Chapter 26 7.Guderian sent troops south to commit crimes

The fighting outside the right flank of our front made us more and more uneasy. After the fascist troops of the "Central" Army Group went eastward, they had reached Starodub and Pochep. As later revealed, in August Hitler's stronghold had a long debate over the strategic direction in which to concentrate the main forces.Most of the well-known German generals were eager to attack Moscow.But Hitler could not make this determination until the war in Kyiv and Ukraine had no end.He demanded that "at all costs, the 5th Army and the Soviet armies operating west and east of Kyiv should be stormed and destroyed before they retreated to defensive positions constructed in the rear." The objection that we would lose time, that the attack on Moscow would be too late, or that the tank regiments would then be unable to accomplish the task for technical reasons, is untenable. Because the elimination of these threats After the Russian troops on the right wing of Army Group 'Centre', the attack on Moscow was not more difficult, but easier."

The high command of our army saw through the enemy's intentions in time.As early as August 19, B. C. Zhukov, then commanding the Reserve Front, sent such a telegram to the Supreme Commander. "After the enemy was convinced that our army was concentrated on the main roads leading to Moscow, and realized that there were our army's Central Front and the Great Luki Group on its two wings, the enemy had temporarily given up its plan to assault Moscow, and it was in the west. After the front army turned to active defense face to face, it used all its rapid assault troops and tank troops to deal with the central front army, southwestern front army and southern front army.

The enemy's possible attempt is to crush the Central Front and, after advancing to the Chernigov, Konotop, and Priluki areas, launch an assault from the rear and crush the armies of the Southwest Front.After that, bypass the Bryansk Forest to carry out the main assault on Moscow, and on the Donbass... In order to fight against the enemy and prevent the enemy from crushing the Central Front and the Southwest Front, I consider it my duty to report my opinion: it is necessary to gather a strong group in the Glukhov, Chernihiv, and Konotop regions as soon as possible .The echelons that cover the concentration must be transferred to the Desna River immediately.

This group must include: 1.About 1,000 tanks were mobilized from the mechanized corps of the Transcaucasus Military District and from the reserve tanks of the High Command, and then another 300 tanks were drawn from the Far East. 2.About ten infantry divisions. 3.Three to four cavalry divisions. 4.Four hundred to five hundred aircraft will be mobilized by the Transcaucasus Military District, Naval Aviation and Moscow Air Defense District Aviation. If it is to be determined a more active method of combating this very dangerous operation of the enemy, it would be to muster the entire group I have mentioned in the Bryansk area, and from there make an assault on the enemy's flank..."

The Supreme Commander responded without delay: "Your statement about the possible German advance in the direction of Chernihiv-Konotop-Priluki is correct in our opinion. A German advance in this direction would mean that our Kyiv group would be driven by the Dnepr The retreat on the east bank of the river and the encirclement of our 3rd and 21st armies. It is known that a column of the enemy has passed through Unecha to Starodub. Having foreseen this undesirable consequence and to prevent it, The Bryansk Front under the command of Yeremenko has been formed. Other measures are being taken, we will inform you specifically. We hope that the German advance will be stopped. Stalin. Shaposhnikov."

The supreme commander placed great hopes on the newly formed Bryansk Front and was determined to strengthen it to the maximum so that it could quickly crush the 2nd group of Guderian tanks that were advancing southeast. On August 24, Stalin asked General Yeremenko, the commander of the Front Army, during a direct telegram call: "... Should the Central Front Army be disbanded, the 3rd Army and the 21st Army be merged, and the merged 21st Army should be transferred to you. Command?... If you will promise to smash the scumbag Guderian, then we can send a few more aviation regiments and rocket artillery batteries (to the Bryansk Front - note to the author of this book). What do you think? ?”

Andrei Ivanovich's answer was in keeping with his character - decisive and resolute: "My opinion on the disbandment of the Central Front is this: since I intend to smash and will undoubtedly smash Guderian, the southern The direction should be strongly guaranteed, that is to say, in close coordination with the assault group operating from the Bryansk area. Therefore, I request that the 21st Army, which has been merged with the 3rd Army, be placed under my command..." Headquarters immediately handed over to A. A. Yeremenko both armies of the Central Front and, at his request, first combined their entire forces into one army (the 21st Army), and at the same time returned to him the There is a base camp reserve with a small number of troops.

The Soviet High Command also took measures to cover the exposed right flanks of the Southwestern Front in the direction of Konotop and Bakhmach (where Guderian's army was advancing).We are required to rely on the extremely limited strength and weapons of the front army and urgently form a new army-the 40th army. Major General Kuzma Petrovich Podlas was appointed commander of the 40th Army.We all know him well.From the first few days of the war, one can see the figure of the former infantry inspector of the military district in different battle areas, usually the most critical ones: he always carries out the various orders of the commander of the front with his characteristic composure. Very important commission.At one point he even unified and assumed the leadership of an army group.This is a general who has been proven in battle. When the headquarters ordered the urgent formation of a new army, Kirponos, who respected Podlas, said to him:

"Hey, Kuzma Petrovich, it's your turn. Command an army group, I haven't seen a more worthy candidate." He remembered that the group army is still just something on paper, so he changed his words: "To be more accurate , form an army group as soon as possible, time waits for no one." This group army was built very hastily. At first, it only governed the 135th and 293rd infantry divisions, the 10th tank division and the 2nd airborne army.Readers of the 135th Infantry Division are already familiar: it has been engaged in uninterrupted fighting from the border, and it is not difficult to imagine its situation when it was transferred from the 5th Army to Poderas.The 293rd Infantry Division had just been formed from reinforcements sent to the front.The backbone of the tank division was transferred to the new army in July. At that time, the division could only get a few dozen combat vehicles.As for the airborne brigades, the reader knows, they took part in heavy fighting for the defense of Kyiv and suffered considerable losses.

In terms of strengthening weapons, the group army only has dozens of artillery from the 5th Anti-tank Artillery Brigade. On August 28, General Podlas reported to the head of the front army that he already had a little real power.On the same day, he was given the task of immediately blocking the approach of Guderian's army, at the Shostka, Korop, and Little Ustye lines north of Konotop and Bakhmachi, and then along the line of Jie The Sna River went all the way to Stepanovka, occupying the defense. Since the corps incorporated into the new army were transferred from different areas, they did not move to the designated areas at the same time, and were forced to immediately engage Guderian's tanks and motorized divisions rushing towards the Desna River.

By the end of August, there were two infantry divisions on the 125-kilometer front from Shostka to Volovin (south of Mena), the 293rd and 135th infantry divisions.They are already occupying the defense under the enemy's surprise.The situation of the 293rd Division was particularly difficult, because the enemy took advantage of the gap formed by the junction of the 40th Army and the 13th Army of the Bryansk Front to detour the division's right flank and attack the rear of its units from the east.Colonel E. O. Ragutin and his staff should be given due credit.These inexperienced fighters displayed astonishing steadfastness.Neither the attack of the fascist tanks on the rear of the division nor the psychological warfare of the fascist submachine gunners could bring them to their knees.General Podlas dispatched the 2nd Airborne Corps and the 10th Tank Division to support Ragugin's troops.The enemy was finally stopped, and in some places even driven back.The intensified onslaught of the corps of the Bryansk Front at Novgorod-Seversky helped greatly.The heroic attack of the southern wing of our friendly front army undoubtedly slightly improved the situation of the 40th Army. The initial smooth attack by the Bryansk Front frightened Guderian to the point where he had to bluntly ask for help from the headquarters of the "Centre" Army Group, which hurriedly sent him some new tanks and motorized corps. To put it simply, it should be fairly admitted that the Bryansk Front has done a lot for its neighbors to the south with its resolute onslaught.But it finally failed to achieve the basic purpose proposed for it, and did not stop the advance of Guderian's tank group. On September 2, the headquarters once again demanded A. A. Yelyomenko very firmly: "Guderian and his entire group should be completely smashed. This has not yet been done, and there is no guarantee of your success. Value. We await your news of smashing the Guderian cluster." Subsequent battles showed that the headquarters overestimated the capabilities of the Bryansk Front. The situation in the area of ​​​​the 21st Army Group, which had just been transferred to the Bryansk Front Army, was not going well.The gap between it and the main force of the front continued to grow.The enemy gradually pressed the army to the southeast.The right-wing corps of the German 2nd Field Army rushed to the breach.They were threatening Chernigov and the rear of the divisions of our 5th Army occupying the defense along the east bank of the Dnieper between Loyev and Okuninovo.The Military Council of the Front asked General Potapov to take urgent measures to keep the enemy from approaching Chernihiv.The commander of the army group was ordered to turn the right wing of the 31st Infantry Army to the east from the Dnieper River, and to transfer the 15th Infantry Army to the north of Chernihiv. Worrying reports kept coming in from Potapov.In order to help the commander of the army, the military committee of the front army decided to immediately send M. A. Burmistenko and the author of this book to lead part of the staff to the 5th army. Our car drove through Nezhin, Kulikovka. In the early morning of August 31, it reached the bridge over the Desna River south of Chernigov.Representatives from Army Group Command are waiting for us here.The city was filled with black smoke.It was explained to us that the enemy bombed the city endlessly.The main purpose of these air strikes was to prevent our reinforcements from approaching the front line from the south bank of the Desna River. We hadn't even reached the city center when a group of "Junkers" escorted by fighter jets appeared in the sky.They swoop down on the block.Houses collapsed and burned.But the fascist beast was soon punished as it deserved.The fighter planes of our army who came from Verkievsky Airport bravely went into battle.Many pilots of the enemy found their ignominious doom on the land of Chernigov. After leaving the city, we drove along the field road to a forest area, and the headquarters of the group army was deep in the forest.General Potapov is waiting for us. Burmistenko listened to the disturbing report of the army commander.The Army Group was in a difficult position.Its troops scattered over an area of ​​150 kilometers will have to make great efforts to clear the Okuninovo landing site on the left flank, and will struggle to prevent the four divisions of the enemy from rushing towards Chernihiv in the north. .The Hitlerites were now fifteen kilometers from the city.Only the 62nd and 200th Infantry Divisions of the 15th Infantry Corps, which had been weakened in battle, fought against them here.Two regiments of the 45th Infantry Division, which the Army Commander had withdrawn from the defense of the Dnieper, and the 204th Airborne Brigade were coming to support the two divisions.As soon as these armies approached the front north of Chernihiv, the 15th Infantry Corps would move on the offensive in order to drive the enemy away from the city.How nice it would be to give this corps some tanks and support it with the aviation of the Front... "You see, Mikhail Ivanovich," said Burmistenko, "your situation is not so great. Bad." Then, members of the Military Commission told him that supplementary troops had begun to move from the Sumei area to the 5th Army.After he returns to the Front Army Command, he will ask General Kirponos to transfer the Front Army's bomber aviation and assault aviation to support the Army Group. It is a pity that tanks cannot be brought in because there are no tanks in the reserves. We returned to Chernihiv with the commander of the army group, the headquarters of the 15th infantry army was located in the southeastern outskirts of the city.The aerial battle over the city has not stopped.We witnessed several fascist bombers attacking the railway station.The bomb fell not far from the military column, and the first batch of supplementary companies arrived from Su Mei was unloading from the military column. Colonel Mikhail Ilyich Blank greeted us at the army command post. He was the man who led the breakout of the troops of the 87th Infantry Division, which were fighting valiantly near the border.Now Blank has been appointed commander of the 15th Infantry Army (the former commander, Major General A. A. Fejuninsky, has commanded the 32nd Army of the Western Front). Mikhail Ilyich was always so energetic and optimistic.Even now he was full of conviction in the report of the members of the Military Council of the Front that his troops would hold Chernihiv. Burmistenko asked about the mood of the people, how education was organized, whether there was enough ammunition, and how the crew was fed in combat situations.He also wondered: How timely was medical care for the wounded, and how quickly could they be evacuated from the battlefield.With characteristic sensitivity and thoughtfulness, the members of the Military Council strive to pay attention to all aspects of the life and combat activities of the army.His advice is practical and specific. We were back in Priluki in no time.Burmistenko informed the Military Council of the Front in detail the situation in the Chernihiv area and the measures taken.All the promises he made to the commander of the army, General Potapov, were immediately fulfilled. In the first few days of September, we were further troubled by the continued retreat of the 21st Army of the Bryansk Front.Under the onslaught of the enemy, the army had retreated to the junction of Potapov's and Poderas' armies. Anyone who is a little expert in the law of warfare knows that in a combat situation it is difficult to organize coordinated actions even on adjacent flanks of several armies of the same front.And when several group armies belonging to different front armies appeared in a zone, things became many times more complicated. Moreover, General B.A. Kuznetsov, the commander of the 21st Army, did not want to immediately establish close communication with his new neighbors, the 5th and 40th Army, and inform the heads of the two armies of his plan.The uncoordinated actions of neighboring armies weakened their strength and were exploited by the enemy. On the evening of September 6, Marshal Shaposhnikov finally notified that the headquarters had decided that the 21st Army would be subordinate to the head of the Southwest Front Army.But before that, the situation on our northern wing had become extremely serious.