Winter Storm Page 11

“Cutting them off from Moscow is one thing,” said Kirov adamantly. “Beating them is quite another. We still have Rostov, the resources of the Donets Basin, and the factories in Volgograd. They’re building T-34s there even as we speak. So the Germans can come east if they choose, but we can still supply all those southern fronts as long as we hold those cities. For that matter, this new pocket that has just formed can be supplied from Bryansk and Kirov.”

  “Yes, we might hold out for some time, unless there is a general collapse as with the Smolensk Group.”

  “Then we must see that does not happen. I will fly to Kirov personally if that is what it takes. I will stand in the city they named after me, and those men will stand with me!” Kirov’s voice echoed off the high ceiling, resounding through the chamber.

  “If you leave Moscow now…” Berzin left that hanging, knowing the General Secretary would not fail to perceive the danger in that.

  Kirov composed himself, realizing the situation in the capital was far from secure now. People had seen one unit after another going off to the front, and the reserves grew ever thinner. Rumors were piled high like kindling, and all it would take is one false move to light the fire.

  “You have made the preparations concerning Moscow that we discussed earlier?” Kirov now carefully avoided using the word evacuation.

  “I have made quiet arrangements,” said Berzin, “and moved security personnel discretely to key areas of the city. The tension is mounting. We’ve kept the able bodies working on the inner defense ring, but people talk. They see everything leaving, and nothing arriving, and if things progress, they will soon hear the sound of battle on their doorstep. A general panic is not out of the question.”

  “I suppose you are correct about my leaving under these circumstances.” Kirov thought for a moment. “Where are the units of the Moscow Military District?”

  “At Elektrostal, just east of the city, and they should be able to move soon.”

  “Excellent. Move them into Moscow. I think we will arrange a little parade, right through Red Square. I want every unit of that force to participate. That should buck up morale. And we must do everything possible to rally those encircled troops in the Kirov Pocket…” He grimaced when he finished. “That was once something I put my pencils and small change into. Now this whole calamity is being written into the history books, and with my name on it all. Well, it will be held. When they speak of it in days to come, that cauldron will be synonymous with courage, and ultimate victory. You say you have pulled the 24th Siberian Army off the outer defenses?”

  “Yes sir, it is assembling closer to the city of Kirov.”

  “Then use it as a fire brigade. Use it to counterattack any significant enemy penetration against that pocket. The Siberians stopped the Germans earlier, just like the 1st Shock Army stopped Guderian.”

  “I was on the radio with Rakutin earlier this morning,” said Berzin. “That is exactly the plan.”

  “Good then. Those men must fight. They must give us the time we need to organize the defense of Moscow. The longer they hold out, the better. Every day they resist, is one more day we have to get reinforcements from the east. And if they do hold, then we’ll come for them, by God. I want Zhukov to make that a top priority in any plan he may be devising for a counterattack.”

  “The general will be informed,” said Berzin, knowing that Zhukov would have a mind of his own on this situation in any case.

  “What about 1st Tank Army,” said Kirov, moving quickly to thoughts of any planned counteroffensive.

  “Another two weeks,” said Berzin.

  A silence fell over the room again, as both men stared at the map, so different from the one they had leaned over just days ago in their last meeting.

  “We can stop them,” said Kirov, mustering his resolve. “The Siberians proved that twice already. If our own troops could fight like those men, then we would be drinking much more vodka than tea today. Alright then, move the first army available to the Mozhaysk Defense line, and tell them to dig in deep. I want those defenses well manned. Then we’ll see how much the Germans still have to throw at us. They have to be feeling the effects of all this fighting. They must be nearing exhaustion by now.”

  Berzin’s silence was testimony enough on that matter. They both knew the Germans would keep coming, even beyond the point of utter exhaustion. They were that damn good.

  “And now what about Volkov?” Kirov brought the matter up as an afterthought, something of little concern that he nonetheless decided to consider.

  “He’s good at re-occupying ground we’ve given back to him,” said Berzin. “He’s taken Zimovinki, but not Kotelnikovo. And there’s no way he’ll ever get over the Don in that sector. Moving the 50th Army out of there was the smartest thing we’ve done. In the south, he’s pushed out through Belorchensk, but hasn’t the strength to really threaten the Taman region, let alone Krasnodar. We can hold there indefinitely. In the center, he’s fighting for Kropotkin on the Kuban, but we think we can hold that line too. He hasn’t even been able to seriously threaten Salsk. And up near Volgograd, we’re putting the squeeze on his little offensive, and he’s barely holding his ground there now.”

  “Good,” said Kirov. “Keep squeezing. If we can reduce that bridgehead soon, then all those troops could be put to much better use elsewhere. God knows, we may need them in Moscow if things get any worse. Tell me they won’t, Grishin. Tell me we’ll hold.”

  “We’ll hold….” Berzin allowed himself a moment of comradery with the General Secretary now. “We’ll stop them, sir …. Somehow.”

  “I hope so,” said Kirov. “Because this is just the calm before the storm.”

  Part V

  Roads Not Followed

  “There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must no be attacked, towns which must not be besieged, positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed.”

  ― Sun Tzu, The Art of War

  Chapter 13

  “Operation Teifun” is developing in a truly classic pattern. Guderian has pushed through Mtsensk beyond Orel, and is now advancing into completely empty space. Hoepner has broken through the enemy positions and has reached Mozhaysk…”

  War Diary of General Franz Halder

  The jubilant mood expressed by Halder in his notebook in no way reflected the gloom in the numbers he had typed just a few moments before writing that. He had just tabulated the casualties to date in the campaign, 18,235 officers, 532,804 NCOs and enlisted men, figures that represented 16.2% of the entire army in the east. The Germans had lost 122 times the ten year total KIAs for US troops in the Iraq War, and they had sustained these losses in 90 days. Russian losses were perhaps three times worse. This was war as it had never been seen before on this earth, and perhaps would never be seen again…

  The Russians had somehow managed to fill that empty space that was once in front of Guderian, compliments of Vladimir Karpov. The fighting for Plavsk was back and forth for the next two days. The Siberian Guards had arrived, strongly reinforcing the remnant of the 1st Special Rifle Corps, and retaking the town. But on the morning of September 7th, Eberbach mustered his two tank battalions and stormed in again, supported by KG Seiden on his right, and KG Wellmann on his left. This coordinated attack by six German battalions was enough to take two thirds of the town back again, though a regiment of 5th Guard Rifle was still holding the eastern third, and the town square they had fought so hard for the previous day.

  KG Munzel’s attempt to surge over the thin river had had not produced the results Model was hoping for. The German panzers sloshed through the shallow streambed, the tank treads grinding on the thin gravel, and then climbed slowly up the far bank, as the infantry of KG Westhoven crossed to support them. Beyond the river they came upon the short rail spur that had been used the previous day to rush in elements of the 17th Siberian Rifle Corps. They pushed across, tearing up the rail line as they went, and were on the verge of breaking
through when the… Uraaah… of Fresh Soviet riflemen echoed through the low flat valley.

  The 18th Siberian Guards had been rushed to the scene, leaping from their trucks about two kilometers east and forming up to make an immediate attack from march. Further north, Loeper’s 10th Motorized Division was now making the acquaintance of the 91st Siberian Guards, which mounted a similar attack to reinforce the 17th Corps, soon under pressure from elements of two German divisions. These timely arrivals were enough to shore up the Russian defense, and even push the Germans back in placed, particularly in te area south of Plavsk.

  There the arrival of the 8th Cavalry Corps behind Kuzma Podlas troops was a much needed support, and late that afternoon the cavalry mounted a daring charge, surging out from Ulyanovka, sabers held high by the officers as the Cossacks spurred their mounts on. It was more theater than real military operation, for the machine gun made such attacks all but suicidal. Yet that night, with the attack supported by two rifle divisions, KG Dorn of 4th Panzer was very hard pressed. The enemy was attempting to break through to the hamlet of Molochnyy on the main road back to Gorbachevo. Dorn’s two battalions had support from a couple Panzerjager companies, and the division artillery pool, which fired now to secure its own fate, as this attack was aimed right at the artillery parks.

  Darkness halted the Russian attacks, and a disconsolate lull fell over the line, with both sides too tired to do much of anything that night. Over exposed companies fell back and consolidated, others moved up and took a little ground in places. The Germans had the copper mine at Chirkovo, and most of Plavsk, but little else to crow about. 24th Panzer Korps had been stopped, which was exactly what Sergie Kirov hoped to accomplish by spending this valuable reserve. Yet the situation would soon begin to change again, for Hermann Hoth’s promise was arriving with the leading elements of the fresh 7th Panzer Division, and the veteran unit was eager to get into the fight.

  “Where do you want me,” said von Funck, who had taken the division in hand when Rommel went to Africa, and fought it well in the opening months of Barbarossa, particularly in the crossing of the Neman River. His unit helped close the Minsk pocket on one side before being pulled off the line to refit with new tanks.

  “Langermann and Model have been stopped here along this river by a strong Russian Army,” said Guderian, who drove over to greet the 7th Division commander and welcome him to the field of battle. “This river runs north from Plavsk for about 25 kilometers before it bends west. Right there at that bend, there is a thick orchard that was scouted by the Lehr recon battalion yesterday. They pushed through, but encountered two or three regiments of light infantry, so they pulled back to consolidate, and the sector was quiet yesterday. I think we’ve pulled in most of their reserves to the fight for Plavsk, and the 10th Motorized sector. That area near the orchard is ripe for attack. If you can push on through, swing up through those light woods beyond, and take this hill—830 on my map. That should give you a good view of anything else in the vicinity. If you can turn east and push for Shehekino, or get further north to flank Tula, all the better. That will unhinge their entire defense south of that city, and they will have no choice but to fall back.”

  “Consider it done, Herr General. We won’t get their until late this afternoon, but I will attack from march and push on after dusk if necessary.”

  As always, Hauptmann Hans von Luck was riding in the vanguard with the division reconnaissance battalion. His unit was the first on the scene, the tip of the spear, and right behind him was Oberst Keller with the newly outfitted panzer regiment. Each of his two leading medium battalions had about 20 of the new Leopard light/medium tanks that were to replace all the Panzer III series, though there were still 40 of the IIINs in the regiment. These were augmented with an up-gunned version of the better armored PzKfw IVF1, with a longer barreled 76mm gun. Reinhardt’s III Battalion had the only Big Cats on the field, with 22 Leopards leading the way for the 36 PzKfw-55L Lions.

  Von Luck was going to open the battle for the division, getting his recon battalion quickly into action just west of the thick orchards Guderian had pointed out. His vehicles had no trouble with the narrow river, which was little more than a glorified stream, mostly swelled now by the rain of the previous day. They found the 18th and 19th Ski regiments waiting for them, but when Keller’s panzers sloshed through the stream bed and pushed into the light woodland beyond, the enemy soon realized they were in trouble.

  The Russians had only three 47mm AT guns, and they could not make even the slightest impression on the new German armor. The tanks rattled forward, machineguns spitting out tracer fire that scored and blackened the trees, with main guns blasting away at gun positions and any resistance that seemed determined to try and hold. Keller’s lead battalion, and Stumpmeyer’s following, did most of the fighting. By the time Reinhardt’s Big Cats arrived, the 18th Ski Regiment had broken, and was falling back towards Hill 830. But they would soon find that place no haven from the storm that was now breaking on them.

  As the light faded, Von Luck decided to take advantage and pushed his fast moving recon battalion north towards the hill. He got there first, and found that the Russians had reacted quickly, for his flankers soon spotted light tanks approaching from the east. Von Luck was on the radio immediately, notifying Oberst Keller that he was now behind enemy lines, and facing armor, even if it was nothing more than the antiquated T-40 and T-60 Russian tanks that had formed the mainstay of their light battalions in the early stage of the war.

  “Now you get your chance to test your new panzers against enemy armor,” he finished, and then was out to get his AT defense established in case the Russians had any ideas about taking this high ground. The Soviet armor had spotted the Germans, but were none too keen on making a night attack on that hill. Unlike most other high points in the area, this one had steeper slopes, and von Luck had his battalion in a hedgehog on the southeast flank of the hill. The Russians decided to take up defensive positions as well, and so things settled down to light patrolling.

  That night the whole of 7th Panzer Division came up, and the engineers improved the river crossing by laying a light bridge for the vehicles. Now that it was concentrated, the Russians would be facing real trouble in the morning when the Ghost Division moved again. Stumpmeyer’s Battalion supported the Panzergrenadiers in a prepared assault on the Russian infantry. Keller and Reinhardt went after that tank unit, shattering it in minutes when the Russians had their own dose of tank shock this time. The light guns on the T-40s bounced harmlessly off the German armor, and for the first time in the war, the Russians heard the low growl of Germany’s new steel Lions. 7th Panzer broke through with little difficulty, and engineers scaling the heights of Hill 830 reported that they could see nothing at all to their north and east.

  Word passed quickly down the line, and the Russians were moving just as Guderian predicted. Kuzma Podlas was ordered to move his corps into a blocking position, and the Guards pulled out of Plavsk, retiring smartly as covering forces moved in to hold and give them time to slip away. Konev could see what was happening, and knew his defense at Plavsk had now been fatally compromised. He wanted his best divisions back at once, the riflemen moving to the main road to mount their trucks, as all three of the Siberian Guards units had ample transport. The 17th Siberian Rifle Corps remained in place, but Konev had five divisions moving by mid day, all hastening north to try and block the German advance towards Tula.

  Once again, it was the sudden appearance of that single division pulled out of Hoth’s Panzergruppe, and its lethal combination of penetrating power, shock, and maneuver, that was to unhinge the entire Soviet defense. What had looked to be a slogging battle of attrition the previous day, with Plavsk changing hands three times, burned and blackened by fire, its streets stained with blood, was now going to transform into a wild, swirling fight that would careen north towards the heavily built up areas of Tula and the large outlying town with the impossible name of Shehekino. And that day, the 9th of Se
ptember, both Guderian and Schweppenburg left their respective headquarters at Mtsensk and Orel, and came forward to meet at Chern. The 24th Panzer Korps was an armored cavalry outfit again, and the world’s most experienced tank men wanted to get forward in the saddle and give their horses the whip.

  “That’s done it,” said von Schweppenburg, a Captain in the Cavalry during the First World War, he had led the 3rd Panzer Division into Poland, and taken the XXIV Korps into France. “A taste of the good old days to see 7th Panzer out in front again.”

  “Yes,” said Guderian, but they will try to hold the line in front of your two divisions. Don’t bother trying to punch through. I want you to swing up and follow the 7th Division. They’ve given us back our battle of maneuver, and that is how we should fight now. Head north. Bypass Tula if we meet strong resistance. They will either have to follow us or sit with their samovars as we take Alexin and Serpukhov. That will ring the bells in Moscow.”

  But how will we keep the forward units supplied? Tula commands all the good roads and the rail net as well.”

  “Leave that to me.” Guderian seemed confident that he could manage the problem.

  “Then you don’t want Plavsk? Eberbach fought hard for that place, and we finally pushed them out.”

  “Of course, we need that town. The rail line passes right through it. Tell Langermann to keep up the pressure there today, but Model will disengage and swing up behind the lines of 10th Motorized this morning. Loeper can extend his front to cover the gap. Model will follow 7th Panzer, and then tonight, Langermann can pull out under cover of darkness and follow Model. I’ll move the 267th Infantry up to hold Plavsk.”

  “Very well, Herr General. But let us hope they have no more surprises up north.”

  “They got a surprise of their own this morning,” said Guderian with a smile. “Hoepner has taken Mozhaysk, and he’s punched right through their outer defensive ring. The lead elements of 11th Panzer are now threatening Naro-Fominsk. Unfortunately, we have nothing but infantry south of that penetration, so there can be no pincer operation contemplated. That said, Hoepner will have two good roads to Moscow on that axis. This may be over before we even reach the Oka River up north.”