History 12/01/20 Why the Red Army first surrounded the Germans in Stalingrad
surrounded by enemy troops in World war II was the most effective and common of offensive operations, which was used by the armed forces of the main belligerent countries: the USSR, Germany, great Britain and the United States. Very often these operations were carried out on the Eastern front, and was considered the main forms of occurrence in the Wehrmacht and the red Army. However, if the German army very successfully took pliers and created the boilers, which were considerable Soviet forces (up to the fronts), then for the red Army the experience of the first years of the war was rather sad.
the Most favorable unfortunate outcome, paradoxical as it may sound, there were situations when operations on the surrounding troops were unsuccessful at the first stage. That is, the defense just to break did not work, and of the heavy losses the attack was stopped. Large losses are bad, but many offensive operations in which our troops broke through the German defense and left them in the rear end even more tragic.
the Danger of such operations inherent in them originally. Implementation of breakthrough and deep penetrations of troops behind enemy lines is always a risk that the flanks of the attacking forces can be struck. Causing the front restored, and the troops that were supposed to surround, themselves surrounded. Unfortunately, the command of the Wehrmacht used a similar technique often, and, alas, successfully. Soviet historians on these situations, always silent, and perhaps the only, which was known to the General public, the story was mechanized corps Solomatina, shown in the movie “the Body of General Shubnikov”. And in this movie the tragedy of Soviet troops was shown as a conscious maneuver, supposedly distracting from the battle of Stalingrad.
as the Soviet troops from the first days of the war pytalisü surround pulling ahead of the German troops, the examples we can gain a lot. During the battle of Yelnya in 1941, when the troops of the Reserve front, under the command of Zhukov tried to surround the German divisions in ellinskom ledge, 109 Panzer division broke through the enemy’s defenses, she was surrounded. In the case of the tragedy not occurred, the tankers were able after several days of fighting to escape to his own, although the losses were enormous.
More such examples was during the fighting at Rzhev. Rzhev protrusion was of great importance and represented a great danger. To eliminate it unsuccessfully tried all in 1942. The above mentioned case Solomatina there were surrounded, and he was not the only one. Examples of such cases indicates V. Beshanov’s book, “the Year 1942 – “training”, in the Chapter on operation “Mars”
At the beginning of the battles at Vyazma, the environment was a 33rd army General Ephraim along with the 1st guards cavalry corps. Very few are then able to break through to her, the General Efremov was shot, so as not to be captured.
even in the Soviet times a well, though no details were known about the tragedy of the 2nd shock army. In the course of Luban offensive in the spring of 1942 the army was encircled. Managed to escape a few, a large number were captured, including the infamous General Vlasov.
Few people know that in 1942, during Sinyavinskaya operation the 2nd shock was again encircled. Again there was a defeat, huge losses, more than 12 thousand prisoners, and only a little more than four and a half thousand people were able to escape from the environment.
the Fear, or, more mildly, the risk that troops will be surrounded, can be traced from the actions of the don front in 1942, in October.
the front Command of the 7th October, I received a Directive of General staff No. 170644, in which she was instructed, jointly with the troops of the Stalingrad front to conduct the operation to encircle the troops of the 6th army PAulus at Stalingrad. For this the troops of the don front had to break through the German defense in the area of the station Colocaban, continue to meet with the troops of the Stalingrad front, which carried out the breakthrough South of Stalingrad. The Germans would get into the ring. But the front command did not like the fact that the breakout on the left flank were the 14th motorized corps Germans. Which could easily hit the flank to cut off our troops had broken through.
Therefore, Rokossovsky addressed to the Bet with a request to first carry out the operation to destroy the German 14th corps, to protect themselves from the flank.
Bet offer Rokossovsky was not accepted, but allowed the 10th of October to conduct private limited offensive forces. It was the only one of the many offensive operations of the don front in September-October 1942, which was allowed to mention the Soviet historians.
it Ended in failure. German defenses to crush failed, despite the huge forces involved in the attack. Worst of all was that the losses were too great, and influenced the outcome of the main transaction. Energy spent in the attack of the 10th of October is just not enough in order to break through the German defense. Started the 20th of October the offensive was inconclusive, the task of the troops of Rokossovsky not fulfilled, the losses were enormous.
we should Not think that such a situation is characteristic only for the most difficult war years, 1941 and 1942. Some examples took place at the very end of the great Patriotic war. During the liquidation of German troops in Courland in March 1945, the 8th (Panfilov) and the 29th guards rifle division was encircled and for two days fought until they managed to escape.
Even these are not complete, the examples easy to understand why commanders who were instructed to surround the enemy, afraid to conduct such operations.
Cyril Shishkin
Source:
© Russian Seven
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