Belgrade Offensive

{{Campaignbox Axis-Soviet War}} {{Campaignbox Stalin's ten blows}} The '''Belgrade Offensive''' or the '''Belgrade Strategic Offensive Operation''' ([[Serbian language|Serbian]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Serbo-Croatian language|Serbo-Croatian]]: ''Beogradska ofenziva/ofanziva''; {{lang-ru|Белградская стратегическая наступательная операция}}) (14 September-24 November 1944) was an offensive military operation in which Belgrade was conquered from the German [[Wehrmacht]] by the joint efforts of the [[Yugoslav Partisans]] and the Soviet [[Red Army]]. The two forces launched separate but loosely coordinated operations that successfully forced the Germans out of the Belgrade area. The offensive involved the [[1st Army Group (Yugoslav Partisans)|1st Army Group]] of the [[Yugoslav Partisans]] to the west, the Soviet [[3rd Ukrainian Front]] (including the Bulgarian 2nd Army), and elements of the [[2nd Ukrainian Front]] to the north conducting an offensive against part of Germany's [[Army Group E]] (''Korpsgruppe'' "Schneckenburger" and "Stern") which included the forces of the Serbian [[fifth column]], the [[Chetniks]] and the [[Serbian State Guard]]. The objective was to destroy the forces of the German Army Group E in the [[Suva Planina]] region, and those of [[Army Group F]] east of [[Great Morava|Velika Morava]] river, and ultimately to free [[Belgrade]] from [[Nazi]] occupation. A secondary objective for the offensive was to sever the line of retreat for German [[Army Group E]] from [[Axis occupation of Greece during World War II|Greece]], [[Albania under Nazi Germany|Albania]] and the southern regions of Yugoslavia through Belgrade to [[Kingdom of Hungary (Regency)|Hungary]], including the [[Salonica]]-Belgrade railroad. ==Background== By early September 1944, two German Army Groups were deployed in the [[Balkans]] ([[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]], [[Axis occupation of Greece during World War II|Greece]], and [[Albania under Nazi Germany|Albania]]): Army Group E (southern area of operations), and Army Group F (northern area of operations). In response to the defeat of German forces in the [[Jassy–Kishinev Offensive (August 1944)|Jassy-Kishinev Operation]] (which forced Bulgaria and Romania to switch sides) and the advance the [[Red Army]] troops into the Balkans, Army Group E was ordered to withdraw into Hungary. Another Army Group was created in Hungary called [[Army Group Serbia]] from elements of Army Group F. As a result of the [[Bulgarian coup d'état of 1944]], the monarchist/fascist regime in Bulgaria was overthrown and replaced with a government of the [[Fatherland Front (Bulgaria)|Fatherland Front]] led by [[Kimon Georgiev]]. Once the new government came to power, Bulgaria declared war on Germany. By the end of September, the Red Army [[3rd Ukrainian Front]] troops under the command of Marshal [[Fyodor Tolbukhin]] were concentrated at the Bulgarian-Yugoslav border. The Soviet 57th Army was stationed in the [[Vidin]] area, while the Bulgarian 2nd Army (General K. Stanche commanding under the operational command of the 3rd Ukrainian Front) was stationed to the south on the [[Niš]] rail line at the junction of Bulgarian, Yugoslav, and Greek borders. This further caused the arrival of the Partisans [[1st Army (Yugoslav Partisans)|1st Army]] from Yugoslav territory, in order to provide support to their [[13th Corps (Yugoslav Partisans)|13th]] and [[14th Corps (Yugoslav Partisans)|14th Corps]] collaborating in the conquering of [[Niš]] and supporting the 57th Army’s advance to Belgrade, respectively. The Red Army [[2nd Ukrainian Front]]’s 46th Army was deployed in the area of the [[Teregova River|Teregova river]] (Romania), poised to cut the rail link between Belgrade and Hungary to the north of [[Vršac]]. Pre-operations were coordinated between the Soviets and the commander-in-chief of the Yugoslav Partisans, Marshal [[Josip Broz Tito]]. Tito arrived in Soviet-controlled [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]] on 21 September, and from there flew to [[Moscow]] where he met with [[Stalin]]. The meeting was a success, in particular because the two allies reached an agreement concerning the participation of Bulgarian troops in the operation that would be conducted on Yugoslav territory. ==The Offensive== [[File:Belgrade Offensive Map.JPG|thumb|250px|Map of the offensive.]] Before the start of ground operations the Soviet [[17th Air Army]] ([[3rd Ukrainian Front]]) was ordered to impede the withdrawal of German troops from Greece and southern regions of Yugoslavia. To do so, from , it carried out air attacks on the railroad bridges and other important facilities in the areas of Niš, [[Skopje]], and [[Kruševo]] lasting from 15-21 September. The operations begun on the far southern flank of the Front with the offensive by the 2nd Bulgarian Army into the Leskovac-Niš area, and almost immediately engaged the 7th SS Mountain Division "Prinz Eugen". Two days later, having encountered the Yugoslav partisans, the Army with partisan participation defeated a combined force of Chetniks and Serbian Frontier Guards and occupied Vlasotince. Using its Armored Brigade as a spearhead, the Bulgarian Army then engaged German positions on 8 October at Bela Palanka, reaching Vlasotince two days later. On 12 October, the Armored Brigade—supported by the 15th Brigade of the 47th Partisan Division—was able to take Leskovac, with the Bulgarian reconnaissance battalion crossing the Morava and probing toward Niš. The goal of this was to not so much to pursue the remnants of the "Prinz Eugen" Division withdrawing northwest, but to for the Bulgarian 2nd Army to begin the conquering of Kosovo which would have finally cut the route north for the German Army Group E withdrawing from Greece. On 17 October, the leading units of the Bulgarian Army reached Kursumlija, and proceeded to Kuršumlijska Banja. On 5 November, after negotiating the Prepolac Pass with heavy losses, the Brigade occupied Podujevo, but was unable to reach Pristina until the 21st. The Soviet 57th Army began its attack on September 28 from the region of Vidin in the general direction of Belgrade. Its [[64th Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|64th Rifle Corps]] advanced from the area of south of Vidin to secure the crossing of the [[Velika Morava|Morava]] river at [[Paraćin]], while the [[68th Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|68th Rifle Corps]] advanced from Vidin toward [[Mladenovac]], encountering elemnts of the Yugoslav [[14th Corps (Yugoslavia)|14th Corps]] south of [[Petrovac (Serbia)|Petrovac]]. The [[75th Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|75th Rifle Corps]]—advancing from the area of [[Turnu-Severin]]—covered the Army's northern flank by advancing toward [[Požarevac]]. The Soviet 57th Army enjoyed the support of the Danube Military Flotilla, which operated along the [[Danube]] on the northern flank of the Front, and provided river transport to troops and military equipment. The Yugoslav 14th Corps—supported by the Soviet 17th Air Army—broke through the enemy's border defense in the [[Serbian Carpathians|eastern Serbian mountains]] with heavy fighting. On 8 October, the Yugoslavs advanced to the [[Velika Morava|Morava]] river, capturing two [[bridgehead]]s on the [[Velika Plana]] and [[Palanka]], where on 12 October, the [[4th Guards Mechanised Corps (Soviet Union)|4th Guards Mechanised Corps]] was introduced into the penetration after moving here from South-East Bulgaria for the development of the offensive toward Belgrade from the south. Meanwhile, the offensive was continued by the newly arrived Yugoslav [[1st Proletarian Division (Yugoslav Partisans)|1st Proletarian Division]] and the [[12th Slavonian Division]] which secured bridgeheads over the [[Sava]] river west of Belgrade. On the northern face of the offensive, the Red Army [[2nd Ukrainian Front]]'s supporting [[46th Army (Soviet Union)|46th Army]] advanced in the attempt to outflank the German Belgrade defensive position from the north, by cutting the river and rail supply lines running along the [[Tisa]]. Supported by the [[5th Air Army]], its [[10th Guards Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|10th Guards Rifle Corps]] was able to rapidly perform [[assault crossing]]s of the rivers [[Tamiš]] and [[Tisa]] north of [[Pančevo]] to threaten the [[Belgrade]]-[[Novi Sad]] railroad. Further to the north the Red Army [[31st Guards Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|31st Guards Rifle Corps]] advanced toward [[Petrovgrad]], and the [[37th Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|37th Rifle Corps]] advanced toward, and assault crossed the [[Tisa]] to threaten the stretch of railway between [[Novi Sad]] and [[Subotica]] to prepare for the planned [[Budapest Offensive|Budapest strategic offensive operation]]. ===Assault on Belgrade=== The 4th Guards Mechanized Corps of the Red Army and the Yugoslav [[12th Corps (Yugoslav Partisans)|12th Corps]] broke through the enemy resistance south of Belgrade on 14 October, approaching the city. The Yugoslavs advanced along the roads in the direction of Belgrade south of the Sava River, while the Red Army engaged in fighting on the northern bank outskirts.{{Citation needed|date=May 2008}} The assault on the city was delayed due to the diversion of forces for the elimination of thousands of enemy troops surrounded between Belgrade and [[Smederevo]] (to the south-east). On 20 October, Belgrade had been completely overrun by joint Yugoslav and Soviet forces. The Yugoslav 13th Corps, in cooperation with the Bulgarian 2nd Army, advanced from the south-east. They were responsible for the area of [[Niš]] and [[Leskovac]]. The forces were also responsible for cutting off the main for the evacuation of [[Army Group E]], along the rivers of South Morava and Morava. Army Group E had, therefore, been forced to retreat through the mountains of [[Montenegro]] and [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]] and was unable to strengthen the German forces in Hungary. The next day, elements of the 3rd Ukrainian Front stormed [[Kraljevo]] and finally cut Thessaloniki highway to Belgrade. Units of the [[Yugoslav Partisans]]— together with the Soviet [[10th Guards Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|10th Guards Rifle Corps]] of the 46th Army ([[2nd Ukrainian Front]]), moving via the Danube—provided more offensive strength from the north-east against the Wehrmacht's position in Belgrade. They cleared the left bank of the [[Tisa]] and [[Danube]] (in Yugoslavia) and took the town of [[Pančevo]]. ===Yugoslavia=== *1st Army Group (General - Lieutenant Colonel [[Peko Dapčević]]) **1st Proletarian Division (Colonel Vaso Jovanović) **6th Proletarian Division (Colonel Đoko Jovanić) **5th Assault Division (Colonel Milutin Morača) **21st Assault Division (Colonel Miloje Milojević) *12th Army Corps (General - Lieutenant Colonel Danilo Lekić) **11th Assault Division (Colonel Miloš Šelegović) **16th Assault Division (Colonel Marko Peričin) **28th Assault Division (Lieutenant Colonel Radojica Nenezin) **36th Assault Division (Lieutenant Colonel Rodoslav Jović) ===Soviet Union=== [[Image:LiberationOfBelgradeMedal.jpg|thumb|100px|The [[Orders, decorations, and medals of the Soviet Union|''Liberation of Belgrade Medal'']] was awarded to c70,000 Soviet and allied service personnel who took part in the battle of Belgrade.]] [[File:Medvedev and Tadic with veterans 20 Oct 2009.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Boris Tadić]] and [[Dmitry Medvedev]] during celebrations for 65th anniversary]] *3rd Ukrainian Front **4th Guards Mechanised Corps (General Lieutenant T. V. Zhdanov Vladimir Ivanovich) ***13th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Lieutenant Colonel Obaturov Gennadi Ivanovich) ***14th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Colonel Nikitin Nicodemius Alekseyevich) ***15th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Lieutenant Colonel Andrianov Mikhail Alekseyevich) ***36th Guards Tank Brigade (Colonel Zhukov Peter Semenovich) ***292nd Guards Self-propelled Artillery Regiment (Lieutenant Colonel Shakhmetov Semen Kondratevich) **352nd Guards Heavy Self-propelled Artillery Regiment (Colonel Tiberkov Ivan Markovich); **5th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade (Colonel Zavyalov Nikolai Ivanovich); **23rd Howitzer Artillery Brigade (Colonel Karpenko Savva Kirillovich) of the 9th Breakthrough Artillery Division (Major General art. Ratov Andrey Ivanovich) **42nd Anti-tank destroyer artillery Brigade (Colonel Leonov Constantine Alekseyevich) **22nd Anti-aircraft Artillery Division (Colonel Danshin Igor Mikhaylovich) *57th Army **75th Rifle Corps (Major General Akimenko Andrian Zakharovich) **223rd Rifle Division (Colonel Sagitov Akhnav Gaynutdinovich) ***236th Rifle Division (Colonel Kulizhskiy Peter Ivanovich) **68th Rifle Corps (Major General Shkodunovich Nikolai Nikolayevich) ***73rd Guards Rifle Division (Major General Kozak Semen Antonovich) *Danube Military Flotilla **Brigade of Armoured Boats (Captain Second Rank Derzhavin Pavel Ivanovich) ***1st Guards Armoured Boats Division (Lieutenant Commander Barbotko Sergey Ignatevich) ***4th Guards Armoured Boats Division (Senior Lieutenant Butvin Kuzma [Iosifovich]) **Coastal escort force (Major Zidr Klementiy Timofeevich) *17th Air Army **10th Assault Air Corps (lieutenant general of aviation Tolstyakov Oleg Viktorovich) ***295th Fighter Air Division (Colonel Silvestrov Anatoliy Alexandrovich) ***306th Assault Air Division (Colonel Ivanov Alexander Viktorovich), ***136th Assault Air Division (part, Colonel Tereckov Nikolai Pavlovich) ***10th Guards Assault Air Division (Major General of Aviation [[Andrey Vitruk|Vitruk Andrey Nikiforovich]]) ***236th Fighter Air Division (Colonel Kudryashov Vasiliy Yakovlevich) ***288th Fighter Air Division (part, Colonel Smirnov Boris Alexandrovich) ===Bulgaria=== * [[First Army (Bulgaria)]] By the end of the September the First Army, together with the Bulgarian [[Second Army (Bulgaria)|Second]] and [[Bulgarian Fourth Army|Fourth]] Armies, was in full-scale combat against the [[German Army]] along the [[Bulgaria]]-[[Yugoslavia]] border, with [[Yugoslavia]]n guerrillas on their left flank and a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] force on their right. By December 1944, the First Army numbered 100,000 men. The First Army took part in the [[Bulgarian Army]]'s advance northwards into the [[Balkan Peninsula]] with logistical support and under command of the [[Red Army]]. The First Army, advanced into Serbia, [[Hungary]] and [[Austria]] in the spring of 1945, despite heavy casualties and bad conditions in the winter. During 1944-45, the Bulgarian First Army was commanded by Lieutenant-General [[Vladimir Stoychev]]. ==Aftermath== Upon completion of the Belgrade operation, the 3rd Ukrainian Front troops were transferred to Hungary to support forces of the [[2nd Ukrainian Front]] and subsequently assisted the Yugoslav Partisans in the conquering of their country, mainly with weapons, equipment, and ammunition. A Medal "For the Liberation of Belgrade" was established by the [[Presidium of the Supreme Soviet]] decree of June 19, 1945. ==Sources== *Dudarenko, M.L., Perechnev, Yu.G., Yeliseev, V.T., et.el., Reference guide "Liberation of cities": reference for liberation of cities during the period of the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945, Moscow, 1985 *[[David Glantz|Glantz, David]], 1986 Art of War symposium, From the Vistula to the Oder: Soviet Offensive Operations - October 1944 - March 1945, A transcript of Proceedings, Center for Land Warfare, US Army War College, 19-23 May 1986 *Glantz, David M. & House, Jonathan (1995), ''When Titans Clashed: How the Red Army Stopped Hitler'', Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas, ISBN 0700608990. *Seaton, Albert, The fall of Fortress Europe 1943-1945, B.T.Batsford Ltd., London, 1981 ISBN 0713419687 *Dupuy, Ernest R., and [[Trevor N. Dupuy|Dupuy, Trevor N.]], ''The encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 B.C. to the present'' (revised edition), Jane's Publishing Company, London, 1980 *Mitrovski, Boro, Venceslav Glišić and Tomo Ristovski, ''The Bulgarian Army in Yugoslavia 1941-1945'', Belgrade, Medunarodna Politika, 1971 *Wilmot, Chester, ''The Struggle for Europe'', Collins, 1952 *Grechko, A.A., (ed.), ''Liberation Mission of the Soviet Armed Forces in the Second World War'', Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1975 ==See also== {{commons|Belgrade Offensive}} *[[Yugoslav Front]] *[[Seven anti-Partisan offensives]] *[[Lothar Rendulic]] *[[Resistance during World War II]] {{Campaignbox Yugofront}} {{World War II}} {{coord missing|Serbia}}