Chapter 199 Discussion
Since the Leningrad counterattack began and the Soviet army recaptured the Red Army City, this city with a special name has become the rear base of the entire battle. Not only will the supplies and equipment supporting the battle be gathered here, but it is also the gathering area for the reserve troops. It is precisely because of this that the Red Army City now seems unusually noisy, and it has become a large military camp.
However, Yuri's residence is not in the Red Army City, but in a farm in the suburbs. In comparison, this place is much quieter.
Returning to his residence with Rokossovsky, Yuri asked the orderly to prepare food for the two of them, and then took Rokossovsky to his office.
As a lieutenant general and chief of the Operations Department of the General Staff, and now also a representative of the headquarters, Yuri's office is still very upscale. In order to enable him to understand the battle situation on the front at any time, the Leningrad Military Committee arranged for someone to update the battlefield situation map in his office for him, and it is updated twice a day.
The battlefield situation map is divided into four parts. One is the overall situation map, that is, the front-line situation of the entire northern battlefield; one is the front-line situation map of the Gulf of Finland, which mainly reflects the battlefield situation from Narva along the Gulf of Finland through Kingisepp to the area of Volkswagen Sabsk; the third is the front-line situation in the Lake Ilmen area, where the Soviet army is launching an attack on Shimsk, where the German army is heavily defended; the last one is the front-line situation map in the direction of the Lovat River, where the 2nd Baltic Front is launching an offensive towards Novorzhev.
As the saying goes, the battlefield situation changes rapidly. The same battlefield situation map may be valid a few hours ago, but the situation may change dramatically a few hours later. Therefore, it is very necessary to update and replace it in time. However, in recent days, the war on the entire northern front has been somewhat stalemate. The German army is unable to launch a large-scale counterattack, and the Soviet army is making orderly repairs in preparation for the second phase of the offensive. Therefore, the battlefield changes in all aspects are not very big.
As far as the first phase of the offensive is concerned, the Soviet army actually did not succeed in achieving the campaign objectives, because Küchler violated the orders of the German High Command and withdrew the main force of the 18th Army to the south bank of the Luga River. Therefore, the Soviet army failed to complete the combat goal of encircling and annihilating the entire German 18th Army. Although the Soviet army also annihilated three German divisions during the offensive, such results did not satisfy the High Command.
The war entered its third year. With the Soviet army's all-out counterattack on the front line, especially after the Leningrad counterattack, the entire Eastern Front had been connected. The boundaries of the so-called three battlefields of the north, south and center were no longer so clear. In a nutshell, any battle in any direction could have a major impact on a battle in other directions.
Take the Leningrad counterattack as an example. The goal of encircling and annihilating the German 18th Army was not achieved, which means that the German army preserved its strength to a certain extent. At the same time, it also means that the Soviet army will face greater pressure on the northern front in the next stage of the offensive against Belarus.
Therefore, in order to clear the obstacles and create more favorable conditions for the subsequent Belorussian offensive campaign, the Supreme Command required that in the second phase of the offensive, the Leningrad Front, the Volkhov Front and various fronts along the Baltic coast should strive to destroy the German army's manpower to the greatest extent possible.
It was precisely in consideration of the requirements of the Supreme Command that the main offensive direction of the second phase of the battle deployment was determined to be the line from Narva to Bolshoi Sabsk and the southern shore of Lake Ilmen. The purpose of this operation was to encircle and annihilate the German 18th Army that retreated to the south bank of Lake Luga .
"...The problem we are facing now," Yuri said to Rokossovsky standing beside him, standing in front of the latest battlefield situation map in his office. He took a sip of hot water from a cup that the guard had just brought him. "The previous phase of the battle lasted for nearly a month. Our troops are very tired and have consumed a lot of supplies. Continuous fighting, especially to quickly break through the German Luga River defense line, is not easy and the expected losses will be relatively large, so the replenishment of troops is also an issue that needs to be solved urgently."
Rokossovsky did not respond. He stared at the situation map for a while, crossed his left arm across his chest, supported his right elbow with his left hand, and supported his chin with his right hand. He said thoughtfully: "The Supreme Command has given me the latest mission. The First Belorussian Front will launch an attack on Bobruisk in the summer to annihilate the Mogilev Group of the German Army."
Yuri shrugged. He could see that Rokossovsky was not concerned about the second phase of the Leningrad counterattack. What he really cared about was the Belarusian offensive that would be launched in a few months. However, this was not surprising. After all, he was the commander of the First Belarusian Front, and the First Belarusian Front was one of the two main offensive forces in the Belarusian offensive. His influence was extremely important.
From a geographical point of view, there are four important military towns from north to south at the intersection of the Dnieper River and the Western Dvina River: Vitebsk, Orsha, Mogilev and Bobruisk. Relying on Orsha and Mogilev, the German army built the Dnieper River defense line on this line to prevent the Soviet army from advancing westward, that is, into the hinterland of Belarus. Only 100 kilometers behind this defense line is the Belarusian capital Minsk. At present, the German Army's Central Army Group is stationed in the triangle between Minsk, Vilnius and Baranovichi.
Going north from Vilnius, via the Western Dvina River, you will reach the area under the jurisdiction of the German Army Group North , while going south through Baranovichi will lead to the vast Pripyat swamp in southwestern Belarus. In the eyes of the Germans, the Pripyat swamp, which occupies the entire Pripyat River basin, is a natural barrier. Its existence separates the southern battlefield of Ukraine from the central front where Belarus is located. Three years ago, the German army launched the "Barbarossa" plan and launched a blitzkrieg against the Soviet Union. The reason why its main forces were quickly divided into the southern front of Ukraine and the central front of Moscow after entering the Soviet Union was because of the existence of this large swamp belt. Today, as time goes by, the Soviet army has launched a full-scale counterattack, and the German front has basically retreated to the area in July and August 1941. The inertial thinking of the German army has once again played a role, and the Pripyat swamp is still not among their defense priorities.
As the commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, Rokossovsky was currently only aware of the part of the combat plan related to the troops he commanded. Therefore, it was normal for him to understand the first phase of the offensive mission as the encirclement and annihilation of the German Mogilev Group. But in fact, the Supreme Command certainly needed him to encircle and annihilate the German Mogilev Group, but the more far-reaching intention was to require him to quickly launch an attack on Minsk after breaking through the Mogilev Group.
To put it more bluntly, the Soviet High Command's goal was not just the Mogilev Group or the Orsha Group of the German Army, but the basic forces of the entire German Army Group Center. In order to achieve this goal, the High Command will, in the next two to three months, send a large-scale armored combat group through the Pripyat Swamp, which is like a natural moat, to the direction of Lyuban and Starodorogy, which is the rear of the German Army Group Center.
This was a huge adventure. Once the Soviet army's actions were discovered by the German army, the Pripyat Swamp would become a graveyard for Soviet tanks. In order to keep this secret, the Supreme Command formulated strict confidentiality measures. So far, the number of people who truly understood the content of this plan could be counted on two hands.
Yuri knew very well that Rokossovsky had left the observation team in Leningrad and made a special trip to the Red Army City to meet him just to get some information from him. However, despite the special relationship between the two, it was impossible for him to reveal any information to him.
Thinking about it, Yuri still felt a little guilty when facing Rokossovsky. The reason was simple. According to the normal evolution of history, the deployment of this unprecedented battle should have been completed by Rokossovsky. It was also because of the victory of this battle that he was promoted again less than a year after being promoted to general, and won the honor of wartime marshal in one fell swoop. And now? Because of his appearance, this capable general has changed from a maker of battle plans to an executor of the battle plans. A simple change of status has changed too many things.
Rokossovsky had no idea what Yuri was thinking. He stared at the map and continued to speak according to his own thoughts: "If we want to successfully break through the German defense line and capture Bobruisk in the first phase of the campaign, then seizing a landing site on the right bank of the Dnieper River is a necessary prerequisite."
Yuri still didn't speak. He looked at Rokossovsky, waiting for him to tell him the preliminary plan for the battle.
"However, in Zhlobin, the German army's river defense line is very strong. It is not easy to make a quick breakthrough," Rokossovsky held his chin, his eyes still fixed on the map, and continued, "So, I have a risky plan, and this risky plan cannot be completed by relying solely on the First Belorussian Front. I need the cooperation of the Third Ukrainian Front. At the very least, I need the Supreme Command to assign the 28th Army to my command."
