“Talk to me,” his eyes not yet clear, the paperwork a jumble of meaningless symbols.
“The Allies have hit Ploesti and Baku in simultaneous raids. Proper damage reports are not yet available but first indications are that the facilities in Baku are badly damaged, those in Roumania even worse.”
No report was needed to make Zhukov aware of the consequences of the raids.
“If this is true, we will lose some mobility, some supply ability, and some air capacity.”
The tunic was slipped on and buttons fastened as he paused for further thought.
“We need firm figures and projections from the Minister for Fuel before we can assess the impact, but I think we should immediately put in place something to prioritise fuel for our frontline and air forces.”
Sitting down again, Zhukov posed a question.
“How did the enemy get at these two prime facilities?”
“It would appear that the Air Force weakened the defences in favour of sending units to the Western Front. Some under strength units were at Baku, and they were overwhelmed. The response over Ploesti was more structured, but the defensive fighter formations were too numerous for our own forces to have much effect.
Pulling on his boots, Zhukov stood and stamped down hard.
“I assume Moscow has been informed?”
“Yes, Comrade Marshal. This report indicates that NKVD teams are already at the relevant headquarters making enquiries.”
Both men understood that others would die that night, their decisions condemning them to the righteous indignation of others armed with 20/20 hindsight.
“Right, Comrade Malinin, let us go and sort this mess out!”
Both men moved quickly towards the main command centre, both sharing the thoughts about how quickly situations can change in warfare.
Author’s note on ‘Stalemate’ from this point forward.
Stalemate will now divide into three sections, and each will be taken to its conclusion before starting on the next.
Each section will deal with a major Soviet attack and the areas affected by it, as well as the occasional general matter. In general, these attacks are within the area of responsibility of a Soviet Front, so I have labelled each chapter according to which Front is involved.
This will result in the time line extending for one Front’s chapters, and then returning to an earlier time for the next.
This has been done to limit the amount of chopping and changing between areas so that the reader may get a better feel for each individual area.
The order in which they are addressed is purely one of my own selection. I indicate nothing by my choices.
Historians, examining each of the three major encounters at their leisure, have argued for decades over which was the most important victory or defeat for the protagonists of World War Three.
I will leave the resolution of those arguments in the hands of the reader.
2nd RED BANNER ARMY OF SOVIET EUROPE – MARSHAL KONEV
Chapter 91 – THE COLOSSUS
Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
Throughout the central area, every Allied unit had a mission, whether it was to rush to the front, hold a valuable position, or fall back in good order.
Except the 18th Airborne Corps, it seemed, left untouched by Eisenhower’s express order. Removed from Bradley’s direct command, the paratrooper formations were recuperating and rejuvenating in their bases through Belgium and Holland.
Perversely, the 101st was in the best shape, despite its excursion into Bavaria. Swiftly recovered, losses were made up by the disbandment of the 13th US Airborne Division, whose personnel filled out the vacant spots in both 101st and 17th Airborne Divisions, the latter formation having ventured into the fighting in Central Europe, where it suffered badly.
The 17th, on paper, was up to full strength, but there were questions about its morale and ability in combat, following its heavy losses.
The British 6th Airborne Division was up to its full TOE, but many of its personnel were recently liberated POW’s, who needed more time to regain the top fitness required of a paratrooper.
Another welcome addition to the 18th Corps was a German jump-qualified Regiment, ex-POW Fallschirmjager that had earned their spurs in Holland, Crete, and North Africa, mixed with a handful of hardened veterans who had fought through to the end on the Western Front.
Their commander had been released from British captivity and installed as head of the newly formed ‘Fallschirm Regiment Von der Heydte’. It was a unit that had existed in the previous war, and that had fought directly against the troopers of the 101st at Carentan, Normandy.
FallschirmRegiment VDH was encamped at Venlo, twenty-five miles north of the Eagles division, which was centred on Sittard-Geleen.
The British airborne concentrated around Eindhoven, with the 17th spread thinly from Maastricht through Genk to Hasselt, and beyond.
Konev pored over the map with his CoS, making small notations with a pencil here and there, occasionally scribing a wider appreciation of the situation.
He had already decided to exceed his orders and not be unduly confined by Zhukov, whom he was convinced held him back, because of his success at Berlin a few months before.
Allocating sufficient forces to the stated task of sealing up the south and south-west of the Ruhr, Konev had gathered the 6th Guards Tank Army, a newly allocated formation, ready to send it down a path towards his own personal target; a crossing of the Maas River.
5th Guards Army, recently removed from frontline duties, was committed back to the action in support of 6th Guards Tanks, having been bolstered with some of the prisoners of war, so recently made available by the change in policy in Moscow.
Whilst he waited for the right moment to make the key decision, he employed the two formations, in harness, west of Cologne, hammering into the thin screens that had been hastily formed in front of them, brushing most aside without too much difficulty.
But it was always the aircraft, the ground attack squadrons, or the bombers of the USAAF and RAF that halted the columns.
Throughout his command, casualties were heavy. The list of dead and wounded mounted up on both sides, but it was the Soviets that sustained the worst of it so far.
“Comrade General,” he didn’t bother looking up, knowing that Petrov would be attentive, “I want to open things up here.”
Petrov looked down at the markings indicated and started to recall the formations, both enemy and Soviet, that would soon become involved in and around Kerpen and Bergheim.
“We must keep up the pressure to the north, but we are in position there, and so we can switch our resources to pushing out to the west.”
This was no surprise, of course, but as each hour passed, Konev put more meat on the bones of his overall plan.”
“This difficulty at Wanlo must be resolved soon.”
Consulting a list of units not yet assigned, Konev selected two within reasonable distance of the troublesome spot.
“Pass orders to 6th Rifle, 40th Rifle and…” he considered the list further, “Also, 3rd Guards Rocket-Barrage, to move up and place themselves under 31st Army at Grevenbroich. Contact Comrade General Glagolev and inform him that these new resources are his, and he will take Wanlo within eighteen hours.”