Southern Front (Soviet Union)
The Southern Front was a front, a formation about the size of an army group of the Soviet Army during the Second World War. The Southern Front directed military operations during the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina in 1940 and then was formed twice after the June 1941 invasion by Germany, codenamed Operation Barbarossa. During the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina in 1940, the Soviets deployed three armies (12th, 5th and 9th). Altogether the Soviet Southern Front opposing Bessarabia and Bukovina consisted of 32 (or 31) rifle divisions, 2 (or 3) motorised rifle divisions, 6 cavalry divisions, 11 tank brigades, 3 airborne brigades (one in reserve), 14 corps artillery regiments, 16 artillery regiments of the Reserve of the Supreme High Command and 4 heavy artillery divisions. These force totalled around 460,000 men, ca. 12,000 guns and mortars, ca. 3,000 tanks and 2,160 aircraft. First Formation After the German invasion, the Southern Front wa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Front (Soviet Army)
A front (russian: фронт, ''front'') is a type of military formation that originated in the Russian Empire, and has been used by the Polish Army, the Red Army, the Soviet Army, and Turkey. It is roughly equivalent to an army group in the military of most other countries. It varies in size but in general contains three to five armies. It should not be confused with the more general usage of ''military front,'' describing a geographic area in wartime. Russian Empire After the outbreak of the First World War, the Russian General Headquarters set up two Fronts: Northwestern Front, uniting forces deployed against German Empire, and Southwestern Front, uniting forces deployed against Austria-Hungary. In August 1915, Northwestern Front was split into Northern Front and Western Front. At the end of 1916 Romanian Front was established, which also included remnants of the Romanian army. In April 1917, Caucasus Front was established by the reorganization of the Caucasus Army ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rostov-on-Don
Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River (Russia), Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of the North Caucasus. The southwestern suburbs of the city lie above the Don river delta. Rostov-on-Don has a population of over one million people, and is an important cultural centre of Southern Russia. History Early history From ancient times, the area around the mouth of the Don River has held cultural and commercial importance. Ancient indigenous inhabitants included the Scythians, Scythian and Sarmatians, Sarmatian tribes. It was the site of Tanais, colonies in antiquity, an ancient Greek colony, Gazaria (Genoese colonies), Fort Tana under the Genoa, Genoese, and Azov#Fortress of Azov, Fort Azak in the time of the Ottoman Empire. In 1749, a c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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John Erickson (historian)
John Erickson, FRSE, FBA, FRSA (17 April 1929 – 10 February 2002) was a British historian and defence expert who wrote extensively on the Second World War. His two best-known books – ''The Road to Stalingrad'' and ''The Road to Berlin'' – dealt with the Soviet response to the German invasion of the Soviet Union, covering the period from 1941 to 1945. He was respected for his knowledge of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. His Russian language skills and knowledge gained him respect. Education and career John Erickson was born on 17 April 1929 in the town of South Shields (then part of County Durham), England. He was educated at South Shields High School for Boys and St John's College, Cambridge, where he graduated MA Hons. He became a research fellow of St Antony's College, Oxford, from 1956 until 1958, during which he met his future wife Ljubica Petrovic, a young Yugoslavian attending Oxford to read English. At the culmination of their courtship, they sought the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Antony Beevor
Sir Antony James Beevor, (born 14 December 1946) is a British military historian. He has published several popular historical works on the Second World War and the Spanish Civil War. Early life Born in Kensington, Beevor was educated at two independent schools; Abberley Hall School in Worcestershire, followed by Winchester College in Hampshire. He then went to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where he studied under the military historian John Keegan before receiving a commission in the 11th Hussars on 28 July 1967. Beevor served in England and Germany and was promoted to lieutenant on 28 January 1969 before resigning his commission on 5 August 1970. Career Beevor has been a visiting professor at the School of History, Classics and Archaeology at Birkbeck, University of London, and at the University of Kent. His best-known works, the best-selling '' Stalingrad'' (1998) and '' Berlin: The Downfall 1945'' (2002), recount the World War II battles between the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Battle Of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later renamed to Volgograd) in Southern Russia. The battle was marked by fierce close-quarters combat and direct assaults on civilians in air raids, with the battle epitomizing urban warfare. The Battle of Stalingrad was the deadliest battle to take place during the Second World War and is one of the bloodiest battles in the history of warfare, with an estimated 2 million total casualties. Today, the Battle of Stalingrad is universally regarded as the turning point in the European Theatre of war, as it forced the '' Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' (German High Command) to withdraw considerable military forces from other areas in occupied Europe to replace German losses on the Eastern Front, ending with the rout of the six field armies of Army G ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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62nd Army (Soviet Union)
The 62nd Army (russian: 62-я армия) was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. Formed as the 7th Reserve Army as part of the Reserve of the Supreme High Command in May 1942, the formation was designated as the 62nd Army the following month. After an epic combat performance in the Battle of Stalingrad, the 62nd Army was granted Guards status and renamed the 8th Guards Army in April 1943. History The 7th Reserve Army was formed 28 May 1942 as part of the Stavka Reserve (RVGK). Within one month, this force had been redesignated the 62nd Army. From mid August 1942 until late January 1943, the 62nd Army, under the command of General Vasily Chuikov, fought in the Battle of Stalingrad. 62nd Army conducted an epic defense of the city against repeated and desperate attacks by the German 6th Army. The Army, along with the 64th Army, was operating under the Soviet Stalingrad Front. After the German assault at Stalingrad had come to utt ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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63rd Army (Soviet Union)
The 63rd Army was a field army of the Red Army during World War II. It was formed on 10 July 1942, by the order of Headquarters Red Army Supreme Command № 994110, by renaming Stavka's 5th Reserve Army. History Since 12 July 1942 the army was incorporated into the newly created Stalingrad Front for defensive battles on approaches to Stalingrad. On 30 September 1942 Stalingrad Front was renamed as Don Front for the battle within the city. On 29 October 1942 the army subordinated to the reconstructed Southwestern Front for the Operation Uranus counter-offensive. On 4 November 1942 the 63rd Army was reflagged as the 1st Guards Army, which was named the 3rd Guards Army since 5 December. 27 April 1943 the Army was formed for the second time on the basis of the 2nd Reserve Army. Originally it consisted of the 129th, 235th, 250th, 348th, 380th and 397th Rifle Divisions, artillery, engineering, and other parts. On 29 April 1943 the army was incorporated into the Bryansk Fro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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64th Army (Soviet Union)
The 64th Army (russian: 64-я армия) was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. Formed as the 1st Reserve Army as part of the Reserve of the Supreme High Command in April 1942, the formation was designated as the 64th Army in July 1942. The Army distinguished itself at the Battle of Stalingrad, was granted Guards status and renamed the 7th Guards Army in April 1943. History After its creation, the 64th Army was included in the newly formed Stalingrad Front. With the beginning of the Stalingrad Strategic Defensive Operation, its advanced troops fought hard battles with the vanguards of the 6th German Army on the Tsimle River. The 64th Army repelled the offensive of the southern strike group of the enemy around Surovikino, Rychkovo and further on the left bank of the Don. In early August, due to the threat of the 4th Panzer Army breaking through to Stalingrad from the southwest, the army troops were moved there and continued to ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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North Caucasus Front
The North Caucasian Front or North Caucasus Front was a major formation of the Red Army during the Second World War. The North Caucasus Front describes either of two distinct organizations during the war. First Creation The first formation was created on May 20, 1942 and was commanded by Marshal Semyon M. Budenny throughout its existence. The Front incorporated forces from the (disbanded) Crimean Front and received additional forces from the (disbanded) Southern Front on July 28, 1942. The Front was composed of * 44th Soviet Army (Andrei Khryashchev and Ivan Yefimovich Petrov), * 47th Soviet Army ( Grigory Kotov), * 51st Soviet Army ( Nikolai Kirichenko and Trofim Kolomiets). The 1st Rifle Corps reappeared in the Soviet OOB on 1 June 1942, directly subordinated to the North Caucasus Front, and was made up of four rifle brigades. The North Caucasus Front at different times also included the 9th, 12th, 18th, 24th, 37th, 56th Army, 4th and 5th Air Army. The Front also ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Soviet Southwestern Front
The Southwestern Front was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War, formed thrice. It was first created on June 22, 1941 from the Kiev Special Military District. The western boundary of the front in June 1941 was 865 km long, from the Pripyat River and the town of Wlodawa to the Prut River and the town of Lipkany at the border with Romania. It connected to the north with the Western Front, which extended to the Lithuanian border, and to the south with the Southern Front, which extended to the city of Odessa on the Black Sea. Operational history The Southwestern Front was on the main axis of attack by the German Army Group South during Operation Barbarossa. At the outbreak of war with Germany, the Front was commanded by Mikhail Kirponos and contained the Soviet 5th, 6th, 26th, and 12th Armies along the frontier. 16th and 19th Armies were in reserve behind the forward forces. These forces took part in the tank battles in western Ukraine and were surrounded ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Second Battle Of Kharkov
The Second Battle of Kharkov or Operation Fredericus was an Axis counter-offensive in the region around Kharkov against the Red Army Izium bridgehead offensive conducted 12–28 May 1942, on the Eastern Front during World War II. Its objective was to eliminate the Izium bridgehead over Seversky Donets or the "Barvenkovo bulge" (russian: Барвенковский выступ) which was one of the Soviet offensive's staging areas. After a winter counter-offensive that drove German troops away from Moscow but depleted the Red Army's reserves, the Kharkov offensive was a new Soviet attempt to expand upon their strategic initiative, although it failed to secure a significant element of surprise. On 12 May 1942, Soviet forces under the command of Marshal Semyon Timoshenko launched an offensive against the German 6th Army from a salient established during the winter counter-offensive. After a promising start, the offensive was stopped on 15 May by massive airstrikes. Critical S ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stalingrad
Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stalingrád, label=none; ) (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area of , with a population of slightly over 1 million residents. Volgograd is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, sixteenth-largest city by population size in Russia, the second-largest city of the Southern Federal District, and the Volga#Biggest cities on the shores of the Volga, fourth-largest city on the Volga. The city was founded as the fortress of ''Tsaritsyn'' in 1589. By the nineteenth century, Tsaritsyn had become an important river-port and commercial centre, leading to its population to grow rapidly. In November 1917, at the start of th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |