Liberation from the Nazi invaders. Analysis of the progress of the liberation of Belarus from the Nazi invaders during the Great Patriotic War

One of the most important stages of the military operation carried out in Belarus in 1944 was the liberation of Minsk from the Germans. fascist invaders. Its goal was not only encirclement, but also the complete destruction of the largest Wehrmacht group located in the area. In addition, the Red Army was faced with the task of clearing the enemy of the enemy as quickly as possible. This significant event occurred on July 3, 1944. In modern Belarus, this is not only the date of the liberation of Minsk, the capital of the state, but also a national holiday - Independence Day.

Situation before the operation

In 1944, three successful military special operations were carried out - Mogilev, Vitebsk-Orsha and Bobruisk, as a result of which units of the 4th and 9th armies, part of the German Center group, were almost surrounded by Soviet formations. Hitler's command deployed fresh forces to help its troops, including the 4th, 5th and 12th Panzer Divisions.

Gradually, the ring around the Germans tightened, and the long-awaited liberation of Minsk was just around the corner. By the end of the day on June 28, I. D. Chernyakhovsky, commander of units of the 3rd Belorussian Front, reached the Berezina River, thereby enveloping the enemy from the north. In turn, he fought with the troops of the 1st Baltic in the Polotsk region. At the same time, G. F. Zakharov with the troops of the 2nd Belorussian Front bypassed the enemy from the eastern side, and K. K. Rokossovsky with his army from the south, managing to reach the Osipovichi - Svisloch - Kopatkevichi line and higher along Separate forward formations were already a hundred kilometers from the republican capital.

Betting Plans

The Soviet command understood that a lot of effort would have to be made to ensure that the liberation of Minsk in 1944 became a reality. Therefore, on June 28, the Headquarters set a goal for the Red Army - to encircle and eliminate a large fascist group. To achieve this, it was planned to use the forces of the 1st and 3rd Belorussian Fronts to deliver crushing blows to German troops located near the city. At the same time, a further offensive to the west by the 2nd Belorussian formations was also envisaged. As a result, the troops of all fronts participating in this operation had to first encircle and then destroy the entire Minsk enemy group.

At the same time, units of the Red Army had to, without stopping, steadily advance to the west, thereby pinning down enemy troops and preventing them from connecting with the Minsk group. Such actions of the Soviet side created good conditions for a subsequent offensive in the Kaunas, Warsaw and Siauliai directions.

Actions of the 3rd Belorussian

The next day, the advanced detachments of the Red Army managed to capture several bridgeheads on the Berezina River and, having knocked down enemy barriers, advanced inland to a distance of 5, and in some areas even 10 km. However, faced with stubborn German resistance, Soviet troops were drawn into heavy fighting. It is for this reason that by the evening of June 29, the Red Army soldiers only managed to cross the river.

At the same time, the troops of the 5th Army under the command of Krylov, without stopping, crossed the Berezina and fortified themselves on the shore, occupying several bridgeheads. It should be noted that the advancement of Red Army units, main goal Numerous partisan detachments contributed significantly to the liberation of Minsk. They not only indicated the most favorable and shortest road running through forests and marshy areas, but also helped cover the flanks of military columns and guard crossings.

Deadly confrontation

The liberation of Minsk (1944) was accompanied by extremely fierce resistance German side. It prevented the rapid advance of the 11th Army under the command of Galitsky. That is why Soviet troops in the Krupka-Kholopenichi area were forced to engage in battle for the whole day. Here the Red Army soldiers were held back by the 5th Panzer, as well as the remnants of the 95th and 14th divisions. The goal of the fascist command was to prevent the Soviet troops from breaking through to Borisov, which was a German stronghold on the Berezina River and covered the path to the Belarusian capital.

In turn, the 5th Soviet Tank Army led an offensive along the highway to Minsk. After that, she went to the Berezina on the north side of Borisov. It should be noted that the coordinated actions of the tankers under the command of Rotmistrov, as well as the effective offensive of the 2nd Tatsinsky Corps, allowed the troops of the 31st Army to advance 40 km within one day and approach the Bobr River just south of the village of Krupki.

Crossing the Berezina River

Considering the fairly confident advance of Soviet troops towards the Belarusian capital, one could assume with a high degree of confidence that the liberation of Minsk in 1944 was practically predetermined. On June 30, the main forces of the Red Army reached the Berezina and crossed it. The 5th Army expanded its bridgehead and entered the German defense to a distance of 15 km; the mechanized corps, having practically destroyed enemy rear lines and occupied Pleshchenitsy, thereby blocked the Borisov-Vileika road. As a result of such actions, Soviet troops created a serious threat to one of the flanks and rear of the enemy Borisov group.

Having made every effort, the 11th Guards Army quickly broke down enemy resistance, reached the Berezina and was finally able to cross this river. At this time, the Soviet divisions bypassed the Germans from the left flank and moved towards Borisov. As a result, a battle broke out on the southeastern side of the city. At the same time, Rotmistrov’s tankers launched an attack east of Borisov.

The operation, the ultimate goal of which was the liberation of Minsk from the Nazis, required almost mass heroism on the part of Soviet soldiers. So, on June 30, Pavel Rak’s tank platoon, consisting of four vehicles, received an order to break into Borisov and hold out at all costs until the main forces of the 3rd Mechanized Corps entered the city. Of all the crews, only the commander’s T-34 completed the task. The second and third tanks of Yunaev and Kuznetsov were knocked out earlier, another vehicle caught fire on the bridge over the Berezina River, after which the Germans blew up this crossing. All Red Army soldiers died.

For more than 12 hours, the crew of P. Rak, which included the gunner-radio operator and driver-mechanic A. Petryaev, held on with all their might. It is worth noting that the breakthrough of the Soviet armored vehicle caused real panic in the enemy garrison, and largely contributed to the speedy liberation of the city of Borisov. The heroes stood until the last, when the Germans sent several assault guns and tanks to eliminate them. The crew of P. Rak died a heroic death. Later they were all awarded the highest military rank of Heroes Soviet Union. Such brave people in that great era there were a lot. They gave their lives for the liberation of Minsk and other cities best sons Fatherland. This was truly mass heroism.

Further promotion

The German command managed to organize several rather strong counterattacks on the approaches to Borisov, but they had virtually no effect even despite the introduction of the German Air Force into the battle. Enemy planes, flying in groups of 18 aircraft, tried to prevent Soviet troops from crossing the Berezina. But Soviet attack aircraft and bombers repelled powerful enemy attacks and themselves attacked a concentration of fascist equipment near Borisov.

As a result of the fighting on July 1, the Red Army crossed the Berezina and captured the city. The Borisov group of the Wehrmacht was defeated. This fact brought the liberation of Minsk from the fascist invaders one step closer. However, the Soviet troops will need two more days to complete this task.

Return of the Belarusian capital

On the night of July 3, front commander Chernyakhovsky entrusted the liberation of Minsk to the 31st Army, the 2nd Mechanized Corps and partly the tank army under the command of Rotmistrov. Early in the morning a battle broke out on the eastern and northern outskirts of the city, and by 7.30 the Soviet troops had successfully reached its center. Two hours later it was cleared of Nazi mercenaries.

1944, the year of the liberation of Minsk, became truly victorious for the Red Army. For three endless years, the residents of this dilapidated and desecrated city waited for the day when Soviet troops would finally enter and rescue them from the fascist yoke. And they still waited and stood with honor in this unequal battle!

Column SU-85 on Lenin Square in liberated Minsk.

Evacuation of a Soviet wounded man from the front line in winter conditions. Vitebsk region.

Group Soviet soldiers crossing the Western Bug on an improvised ferry.

A German tankman paints the Jagdpanther self-propelled gun in camouflage.

Red Army soldiers transport a DShK machine gun across the Western Bug River.

Meeting of Gradov's special detachment with soldiers and officers of the Red Army.

The march of German prisoners took place on July 17, 1944, demonstrating to the Soviet people, as well as the allies who did not believe in the successes of the Red Army, the results of the defeat of German troops in Belarus.

Tank Pz.Kpfw.IV of the 29th tank regiment of the 12th tank division of the Wehrmacht in a village on the Eastern Front.

Mortarmen of the platoon of Lieutenant N. Kolomintsev at the 82-mm mortar BM-41 during the liberation of Grodno.

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Command of the 75th Guards Rifle Division in Belarus.

Formation of personnel of the 125th Guards Bomber Regiment on the occasion of the presentation of the Guards banner.

In memory of front-line friends. 3rd Belorussian Front, July 1944, city of Lida.
From left to right: unknown, Yaroshevsky, Tarnavsky, Kabanov, Gavro..., Mikhailov, Savenko, Belyakov, Altukhov.

Crew of the Soviet 122-mm howitzer M-30 in battle against German tanks. In the foreground is a dead artilleryman. 3rd Belorussian Front.

Red Army soldiers level the road in a liberated village.

A Soviet mortar platoon fires at the enemy in the Baranovichi area.

Battery of 152-mm howitzers D-1 model 1943. fires at the defending German troops. Belarus, summer 1944.

Burnt German tank PzKpfw V "Panther" on a Belarusian field.

Destroyed German Pz.Kpfw tank. V "Panther" on the Belarusian field.

Fights for Belarus. 1944

Gratitude for an excellent bomb attack near Orsha

Anti-aircraft machine gun crew of junior sergeant Ignat Nedosekov in the area of ​​the crossing of the Neman River.

Senior Sergeant A. Kazniev accompanies three German prisoners in the Gomel area.

A resident of liberated Borisov with her son against the backdrop of destroyed houses.

Squadron commander of the 659th Galatsky Red Banner Aviation Regiment, senior lieutenant Mikhail Semenovich Taich.

View of destroyed houses on the street of liberated Borisov.

Two Belarusian girls against the backdrop of a destroyed house.

Soviet orderlies carry a wounded man on a stretcher from the battlefield in the Vitebsk direction.

Soviet intelligence officers in battle. A soldier throws an RG-42 grenade. 2nd Belorussian Front.

Portrait of the captured commandant of Bobruisk, Wehrmacht Lieutenant General Adolf Hamann.

A photograph of soldiers of the German 742nd tank destroyer division against the background of the Marder III self-propelled gun.

The crew of the Soviet 76-mm ZiS-3 divisional gun from Captain Shlygin's battery fires.

Soviet infantry in a marching column. The scene of action is the 3rd Belorussian Front.

A column of German equipment destroyed on the road near Bobruisk and the body of a German soldier.

Belarusian children near destroyed German Pz.Kpfw VI "Tiger" tanks near Minsk.

Soviet refugees preparing food at the entrance to the dugout. Belarus.

An inscription on one of the buildings in Gomel, discovered after the liberation from the German occupation.

Partisans of the brigade named after. Voroshilov and Red Army soldiers on the street of liberated Gomel.

The destroyed Paskevich palace in liberated Gomel.

The destroyed fire station building in liberated Gomel.

The building of the Herzen City Library in Gomel, destroyed during the occupation.

The prison building in the city of Gomel, blown up by the Germans during the retreat.

Captain 1st Rank V.V. Grigoriev congratulates the officers of the Dnieper Military Flotilla on the completion of formation.

A German Oberfeldwebel is preparing to blow up a section of the railway in the Grodno region.

Hero of the Soviet Union, commander of the 35th Guards Tank Brigade, Major General A.A. Aslanov with brigade officers.

Lieutenant General P.I. Batov presents the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal to Sergeant Spitsyn.

Hero of the Soviet Union Guard Major A.E. Molodchinin at the airfield near the La-5FN fighter.

Soviet column in liberated Polotsk.

Soviet convoy on the street of liberated Mogilev. In the foreground is an American-made Willys jeep.

A Soviet soldier near a banner installed on a house in liberated Mogilev.

Soviet soldiers in battle on the street of Polotsk.

A Soviet machine gunner is fighting in a populated area on the outskirts of Bogushevsk.

German tank Pz.Kpfw.V "Panther", knocked out by Sergeant Ivashkevich's crew.

A German StuG III assault gun remaining on a bridge bombed by Soviet aircraft in Belarus.

Generals K.K. Rokossovsky and K.F. Telegin at the map in the command post of the 1st Belorussian Front.

German StuG 40 assault guns drive through a Belarusian village.

The sergeant major of the Red Army Air Force stands next to his plane. 16th Air Army.

Children near the ruins of a house in the Belarusian village of Lozovatka.

Soviet T-34 tanks with a landing of machine gunners occupy Rechitsa.

Tankers of the 17th Guards Tank Brigade and the son of the regiment.

Broken German Pz.Kpfw tanks. IV near Bobruisk and killed German soldiers.

During three years Belarus was under the yoke of the enemy. The occupiers plundered the territory of the republic: cities were ravaged, more than a million buildings in rural areas were burned, and 7 thousand schools were turned into ruins. The Nazis killed more than two million prisoners of war and civilians. In fact, there was no family in the Byelorussian SSR that did not suffer from the Nazis. White Rus' was one of the most affected territories of the Union. But people did not lose heart and resisted. Knowing that in the East the Red Army repelled the enemy’s onslaught on Moscow, Stalingrad and the Caucasus, defeated the Nazis on the Kursk Bulge, and liberated the regions of Ukraine, the Belarusian partisans were preparing for decisive action. By the summer of 1944, approximately 140 thousand partisans were operating on the territory of Belarus. The general leadership of the partisans was carried out by underground organizations of the Communist Party of the BSSR, led by Panteleimon Kondratyevich Ponomarenko, who was also the head of the Central Headquarters partisan movement THE USSR. It should be noted that his contemporaries noted his amazing honesty, responsibility and deep analytical abilities. Stalin valued Ponomarenko very highly; some researchers believe that the leader wanted to make him his successor.

A few days before the start of the operation to liberate Belarus, partisan detachments inflicted a number of sensitive blows on the Germans. The partisans destroyed their transport infrastructure, communication lines, and actually paralyzed the enemy’s rear at the most crucial moment. During the operation, the partisans attacked individual enemy units and attacked German rear structures.

Preparing the operation

The operational plan for the Belarusian operation began to be developed back in April. The general plan of the General Staff was to crush the flanks of the German Army Group Center, encircle its main forces east of the capital of the BSSR and completely liberate Belarus. It was a very ambitious and large-scale plan; the instant destruction of an entire group of enemy armies was planned very rarely during the Second World War. This was one of the largest operations in the entire military history of mankind.

By the summer of 1944, the Red Army had achieved impressive successes in Ukraine - the Wehrmacht suffered heavy losses, Soviet forces carried out a number of successful offensive operations, liberating most of the territory of the republic. But in the Belarusian direction, things were worse: the front line approached the Vitebsk - Orsha - Mogilev - Zhlobin line, forming a huge ledge that was facing deep into the USSR, the so-called. "Belarusian balcony".

In July 1944, German industry reached highest point their development in this war - in the first half of the year, Reich factories produced more than 16 thousand aircraft, 8.3 thousand tanks, and assault guns. Berlin carried out several mobilizations, and its numbers armed forces consisted of 324 divisions and 5 brigades. Army Group Center, which defended Belarus, consisted of 850-900 thousand people, up to 10 thousand guns and mortars, 900 tanks and self-propelled guns, 1350 aircraft. In addition, at the second stage of the battle, Army Group Center was supported by formations of the right flank of Army Group North and the left flank of Army Group Northern Ukraine, as well as reserves from Western Front and various sectors of the Eastern Front. Army Group Center included 4 armies: the 2nd Field Army, which held the area of ​​Pinsk and Pripyat (commander Walter Weiss); 9th Field Army, it defended the area on both sides of the Berezina southeast of Bobruisk (Hans Jordan, after June 27 - Nikolaus von Forman); The 4th Field Army (Kurt von Tippelskirch, after June 30 the army was commanded by Vinzenz Müller) and the 3rd Tank Army (Georg Reinhardt), which occupied the area between the Berezina and Dnieper rivers, as well as a bridgehead from Bykhov to the area northeast of Orsha. In addition, formations of the 3rd Tank Army occupied the Vitebsk area. The commander of Army Group Center was Field Marshal Ernst Busch (Bush was replaced by Walter Model on June 28). His chief of staff was Hans Krebs.

If the command of the Red Army was well aware of the German grouping in the area of ​​​​the future offensive, then the command of Army Group Center and the headquarters of the Reich ground forces had a completely wrong idea regarding Moscow’s plans for the summer campaign of 1944. Adolf Hitler and the Wehrmacht High Command believed that a major Soviet offensive should still be expected in Ukraine, north or south of the Carpathians (most likely to the north). It was believed that from the area south of Kovel, Soviet troops would strike towards Baltic Sea, trying to cut off army groups “Center” and “North” from Germany. Large forces were allocated to counter the possible threat. Thus, in the Northern Ukraine Army Group there were seven tank, two tank-grenadier divisions, as well as four battalions of Tiger heavy tanks. And Army Group Center had one tank, two tank-grenadier divisions and one battalion of heavy tanks. In addition, they feared a strike on Romania - on the oil fields of Ploesti. In April, the command of Army Group Center presented to the top leadership a proposal to reduce the front line and withdraw troops to better positions beyond the Berezina. But this plan was rejected, Army Group Center was ordered to defend in its previous positions. Vitebsk, Orsha, Mogilev and Bobruisk were declared “fortresses” and fortified with the expectation of all-round defense and a possible fight in encirclement. Forced labor was widely used for engineering work local residents. Aviation, radio intelligence and German agents were unable to uncover the preparations by the Soviet command for a major operation in Belarus. Army Groups Center and North were predicted to have a “calm summer”; the situation inspired so little fear that Field Marshal Bush went on vacation three days before the start of the Red Army operation. But, it should be noted that the front in Belarus long time stood still, and the Nazis managed to create a developed defense system. It included “fortress” cities, numerous field fortifications, bunkers, dugouts, and interchangeable positions for artillery and machine guns. The Germans assigned a large role to natural obstacles - wooded and swampy areas, many rivers and rivers.

Red Army. Stalin made the final decision to conduct the summer campaign, including the Belarusian operation, at the end of April. Deputy Chief of the General Staff A.I. Antonov was instructed to organize work on planning operations at the General Staff. The plan for the liberation of Belarus received the code name - Operation Bagration. On May 20, 1944, the General Staff completed the development of the plan for the offensive operation. A. M. Vasilevsky, A. I. Antonov and G. K. Zhukov were called to Headquarters. On May 22, front commanders I. Kh. Bagramyan, I. D. Chernyakhovsky, K. K. Rokossovsky were received at Headquarters to listen to their thoughts on the operation. The coordination of the front troops was entrusted to Vasilevsky and Zhukov; they left for the troops in early June.

The bet involved delivering three powerful blows. The 1st Baltic and 3rd Belorussian fronts advanced in general direction to Vilnius. The troops of two fronts were supposed to defeat the enemy’s Vitebsk group, develop an offensive to the west and cover the left flank group of the Borisov-Minsk group of German forces. The 1st Belorussian Front was supposed to defeat the Bobruisk group of Germans. Then develop an offensive in the direction of Slutsk-Baranovichi and cover the Minsk group of German troops from the south and southwest. The 2nd Belorussian Front, in cooperation with the left-flank group of the 3rd Belorussian and the right flank of the 1st Belorussian Front, was supposed to move in the general direction of Minsk.

On the Soviet side, about 1 million 200 thousand people took part in the operation on four fronts: 1st Baltic Front (Army General Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan); 3rd Belorussian Front (Colonel General Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky); 2nd Belorussian Front (Colonel General Georgy Fedorovich Zakharov); 1st Belorussian Front (Army General Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky). The coordinator of the actions of the 1st and 2nd Belorussian Fronts was Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, and the coordinator of the actions of the 3rd Belorussian and 1st Baltic Fronts was the Chief of the General Staff Alexander Mikhailovich Vasilevsky. The Dnieper military flotilla also took part in the operation.

Operation Bagration was supposed to solve several important problems:

Completely clear the Moscow direction of German troops, since the front edge of the “Belarusian ledge” was located 80 kilometers from Smolensk. The configuration of the front line in the BSSR was a huge arc extended to the east with an area of ​​almost 250 thousand square meters. square kilometers. The arc stretched from Vitebsk in the north and Pinsk in the south to the Smolensk and Gomel regions, hanging over the right wing of the 1st Ukrainian Front. The German High Command gave great value this territory - it protected the distant approaches to Poland and East Prussia. In addition, Hitler still cherished plans for a victorious war if a “miracle” was created or major geopolitical changes occurred. From a bridgehead in Belarus it was possible to strike Moscow again.

Complete the liberation of all Belarusian territory, parts of Lithuania and Poland.

Reach the Baltic coast and the borders of East Prussia, which made it possible to cut German front at the junctions of Army Groups “Center” and “North” and isolate these German groups from each other.

To create favorable operational and tactical prerequisites for subsequent offensive operations in the Baltic states, Western Ukraine, in the Warsaw and East Prussian directions.

Operation milestones

The operation was carried out in two stages. At the first stage (June 23–July 4, 1944), the following frontal offensive operations were carried out: Vitebsk-Orsha, Mogilev, Bobruisk, Polotsk and Minsk. At the second stage of Operation Bagration (July 5–August 29, 1944), the following front-line offensive operations were carried out: Vilnius, Siauliai, Bialystok, Lublin-Brest, Kaunas and Osovets.

First stage of the operation

The offensive began on the morning of June 23, 1944. Near Vitebsk, the Red Army successfully broke through the German defenses and on June 25 surrounded west of the city five enemy divisions. The liquidation of the Vitebsk “cauldron” was completed by the morning of June 27, and Orsha was liberated on the same day. With the destruction of the Vitebsk group of Germans key position on the left flank of Army Group Center's defense was captured. The northern flank of Army Group Center was virtually destroyed, more than 40 thousand Germans died and 17 thousand people were captured. In the Orsha direction, after breaking through the German defense, the Soviet command brought the 5th Guards Tank Army into battle. Having successfully crossed the Berezina, Rotmistrov’s tankers cleared Borisov of the Nazis. The entry of troops of the 3rd Belorussian Front into the Borisov area led to significant operational success: the 3rd Tank Army of Army Group Center was cut off from the 4th Field Army. The formations of the 2nd Belorussian Front advancing in the Mogilev direction penetrated the powerful and deeply echeloned German defenses that the enemy had prepared along the Pronya, Basya and Dnieper rivers. On June 28 they liberated Mogilev. The retreat of the 4th German Army lost its organization, the enemy lost up to 33 thousand killed and captured.

The Bobruisk offensive operation was supposed to create a southern “claw” huge surroundings, conceived by the Soviet Headquarters. This operation was carried out entirely by the most powerful of the fronts - the 1st Belorussian under the command of K.K. Rokossovsky. The 9th Army of the Wehrmacht resisted the advance of the Red Army. We had to advance through very difficult terrain - swamps. The blow was struck on June 24: from the southeast to the northwest, gradually turning to the north, Batov’s 65th Army (reinforced by the 1st Don Tank Corps) was moving, Gorbatov’s 3rd Army with the 9th Tank Corps was advancing from east to west body. For a quick breakthrough in the Slutsk direction, the 28th Army of Luchinsky and the 4th Guards Cavalry Corps of Pliev were used. The armies of Batov and Luchinsky quickly broke through the defenses of the stunned enemy (the Russians made their way through what was considered an impenetrable swamp). But Gorbatov’s 3rd Army had to literally bite into the Germans’ orders. The commander of the 9th Army, Hans Jordan, threw his main reserve - the 20th Panzer Division - against it. But he soon had to redirect his reserve to the southern flank of the defense. The 20th Panzer Division was unable to plug the breakthrough. On June 27, the main forces of the 9th Field Army fell into the “cauldron”. General Jordan was replaced by von Forman, but this could not save the situation. Attempts to relieve the blockade from outside and inside failed. Panic reigned in the surrounded Bobruisk, and on the 27th the assault began. By the morning of June 29, Bobruisk was completely liberated. The Germans lost 74 thousand people killed and captured. As a result of the defeat of the 9th Army, both flanks of Army Group Center were open, and the road to Minsk was clear from the northeast and southeast.

On June 29, the 1st Baltic Front attacked Polotsk. Chistyakov's 6th Guards Army and Beloborodov's 43rd Army bypassed the city from the south (the 6th Army Guards also bypassed Polotsk from the west), Malyshev's 4th Shock Army - from the north. Butkov's 1st Tank Corps liberated the town of Ushachi south of Polotsk and advanced far to the west. Then the tankers, with a surprise attack, captured a bridgehead on the western bank of the Dvina. But it didn’t work out to encircle the Germans - the commander of the city’s garrison, Karl Hilpert, voluntarily left the “fortress” without waiting for the escape routes to be cut off by Russian troops. Polotsk was occupied on July 4th. As a result of the Polotsk operation, the German command lost a strong stronghold and railway junction. In addition, the flank threat to the 1st Baltic Front was eliminated; the positions of the German Army Group North were bypassed from the south and were under the threat of a flank attack.

The German command, trying to rectify the situation, replaced the commander of Army Group Center, Bush, with Field Marshal Walter Model. He was considered a master defensive operations. Reserve units were sent to Belarus, including the 4th, 5th and 12th tank divisions.

The 4th German Army, facing the threat of imminent encirclement, retreated across the Berezina River. The situation was extremely difficult: the flanks were open, the retreating columns were subjected to constant attacks by Soviet aircraft and attacks by partisans. The pressure from the 2nd Belorussian Front, which was located directly in front of the front of the 4th Army, was not strong, since the plans of the Soviet command did not include the expulsion of German troops from the future “cauldron”.

The 3rd Belorussian Front advanced in two main directions: to the southwest (toward Minsk) and west (to Vileika). The 1st Belorussian Front attacked Slutsk, Nesvizh and Minsk. The German resistance was weak, the main forces were defeated. On June 30, Slutsk was captured, and on July 2, Nesvizh, and the Germans’ escape route to the southwest was cut off. By July 2, tank units of the 1st Belorussian Front approached Minsk. The advancing units of the 3rd Belorussian Front had to endure a fierce battle with the 5th German Tank Division (reinforced by a battalion of heavy tanks), which arrived in the Borisov area on June 26-28. This division was full-blooded and did not participate in hostilities for several months. During several bloody battles, the last one taking place on July 1-2 north-west of Minsk, the tank division lost almost all its tanks and was driven back. On July 3, Burdeyny's 2nd Tank Corps broke into Minsk from the northwestern direction. At the same time, Rokossovsky’s advanced units approached the city from the southern direction. The German garrison was small and did not last long; Minsk was liberated by lunchtime. As a result, units of the 4th Army and units of other armies that joined it found themselves surrounded. The Red Army actually took revenge for the “cauldrons” of 1941. The encircled were unable to organize long-term resistance - the encircled area was shot through and through by artillery fire, it was constantly bombed, ammunition was running out, and there was no outside help. The Germans fought until July 8-9, made several desperate attempts to break through, but were defeated everywhere. July 8 and. O. The army commander, the commander of the XII Army Corps, Vinzenz Müller, signed the surrender. Even before July 12, a “cleansing” was underway; the Germans lost 72 thousand killed and more than 35 thousand were captured.

Second stage of the operation

The Germans tried to stabilize the situation. The head of the General Staff of the Ground Forces, Kurt Zeitzler, proposed transferring Army Group North to the south in order to build a new front with the help of its troops. But this plan was rejected by Hitler for political reasons (relations with the Finns). In addition, the naval command opposed it - leaving the Baltic states worsened communications with Finland and Sweden and led to the loss of a number of naval bases and strongholds in the Baltic. As a result, Zeitzler resigned and was replaced by Heinz Guderian. Model, for his part, tried to erect a new defensive line, which ran from Vilnius through Lida and Baranovichi, in order to close a hole in the front approximately 400 km wide. But for this he had only one whole army - the 2nd and the remnants of other armies. Therefore, the German command had to transfer significant forces to Belarus from other sectors of the Soviet-German front and from the West. Until July 16, 46 divisions were sent to Belarus, but these troops were not brought into battle immediately, in parts, often “on wheels,” and therefore they could not quickly turn the tide.

From July 5 to July 20, 1944, the Vilnius operation was carried out by the forces of the 3rd Belorussian Front under the command of Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky. The Germans did not have a continuous defense front in the Vilnius direction. On July 7, units of Rotmistrov's 5th Guards Tank Army and Obukhov's 3rd Guards Mechanized Corps reached the city and began to envelop it. The attempt to take the city on the move failed. On the night of July 8, new German forces were brought to Vilnius. On July 8-9, the city was completely surrounded and the assault began. Attempts by the Germans to unblock the city from the western direction were repulsed. The last pockets of resistance were suppressed in Vilnius on July 13. Up to 8 thousand Germans were destroyed, 5 thousand people were captured. On July 15, front units occupied several bridgeheads on the western bank of the Neman. Until the 20th there were battles for the bridgeheads.

On July 28, the troops of the 3rd Belorussian Front launched a new offensive - they were aimed at Kaunas and Suwalki. On July 30, the German defense along the Neman was broken through, and on August 1, the Germans left Kaunas to avoid being surrounded. Then the Germans received reinforcements and launched a counter-offensive - the fighting continued with varying success until the end of August. The front did not reach the East Prussian border several kilometers.

Bagramyan's 1st Baltic Front received the task of reaching the sea to cut off the North group. In the Dvina direction, the Germans were initially able to hold back the offensive, because the front was regrouping its forces and waiting for reserves. Dvinsk was cleared in cooperation with the troops of the 2nd Baltic Front advancing to the right only on July 27. On the same day, Siauliai was taken. By July 30, the front managed to separate two groups of enemy armies from each other - the advanced units of the Red Army cut the last railway between East Prussia and the Baltic states in the Tukums area. On July 31, Jelgava was captured. The 1st Baltic Front reached the sea. The Germans began to try to restore connection with Army Group North. The fighting went on with varying degrees of success, and at the end of August there was a break in the fighting.

The 2nd Belorussian Front advanced to the west - to Novogrudok, and then Grodno and Bialystok. Grishin's 49th Army and Boldin's 50th Army took part in the destruction of the Minsk "cauldron", so on July 5, only one army went on the offensive - the 33rd Army. The 33rd Army advanced without encountering much resistance, covering 120-125 km in five days. On July 8, Novogrudok was liberated, and on the 9th the army reached the Neman River. On July 10, the 50th Army joined the offensive and troops crossed the Neman. On July 16, Grodno was liberated, the Germans were already putting up fierce resistance, and a series of counterattacks were repulsed. The German command tried to stop the Soviet troops, but they did not have enough strength to do this. On July 27, Bialystok was recaptured. Soviet soldiers reached the pre-war border of the Soviet Union. The front was unable to carry out significant encirclements, since it did not have large mobile formations (tank, mechanized, cavalry corps). On August 14, Osovets and the bridgehead beyond the Narev were occupied.

The 1st Belorussian Front advanced in the direction of Baranovichi-Brest. Almost immediately, the advancing units encountered German reserves: the 4th Tank Division, the 1st Hungarian Cavalry Division, the 28th Light Infantry Division and other formations went. July 5-6 fierce battle. Gradually, the German forces were crushed, they were inferior in number. In addition, the Soviet front was supported by powerful air force formations, which dealt strong blows to the Germans. On July 6, Kovel was liberated. On July 8, after a fierce battle, Baranovichi was taken. On July 14 they took Pinsk, on the 20th Kobrin. On July 20, Rokossovsky's units crossed the Bug on the move. The Germans did not have time to create a line of defense along it. On July 25, a “cauldron” was created near Brest, but on the 28th, the remnants of the encircled German group broke out of it (the Germans lost 7 thousand people killed). It should be noted that the battles were fierce, there were few prisoners, but a lot of dead Germans.

On July 22, units of the 2nd Tank Army (which was attached to the front during the second phase of the operation) reached Lublin. On July 23, the assault on the city began, but due to the lack of infantry it was delayed, and the city was finally taken by the morning of the 25th. At the end of July - beginning of August, Rokossovsky's front captured two large bridgeheads across the Vistula.

Results of the operation

As a result of the two-month offensive of the Red Army, White Rus' was completely cleared of the Nazis, part of the Baltic states and the eastern regions of Poland were liberated. In general, on a front of 1,100 kilometers, troops advanced to a depth of 600 km.

This was a major defeat for the Wehrmacht. There is even an opinion that this was the largest defeat of the German armed forces in World War II. Army Group Center was defeated, Army Group North was threatened with defeat. The powerful line of defense in Belarus, protected by natural barriers (swamps, rivers), has been broken. German reserves were depleted and had to be thrown into battle to close the “hole.”

An excellent foundation has been created for a future offensive into Poland and further into Germany. Thus, the 1st Belorussian Front captured two large bridgeheads across the Vistula south of the capital of Poland (Magnuszewski and Pulawski). In addition, during the Lvov-Sandomierz operation, the 1st Ukrainian Front occupied a bridgehead near Sandomierz.

Operation Bagration was a triumph of Soviet military art. The Red Army “responsible” for the “boilers” of 1941.

Soviet army lost up to 178.5 thousand dead, missing and captured, as well as 587.3 thousand wounded and sick. The total German losses were about 400 thousand people (according to other sources, more than 500 thousand).

In 1944, the Red Army carried out a series of offensive operations, as a result of which the state border of the USSR was restored all the way from the Barents to the Black Sea. The Nazis were expelled from Romania and Bulgaria, from most areas of Poland and Hungary. The Red Army entered the territory of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.

Among these operations was the defeat of Nazi troops on the territory of Belarus, which went down in history under code name"Bagration". This is one of the largest offensive operations of the Red Army against Army Group Center during the Great Patriotic War.

The armies of four fronts took part in Operation Bagration: 1st Belorussian (commander K.K. Rokossovsky), 2nd Belorussian (commander G.F. Zakharov), 3rd Belorussian (commander I.D. Chernyakhovsky), 1st Baltic (commander I. Kh. Bagramyan), forces of the Dnieper military flotilla. The length of the combat front reached 1100 km, the depth of troop movement was 560-600 km. The total number of troops at the start of the operation was 2.4 million.

Operation Bagration began on the morning of June 23, 1944. After artillery and air preparation in the Vitebsk, Orsha and Mogilev directions, the troops of the 1st Baltic, 3rd and 2nd Belorussian fronts went on the offensive. On the second day, enemy positions were attacked by troops of the 1st Belorussian Front in the Bobruisk direction. The actions of the fronts were coordinated by representatives of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, Marshals of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov and A.M. Vasilevsky.

Belarusian partisans dealt strong blows to the occupiers’ communications and communication lines. On the night of June 20, 1944, the third stage of the “rail war” began. During that night, the partisans blew up more than 40 thousand rails.

By the end of June 1944, Soviet troops surrounded and destroyed the Vitebsk and Bobruisk enemy groups. In the Orsha area, a group covering the Minsk direction was eliminated. The enemy's defenses in the territory between the Western Dvina and Pripyat were breached. First baptism of fire near the village of Lenino, Mogilev region, the 1st Polish Division named after T. Kosciuszko took over. French pilots of the Normandy-Neman aviation regiment took part in the battles for the liberation of Belarus.

On July 1, 1944, Borisov was liberated, and on July 3, 1944, Minsk was liberated. In the area of ​​Minsk, Vitebsk and Bobruisk, 30 Nazi divisions were surrounded and destroyed.

Soviet troops continued their advance to the west. On July 16, they liberated Grodno, and on July 28, 1944, Brest. The occupiers were completely expelled from Belarusian soil. In honor of the Red Army, the liberator of Belarus from the Nazi invaders, the Mound of Glory was built at the 21st kilometer of the Moscow Highway. The four bayonets of this monument symbolize the four Soviet fronts, whose soldiers took part in the liberation of the republic.

28. Completion of the liberation of European countries. Having liberated the territorial USSR from the German fascist invaders, the Red Army moved west to help the peoples of Europe regain freedom and independence. The first country where Soviet troops entered was Romania. August 23, 1944 A popular armed uprising broke out in Bucharest, marking the beginning of the democratic revolution. During the battles in Bucharest and other areas, the troops captured 53,159 Nazis, including 14 generals and more than 1,200 officers. The regime of J. Antonescu was overthrown. Romania declared war on Germany. August 31, 1944. The Red Army entered Bucharest and, together with Romanian troops October 25, 1944 liberated the territorial countries from German troops. 69,000 Soviet soldiers died in the battles for the freedom of the Romanian people. September 8 The Red Army entered the territory. Bulgaria, which, despite its people, was drawn into the fascist bloc. On September 9, power passed into the hands of the Fatherland Front. Bulgaria declared war on Germany. On September 28, Soviet troops crossed the South Slavic border and, jointly with the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia, expelled the invaders from Belgrade on October 20, 1944. On February 13, 1945, the multi-day assault ended and the capital of Hungary was liberated. During the liberation of Hungary, 140,000 Soviet soldiers died. In March 1945, the Red Army crossed the border into Austria. On April 13, after stubborn fighting, Vienna was cleared of invaders. The state sovereignty of the country was restored. The situation in Poland was more complex. On August 1, 1944, during the march of Soviet troops to the Vistula River in Warsaw, an uprising broke out, organized by the command of the Home Army and the Polish emigrant government, located in London, without the consent of the Soviet government. German troops brutally suppressed the uprising. Only on January 17, 1945, Warsaw was liberated by Soviet troops and the First Polish Army. In battles on Polish soil, 170 enemy divisions were defeated. More than 600 thousand of our soldiers and officers gave their lives for the liberation of Poland. On October 21, 1944, northern Norway was liberated by the Red Army. The decisive military actions of the Red Army on Czechoslovak soil took place in May 1945. In Prague, on May 5, an uprising of city residents against the fascist occupiers began. The rebels turned to the Soviet command asking for help. Soviet troops broke the resistance German groups armies “Center” and “Austria” and on May 9, 1945 liberated Prague. In the battles for freedom and independence of the Czechoslovak people, 140 thousand soldiers of the Red Army died. Soviet troops also contributed to the liberation of the Danish island of Bornholm from the Nazis. The Red Army fulfilled its liberation mission, returning freedom to 11 countries of central and southeastern Europe with a population of 113 million people.

At a referendum in 1996, citizens of the Republic of Belarus voted for the Independence Day of the Republic to be celebrated on July 3 - the day of the liberation of Minsk from the Nazi invaders, moving this date from July 27, which was timed to be signed on this day in 1990 by the Supreme Council of the BSSR Declaration on the sovereignty of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic and was associated with the tragic collapse of the Soviet Union.

Since then, while celebrating Republic Day, Belarusians also remember and honor the feat of their fathers and grandfathers during the Great Patriotic War. It would seem that in more than 70 years after the end of the war, so much has already been done to perpetuate the memory of those who fell at the front, in partisan detachments and tortured civilians, but every time we discover that something has not yet been completed and not everything has been said.

So. During the Belarusian operation (code name “Bagration”), formations of the 5th Guards Tank Army (commander Marshal of Tank Forces P.A. Rotmistrov) reached the Ostroshitsky town area on July 2 and started a battle on the northern and northeastern outskirts of Minsk. From the east, the 2nd Guards Tank Corps of Major General A.S. Burdeyny approached the city, in the vanguard of which were advancing soldiers of the 4th Tank Brigade under the command of Colonel A.A. Losik and the 25th Tank Brigade, commanded by Colonel S. M. Bulynin.

According to information from Belarusian partisans operating in the Minsk region, it became known that the Government House, the building of the Central Committee of the Party of Belarus and the District House of Officers that remained in Minsk were being hastily mined and being prepared for an explosion. In order to save these important objects, it was decided to speed up the liberation of Minsk and send mine clearance units together with tank units. The goal was to break into the city without getting involved in battles on the outskirts, and to capture government buildings.

At dawn on July 3, the 2nd Guards Tank Corps of General A.S. Burdeyny burst into Minsk from the east. At the same time, formations of the 5th Guards Tank Corps entered the area north of the city, in the vanguard of which were advancing soldiers of the 4th Guards Tank Brigade. One of the first to burst into the city was the tank of the guard of junior lieutenant D.G. Frolikov, awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. Following the tankers of the 3rd Belorussian Front, the 1st Guards Tank Corps of General M.F. Panov from the 1st Belorussian Front entered Minsk from the southeast. Later, units of the 3rd Army arrived here.

By mid-day, the Red Banner was hoisted over the building of the theater. Y. Kupala July 3, 1944. This was done by the tank crews of the tank company of Senior Lieutenant A.A. Yakovlev.

On the afternoon of July 3, 1944, the capital of Soviet Belarus was completely cleared of the Nazis. The liberation of Minsk completed the encirclement of units of the 4th German Army to the east of the city with a total number of about 105 thousand people.

By Decree of the Presidium Supreme Council USSR dated March 24, 1945, for the exemplary performance of command assignments in battles with the Nazi invaders and the courage and heroism shown, the tank commander who was the first to break into the streets of Minsk Guard, junior lieutenant Dmitry Georgievich Frolikov, was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. But the Hero Tankman did not have the chance to receive the highest awards of the Motherland for the liberation of Minsk. Dmitry Frolikov, already commanding a tank company, died a heroic death in battle on February 2, 1945 and was buried in the Lithuanian city of Kybartai at the Russian City Cemetery. His thirty-four, which burned in the same battle, did not survive either.

In memory of Lieutenant Frolikov, in 1952, a T-34 with license plates of the first tank to break into Minsk was erected on a pedestal next to the House of Officers. Minsk residents call this monument “Frolikov’s tank.” One of the streets in Minsk is also named after Frolikov.

However, July 3 is associated not only with the stories of the Independence Day of the Republic of Belarus, the liberation of Minsk in 1944 and the Frolikov tank. On July 3, 1941, two days after the Germans occupied Minsk, I drove through the entire city from the South-West towards the Moscow Highway, destroying enemy columns along the way. soviet tank T-28.

This last battle on the streets of Minsk in the summer of 1941 caused panic among the Germans, and was so incredible that it was written about in German newspapers, and then all the world's telegraph agencies reported.

On July 4, 1941, the American magazine Time published an article “The third week of the war - in search of a second wind.” It also contained mention of last fight in occupied Minsk:
“The Russians stunned the Nazis with their fanatical courage. German reporters described the mad attack of one Russian tank during the street battles for Minsk - it rushed forward like a dinosaur, no matter what. Shells from German anti-tank guns riddled its turret, but the brown monster continued to move, firing in all directions. Eventually the tank was set on fire; the crew died along with the car.”

Not a word was said about the “dinosaur tank” in Soviet newspapers. But there was a tank. The townspeople saw him, and years later they remembered that incredible event. Many then thought that it was our people who had returned... On Komarovskaya Square, the tank was hit. They said that the Germans buried the dead tank crews with honors. And at night, on the armor blackened by fire, the inscription “Death to the Nazis!” appeared.

The story of the last battle on the streets of occupied Minsk on July 3, 1941 is continued by an equally symbolic coincidence. On July 3, 1944, three years later, one of the participants in the heroic battle at the beginning of the war, mechanic Dmitry Ivanovich Malko, entered the liberated Minsk as part of the 4th Tank Brigade. According to Malkov, he saw his T-28 tank in the same place where it was hit. “When we drove into Komarovka, I saw the burnt shell of a tank at a fork in the streets and recognized it as my T-28. My throat was constricted from excitement...” said mechanic D.I. Malko..

After the war, Dmitry Ivanovich Malko lived in Minsk all his life; his grandchildren and great-grandchildren still live in Minsk. This is what V. Bondarenko writes in his article: “It is worth noting that the feat of the brave tank crews was never properly appreciated either during the USSR or after. Only in 1966, thanks to the search work of enthusiastic schoolchildren, one of the members of the heroic crew was found, the man who drove the T-28 through the streets of captured Minsk - a modest worker of the Minsk Motor Plant, Dmitry Malko. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree. But by and large, the legend of the “fire tank” remained a legend.”

Apparently the reason for the inattention to the feat of the “Fire Crew” lies in the fact that in the Soviet Union they honored, first of all, the exploits of the attackers. Therefore, for a long time it was unknown about the heroic defense of the Brest Fortress.

But now we all understand that the oblivion of people who fought in the rearguard of the retreating army and those who were surrounded and did not lay down their arms is in highest degree not fair. After all, the one who is the last to leave a besieged city deserves no less glory than the one who breaks into it first.

It would be great if in Minsk there was a monument not only to the first liberator tank, but also to the last defender tank.

It seems necessary to start collecting signatures for the initiative to establish a monument to the T-28 crew at the site of their death in the Komarovsky market area in 2019 for the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Minsk.

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