The Oranienbaum Bridgehead ( in Russian) was an isolated portion of the

Leningrad Oblast Leningrad Oblast ( rus, Ленинградская область, Leningradskaya oblast’, lʲɪnʲɪnˈgratskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ, , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It was established on 1 August 1927, a ...

in Russia, which was retained under Soviet control during the

siege of Leningrad The siege of Leningrad (russian: links=no, translit=Blokada Leningrada, Блокада Ленинграда; german: links=no, Leningrader Blockade; ) was a prolonged military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the Soviet city of L ...

in World War II. It played a significant role in protecting the city.

History

The area is located near the town of Lomonosov (formerly Oranienbaum) and centred on the Krasnaya Gorka Fort complex. The Germans approached Leningrad in early September 1941 and reached the Gulf of Finland on 7 September, isolating an area long and up to deep along the Baltic coast. This area was fortified and defended by the soldiers of the Red Army and sailors of the Baltic Fleet. An attempt to link up with the main Soviet forces around Leningrad, the Strelna Peterhof operation ( ru) was mounted from 5 to 10 October but failed. On 2 November 1941, the

19th Rifle Corps The 19th Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Red Army. It was part of the 23rd Army. It took part in the Great Patriotic War. Organization * 142nd Rifle Division * 115th Rifle Division Commanders * Kombrig Vsevolod Yakovlev (14.07.1937 - ...

was reorganised as the 2nd Neva Operations Group, then quickly the Coastal Operations Group, of the

Leningrad Front The Leningrad Front (russian: Ленинградский фронт) was formed during the 1941 German approach on Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) by dividing the Northern Front into the Leningrad Front and Karelian Front The Karelian Front ...

to defend the pocket. It initially included the 48th Rifle Division and the 2nd and 5th Naval Rifle Brigades, under the former commander of the 19th Rifle Corps, General Antonov. Later the garrison included the 48th Rifle Division, the 98th Rifle Division, the 168th Rifle Division and parts of the

Baltic Fleet , image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg , image_size = 150 , caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign , dates = 18 May 1703 – present , country = , allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present) ...

which provided gunfire support and supply. The commander between 1942 and 1943 was General

Vladimir Romanovsky Vladimir Romanovsky (June 21, 1957 in Slonim, Belarusian SSR – May 13, 2013) was a Soviet Union, Soviet canoe racing, sprint canoeist who competed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He won two medals at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montr ...

. He was replaced by Ivan Fedyuninsky in December 1943. In November 1943, the

2nd Shock Army The 2nd Shock Army (russian: 2-я Ударная армия) was a field army of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. This type of formation was created in accordance with prewar doctrine that called for Shock Armies to ''overcome difficu ...

was sent into the bridgehead. A component of the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive was the Krasnoye Selo–Ropsha Offensive which helped break the Siege of Leningrad. On 14 January 1944, the 2nd Shock Army attacked from the bridgehead and linked with Soviet forces attacking from Leningrad.

Monuments

Several monuments from the Green Belt of Glory are located within the former bridgehead.

References

''This article incorporates material from Russian Wikipedia''
St Petersburg Encyclopedia (Russian)

- Russian Language Site

{{coord missing, Leningrad Oblast History of Saint Petersburg Baltic Sea operations of World War II World War II aerial operations and battles of the Eastern Front Military operations of World War II involving Germany