the enemy troops defending on the Molochnaya River, spoke about the upcoming tasks of formations and units of the 10th Corps.
The 44th Army had the task of breaking through the enemy's defenses on the Molochnaya River near Melitopol, crossing the river and rapidly pursuing the enemy beyond the Dnieper. The battles for Molochnaya and its forcing were supposed to precede the big battle for the Dnieper. The German command had high hopes for the Dnieper. The German military press defined the Dnieper as the "border between Germany and Russia" and urged to keep this "border" at all costs, called this water barrier the "Dnieper rampart", "the line of defense of their own home."
The German command understood that if the Soviet troops were behind the Dnieper, behind this powerful water barrier, then nothing would hold them back on the plains of the right-bank Ukraine. Trying to delay the advance of our troops to the Dnieper and towards the Crimea, the German command transferred a significant part of the forces of the 11th Field Army to the Molochnaya River from the Crimea.
At a meeting with the chief of staff of the Southern Front, it was emphasized that the enemy would resist strongly on Molochnaya, even stronger on the Dnieper. Therefore, the task was set: to exterminate the enemy more in the battles on Molochnaya, and breaking through the defenses, quickly drive him away, to prevent him from being able to transport his equipment and rear forces across the Dnieper and Sivash through the autumn thaw.
The division began a thorough preparation for the upcoming offensive. The units were replenished with weapons and ammunition, a lot of work was done to mobilize personnel for the successful completion of the tasks facing the division.
On the night of September 24, the division took up its starting position for an offensive at the Gendelberg-Voroshilovsk line. The defensive line of the enemy was heavily fortified in terms of engineering: three defensive lines with several trenches each, connected by communications, anti-tank ditches, minefields and barbed wire. Settlements were turned into strong strongholds.
On September 26, 1943, the division, as part of the 10th Guards Rifle Corps, went on the offensive in the main direction of the army. Waging fierce battles, repelling counterattacks by enemy tanks and infantry, in three days the division broke through the defensive line and captured strong centers of resistance: Gendelberg, Andreburg, Novomuntal.
The unceasing rumble stood in the air and on the ground for many days. Here was the main multi-lane, heavily equipped with firepower, enemy defense. In these battles, hundreds of soldiers of the division showed courage and heroism in defeating the insidious enemy, and increased the glory of the guards of their native unit. The glory of the heroic deeds accomplished by three soldiers of the 309th Guards Rifle Regiment thundered along the entire front.
The battle, in which the loud glory of the guard Captain Nesterenko I.M., was born, lasted three days. It so happened that thirty guardsmen, led by the deputy commander of the battalion of the 309th Guards Rifle Regiment of the Guard, Captain Nesterenko Ivan Maksimovich, ended up at a line far removed from our main forces in the area of the village of Zeleny Gai (Tokmak district of the Zaporozhye region). Letting the enemy through here means creating a threat to your flanks.
The trench was on a hillock. The position is very advantageous. Drunken German submachine gunners, trying to recapture the advantageous line they had lost, marched in a disorderly crowd at full height to the line of the guards.
There were still enough ammo. Two machine guns from the flanks opened fire, shooting the Nazis point-blank. With rapture, the machine gunner Levchenko fired burst after burst. About 150 meters away, the Germans lay down, and then, when the guards hit even harder, the Nazis randomly began to crawl away, to run back. This was repeated several times.
The second day, the guards repel the attacks of the Germans. September 26 came. Before the last enemy attack of the messenger guards, Private Kiryanov brought a box of cartridges, but they did not last long. Guards observer Sergeant Garnik Arevshetyan warned that many tanks were approaching. The tanks appeared to the right and went first in a column to the line of the guards. Submachine gunners ran between them. The guardsmen counted the cartridges. Captain Nesterenko walked along the trench trench, warned:
Do not shoot! Wait until they come closer. Every bullet is on target!
A mortar was installed in the trench compartment. Lieutenant Adyrkhanov stood at the ready of the guards near him and waited for the captain's order. In the previous attacks of the Germans, he did not fire a single shot. There were very few mines and they were kept to a more difficult situation. Now Captain Nesterenko ordered Adyrkhanov:
Turning around, the tanks began to bypass the hillock, and the German machine gunners walked along the trench. One of the tanks climbed on the right side of the trench. The air trembled with the roar of engines. Guards Private Nesterenko (namesake of Captain Nesterenko) quickly jumped onto the parapet of the trench. Rising up, he managed to throw a grenade under the tracks of an oncoming tank. There was an explosion, the tank backed up and froze. The party organizer Smirnov was mortally wounded, the guardsmen Kiryanov, Nesterenko, Levchenko lay dead at their positions, and the Germans continue to besiege the brave.
One after another, brave warriors went out of action, but even in this tragic moment, when death tried to close their eyes, they continued to strike at the enemy with their last strength.
German submachine gunners, under the cover of tanks, managed to get so close that they were about to break into the trenches of the guards. Only some of the guards had rifles with bayonets, the rest had machine guns with empty discs. When it seemed there was no way out, Captain Nesterenko said:
The guardsman does not give up and does not retreat. Then he commanded:
Follow me guys! For our Motherland, forward! - And the first jumped on the parapet of the trench.
Such force was in his call that everyone began to jump out of the trench, even the wounded, and they crawled forward, some with a rifle, a machine gun, and some with the remaining grenade ...
Such a daring attack of the guards stunned the Germans. Our fighters ran towards them in order to quickly grapple with the hated enemy in hand-to-hand combat. The Nazis lay down, and at this time, Lieutenant Adyrkhanov began firing from a mortar at the lying Germans.
Enemy tanks, in turn, opened fire, cutting off the path of those who had not yet reached the battlefield. Guardsmen
Arevshetyan and Zhukan were stunned and shell-shocked by the shell explosion. A group of fighters still managed to get close to the enemy and start hand-to-hand combat. They beat and died standing, clinging to the enemy. When Zhukan and Arevshetyan came to their senses, it was already dark. Their first thought was: “Where is the commander, what about the comrades?” They searched for the dead captain Nesterenko and their fighters. The Germans never managed to step over the trench of the brave guardsmen.
In an unequal battle, Captain Nesterenko I. M. and his friends died. They died, but they did not give up the frontier to the enemy, they steadfastly defended the sacred land.
By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated November 1, 1943, Captain I.M. Nesterenko was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
He was buried in a mass grave on the Pokaznaya farm in the Tokmak district of the Zaporozhye region.
On the same day, September 26, the commander of the fire platoon of the 309th Guards Rifle Regiment, Lieutenant Mikhail Illarionovich Moskalenko, performed his heroic deed. The battle also took place near the village of Zeleny Gay. During the battle of the guard, Lieutenant Moskalenko M.I. personally commanded an artillery battery. With fierce counterattacks by the Germans, the personnel of the battery destroyed the enemy's firing points and inflicted significant damage on him. When repelling one of the counterattacks of the enemy guards, Lieutenant Moskalenko M.I. died. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of November 1, 1943, Guards Lieutenant Moskalenko M.I. was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
The Hero was buried in a mass grave in the village of Zeleny Gay.
In the battle north of Melitopol on September 26, the mortar gunner of the 309th Guards Rifle Regiment of the Guard, Sergeant Mikhail Ilyich Bakalov, showed not only courage, but also exceptional courage and stamina.
The battalion of the Guards, Major Nikolai Penkov, received an order to move forward, to level the front line of the regiment. The advancing riflemen were supported by their fire from the mortar battery of Captain Lovpache's guard. In this battle, the calculation of the guard sergeant Mikhail Bakalov especially distinguished himself.
After recovering from artillery fire, the enemy launched a counterattack. He managed to throw back the battalion of Major N. Penkov. Calculation of mortars under the command of a sergeant
Bakalova continued to hold the occupied line, restrain the enemy, hitting him with well-aimed fire.
Every attempt by the Germans to capture the frontier of the brave mortarmen did not bring success. But the forces were unequal. One by one, all the fighters of the calculation died. Only Sergeant Bakalov remained at the line. At the end of the mine, the enemy pressed on. Bakalov, being seriously wounded himself, found the strength to collect the weapons of his dead comrades and wage an unequal battle with the enemy alone, giving the impression that he was not fighting alone. He fought boldly and skillfully, to the last bullet. But every hour the strength left the hero. Bleeding, losing consciousness, he took documents from the pocket of his tunic and covered them with earth. After some time, the enemies broke into the line of mortars. They start beating Sergeant Bakalov's guards with boots and machine guns. He comes to consciousness. Around the Germans. They demand that they be informed of the location of fire weapons, the name of the unit, and the name of the commander. The guard is silent. Not having obtained the necessary information, the Germans continue to torture him further, cut off his fingers on his right hand. But the hero is silent. This infuriated the Nazis. They perform a monstrous act on the guardsman - they cut off his tongue. But this atrocity of the executioners did not shake the courage of the patriot. He steadfastly withstood all the torments, not betraying military secrets. Bakalov believed that help would come soon, his comrades would not leave him in trouble. And he was not wrong. The comrades arrived in time to recapture their tormented hero from the Nazis. As soon as he regained consciousness, he pointed to the place where the documents were buried. After providing first aid, he was taken to the hospital.
The news of the brutal torture of the brave guard sergeant Bakalov spread around the entire front. The Military Council of the front, reporting on the brutal mockery of our warrior, called on the soldiers, sergeants and officers to avenge the torment of the brave mortarman Bakalov, to speed up the defeat of the enemy on Ukrainian soil. Bakalov's friends on all fronts opened accounts of revenge for the torment of the hero-guardsman.
The Soviet people who worked in the rear learned from the Pravda newspaper about the monstrous torture of the courageous hero. At the enterprises of Moscow, in the homeland of the hero - in the Chernyakhovsky district of the Zhytomyr region and other enterprises of the country, front-line shock brigades named after Mikhail Bakalov were created.
The motherland highly appreciated the feat and courage of the Guards Sergeant Mikhail Ilyich Bakalov. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of March 19, 1944, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Unfortunately, later fellow soldiers learned about the death of the hero. He died in May 1944 in the Melitopol hospital. He could not overcome death from the suffering and severe wounds.
Guards Sergeant M. I. Bakalov was buried in a mass grave in Melitopol.
After 3 days of fighting near the Molochnaya River, having regrouped, the division resumed the offensive. Leading heavy booms, repelling fierce counterattacks of the enemy, the division successively takes possession of two more fortified defensive lines. The first - on the line of Lyubimovka, Dunaev, Shevchenko, and by October 24, 1943, breaks through the enemy's defenses to the full depth and begins to pursue him.
Pursuing the retreating enemy, the division fights to capture the large settlements of Friedrichsveld, Prishiv, Mikhailovka, Rozovka, Timoshevka, Vorobyovka, Novospenovka, Chistopolye, Demyanovka, Novoaleksandrovka, Novoukrainka, Antonovka, Western Kairi, Gornostaevka, Zavadovka and 26 more settlements. Having destroyed 28 German tanks, up to 4,000 soldiers and officers, taking 30 people prisoner and capturing a lot of trophies, on November 2, 1943, the division reached the Dnieper River at the turn: Sredny, Zavadovka, Gornostaevka, Western Kairi.
way to come. actions aimed at creating a gap (gaps) in prepared defenses. lines (bands, positions) occupied by the troops of the avenue, for the subsequent development of an offensive in depth and maneuver towards the flanks. The essence of P.o. consists in breaking the defense of the pr-ka with fire and strikes of all types of weapons and will decide. the advance of the advancing troops in the chosen directions to the full depth will defend. frontier (stripes, positions) at the same time. expansion of the area (areas) of the breakthrough. The need for P.o. first appeared in Russian-Japanese. war of 1904 - 05 and especially with the formation of continuous fronts in the 1st world. war. The most complete problem of P.o. and its development to operations. scale has been resolved in the 2nd world. war. During the years of Vel. Fatherland P.O. wars in the operation it was carried out by the shock groups of the front in one, two, and sometimes three sections; army, as a rule, in one sector. The width of the breakthrough section in the front was 20-30 km (7-12% of the width of the offensive zone); in the army - 6 - 14 km; in the building - 4 - 6 km; in the division - 2 - 2.5 km. To break open the defense of the pr-ka and ensure its breakthrough for the entire cycle. depth, an air offensive and an artillery offensive were organized. To build up efforts during a breakthrough tact. defense zones and expansion of gaps on the sides of the flanks, the second echelons of regiments, divisions and corps, and sometimes armies, were introduced. In the areas of the breakthrough, a solution was created. superiority over the pr-com in forces and means, which achieved its reliable fire defeat, inflicting a strong initial. blow, timely. scaling up efforts and building on success. From Ser. 50s 20th century with the adoption of nuclear weapons, the further development of other weapons. hacking the prepared defense of the pr-ka was supposed to be carried out by delivering nuclear strikes to the entire depth of its construction and will decide. motorized infantry advance. and a tank. co-unit in certain areas with a wide use of coverage and bypasses, incl. and by air. The concentration of large gr-k troops on narrow sections of the front to create multiple superiority over the pr-com was considered unacceptable. Modern P.O. theory with the use of conventional means of destruction involves the use of a variety of methods of P.o. with decide. massing of forces and means in selected areas of the breakthrough, providing superiority over the pr-com, reliable fire damage to the pr-ka in the breakthrough areas and adjacent flanks to the entire depth of the defense, widespread use of air. landings and other highly mobile troops for the same time. deployment of hostilities to the full depth of operations. building troops pr-ka and in time. and a rapid build-up of efforts in the direction of the main blow in order to develop tact. breakthrough in operational.
In foreign armies P.o. considered one of the main forms of maneuver in the offensive (in the US army - a breakthrough, in the German army - a frontal strike, in the British army - a frontal breakthrough). It usually includes three stages: cracking the defense of the pr-ka (creating gaps); expansion of breakthrough sites, bypass and destruction of the pr-ka; capturing and holding important objects in depth.
Developing the offensive, units of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps had already advanced to a depth of 8 km by 1 pm, cutting the Vitebsk-Orsha railway. Thus, the first defensive line of the Germans in the direction of the main attack of the 39th Army was broken through in the very first hours of the battle. The enemy was crushed, thrown back and, having lost control of his units, randomly retreated in a northwestern direction. In view of the success achieved, the commander of the 39th Army ordered the 5th Guards Rifle Corps to continue pursuing the retreating enemy and by the end of the day to reach the Sloboda line, the western bank of the Chernichenko River, throwing three forward detachments onto the Vitebsk-Moshkany road in order to cut it by the morning of June 24 .
On the morning of June 24, the corps was supposed to be ready for an offensive in the general direction of Ostrovno. To secure the right flank of the strike force, the 164th Infantry Division was ordered to strike in the direction of Dobrino. At the same time, the 251st Rifle Division received the task of reaching the western bank of the Chernichenko River and, having become subordinate to the commander of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps, be ready to advance on Zadorozhye.
Fulfilling the order of the army commander, by the end of June 23, the 5th Guards Rifle Corps reached the Sloboda-Lyadenki line with the main forces, and its forward detachments reached the Butyazhi-Lyadishchi line, 1 km west of the Ust, intercepting the Vitebsk-Moshkany road at night.
In the first half of the day, with strong fire of all types of weapons, the 84th rifle corps fettered the opposing units of the Germans, and on its left flank, with the forces of two regiments of the 262nd rifle division, struck south of Pavlyuchenko and captured the first enemy trench here. In the afternoon, units of the 158th Infantry Division captured Babinichi after a fierce battle.
As a result of the first day of the battle, the strike force of the 39th Army broke through the entire tactical depth of the German defense, advancing 12–14 km. Parts of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps completely defeated the 197th German Infantry Division and captured 23 guns, 67 machine guns, 3 ammunition depots and other trophies.
Breakthrough of the enemy's defense and the connection of the troops of the 43rd and 39th armies
Reconnaissance in force
In order to clarify the system of fire, the nature of the enemy's defensive structures, mastering his first trench, as well as capturing control prisoners, the command of the 43rd Army decided to conduct reconnaissance on a large scale a day before the offensive. To carry out reconnaissance missions, each rifle division was assigned one reinforced rifle company.
The combat operations of the units for the purpose of reconnaissance began on the morning of June 22 after a short artillery preparation. During the battle in the planned breakthrough zone, it was possible to capture the settlement of Medvedi and the first trench in the Zabolotniki area. The captured control prisoners confirmed the previously available information about the presence of the enemy grouping, the system of his fire, and also about the location of tactical reserves. During the period of reconnaissance in combat by means of artillery instrumental reconnaissance, it was possible to clarify the coordinates of eleven artillery batteries, and also to find three new batteries.
On the night of June 23, reconnaissance in force continued. In a number of sectors, the units managed to penetrate the second German trench. In this regard, the command of the 43rd Army gave instructions to amend the plan of the artillery offensive. It was decided in the 1st Rifle Corps to start artillery operations from the period of escort, and in the 60th Corps, where reconnaissance in force met with great resistance, from the period of suppression. The further course of hostilities showed that the amendments made to the artillery offensive plan were fully justified. In addition, these changes made it possible to save more than 50% of ammunition.
Breaking through enemy defenses
At 7 o'clock in the morning on June 23, the troops of the shock group 43rd Army, supported by the 332nd Assault Aviation Division, launched a decisive offensive. The Germans offered especially stubborn resistance in the areas of Gorevatka, Shumilino, Yazvino, Murozhnitsa, here they repeatedly launched counterattacks.
Parts of the 1st and 60th Rifle Corps, repelling counterattacks, successfully overcame the tactical depth of the enemy defense. After they captured Shumilino, the Germans began to quickly roll back to the south, trying to gain a foothold in the inter-lake defile along the line of lakes Dobeevskoye, Leskovichi, Budovishche.
Having assessed the situation, the army commander at 15:00 on June 23 decided to continue the rapid offensive in order to advance to the Western Dvina River by the end of the day with tank units.
The corps were assigned the following tasks.
1st Rifle Corps, rapidly pursuing the enemy, cut the highway south of Kutinka, by 20 o'clock on June 23, with the main forces, reach the line of Nov. village, Borisenki, and the 10th tank brigade with a regiment of self-propelled artillery, having reached the line of Milkovichi, Ulazovichi, cross the Western Dvina River on the move, providing bridgeheads for crossing the main forces of the corps.
60th Rifle Corps, rapidly pursuing the enemy, with the main forces to reach the line of the Western Dvina River on the front of Grinevo, Novki; on the night of June 24, advanced detachments to cross the Western Dvina River on the move.
92nd Rifle Corps go on the offensive with one regiment, capture Uzhlyatino and by the end of the day reach the line of Novki, the village. Staroe Selo, firmly securing the left flank of the 60th Rifle Corps.
The army commander demanded from the corps commanders the rapid pursuit of the retreating enemy by mobile detachments. It was proposed to use tank brigades to intercept roads, capture advantageous lines and bridgeheads.
Fulfilling the order of the army commander, the corps by 20 o'clock overcame the main defensive zone and fought:
The 1st Rifle Corps, with a skillful flank maneuver, captured the large enemy stronghold of Shumilino and, developing the offensive, with two divisions (306th and 179th) started stubborn battles for inter-lake defile south of Shumilino; The 357th Rifle Division (the second echelon of the corps), moving behind the battle formations of the corps, approached Shumilino;
The 60th Rifle Corps reached the line of Smalka, Kuzmino, Bogdanovo; The 156th Rifle Division was on the march east of Khotilovo;
The 92nd Rifle Corps, having gone on the offensive with its right flank, captured Murozhnitsa.
Thus, during the first day of the offensive, the strike force of the 43rd Army broke through the enemy defenses to a depth of 10–12 km, inflicted a significant defeat on the German 56th Infantry Division, destroyed over 2,000 German soldiers and officers, captured 310 prisoners, 60 guns, and also liberated over 60 settlements, including the regional center Shumilino.
It should be pointed out, however, that the tasks of the corps, set by the army commander, were not fulfilled by 3 pm on June 23, since they were excessively overestimated. So, for example, the 1st Rifle Corps was supposed to go through fighting from Shumilino to Nov. within five hours. Village, i.e., to a depth of 15–10 km.
In the action strip 39th Army artillery preparation began at 6.10 am on 23 June. Thanks to a well-conducted preliminary reconnaissance, the artillery had quite accurately set targets, so its fire was very effective.
The enemy at first tried to respond, but under the powerful influence of our guns, which quickly disabled enemy batteries and observation posts, the intensity of his fire noticeably decreased. At 8 o'clock in one of the sectors located in front of the 19th Guards Rifle Division, the enemy could not withstand our artillery fire and began to hastily leave the first trench.
The enemy's retreat was discovered by the commander of the 1st Battalion of the 61st Guards Rifle Regiment of the 19th Guards Division of the Guard, Major Fedorov. Without waiting for the end of the artillery preparation, he raised his battalion to the attack. His example was followed by other battalions of the first echelon. With a swift throw, they overcame the first, and then the second line of German trenches in the Makarovo-Yazykovo sector. Building on success, the infantry of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps quickly reached the eastern bank of the Luchesa River and crossed it on the move. At the same time, three bridges were captured, which the Germans did not have time to blow up. This allowed our artillery and tanks to cross to the west coast to support the infantry offensive in the depths of the enemy defenses. The 28th Guards Tank Brigade, which had previously been in its starting positions with two battalions (its third battalion operated in the combat formations of the 19th Guards Rifle Division), was fully committed to battle with the start of the attack.
Having overcome the enemy's third trench, which ran along the western bank of the Luchesa River, the advancing units broke into the artillery firing positions of the German 197th Infantry Division and attacked them. Stunned by the speed of advance and the swiftness of the blow of our infantry, the German artillerymen were unable to offer serious resistance. A significant part of them was killed, the rest, leaving the materiel, fled.
Developing the offensive, units of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps had already advanced to a depth of 8 km by 1 pm, cutting the Vitebsk-Orsha railway. Thus, the first defensive line of the Germans in the direction of the main attack of the 39th Army was broken through in the very first hours of the battle. The enemy was crushed, thrown back and, having lost control of his units, randomly retreated in a northwestern direction. In view of the success achieved, the commander of the 39th Army ordered the 5th Guards Rifle Corps to continue pursuing the retreating enemy and by the end of the day to reach the Sloboda line, the western bank of the Chernichenko River, throwing three forward detachments onto the Vitebsk-Moshkany road in order to cut it by the morning of June 24 .
On the morning of June 24, the corps was supposed to be ready for an offensive in the general direction of Ostrovno. To secure the right flank of the strike force, the 164th Infantry Division was ordered to strike in the direction of Dobrino. At the same time, the 251st Rifle Division received the task of reaching the western bank of the Chernichenko River and, having become subordinate to the commander of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps, be ready to advance on Zadorozhye.
Fulfilling the order of the army commander, by the end of June 23, the 5th Guards Rifle Corps reached the Sloboda-Lyadenki line with the main forces, and its forward detachments reached the Butyazhi-Lyadishchi line, 1 km west of the Ust, intercepting the Vitebsk-Moshkany road at night.
In the first half of the day, with strong fire of all types of weapons, the 84th rifle corps fettered the opposing units of the Germans, and on its left flank, with the forces of two regiments of the 262nd rifle division, struck south of Pavlyuchenko and captured the first enemy trench here. In the afternoon, units of the 158th Infantry Division captured Babinichi after a fierce battle.
As a result of the first day of the battle, the strike force of the 39th Army broke through the entire tactical depth of the German defense, advancing 12–14 km. Parts of the 5th Guards Rifle Corps completely defeated the 197th German Infantry Division and captured 23 guns, 67 machine guns, 3 ammunition depots and other trophies.
Development of success and access to the Western Dvina River
June 24 troops 43rd Army continued to develop a rapid offensive in a southerly direction. The defeated remnants of the German 56th Infantry Division tried to hold back the troops advancing towards the Western Dvina. Our aviation, actively contributing to the offensive of the ground troops, attacked the retreating columns of the Germans. Enemy aircraft did not appear over the battlefield that day.
During June 24, the Germans offered the most fierce resistance at the turn of Pisarevo, Markovo, Dubrovskoye. Overcoming the resistance of the enemy's rearguards, the troops of the strike group of the 43rd Army continued to develop the offensive towards the Western Dvina River.
At 13.30, the 1st Rifle Corps with five regiments reached the Western Dvina River at the front of Sharylino, Bokishevo. By 6 pm, three companies of the 306th and 179th rifle divisions managed to cross the river in this area and capture small bridgeheads. In order to secure the captured bridgeheads, by the end of the day, by the decision of the corps commander, five rifle battalions were transferred to the southern bank of the Western Dvina. These battalions, repulsing the fierce counterattacks of small groups of the enemy, completed the task assigned to them.
The 60th Rifle Corps, after night fighting, by 6 o'clock on June 24, in separate units, also reached the Western Dvina River. During the day, parts of the corps cleared the northern bank of the river from the remnants of the enemy on the front from Ulazovichi to Novka and fought for crossings. The second echelon of the 1st Rifle Corps (357th Rifle Division) and the army reserve (156th Rifle Division) did not enter the battle that day, but continued to move behind the first echelon.
On the same day, success was indicated on the front of the 92nd Rifle Corps. Formations and parts of the corps, acting as separate detachments, went on the offensive. During the day, they managed to capture 37 settlements and by 24 hours on June 24 reach the line: Bol. Rubies, Kasalapishki, Talynovo.
5th Guards Rifle Corps 39th Army on the morning of June 24, continued to develop the offensive to the northwest. In order to repel our blow and delay the advance south of Vitebsk, the German command brought into action the 280th regiment of the 95th Infantry Division, which had been thrown out of the reserve, and at the same time began to withdraw units of the 246th and 206th Infantry and 6th Airfield Divisions from the front. The Germans tried to transfer the 4th airfield division, which occupied the defense north of Vitebsk, to the right flank of the 53rd Army Corps.
However, the enemy's attempt to stop the advance of the shock group of the 39th Army was not successful. The 5th Guards Rifle Corps defeated the reserve brought into battle by the Germans and with a swift blow in the direction of Ostrovno in the afternoon reached the advanced units of the Vitebsk - Ostrovno - svh highway. Walkers.
In an effort to keep the escape route to the west at all costs and to cover the Vitebsk-Beshenkovichi highway, the enemy put up particularly stubborn resistance on the outskirts of Ostrovno.
Overcoming enemy resistance, by the end of the day the 5th Guards Rifle Corps began fighting for Ostrovno with the 91st and 19th Guards Divisions. The 17th Guards Rifle Division, withdrawn on the night of June 24 to the reserve of the army commander, by morning was transferred to the right flank of the corps and was in the Aniskovo area. The 251st Rifle Division, providing the left flank of the army and the strike group, by the end of the day reached the line of Lake Borovno, Obrezkovo.
Vitebsk operation. The general course of hostilities of the 43rd army
Vitebsk operation... Continuation of the map
Vitebsk operation... Continuation of the map
Vitebsk operation... Continuation of the map
Vitebsk operation... End of the map
The 84th Rifle Corps, having concentrated the main forces of the 158th Rifle Division in the direction of Latyshi, Vitebsk, launched an offensive against the city. Pursuing the retreating units of the enemy, by the end of June 24, the 158th Infantry Division started fighting on the eastern outskirts of Vitebsk. At the same time, the 262nd Rifle Division, building on the success achieved the day before, in cooperation with the 164th Rifle Division captured the stronghold of Perevoz and, rolling up the enemy defenses in front of the left flank of the 84th Corps, by the end of the day reached the Vasyuta line, Lake Gorodno. The 164th Rifle Division, providing the right flank of the army's strike force, during the day repelled several enemy counterattacks launched by him with forces of up to two battalions with tanks and self-propelled guns. Having exterminated up to 200 enemy soldiers and officers, by the end of June 24, parts of the division reached the line of Lake Gorodno, Plates.
In view of the impending threat of encirclement, the German command, despite Hitler's categorical demands to keep the Vitebsk bridgehead in their hands, on June 24 ordered a withdrawal in a westerly direction. But it was too late. Our aviation, having timely discovered enemy columns on the Vitebsk-Beshenkovichi highway, subjected them to massive bombing and assault strikes. At the same time, on the night of June 25, the 17th Guards Rifle Division, again brought into battle, together with the 28th Guards Tank Brigade, struck north in the direction of Kamara. Having captured the section of the southern bank of the Western Dvina River between Kanyshi and Kamara, the 17th Guards Rifle Division finally cut off the enemy's escape route from Vitebsk.
After the withdrawal of the shock group troops 43rd Army to the Western Dvina River and the capture of bridgeheads on its southern bank, urgent tasks arose before the formations of the army: to complete, together with the troops of the 39th Army, the encirclement of the Vitebsk enemy grouping, as well as to expand and consolidate the captured bridgeheads on the southern bank. Without waiting for the delivery of personnel crossing facilities, the army troops immediately set about forcing the Western Dvina on improvised means. For the crossing of infantry and light weapons, various materials prepared in advance and assembled on the spot (logs from dismantled houses, boats, barrels, etc.) were used.
On improvised means, it was also possible to transport a significant part of the regimental and divisional artillery. The rest of the artillery and tanks, until the ferry and bridge crossings were ready, covered the crossing of the river by infantry with their fire. With the approach of the N2P and NLP parks to the river, the immediate assembly of bridge 30-ton ferries (from N2P) and 16-ton ferries (from NLP) began. As soon as these ferries were ready and put into the line of the bridge, infantry and artillery were immediately transported along them.
At 3 pm on June 25, a tank crossing was built in the Sharylino area. On the same day, part of the tanks of the 10th Guards Tank Brigade was transferred to the southern bank of the river. The brigade units were concentrated in the Zadorozhye area with the task of being ready to repel possible enemy counterattacks southeast of Gnezdilovichi.
Continuing to transport manpower and equipment across the river, units of the 1st Rifle Corps expanded the bridgeheads captured the day before on its southern bank. By the end of the day on June 25, the corps with two divisions (306th and 179th) reached the Khrapovshchina, Zagryadye, Bereshevtsy line. The 357th Rifle Division (second echelon of the corps) was located in the forest area north of Bokishevo.
In the battles for the expansion and consolidation of bridgeheads, parts of the corps had to repel repeated enemy counterattacks, while a significant role was played by the timely crossing of artillery and mortars of rifle regiments to the southern bank of the river.
On June 25, in the offensive zone of the 60th Rifle Corps of the 334th Rifle Division, they also managed to force the Western Dvina River and by the end of June 25 reach the Gnezdilovichi line, the eastern edge of the forest north of Terebetovka. The 235th Rifle Division, developing the offensive in a northeasterly direction, was fighting northeast of Star by the end of the day. village.
Parts of the 92nd Rifle Corps, pursuing the retreating enemy, destroyed up to a German battalion in the Mazalovo area, and by the end of the day they were fighting at the line of Pletnitsa, Chepino, Brody.
On the same day, June 25, the troops of the 39th Army fought on the right flank for Vitebsk, and on the left they continued to fight for Ostrovno and advanced to the Western Dvina River from the south. The 5th Guards Rifle Corps, leaving small barriers against Ostrovno, with the forces of two regiments of the 91st Guards Rifle Division struck in the direction of Dorogokupovo and by the end of the day captured this point, having reached the southern bank of the Western Dvina River. This secured the success of the 17th Guards Rifle Division, and the enemy grouping moving towards Gnezdilovichi was divided into two parts.
At the same time, the 19th Guards Rifle Division launched a swift offensive in a northwestern direction and captured Gnezdilovichi, uniting here with units of the 60th Corps of the 43rd Army. Thus, the encirclement ring of the Vitebsk grouping of the enemy was closed.
The 251st Rifle Division, still operating on the left flank of the 39th Army, continued the offensive in a western direction and by the end of the day advanced units reached the line west of Lakes Sarro and Lipno, firmly securing a road junction in the area of the temporary storage warehouse. Walkers.
The 84th Rifle Corps fought for Vitebsk on June 25th. His 158th Rifle Division, fighting stubborn street battles with the German garrison, captured the entire northeastern and eastern parts of the city by the end of the day. At the same time, the 262nd Rifle Division, overcoming the minefields of the Germans, fought its way to the southern outskirts of the city. The 164th Rifle Division repelled fierce counterattacks by separate groups of Germans trying to break through to the southwest, and by the end of the day, with stubborn fighting, reached the Kalinka line, the northern shore of Lake Dobrino.
Breakthrough of the enemy's defense and the connection of the troops of the 43rd and 39th armies in the Gnezdilovichi area
As a result of the connection of the 19th Guards Rifle Division with units of the 60th Corps in the Gnezdilovichi area and the attack of the 17th and 91st Guards Divisions on Kamara and Dorogokupovo, the enemy group, which was trying to retreat to Beshenkovichi, was not only surrounded by a dense ring, but also split into two parts.
Two pockets of encirclement formed. The first was located in the area of the southwestern outskirts of Vitebsk, the settlements of Kamara and Stayki, the main grouping of encircled enemy units got here - parts of the 206th and 246th infantry divisions, the 6th airfield division and the remnants of the 197th infantry division. The second was located between Kamary and Gnezdilovichi, in the area of Dyagilevo, Dorogokupovo, Ostrovno, here were surrounded mainly by units of the 4th airfield division operating against the 43rd army, as well as one regiment of the 6th airfield division. A lot of vehicles and convoys accumulated here, which were taken away by the German command in the first place.
Capture of Vitebsk
On the night of June 26, the 158th Rifle Division of the 84th Corps of the 39th Army, having captured the entire northeastern and eastern parts of Vitebsk in previous battles, went directly to the New Bridge across the Western Dvina River in the center of the city and suddenly attacked him. The bridge was prepared by the enemy for the explosion. But a group of our sappers under the command of senior sergeant Blokhin, rushing to the bridge, destroyed the German demolitionists and at the last moment saved him from the explosion.
Taking advantage of this, units of the 158th Infantry Division quickly crossed the river and broke into the western part of the city. The advance of our units was so rapid that the remnants of the German garrison, who tried to resist in individual houses and buildings, were quickly destroyed or captured. Part of the Germans was driven back to the southwest into one of the "cauldrons" formed there.
By 6 am on June 26, Vitebsk, with the assistance of units of the 92nd Rifle Corps of the 43rd Army, was completely liberated from the enemy. During the battles for the city, our units captured a significant number of prisoners, a large number of German weapons and 52 warehouses with military equipment.
The 262nd Rifle Division, with its right flank, fought to destroy separate scattered groups of Germans pressed against the southern bank of the Western Dvina on the southern outskirts of Vitebsk, and with the main forces, turning to the west at the line of Telyatniki, Kalinka (west of the Vitebsk-Orsha railway), from the east it closed the ring formed around the main enemy grouping.
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From the book Battle for Moscow. Moscow Operation of the Western Front November 16, 1941 - January 31, 1942 author Shaposhnikov Boris MikhailovichChapter Six The general situation on the Western Front in mid-January
author Goncharov Vladislav LvovichChapter 3 The beginning of the offensive of the Soviet troops in Belarus Breakthrough of the German defense Encirclement and defeat of German groups on the flanks Successful offensive in the center (The first stage of the operation - from June 23 to 28) Even on the eve of the general offensive, our advanced
From the book Operation "Bagration" author Goncharov Vladislav LvovichBreakthrough of the German defense by the troops of the 3rd Belorussian Front The defeat of the Vitebsk and Orsha enemy groupings The exit of our troops to the Berezina River
From the book Operation "Bagration" author Goncharov Vladislav LvovichBreakthrough of the enemy's defense by the troops of the 2nd Belorussian Front in the Mogilev direction Beginning of the offensive and breakthrough of the enemy's defense June 23 On June 22, at 6 o'clock in the morning, reconnaissance was carried out in combat at the front line of the enemy's defense. Intelligence service
From the book Operation "Bagration" author Goncharov Vladislav LvovichBreakthrough of the enemy defense by the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front and liquidation of the Bobruisk grouping of Germans At 06:00 on June 24, the infantry and tanks of the 3rd and 48th armies, after powerful artillery preparation, went over to the offensive. An hour later, the troops of the 65th and 28th
From the book Operation "Bagration" author Goncharov Vladislav LvovichBreakthrough of the enemy defenses On the night of June 24, our aviation heavily bombarded the front line of the enemy’s defenses, and especially the areas of Parichi, Selishche, Gomza, Sekirichi, Chernin.
From the book Stand to Death! author Moshchansky Ilya BorisovichBreakthrough to connect with the Separate Primorsky Army The situation of the German troops in the Crimea throughout November was continuously complicated, since under the blows of the Soviet troops the collapse of the front on the Kerch Peninsula or on the northern isthmuses of Crimea was brewing. supreme
From the book West - East author Moshchansky Ilya BorisovichComposition and grouping of German troops (Army Group North and 3rd Army Group Center) promotion
From the book Sagaidachny's Campaign to Moscow. 1618 the author Soroka YuriThe connection of the armies of Sahaidachny and Vladislav. Siege of Moscow As already mentioned, after Volkonsky with his depleted regiments took refuge in Kolomna, the way to Moscow was opened for Sagaidachny, which he hurried to take advantage of. Regarding the itinerary
From the book Mistakes by G. K. Zhukov (year 1942) author Sverdlov Fedor DavydovichBREAKTHROUGH IN THE ENEMY'S REAR It was not yet dark when Kononenko arrived at the division. Oslikovsky asked him to go with the commanders of the division headquarters to the regiments to monitor the implementation of the order to move to a new concentration area. Over the next day, parts of the division occupied all
From the book The Siege of Budapest. One Hundred Days of World War II author Christian UngvariREACTION TO THE BREAKTHROUGH OF THE GERMAN ARMY GROUP "SOUTH" COMMAND At the headquarters of the German Army Group "South" a Pfeffer-Wildenbruch radiogram, which reported on the planned breakthrough, arrived at 19.45. However, until 22.30 the message was not passed on. Commander of the 6th German Army
