Chapter 357 Kharkov! Large-scale battles throughout the ages!

A new day, a new sky!

[In the Kharkov region, there have been more than 50 large-scale wars throughout the ages. 】

[It was on this ancient battlefield that the rise and fall of many Eastern European hegemons was determined. ]

【And what we are going to talk about today. 】

[It was during World War II that Manstein created his masterpiece! ]

【Kharkov counterattack.】

[The scale of this battle was not as large as the previous Battle of Stalingrad.]

[But it reflects the extremely high level of warfare between the attackers and the defenders. ]

[It also ended Germany's decline since the Battle of Stalingrad. ]

[The war situation between the two sides has returned to the stage of strategic stalemate. ]

[First, let’s take a look at the background of the Kharkov counterattack. ]

[Since the counter-offensive at the Battle of Stalingrad in late 1942, the German army has been losing ground.]

[In late February 1943, the Soviet Voronezh Front and Southwestern Front, with the momentum of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad, began to attack the plains along the Kharkov and Kursk lines.]

【Prepare for a rapid advance. 】

[Defeat or even annihilate Germany's Army Group B! ]

【Recover the entire Ukraine in one fell swoop. 】

[The Soviet offensive is very fierce! ]

[In a very short period of time, the Hungarian 2nd Army and the two armies supported by Italy were annihilated, and the results were quite fruitful.]

[In the process of pursuit, the German Army's elite 2nd Army was dealt a heavy blow.]

[Two Soviet fronts, 50 troops.]

[It was easy to recapture the Kharkov and Kursk regions. ]

【Especially Kharkov! 】

[Kharkov was the fourth largest city in the Soviet Union at that time and a traditional heavy industrial base with a long history.]

[The Soviet Union's main battle tank, the T34 tank. ]

【It is produced in Kharkov. 】

[The entire German Army Group B was forced to retreat to Severodonetsk. ]

【The flanks are completely exposed.】

[The German troops in the southern Caucasus were even worse off! ]

[They were alone and deep in the enemy's territory, and there was a possibility that they would be surrounded by the Soviet army. ]

[There is even a danger of total annihilation. ]

[If it weren't for the city of Stalingrad, Paulus's Sixth Army would have held out for several months despite being cut off from food and supplies.]

[It held back the main Soviet force.]

[Otherwise, the German Army Group A in the Caucasus would have been surrounded and eaten up.]

[The Soviet 60th Army, responsible for Kursk.]

[The 40th, 69th Army, and the 3rd Tank Army easily captured Kharkov.]

[The Soviet steel torrent is in full swing! ]

[If the Soviets fight well in this wave of offensive. ]

[It is even possible to wipe out the entire German Southern Army Group in one fell swoop. ]

【Thus ending the war.】

While Tianmu was telling the story.

A strategic diagram is also given.

Various icons are also used to show the military strength of the Soviet and German sides in the war zone.

With the map and arrows representing the attack routes of the Soviet and German sides.

It can allow military strategists on the Internet to look very carefully.

And outside the sky.

Ancient military strategists began talking about World War II.

And it was such a large-scale battle.

They all concentrated on studying the map provided by Tianmu.

Warring States Period.

Bai Qi looked at the strategic diagram on the sky.

He shook his head slightly.

"Although I also admire the strategic style of the later German army."

"I also think that the German army has certain similarities with our Great Qin."

"But we have to say that the German army is in a very bad situation right now. It's really like a hanging egg."

Bai is getting interested.

Analyze while looking at the sky.

Bai Qi, who rarely has free time, is in his general's tent.

Using a wooden stick, he simply drew a map.

"It can be seen from the schematic diagram given by Tianmu."

"The Soviet army's strength in the main offensive direction is already five or even eight times that of the German army!"

“It can be said that the advantage is extremely huge.”

"The key point is that after the German army failed in the Battle of Stalingrad, it retreated continuously."

"We lost Kharkov, Kursk and other regions."

"Although I don't know much about that area." "But I can tell from the situation on the map."

"For the Soviet-German War, the Kharkov line is extremely critical!"

"Now the Germans have no place to retreat."

"If the Germans don't operate well."

"Then the Soviet army will move south from Kharkov and head straight for the Dnieper River!"

"The entire German army east of the Dnieper River, including Army Group South's A and B units, will suffer a devastating disaster!"

Bai Qi is good at siege warfare.

It was obvious at a glance that the German army was at risk of being surrounded on a large scale.

And in the Ming Dynasty, which is closer to modern times.

Zhu Di looked at the schematic diagram on the skylight.

It is also believed that the situation of the German army on the southern front has become devastating.

There's nothing we can do to save the situation.

For the German army, the best option might be to make a beautiful retreat under the command of Manstein.

Using ambush tactics, they inflicted heavy casualties on the pursuing Soviet troops.

Zhu Di also speculated:
The so-called peak battle of Manstein.

Kharkov counterattack.

It should mean that under such a desperate situation, Manstein used his superb command skills to drive the German army back intact.

And they launched a beautiful counterattack against the pursuing Soviet army.

It dealt a heavy blow to the Soviet pursuit forces.

Let the German army retreat safely.

In the end, the Soviet Union and Germany confronted each other along the Dnieper River.

Different ancient people had different styles according to their own times.

There are different speculations about the subsequent development of the war.

But everyone can see it.

I'm afraid the German army is no match for the Soviet army.

This Kharkov counterattack.

It all depends on how skillfully the German army retreats.

How to launch a counterattack during the retreat and ultimately ensure the safe retreat of the large force.

And the sky curtain continued to tell the story.

[Faced with an extremely unfavorable situation, Hitler could no longer sit still. ]

[He personally flew to the Zaporizhia region on the Eastern Front.]

[This place is only 60 kilometers away from the Soviet-controlled area. ]

[In Zaporizhia, Hitler met with Field Marshal Manstein, who was in charge of commanding the Don Army Group.]

[This Don Army Group is not an elite force. ]

【It was formed after the remaining forces of the crippled Army Group B rested and reorganized.】

【Due to the Soviet Union's continued counterattack. 】

[The Don Army Group has not had time to fully recover its combat effectiveness.]

[Hitler personally flew to the Don Army Group headquarters at the front, which caused many German soldiers to even start spreading rumors:]

[The Führer is here to negotiate a ceasefire! ]

【But Hitler did not come to negotiate an armistice or to discuss a retreat. 】

【Instead, he asked Manstein to launch a counterattack! 】

[Hitler was very angry about the loss of Kharkov and even wanted to replace Manstein.]

Hitler roared:

[The German army must stop retreating and launch a powerful counterattack. ]

[Stop the retreat, and launch a counterattack to capture the important town of Kharkov! ]

[Faced with the angry boss's death order, Manstein did not dare to refuse this time. 】

【Instead, he proposed his plan.】

Manstein said:

[A good boxer will pull his fist back before throwing a punch.]

[Pretend to retreat first to delay the Soviet army. ]

【Another Jedi counterattack! 】

【This time, Hitler agreed to Manstein's plan. 】

【Not only did he agree, he also gave Manstein unparalleled support. 】

[The entire Southern Army Group was under the command of Manstein.]

[The entire Ukrainian air force will fully support Manstein.]

[Several armored forces, including the SS's ace units, the Imperial Division and the Death's Head Division, were also urgently sent to support Manstein.]

[It can be said that Hitler also spent a lot of money. ]

[When Manstein was becoming a god in Crimea, he had very limited manpower, and his armored forces were purely piecemeal. ]

[They mainly used motorcycles, trucks, civilian vehicles and the like to form a copycat armored division. ]

【And this time. 】

[It is the SS Panzer Division equipped with Tiger tanks! ]

[Why did Hitler give such strong support this time? 】

(End of this chapter)