Manchuria: the last battle. Manchurian strategic offensive operation Manchuria war 1945 on the map
Emperor Hirohito
裕仁
65 years ago, on August 15, 1945, after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet Union's declaration of war on Japan, Emperor Hirohito ( Japanese 裕仁 ) made a radio address about the unconditional surrender of the Japanese armed forces.
The country's top military leadership opposed this decision, but the emperor was adamant. Then the Minister of War, the commanders of the army and navy and other military leaders, following the ancient tradition of the samurai, performed the ritual of seppuku...
On September 2, 1945, the Japanese surrender was officially signed on board the battleship Missouri. The Second World War, which claimed millions of lives in Europe and Asia, is over.
For years, Soviet propaganda inspired that the USSR defeated both the Third Reich and Japan: they say, for 4 years the Americans were messing around with the pathetic, insignificant Japanese armed forces, playing war games with them, and then the mighty Soviet Union came and in one week defeated the largest and most the best Japanese army. That, they say, is the entire contribution of the Allies to the war!
Let's look at the myths of Soviet propaganda and find out how In fact The Kwantung Army opposing the Soviet troops was defeated, and we will also briefly consider how some of the military operations in the Pacific proceeded and what consequences the landing in Japan could have had.
So, the defeat of the Kwantung Army - as it really was, and not in Soviet history textbooks.
Kwantung Army ( Japanese関東軍, かんとうぐん ) indeed, until 1942, it was considered one of the most prestigious in the Japanese ground armed forces. Serving there meant the possibility of a good career. But then the Japanese command found itself forced to take away the most combat-ready units and formations from the Kwantung Army one after another and plug the gaps made by the Americans with them. Having numbered more than a million personnel at the beginning of the war, by the beginning of 1943 the Kwantung Army already had barely 600,000 people. And by the end of 1944, just over 300,000 people remained from it...
But the Japanese command selected not only people, but also equipment. Yes, the Japanese had bad tanks. However, they were quite capable of withstanding at least the outdated Soviet armored vehicles, of which there were many in the First and Second Far Eastern and Transbaikal Fronts. But by the time of the Soviet invasion, in the Kwantung Army, which once numbered 10 tank regiments, there were only such regiments left... 4 (four) - and of these four, two were formed four days before the Soviet attack.
In 1942, the Kwantung Army formed 2 tank divisions on the basis of its tank brigades. One of them was sent to the Philippines, to the island of Luzon, in July 1944. Destroyed by the Americans. By the way, it fought until the last crew—only a few of its members surrendered.
From the second, they first sent one tank regiment to Saipan (April 1944, the regiment was completely destroyed by the Americans, only a few surrendered), and in March 1945, the entire division was sent home to defend the mother country. At the same time, in March 1945, the last divisions that were part of the Kwantung Army in 1941 were withdrawn to the metropolis.
Soviet sources claim that the Kwantung Army had 1,155 tanks. Moreover, according to the same Soviet sources, a total of about 400 vehicles were destroyed in the battles and captured after the surrender. Yes, well Where other? Where, where... Well, you understand - exactly there, yeah....
And then Soviet historians took and transferred the estimates of the officers who planned the Manchurian operation into post-war literature as... the equipment that the Kwantung Army actually had.
The same Soviet method was used to describe the aviation of the Kwantung Army: 400 airfields and landing sites - this sounds cool, but... in fact, the entire roster of combat aircraft available to the Japanese at the time of the invasion was not 1800, as Soviet sources write, but less one thousand. And out of this thousand, no more than a hundred are the latest model fighters, about 40 more bombers, and half are general training aircraft (the Japanese Air Force training centers were located in Manchuria). Everything else was again withdrawn from Manchuria to plug the holes the Americans were making.
The Japanese had exactly the same situation with artillery: the best units, armed with the latest guns, were completely withdrawn from the Kwantung Army by the middle of 1944 and transferred against the Americans or home to defend the mother country.
Other equipment was also withdrawn, including transport and engineering units. As a result, the mobility of the Kwantung Army, which met the Soviet attack in August 1945, was carried out mainly... on foot.
Well, and also along the railway network, which was most developed not near the border, but in the center of Manchuria. Two single-track branches went to the Mongolian border, and two more single-track branches went to the border with the USSR.
Ammunition, spare parts, and weapons were also exported. By the summer of 1945, less than 25% remained of what the Kwantung Army had in its warehouses in 1941.
Today it is reliably known which units were withdrawn from Manchuria, when, with what equipment - and where they ended their existence. So: of those divisions, brigades and even individual regiments that made up the payroll of the Kwantung Army in 1941, by 1945 there was not a single division, not a single brigade and almost not a single regiment in Manchuria. Of the elite and highly prestigious Kwantung Army that stood in Manchuria in 1941, approximately a quarter formed the core of the army preparing for the defense of the mother country and capitulating along with the entire country on the orders of the Emperor, and the rest was destroyed by the Americans in countless battles throughout the Pacific Ocean, from the Solomon Islands to the Philippines and Okinawa.
Naturally, left without the largest and best part of its troops, the command of the Kwantung Army tried to somehow rectify the situation. To do this, police units from southern China were transferred to the army, recruits were sent from Japan, and all conditionally fit for service from the Japanese living in Manchuria were mobilized.
As the leadership of the Kwantung Army created and trained new units, the Japanese General Staff also took them and threw them into the Pacific meat grinder. However, with the enormous efforts of the army command, by the time of the Soviet invasion, its strength had been increased to over 700 thousand people (Soviet historians got more than 900 by adding Japanese units in South Korea, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin). They even managed to somehow arm these people: the arsenals in Manchuria were designed for massive deployment. True, there was nothing there except small arms and light (and outdated) artillery: everything else had long been taken back to the metropolis and used to plug holes throughout the Pacific theater of military operations...
As noted in the “History of the Great Patriotic War” (vol. 5, pp. 548-549):
In the units and formations of the Kwantung Army there were absolutely no machine guns, anti-tank rifles, rocket artillery, there was little RGK and large-caliber artillery (infantry divisions and brigades as part of artillery regiments and divisions in most cases had 75-mm guns).
As a result, the Soviet invasion was met by the "Kwantung Army", in which the most experienced division was formed... in the spring of 1944. Moreover, of the entire composition of the units of this “Kwantung Army”, until January 1945 there were exactly 6 divisions, all the rest were formed “from fragments and scraps” in the 7 months of 1945 preceding the Soviet attack.
Roughly speaking, during approximately the time that the USSR was preparing an offensive operation with already existing, proven, experienced troops, the command of the Kwantung Army... re-formed this same army. From materials available at hand. In conditions of severe shortage of everything - weapons, ammunition, equipment, gasoline, officers at all levels...
The Japanese could only use untrained conscripts of younger ages and limitedly fit older conscripts. More than half of the personnel of the Japanese units that met the Soviet troops received orders to mobilize a month before the Soviet attack, at the beginning of July 1945. The once elite and prestigious Kwantung Army was able to barely scrape together 100 rounds of ammunition per soldier from empty warehouses.
The “quality” of the newly formed units was quite obvious to the Japanese command. A report prepared for the Japanese General Staff at the end of July 1945 on the combat readiness of army formations from more than 30 divisions and brigades included in the payroll assessed the combat readiness of one division - 80%, one - 70%, one - 65%, one - 60%, four - 35%, three - 20%, and the rest - 15%. The assessment included manpower and equipment levels and the level of combat training.
With such quantity and quality, there could be no question of resisting even that group of Soviet troops that stood on the Soviet side of the border throughout the war. And the command of the Kwantung Army was forced to reconsider the defense plan for Manchuria.
Kwantung Army Headquarters
The original plan of the early 40s involved an attack on Soviet territory. By 1944, it was replaced by a defense plan in fortified areas along the border with the USSR. By May 1945, it became clear to the Japanese command that there was no one to seriously defend the border strip. And in June, the army units received a new defense plan.
According to this plan, approximately a third of all army forces remained at the border. This third was no longer tasked with stopping the Soviet offensive. It was only supposed to wear down the advancing Soviet units to the best of its ability. The command of the Kwantung Army located the remaining two-thirds of its forces, starting from approximately several tens to several hundred kilometers from the border, in echelons, to the central part of Manchuria, located more than 400 kilometers from the border, where all units were asked to retreat without taking decisive battles, but only slowing down the Soviet offensive as much as possible. There they began hastily building new fortifications, in which they hoped to give the Soviet army their last battle...
Naturally, there was no question of any coordinated defense of the border strip by forces of one third of the army’s strength, and what’s more, consisting of freshly shaved yellow-faced conscripts who had practically no heavy weapons. Therefore, the plan provided for defense by individual companies and battalions, without any central control or fire support. There was nothing left to support anyway...
The regrouping of troops and the preparation of fortifications on the border and in the depths of the territory for defense according to the new plan were still underway (the regrouping was largely on foot, and the preparation of fortifications was done by the hands of the newly drafted recruits themselves, in the absence of “technical specialists” and their equipment who had long since left Manchuria ), when on the night of August 8-9, Soviet troops launched an offensive.
In the offensive zone of the Transbaikal Front, approximately three Japanese divisions defended against Soviet units numbering six hundred thousand people in three fortified areas straddling the main roads. None of these three fortified areas was completely suppressed until August 19; individual units there continued to resist until the end of August. Of the defenders of these fortified areas, no more than a quarter surrendered - and only after the Emperor gave the order to surrender.
Throughout the entire zone of the Transbaikal Front there was exactly ONE the case of the surrender of an entire Japanese formation before order of the Emperor: the commander of the tenth Manchu Military District surrendered along with approximately one thousand employees of the administration of this district.
Having bypassed the border fortified areas, the Trans-Baikal Front advanced further in marching formation, without encountering any resistance: by order of the command of the Kwantung Army, the next line of defense was located more than 400 km from the border with Mongolia. When units of the Transbaikal Front reached this line of defense by August 18, those occupying it Japanese units had already capitulated, having received the imperial order.
In the offensive zone of the First and Second Far Eastern Fronts, border fortifications were defended by scattered Japanese units, and the main Japanese forces were withdrawn 70-80 km from the border. As a result, for example, the fortified area west of Lake Hanko, which was attacked by three Soviet rifle corps - the 17th, 72nd and 65th - was defended from their attack by one Japanese infantry battalion. This balance of forces existed along the entire border. Only a few of the Japanese defending in the fortified areas surrendered.
So what really happened in Manchuria?
The entire crushing hammer that the Soviet command had prepared to defeat the full-blooded “elite and prestigious” Kwantung Army fell on... approximately 200 thousand recruits occupying the border fortified areas and the strip immediately behind them. For 9 days, these recruits tried to do exactly what they were ordered: the garrisons of the border fortifications held out, as a rule, until the last fighter, and the units standing in the second echelon fought back to the main defensive positions located even further from the border.
They carried out their orders, of course, poorly, extremely ineffectively and with huge losses - as only poorly armed, poorly trained recruits, most of whom had served in the army for less than six months at the time of the Soviet attack, could carry out. But there was no mass surrender, no disobedience to orders. It was necessary to kill almost half of them to break through the road into the interior of the country.
Almost all cases of mass surrender to Soviet troops in the period from August 9 (the beginning of the invasion) to August 16, when the order of surrender given by the Emperor was conveyed by the commander of the Kwantung Army to its formations - this is the surrender of Manchu auxiliary units in which local Chinese and Manchus served and to whom not a single responsible sector of defense was entrusted - because they were never suitable for anything other than the functions of punitive forces, and their Japanese masters did not expect anything more from them.
After August 16, when the formations received the imperial decree of surrender, duplicated by the order of the army commander, there was no longer any organized resistance.
More than half of the Kwantung Army was not in any battles with Soviet units didn't participate at all: by the time the Soviet units reached these units, which had retreated deeper into the country, they, in full accordance with the imperial order, had already laid down their arms. And the Japanese who had settled in the border fortified areas, who lost contact with the command at the start of the Soviet offensive and to whom the Emperor’s order to surrender did not reach, were picked out for another week after how the war has already ended.
Otozo Yamada
During the Manchurian operation of the Soviet troops, the Kwantung Army under the command of General Otozo Yamada lost about 84 thousand soldiers and officers killed, over 15 thousand died from wounds and diseases on the territory of Manchuria, about 600 thousand people were captured.
At the same time, the irretrievable losses of the Soviet Army amounted to about 12 thousand people...
There is no doubt that the Kwantung Army would have been defeated even if the Emperor had decided not to surrender and its units had fought to the end. But the example of that third of it that fought on the border shows: if not for the order of surrender, even this “people's militia” would most likely have killed at least half of its personnel in senseless and useless attempts to stop the Soviet troops. And Soviet losses, while remaining very low compared to Japanese losses, would nevertheless have at least tripled. But so many people already died from 1941 to May 1945...
In discussing the topic of nuclear explosions, the question has already been raised: “What kind of resistance from the Japanese did the American military expect?”
It should be considered with how this is exactly what the Americans have already faced in the Pacific War and What they (like the officers of the Soviet General Staff who planned the Manchurian operation) took into account (they could not help but take into account!) when planning the landing on the Japanese islands. It is clear that a war with the mother country on the Japanese islands proper without intermediate island bases for the equipment of that time was simply impossible. Without these bases, Japan could not cover the captured resources. The fighting was brutal...
1. Battles for the island of Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands), August 1942 - February 1943.
Of the 36 thousand Japanese who participated (one of the participating divisions was from the Kwantung Army in 1941), 31 thousand were killed, about one thousand surrendered.
7 thousand dead on the American side.
2. Landing on the island of Saipan (Mariana Islands), June-July 1944.
The island was protected 31 thousand Japanese military personnel; it was home to at least 25 thousand Japanese civilians. Of the island's defenders, they managed to capture 921 people. When no more than 3 thousand people remained from the defenders, the commander of the island’s defense and his senior officers committed suicide, having previously ordered their soldiers to go at the Americans with the bayonet and end their lives in battle. Everyone who received this order carried it out to the end. Behind the soldiers marching to the American positions, all of them were wounded and able to move, hobbling around, helping each other.
3 thousand dead on the American side.
When it became clear that the island would fall, the Emperor addressed the civilian population with a decree in which he recommended committing suicide rather than surrendering to the Americans. As the personification of God on earth, the Emperor, by his decree, promised the civilian population an honorable place in the afterlife next to the soldiers of the imperial army. Of at least 25 thousand civilians committed suicide
suicide
about 20 thousand!
People threw themselves off cliffs - along with young children!
From those who did not take advantage of the generous guarantees of the afterlife, the names “suicide cliff” and “Banzai cliff” reached the rest of the world...
3. Landing on the island of Leyte (Philippines), October-December 1944.
From 55 thousand defending Japanese (4 divisions, 2 of them from the Kwantung Army in 1941 and another one formed by the Kwantung Army in 1943), died 49 thousand.
3 and a half thousand dead on the American side.
4. Landing on the island of Guam (Mariana Islands), July-August 1944.
The island was defended by 22 thousand Japanese, 485 people surrendered.
1,747 dead on the American side.
5. Landing on the island of Luzon (Philippines), January-August 1945.
The Japanese garrison numbered a quarter of a million people. At least half of the divisions of this garrison in 1941 were part of the Kwantung Army. 205 thousand died, 9050 surrendered.
More than 8 thousand killed on the American side.
6. Landing on the island of Iwo Jima, February-March 1945.
The Japanese garrison of the island amounted to 18 - 18 and a half thousand people. 216 surrendered.
Almost 7 thousand killed on the American side.
7. Landing on the island of Okinawa.
The Japanese garrison of the island is approximately 85 thousand military, with mobilized civilians - over 100 thousand. The heart of the defense consisted of two divisions transferred there from the Kwantung Army. The garrison was deprived of air support and tanks, but otherwise organized the defense in exactly the same way as it was organized on the two main islands of the archipelago - mobilizing as many civilians as it could use in supporting roles (and continuing to mobilize as they were spent), and creating a powerful a network of fortifications dug into the ground, connected by underground tunnels. With the exception of direct hits into the embrasures, these fortifications did not even take 410-mm shells of the main caliber of American battleships.
110 thousand people died.
No more than 10 thousand surrendered, almost all of them mobilized civilians. When only the command group remained of the garrison, the commander and his chief of staff committed suicide in the traditional samurai manner, and their remaining subordinates committed suicide with a bayonet attack on the American positions.
The Americans lost 12 and a half thousand killed(this is a conservative estimate because it does not include several thousand American soldiers who died from their injuries)
The number of civilian casualties is still unknown. Various Japanese historians evaluate it from 42 to 150 thousand people(the entire pre-war population of the island was 450 thousand).
Thus, the Americans, fighting against real(and not on paper, as was the case with the Kwantung Army) of elite Japanese units, had a loss ratio from 1 to 5 to 1 to 20. The loss ratio in the Soviet Manchurian Strategic Operation was approximately 1 to 10, which is quite consistent with the American experience.
The percentage of Kwantung Army personnel who actually took part in battles and surrendered to Soviet troops before orders of the Emperor - only slightly higher than was the case in the rest of the war in the Pacific.
All the other Japanese captured by Soviet troops surrendered, following the imperial order.
So you can imagine WHAT would have happened if the Japanese emperor had not been forced to surrender...
Each day of war in Asia claimed thousands of victims, including civilians.
Nuclear bombings are, of course, terrible. But if it weren’t for them, everything would have been even worse, alas. Not only would American, Japanese and Soviet soldiers die, but also millions of civilians both in countries occupied by Japan and in Japan itself.
A study undertaken for US Secretary of War Henry Stimson estimated that American casualties in the conquest of Japan would range from 1.7 to 4 million, including 400,000 to 800,000 dead. Japanese losses were estimated in the range of five to ten million people.
This is a terrible paradox - the death of the inhabitants of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the rest of Japan.
For Soviet soldiers, if Emperor Hirohito had not given the order to surrender, the war with Japan would have turned out not to be an easy walk, but a bloody massacre. But millions already died during the battles with Nazi Germany...
However, the cries of Soviet patriots about the war with Japan as “an easy walk” seem to me not entirely correct. I think that the above figures refute this. War is war. And before the Kwantung Army received the order to surrender, it managed, despite its unenviable position, to inflict losses on the advancing Soviet troops. So Soviet mythology does not at all negate the courage and heroism shown by ordinary soldiers who shed their blood in battles with the Kwantung Army. And all the previous experience of fighting in the Pacific Ocean said that desperate, bloody resistance can be expected.
Fortunately, Emperor Hirohito announced surrender on August 15th. This was probably the smartest thing he ever did in his life...
Signing of the Instrument of Japanese Surrender on board the Missouri
The Manchurian offensive operation was carried out by troops of the Armed Forces of the USSR and the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Army on August 9 - September 2, 1945 with the goal of defeating the Japanese Kwantung Army and liberating Manchuria and North Korea from Japanese militarists.
For its successful implementation, the Soviet command transferred to the Far East part of the troops and equipment released in the European Theater of Operations, which, together with the troops stationed here, made up 3 fronts: Transbaikal (Marshal R.Ya. Malinovsky), 1st Far Eastern (Marshal K. A. Meretskov), 2nd Far Eastern (Army General M.A. Purkaev). A total of 131 divisions and 117 brigades - over 1.5 million people, over 27 thousand guns and mortars, over 700 rocket launchers, 5250 tanks and self-propelled guns, over 3.7 thousand aircraft. They were supplemented by the forces of the Pacific Fleet (Admiral I.S. Yumashev), the Amur Military Flotilla (Rear Admiral N.V. Antonov), and the border troops of the Primorsky, Khabarovsk and Transbaikal border districts. They were opposed by a large strategic group of Japanese troops, the basis of which was the Kwantung Army (General O. Yamada), consisting of ground forces, the Sungar River Naval Flotilla and troops of the puppet armies - in total over 1 million people, 6260 guns and mortars, 1155 tanks, 1900 aircraft, 25 ships.
During the operation, it was planned to launch 2 main attacks into the center of Manchuria from the territory of Mongolia and Primorye and several auxiliary ones with the aim of encircling the main forces of the Kwantung Army, their subsequent dissection and liquidation.
Advance and reconnaissance detachments of all Soviet fronts began the offensive on August 9, 1945, with the support of aviation, delivering massive attacks on enemy military targets. At the same time, the Pacific Fleet cut communications connecting Korea and Manchuria with Japan and attacked Japanese naval bases in North Korea. Having crossed the steppes, the Gobi Desert and the Greater Khingan mountain ranges, the troops of the Transbaikal Front, defeating a number of Japanese military groups, liberated Changchun and Shenyang and cut off the Kwantung Army from the troops of North Korea. Meeting them from Primorye, the troops of the 1st Far Eastern Front, breaking through the defenses and repelling a number of strong Japanese counterattacks, occupied Girin and Harbin, and, in cooperation with the landing forces of the Pacific Fleet, captured the ports of Ungi, Najin, Chongjin, Wonsan, and then liberated North Korea until 38 th parallels. In cooperation with the Amur Military Flotilla, troops of the 2nd Far Eastern Front crossed the Amur and Ussuri rivers, and overcoming the Lesser Khingan mountain range, together with units of the 1st Far Eastern Front, liberated Harbin.
By August 20, Soviet troops, having entered the Central Manchurian Plain, completed the division of Japanese troops into separate groups with their complete encirclement, and on August 19, Japanese troops almost everywhere began to surrender.
| Flag of the USSR Alexander Mikhailovich Vasilevsky Flag of the USSR Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky USSR flag Kirill Afanasyevich Meretskov Flag of the USSR Maxim Alekseevich Purkaev Flag of the USSR Ivan Stepanovich Yumashev Flag of the USSR Neon Vasilievich Antonov Mongolia Khorlogin Choibalsan |
Flag of Japan Otozo Yamada Surrendered Mengjiang Dae Van Demchigdonrov Surrendered Manchukuo Pu Yi Gave Up |
Lua error in Module:Wikidata on line 170: attempt to index field "wikibase" (a nil value).
Manchurian operation- a strategic offensive operation of the Soviet Armed Forces and the troops of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Army, carried out on August 9 - September 2, during the Soviet-Japanese War of World War II, with the goal of defeating the Japanese Kwantung Army, occupying Manchuria and North Korea and eliminating the military-economic base Japan on the Asian continent. Also known as battle for manchuria, and in the West - as an operation "August Storm" .
Balance of power
Japan
By the beginning of the Manchurian operation, a large strategic group of Japanese, Manchurian and Mengjiang troops was concentrated in the territory of Manchukuo and northern Korea. Its basis was the Kwantung Army (commander: General Otsuzo Yamada), which included the 1st, 3rd and 17th (from August 10) fronts, the 4th separate army (a total of 31 infantry divisions, 11 infantry and 2 tank brigades, suicide brigade, separate units), 2nd and 5th (from August 10) air army, Sungari military river flotilla. The following troops were also subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army: the Manchukuo Army (2 infantry and 2 cavalry divisions, 12 infantry brigades, 4 separate cavalry regiments), the Mengjiang Army (commander: Prince Dewan (4 infantry divisions)) and the Suiyuan Army Group (5 cavalry divisions and 2 cavalry brigades). In total, the enemy troops included: over 1 million people, 6,260 guns and mortars, 1,155 tanks, 1,900 aircraft, 25 ships. 1/3 of the troops of the enemy group were located in the border zone, the main forces were in the central regions of Manchukuo. There were 17 fortified areas near the borders with the Soviet Union and the Mongolia.
At the same time, atomic explosions carried out by the US Air Force in the cities of Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) actually demoralized the Japanese army. The Japanese government was preparing to capitulate to the countries of the anti-Japanese coalition (China, USA, Great Britain) and could not organize the defense and supply of the new front.
USSR
During May - early August, the Soviet command transferred to the Far East part of the troops released in the west (over 400 thousand people, 7137 guns and mortars, 2119 tanks and self-propelled guns, etc.). Together with the troops stationed in the Far East, the regrouped formations and units formed three fronts:
- Transbaikal: 17th, 39th, 36th and 53rd armies, 6th Guards Tank Army, cavalry-mechanized group of Soviet-Mongolian troops, 12th Air Army, Transbaikalian Air Defense Army of the country; Marshal of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky;
- 1st Far Eastern: 35th, 1st Red Banner, 5th and 25th armies, Chuguev operational group, 10th mechanized corps, 9th air army, Primorsky air defense army of the country; Marshal of the Soviet Union K. A. Meretskov;
- 2nd Far Eastern: 2nd Red Banner, 15th and 16th Armies, 5th Separate Rifle Corps, 10th Air Army, Amur Air Defense Army of the country; General of the Army Maxim Alekseevich Purkaev.
Total: 131 divisions and 117 brigades, over 1.5 million people, over 27 thousand guns and mortars, over 700 rocket launchers, 5,250 tanks and self-propelled guns, over 3.7 thousand aircraft.
Operation plan
The operational plan of the Soviet command provided for the delivery of two main (from the territory of the Mongolian People's Republic and Primorye) and several auxiliary attacks on directions converging in the center of Manchuria, deep coverage of the main forces of the Kwantung Army, their dissection and subsequent defeat in parts, the capture of the most important military-political centers (Fengtian, Xinjing, Harbin, Jirin). The Manchurian operation was carried out on a front 2700 km wide (active section), to a depth of 200-800 km, in a complex theater of military operations with desert-steppe, mountainous, forested-swampy, taiga terrain and large rivers. Included the Khingan-Mukden, Harbino-Girin and Sungari operations.
Fighting
August 9, on the day the American Air Force exploded an atomic bomb over Nagasaki, the forward and reconnaissance detachments of the three Soviet fronts began an offensive. At the same time, aviation carried out massive strikes on military targets in Harbin, Xinjin and Jilin, on troop concentration areas, communication centers and enemy communications in the border zone. The Pacific Fleet cut communications linking Korea and Manchuria with Japan and attacked Japanese naval bases in northern Korea - Yuki, Rashin and Seishin. Troops of the Trans-Baikal Front, advancing from the territory of the Mongolian People's Republic and Dauria, overcame the waterless steppes, the Gobi Desert and the mountain ranges of the Greater Khingan, defeated the Kalgan, Solun and Hailar enemy groups, reached the approaches to the most important industrial and administrative centers of Manchuria, cut off the Kwantung Army from Japanese troops in Northern China and, having occupied Xinjing and Fengtian, advanced towards Dairen and Ryojun. Troops of the 1st Far Eastern Front, advancing towards the Trans-Baikal Front from Primorye, broke through the enemy’s border fortifications, repelled strong counterattacks of Japanese troops in the Mudanjiang area, occupied Jilin and Harbin (together with the troops of the 2nd Far Eastern Front), in cooperation with landing forces of the Pacific Fleet captured the ports of Yuki, Racine, Seishin and Genzan, and then occupied the northern part of Korea (north of the 38th parallel), cutting off Japanese troops from the mother country (see Harbino-Girin operation 1945). Troops of the 2nd Far Eastern Front, in cooperation with the Amur Military Flotilla, crossed the river. Amur and Ussuri, broke through the enemy's long-term defenses in the areas of Heihe and Fujin, crossed the Lesser Khingan mountain range and, together with the troops of the 1st Far Eastern Front, captured Harbin (see Sungari operation 1945). TO August 20 Soviet troops advanced deep into Northeast China from the west by 400-800 km, from the east and north by 200-300 km, reached the Manchurian Plain, divided the Japanese troops into a number of isolated groups and completed their encirclement. WITH August 19 Japanese troops, to whom by this time the decree of the Emperor of Japan on surrender, issued back August 14, almost everywhere began to surrender. To speed up this process and not give the enemy the opportunity to remove or destroy material assets, with 18 to 27 August Airborne assault forces were landed in Harbin, Fengtian, Xinjing, Jilin, Ryojun, Dairen, Heijo and other cities, and mobile vanguard units were used.
Results of the operation
The successful conduct of the Manchurian operation made it possible to occupy South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands in a relatively short time. The defeat of the Kwantung Army and the loss of the military-economic base in Northeast China and northern Korea were one of the factors that deprived Japan of real strength and ability to continue the war, forcing it to sign an act of surrender on September 2, 1945, which led to the end of World War II war. For combat distinctions, 220 formations and units received the honorary names “Khingan”, “Amur”, “Ussuri”, “Harbin”, “Mukden”, “Port Arthur” and others. 301 formations and units were awarded orders, 92 soldiers were awarded the title of Hero Soviet Union.
Write a review of the article "Manchurian Operation (1945)"
Notes
Links
Literature
- History of the Second World War 1939-1945 / Grechko, Anton Ivanovich. - M.: Military Publishing House, 1980. - T. 11.
- Pospelov, Pyotr Nikolaevich. History of the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union. 1941-1945. - M.: Military Publishing House, 1963. - T. 5.
- Zakharov, Matvey Vasilievich. The final. - 2nd. - M.: Nauka, 1969. - 414 p.
- Vasilevsky A. M. Life's work. - 4th. - M.: Publishing House of Political Literature, 1983.
- Liberation mission in the East, M., 1976
- Vnotchenko L.N., Victory in the Far East, 2nd ed., M., 1971
- Campaign of the Soviet Armed Forces in the Far East in 1945 (Facts and figures), "VIZH", 1965, No. 8.
- Buranok S. O. Victory over Japan in the assessments of American society. Samara: AsGard Publishing House, 2012. 116 p. (link: http://worldhist.ru/upload/iblock/0fb/scemode_q_u_skzrvy%20qym%20edmictc.pdf)
Excerpt characterizing the Manchurian operation (1945)
Then we saw her again...On a high cliff completely overgrown with wildflowers, with her knees pressed to her chest, Magdalena sat alone... She, as had become customary, was seeing off the sunset - another day lived without Radomir... She knew that there would be many more such days and so many. And she knew she would have to get used to it. Despite all the bitterness and emptiness, Magdalena understood well that a long, difficult life lay ahead of her, and she would have to live it alone... Without Radomir. What she couldn’t imagine yet, because he lived everywhere - in every cell of her, in her dreams and wakefulness, in every object that he once touched. It seemed that the entire surrounding space was saturated with the presence of Radomir... And even if she wished, there was no escape from this.
The evening was quiet, calm and warm. Nature, coming to life after the heat of the day, was raging with the smells of heated flowering meadows and pine needles... Magdalena listened to the monotonous sounds of the ordinary forest world - it was surprisingly so simple, and so calm!.. Exhausted by the summer heat, bees buzzed loudly in the neighboring bushes. Even they, the hardworking ones, preferred to get away from the burning rays of the day, and now happily absorbed the invigorating cool of the evening. Feeling human kindness, the tiny colored bird fearlessly sat on Magdalena's warm shoulder and burst into ringing silver trills in gratitude... But Magdalena did not notice this. She was again carried away into the familiar world of her dreams, in which Radomir still lived...
And she remembered him again...
His incredible kindness... His exuberant thirst for Life... His bright, affectionate smile and the piercing gaze of his blue eyes... And his firm confidence in the correctness of his chosen path. I remembered a wonderful, strong man who, while still a child, had already subjugated entire crowds to himself!..
She remembered his affection... The warmth and loyalty of his big heart... All this now lived only in her memory, not succumbing to time, not going into oblivion. All of it lived and... hurt. Sometimes it even seemed to her that just a little more, and she would stop breathing... But the days flew by. And life still went on. She was obliged by the DEBT left by Radomir. Therefore, as much as she could, she did not take her feelings and desires into account.
Her son, Svetodar, whom she missed madly, was in distant Spain with Radan. Magdalena knew it was harder for him... He was still too young to come to terms with such a loss. But she also knew that even with the deepest grief, he would never show his weakness to strangers.
He was the son of Radomir...
And this obliged him to be strong.
Several months passed again.
And so, little by little, as happens even with the most terrible loss, Magdalene began to come to life. Apparently, the right time has come to return to the living...
Having fallen in love with tiny Montsegur, which was the most magical castle in the Valley (since it stood at the “transition point” to other worlds), Magdalene and her daughter soon began to slowly move there. They began to settle into their new, still unfamiliar, House...
And finally, remembering Radomir’s persistent desire, Magdalena little by little began to recruit her first students... This was probably one of the easiest tasks, since every person on this marvelous piece of land was more or less gifted. And almost everyone thirsted for knowledge. Therefore, very soon Magdalene already had several hundred very diligent students. Then this figure grew into a thousand... And very soon the entire Valley of the Magicians was covered by her teachings. And she took as many as possible to take her mind off her bitter thoughts, and was incredibly glad to see how greedily the Occitans were drawn to Knowledge! She knew that Radomir would be heartily happy about this... and she recruited even more people.
- Sorry, North, but how did the Magi agree to this?! After all, they so carefully protect their Knowledge from everyone? How did Vladyko allow this to happen? After all, Magdalene taught everyone, without choosing only the initiates?
– Vladyka never agreed with this, Isidora... Magdalena and Radomir went against his will, revealing this knowledge to people. And I still don’t know which of them was truly right...
– But you saw how greedily the Occitans listened to this Knowledge! And the rest of Europe too! – I exclaimed in surprise.
- Yes... But I also saw something else - how simply they were destroyed... And this means that they were not ready for this.
“But when do you think people will be “ready”?..,” I was indignant. – Or will this never happen?!
– It will happen, my friend... I think. But only when people finally understand that they are able to protect this same Knowledge... - here Sever suddenly smiled like a child. – Magdalena and Radomir lived in the Future, you see... They dreamed of a wonderful One World... A world in which there would be one common Faith, one ruler, one speech... And in spite of everything, they taught... Resisting The Magi... Not obeying the Lord... And with all this, well understanding that even their distant great-grandchildren will probably not yet see this wonderful “single” world. They were just fighting... For the light. For knowledge. For the Earth. This was their Life... And they lived it without betraying.
I again plunged into the past, in which this amazing and unique story still lived...
There was only one sad cloud that cast a shadow on Magdalena’s brightening mood - Vesta was deeply suffering from the loss of Radomir, and no amount of “joy” could distract her from this. Having finally learned about what had happened, she completely closed her little heart from the outside world and experienced her loss alone, not even allowing her beloved mother, the bright Magdalene, to see her. So she wandered around all day, restless, not knowing what to do about this terrible misfortune. There was also no brother nearby, with whom Vesta was accustomed to sharing joy and sorrow. Well, she herself was too young to be able to overcome such a heavy grief, which fell like an exorbitant burden on her fragile children’s shoulders. She wildly missed her beloved, the best dad in the world and could not understand where those cruel people who hated him and who killed him came from?.. His cheerful laughter was no longer heard, their wonderful walks were no longer... There was nothing left at all that was connected with their warm and always joyful communication. And Vesta suffered deeply, like an adult... All she had left was her memory. And she wanted to bring him back alive!.. She was still too young to be content with memories!.. Yes, she remembered very well how, curled up in his strong arms, she listened with bated breath to the most amazing stories, catching every word, afraid to miss the most important... And now her wounded heart demanded it all back! Dad was her fabulous idol... Her amazing world, closed from the rest, in which only the two of them lived... And now this world is gone. Evil people took him away, leaving only a deep wound that she herself could not heal.
All the adult friends around Vesta tried their best to dispel her dejected state, but the little girl did not want to open her grieving heart to anyone. The only one who would probably be able to help was Radan. But he was also far away, along with Svetodar.
However, there was one person with Vesta who tried his best to replace her uncle Radan. And this man’s name was Red Simon - a cheerful Knight with bright red hair. His friends called him this harmlessly because of the unusual color of his hair, and Simon was not at all offended. He was funny and cheerful, always ready to help, and this, indeed, reminded him of the absent Radan. And his friends sincerely loved him for this. He was an “outlet” from troubles, of which there were very, very many in the life of the Templars at that time...
The Red Knight patiently came to Vesta, taking her on exciting long walks every day, gradually becoming a true trusted friend to the baby. And even in little Montsegur they soon got used to it. He became a familiar welcome guest there, whom everyone was glad to see, appreciating his unobtrusive, gentle character and always good mood.
And only Magdalena behaved warily with Simon, although she herself probably would not have been able to explain the reason... She rejoiced more than anyone else, seeing Vesta more and more happy, but at the same time, she could not get rid of an incomprehensible feeling of danger, coming from the side of Knight Simon. She knew that she should only feel gratitude to him, but the feeling of anxiety did not go away. Magdalena sincerely tried not to pay attention to her feelings and only rejoice in Vesta’s mood, strongly hoping that over time her daughter’s pain would gradually subside, just as it began to subside in her... And then only deep, bright sadness would remain in her exhausted heart for the departed, kind father... And there will still be memories... Pure and bitter, as sometimes the purest and brightest LIFE is bitter...
Svetodar often wrote messages to his mother, and one of the Knights of the Temple, who guarded him together with Radan in distant Spain, took these messages to the Valley of the Magicians, from where news with the latest news was immediately sent. So they lived, not seeing each other, and could only hope that someday that happy day would come when they would all meet together at least for a moment... But, unfortunately, then they did not yet know that this happy day it will never happen for them...
All these years after the loss of Radomir, Magdalena nurtured a cherished dream in her heart - to someday go to the distant Northern country to see the land of her ancestors and bow there to the house of Radomir... Bow to the land that raised the person dearest to her. She also wanted to take the Key of the Gods there. Because she knew that it would be right... Her native land would save HIM for people much more reliably than she herself was trying to do.
But life ran, as always, too quickly, and Magdalena still had no time left to carry out her plans. And eight years after the death of Radomir, trouble came... Sharply feeling its approach, Magdalena suffered, unable to understand the reason. Even being the strongest Sorceress, she could not see her Fate, no matter how much she wanted it. Her Fate was hidden from her, since she was obliged to live her life fully, no matter how difficult or cruel it was...
- How is it, mother, that all Sorcerers and Sorceresses have their Fate closed? But why?.. – Anna was indignant.
“I think this is so because we don’t try to change what is destined for us, honey,” I answered not too confidently.
As far as I could remember, from an early age I was outraged by this injustice! Why did we, the Knowers, need such a test? Why couldn’t we get away from him if we knew how?.. But, apparently, no one was going to answer this to us. This was our Life, and we had to live it the way it was outlined for us by someone. But we could have made her happy so easily if those “above” had allowed us to see our Fate!.. But, unfortunately, I (and even Magdalena!) did not have such an opportunity.
“Also, Magdalene was becoming more and more worried about the unusual rumors that were spreading...” Sever continued. – Strange “Cathars” suddenly began to appear among her students, quietly calling on the others to “bloodless” and “good” teaching. What that meant was that they called to live without struggle and resistance. This was strange, and certainly did not reflect the teachings of Magdalene and Radomir. She felt there was a catch in this, she felt danger, but for some reason she could not meet at least one of the “new” Cathars... Anxiety grew in Magdalena’s soul... Someone really wanted to make the Cathars helpless!.. To sow in their brave doubt in the hearts. But who needed it? Church?.. She knew and remembered how quickly even the strongest and most beautiful powers perished, as soon as they gave up the fight for just a moment, relying on the friendliness of others!.. The world was still too imperfect... And it was necessary to be able to fight for your home, for your beliefs, for your children and even for love. This is why the Magdalene Cathars were warriors from the very beginning, and this was completely in accordance with her teachings. After all, she never created a gathering of humble and helpless “lambs”; on the contrary, Magdalene created a powerful society of Battle Mages, whose purpose was to KNOW, and also to protect their land and those living on it.
That is why the real Cathars, the Knights of the Temple, were courageous and strong people who proudly carried the Great Knowledge of the Immortals.
Seeing my protesting gesture, Sever smiled.
– Don’t be surprised, my friend, as you know, everything on Earth is natural as before - true History is still being rewritten over time, the brightest people are still being reshaped... It was so, and I think it will always be so... That is why, just like from Radomir, from the warlike and proud first (and present!) Qatar, today, unfortunately, only the helpless Teaching of Love, built on self-denial, remains.
– But they really didn’t resist, Sever! They had no right to kill! I read about this in Esclarmonde’s diary!.. And you yourself told me about it.
– No, my friend, Esclarmonde was already one of the “new” Cathars. I will explain to you... Forgive me, I did not reveal to you the true reason for the death of this wonderful people. But I never opened it to anyone. Again, apparently, the “truth” of the old Meteora is telling... It has settled too deeply in me...
MANCHURIAN OPERATION 1945, strategic. will come Operation Sov. Armed Forces and troops of the Mongolian people. revolutionary army, carried out on August 9. September 2, during Vel. Fatherland war, with the goal of defeating the Japanese. Kwantung Army, liberation... ...
Strategic offensive operation of the Soviet Armed Forces and the troops of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Army on August 9, 19 in the Soviet-Japanese War of 1945 at the final stage of the 2nd World War 1939 45. Conducted with the aim of defeating... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Manchurian operation 1945- The Manchurian operation was a strategic offensive operation of Soviet-Mongolian troops in the Far East, carried out on August 9-September 2, 1945 at the final stage of World War II. The goal was the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung... Encyclopedia of Newsmakers
9.8 2.9.1945, against the Kwantung Army of Japan. Soviet troops of the Transbaikal, 1st and 2nd Far Eastern Fronts (Marshals of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky, K. A. Meretskov and Army General M. A. Purkaev) in cooperation with the Pacific... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
MANCHURIAN OPERATION, 9.8 2.9.1945, against the Kwantu of a certain army of Japan, during the 2nd World War. Troops of the Transbaikal, 1st and 2nd Far Eastern Fronts (Marshals of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky, K. A. Meretskov and Army General M. A. ... ... Russian history
Soviet-Japanese War 1945 World War II Date August 9 – 20, 1945 Place Manchuria, Sakhalin, Kuril Islands, Cor... Wikipedia
Ch. an integral part of the Soviet-Japanese War of 1945. It was carried out by the forces of Transbaikal, 1st and 2nd Dalnevost. fronts in cooperation with the Pacific Fleet and the Amur Military. flotilla under the overall command of Marshal Sov. Union A.M.... ... Soviet historical encyclopedia
August 9 September 2, 1945, Soviet troops against the Kwantung Army of Japan, during the Soviet-Japanese War. Soviet troops of the Transbaikal, 1st and 2nd Far Eastern Fronts (Marshals of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky, K. A. Meretskov and ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Seishin Operation 1945- SEISIN OPERATION 1945, landing operation Pacific. fleet, carried out on August 13-16. in order to master Japanese. military mor. Seishin (Chongjin) base on the North coast. Korea. Through Seishin, communication was carried out by sea between the Kwantung Army and Japan... Great Patriotic War 1941-1945: encyclopedia
Kuril operation 1945- KURIL OPERATION 1945, landing operation of the troops of the 2nd Far East. fr. and the Pacific. fleet, carried out on August 18. 1 Sep. during the war with Japan in 1945. Successful actions of the Soviets. troops in Manchuria (see Manchurian Operation 1945) and on the island... ... Great Patriotic War 1941-1945: encyclopedia
Soviet time
Manchurian operation
On July 26, 1945, during the Potsdam Conference, a declaration was published on behalf of the three states at war with Japan: the USA, Great Britain, and China. It was an ultimatum with the most stringent demands, subject to which Japan had the right to capitulate without much loss. The Japanese government categorically rejected this declaration. On August 6, 1945, the Americans dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and on August 8 on Nagasaki. And on the same day, August 8, 1945, the Soviet Union, fulfilling its allied obligations, as well as in order to ensure the security of its Far Eastern borders, declared war on Japan. On the night of August 9, the Red Army crossed the border into Manchuria.
Both experienced soldiers who went through the entire Great Patriotic War and soldiers from the Far East who had long felt the desire to besiege the Japanese aggressors took part in the Manchurian operation. The Far Easterners lacked the combat experience of their comrades who fought against Germany, but their morale was very high. Far Eastern soldiers well remembered the Japanese military intervention in Russia.
In many ways, the Red Army's Manchurian operation was unprecedented. The first thing that has no analogues in the history of world wars is the organization of the transfer of troops from Europe to the Far East, 6,000 kilometers away. In just 3 months, a colossal number of troops were transferred from west to east along a single railway line. There were more than 1,000,000 people and a huge amount of equipment in the movement. All Soviet troops were transferred secretly. Marshal of the Soviet Union Alexander Mikhailovich Vasilevsky, who was appointed commander in the Far East, went there in general's uniform with documents addressed to Colonel General Vasiliev. The rest of the top military leaders also traveled under classified names. The soldiers themselves did not know where they were being taken until the very last moment. Another unique characteristic of the Manchurian operation was its scale. The strike was carried out by two groups, the distance between which was 2,000 kilometers.
The plan of the Soviet command was to simultaneously launch a quick strike from Transbaikalia, Primorye and the Amur region, along directions converging towards the center of Northeast China with the aim of dissecting and defeating in parts the main forces of the Japanese Kwantung Army.
The operation was carried out by the forces of three fronts: Transbaikal, 1st Far Eastern and auxiliary 2nd Far Eastern. On August 9, the forward and reconnaissance detachments of the three Soviet fronts began an offensive. At the same time, aviation carried out massive strikes on military targets in Harbin, Xinjin and Jilin, on troop concentration areas, communication centers and enemy communications in the border zone. The Pacific Fleet cut communications connecting Korea and Manchuria with Japan and attacked Japanese naval bases in North Korea - Yuki, Rashin and Seishin.
The passage of Soviet troops through the Greater Khingan
Transbaikalians under the command of Marshal Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky accomplished the impossible: they marched with a tank army through the passes of the Greater Khingan and the Gobi Desert. This heroic and risky transition was made by the 6th Guards Tank Army under the command of General Andrei Grigorievich Kravchenko. But the most difficult test in the Manchurian operation was not the Khingal passes, but the desert. To get behind Japanese troops, Soviet soldiers had to make a forced march of 700 kilometers across the Gobi Desert. It was the difficulty of this unprecedented transition that became one of the reasons for the ease with which the Red Army defeated the troops of the Japanese emperor.
