The First Battle of
Târgu Frumos
Târgu Frumos (also spelled ''Tîrgu Frumos'', sometimes ''Târgul / Tîrgul Frumos''), ) is a town in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania. Eleven villages were administered by the town until 2004, when they were split off to form Balș, Cost ...
was fought during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
between
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
commanded by
Otto Wöhler
Otto Wöhler (12 July 1894 – 5 February 1987) was a German general in the Wehrmacht and a war criminal during World War II. He rose to a corps and army level commander.
Wöhler was implicated in the Einsatzgruppe activities while serving as C ...
and
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
forces led by
Ivan Konev
Ivan Stepanovich Konev ( rus, link=no, Ива́н Степа́нович Ко́нев, p=ɪˈvan sʲtʲɪˈpanəvʲɪtɕ ˈkonʲɪf; – 21 May 1973) was a Soviet general and Marshal of the Soviet Union who led Red Army forces on the ...
. Historian
David Glantz
David M. Glantz (born January 11, 1942) is an American military historian known for his books on the Red Army during World War II and as the chief editor of '' The Journal of Slavic Military Studies''.
Born in Port Chester, New York, Glantz re ...
has described it as part of a
failed Soviet invasion of Romania, while Russian and German sources have described it as part of the
Târgu Frumos Operation.
By early April 1944, ''
Stavka'' (the Main Command of the Soviet Armed Forces) ordered its two major units involved in operations in south-western
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
to mount a strategic offensive in north-eastern
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
. General Konev's
2nd Ukrainian Front
The 2nd Ukrainian Front (2-й Украинский фронт), was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War.
History
On October 20, 1943 the Steppe Front was renamed the 2nd Ukrainian Front.
During the Second Jassy–Kishinev ...
approached Târgu Frumos and
Botoșani regions by 5 April and commenced its offensive towards Târgu Frumos on 8 April. The Romanian
4th Army, under the command of Lieutenant-General
Ioan Mihail Racoviță
Ioan Mihail Racoviță (7 March 1889, Bucharest – 28 June 1954, Sighet Prison) was a Romanian general during World War II, and Minister of Defense in the aftermath of King Michael's Coup of August 1944.
Biography
In 1906 he was admitted to ...
, was charged with the defense of the region. It was being reinforced by German
panzer
This article deals with the tanks (german: panzer) serving in the German Army (''Deutsches Heer'') throughout history, such as the World War I tanks of the Imperial German Army, the interwar and World War II tanks of the Nazi German Wehrmacht ...
elements of the
24th Panzer Division
The 24th Panzer Division was formed in late 1941 from the 1st Cavalry Division based at Königsberg.
The division fought on the Eastern Front from June 1942 to January 1943, when it was destroyed in the battle of Stalingrad. Reformed, it once ...
, and was preparing to hold an initial Soviet advance. However, these defenses proved to be no match for the Soviet assault on the town and by the next day Târgu Frumos had been secured by two 27th Army rifle divisions. Meanwhile, the German
Eighth Army command responded rapidly by ordering
Hasso von Manteuffel
Freiherr Hasso Eccard von Manteuffel (14 January 1897 – 24 September 1978) was a German baron born to the Prussian noble von Manteuffel family and was a general during World War II who commanded the 5th Panzer Army. He was a recipient of th ...
's ''
Großdeutschland'' Panzergrenadier division to move towards Târgu Frumos and recapture the town. By the evening of 10 April, 48 hours after receiving the initial order, ''Großdeutschland'' succeeded in retaking the town and establishing new defensive positions there. Sporadic battles with Soviet elements remaining in the region continued until 12 April, as they were facing the danger of encirclement.
Following the end of the battle, the Germans formed a new defensive line northwest and northeast of the town and maintained a tank regiment as reserve near Târgu Frumos proper. Meanwhile, irked by the defeat suffered at Târgu Frumos, Konev ordered the
2nd Tank Army
The 2nd Guards Tank Army () was a large military formation of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, now part of the Russian Ground Forces of the Russian Federation.
The army was originally formed in early 1943 as the 2nd Tank Army. It was the ...
to commence on 12 April an
offensive towards the village of
Podu Iloaiei.
Background
![Eastern Front 1943-08 to 1944-12](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Eastern_Front_1943-08_to_1944-12.png)
On 5 March 1944,
Colonel General Ivan Konev
Ivan Stepanovich Konev ( rus, link=no, Ива́н Степа́нович Ко́нев, p=ɪˈvan sʲtʲɪˈpanəvʲɪtɕ ˈkonʲɪf; – 21 May 1973) was a Soviet general and Marshal of the Soviet Union who led Red Army forces on the ...
, commander of the
2nd Ukrainian Front
The 2nd Ukrainian Front (2-й Украинский фронт), was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War.
History
On October 20, 1943 the Steppe Front was renamed the 2nd Ukrainian Front.
During the Second Jassy–Kishinev ...
, commenced the
Uman–Botoșani Offensive operation in the
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
. This operation succeeded in separating
Army Group North
Army Group North (german: Heeresgruppe Nord) was a German strategic formation, commanding a grouping of field armies during World War II. The German Army Group was subordinated to the ''Oberkommando des Heeres'' (OKH), the German army high comman ...
's
1st Panzer Army from
Army Group South
Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II.
It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group So ...
's
8th Army by 17 March; by early April Soviet units approached the Romanian border.
Starting with early April 1944, ''Stavka'' ordered the 2nd and
3rd Ukrainian Front
The 3rd Ukrainian Front (Russian: Третий Украинский фронт) was a Front of the Red Army during World War II.
It was founded on 20 October 1943, on the basis of a Stavka order of October 16, 1943, by renaming the Southweste ...
s to mount a major offensive with strategic implications in eastern Romania. ''Stavkas strategic intentions were to break German and Romanian strategic defenses in northeastern Romania, capture the key cities of
Iași and
Chișinău, and afterwards project forces deep into Romanian territory, if possible as deep as
Ploiești
Ploiești ( , , ), formerly spelled Ploești, is a city and county seat in Prahova County, Romania. Part of the historical region of Muntenia, it is located north of Bucharest.
The area of Ploiești is around , and it borders the Blejoi commune ...
and
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
. By 5 April, Konev's front had crossed the upper reaches of
Dniester
The Dniester, ; rus, Дне́стр, links=1, Dnéstr, ˈdⁿʲestr; ro, Nistru; grc, Τύρᾱς, Tyrās, ; la, Tyrās, la, Danaster, label=none, ) ( ,) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and th ...
and
Prut Rivers, captured
Hotin
Khotyn ( uk, Хотин, ; ro, Hotin, ; see other names) is a city in Dnistrovskyi Raion, Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine and is located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. It hosts the administration of Khotyn urban hromada, one of the ...
and
Dorohoi
Dorohoi () is a municipiu, city in Botoșani County, Romania, on the right bank of the river Jijia, which broadens into a lake on the north.
History
Dorohoi used to be a market for the timber and farm produce of the north Moldavian highlands; m ...
, and approached Târgu Frumos and Botoșani regions—– northwest of Iași—facing only light Romanian resistance. On 8 April 1944, Konev ordered the 27th and
40th Armies to conduct a coordinated offensive southward along the
Târgu Frumos
Târgu Frumos (also spelled ''Tîrgu Frumos'', sometimes ''Târgul / Tîrgul Frumos''), ) is a town in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania. Eleven villages were administered by the town until 2004, when they were split off to form Balș, Cost ...
axis, in close cooperation with
Semyon Bogdanov's
2nd Tank Army
The 2nd Guards Tank Army () was a large military formation of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, now part of the Russian Ground Forces of the Russian Federation.
The army was originally formed in early 1943 as the 2nd Tank Army. It was the ...
. While Konev's shock group was advancing towards Târgu Frumos,
Konstantin Koroteev
Konstantin Apollonovich Koroteyev (russian: Константи́н Аполло́нович Короте́ев; –4 January 1953) was a Soviet Army colonel general and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
He became colonel-general in 1944 and was awarde ...
's 52nd Army and elements of
Andrei Kravchenko's
6th Tank Army, which were operating north of Iași, were conducting operations alongside the Iași axis in order to support Konev's main effort.
As Konev's armies prepared to launch their offensive toward Târgu Frumos,
Otto Wöhler
Otto Wöhler (12 July 1894 – 5 February 1987) was a German general in the Wehrmacht and a war criminal during World War II. He rose to a corps and army level commander.
Wöhler was implicated in the Einsatzgruppe activities while serving as C ...
's
German Eighth Army was involved in the heavy fighting taking place in and around the village of
Popricani
Popricani is a commune in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania, part of the Iași metropolitan area. It is composed of nine villages: Cârlig, Cotu Morii, Cuza Vodă, Moimești, Popricani, Rediu Mitropoliei, Țipilești, Vânători and Vulturi.
...
, north of Iași, where two Soviet corps were fighting with armored
''kampfgruppen'', distracting the Germans' attentions and forces away from the critical Târgu Frumos sector. Exploiting the 52nd Army diversionary operations in the Iași region, the three armies of Konev's shock group began advancing southwards early in the morning of 8 April. The advance was quite slow due to mud-clogged roads during the ''
rasputitsa'', as well as crossing to the west bank of the Prut River northwest of Iași.
Planning
![April1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/April1944.jpg)
Konev's armies' initial mission was to reach Târgu Frumos,
Pașcani
Pașcani () is a city in Iași County in the Western Moldavia region of Romania, on the Siret river. , it has a population of 33,745. Five villages are administered by the city: Blăgești, Boșteni, Gâstești, Lunca, and Sodomeni.
The city der ...
, and
Târgu Neamț
Târgu Neamț (; german: Niamtz, hu, Németvásár, he, נאמץ טרגו, la, Ante Castrum Nempch) is a town in Neamț County, Western Moldavia, Romania, on the river Neamț. It had, , a population of 20,496. Three villages are administered ...
regions—– west of Iași—and capture the three towns from their Romanian defenders by surprise. While three divisions of 51st Rifle Corps were ordered to press southward toward Pașcani, another two rifle divisions were protecting their advance in the region north and northwest of Târgu Neamț. Further to the east, seven rifle divisions assigned to
35th Guards and 33rd Rifle Corps of 27th Army would advance southeastward along the Prut starting on 7 April, forcing the Romanian 8th Infantry Division to retreat towards
Hârlău
Hârlău (also spelled ''Hîrlău'', ; he, חרלאו; hu, Harló) is a town in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania. It was one of the princely court cities of Moldavia, in the 15th century. One village, Pârcovaci, is administered by the to ...
, north of Târgu Frumos. Meanwhile, another two divisions of 33rd Rifle Corps joined by two corps of the 2nd Tank Army would press the Romanian 7th Infantry Division back toward Târgu Frumos.
The Romanian
4th Army's IV Army Corps, which was responsible for defending the Târgu Frumos sector, was preparing to assemble sufficient forces to man the forward defensive positions in the
Ruginoasa–
Strunga–
Oțeleni defense line, which extended from Târgu Neamț eastward south of Pașcani and through Târgu Frumos and Podu Iloaiei just south of Iași. As a result, the 6th and 8th Infantry Divisions would be manning defenses stretching from Târgu Neamț eastward to Pașcani, while the 1st Guards Division and the 7th Infantry Division would defend the sector from Pașcani eastward past Târgu Frumos to Podu Iloaiei. The latter units would be reinforced by the end of 8 April northeast of Podu Iloaiei by a
Maximilian von Edelsheim
__NOTOC__
Maximilian von Edelsheim (6 July 1897 – 26 April 1994) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leave ...
's
24th Panzer Division
The 24th Panzer Division was formed in late 1941 from the 1st Cavalry Division based at Königsberg.
The division fought on the Eastern Front from June 1942 to January 1943, when it was destroyed in the battle of Stalingrad. Reformed, it once ...
's small ''kampfgruppe''.
Battle
In the vanguard of Trofimenko's 27th Army, Lieutenant-General S. G. Goriachev's 35th Guards Rifle Corps resumed its advance southward from the Hârlǎu region towards Târgu Frumos during the morning on 9 April, with two rifle divisions deployed from left to right in his first echelon. Soviet riflemen quickly defeated the Romanian troops defending the town and most of the surrounding region, being reinforced by the Corps' second echelon consisting of one airborne and one rifle divisions before any enemy reaction. Meanwhile, the 42nd Guards Rifle Division captured the town of Pașcani, situated west of Târgu Frumos and defended by the Romanian 6th Infantry Division. At the same time, forward detachments of Bogdanov's 2nd Tank Army advancing east of the town attempted to reinforce Trofimenko's infantry fighting in the Târgu Frumos region, but were unable to do so due to German defenders. The German Eighth Army reacted promptly realizing the danger to its main defenses west of Iași, by moving
Hasso von Manteuffel
Freiherr Hasso Eccard von Manteuffel (14 January 1897 – 24 September 1978) was a German baron born to the Prussian noble von Manteuffel family and was a general during World War II who commanded the 5th Panzer Army. He was a recipient of th ...
's
Panzergrenadier Division Großdeutschland
The Panzergrenadier Division " Großdeutschland", also commonly referred to simply as Großdeutschland or Großdeutschland Division, was an elite combat unit of the German Army (''Heer'') that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II.
Origin ...
towards Târgu Frumos. Elements of the division were ordered to launch a counterattack from the south of the town as soon as possible. Attacking during the rest of the day, that small German force managed to seize and hold only a foothold in the southern part of the town. However, by this time two divisions of Goriachev's 35th Guards Rifle Corps reached the region and added their weight to Trofimenko's southward thrust. By nightfall, three divisions leading 35th Corps advance passed Târgu Frumos and established a salient to deep within the Romanian defense line south and southeast of the town.
![Gdmaptargul](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Gdmaptargul.gif)
Early on 10 April, the ''Großdeutschland'' Division, consisting of approximately 160 tanks, including 40
Panthers
Panther may refer to:
Large cats
*Pantherinae, the cat subfamily that contains the genera ''Panthera'' and ''Neofelis''
**''Panthera'', the cat genus that contains tigers, lions, jaguars and leopards.
***Jaguar (''Panthera onca''), found in Sout ...
and 40
Tigers
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...
, attacked westward along the road from Podu Iloaiei to Târgu Frumos in two columns deployed north and south of the road. Following a heavy bombardment, the Germans broke into the town and engaged the Soviet troops which had taken cover in houses and other buildings. The German thrust cut off a number of Soviet units from their main force and reached the high ground west of the town by launching a concerted counterattack just as the 206th Rifle, 3rd Guards Airborne and 93rd Guards Rifle Divisions were preparing to resume their assault southwards, at a time when only their rear guards and logistical subunits remained behind to defend the Târgu Frumos region. Meanwhile, the Romanian 1st Guard and 7th Infantry Division advanced from the south, pressing the Soviets back to the north. Trapped between the German armour racing into Târgu Frumos from the east and the Romanian infantry counterattacking from the south, the three divisions of 35th Guards Rifle Corps had no choice but to retreat. At about 2200 hours, 48 hours after getting their original order, the German grenadiers had secured Târgu Frumos and the regions west and north of the town.
After a desperate two-day struggle by three divisions of 35th Corps to avoid encirclement, the fighting in the Târgu Frumos region quieted down by midday on 12 April.
Aftermath
After the end of the battle, the ''Großdeutschland'' Division erected a new defensive line to protect Târgu Frumos, which extended in a wide arc from northwest, northeast, and east of the town. Manteuffel ultimately placed ''Großdeutschland''s Panzergrenadier Regiment on the division's left wing northwest of the town and the Fusilier Regiment on its right wing northeast and east of the town, but he retained his Panzer Regiment in reserve assembly areas close to Târgu Frumos proper. Meanwhile, throughout the day on 12 April, units from the Panzer Grenadier Regiment cleared Soviet remnants from the 206th Rifle and 3rd Guards Airborne Divisions from a small pocket west of the town and extended the regiment's defensive positions several miles forward southwestward of
Heleșteni, west of Târgu Frumos, where the ''Großdeutschland'' defenses connected with those of the Romanian 1st Guards Division to form a continuous defensive front west of the town. Furthermore, on ''Großdeutschlands right flank, a battlegroup from the 24th Panzer Division continued defending the sector located from north of Podu Iloaiei to the village of
Lețcani
Lețcani is a commune in Iași County, Western Moldavia, Romania, part of the Iași metropolitan area. It is composed of four villages: Bogonos, Cogeasca, Cucuteni and Lețcani.
Among historians and archaeologists, Lețcani is famous as the place ...
, west of Iași, where its right flank linked up with the defenses of the 7th Romanian Infantry Division, which was defending the northwestern flank of Iași.
After successfully withdrawing the three partially encircled divisions of 35th Corps, Trofimenko reorganized his 27th Army's defenses along a line extending from north of Târgu Frumos eastward to north of Podu Iloaiei. By the end of 12 April, Goriachev deployed the 206th, 3rd Guards and 93rd Divisions from left to right in defensive positions stretching from the eastern bank of Siret River near Pașcani, west of Târgu Frumos, eastward to the village of Munteni, northeast of Târgu Frumos, while further to the east, three rifle divisions from 33rd Rifle Corps were placed northwest of Iași.
Irritated by the defeat his troops faced at Târgu Frumos, on 12 April Konev ordered Bogdanov, whose
2nd Tank Army
The 2nd Guards Tank Army () was a large military formation of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, now part of the Russian Ground Forces of the Russian Federation.
The army was originally formed in early 1943 as the 2nd Tank Army. It was the ...
concentrated its two corps south of
Focuri, north of Podu Iloaiei, to assault the Romanian and German defenders at Podu Iloaiei.
Notes
Explanatory notes
Footnotes
References
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See also
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Targu Frumos, First Battle Of
Conflicts in 1944
1944 in Romania
Battles of World War II involving Romania
Military history of Romania during World War II
Romania–Soviet Union relations
Battles of World War II involving Germany
April 1944 events