The Berlin operation was not the most difficult for the Soviet troops. In 1945, when everyone, even the most inexperienced fighters, understood that there was very little left before the end of the war, when almost all of their native land was cleared of the enemy, and Soviet troops, surpassing the enemy in both quantity and quality of weapons, stood on the outskirts to Hitler's lair, I think, it was still easier to fight than or a year later, when it was necessary to hand over to the enemy city after city, region after region. The fact that the operation, developed by the best Soviet commanders, would end in success, no one had any doubts: neither in Moscow, nor even in Berlin, which continued to agonize, from where the Fuhrer continued to send directives to army headquarters and call the piece of Central Europe torn apart by bombing and flooded with refugees " empire."
War and politics
But despite all the obviousness of the outcome of the Berlin operation, on the eve of the upcoming battles, the military aspects gave way to political ones. The closer the end of the war was, the more attention the allied powers paid to the question of the post-war reorganization of the world. The impending collapse of the Third Reich posed before the USSR, the USA and Great Britain (at that time France had already joined them) a lot of questions, which, even if they were discussed at the Yalta Conference, still gave rise to wariness and even mistrust towards each other. The command of the Soviet troops had to build their plans, in accordance not with the convenience of the current military positions, but with the need to give more weight to Moscow's arguments in the course of its future negotiations with the allies. That is why, at the last stage of the Great Patriotic War, political considerations sometimes interfered so decisively in the operational plans of Soviet military leaders.
For this reason alone, despite the victorious mood of the soldiers and officers of the Red Army, the Berlin operation cannot be called a cakewalk. The high stakes of this battle made it one of the most stubborn and bloody on the Eastern Front. The Nazis defended their last line and they had nothing to lose. In addition, the Germans were led not just by blind fanaticism. In addition to the actual protection of the capital of the Reich, they had another important goal - to hold back the offensive of the Soviet troops for as long as possible, so that most of the territory of Germany came under the control of the allies. And the defenders of Berlin themselves were more attracted by the prospect of being in the hands of the Anglo-Americans than of falling into Russian captivity. Hitler’s propaganda also instilled such views everywhere, although it represented the British and the Yankees as swaggering countrymen, but did not attribute to them the satanic bloodthirstiness, which, according to Dr. Goebbels, was distinguished by “ Bolshevik Slavic-Tatar hordes«.
On the way to the lair
By mid-April, the Nazi army, despite the bashing that had been given to it for two years now on all European fronts, continued to remain in a very combat-ready state. The strength of the Wehrmacht was estimated at 223 divisions and brigades, most of which, including the most combat-ready, operated on the Soviet-German front. A series of defeats and heavy losses undermined the morale of the German troops at the front and the population in the rear, but it was not completely broken.
In the Berlin direction, the fascist German command concentrated a large grouping as part of the Vistula and Center Army Groups (about 1 million people in total, 10,400 guns and mortars, 1,530 tanks and assault guns, over 3,300 aircraft). On the western banks of the Oder and Neisse rivers, a defense in depth was created, including the Oder-Neissen line, which consisted of three lanes 20-40 kilometers deep, and the Berlin defensive area. The total number of the Berlin garrison exceeded 200 thousand people. For the convenience of command and control, the city was divided into 9 sectors. The most carefully prepared central sector, which covered the main state and administrative institutions, including the Reichstag and the Imperial Chancellery. All defensive positions were interconnected by communications. The metro was widely used for covert maneuvering by forces and means.
For the offensive in the Berlin direction, the Soviet command concentrated 19 combined arms (including 2 Polish), 4 tank and 4 air armies (2.5 million people, 41,600 guns and mortars, 6,250 tanks and self-propelled artillery installations, 7,500 aircraft). The plan of the operation was to inflict several powerful blows on a wide front, dismember the Berlin enemy grouping, surround and destroy it piece by piece. The main role in the capture of Berlin was assigned to the armies of Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, commander of the 1st Belorussian Front. At the same time, the directives of the Headquarters did not provide for the organization of operational-tactical cooperation with the 1st Ukrainian (commander Marshal Ivan Stepanovich Konev) and 2nd Belorussian fronts (commander Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky). When breaking through the Oder-Neissen line, the 1st Belorussian Front was supposed to deliver the main blow from a small bridgehead, attack with an open right flank, and attack the enemy's defense in depth in the forehead.
They tried to implement this plan back in February, but then the offensive failed - the Soviet command underestimated the enemy. In bloody battles, both sides suffered heavy losses, but the Germans still managed to stop the advance of the Soviet troops by transferring additional units to this sector of the front.
Having relied on a lightning strike right in the heart of the Nazi Reich in order to get ahead of the allies and single-handedly put an end to Nazi Germany, Moscow, as always in such cases, overshadowed the question of the cost of victory. If it were possible to squeeze the German troops concentrated around Berlin into a "cauldron", dismember them into parts and destroy them separately, without rushing to storm the well-fortified Seelow Heights that covered the capital of the Reich from the east, then the Soviet army would have avoided those losses, which she suffered, striving at all costs to enter the city by the shortest route.
But it was here that operational expediency had to give way to political considerations. Despite the few days allocated to the Red Army to capture Berlin, the allied troops, moving on an accelerated march, could well get there earlier - on the Western Front by that time the Germans had practically ceased to resist, surrendering to whole corps and divisions. But, apparently, the blow delivered in January by German tanks in the Ardennes had such an effect on the Allies that, even in the absence of resistance, they observed the greatest caution in Germany. But the pace of advance for the Soviet army during the Berlin operation was determined as follows: for combined arms armies - 8-14 kilometers, for tank armies - 30-37 kilometers per day.
To Berlin!
On April 16, at 03:00 local time, aviation and artillery preparation began on the sector of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts. After its completion, 143 searchlights were turned on, and the infantry, supported by tanks, attacked the enemy. Encountering no strong resistance, she advanced 1.5-2 kilometers. However, the closer our troops approached, the stronger the resistance of the enemy increased.
In order to strengthen the onslaught, Zhukov brought tank armies into battle in the afternoon. Their forward detachments completed the breakthrough of the first line of defense. However, approaching the Seelow Heights, the infantry and tanks met the unsuppressed enemy defenses. During the first day of the offensive, the troops of the front advanced only 3-8 kilometers and could not break through the defenses on the Seelow Heights. The premature introduction of tank formations created chaos in the operational formation of combined-arms armies, caused a disruption in their rear communications, and confusion in command and control.
Only by the end of April 17 did the troops of the front overcome the second line of defense. Two days later, the Oder line of defense of the Germans was finally broken through. As a result of a four-day fierce struggle, the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front advanced to a depth of 34 kilometers.
The troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front, in turn, advanced 1-1.5 kilometers by the end of the first day of the offensive. The Germans began to retreat across the Spree River, and on April 17 Marshal Konev ordered the troops "on the shoulders of the enemy" to cross the river in order to "open a non-stop route to Berlin." Taking into account the hitch of the armies of Marshal Zhukov and the success of the 1st Ukrainian Front, the Supreme Command Headquarters decided to encircle the city with the forces of three fronts, which was not originally envisaged by the operation plan.
Despite the unrelenting resistance of the enemy, the troops of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts resolutely “bite into” his defenses and, bypassing the fortified settlements, approached Berlin. By the end of April 21, the tank armies of the 1st Ukrainian Front reached the outer defensive line of the German capital. On the same day, part of the forces of the 1st Belorussian Front bypassed Berlin and continued their accelerated advance towards the Elbe, where they were supposed to meet with the Allied forces.
It was on the eve of the decisive assault on Berlin between Marshals Zhukov and Konev that an unjustified competition unfolded for the right to be the first to report on the breakthrough of the troops of their front to the capital of the Third Reich. In fact, the command of the fronts demanded that the troops go forward, regardless of any losses in manpower and equipment.
On April 22, the last operational meeting of the German High Command was held at the Imperial Chancellery, which was attended by Hitler. It was decided to remove the 12th Army of Walter Wenck from positions on the Elbe and send it to the east, towards the troops of the 9th Army, which attacked the Soviet troops, from the area southeast of Berlin. In an effort to delay the offensive of the 1st Ukrainian Front, the German command launched a counterattack from the Görlitz region to the rear of the strike group of Soviet troops. By April 23, German troops had penetrated 20 kilometers into their location. However, by the end of the next day, the advance of the enemy was stopped.
On April 24, the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front united southeast of Berlin with the armies of the 1st Ukrainian Front. The ring of encirclement was closed to the west of the city. At the same time, in the Torgau area, Soviet troops met with the Americans. Thus, the Berlin grouping of the enemy turned out to be dissected into two isolated groups: Berlin and Frankfurt-Guben
Flag over the Reichstag
It took five days, from April 26 to May 2, to eliminate the most powerful Frankfurt-Guben group of Germans of the Red Army at that time. The enemy fought with the desperation of a cornered beast, before which suddenly loomed the hope of salvation, because if they joined the Wenck army, the Germans would have a corridor to go to the West, directly captured by the Americans. After stubborn fighting on the night of April 29, the Nazis managed to break through the encirclement of Soviet troops at the junction of two fronts. As a result, they formed a corridor up to two kilometers wide, through which they began to retreat west to Luckenwalde. But by the end of the day, the enemy was stopped, and his troops were dissected, surrounded and destroyed by May 1. A few units broke through to the West.
The assault on the German capital itself also began on April 26. The Soviet armies struck in converging directions towards the center of the city. The fighting went on day and night. They were conducted on the ground, in underground communications and in the air. The next day, the enemy in Potsdam was destroyed, and in Berlin compressed into a strip up to 2-3 kilometers wide, stretching from east to west for another 16 kilometers.
The tension of the fighting in Berlin increased as the Soviet troops advanced towards the city center, towards the Reichstag and government buildings. The armies that stormed Berlin had predetermined offensive lines, units and subunits attacked specific objects - districts, streets, buildings and structures. The battles were fought, as a rule, by assault groups and detachments made up of units of all branches of the armed forces; tanks, direct fire guns, flamethrowers and even captured faustpatrons were used.
It is difficult to talk about the tension of the fighting in Berlin, even after reading the memories of the participants in those events. There was an assault on the real lair - the city from where fascism spread like a plague throughout Europe, where the craziest Nazi ideas were born and where every house was an enemy fortress. The whole city was saturated with defensive structures - especially, as already mentioned, the Reich Chancellery and the Reichstag were fortified. A strong fortified area was created in Tiergaten Park. The Nazis made extensive use of tanks and heavy artillery, mercilessly turning their capital into a heap of ruins. Every effort was made to hold back the offensive of the Soviet troops - the metro was flooded, houses were blown up to block the streets, and most importantly, until the very last moment, people were driven to the slaughter so that they would keep the defense. In fact, it was a mass suicide - the behavior of the defenders of Berlin can be compared, perhaps, with the Japanese "kamikaze". The same lack of alternatives - only death in the name of the Fuhrer, who himself was already standing on the edge of the grave.
By the end of April 28, the encircled Berlin grouping was cut into three parts. The next evening, General Weidling, commander of the city's defense, presented Hitler with a plan for a breakthrough to the west, and Hitler approved it. The breakthrough was scheduled for 30 April. The optimism of this man can only be envied, although, perhaps, the whole point is that in the last days of his life, at the sight of how the monstrous empire he built crumbles to dust under the blows of Soviet troops, the Fuhrer practically lost the ability to think clearly.
On April 29, fighting began for the Reichstag, which was defended by about a thousand people. What these people fought for is hard to understand, but each floor of the building had to be taken with a fight. After a series of attacks, units of the 171st and 150th rifle divisions broke into the building. On April 30, at 2:25 p.m., Sergeants Mikhail Yegorov and Meliton Kantaria hoisted the Victory Banner over the Reichstag. The capture of the Reichstag was of great political and moral significance. The courage, selflessness and heroism of Soviet soldiers were actively promoted in the troops, the names of the heroes of those battles were heard in the reports of the Soviet Information Bureau throughout the country. And the very sight of the main building of Nazism, decorated with inscriptions of Soviet soldiers who carried all their hatred for the enemy and jubilation over victory from the banks of the Volga and Dnieper, told everyone and everyone that the Third Reich was crushed.
On May 1, at 03:50, the head of the general staff of the Wehrmacht ground forces, General of the Infantry Krebs, was brought to the command post of the 8th Guards Army, commanded by the hero of Stalingrad, General Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov. He declared that he was authorized to negotiate an armistice and reported Hitler's suicide. Deputy Zhukov went to Chuikov for negotiations with Krebs with Stalin's order to conduct no negotiations, except for unconditional surrender, with no one. Zhukov himself delivered an ultimatum: if consent to unconditional surrender is not given before 10 o’clock, the Soviet troops will strike such a blow that “there will be nothing left in Berlin but ruins.” The leadership of the dying Reich was slow to respond. Therefore, at 10:40, Soviet troops opened heavy fire on the remnants of the defense in the center of Berlin. By 18 o'clock it became known that the enemy had rejected the demand for unconditional surrender. After that, the final assault began on the central part of the city, where the Imperial Chancellery was located.
The battle for this object lasted all night from 1 to 2 May. The Germans made desperate attempts to push back the Soviet soldiers, but all their counterattacks were thwarted. By morning, all the premises were cleared of the enemy: not far from the entrance to the office bunker, the corpse of Goebbels was found, and in one of the rooms - the bodies of his wife and six children. According to eyewitnesses, several corpses of Hitler's doubles were also found in the building, but the remains of the Fuhrer themselves were discovered later.
On the night of May 2, at 1:50 a.m., the radio station of the Berlin Defense Headquarters transmitted in German and Russian: We are sending our parliamentarians to the Bismarck-Straße bridge. We stop hostilities". On May 2, the Deputy Minister of Propaganda, Dr. Fritsche, turned to the Soviet command with a request for permission to speak on the radio with an appeal to the German troops of the Berlin garrison to stop all resistance. By 3 pm on May 2, the remnants of the Berlin garrison, totaling more than 134 thousand people, surrendered.
The price of victory
After the fall of Berlin, active hostilities were conducted in fact only in Czechoslovakia. On the territory of Germany itself, only individual units did not even try to keep the Soviet troops, but to break through to the west in order to surrender to the Allies. Despite the fact that Admiral Karl Doenitz, appointed by Hitler as Reich Chancellor, continued to issue orders urging German soldiers not to lay down their arms, the surrender took on a mass character.
Goebbels' propaganda machine worked well: the image of a bloodthirsty savage eating the meat of German babies was fixed in the minds of the subjects of the Third Reich for a long time. Of course, it is impossible to completely deny the facts of the murders of civilians, the rape of German women and the robbery of the population by the Soviet troops. And the allies often behaved on German territory far from being liberators. However, in war as in war, especially since the Soviet troops, unlike the Americans and the British, had to overcome fierce resistance at every step almost until the very end of the war. Moreover, not only military personnel were involved in this resistance, but also civilians, hastily armed and stuffed with Hitler's ideology. Elderly veterans of the First World War and 14-year-old boys armed with fauspatrons joined the ranks of the defenders of Berlin.
These Germans could be understood and humanly pitied - in front of them were Soviet soldiers, who, thanks to Goebbels' tales, turned into a horde of cannibals, and behind them were courts-martial, which, right up to the very last hours of the war, continued to pass death sentences for desertion. Moreover, in his hatred of everything Soviet, Hitler ordered that all of Germany be turned into a cemetery. On his orders, retreating troops used scorched-earth tactics everywhere, leaving destruction, starvation, and death in their wake.
The fact that the resistance of the Nazis during the Berlin operation was desperate in the full sense of the word is also evidenced by the fact that the losses of the Soviet troops in it amounted to 361,367 people killed and wounded (irretrievable losses - 81 thousand). And the average daily losses (15,712 people) were even higher than during the Battle of Stalingrad or Kursk. However, the desire of the Soviet Headquarters, primarily Marshal Zhukov, to take Berlin at all costs as soon as possible played a role here.
The enemy also knew about the heavy losses of the Soviet troops, who were trying to push through the defenses on the outskirts of Berlin. The hitch in the attack on the Seelow Heights caused great joy at the headquarters of the German command. Hitler enthusiastically exclaimed: We repulsed this blow. Near Berlin, the Russians will suffer the most bloody defeat that can ever be!". The Fuhrer, as usual, turned out to be a poor visionary, but it cannot be denied that Berlin was taken at a really high price, even if we take into account the rapid pace of advance of the Soviet troops and the strength of the enemy opposing them - after all, in just 16 days, the Red Army defeated about a hundred enemy divisions that did not surrender, but tried desperately to resist.
But this price was paid for the capture of the main stronghold of Nazism, and therefore - for the victory in the Great Patriotic War. On May 9, at 0:43 Moscow time, Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, as well as representatives of the German Navy, who had the appropriate authority from Doenitz, signed the Act of Germany's unconditional surrender. A brilliant operation, coupled with the courage of Soviet soldiers and officers who fought to end the four-year nightmare of war, led to a logical outcome: Victory.
Berlin in 1945 was the largest city of the Reich and its center. Here were the headquarters of the commander in chief, the Reich Chancellery, the headquarters of most armies and many other administrative buildings. By spring, more than 3 million inhabitants and about 300,000 abducted civilians from the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition lived in Berlin.
The entire top of Nazi Germany remained here: Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels, Goering and others.
Operation preparation
The Soviet leadership planned to take the city at the end of the Berlin offensive. This task was assigned to the troops of the 1st Ukrainian and Belorussian fronts. At the end of April, the advanced units met, the city was besieged.
The allies of the USSR refused to participate in the operation. Berlin in 1945 was an extremely important strategic goal. In addition, the fall of the city would invariably lead to a victory in terms of propaganda. The Americans were developing an assault plan back in 1944. After securing the troops in Normandy, it was planned to make a throw north to the Ruhr and start an attack on the city. But in September, the Americans suffered huge losses in Holland and the operation was abandoned.
Soviet troops on both fronts had more than 2 million manpower and about 6,000 tanks. Of course, all of them could not participate in the assault. 460 thousand people were concentrated for the strike, Polish formations also took part.
City defense
The defense of Berlin in 1945 was prepared very carefully. The garrison numbered over 200 thousand people. It is rather difficult to give an exact figure, since the civilian population was actively involved in the defense of the Nazi capital. The city was surrounded by several lines of defense. Each building was turned into a fortress. Barricades were erected in the streets. Almost the entire population was obliged to take part in the construction of engineering structures. Concrete bunkers were hastily erected on the outskirts of the city.
Berlin in 1945 was defended by the best troops of the Reich, including the SS. The so-called Volkssturm was also created - militia units recruited from civilians. They were actively armed with faustpatrons. This is a single-shot anti-tank gun that fires cumulative projectiles. Machine-gun crews were in buildings and just on city streets.
Offensive
Berlin in 1945 had been under regular bombardment for several months. In the 44th, British and American raids became more frequent. Prior to that, in 1941, on the personal orders of Stalin, a number of secret operations by Soviet aviation were carried out, as a result, a number of bombs were dropped on the city.
On April 25, massive artillery preparation began. Soviet aviation ruthlessly suppressed firing points. Howitzers, mortars, MLRS hit Berlin with direct fire. On April 26, the most fierce battles of the entire war began in the city. For the Red Army, a huge problem was the density of the city. It was extremely difficult to advance because of the abundance of barricades and dense fire.
Large losses in armored vehicles were caused by the many anti-tank groups of the Volkssturm. To take one city block, it was first treated with artillery.
The fire stopped only when the infantry approached the German positions. Then the tanks destroyed the stone buildings blocking the way, and the Red Army moved on.
Liberation of Berlin (1945)
Marshal Zhukov ordered to use the experience of the Stalingrad battles. In a similar situation, Soviet troops successfully used small mobile groups. Several armored vehicles, a group of sappers, mortars and artillerymen were attached to the infantry. Also, sometimes flamethrowers were included in such a unit. They were needed to destroy the enemy, who hid in underground communications.
The rapid advance of the Soviet troops led to the encirclement of the Reichstag area already 3 days after the start of active fighting. 5 thousand Nazis concentrated on a small area in the city center. A moat was dug around the building, which made a tank breakthrough impossible. All available artillery bombarded the building. On April 30, shells broke through the Reichstag. At 2:25 p.m., a red flag was raised over the buildings.
The photo that captured this moment would later become one of
Fall of Berlin (1945)
After the capture of the Reichstag, the Germans began to flee en masse. Chief of Staff Krebs requested a ceasefire. Zhukov conveyed the proposal of the German side to Stalin personally. The commander-in-chief demanded only the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. The Germans rejected this ultimatum. Immediately after that, heavy fire fell on Berlin. The fighting continued for several more days, as a result of which the Nazis were finally defeated, in Europe they were over. in Berlin in 1945 showed the whole world the power of the liberating Red Army and the Soviet people. The capture of the Nazi lair will forever remain one of the most important moments in the history of mankind.
The final battle in the Great Patriotic War was the battle for Berlin, or the Berlin strategic offensive operation, which was carried out from April 16 to May 8, 1945.
On April 16, at 03:00 local time, aviation and artillery preparation began on the sector of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts. After its completion, 143 searchlights were turned on to blind the enemy, and the infantry, supported by tanks, went on the attack. Encountering no strong resistance, she advanced 1.5-2 kilometers. However, the further our troops advanced, the stronger the resistance of the enemy grew.
The troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front carried out a swift maneuver to reach Berlin from the south and west. On April 25, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Belorussian fronts joined up west of Berlin, completing the encirclement of the entire enemy Berlin grouping.
The liquidation of the Berlin enemy grouping directly in the city continued until May 2. The assault had to take every street and house. On April 29, fighting began for the Reichstag, the possession of which was entrusted to the 79th Rifle Corps of the 3rd Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front.
Before the assault on the Reichstag, the Military Council of the 3rd Shock Army presented its divisions with nine Red Banners, specially made according to the type of the State Flag of the USSR. One of these Red Banners, known under No. 5 as the Banner of Victory, was transferred to the 150th Rifle Division. Similar self-made red banners, flags and flags were in all advanced units, formations and subunits. They, as a rule, were handed over to assault groups, which were recruited from among volunteers and went into battle with the main task - to break into the Reichstag and install the Banner of Victory on it. The first - at 22:30 Moscow time on April 30, 1945, hoisted an assault red banner on the roof of the Reichstag on the sculptural figure "Goddess of Victory" - reconnaissance artillerymen of the 136th Army Cannon Artillery Brigade, senior sergeants G.K. Zagitov, A.F. Lisimenko, A.P. Bobrov and Sergeant A.P. Minin from the assault group of the 79th Rifle Corps, commanded by Captain V.N. Makov, the assault group of artillerymen acted jointly with the battalion of captain S.A. Neustroeva. Two or three hours later, also on the roof of the Reichstag, on the sculpture of an equestrian knight - Kaiser Wilhelm - by order of the commander of the 756th Infantry Regiment of the 150th Infantry Division, Colonel F.M. Zinchenko, the Red Banner No. 5 was installed, which then became famous as the Banner of Victory. Red Banner No. 5 was hoisted by scouts Sergeant M.A. Egorov and junior sergeant M.V. Kantaria, who were accompanied by Lieutenant A.P. Berest and machine gunners from the company of senior sergeant I.Ya. Syanov.
The fighting for the Reichstag continued until the morning of May 1. At 6:30 am on May 2, the head of the defense of Berlin, General of Artillery G. Weidling, surrendered and ordered the remnants of the troops of the Berlin garrison to cease resistance. In the middle of the day, the resistance of the Nazis in the city ceased. On the same day, the encircled groupings of German troops southeast of Berlin were liquidated.
On May 9, at 0:43 Moscow time, Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, as well as representatives of the German Navy, who had the appropriate authority from Doenitz, in the presence of Marshal G.K. Zhukov from the Soviet side signed the Act of unconditional surrender of Germany. A brilliant operation, coupled with the courage of Soviet soldiers and officers who fought to end the four-year nightmare of war, led to a logical outcome: Victory.
PROGRESS OF THE BATTLE
The Berlin operation of the Soviet troops began. Goal: complete the defeat of Germany, capture Berlin, connect with the allies
The infantry and tanks of the 1st Belorussian Front launched an attack before dawn under the illumination of anti-aircraft searchlights and advanced 1.5-2 km
With the onset of dawn on the Seelow Heights, the Germans came to their senses and fight with bitterness. Zhukov introduces tank armies into battle
16 Apr. 45g. The troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front of Konev meet less resistance on the way of their offensive and immediately force the Neisse
Commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front Konev orders the commanders of his tank armies Rybalko and Lelyushenko to advance on Berlin
Konev demands from Rybalko and Lelyushenko not to get involved in protracted and head-on battles, to boldly move forward towards Berlin
In the battles for Berlin, twice a Hero of the Soviet Union, commander of a tank battalion of Guards. Mr. S.Khokhryakov
The 2nd Belorussian Front of Rokossovsky joined the Berlin operation, covering the right flank.
By the end of the day, Konev's front had completed the breakthrough of the Neissen line of defense, crossed the river. Spree and provided the conditions for the encirclement of Berlin from the south
Troops of the 1st Belorussian Front Zhukov break the 3rd enemy defense line on the Oderen-on the Seelow Heights all day
By the end of the day, Zhukov's troops completed the breakthrough of the 3rd lane of the Oder line at the Seelow Heights
On the left wing of Zhukov's front, conditions were created for cutting off the Frankfurt-Guben group of the enemy from the area on Berlin
Directive of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command to the commanders of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts: "It is better to treat the Germans." Stalin, Antonov
Another directive of the Headquarters: on identification marks and signals at the meeting of Soviet armies and allied forces
At 13.50, long-range artillery of the 79th Rifle Corps of the 3rd Shock Army was the first to open fire on Berlin - the beginning of the assault on the city itself
20 Apr. 45g. Konev and Zhukov send almost identical orders to the troops of their fronts: “Be the first to break into Berlin!”
By evening, formations of the 2nd Guards Tank, 3rd and 5th Shock Armies of the 1st Belorussian Front reached the northeastern outskirts of Berlin
The 8th Guards and 1st Guards Tank Armies wedged into the city defensive bypass of Berlin in the districts of Petershagen and Erkner
Hitler ordered the 12th Army, previously targeted against the Americans, to be turned against the 1st Ukrainian Front. She now has the goal of linking up with the remnants of the 9th and 4th Panzer Armies, making their way south of Berlin to the west.
Rybalko's 3rd Guards Tank Army broke into the southern part of Berlin and is fighting for Teltow by 17.30 - Konev's telegram to Stalin
Hitler refused to leave Berlin for the last time while there was such an opportunity. Goebbels and his family moved to a bunker under the Reich Chancellery ("Fuhrer's bunker")
Assault flags were presented by the Military Council of the 3rd Shock Army to the divisions storming Berlin. Among them is the flag that became the banner of victory - the assault flag of the 150th Infantry Division.
In the district of Spremberg, Soviet troops liquidated the encircled group of Germans. Among the destroyed units is the tank division "Protection of the Fuhrer"
Troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front are fighting in the south of Berlin. At the same time, they reached the Elbe River northwest of Dresden
Goering, who had left Berlin, turned to Hitler on the radio, asking him to approve him at the head of the government. Received an order from Hitler removing him from the government. Bormann ordered Goering's arrest for treason
Himmler unsuccessfully tries through the Swedish diplomat Bernadotte to offer the allies surrender on the Western Front
Shock formations of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts in the Brandenburg region closed the encirclement ring of German troops in Berlin
Forces of the German 9th and 4th tanks. armies are surrounded in the forests southeast of Berlin. Parts of the 1st Ukrainian Front reflect the counterattack of the 12th German Army
Report: “In the suburbs of Berlin, Ransdorf, there are restaurants where they “willingly sell” beer to our fighters for occupation marks.” The head of the political department of the 28th Guards Rifle Regiment, Borodin, ordered the owners of Ransdorf's restaurants to close them for a while until the battle was over.
In the area of Torgau on the Elbe, Soviet troops of the 1st Ukrainian fr. met with the troops of the 12th American Army Group General Bradley
Having crossed the Spree, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front of Konev and the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front of Zhukov are rushing towards the center of Berlin. The rush of Soviet soldiers in Berlin can no longer be stopped
The troops of the 1st Belorussian Front in Berlin occupied Gartenstadt and Gerlitsky Station, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front - the district of Dahlem
Konev turned to Zhukov with a proposal to change the demarcation line between their fronts in Berlin - the city center to transfer it to the front
Zhukov asks Stalin to salute the capture of the center of Berlin to the troops of his front, replacing Konev's troops in the south of the city
The General Staff orders Konev's troops, who have already reached the Tiergarten, to transfer their offensive zone to Zhukov's troops
Order No. 1 of the military commandant of Berlin, Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel-General Berzarin, on the transfer of all power in Berlin into the hands of the Soviet military commandant's office. It was announced to the population of the city that the National Socialist Party of Germany and its organizations were disbanding and their activities were prohibited. The order established the order of behavior of the population and determined the main provisions necessary for the normalization of life in the city.
The battles for the Reichstag began, the mastery of which was entrusted to the 79th rifle corps of the 3rd shock army of the 1st Belorussian Front
When breaking through the barriers on the Berlin Kaiserallee, the tank of N. Shendrikov received 2 holes, caught fire, the crew failed. The mortally wounded commander, having gathered his last strength, sat down at the controls and threw the flaming tank at the enemy cannon
Hitler's marriage to Eva Braun in a bunker under the Reich Chancellery. Witness - Goebbels. In his political testament, Hitler expelled Goering from the NSDAP and officially named Grand Admiral Dönitz as his successor.
Soviet units are fighting for the Berlin metro
The Soviet command rejected attempts by the German command to start negotiations on the time. ceasefire. There is only one demand - surrender!
The assault on the Reichstag building itself began, which was defended by more than 1000 Germans and SS men from different countries
In different places of the Reichstag, several red banners were fixed - from regimental and divisional to self-made
Scouts of the 150th division Egorov and Kantaria were ordered to hoist the Red Banner over the Reichstag around midnight
Lieutenant Berest from the Neustroev battalion led the combat mission of installing the Banner over the Reichstag. Established around 3.00, May 1
Hitler committed suicide in the Reich Chancellery bunker by taking poison and shooting him in the temple with a pistol. Hitler's corpse is burned in the courtyard of the Reich Chancellery
At the post of Chancellor, Hitler leaves Goebbels, who will commit suicide the next day. Before his death, Hitler appointed Bormann Reich Minister for Party Affairs (previously such a post did not exist)
The troops of the 1st Belorussian Front captured Bandenburg, cleared the areas of Charlottenburg, Schöneberg and 100 quarters in Berlin
In Berlin, Goebbels and his wife Magda committed suicide, after killing their 6 children
Beg. German General Staff Krebs, announced the suicide of Hitler, offered to conclude a truce. Stalin confirmed the categorical demand for unconditional surrender in Berlin. At 18 o'clock the Germans rejected him
At 18.30, in connection with the rejection of the surrender, the Berlin garrison received a fire attack. The mass surrender of the Germans began
At 01.00, the radios of the 1st Belorussian Front received a message in Russian: “Please cease fire. We are sending parliamentarians to the Potsdam Bridge"
A German officer, on behalf of the commander of the defense of Berlin Weidling, announced the readiness of the Berlin garrison to stop resistance
At 0600, General Weidling surrendered and an hour later signed the surrender order for the Berlin garrison.
Enemy resistance in Berlin has completely ceased. The remnants of the garrison surrender en masse
In Berlin, Goebbels's deputy for propaganda and press, Dr. Fritsche, was taken prisoner. Fritsche testified during interrogation that Hitler, Goebbels and Chief of the General Staff General Krebs committed suicide
Stalin's order on the contribution of the Zhukov and Konev fronts to the defeat of the Berlin group. By 21.00, 70 thousand Germans had already surrendered
The irretrievable losses of the Red Army in the Berlin operation - 78 thousand people. Enemy losses - 1 million, incl. 150 thousand killed
Everywhere in Berlin, Soviet field kitchens are deployed, where "wild barbarians" feed hungry Berliners.
BANNER OVER THE REICHSTAG
After a powerful and accurate fire strike, Syanov again offered the Nazis defending the attic to surrender. A few minutes later, two dozen Volkssturmists crawled out of their hiding places with their hands up. The attic was completely cleared of the enemy, the banner's path was open.
They quickly found a ladder, along which Yegorov and Kantaria, accompanied by scouts, climbed to the roof. The time had already passed 22:00, the sun had set below the horizon, but it was still fairly light.
As soon as the scouts with an unfolded banner appeared on the roof, they were immediately noticed by the Nazis from the Brandenburg Gate area and from buildings east of the Reichstag. They opened such a strong fire that it was impossible to take a single step. Precious minutes fled, but there seemed to be no way out.
It was getting dark fast. It was out of the question to put up a ladder and climb it to the dome under a hail of bullets and shrapnel. However, the banner must be installed, and, moreover, in a conspicuous place!
And then, examining the pediment, Kantaria drew attention to the sculptural group.
“Come on, Misha, let’s install it there,” he suggested to Yegorov.
The place was really suitable, visible from everywhere, and although it was not easy to get to it, it was possible. So they did.
Enemy bullets whistled around, one of them pierced the flagpole, splitting it. Yegorov's trousers were shot through, and Kantaria's forage cap. But even at that moment they did not flinch, did not retreat, courageously passed these last meters and fulfilled their duty.
In the Berlin night sky, thickly infused with gunpowder smoke, the spring wind slowly unfolded and waved the red banner of the Victory Banner.
Early in the morning of May 1, on the pediment of the Reichstag, near the sculptural group, the Red Banner was already fluttering, handed over to the commander of the 150th Infantry Division by the Military Council of the 3rd Shock Army. It was hoisted by scouts of the 756th Infantry Regiment of the 150th Infantry Division M.A. Egorov and M.V. Kantaria, headed by Lieutenant A.P. Berest, deputy battalion commander for political affairs, with the support of machine gunners of the company I. Ya. Syanov. This Banner symbolically embodied all the banners and flags that, during the most fierce battles, were hoisted by groups of Captain V.N. Makov, Lieutenant R. Koshkarbaev, Major M.M. Bondar and many other soldiers. From the main entrance of the Reichstag to the roof, their heroic path was marked by red banners, flags and flags, as if now merged into a single Banner of Victory. It was the triumph of the victory won, the triumph of the courage and heroism of the Soviet soldiers, the greatness of the feat of the Soviet Armed Forces and the entire Soviet people.
FROM THE NOTEBOOKS OF KONSTANTIN SIMONOV
May third. Dusty sunny day. Several of our armies, which have taken Berlin, are moving through it in different directions, raising terrible dust. Tanks, self-propelled guns, Katyushas, thousands and thousands of trucks, heavy and light guns, anti-tank guns jumping on the wreckage, infantry marching, endless carts dragging along. And all this goes and climbs into the city from all its ends. Bewildered residents on the ruined streets, at intersections, from the windows of the houses look down at all this moving, thundering, incredibly crowded and completely endless. Even I myself have the feeling that not just divisions and corps are entering Berlin, but that the whole of Russia is now passing through it in all directions. And to meet her, blocking all the roads, crawling and crawling columns of prisoners ...
MEDAL FOR THE CAPTURE OF BERLIN
Description of the medal.
The medal "For the Capture of Berlin" is made of brass and has the shape of a regular circle with a diameter of 32 mm.
On the front side of the medal: in the center is the inscription "FOR THE CAPTURE OF BERLIN", above the inscription there is a five-pointed asterisk, below, along the circumference, a half-wreath of oak leaves. The front side of the medal is bordered with a border.
On the reverse side of the medal is the date of the capture of Berlin "May 2, 1945", under the date there is a five-pointed asterisk.
All inscriptions and images on the medal are convex.
The medal, with the help of an eyelet and a ring, is connected to a pentagonal block covered with a red silk moiré ribbon 24 mm wide. There are five stripes in the middle of the ribbon: three black and two orange. The extreme black stripes are bordered by narrow orange stripes.
From the history of the medal.
On April 19, 1945, the head of the rear of the Red Army, Army General Khrulev, instructed the Technical Committee of the Main Quartermaster Directorate to develop projects for medals for the capture and liberation of cities outside the USSR. A large group of artists was involved in the work on the projects of the medals. The review of the first sketches took place already on April 24, and another series of projects was presented six days later. A total of 116 drawings were considered. Already by May 3, 1945, engraver B. Andrianov made several samples in metal according to the selected projects.
Most of the awards with the medal "For the Capture of Berlin" occurred immediately after the end of the Great Patriotic War. So, in the period for 1945-1948. the medal was awarded to about 1,082,000 people. However, some of the soldiers and officers who participated in the storming of Berlin, for various reasons, could not receive a medal during this period. All these persons were awarded medals later.
Probably one of the last in the history of awarding this honorary medal took place in the summer of 2003. At the Russian embassy in Armenia, the medal was presented to Anatoly Zelentsov, a resident of Yerevan. During the storming of Berlin, Sergeant Major Zelentsov was wounded, ended up in a hospital, and for some reason did not receive a well-deserved award. The medal found him only 58 years later.
The Berlin operation of the Red Army, which was carried out from April 16 to May 2, 1945, became a triumph for the Soviet troops: Berlin, the capital of the Third Reich, was defeated, and the Nazi empire was completely defeated.
The history of the battle for Berlin has been repeatedly described in the military history literature here and abroad. Estimates are different, sometimes polar: some consider it the standard of military art, others believe that this is far from the best example of military art.
Be that as it may, when describing the capture of Berlin by the Red Army in Western historiography of this most important operation, the main attention is paid to two issues: the level of military skill of the Red Army and the attitude of Soviet soldiers towards the population of Berlin. When covering these topics, not all, but many authors from other countries, and in recent years, some domestic historians, tend to emphasize the negative phenomena in both issues.
How did all this really happen, given the conditions and time of the Soviet troops in April-May 1945?
The main blow to Berlin was delivered by the 1st Belorussian Front under the command of Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov. Photo by Georgy Petrusov.
DID BERLIN LUMBLED WITH A MOUNTAIN OF CORPSES OR WAS A GOLDEN PAGE IN THE HISTORY OF MILITARY ART?
Most critics agree that the fronts that carried out the Berlin operation, despite their superiority over the enemy, acted insufficiently skillfully and suffered unjustifiably high losses.
Thus, David Glantz, a well-known American military historian, writes that “the Berlin operation was one of the most unsuccessful for Zhukov” (in parentheses, we say that the same Glantz calls Zhukov’s most unsuccessful operation the Rzhev-Sychev offensive operation “Mars”, which was carried out on November 25 -20.12.1942). According to the German historian Karl-Heinz Frieser, “a gigantic Soviet fire strike (meaning the artillery preparation on April 16 - author’s note) went into the sand ... The use of searchlights glorified by Zhukovsky propaganda was just as unproductive and even harmful.” The Russian historian Andrey Mertsalov notes that Zhukov “lost his nerves” and “in a state of passion, he made a fatal mistake. Designed to develop operational success, he used tank armies to break through tactical defenses. As a ram, 1400 tanks were used, which went through the marching orders of the 8th Guards. armies, mixed them up and made a huge confusion in the system of command and control. The operational plan was thwarted. As Mertsalov notes, “the mistake was all the more “severe” because the 8th Guards. the army had its own tanks in large numbers.
But was it just like that?
Yes, the Berlin operation cost us heavy losses - 78,291 killed and 274,184 wounded. The average daily losses amounted to 15325 people - one of the highest losses suffered by the Red Army in strategic and independent front-line operations during the entire period of the war.
But in order to talk sensibly about this operation, it is necessary to remember the environment in which it was carried out.
First, it had to be carried out as soon as possible. Why? Because already on April 22, after listening to a report on the situation at the front, Hitler made a decision: to throw all his forces against the Russian troops. What did it mean? And the fact that, having long wanted to open the front to the Western allies, and now having received Hitler's permission, the German generals were ready to surrender part of their troops to the Anglo-American armies in order to throw all the remaining forces on the Eastern Front. And Stalin was well aware of this. This was also indicated by the negotiations of the allies in Switzerland with SS General Karl Wolf, and the negotiations with the Germans in Sweden, and the main actions of the Wehrmacht on the Western Front. And here we must pay tribute to Stalin's intuition. He foresaw what the English historian Basil Liddell Hart would write about later: “The Germans may make a fatal decision to sacrifice the defense of the Rhine for the defense of the Oder in order to delay the Russians.”
In the spring of 1945, the military-political situation demanded that the Berlin operation be carried out as soon as possible.
In essence, on April 11, after the Americans surrounded Army Group B in the Ruhr under the command of Field Marshal Model, the resistance of the German troops in the West ceased. One of the American journalists wrote: “Cities fell like skittles. We drove 150 km without hearing a single shot. The city of Kassel surrendered through the intermediary of the burgomaster. Osnabrück surrendered without resistance on 5 April. Mannheim capitulated by telephone." On April 16, the mass surrender of Wehrmacht soldiers and officers into captivity began.
But if on the Western Front "cities fell like skittles", then on the Eastern Front the German resistance was desperate to the point of fanaticism. Stalin wrote to Roosevelt with irritation on April 7: “The Germans have 147 divisions on the Eastern Front. They could, without prejudice to their cause, remove 15-20 divisions from the Eastern Front and transfer them to help their troops on the Western Front. However, the Germans did not and will not do this. They continue to fight fiercely with the Russians for some little-known Zemlyanitsa station in Czechoslovakia, which they need as much as a dead poultice, but without any resistance they surrender such important cities in the center of Germany as Osnabrück, Mannheim, Kassel. That is, the way for the Western allies to Berlin was essentially open.
What was left for the Soviet troops to do in order to prevent the opening of the gates of Berlin for the Western allies? Only one. Take over the capital of the Third Reich faster. And therefore, all reproaches against our front commanders, especially Zhukov, lose ground.
On the Eastern Front, German resistance was desperate to the point of fanaticism.
Zhukov, Konev and Rokossovsky had one task - to capture the capital of the Third Reich as quickly as possible. And it wasn't easy. The Berlin operation did not fit into the canons of offensive operations of front groups of those years.
Speaking to the editors of the Military Historical Journal in August 1966, Zhukov said: “Now, after a long time, thinking about the Berlin operation, I came to the conclusion that the defeat of the Berlin enemy grouping and the capture of Berlin itself were done correctly, but you can It would have been possible to carry out this operation in a slightly different way.
Yes, of course, reflecting on the past, our commanders and modern historians find the best options. But this is today, after many years and in completely different conditions. And then? Then there was one task: to take Berlin as quickly as possible. But this required careful preparation.
And it must be admitted that Zhukov did not succumb to the moods of Stalin, and the General Staff, and the commander of his key army, Chuikov, who believed that after seizing a bridgehead on the Oder near the city of Kustrin, they should immediately go to Berlin. He was well aware that the troops were tired, the rear lagged behind, a pause was needed for the last final offensive. He also saw something else: the 2nd Belorussian Front lagged behind by 500 km. To the right of him, Zhukov, the 1st Belorussian Front hangs a powerful grouping - the Vistula Army Group. Guderian later wrote: “The German command intended to launch a powerful counterattack with the forces of the Vistula Army Group with lightning speed until the Russians pulled up large forces to the front or until they figured out our intentions.”
Even the boys from the Hitler Youth were thrown into battle.
And he, Zhukov, managed to convince the Headquarters that in February the attack on Berlin would not bring success. And then Stalin decided to launch an attack on Berlin on April 16, but to carry out the operation in no more than two weeks.
The main blow was delivered by Zhukov's front - the 1st Belorussian. But the environment in which he had to operate was very specific.
By decision of the commander, the front delivered the main blow from the bridgehead west of Kustrin with the forces of five combined arms and two tank armies. The combined arms armies were supposed to break through the first defensive line 6-8 km deep on the very first day. Then, in order to develop success, tank armies had to be introduced into the breakthrough. At the same time, the situation and terrain made it difficult for any other forms of maneuver. Therefore, Zhukov's favorite technique was chosen - a frontal strike. The goal is to split the forces concentrated on the shortest path to the capital of the Third Reich in the direction of Kustrin-Berlin. The breakthrough was planned on a wide front - 44 km (25% of the entire length of the 1st Belorussian). Why? Because a breakthrough on a broad front in three directions excluded the counter-maneuver of enemy forces to cover Berlin from the east.
The enemy was placed in a position where he could not weaken the flanks without risking letting the Red Army capture Berlin from the north and south, but he could not strengthen the flanks at the expense of the center, because. this would speed up the advance of Soviet troops in the Kustrin-Berlin direction.
For the fighting in Berlin, assault detachments were created. This B-4 howitzer was attached to the first battalion of the 756th rifle regiment of the 150th rifle division. Photo by Yakov Ryumkin.
But it must be borne in mind that the experience of almost four years of war has taught both belligerents a lot. So, it was necessary to do something new, unexpected for the German troops, something for which they were not ready. And Zhukov begins the offensive not at dawn, as usual, but at night after a short artillery preparation and begins the attack with the sudden activation of 143 powerful searchlights in order to blind the enemy, to suppress him not only with fire, but also with a sudden psychological technique - blinding.
Historians vary in their assessment of the success of the searchlights, but the German participants acknowledge its surprise and effectiveness.
However, the peculiarity of the Berlin operation was that, in fact, the first defensive line was immediately followed by the second, and behind it were fortified settlements all the way to Berlin. This factor was not properly assessed by the Soviet command. Zhukov understood that after breaking through the tactical defense zone of the enemy, he would throw the tank armies into the gap, lure the main forces of the Berlin garrison to fight them and destroy them in the “open field”.
Soviet tanks at the bridge over the Spree River near the Reichstag.
Therefore, to break through two lines of defense (but what!) in one day by combined arms armies was an impossible task for combined arms armies.
And then the commander of the 1st Belorussian Front decides to bring tank armies into battle - in fact, to directly support the infantry. The pace of advance has increased.
But we must not forget that these were the last days of the war, the last battles for the victory of Russia. “And it’s not at all scary to die for her,” as the poet Mikhail Nozhkin wrote, “but everyone still hopes to live.” And this factor could not be discounted. Zhukov directs the 1st Guards. tank army not to the north, but bypassing the city, and to the southeastern outskirts of Berlin, cutting off the escape route of the 9th German army to Berlin.
But then the tankers and infantry broke into Berlin, fighting began in the city. Assault detachments are being created, which include infantry and tank units, sappers, flamethrowers, artillerymen. The battle goes for every street, every house, every floor.
Tank armies of the 1st Ukrainian Front enter Berlin from the south. For some time there is a mixing of troops. In this regard, Konev's troops are withdrawn from Berlin, Zhukov continues the assault on the capital of the Nazi Reich.
Self-propelled guns SU-76M on a street in Berlin.
This is how this extraordinary offensive operation took place. Therefore, critics of its implementation, at least, should take into account the uniqueness of the situation, and not analyze it according to classical canons.
Of course, there were mistakes of command and executors, and interruptions in supply, and skirmishes between units of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Belorussian fronts, and aviation sometimes hit the wrong targets. Yes, it was all.
But among all this chaos, generated by the deadly last battle between the two great armies, it is necessary to distinguish the main thing. We have won a final victory over a strong and desperately resisting enemy. "The enemy was strong, the greater our glory!". We have put a winning point in the war against the fascist bloc. Defeated and destroyed the Third Reich. The Red Army, having become the strongest in the world, raised its banners high in the center of Europe. Against the background of all this, the mistakes and miscalculations that happen to every commander in every war fade. The Berlin operation is forever inscribed as a golden page in the history of military art.
"HORSES OF BARBARS" FLOWING INTO "CIVILIZED EUROPE", OR ALL THE LIBERATIONS?
As mentioned above, a favorite topic of historians who want to discredit the successes of the Red Army during the war in every possible way is the comparison of Soviet soldiers with "hordes of barbarians", "Asiatic hordes" that poured into "civilized Europe" with the aim of robbery, excesses and violence. This theme is especially exaggerated when describing the Berlin operation and the attitude of soldiers and officers of the Red Army to the civilian population.
Musical moment. Photo by Anatoly Egorov.
The English historian Anthony Beevor, the author of the sensational book The Fall of Berlin, is especially sophisticated in this direction. Without bothering to check the facts, the author mainly cites the statements of people who met him (like a "poll on the streets" practiced on modern radio stations). Statements, of course, can be different, but the author cites only those that speak of looting and especially the violence of Soviet soldiers against women. The data is very vague. For example, “one Komsomol organizer of a tank company said that Soviet soldiers raped at least 2 million women”, “one doctor calculated that the violence was massive”, “Berliners remember the violence that took place”, etc. About the same, unfortunately, and also without reference to documents, Jeffrey Roberts, the author of the generally objective book "Victory at Stalingrad", writes.
At the same time, Beevor singles out “sexual pathologies in all representatives of Soviet society, shaped by the government’s policy in the field of sexual education” among the main reasons for violent actions by Soviet soldiers.
Of course, as in any army, there were cases of looting and violence. But one thing is the European medieval principle, when the captured cities were given for three days to be plundered. And it is a completely different matter when the political leadership, the command of the army do (and effectively do) everything possible to stop or reduce excesses to a minimum.
This task was not easy for the Soviet leadership, but it was carried out everywhere and with dignity. And this is after what the Soviet soldier saw on the lands he liberated: the atrocities of the German invaders, devastated cities and villages, millions of people turned into slaves, the consequences of bombing, shelling, overwork and terror in the temporarily occupied territory of the country, not to mention indirect losses. Tens of millions were left homeless. Tragedy, horror came to every Soviet family, and the fury of the soldiers and officers who entered the enemy land with battles knew no bounds. An avalanche of revenge could have overwhelmed Germany, but this did not happen. It was not possible to completely prevent violence, but they managed to contain it, and then reduce it to a minimum.
First day of peace in Berlin. Soviet soldiers communicate with civilians. Photo by Viktor Temin.
In passing, we say that the British historian is clearly silent about the fact that the German command in the occupied territory, not only of the USSR, but also of other countries, regularly organized raids on women in order to deliver them to the front line for the joy of the German soldiers. It would be interesting to hear his opinion, was it connected with the sexual pathologies of the Germans, "formed by the policy of the authorities in the field of sexual education"?
Recall that the political position on the attitude towards the German population was first formulated by Stalin in February 1942. Rejecting the Nazi slander that the Red Army aims to exterminate the German people and destroy the German state, the Soviet leader said: “The experience of history says that the Hitlers are coming and leave, but the German people, and the German state remain. The Wehrmacht at that time was still 100 km from Moscow.
With the entry of the Red Army into the territory of the aggressor countries, emergency measures were taken to prevent outrages against the peaceful German population. On January 19, 1945, Stalin signed an order that demanded that no rude treatment of the local population be allowed. The order was communicated to every soldier. This order was followed up by orders from the Military Councils of the fronts, army commanders, division commanders of other formations. The order of the Military Council of the 2nd Belorussian Front, signed by Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky, ordered marauders and rapists to be shot at the scene of the crime.
With the beginning of the Berlin operation, the Headquarters sent a new document to the troops:
Directive of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command to the commanders of the troops and members of the military councils of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts on changing the attitude towards German prisoners of war and the civilian population on April 20, 1945
The Headquarters of the Supreme High Command orders:
1. Demand a change in attitude towards the Germans, both prisoners of war and civilians. It's better to deal with the Germans. The brutal treatment of the Germans makes them afraid and makes them resist stubbornly, not surrendering.
A more humane attitude towards the Germans will make it easier for us to conduct military operations on their territory and, undoubtedly, will reduce the stubbornness of the Germans in defense.
2. In the regions of Germany to the west of the line, the mouth of the Oder River, Furstenberg, then the Neisse River (to the west), create German administrations, and install burgomasters - Germans in the cities.
The rank and file members of the National Socialist Party, if they are loyal to the Red Army, should not be touched, but only the leaders should be detained if they did not have time to escape.
3. Improving attitudes towards the Germans should not lead to a decrease in vigilance and familiarity with the Germans.
Headquarters of the Supreme High Command.
I. STALIN
ANTONOV
Along with explanatory work, harsh punitive measures were taken. According to the data of the Military Prosecutor's Office, in the first months of 1945, 4,148 officers and a large number of privates were convicted by military tribunals for committed atrocities against the local population. Several show trials of military personnel resulted in death sentences for those responsible.
The commander of the 756th Infantry Regiment, the first commandant of the Reichstag Fyodor Zinchenko.
For comparison, in the US Army, where the number of rapes has risen sharply, 69 people were executed for murder, looting and rape with murder in April, and more than 400 people were convicted in April alone. Eisenhower, after the entry of Western troops into Germany, generally forbade military personnel from any communication with the local population. However, as noted by American historians, this ban was doomed to failure "because it was contrary to the very nature of a young healthy American and allied soldier when it came to women and children."
As for the Red Army, thousands of documents of political agencies (the so-called "7 departments"), commandant's offices, prosecutor's offices, which were directly involved in eliminating negative phenomena in relations between troops and the local population, show that intensive work was constantly carried out in this direction, and it gradually brought positive results.
The state of relations between the army and the population was also closely monitored by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. And it gave results.
Here, for example, is an excerpt from the report of the head of the political department of the 8th Guards Army to the head of the political department of the 1st Belorussian Front about the behavior of the German population in the occupied suburbs of Berlin and its attitude towards Soviet military personnel dated April 25, 1945:
The general impression from the first meetings with the inhabitants of the suburbs of Berlin - the settlements of Ransdorf and Wilhelmshagen - is that the majority of the population treats us loyally, strives to emphasize this both in conversations and in behavior. Almost all residents say: "We did not want to fight, now let Hitler fight." At the same time, everyone tries to emphasize that he is not involved in the Nazis, he never supported Hitler's policy, some persistently try to convince that they are communists.
Restaurants in Wilhelmshagen and Ransdorf sell spirits, beer and snacks. Moreover, restaurant owners are willing to sell all this to our soldiers and officers for occupation stamps. Head of the political department of the 28th Guards. sk Colonel Borodin ordered the owners of Ransdorf's restaurants to close the restaurants for a while until the battle ended.
Head of the political department of the 8th Guards. the army of the Major General M. SKOSYREV
In one of the reports of a member of the Military Council of the 1st Ukrainian Front, it is indicated that “the Germans carefully carry out all orders and express satisfaction with the regime established for them. So, the pastor of the city of Zagan, Ernst Schlichen, said: “The measures taken by the Soviet command are regarded by the German population as fair, arising from military conditions. But individual cases of arbitrariness, especially the facts of rape of women, keep the Germans in constant fear and tension. The military councils of the front and the armies are waging a resolute struggle against the looting and rape of German women.
Unfortunately, rarely does anyone in the West think of something else. About the disinterested help of the Red Army to Berliners and Germans from other cities. But it is not in vain that there is (and recently renovated) a monument to the Soviet soldier-liberator in Berlin's Treptow Park. The soldier stands with his sword down and clutching the rescued girl to his chest. The prototype of this monument was the feat of the soldier Nikolai Masolov, who, under heavy enemy fire, risking his life, carried a German child from the battlefield. This feat was accomplished by many Soviet soldiers, while some of them died in the last days of the war.
Colonel Fyodor Zinchenko was appointed commandant of the Reichstag before the start of its assault on April 30, 1945. Half an hour before the battle, he learned about the death of his last brother. Two others died near Moscow and Stalingrad. All six of his sisters were widows. But, fulfilling his duty, the commandant first of all took care of the local population. The assault on the Reichstag was still going on, and the regimental cooks were already distributing food to the starving Germans.
Reconnaissance platoon of the 674th Infantry Regiment of the 150th Infantry Idritsa Division on the steps of the Reichstag. In the foreground is Private Grigory Bulatov.
Immediately after the capture of Berlin, the following food standards were introduced for the population of the German capital for each inhabitant (depending on the nature of the activity): bread - 300-600 grams; cereals - 30-80 grams; meat - 20-100 grams; fat - 70 grams; sugar - 15-30 grams; potatoes - 400-500 grams. Children under 13 were given 200 grams of milk daily. Approximately the same norms were established for other cities and towns in the areas of Germany liberated by the Soviet Army. In early May 1945, the Military Council of the 1st Belorussian Front reported on the situation in Berlin to the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief: “The measures taken by the Soviet command to supply food and improve life in the city stunned the Germans. They are surprised by the generosity, the quick restoration of order in the city, the discipline of the troops. Indeed, in Berlin alone, 105,000 tons of grain, 18,000 tons of meat products, 1,500 tons of fat, 6,000 tons of sugar, 50,000 tons of potatoes and other products were allocated from the resources of the Soviet troops for the needs of the local population in the shortest possible time. City self-government was given 5,000 dairy cows to provide children with milk, 1,000 trucks and 100 cars, 1,000 tons of fuel and lubricants to establish intracity transportation.
A similar picture was observed everywhere in Germany, where the Soviet Army entered. It was not easy at that time to find the necessary resources: the Soviet population received modest food rations strictly on ration cards. But the Soviet government did everything to provide the German population with the necessary products.
Much work has been done to restore educational institutions. With the support of the Soviet military administration and thanks to the selfless work of local democratic self-government bodies, by the end of June, classes were going on in 580 schools in Berlin, where 233 thousand children studied. 88 orphanages and 120 cinemas have started work. Theaters, restaurants, cafes were opened.
Even during the days of fierce battles, the Soviet military authorities took under protection the outstanding monuments of German architecture and art, preserved for mankind the famous Dresden Gallery, the richest book stocks in Berlin, Potsdam and other cities.
In conclusion, we repeat once again: the task of mastering such a huge city as Berlin was extremely difficult. But the troops of the fronts of Zhukov, Konev, Rokossovsky coped with it brilliantly. The significance of this victory is recognized throughout the world, including by German generals and military leaders of the Allied forces.
In particular, here is how one of the outstanding military leaders of that time, General of the Army George Marshall, assessed the Battle of Berlin: “The chronicle of this battle gives many lessons for everyone involved in the art of war. The assault on the capital of Nazi Germany is one of the most difficult operations of the Soviet troops during World War II. This operation is a wonderful page of glory, military science and art."
April 16, 1945 began the last, decisive military operation of the Red Army in the Great Patriotic War. The final destination is Berlin. It turned into a race of fronts, illuminated by Georgy Zhukov's searchlights.
When did the war end?
The Red Army could start the operation to capture Berlin as early as the beginning of February 1945, at least the Allies thought so. Western experts believe that the Kremlin has postponed the attack on Berlin in order to delay hostilities. Many Soviet commanders spoke about the possibility of the Berlin operation in February 1945. Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov writes:
“As for risk, in war it is often necessary to take it. But in this case, the risk was well justified.”
The Soviet leadership deliberately delayed the attack on Berlin. There were objective reasons for this. The position of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts after the Vistula-Oder operation was complicated by the lack of ammunition and fuel. The artillery and aviation of both fronts was so weakened that the troops were not able to advance. Having postponed the Berlin operation, the headquarters concentrated the main efforts of the Belorussian and Ukrainian fronts on defeating the East Pomeranian and Silesian enemy groupings. At the same time, it was supposed to carry out the necessary regrouping of troops and restore the dominance of Soviet aviation in the air. It took two months.
Trap for Stalin
At the end of March, Joseph Stalin decided to speed up the attack on Berlin. What prompted him to force things? Fears grew in the Soviet leadership that the Western powers were ready to start separate negotiations with Germany and end the war "by political means". Rumors reached Moscow that Heinrich Himmler was seeking, through the vice-president of the Red Cross, Folke Bernadotte, to establish contacts with representatives of the Allies, and SS-Oberstgruppenführer Karl Wolf began negotiations in Switzerland with Allen Dulles on a possible partial surrender of German troops in Italy.
Stalin was even more alarmed by the message from the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Western powers, Dwight Eisenhower, dated March 28, 1945, that he was not going to take Berlin. Previously, Eisenhower had never informed Moscow about his strategic plans, but here he went out in the open. Stalin, who expected a possible betrayal by the Western powers, in his response message indicated that the areas of Erfurt-Leipzig-Dresden and Vienna-Linz-Regensburg should become the junction of the Western and Soviet troops. Berlin, according to Stalin, has lost its former strategic importance. He assured Eisenhower that the Kremlin was sending secondary forces to the Berlin direction. The second half of May was called the potential date for the start of the main blow of the Soviet troops to the Western powers.
Whoever came first, that and Berlin
According to Stalin's estimates, the Berlin operation should have begun no later than April 16 and completed within 12-15 days. The question remained open as to who should capture the Nazi capital: Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov and the 1st Belorussian Front or Ivan Stepanovich Konev and the 1st Ukrainian Front.
“Whoever breaks through first, let him take Berlin,” Stalin told his generals. The third commander of the Soviet armed forces, Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky and his 2nd Belorussian Front, were to advance north of Berlin, reach the sea coast and defeat the enemy grouping there. Rokossovsky, like the rest of the officers of his regiment, was annoyed that he could not take part in the capture of Berlin. But there were objective reasons for this, their front was not ready for an offensive operation.
Zhukov's optical "wonder weapon"
The operation began at five in the morning (three in the morning Berlin time) with artillery preparation. Twenty minutes later, searchlights were turned on, and the infantry, supported by tanks and self-propelled guns, went on the attack. With their powerful light, more than 100 anti-aircraft searchlights were supposed to blind the enemy and provide a night attack until dawn. But in practice they had the opposite effect. Colonel General Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov later recalled that it was impossible to observe the battlefield from his observation post.
The reason was the unfavorable foggy weather and the cloud of smoke and dust formed after the artillery preparation, which even the light of searchlights could not break through. Some of them were faulty, the rest turned on and off. This greatly interfered with the Soviet soldiers. Many of them stopped at the first natural obstacle, waiting for dawn to cross some stream or canal. The "inventions" of Georgy Zhukov, successfully used earlier in the defense of Moscow, near Berlin, instead of benefit, brought only harm.
"Mistake" of the commander
The commander of the 1st Belorussian Army, Marshal Georgy Zhukov, believed that during the first days of the operation, he did not make a single mistake at all. The only oversight, in his opinion, was the underestimation of the complex nature of the terrain in the area of the Seelow Heights, where the main defensive forces and equipment of the enemy were located. The battles for these heights cost Zhukov one or two days of battle. These heights slowed down the advance of the 1st Belorussian Front, increasing Konev's chances for the right to be the first to enter Berlin. But, as Zhukov expected, the Zeelovsky heights were soon taken by the morning of April 18, and it became possible to use all the tank formations of the 1st Belorussian formation on a wide front. The way to Berlin was open and a week later Soviet soldiers stormed the capital of the Third Reich.
