This blow was of exceptional force. Despite the huge losses, the invaders climbed ahead. Columns of infantry in cars and tanks broke into the city. Apparently, the Nazis believed that his fate was sealed, and each of them sought to reach the Volga, the city center, as soon as possible and profit from trophies there. Our fighters, snipers, armor-piercers, artillerymen, hiding in houses, in basements and bunkers around the corners of houses, saw how drunken Nazis jumped off cars, played harmonicas, yelled furiously and danced on the sidewalks.
The invaders were dying by the hundreds, but fresh waves of reserves flooded the streets more and more. Submachine gunners leaked into the city to the east railway, to the station, to the houses of specialists. The battle took place 800 meters from the command post of the army headquarters. There was a threat that before the approach of the 13th Guards Rifle Division, the enemy would occupy the station, cut the army and go to the central crossing.
On the left wing, in the suburbs of Minin, fierce battles also broke out. Did not leave the enemy alone and our right flank. The situation worsened with each passing hour.
I had a small reserve left: the only heavy tank brigade of 19 tanks. She was behind the left wing of the army, near the elevator, on the southern outskirts of the city. I ordered the urgent transfer of one battalion of tanks from this brigade to the command post of the army headquarters. Two hours later, this battalion of nine tanks arrived. By this time, General Krylov had already formed two groups of staff workers and a security company. The first group, reinforced by six tanks, was headed by the head of the operations department, communist I. Zalizyuk. She received the task of blocking the streets leading from the station to the pier. The second group - with three tanks - led by Lieutenant Colonel M. G. Vainrub, was sent to the houses of specialists, from which the enemy fired on the Volga and the pier with heavy machine gun fire.
Both groups included the commanders of the army headquarters and the political department, almost all communists. And they did not allow the Nazis to the pier - they provided cover for the first ferries with the guards of the Rodimtsev division.
At 2 pm, the commander of the 13th Guards Rifle Division, Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General Alexander Ilyich Rodimtsev, came to me. He was covered in dust and dirt. To get from the Volga to our command post, he had to "land" in the funnels more than once, hide in the ruins, hiding from enemy dive planes.
Major General Rodimtsev reported to me that the division was well-equipped, with about 10,000 men. But with weapons and ammunition is bad. More than a thousand fighters do not have rifles. The military council of the front instructed the deputy front commander, Lieutenant General F. I. Golikov, to provide the division with the missing weapons no later than the evening of September 14, delivering it to the Krasnaya Sloboda area. But there was no guarantee that it would arrive on time. I immediately ordered my deputy for logistics, General Lobov, who was on the left bank of the Volga, to mobilize all my workers so that they would collect weapons in the rear units of the army and hand them over to the guards.
General Rodimtsev already knew the situation at the front of the army. The chief of staff of the army, Krylov, knew how to inform people on the go. He brought General Rodimtsev up to date as well. He was given the task of transporting the division to the right bank of the Volga on the night of September 15th. The artillery of the division, in addition to anti-tank, occupied firing positions on the left bank in order to support the actions of rifle units from there. Anti-tank guns and mortars were transported into the city.
The division immediately joined the fighting. Two rifle regiments were supposed to clear the city center, the houses of specialists and the station from the Nazis, the third regiment was given the task of defending Mamayev Kurgan. One rifle battalion remained in reserve at the army command post.
The boundaries of the division's site: on the right - Mamaev Kurgan, a railway loop, on the left - the Tsaritsa River.
Rodimtsev was asked to set up a command post on the banks of the Volga, near the pier, where there are dugouts and cracks and where communication has already been given.
At the end of the conversation, I asked him:
How are you?
He replied:
I am a communist, I am not going to leave here and I will not leave.
As soon as the units of the division enter the front line of battle, I will subordinate all units operating separately in this sector to you.
After some thought, Rodimtsev said that he would be ashamed to sit on his command post behind the army command post. I reassured him, assuring him that as soon as the division completed its task, we would allow him to transfer his command post forward.
We have no right to count on the passive actions of the enemy, I stressed. - The enemy decided to destroy us at any cost and capture the city. Therefore, we cannot only defend ourselves, we must use every opportunity for counterattacks, to impose your will on the enemy and to frustrate his plans with active actions.
It was about 4 p.m., with five hours left until dusk. Will we be able to hold out with fragmented and broken units and subunits for another ten to twelve hours in the central direction? This worried me the most. Will the fighters and commanders be able to complete tasks that seemed beyond human strength? If it is carried out, then the 13th Guards Rifle Division may end up on the left bank of the Volga as a witness to a sad tragedy.
At this time, information was received that the counterattacking consolidated regiment had lost many commanders and was left without control. We didn't have any reserves. The last reserve - guards and employees of the army headquarters - in battle. Through the roof of the dugout came the roar of German aircraft engines and bomb explosions.
In search of at least some reserves, I called in the division commander, Colonel A. A. Saraev. He was listed as the head of the garrison, and his division occupied the prepared defense units and strongholds in the city. Colonel Saraev, according to Krylov, considered himself independent and was not particularly willing to follow the orders of the army.
Arriving at my place, he reported in detail on the state of the division, on the defensive areas occupied by his units, on the situation in the city and in the industrial settlements.
From his report, I learned that fortifications consisted mainly of small bunkers equipped with 25-30 percent and, of course, did not have sufficient stability. Some structures, in particular the barricades, I saw myself, they really could not serve as a sufficient support to fight the enemy.
I asked Colonel Saraev if he understood that his division had already been integrated into the army and that he must obey the Army Military Council without question? Is it necessary, I asked him, to call the Military Council of the front to clarify an already clear question? Saraev replied that he was a soldier of the 62nd Army.
However, it was not necessary to count on any of its units as a reserve for parrying enemy attacks: it was impossible to remove them from strongholds. But at the disposal of Saraev were several detachments of armed guards of factories and districts, headed by commandants. The total number of these detachments, consisting of the city police, firefighters and workers, reached 1,500 people. They didn't have enough weapons. I ordered the colonel to outline strong buildings for defense in the center of the city, plant 50-100 people in them, led by communist commanders, fortify and hold out in such strongholds to the last opportunity. Recalling that the division and armed detachments could obtain weapons and ammunition from the army's ammunition department, I suggested that Saraev keep in constant contact with my command post.
Right there in front of me, he marked especially important objects on the city plan. I agreed with his proposal.
A. A. Saraev, as the division commander and especially as the head of the garrison, who knew the city well and the channels of communication with urban industrial facilities, helped me a lot in organizing armed detachments at many factories and in strong buildings. Residents of the city shoulder to shoulder, together with the soldiers of the 62nd Army until last strength fought with fascist invaders. Motherland, Stalingrad will never forget this.
Option 1
Part 1
1. Read an excerpt from the order of the German command and determine which operation the text refers to:
“The purpose of the offensive is to encircle the enemy forces located in the Kursk region and destroy them with a concentrated offensive ... It is necessary ... to concentrate offensive forces as best as possible on a narrow sector of the front in order to use the superiority in certain points of all offensive means (tanks, assault guns, artillery, smoke mortars, etc.) and with one blow, before connecting both advancing armies, break through the enemy’s front and surround him ... "
1) "Typhoon"; 2) "Citadel"; 3) "Uranus"; 4) "Bagration".
2. To the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War applies to:
1) Smolensk battle; 2) Battle of Stalingrad;
3) the battle on the Kursk Bulge; 4) Berlin operation.
3. The offensive of the troops of the South-Western Front to Kharkov in the spring of 1942. ended:
1) The defeat of the German group; 2) Liberation of the North Caucasus;
3) The encirclement of two Soviet armies; 4) The encirclement of the German armies.
4. The beginning of the blockade of Leningrad:
1) July 10, 1941; 2) September 8, 1941; 3) August 30, 1941; 4) September 15, 1941
5. Offensive operation Soviet troops near Stalingrad was named:
1) "Bagration"; 2) "Citadel"; 3) "Uranus"; 4) "Typhoon".
6. Establish a correspondence between the names of the battles on the Soviet-German front and the years when they took place.
BATTLE NAMES | YEARS |
||
Kursk | 1941 |
||
Berlin | 1942-1943 |
||
Moscow | 1943 |
||
Stalingradskaya | 1944 |
||
1945 |
|||
7. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of Marshal A.M. Vasilevsky and indicate the preparation for which offensive operation is being discussed.
“The Soviet command was faced with a dilemma: to attack or defend? All possibilities were carefully analyzed, all options for action were studied. The only correct decision was made by the collective mind, the creative work of experienced military leaders and headquarters, wise after two years of war... Analyzing intelligence data on the preparation of the enemy for the offensive, the fronts, General base and the Headquarters gradually leaned towards the idea of transitioning to deliberate defense ... "
1) Stalingrad 2) Berlin3) Moscow 4) Kursk
8. Read an excerpt from the directive of the German command and write the name of the plan of the German command, to the implementation of which this directive was directed.
9. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of G.K. Zhukov and indicate which operation of the Great Patriotic War is referred to in the passage.
“Our aviation went over the battlefield in waves ... However, the enemy, having come to his senses, began to resist from the Seelow Heights with his artillery, mortars ... a group of bombers appeared ... And the closer our troops approached the Seelow Heights, the stronger the resistance of the enemy increased...
10. Read the excerpt from the remembrance contract and indicate the year it was signed.
What
11. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of a military leader and indicate what event of the Great Patriotic War is in question.
“That day, the Supreme Commander called me at the command post of the Bryansk Front and ordered me to urgently fly to the Prokhorovka region and take over the coordination of the actions of the Voronezh and Steppe Fronts ... There were clouds of dust and smoke over the battlefield. It was a turning point in the battle in the Belgorod direction. The Nazi troops, drained of blood and having lost in victory, gradually switched to defensive actions.
12. Read an excerpt from the work of a modern historian and indicate the battle for which city it refers to
"The battle for _____ was the decisive event of the first year of the war and the first major defeat of the Nazis in World War II. In addition, the myth of the invincibility of the German army was finally dispelled, and the Germans had to abandon the "lightning war" plan.
13. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky and indicate the name of the city, the battle for which is discussed in the document.
"There were 22 divisions in the ring ... The Nazi command doomed hundreds of thousands of its soldiers to death. For several months it forced them to fight without any hope of salvation. In essence, these people, by the will of the Hitlerite clique, were doomed to complete annihilation .. "Among the prisoners were 24 generals led by Field Marshal Paulus. Yesterday's enemies stood before us unarmed, suppressed..."
14. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and indicate the name of the authority of the period of the Great Patriotic War in question.
"_____ led all military operations of the armed forces on land, at sea and in the air, carried out an increase in strategic efforts in the course of the struggle at the expense of reserves and the use of forces partisan movement. The working (his) body was the General Staff.
15. Read an excerpt from a Soviet military report and determine the name of the German commander mentioned in it.
"From the morning of January 31, 1943, Field Marshal ____ was in the house of the executive committee (the central part of Stalingrad) with members of his headquarters and strong guards. During the battle, the building was surrounded by units of the 38th motorized rifle ... During the negotiations, Field Marshal ___ was presented the demand is to give an order to the troops of the northern group to stop resistance.
1) Manstein 2) Keitel 3) Rommel 4) Paulus
Part 2
1. Below are two points of view on the main reasons for the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War:
1. The victory was achieved only due to a careless attitude towards human lives from the side of the Soviet command (“the Germans were filled with corpses”), and the Soviet army, until the end of the war, was lower in its combat qualities than the German one.
2. Victory in the war was achieved due to the superiority of the Soviet system, the patriotic upsurge and the high military potential of the Soviet army.
2. Name at least three results of the Second World War 1941-1945. and at least three operations of the final stage of the war.
"The Great Patriotic War"
Option 2
Part 1
1. Battle of Smolensk during the Great Patriotic War
1) suspended the German attack on Moscow for a month;
2) prevented the complete blocking of Leningrad by the Germans;
3) delayed the entry of the German armies into Kyiv;
4) ended with the first "cauldron" for the German army.
1) Kalinin; 2) Molotov; 3) Zhukov; 4) Stalin.
3. After which battle of the Second World War ended the radical change:
1) Moscow; 2) Stalingrad; 3) Kursk; 4) Berlin.
4. Which battle does not belong to the "10 Stalinist blows":
1) Lifting the blockade of Leningrad; 2) Liberation of Crimea and Odessa;
3) Korsun-Shevchenko operation; 4) Kursk Bulge.
5. Order No. 227 "Not a step back!" released during the battle:
1) Moscow; 2) Stalingrad; 3) Kursk; 4) Defense of Leningrad.
6. Which of the Soviet commanders led the capture of Berlin
1) Stalin; 2) Zhukov; 3) Rokossovsky; 4). Vasilevsky.
7. Correlate the name of military operations and their goals:
NAMES OF OPERATIONS | GOALS |
||
Bagration | Capture of Moscow |
||
Barbarossa | Advance at Stalingrad |
||
Typhoon | Liberation of Belarus |
||
Uranus | Invasion of the USSR |
||
8. Read an excerpt from the work of the modern historian N. Werth and indicate the title of the document. “The agreement was accompanied by a secret protocol, a photocopy of which was later discovered in Germany, but the existence of which was nevertheless denied in the USSR until the summer of 1989. The protocol demarcated the spheres of influence of the parties in Eastern Europe ...”
3) act of surrender of Germany 4) Munich agreement
9. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of Marshal V.I. Chuikov and write the name of the battle that it refers to.
“...Despite the huge losses, the invaders went ahead. Columns of infantry in cars and tanks broke into the city. Apparently, the Nazis believed that his fate had been decided, and each of them sought to reach the city center as soon as possible and profit from trophies there ... Our soldiers ... crawled out from under German tanks, most often wounded, to the next line, where they were received, united in units, supplied mainly with ammunition, and again thrown into battle.
10. Read an excerpt from the work of a modern historian and indicate the name of the city that is missing in it.
“Fierce defensive battles were fought near Odessa. By order of the Headquarters, the Odessa defensive region was created. The fighting went on until October 16, after which the Odessa garrison was evacuated to the Crimea. Defensive battles in the Crimea began in September-October 1941. The longest was the defense of ____, it lasted 250 days. The Black Sea sailors held out to the last.
1) Kerch 2) Sevastopol 3) Leningrad 4) Novorossiysk
11. Read a passage from a modern historian's work and indicate the name of the army missing in the passage.
"Soviet troops liberated a number of ports North Korea and the Kuril Islands. The Red Army, together with the ships of the Navy, dealt a crushing blow to the Japanese, defeating a powerful
army, which provided effective assistance to the peoples of China and Korea.
1) Beijing 2) Kwantung 3) Kuril 4) Tsushima
12. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of a military leader and indicate the name of the city in question.
"The building is illuminated by the fire of conflagrations. On the stairs, past the statue of Bismarck, we rush to the second floor ... Jumping over two or three steps at once, we break out jumping straight up. A few more turns - and the dome of the Reichstag opens to our eyes - the dome we reach so dreamed and on the way to which they lost their comrades.
13. Read an excerpt from the work of a modern historian and indicate the name of the city with which the events described in the document are connected.
"In harsh conditions from January 22 to April 15, 1942, more than half a million people and a huge amount of industrial equipment and historical valuables were taken out of _______ over ice .... the lake."
14. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and indicate the event of the Great Patriotic War in question.
"On August 23, 1943 ... this largest battle of the Great Patriotic War ended ... Fifty days lasted greatest battle our troops from Nazi German troops. It ended with the victory of the Red Army, which defeated 30 selected German divisions, including 7 tank divisions ... The fascist leadership could no longer compensate for such losses with any total measures. Hitler's attempt to wrest the strategic initiative from the hands of the Soviet command ended in complete failure, and from then until the end of the war, German troops were forced tofight only defensive battles.
Part 2
1. Below are two points of view on the meaning of the Non-Aggression Pact between the USSR and Germany, called the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact:
- The signing of the non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany and the secret protocol to it was a diplomatic success of the USSR.
- The signing of the pact was a mistake that had grave consequences for the USSR.
Please indicate which of these points of view you prefer. Give at least three facts, provisions that can serve as arguments confirming your chosen point of view.
2. Specify the reasons for the failures of the Red Army at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War. List at least three reasons. Name at least three battles during the summer-autumn of 1941.
"The Great Patriotic War"
Option 3
Part 1
1. A radical change during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. was achieved as a result of the defeat of the fascist troops
1) near Stalingrad and on the Kursk Bulge 2) near Moscow
3) in East Prussia 4) on the Vistula and Oder
2. The 62nd Army fought heroically in the Battle of Stalingrad under the command of General
1) V.I. Chuikov 2) V.K. Blucher 3) G.K. Zhukov 4) M.V. Frunze
3. Outstanding commanders of the Great Patriotic War were
1) A.A. Brusilov, D.F. Ustinov 2) A.N. Kosygin, A.A. Gromyko
3) I.V. Stalin, S.M. Budyonny 4) I.S. Konev, K.K. Rokossovsky
4. During the Great Patriotic War, an event occurred
1) the signing of the Munich Treaty 2) the Iasi-Kishinev operation
3) battle near Kunersdorf 4) defense of Tsaritsyn
5. Read an excerpt from a work by a modern historian and indicate which decisions international conference it says.
“... The conference was held after the surrender of Germany... The structure of Germany on a democratic basis was proclaimed. The conference determined that the Allies should pursue a common policy in their occupation zones in order to turn Germany into a single peace-loving state.
1) Yalta 3) Tehran
2) Potsdam 4) Paris
6. During the Great Patriotic War, an event occurred during Operation Bagration
1) defense of the Brest Fortress 2) Tehran conference
3) liberation of Belarus 4) forcing the Dnieper
7. Read the excerpt from the plan of the military command and indicate the name of the plan.
“The ultimate goal of the operation is to create a protective barrier against Asian Russia along the Volga-Arkhangelsk line. Thus, if necessary, the last industrial region of the Russians in Ural mountains can be destroyed by air forces."
1) "Ost" 2) "Citadel" 3) "Typhoon" 4) "Barbarossa"
8. The Nazis attached particular importance to the capture of Stalingrad, because
1) sought to cut off transport routes for the delivery of oil from Baku
2) sought to implement the "blitzkrieg" plan
3) feared the opening of a second front in 1941.
4) the defense of the city was personally commanded by I.V. Stalin
9. Read an excerpt from a German military report and determine what events it refers to.
"June 26, 1941 . East Fort remained the nest of resistance. You can't get here with money.. infantry, as excellent rifle and machine-gun fire from deep trenches and from a horseshoe-shaped courtyard mowed down every approacher.
27th of June . From one prisoner we learned that about 20 commanders and 370 fighters were defending in the Eastern Fort with enough ammunition and food. Water is not enough, but it is taken from dug holes. There are also women and children in the fort. The soul of the resistance is supposedly one major and one commissar.
1) defense of Leningrad 2) defense of the Brest Fortress
3) the battle for Kyiv 4) the battle near Smolensk
10. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of a Soviet military leader and write the name of the battle, the beginning of which is discussed in the document.
“From the early morning of April 17, fierce battles flared up in all sectors of the front, the enemy desperately resisted. However, by evening, unable to withstand the blow of the tank armies introduced the day before, which, in cooperation with the combined arms armies, broke through the defenses on the Seelow Heights in a number of sectors, the enemy began to retreat. On the morning of April 18, the Seelow Heights were taken ... "
11. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and write about the situation of the inhabitants of which city during the Great Patriotic War it says.
“How many delights there were when they added bread. They shouted“ cheers ”in the bakeries. This increase cannot restore the destroyed forces. The point is clear. The people are falling ... But it brought with it hope: it will be better!
Everyone mentions Lake Ladoga. Ice road. Ice track. Road to Life."
12. Match the name of military operations and their goals:
Bagration | Capture of Moscow |
||
Barbarossa | Advance at Stalingrad |
||
Typhoon | Liberation of Belarus |
||
Uranus | Invasion of the USSR |
||
German offensive on the Kursk Bulge |
13. Read a fragment from the memoirs of the chief marshal of the armored forces P.A. Rotmistrov and determine at the entrance of which of the battles the described battle took place.
"From the very first minutes of the battle, two powerful avalanches of tanks in deep formation, raising clouds of dust and smoke, moved towards each other ...
The battle lasted until late in the evening. Clutched into one giant tangle, the tanks could no longer disperse. Frontal attacks were accompanied by ramming into the side, fire duels of cannons and machine guns. The ground groaned from the burst of shells and the steel roar. Tanks and self-propelled guns were burning all around.
It was terrible, unprecedented tank battle. "
14. Read an excerpt from the order People's Commissar defense of the USSR and write what name this order received.
"... To the Military Councils of the armies and, above all, to the commanders of the armies: ... to form within the army 3-5 well-armed barrage detachments (up to 200 people each), place them in the immediate rear of unstable divisions and oblige them in case of panic and disorderly the withdrawal of parts of the division to shoot alarmists and cowards on the spot and thereby help the honest fighters of the divisions to fulfill their duty to the Motherland.
15. Read an excerpt from the directive of the German command and write the name of the plan of the German command, to the implementation of which this directive was directed.
“The German armed forces must be ready to defeat Soviet Russia through a fleeting military operation even before the end of the war with England. Particular attention must be paid to the fact that the intention to carry out an attack is not guessed ... common goal: the masses of the Russian army located in the western part of Russia must be destroyed in bold operations with a deep advance of tank units. The retreat of combat-ready units into the expanses of Russian territory should be prevented ... "
Part 2
1) From the memoirs of Marshal G.K. Zhukov.
“Thousands of multi-colored rockets shot up into the air. At this signal, 140 searchlights flashed, located every 200 meters. More than 100 billion candles illuminated the battlefield, blinding the enemy and snatching objects of attack from the darkness for our tanks and infantry. It was a picture of great impressive power...
Hitler's troops were literally sunk in a continuous sea of fire and metal. A solid wall of dust and smoke hung in the air, and in places even the powerful beams of anti-aircraft searchlights could not penetrate it.
Our aviation went over the battlefield in waves ... However, the enemy, having come to his senses, began to resist from the Seelow Heights with his artillery, mortars ... a group of bombers appeared ... And the closer our troops approached the Seelow Heights, the more enemy resistance...
On April 20, on the fifth day of the operation, long-range artillery opened fire ... A historic assault began ... "
C1. What battle are you talking about?
C2. Using the text and knowledge from the course of history, name at least two distinctive features of this battle.
SZ. What was the significance of the described battle for the general course of the war? What events followed it (name at least two events).
"The Great Patriotic War"
Option 4
Part 1
1. What was the reason for the retreat of the Red Army at the beginning of the war?
1) miscalculations of the Soviet leadership in determining the timing of the start of the war
2) Hitler's "appeasement policy" pursued by Western countries
3) the concentration of German forces in the central direction
4) the refusal of the Soviet leadership to announce a general mobilization
2. What was the name of the emergency body of the highest military administration, which carried out the strategic leadership of the troops during the war years?
1) NKVD 2) Revolutionary Military Council
3) Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense 4) Headquarters of the Supreme High Command
3. What event happened during the Great Patriotic War during the Battle of Moscow?
1) defense of the Brest Fortress 2) creation anti-Hitler coalition
3) the creation of the Road of Life 4) the encirclement of Soviet troops near Vyazma
4. Which direction of the strike of the German troops in the spring and summer of 1942 was the main
1) central direction 2) young direction
3) northern direction 4) Leningrad direction
5. What event happened during the Great Patriotic War during Operation Uranus
1) defense of the Brest Fortress 2) Tageran Conference
3) forcing the Dnieper 4) the encirclement of German troops in Stalingrad
6. What event happened during the Battle of Kursk
1) creation of the Road of Life 2) breaking through the blockade of Leningrad
3) the largest tank battle 4) the surrender of the army of Field Marshal Paulus
7. What is the largest military operation referred to in the message of the Sovinformburo dated November 5, 1943
"The Red Army crossed the largest water barrier ... and liberated ... the most important industrial centers in the south of our country ... Thus, our troops broke into the entire enemy defenses from Zaporozhye to the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov ..."
8. Read an excerpt from the memoirs of a military leader and indicate what event of the Great Patriotic War is in question.
"The German General Westphal, describing the Typhoon operation, was forced to admit "that the German army, previously considered invincible, was on the verge of annihilation."
What is true is true ... The Red Army for the first time in six months of the war inflicted the largest defeat on the main grouping of Nazi troops. This was our first strategic victory over the Wehrmacht."
9. Read an excerpt from the work of a historian and determine which city it refers to the battle for.
"The difficult conditions of street fighting with a stubbornly defending enemy were more favorable to the Russians, although they were also in a difficult position. In the current situation, they had to transport reinforcements and ammunition on ferries and barges across the Volga under artillery fire. This limited the size of the forces that the Russians could hold and provide supplies on the western bank of the river for the defense of the city."
10. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and indicate the name of the authority of the period of the Great Patriotic War in question
"On June 30, 1941, an emergency body was created - headed by I.V. Stalin. It became an authoritative body for leading the country's defense, concentrating all power in its hands. Civil, party, Soviet organizations were obliged to comply with all its decisions and orders. .. "
1) Revolutionary Military Council 2) Headquarters of the Supreme High Command
3) State Defense Committee 4) Evacuation Council
11. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and indicate which battle of the Great Patriotic War is in question.
“The result of a defensive battle should, in my opinion, be considered the defeat of the enemy’s tank formations, as a result of which a particularly favorable balance of forces for us in this important branch of service arose. To a large extent, our victory in a major oncoming battle south of Prokhorovka contributed to this ... I happened to be witness this truly titanic duel of two steel armadas (up to 1200 tanks and self-propelled artillery mounts) on July 12."
12. Establish a correspondence between the names of the battles on the Soviet-German front and the years when they took place.
BATTLE NAMES | YEARS |
||
Stalingradskaya | 1941 |
||
Berlin | 1942-1943 |
||
Kursk | 1943 |
||
Moscow | 1944 |
||
1945 |
|||
13. Read an excerpt from the memoirs and indicate the year to which the described events of the Great Patriotic War refer.
“The situation at that time remained very difficult for our country. Under the heel of the fascist invaders were the Baltic States and Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova, Western and southern regions Russian Federation. The enemy continued blockade of Leningrad, kept large forces of troops not far from Moscow. The strategic reserves accumulated with great effort were used up in the battles near Moscow. Despite the fact that the efforts of the Party and the entire Soviet people by the summer had achieved considerable results in the development of the national economy, so far it provided the army with only the minimum necessary means for organizing a rebuff to the enemy hordes. The situation was aggravated, as mentioned earlier, by the unsuccessful outcome of the hostilities for our troops near Leningrad, Kharkov and in the Crimea.
1) 1941 2) 1942 3) 1943 4) 1944
14. Read an excerpt from a historian's book and indicate the battle of the Great Patriotic War described in it.
“The counteroffensive of the Red Army and the defeat of the Germans is the main event of the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War. This was the first major defeat of Germany, which showed that the idea of the invincibility of her armies was a myth. For some time, the Red Army managed to seize the strategic initiative. The prerequisites for the formation of an anti-Hitler coalition were formed.
15. Read the excerpt from the treaty of remembrance and indicate the year it was signed.
"Stalin made a pact with Germany in order to push Hitler to attack Poland, knowing full well What England and France will take her side. After the alleged victory of Germany over Poland, Russia, firstly, will regain important areas lost in the victorious war; and secondly, it will calmly watch how Germany, fighting with the Western powers, exhausts its forces, so that at the right moment to throw all the power of the Red Army to the further Bolshevization of Europe.
1) 1933 2) 1937 3) 1939 4) 1941
Part 2
“The offensive began on July 5 with a maneuver long known to the Russians from numerous previous operations, and therefore unraveled by them in advance. Hitler wanted to destroy the positions of the Russians advanced in the form of an arc with a double encirclement ... and thereby seize the initiative on Eastern Front back into your own hands.
From July 10 to 15, I visited both advancing fronts ... and on the spot, in conversations with tank commanders, I clarified the course of events, the shortcomings of our offensive methods in offensive battle And negative sides our technology. My fears about the insufficient preparedness of the Panther tanks for combat operations at the front were confirmed. 90 tanks ... of the Porsche [Ferdinand] company ... also showed that they did not meet the requirements of close combat; these tanks, as it turned out, were not even adequately supplied with ammunition. The situation was aggravated by the fact that they did not have machine guns ... They failed to either destroy or suppress the [Russian] infantry firing points in order to allow the ... [German] infantry to advance. After advancing 10 km, [General] Model's troops were stopped. True, success was greater in the south, but it was not enough to block the Russian arc or lower its resistance. On July 15, the Russian offensive began on Orel ... On August 4, the city had to be abandoned. Belgorod fell on the same day.
As a result of the failure of the Citadel Offensive, we suffered a decisive defeat. The armored forces, replenished with such great difficulty, were put out of action for a long time due to heavy losses in people and equipment ... Needless to say, the Russians hurried to use their success. And already on the Eastern Front there were no quiet days. The initiative has completely passed to the enemy.
C1. What battle of the Great Patriotic War is mentioned in the memoirs of Heinz Guderian? Name it, date (year).
C2. What tasks did the German command set for its troops in Operation Citadel? Name at least two problems.
SZ. What was the significance of the described battle for the general course of the war?
2. Below are two points of view on the question of the role of the Western and Eastern fronts in World War II:
Answers
Option 1
6- A-3, B-5, V-1, G-2
8-Barbarossa
9-Berlin operation
10-3
11-Kursk battle
12-Moscow
13-Stalingrad
14-2
15-4
part 2
1 ) Below are two points of view on the main reasons for the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War:
- Victory in the war was achieved due to the superiority of the Soviet system, the high military potential of the Soviet Army, the art of military leaders, patriotic enthusiasm and mass heroism.
- The victory was achieved at the expense of colossal human losses, and the Soviet Army, until the end of the war, was lower in its fighting qualities than the German one.
Indicate which of the above points of view seems to you more preferable and convincing. Give at least three facts, provisions that can serve as arguments confirming your chosen point of view.
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2) Name at least three outcomes of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Specify at least three operations of the final stage of the war.
Answer:
- The following results of the Great Patriotic War can be indicated:
- the victory of the anti-Hitler coalition, the USSR defended its state independence despite huge material and human losses, the statehood of the peoples of Europe occupied by Germany was restored;
- fascist Germany and Japan suffered a military-political defeat, the anti-democratic regimes in these countries, as well as in Italy, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and others, fell;
- the prestige of the USSR grew, its international influence increased, a system of socialist states under its direct control began to form in Central and South-Eastern Europe;
- in Europe and Far East there were some territorial changes (in particular, Poland received Silesia, the USSR - East Prussia, the whole of Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands);
- a powerful impetus was given to the national liberation movement, the destruction of the colonial system began;
- fascism and Nazism were condemned as an ideology of aggression, violence, racial superiority.
- The following operations of the final stage of the war can be indicated:
- lifting the blockade of Leningrad; liberation of Odessa; liberation of Belarus (operation "Bagration"); Lvov-Sandomierz operation; Vistula-Oder operation; Berlin
Option 2
7- A-3, B-4, C-1, G-2
9-Stalingradskaya
10-2
11-2
12-Berlin
13-Leningrad
14-Kursk
15-Battle for Moscow
part 2
1 ) Below are two points of view on the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact:
The signing of the non-aggression pact with fascist Germany and the secret protocol to it was a diplomatic success of the USSR.
The signing of the pact was a mistake that had grave consequences for the USSR.
Please indicate which of these points of view you prefer. Give at least three facts, provisions that can serve as arguments confirming your chosen point of view.
When choosing the first subtle point of view:
the signing of the pact became necessary as a result of the failure of negotiations with England and France
by signing a pact with Germany, the USSR directed fascist aggression to the West
the time needed to prepare for war was won
the union of the USSR and Germany forced Japan to reorient itself towards a war with the USA, and the USSR avoided a war on two fronts
the signing of the pact and the secret protocol to it allowed the USSR to include in its composition new territories that remained with it after the war
When choosing the second point of view:
the pact unleashed the hands of Germany to conquer half of Europe, which led to an increase in the military and economic potential of German fascism
The USSR discredited itself by signing an agreement with the Nazis and acting as an aggressor against Poland, the Baltic states, Finland and Romania. This slowed down the creation of the anti-Hitler coalition
the Soviet leadership was unable to take advantage of the time gained from the signing of the treaty
the signing of the treaty disorientated the Soviet people, the army, who could not decide on their attitude towards Germany as an ally or enemy, which harmed the country's defense
the signing of the pact and the secret protocol to it led to the forcible annexation of territories to the USSR, part of the population of which later supported the Nazi troops in the fight against the Soviet army.
2) Specify the reasons for the failures of the Red Army at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War. List at least three reasons. Name at least three battles during the summer-autumn of 1941.
Causes:large-scale repressions in the Red Army;
- the conviction that the treaties of 1939 would be respected in Germany;
- distrust of intelligence reports;
- as a result of the annexation of Western Ukraine and Western Belarus, the new borders of the USSR were not strengthened;
- Soviet military doctrine was based on the premise that the Red Army, in the event of an enemy attack, would wage war on foreign territory, and, therefore, did not provide for defensive tactics.
Battles - Leningrad defensive operation, Battle of Smolensk, Defense of Kyiv
Option 3
10-Berlinskaya
11-Leningrad
12-A-3, B-4, V-1, G-2
Kursk
13-Kursk
14-"Not one step back"
15-Barbarossa
part 2
1 ) From the memoirs of Marshal G.K. Zhukov.
1) Berlin offensive operation
2) The use of searchlights, the offensive was carried out by the forces of 3 fronts and the troops of the Kingdom of Poland
3) The battle led to the capture of Berlin and the end of the Second World War
2. Name at least three signs of a radical fracture during the Second World War. Name at least three battles and military operations of this period.
Answer:
The following signs of a radical change during the Great Patriotic War can be named:
transfer of strategic initiative to the Red Army;
the achievement by the USSR of military-technical superiority in supplying the army with the latest types of weapons;
ensuring the reliable superiority of the Soviet defense industry and the rear economy over the economy of the enemy (Germany);
qualitative changes in the balance of forces in the international arena in favor of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition.
The following battles can be specified:
Battle of Stalingrad;
battle on the Oryol-Kursk Bulge;
forcing the Dnieper, liberation of the Left-bank Ukraine, Donbass, Kyiv;
offensive operations in the Caucasus;
breaking the blockade of Leningrad.
Option 4
7-Dnepr
8-Battle for Moscow
9-Stalingrad
10-3
11-Kursk
12-A-2, B-5, V-3, G-1
13-2
14-Battle for Moscow
15-3
part 2
1. Read an excerpt from historical source and briefly answer the questions
An excerpt from the memoirs of General G. Guderian.
1) Kursk Bulge, 1943
2) to destroy the positions of the Russians advanced in the form of an arc with a double encirclement ... and thereby seize the initiative on the Eastern Front again in their own hands.
3) There was a radical change in the course of the war, the strategic initiative passed to the Soviet command, the cities of Orel, Belgorod, Kursk were liberated, favorable conditions were created for the opening of a second front
2) Below are two points of view on the question of the role of the Western and Eastern fronts in World War II:
1. The victory over fascism was won primarily thanks to the Western countries (USA and Great Britain), thanks to their victories in North Africa and Western Europe.
2. The main contribution to the victory over fascism was made by the USSR.
Please indicate which of these points of view you prefer. Give at least three facts, provisions that can serve as arguments confirming your chosen point of view.
When choosing the first point of view: | When choosing the second point of view: |
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Recently, in the media and on various forums, talk has become popular that Russian anti-aircraft missile systems are unlikely to cause any harm to American stealth fighters. First of all, the F-35 is called the ideal aircraft. Therefore, despite the supply of Russian S-300 systems to the Syrian army, Israeli “invisibles” will continue to strike with impunity at any targets in Syria. Moreover, all S-300 launchers will be destroyed from the air in the very near future.
Things have come to the point that the S-400 air defense system is no longer put into anything. And “iron” evidence is given: since the Triumph, while in Syria, has not yet shot down a single plane and intercepted a single missile, then this is a fiction, a simulacrum, a hollow ball inflated by Kremlin propaganda.
And all this because the Russians are not able to create anything worthwhile. They can only steal technologies from the USA, but at the same time they copy them very badly.
This can be answered by making an excursion into not so distant history. When in Vietnam "antediluvian" Russian anti-aircraft missile systems terrified the pilots of American "ideal" fighters to such an extent that they ejected from operational aircraft, only seeing the launch of an anti-aircraft missile.
American air raids on North Vietnam began in February 1965. The balance of forces of the opposing aircraft was such that only memories should have remained of the meager fleet of North Vietnamese aircraft in a week.
The DRV Air Force had only 60 aircraft. These were mainly Chinese copies of the Soviet MiG-17 transonic fighter, as well as several Il-28 front-line bombers.
americans, preparing for air intervention, more than a year restored old air bases in the region and built new ones. In addition, two aircraft carriers drove into the Gulf of Tonkin. As a result, the United States created a powerful aviation fist, which included about a thousand aircraft of various types - fighters, bombers, attack aircraft, reconnaissance aircraft, radar patrol aircraft, transporters, tankers ... Later, even B-52 strategic bombers appeared. In total, almost 5 thousand aircraft were thrown into the Vietnamese meat grinder from 1965 to 1973.
The F-100 and F-105 fighter-bombers were presented most massively. The most modern at the time of the beginning of the air intervention was the F-4 Phantom II, which was equally capable of gaining air supremacy, and striking on the ground, and making reconnaissance flights. He had a record supersonic speed - 2400 km / h, and a record ceiling for strike aircraft - 19000 m, and a significant range - 2400 km.
It is quite understandable that at first, American pilots made easy walks behind enemy lines, because nothing in the air threatened them. This happened at an altitude of 4-5 thousand meters, at an echelon to which the Vietnamese anti-aircraft artillery was not able to reach. Bombs were dropped at supersonic speeds, after which the bombers calmly returned to their bases.
The situation changed dramatically on July 24, 1965, when for the first time in Vietnam were used Soviet air defense systems S-75 "Dina". On this day, firing four missiles, anti-aircraft gunners shot down three Phantoms. Moreover, one of the missiles did not pass by, but hit the plane already hit by the previous shot.
The Americans were forced to change their impudent tactics to more prudent ones, based on the capabilities of the complex, which "does not miss." The speed of the aircraft for the "Dvina" did not matter, it was able to hit targets flying at a speed of 2300 km / h. Of course, the Phantom had a speed of 100 km / h higher. But this is if he flew at high altitude and light, without a bomb load. The radius of destruction of the complex was 34 km, and the range of heights of destruction of targets was from 3 km to 22 km.
Therefore, in the air defense zone, the bombers began to fall below three kilometers. But then they were waiting for the fire of anti-aircraft artillery.
Nevertheless, at first, the change in tactics reduced the losses of American aircraft, which had previously reached two hundred downed aircraft per month. At first, the effectiveness was phenomenal - on average, 1.5 missiles were spent per shot down aircraft. Then she began to decline.
In addition to flying at heights inaccessible to the S-75, the Americans began to use radio interference, which was exhibited by escort aircraft. It was effective method combat anti-aircraft missiles, since they had a radio command method of targeting. As a result of these activities, the effectiveness SAM dropped to 9-10 missiles spent on one aircraft.
But the effectiveness of American aviation has also decreased, since up to 30-40% of the flight time, the aircraft began to spend hunting for Dvina launchers.
Engineers of the ICB "Strela" energetically searched for and found ways to neutralize the anti-missile tricks of the Americans. The lower limit of destruction was reduced from 3 km to 500 m. Only the newest American F-111 variable-wing geometry bombers, which appeared in 1967, could slip into this “gap” from the surface of the earth, which, due to the use of effective radar and excellent automation, could fly with terrain envelope at supersonic speeds. That is why only two of these aircraft were lost during the entire Vietnam War.
Also, the noise immunity of the missile control channel was significantly increased, in connection with which the installation of jamming by the Americans ceased to play a significant role in missile defense. The tactics of using air defense systems have also been improved. At the command post, they began to use false “missile launches”, when an enemy aircraft is illuminated by a radio beam, and the rocket does not leave the launcher. The pilot, having discovered an "attack", which in reality was not, was forced to maneuver to avoid the "rocket", which worsened his position in battle. All these measures contributed to the fact that 4-5 missiles began to be spent on each downed aircraft.
By the way, the use of the S-75 air defense system significantly increased the effectiveness of the Vietnamese anti-aircraft artillery, which used data from radar stations of complexes. SAM and artillery jointly covered the entire range in height and range. At the same time, quite modern rapid-fire anti-aircraft guns in a wide range of calibers from 30 mm to 100 mm were supplied to the Vietnamese from the Soviet Union.
Anti-aircraft artillery, due to the mass character, turned out to be more effective than the Dvina complexes. It accounted for almost 60% of the destroyed aircraft. However, anti-aircraft guns could not handle all types of aircraft.. The B-52 strategic bombers were invulnerable to them. But a truly huge number of "strategists" shot down the "Dvina" - according to various estimates, from 32 to 54 aircraft. These are huge losses.
Despite catastrophic losses and a significant decrease in performance, aircraft of the US Air Force, Navy and the USMC continued to carry out raids on North Vietnamese targets, among which were often civilians, as well as on the bases of South Vietnamese partisans. However, this did not last that long. By the end of 1967, air operations were practically curtailed. This was facilitated by the appearance in Vietnam of the Soviet MiG-21 fighter, who established absolute dominance in the sky. "Phantom" could not compare with him in terms of maneuverability, rate of climb, operational overload, missile weapons.
The uniqueness of the Soviet aircraft in that war is evidenced by its losses and the losses of its main competitor. Total was 65 MiG-21s lost. And this despite the fact that they were piloted by Vietnamese, not Soviet pilots. "Phantoms" were lost 895.
The total loss of aviation equipment for the United States was absolutely catastrophic. The Air Force, Navy and ILC lost 3374 aircraft. North Vietnamese aircraft, which lost 150 MiG-17, MiG-19 and MiG-21 aircraft, destroyed 9% of American aircraft. The share of S-75 air defense systems accounts for 31%, the share of anti-aircraft artillery - 60%. However, a fair weight in these 60 percent belongs to the Dvina complexes, which drove the enemy to heights accessible to anti-aircraft guns. Also, one should not discount the significant assistance with information from the air defense radar, which was provided to anti-aircraft crews.
So it's safe to say: Soviet anti-aircraft missile systems made a turning point in the air war. And the statistics are impressive. IN different years The Soviet Union delivered to Vietnam 95 complexes of various modifications and 7658 missiles for them. 6806 missiles were used up, and also lost in battles or turned out to be faulty. Thus, for each aircraft shot down with the help of air defense systems (1046) there were 6.5 missiles. Considering that there were 3228 combat launches, it turns out 3.1 missiles for each downed aircraft.
The threat of being hit by a S-75 missile had such a strong effect on the psyche of American pilots that sometimes it took the form of psychosis. A significant number of cases are known when pilots, having visually detected the launch of a rocket, left serviceable aircraft.
This is what critics of modern Russian anti-aircraft missile systems need to remember. The Almaz-Antey Concern has not lost the tradition of creating efficient systems capable of putting in place the latest developments of American aircraft designers.
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On September 13, 1942, German troops launched the first assault on Stalingrad. From a military point of view, it was not necessary to storm the ruins of the city. The German army has already solved the main tasks: the northeastern flank of the armies advancing on the Caucasus was secured; the Germans went to the Volga and practically cut this most important waterway; Stalingrad has ceased to be the most important communications hub - water and iron; the industry of Stalingrad was partly evacuated, partly destroyed, the rest could be finished off with systematic artillery strikes and air bombardments. The capture of the ruins of the city had no serious military-strategic and economic significance.
It was possible to confine ourselves to a blockade, following the example of Leningrad. However, for Adolf Hitler (and then for the whole world), the capture of the city had a symbolic, political meaning. Therefore, they began to storm the city, regardless of the losses, and as a result got stuck, lost time and initiative, not counting the huge amount of forces and means that were put in urban battles, and to hold the territory.
The second stage of the defensive operation of the Soviet troops to hold Stalingrad began on September 13 and lasted until November 18, 1942, on the eve of the transition of the Soviet troops to a decisive counteroffensive. At this stage of the operation, the enemy stormed the city four times. The battles within the city were distinguished by exceptional perseverance, steadfastness and mass heroism of the defenders of Stalingrad.
Even the German generals were amazed at the stamina and perseverance of the Soviet troops. A participant in the Battle of Stalingrad, German General G. Derr later wrote: “For every house, workshop, water tower, embankment, wall, basement, and, finally, for every pile of garbage, a fierce struggle was waged, which had no equal even during the First World War war with its gigantic expenditure of ammunition. The distance between our troops and the enemy was extremely small. Despite the massive actions of aviation and artillery, it was impossible to leave the melee area. The Russians were superior to the Germans in terms of terrain and camouflage and were more experienced in barricade battles behind individual houses: they took up a solid defense.
Broken Soviet 45 mm anti-tank gun on Lenin Street in Stalingrad
Side plans. Troop disposition
The situation in the Stalingrad region was critical. In early September 1942, the 62nd Army withdrew to the western and northern outskirts of the city, and the 64th Army to the south. The troops of these armies suffered heavy losses in manpower and equipment. However, there was no choice, so the command assigned the direct defense of Stalingrad to the 62nd and 64th armies. They were supposed to take the brunt of the enemy. The remaining troops of the Stalingrad direction, by their actions, pulled off part of the enemy forces from the directions of his main attacks. By September 13, the troops of the Stalingrad Front held the line at the Pavlovsk, Panshino, Samofalovka, Yerzovka line, and the troops of the South-Eastern Front - at the line of Stalingrad - Elista. These fronts included a significant number of formations, but many of them were understaffed. Ground forces were supported by the 16th and 8th air armies, as well as the Volga military flotilla.
The German command continued to build up forces in the Stalingrad direction. Army Group B had 42 divisions in July, 69 divisions by the end of August, and 81 divisions by the end of September. This reinforcement was carried out primarily through the transfer of troops from Army Group A, from its reserve and from the Caucasian direction, which ultimately had a negative impact on the offensive operation of the Wehrmacht in the Caucasus (the Germans lost the battle for the Caucasus). The German command transferred here from Romania the 9th and 11th infantry divisions, from Italy - an infantry brigade, from the army group "A" - the 5th and 2nd Romanian army corps. The troops of their allies - Romanians and Italians - were placed by the Germans on passive sectors of the front. They were weaker - in terms of combat training, spirit and material and technical part - than the German divisions. As a result, by September 13, the 8th Italian, 6th and 4th Panzer german armies, and a total of 47 divisions (including 5 tank and 4 motorized).
With the troops of the 6th field and 4th tank armies reaching the outskirts of Stalingrad, the German command decided to start an assault on the city. On September 12, the commander of Army Group "B" Weichs and the commander of the 6th Army arrived at Hitler's headquarters near Vinnitsa. At the meeting, the Fuhrer demanded the speedy capture of Stalingrad: “The Russians are on the verge of exhaustion of their forces. The resistance at Stalingrad should be assessed only as a local matter. They are no longer capable of retaliatory actions of a strategic nature, which could be dangerous for us. In addition, the northern flank on the Don will receive significant reinforcements from the Allies. Under these circumstances, I do not see a serious danger to the northern flank. For the rest, we must take care to take the city into our own hands as soon as possible, and not allow it to turn into an all-devouring focus for a long time. As a result, it happened - Stalingrad turned into "an all-devouring focus for a long time."
The commander of the 6th Army, Paulus, asked for an additional three divisions and promised to take Stalingrad in 10 days. The German command believed that the capture of the city would take a little time. By the end of September 12, German troops were standing almost at the walls of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant and 3-4 km from the city center. The forces of the 6th Army of Paulus in this zone numbered about 100 thousand soldiers and officers, about 2000 guns and mortars, 500 tanks and assault guns. The Germans had complete air supremacy. It is worth noting that the German troops were already exhausted by the battles, 60 people remained in the companies, and the tank divisions had 60-80 serviceable tanks each. Paulus decided to start the assault on Stalingrad by capturing its northern and central regions. To do this, it was planned to inflict 2 powerful blows at the same time and break through to the Volga. For this purpose, two groups were concentrated: one - as part of the 295th, 71st, 94th infantry and 24th tank divisions - in the area of \u200b\u200bthe village of Aleksandrovka, the other - from the 14th tank, 29th motorized and 20th th Romanian infantry division - in the Upper Elshanka area. The task seemed simple: to fight 5-10 km and throw the Russians into the river.
Colonel General F. Paulus talking with a subordinate near Stalingrad
The city was defended by the 62nd and 64th armies. The front line in front of the 62nd and 64th armies was continuous and ran for up to 65 km along the right bank of the Volga from the area of the villages of Rynok, Orlovka in the north and further along the western outskirts of the city to its southern tip in the Kirovsky district to Maliye Chapurniki. The 64th Army was defending at the Kuporosnoe-Ivanovka line, about 25 km long. The army troops had an operational formation in one echelon. Its main forces were concentrated on the right flank, which covered the most dangerous direction.
The defense front of the 62nd Army was about 40 km long and ran from the right bank of the Volga near the village of Rynok, through Orlovka, east of Gorodishche and Razgulyaevka, Sadovaya, Kuporosnaya. The maximum distance from the banks of the Volga near Orlovka was 10 km. The entire burden of the task of protecting the central part of Stalingrad and the factory districts fell on the army. On September 5, General Lopatin was dismissed from his post, proposing to withdraw troops beyond the Volga. General V.I. Chuikov was appointed the new commander of the 62nd Army. There were 12 rifle divisions in the army (33rd and 35th guards, 87th, 98th, 112th, 131st, 196th, 229th, 244th, 315th, 399th I and the 10th rifle division of the NKVD), 7 rifle (10th, 38th, 42nd, 115th, 124th, 129th, 145th) and 5 tank brigades, 20th fighter brigade, 12 artillery and mortar regiments. However, the divisions were bled white, numbering 250-100 fighters. That is, some divisions had fewer soldiers than a full-blooded battalion. In addition, some divisions were armed with only a few guns. Tank brigades had 6-10 tanks each. The total number of the 35th Guards, together with attached units, was 664 people, the 23rd Tank Corps had 40-50 tanks, of which a third were used as fixed firing points. The 10th division of the NKVD (7500 people) and 3 separate rifle brigades were more or less completed. In total, the 62nd Army had about 54,000 men, 900 guns and mortars, and 110 tanks by mid-September. There was no elbow connection with the neighbors, the flanks of the army rested on the Volga. There were no reserves.
Defensive battles in Stalingrad
Storm
On September 13, German troops launched an assault on Stalingrad. They delivered the main blow in the direction of Mamaev Kurgan and the railway station. On the first day, they only succeeded in pushing the Soviet units a little. In the evening, the front commander ordered Chuikov to drive the enemy out of the occupied sectors and restore the situation. On September 14, in the early morning, units of the 62nd Army launched a counterattack, which was unsuccessful. By 12 o'clock the Germans had concentrated 5 divisions and more than 1,000 guns on a narrow sector of the front and delivered a powerful blow. Hundreds of aircraft supported them from the air. Fights were going on in the streets of the city. This day was one of the most difficult for the defenders of Stalingrad.
Chuikov described this moment as follows: “Despite the huge losses, the invaders climbed ahead. Columns of infantry in cars and tanks broke into the city. Apparently, the Nazis believed that his fate was sealed, and each of them sought to reach the Volga, the city center, as soon as possible and profit from trophies there. Our fighters ... saw drunken Nazis jumping off cars, playing harmonicas and dancing on the sidewalks. The Nazis were dying by the hundreds, but fresh waves of reserves flooded the streets more and more.
Our troops defending in Stalingrad had strong artillery support. From the left bank of the Volga, the defenders were supported by 250 guns and heavy mortars of the front-line artillery group - 6 artillery and mortar regiments, artillery of the 2nd tank corps, anti-aircraft artillery of the Stalingrad air defense corps area, 4 rocket artillery regiments. The ships of the Volga military flotilla fired on the enemy troops that broke into the city from their fifty guns.
However, despite the losses and heavy fire of the Soviet artillery, by the evening the Nazis captured the station and Mamaev Kurgan, which dominated the entire city and the left bank of the Volga. The battle was just a few hundred meters from the command post of the 62nd Army, located in the gully of the Tsaritsa River at its mouth. There was a threat of an enemy breakthrough to the central crossing. There were almost no troops in the center near Chuikov - in the area of the station, the defense was kept by a detachment of the 62nd Army. In order to defend the crossing, Chuikov ordered several tanks from the heavy tank brigade, his last reserve, to reinforce the soldiers defending it. General N.I. Krylov (former head of the operational department of the headquarters of the Primorsky Army and head of this headquarters, became famous during the heroic defense of Odessa and Sevastopol) formed two groups of officers of the army headquarters and soldiers of the security company. The Germans, who broke through to the pier, were pushed back from the crossing to the Stalingrad-1 station. Stubborn battles also took place on the left flank, in the area of the suburb of Minin, where the divisions of Goth's army rushed forward. The city was on the verge of falling.
On the same day, the enemy broke through the defenses at the junction of the 62nd and 64th armies: a 5-kilometer section of the Verkhnyaya Elshanka front - the Gornaya Polyana state farm. General I. K. Morozov, the former commander of the 422nd Rifle Division, noted in his memoirs: “Having thrown back the left flank of the 62nd Army - the Guards Division of General Glazkov - and the right flank of the 64th Army - the Guards Division of Colonel Denisenko, the enemy captured Kuporosny , a repair plant and went to the Volga, continuing to push units of the 64th Army to the south, to Staraya Otrada and Beketovka, and the left flank of the 62nd Army to Elshanka and the Zatsaritsyn part of the city. The breakthrough of the Nazis to the Volga in the area of Kuporosnoye isolated the 62nd Army from the rest of the forces of the front. Our troops counterattacked, trying to restore the situation, but without special success.
The situation in the center was somewhat straightened out by the 13th Guards Rifle Division, transferred from the left bank on the night of September 15, under the command of Major General A. I. Rodimtsev (10 thousand soldiers). She immediately rushed at the Germans and knocked the enemy out of the city center. By noon on September 16, on the 39th guards regiment the Germans were also dropped from the Mamaev Kurgan. Attack, according to the description of the commander of the 1st battalion I.I. Isakov, was almost the time of Suvorov and Kutuzov: “Let's go in a chain. Our attack from the outside looked fake. It was not preceded by either artillery preparation or air strikes. The tanks did not support us either. No one ran across, did not lie down - the fighters walked and walked ... The enemy opened machine-gun fire. You could see people falling in chains. Some rose and again moved forward ... The mound passed into our hands ... True, in the relatively short time of the attack - and it lasted an hour and a half to two - we suffered very tangible losses. There could have been much fewer killed and wounded if we had been supported by artillery.” Until the evening, the guards beat off 12 counterattacks. The Germans also suffered heavy losses.
The first days of the battle for the city were especially difficult for Chuikov's army, not only because of the superiority of the enemy forces, but also problems with the organization and supply of troops. Vasily Chuikov, the day before the enemy assault, was thrown onto the right bank to receive a defeated, bloodless army, in unfamiliar terrain, without normal supplies. It remains to fight last man, won precious time, and "time is blood," as Vasily Ivanovich himself later put it. Chuikov himself, during the battles for Stalingrad, assessed the situation in the city in this way when he arrived there. “Communication worked, both telephone and radio. But wherever you look, there is a gap everywhere, a breakthrough everywhere. The divisions were so exhausted and drained of blood in previous battles that it was impossible to rely on them. I knew that something would be thrown to me in 3-4 days, and these days I sat like on coals, when I had to scratch out individual fighters, knock something together like a regiment and plug small holes with them.
At the same time, the city itself was not a fortified area; it was not prepared for long-term defense. The firing points were hastily created, and the ruins of Stalingrad became the main fortifications of the soldiers. The Military Council of the 62nd Army, having heard on September 13 the report of Major General Knyazev on the state of defense of the city of Stalingrad, in its resolution noted: “Work to bring the city into a defensive state has been completed by 25%. The anti-tank defense system was not prepared. Warehouses of ammunition, medicines, food were not prepared in advance. For example, Rodimtsev's division, having lost a third of its composition, was left almost without ammunition in a day. All supplies had to be brought back through the only working ferry and only at night. Even the wounded at first had no one to worry about. The lightly wounded soldiers themselves made rafts, loaded the seriously wounded on them and independently swam across the Volga.
At the very crossing, as elsewhere in Stalingrad, there was hell. Machine tools and equipment from factories were lying on the sandbars, which were dismantled, but did not have time to take out. Half-flooded broken barges stood near the shore. From morning until dark, German aircraft circled over the Volga, and artillery hit at night. The moorings and approaches to them were under fire of German guns and 6-barreled mortars around the clock. The transportation of Soviet troops, supplies and materials for the 62nd Army was complicated to an extreme degree. To minimize losses, the crossing operated at night. During the day, the wounded flocked to the shore, waiting for the crossing, medical care there was almost none. Many died.
“Combat losses, waste, lack of ammunition and food, difficulties in replenishing people and equipment - all this negatively affected moral condition troops. Some had a desire to leave as soon as possible across the Volga, to escape from hell, ”recalls Chuikov. Therefore, they also had to perform the “black” service - the NKVD detachments inspected all the departing watercraft and patrolled the city, detaining suspicious persons. So, from September 13 to 15, a detachment of a special department of the army detained 1,218 servicemen. There were also cases of going over to the side of the enemy. In total, in September, 195 servicemen were shot by special departments in the 62nd Army.
The bitterness of both sides grew steadily, the battle took on an almost apocalyptic character never seen before. Not surprisingly, the survivors unanimously called it "Stalingrad hell." On the southern outskirts of Stalingrad, from September 17 to 20, there were battles for the tallest elevator building in this part of the city, which was defended by a battalion of guards of the 35th division. Not only the elevator as a whole, but also its individual floors and storage facilities changed hands several times. Colonel Dubyansky reported by telephone to General Chuikov: “The situation has changed. Previously, we were at the top of the elevator, and the Germans were at the bottom. Now we have knocked out the Germans from below, but they have penetrated upwards, and there, in the upper part of the elevator, there is a fight going on.”
There were dozens and even hundreds of such places in the city, where Russians and Germans fiercely and stubbornly fought, proving that they are the best warriors on the planet. Inside them, with varying success, there was a struggle for weeks not only for every floor and basement, but also for every room, for every ledge, for every flight of stairs. Until September 27, a fierce battle went on for the station. Thirteen times it changed hands, each assault costing both sides hundreds of lives. The Germans, who suffered more losses in the first still open, dashing attacks, began to change tactics. We switched to action by assault groups. Attacks were now carried out in small areas, within one or two blocks, by the forces of a regiment or battalion, supported by 3-5 tanks. The streets and squares also became the scene of bloody battles, which did not subside until the end of the battle.
“It was a truly titanic struggle of man against man,” General von Butlar noted, “in which the German grenadiers and sappers, who had all modern military equipment, slowly made their way through the city in street battles. Such large factories as the factory to them. Dzerzhinsky, "Red Barricades" and "Red October", had to be stormed separately and for several days. The city turned into a sea of fire, smoke, dust and ruins. It absorbed the flows of German and Russian blood, gradually turning into the Verdun of the Second World War ... the Russians fought with fanatical tenacity ... The losses on both sides were enormous.
The calculation of the German 50-mm anti-tank gun PaK 38 at one of the crossroads of Stalingrad
On the night of September 18, Chuikov's command post was relocated to the banks of the Volga at the central crossing. To do this, I had to go to east coast, climb up the river and return to the west bank. In addition to the Rodimtsev division, in the first days of the assault, the 95th and 284th rifle divisions, the 137th tank and 92nd brigade were poured into the 62nd army marines. The headquarters of the completely “used up” regiments were taken in turn behind the Volga, received replenishment and returned to their positions again.
After the army of Chuikov withstood the first terrible blow, it was significantly strengthened. According to Marshal F.I. Golikova: “In September, new reserves of the Stavka began to arrive intensively. Brigade by brigade, division by division. In total, in September, the 62nd Army received seven fresh full-blooded divisions and five separate rifle brigades ... during September, nine bloodless divisions were withdrawn from the 62nd Army for restoration ... The army's equipment with weapons has sharply increased.
Red Army artillerymen at the 76-mm divisional gun F-22-USV on the street of Stalingrad
Soviet soldiers are firing from the crate of the glass roof of one of the factory workshops in Stalingrad
To be continued…
At 12 noon, the enemy threw large masses of infantry and tanks into battle and began to push our units. The strike was heading for the Central Station. This blow was of exceptional force. Despite the huge losses, the invaders climbed ahead. Columns of infantry in cars and tanks broke into the city. Apparently, the Nazis believed that his fate had been decided, and each of them sought to reach the Volga, the city center as soon as possible and profit from trophies there ... The invaders died in the hundreds, but fresh waves of reserves flooded the street more and more "). Our units, too suffered heavy losses in manpower and equipment and withdrew. When I say: "the units suffered heavy losses and retreated", this does not mean that people retreated on orders, in an organized manner, from one line of defense to another. This means that our fighters ( not even units) crawled out from under German tanks, most often wounded, to the next line, where they were received, combined into units, supplied mainly with ammunition, and again thrown into battle. From the diary of a Nazi killed near Stalingrad ... We need there is only one more kilometer to go to the Volga, but we can’t get through it. We have been fighting for this kilometer longer than the war for all of France, but the Russians stand like stone blocks.
More on the topic From the memoirs of Marshal V. I. Chuikov:
- ZHUKOV (Marshal) Sensory-logical irrational extravert (SLE)
- E. P. Obolensky From "Memoirs of Kondraty Fedorovich Ryleev"
- SERIOUS BUT BRIGHT AND REASONABLE THOMASIUS' THOUGHTS AND MEMORIES ON VARIOUS SELECTED LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
- 52. HOW THE ROSSI FAMILY OF PARMA RETURNED TO THE ALLIANCE WITH THE FLORENTINES AND HOW Messer PIERO ROSSO DEFEATED MARSHAL Messer MASTINO DELLA SCALA UNDER CERRULIO
