got a hint from a fellow-Combat Mission player that this is the place for my questions!
In group we are building a collection of battles taken place in Operation Barbarossa for Combat Mission:Operation Barbarossa, the collection is called 'RedBeard 1189', forum to be found at http://com2.runboard.com/bredbeard1189
Mine is the battle for Staraya Russa. Details are not so easily found on the net and mostly concern the counteroffensive from the Red Army.
I'm looking for the Armies/Groups who went into battle at Staraya Russa near Lake Ilmen as part of Armee Gruppe North.(additional info from Russian side is also welcome).
I believe that X AK (Aok 16) reached Staraya Russa around 05 Aug.41 with the 126.ID, 30.ID, and 290.ID (north to south).
The 126.ID attacked Staraya Russa and the III./426 I.R. was the first into the city on 07 Aug.41.
Soviet forces arrayed against them included the 183.Rifle Div., 180.Rifle Div., 254.Rifle Div., 237.Rifle Div., and 1.Tank Bde. of the XXII Rifle Corps.
Shortly after 126.ID entered Staraya Russa parts of the division were forced to face south (along with 30.ID) to assist 290.ID repel strong Soviet thrusts into the gap between X AK and II AK to the south, near Kholm.
Oh fact. They came there as 8th light infantry div. in March 1942.
BTW. When my Grandpa goes to army in 1941 it was 8th Infantry Div, later 8th light infantry div, and finaly 8th Jeager Division. But in fact it was the same division.
*Armee Gruppe Nord 'von Leeb'
**16e Armee 'Ernst Busch' (8 infantry divisions)
**18e Armee 'von Küchler'
**Panzergruppe 4 'Erich Hoepner' (3 Panzerdivisions, 3 motorized infantrydivisions & 2 infantrydivisions)
*41e Panzerkorps 'Georg Reinhardt'
*56e Panzerkorps 'Erich von Manstein'
**Luftlotte 1 'Alfred Keller'
**reserve: 3 infantry divisions
objectives:
Düna river (300km)-Velikaya river (550km)-Estland-Letland-Litua-Marinebases-Kronshtadt-Leningrad
*Russians:
**Special Baltic Military District, later 'Northwestern Front' (from 22/06/41)
**8th Army 'P.P. Sobenninov'
*backup: 12th Mechanized Korps 'Kurkin' (750 old tanks)
**11th Army 'V.I. Morozov'
*backup: 3rd Mechanized Korps 'Kurkin' (110 KV-1, KV-2 & T-34's combined with 550 old tanks)
**reserve: 27th Army 'Berzarin'
#STARAYA RUSSA#:
*German Forces
08/07/41: Pskov captured
12/07/41: 4th Panzergruppe under command from'Hoepner' rests at east of Pskov to be re-equipped and to give the infantry a chance to catch up. Infantry consists of "30 Infanterie Division" under command from 'von Tippelkirch' & "126 Infanterie Division" under command from 'Hähling', later reïnforced by "290 Infanterie Division" under command from 'von Wrede', all from the 16e Armee.
06-07/08/41: German infantry from 3rd batallion from 426 Infantry Regiment enter Staraya Russa.
22/07/41: spearheads 4th Panzergruppe reach Lake Ilmen
31/07/41: Armee Nord reaches Lake Ilmen.
09/08/41: Staraya Russa under German control (until 18/02/44)
12/08/41: Russian counterattack by 34th Army against 10th Corps at South-East of lake Ilmen, North-East of Staraya Russa
13/08/41: 10th Corps retreats
16/08/41: 56th Panzerkorps, 3rd Motorized division and some SS-Totenkopf divisions rush towards 10th Corps and defeat the Russian 34th Army.
17/08/41: Novgorod near Lake Ilmen falls under German control.
Here is a quick translation from the 126 ID History covering the capture of Staraja Russa;
The attack against Staraja Russa was ordered for 3. 8. The Division stood ready on both sides of the Schminsk – Staraja Russa road with I.R. 426 on the right and I.R. 422 on the left. There was already contact with the enemy on 1. 8. during which the intention of surprising the enemy was lost. On 2. 8. the Gen. Kdo. ordered a reconnaissance in force with artillery support which contributed to lifting the veil.
The 3. 8., once again a Sunday, was a hot August day. The battle was opened by the artillery (II. and III./A.R. 126, Schw. Artl. Abt. 809 and II./A.R. 47) under the command of Oberstlt. v. Wrisberg (Cmdr. A.R. 126) with a half hour fire preparation. The main effort of the infantry attack first lay with I.R. 426, to who one platoon from Sturmbttr. 665 as well as one Pioneer platoon of 1./Pi. Btl. 126 with flamethrowers (Uffz. Christenfeld) were attached. Despite heavy enemy resistance elements of I.R. 426 pushed into Peretjorki at 05.30 hours and elements of I.R. 422 into Wolkowizy at 06.00 hours. The attack was essentially continued by the outer flank battalions of both Regiments since the enemy had mainly set up his defense on both sides of the road. By early afternoon the III./I.R. 426 had surprisingly thrust through the forest east of Lunyschino and found itself continuing the advance toward Bubnowschtschina. At the request of the Division the 30 I.D. also began to attack and quickly gained ground across its entire width. Thus the success of the first days attack was decided and a deep penetration in to the defensive position of Staraja Russa achieved. By evening the friendly forward line ran from Jewanowo through Kakiljowa into the forest south of Barsunicha. On the left flank on the west bank of Lake Ilmen the Aufkl. Abt. was employed as an independently operating unit. It encountered a strong enemy force 3 km. east of Borissowo. Based on the appearance of this flank danger a special Group Goltz was established from I./I.R. 422, the Aufkl. Abt. 126, the 3./Pz. Jaeger Abt. 126 and one battery from the II./A.R. 126 which first only had a purely defensive mission.
On 4. 8. at 06.30 hours the attack along the Schminsk – Staraja Russa road was continued. It immediately gained ground. Around 09.00 hours Nagowo, 10 km. northwest of Staraja Russa, fell. Shortly afterward a Russian counterattack with heavy tanks occurred which was repelled. A special share of this defensive success went to the 12./I.R. 426 (Lt. Fahrenberg). Further attacks were met by stubborn enemy resistance and supported by strong artillery and numerous aircraft. Only after I.R. 46 from the 30 I.D. surprised the enemy with a skilful flank attack at Bakotschino during the evening did the enemy resistance at Nagowo also decrease. The general attack could not be resumed until the following morning (5. 8.). During this I.R. 426 managed to reach the Kretscha stream near the riding arena at 14.00 hours, while at the same time I.R. 422 pushed into the forest east of the Makowka stream. This was a great success. During the same hour our aerial reconnaissance identified active east – west traffic out of Staraja Russa, the Army thus believed that the battle was practically decided and that further participation by the 126 I.D. was no longer needed.
Thus the relief of the Division was ordered for the coming night. I.R. 426 was to be relieved by I.R. 26 (30 I.D.) and I.R. 422 by the Radf. Abt. 30. The Division believed this to be impossible. It especially had doubts against the relief of the entire left sector, previously occupied by 4 Battalions, by Radf. Abt. 30. This opinion was presented to the Gen. Kdo. by General Laux at 17.00 hours. Meanwhile the enemy resistance in front of the 30 I.D. had surprisingly increased. The Gen. Kdo. therefore had the 126 I.D. remain for the next 48 hours. However, the II. and III./A.R. 126, 1. and 2./Pi. Btl. 126 and elements of the NA 126 had already been given to and had departed for the I. AK. As replacements the Division at first received only the II./A.R. 30.
After regrouping the artillery under the Cmdr. of A.R. 126, the following were instructed to cooperate: II./47 with I.R. 426 and II./A.R. 30 with I.R. 422 – the attack began at 09.00 hours on 6. 8. It was carried out across mainly open ground against an enemy who was still fighting hard and who had a definite artillery and aerial superiority. Nevertheless the III./I.R. 426 (Major Bunzel) was able to thrust deep into the enemy position and push into the west portion of Staraja Russa. The Battalion was at the Polistj by the afternoon. The enemy was completely surprised. The 1a of the 11. Soviet Army, not oriented about the actual situation, fell wounded into captivity. And though less favorable than its neighboring Regiment, I.R. 422 had also won considerable ground despite difficult terrain and especially tough enemy resistance. By evening the forward elements found themselves at Datscha Doktora. On the left flank the I. Btl. had established contact with the Regiment while the Aufkl. Abt. was stuck in front of Balogisha after a costly night battle during which the leader of the Schweren Schwadron (Lt. Schmidt) and the Ord. Officer of the Abt. (Lt. Brecht) fell.
The occupation of western portion of Staraja Russa had finally prevented the transfer of the Division to the I. AK. Even at the green table of the AOK one did not risk relieving victorious troops who were fighting at the point of main effort of an attacking battle. The II. and III./A.R. 126 were therefore ordered to return. After a 70 km. march they would arrive in the Division area on the evening of 7. 8. Aside from I.R. 424 only the entire Pi. Btl. remained subordinated to the I. AK. Therefore the Division received the staff and 1. Kp. Pi. Btl. 505. The 7. 8. was first only intended to prepare for the crossing of the Polistj. However at 02.00 hours at night the Gen. Kdo. ordered the continuation of the attack for 10.00 hours on 7. 8. notwithstanding the lack of preparations and the friendly artillery still in route. An immediate preparation was provided by an aerial attack from VIII Fliegerkorps (General v. Richthofen) against the still undamaged portions of Staraja Russa, which with its many towers and churches still presented a picture of old Russia, and turned it into rubble and ash. I.R. 426 crossed the Polistj on the tree trunks laying in the river and was able to push to the west edge of the city without any large enemy resistance. During this I.R. 422, at times supported by II./I.R. 426, cleared the areas not yet surrendered by the enemy in the northwest and north areas of the city. The continued attack to the east was to be carried out in a concerted manner by all three Divisions of the Korps. For this though a combined assembly and careful preparations were needed. This occurred on 8. 8. Pi. Btl. 505 utilized this day to build a bridge over the Polistj. Large fighting only occurred on the left flank with the Aufkl. Abt. which was able to capture Medwedna and Kretschewo.
I.R. 422 and 426 moved into their jump-off positions on the east edge of Staraja Russa during the evening hours of 8. 8. After strong artillery preparation an enemy counterattack to recapture the city struck these movements. The Russians managed to push into the southern portion of the city, especially in the spa garden area. Throughout the entire night heavy close combat raged in the burning sea of houses. For anxious hours the situation was completely unclear and only towards morning was it shown that it was possible to throw back the enemy at all locations. At the original attack deadline (06.00 hours) had to be held in the interest of the conduct of battle of the Korps despite complete exhaustion. On this occasion luck was on our side. The enemy, who apparently wanted to attack as well, was caught in the jump-off positions by our artillery and so smashed that he quickly retreated to the east. Around 08.00 hours I.R. 426 reached Mednikowa. By evening our own forward line was on the hill of Anischina, 4 km. east of Staraja Russa. Unfortunately this success was expensive. The Division had to mourn 49 killed and 118 wounded. After the hard casualties of the previous days this was a new loss which for the time being could not be replaced. But things were going to get worse in the upcoming days!
One correction to your briefing, the Commanding General of the 126 ID was General Laux.
The Battle for Staraya Russa was part of the attack of ArmeeGruppe Nord towards Leningrad.
After battling for the line between Pskov-Ostrov the Germans went for the control of Lake Ilmen. Therefore they needed the control over Novgorod, northwest of Lake Ilmen, and Staraya Russa, south of Lake Ilmen. They captured Staraya Russa on august 9th 1941. 3 Days later the Russian 34th Army counterattacked the Lake Ilmen area but were stopped and thrown back by a combined German force who were called in to support X Korps. After these fightings Staraya Russa stayed under German control until february 18th 1944.
Staraya Russa was a historical city, Staraya means 'old', and once one of the major cities of Russia.
After the Germans left there was nothing left of its greatness.
*Armee Gruppe Nord 'von Leeb'
**16e Armee 'Ernst Busch' (8 infantry divisions)
**18e Armee 'von Küchler'
**Panzergruppe 4 'Erich Hoepner' (3 Panzerdivisions, 3 motorized infantrydivisions & 2 Infantrydivisions)
*41e Panzerkorps 'Georg Reinhardt'
*56e Panzerkorps 'Erich von Manstein'
**Luftlotte 1 'Alfred Keller'
**reserve: 3 infantry divisions
objectives:
Düna river (300km)-Velikaya river (550km)-Estland-Letland-Litua-Marinebases-Kronshtadt-Leningrad
*Russians:
**Special Baltic Military District, later 'Northwestern Front' (from 22/06/41)
**8th Army 'P.P. Sobenninov'
*backup: 12th Mechanized Korps 'Kurkin' (750 old tanks)
**11th Army 'V.I. Morozov'
*backup: 3rd Mechanized Korps 'Kurkin' (110 KV-1, KV-2 & T-34's combined with 550 old tanks)
**reserve: 27th Army 'Berzarin'
#STARAYA RUSSA#:
*German Forces
08/07/41: Pskov captured
12/07/41: 4th Panzergruppe under command from 'Hoepner' rests at east of Pskov waiting for infanterie. Infantry consists of
"30th 'Briesen'-Infanterie Division" under command from 'von Tippelkirch' with 6,26 & 46 regiment.
"126th 'Rheinisch Westfälisch'-Infanterie Division" under command from 'Laux' with 422,424 & 426 regiment.
"290 'Schwert'-Infanterie Division" under command from 'von Wrede' with 501,502 & 503 regiment.
They were all part from the 16e Armee.
22/07/41: spearheads 4th Panzergruppe reach Lake Ilmen
31/07/41: Armee Nord reaches Lake Ilmen.
01/08/41: first contact
02/08/41: recon assisted by arty
03/08/41: opening battle by artillery (1/2hr), IR426 attacks added by sturmtroops, pioneers and flamethrowers. They enter Peretjorki at 0530. IR422 enters Wolkowizy at 0600.
1400: IR426 enters woods east of Lunyschino and continue towards Bubnowschtina.
30 Idiv attacks.
Frontline from Jewanowo through Kakiljowa to the forest south of Barsunicha.
Aufklärungsbattalion operates alone at west bank of Lake Ilmen, encounters enemy east of Borissowo.
04/08/41: 0900:Nagowo, 10 km NW of S.R. falls. AM: Russian heavytank counter-attack on Nagowo which is repelled. Enemy resistance with arty and airplanes.
IR46 from ID30 perform flankattack at Bakotschino and succeed.
05/08/41: 1400:IR426 reaches Kretscha stream, IR422 enters forests east of Makowka stream.
06/08/41: 0900:attack starts:German infantry from 3rd batallion from 426 Infantry Regiment enter Staraya Russa. Battalion reaches Polistj by afternoon.
IR422 reach Datscha Doktora by evening. Left flank: 1st Bt. Advances towards the Regiment & Aufkl.Abt. fights in front of Balogisha.
07/08/41: aerial attack VIII Fliegerkorps, IR426 crosses the Polistj, IR422 clears the left bank.
08/08/41: Aufkl Bt still fights and captures Medwedna and Kretschewo (left flank).
08-09/08/41: heavy fighting during night at right bank after russian counterattack with artysupport
09/08/41: 0800: IR426 reaches Mednikowa. By evening the Germans captured the hill of Anischina, 4km east of S.R.
Staraya Russa is now under German control (until 18/02/44).
12/08/41: Russian counterattack by 34th Army against 10th Corps at South-East of lake Ilmen, North-East of Staraya Russa.
13/08/41: 10th Corps retreats.
16/08/41: 56th Panzerkorps???(founded 03/42), 3rd Infanterie Motorized division 'Jahn' and 3rd SS Panzer-"Totenkopf" division 'Keppler', all from 4th Panzergruppe, rush towards 10th Corps and defeat the Russian 34th Army.
17/08/41: Novgorod near Lake Ilmen falls under German control.
Quoted from “Army Group North – The Wehrmacht in Russia 1941-1945” by Werner Haupt (pages 86 to 88):
“ The operations area of Army Group North not only included the Baltic Provinces and Ingermanland. The large, partially unknown area south of Lake Ilmen also belonged to them. The right flank of the 16th Army stood, at the beginning of August, on a widely separated front west of Lovati, which ran in an almost perfect north-south direction on the southern portion of Lake Ilmen. On the extreme right flank, the L Army Corps, with the 251st ID and the 253rd ID, advanced north of Nevel (the corps commander was later transferred to the Luga Front, the two infantry divisions went to Army Group Center)> The II Army Corps closed on Kholm with its three major formations --- the 12th, 32nd, and 123rd ID.
The continuing rain prevented all movement, so that they had to transition to the defensive.
The X Army Corps (General of Artillery Hansen) was slowly advancing to the east, south of the lake. The Soviet positions west of Staraya Russa were thought to be strong and deeply echeloned. The XXII Rifle Corps defended the forest and water lands with the 180th, 183rd, 237th and 254th Rifle Divisions, and the 1st Tank Brigade.
The 16th Army commander ordered Staraya Russa to be attacked from the front. The 126th ID (Lieutenant General Laux), 30th ID (Lieutenant General Tippelskirch), and 290th ID (Lieutenant General Baron von Wrede) were to make preparations from the left to the right. The first day of the attack was successful, however, on the second day the infantrymen ran into strong defensive fire. Only the commitment of the VIII Air Corps of General Baron von Richthofen on 8/7 paved the way of the 126th ID into the burning Staraya Russa. The 3/426 Infantry Regiment (Major Bunzel) was the first into the city.
The 126th ID and 30th ID attacked further across the Polisti up to Redya and Lovati. The 290th ID turned to the south in order to provide flank protection. Between here and the II Army Corps, which was still near Kholm, yawned a huge gap. Here the Soviet High Command saw its chance. They subordinated the 34th Army (Major General Kachanov) to the Northwest Front, with the mission of conducting a counterattack through Staraya Russa toward Dno, in order to cut off the entire right flank of Army Group North.
The Soviet 34th Army attacked into the gap on 8/12, with the XXI, XXII, XXIV Rifle Corps, and the XXV Cavalry Corps --- in all, eight divisions (3rd, 254th, 259th, 163rd, 257th, 262nd, 202nd, and 245th Rifle Divisions from right to left). In their first assault, these strong forces threw the German security back.
The Soviets not only advanced to the west, but also to the north. After 24 hours, the tanks with the red stars had gained 22 kilometers to the west and halted only 16 kilometers south of Staraya Russa. The X Army Corps was in danger of being encircled.
General of Artillery Hansen immediately ordered his 126th and 30th ID to turn around toward the neighboring 290th ID threatened on their right. This did not do away with the danger. Since 8/15, four new Soviet divisions were shoved into the 80 kilometer wide gap to II Army Corps. On this day, twelve enemy divisions attacked into the open right flank of the 16th Army!
In this threatening situation, the army group commander decided to stop the advance of the panzer group and quickly direct the LVI Motorized Army Corps toward Dno and Staraya Russa. The 3rd Motorized Infantry Division and SS “Totenkopf” Division took four days to cover the 260 kilometer stretch from Luga to Kholm. Then they attacked from the move to the northeast into the flank of the 34th Soviet Army.
The enemy had already split the 30th and 126th ID. Finally, on 8/20, the lead attack elements of the SS “Totenkopf” Division and the 30th ID, which were moving in the opposite direction, took the upper hand! The enemy was destroyed and the X Army Corps freed. ”
