April 13, the capture of the capital of Austria Vienna. The liberation of Vienna by Soviet troops is one of the most brilliant operations of the Great War. General evaluation of the operation

	Western Hungary and Eastern Austria
	Victory of the USSR
Opponents
	Germany
Bulgaria
Commander
F. I. Tolbukhin
R. Ya. Malinovsky	L. Randulich
V. Perechev
Forces side
410,000 people, 5900 guns and mortars, 700 tanks and assault guns, 700 aircraft	Red Army: 644,700 people, 12190 guns and mortars, 1318 tanks and sau, 984 aircraft Bulgarian troops: 100,900 people
Captive 130,000, Wehrmacht Losses, Luftwaffe, SS, Folkssturma, Police, Todta Organization, Hitlergendan, Imperial Runs Service Services, Labor Service (only 700- 1,200 thousand people) - are unknown.	irretrievable 41 359, (including 2698 Bulgarian), sanitary 136 386, (including 7107 Bulgarian)

Strategic offensive operation of the Red Army against German troops during the Great Patriotic War. He was conducted from March 16 to April 15, 1945 by the troops of the 2nd and 3rd Guukrain fronts with the assistance of the 1st Bulgarian Army ( bulge.) In order to defeat the German troops in Western Hungary and East Austria.

Situation

The task of preparing and conducting an offensive operation on mastering Vienna was delivered to the commander of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts on February 17, 1945 in the Directive of the Supreme Commander Rate No. 11027. For the preparation of the offensive was given for about a month. March 15 was defined as the start of the operation. Soon the Soviet command became known that the Wehrmacht prepares a major counteroffensive in the area of \u200b\u200bLake Balaton. In connection with these troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, it was ordered to continue preparation for the occurrence, temporarily move to defense and in advance prepared defensive strokes to urge the tank group of the enemy. Then followed to the offensive in the Viennese direction. Further events confirmed the correctness of the decision. The German offensive, which, in the first half of March, at Lake Balaton, was reflected by the Soviet troops during the Balaton defensive operation. The goal scheduled to the Higher German Command was not achieved, but in the main direction of the German troops managed to embry on Soviet defense to a depth of 30 km. The resulting line of the front of the front was given to the Soviet command of the opportunity to surround the opponent's tank grouping, and serious losses incurred by the Wehrmacht changed the overall ratio of forces in favor of the Red Army.

Operation plan

The plan of the operation provided for the deployment of the main strike by the 4th and 9th Guards armies from the north-west district of South-West in the aim of the 6th SS Tank Army. In the future, the main forces were assumed to develop an offensive in the direction of Dad, Shopron and further to the Hungarian-Austrian border, part of the forces to adopt on Szombathely and Zalaegerseg to cover the enemy from the north of the Nastridge. The 26th and 27th army had to start an offensive later and contribute to the destruction of the opponent surrounded by that time. 57th and 1st Bulgarian ( bulge.) The army, acting on the left wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, had to go to the offensive of the south of Lake Balaton with the task of defeating the opponent enemy and master the oil-bearing area with the center in the city of Nadridge.

The 46th Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, strengthened by the 6th Guards Tank Army and the two artillery divisions of the breakthrough, was supposed to begin on March 17 - 18, to begin the offensive of the south of the Danube, together with the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, to break the opponent's opponent grouping and develop an offensive in The direction of the city of Gyor.

The composition and power of the parties

the USSR

The 3rd Ukrainian Front (commander of the Marshal of the Soviet Union F. I. Tolbukhin, Head of Staff General Colonel S. P. Ivanov):

• 9th Guards Army (Colonel-General V. V. Glagolev)
• 4th Guards Army (Lieutenant General N. D. Capture)
• 27th Army (Colonel-General S. Trophimenko)
• 26th Army (Lieutenant-General N. A. Gagen)
• 57th Army (Lieutenant-General M. N. Sharokhin)
• The 6th Guards Tank Army (Colonel Colonel-General A. G. Kravchenko, transferred to the front on the evening on the evening of March 16)
• 1st Bulgarian Army ( bulge.) (Lieutenant-General V. Perechev)
• 17th Air Army (Colonel-General V. A. Sudez)
• 1st Guards Mechanized Corps (Lieutenant-General I. N. Russiaov)
• 5th Guards Cavalry Corps (Lieutenant General S. I. Gorshkov)
• 23rd tank corps (Lieutenant-General of Tank Forces A. O. Akhmanov, transferred to the 2nd Ukrainian Front)
• 18th Tank Corps (Major General Tank Forces P. D. Govorunhenko)

Part of the forces of the 2nd Ukrainian Front (Commander Marshal of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky, Head of Staff General Colonel M. V. Zakharov):

• 46th Army (Lieutenant-General A. V. Petrushevsky)
• 2nd Guards Mechanized Case (Lieutenant General K. V. Sviridov)
• 5th Air Army (Colonel-General S. K. Goryunov)
• Danube Military Flotilla (counter-admiral of N. Bachelor)

18th Air Army (Main Marshal Aviation A. E. Golovanov) Total: Red Army 644,700 people. 1st Bulgarian Army: 100,900 people 12190 guns and mortars, 1318 tanks and sau, 984 aircraft.

Germany

Part of the forces of the Army Group "South" (General of Infantry O. Veller, from April 7, Colonel-General L. Randulich):

• 6th SS Tank Army (Colonel-General SS Y. Dietrich
• 6th Army (General Tank Troops G. Balk)
• 2nd Tank Army (General of Artillery M. Angelis)
• 3rd Hungarian Army (Colonel-General Gauzer)

Part of the Forces of the Army Group "F" (General-Field Marshal M. von Wehs), from March 25, the Army Groups "E" (Colonel-General A. LER)

Aviation support carried out the 4th air fleet.

Total: 410,000 people, 5900 guns and mortars, 700 tanks and assault implements, 700 aircraft

The course of combat operation

Fighting in the strip of the 3rd Ukrainian Front

March 16, at 15 35 minutes after the hourly artillery preparation of the troops of the two Guards armies of the right wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front transferred to the offensive. The sudden and powerful artillery fire stunned the opponent so that in some sections, he initially had no resistance. However, soon, restoring the management of troops and using favorable conditions of the area, the German command managed to organize resistance to intermediate defensive positions and stop the promotion of Soviet troops. At some areas counterattacks were taken. Before the onset of twilight, the troops of the front of the front managed to wed up into German defense only by only 3-7 km. For the development of the offensive and strengthen the hit on March 16, the front of the neighboring 2nd Ukrainian front was transferred to the 6th Guards Tank Army. While the tank corps were rearranged to a new direction, parts of the 4th and 9th Guards armies were fighting for overcoming the tactical defense zone. German troops rendered the coming fierce resistance. In order to prevent the environment of the main forces of the 6th Tank Army of the SS, the German command began to strengthen the threatened direction with the troops from other sites.

Especially stressful battles broke out for a shakesfehervar, a powerful resistance knot, lying on the way to the flank and rear of the German tank grouping. To the end of March 18, Soviet troops managed to move only to a depth of about 18 km and expand the breakthrough to 36 km on the front. By the same time, the 6th Guards Tank Army focused on the planned area, which received the task of entering the breakthrough and together with the 27th army, to surround the Balaton group of the enemy. But the German command by that time had already transferred reinforcement to the region of combat operations: three tank and one infantry division. The fights broke out with a new force. Nevertheless, the commissioning of a large tank group accelerated the offensive of the Red Army. For March 19, the troops of the 6th Guards Tank and the 9th Guards armies have advanced another 6-8 km. The 27th and 26th Army hit them on March 20. Under the threat of a surroundings, the vermhosphet command began to divert his troops from the protrusion. To the outcome of March 22, a corridor of about 2.5 km remained in his hands, according to which, under the fire of Soviet troops, parts of the 6th Tank Army of the SS were hurriedly. Timely removal and fierce resistance on the flanks allowed German troops to avoid another catastrophe.

In the following days, the main forces of the 3rd Ukrainian front tied the battles at the turn of the Bakonsky Mountain Massif. Soon, under the blows of the Red Army, the German command began the retraction of his troops on a pre-prepared frontier on the River River. Powerful defensive structures, held on the west bank of the river, should have stopped the Soviet offensive. However, the rapid advance of the troops of the right wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front did not allow this intent. Going to the river, the Soviet divisions with the go forced it and continued the offensive to the Hungarian-Austrian border.

On March 23, the rack of the Supreme Command was approved by the plan for further actions of the 3rd Ukrainian Front. The front was ordered to the main forces (4th, 9th Guards and 6th Guards Tank Army) to develop an offensive to the North-West in the direction of Dad, Shopron. The 26th Army had to strike at Szombathely, and the 27th - to Zalaegerseg. The 57th and 1st Bulgarian army received a task no later than April 5 - 7 to master the Nadridge area.

In battle under the Vesprem, the Tank Battalion of the 46th Guards Tank Brigade under the command of Senior Lieutenant D. F. Vozi Rowed and destroyed 22 tanks of the enemy. For the skillful control of the battalion and the courage, the senior lieutenant D. F. Lose was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.

On March 25, the 2nd Ukrainian Front began the Bratislava-Brnovsk offensive operation, thus having delayed the commander of the Army Group "South" opportunities to remove troops from the north of the Danube for transferring them against the troops who arrived at Vienna.

To keep the front of the south of Lake Balaton, the German command began to strengthen this section by troops from the Army Group "E". In addition, the structure of the management of troops was reorganized to centralize it. To this end, from March 25, the command of the Army Group "F" was transferred to the Commander of the Army Group "E" General A. Lör.

On March 29, on the left wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, the 57th and 1st Bulgarian army were transferred to the offensive in the direction of Nadridge. The 27th Army with the 18th Tank and the 5th Guards Cavalry Corsions fell along Lake Balaton. Her promotion threatened the flank and the rear of the 2nd German tank army. To rather master the rich oil-wing area of \u200b\u200bNadridge and preserve it from the destruction of F. I. Tolbukhin on March 30 ordered to nominate the 5th Guards Cavalry Corps. The cavalryers had to make a 70-kilometer raid on difficult terrain and to reach the rear of the defending German group, thereby reducing it to the departure. This maneuver justified himself and soon the Soviet and Bulgarian troops were traded with the Retaine District with the center in the city of Nadridge.

On April 1, the Directive of the Supreme Command Rate Directive were refined for the offensive tasks. The main forces of the 3rd Ukrainian Front was ordered to master the capital of Austria and no later than April 12-15 to reach Tuln, St. Pelten, Noah-Lengbach; The 26th, 27th, 57th and 1st Bulgarian army - no later than April 10-12, to release the city of Glognitz, Brook, Graz, Maribor and to gain a foothold at the turn of Murz, Moore and Drava.

In the first days of April, the offensive of the Soviet troops developed rapidly. Impact grouping of the 3rd Ukrainian front, mastering the cities of Sopron, Wiener Neustadt and bringing the strengthening of strengthening on the Austro-Hungarian border, on April 4, came to the approaches to Vienna.

In connection with the defeat of office, the Commander of the South Army Group General O. Voyler was removed. Instead, General L. Randulich was appointed, who was considered a major defense specialist.

Martial steps in the lane of the 2nd Ukrainian Front

On the 2nd Ukrainian front, the offensive in the Viennese direction began on March 17. Advanced squads of the 46th Army in the day of the battle were advanced to a depth of 10 km and reached the second enemy defense strip. The next day, the main forces of the 46th army forced the Alto River and, overcoming resistance, began to move to the West. On the morning of March 19, for the development of the offensive, the 2nd Guards mechanized Corps was introduced into the battle, which the next day came to the Danube west of the commodity and embraced from the southwest to a large grouping of the enemy who had more than 17 thousand soldiers and officers. Surrounded: 96th and 711st German infantry divisions, the 23rd Infantry Division of Hungarians, the Cavalry Division "FEGELYN" and the 92nd Motorized Brigade.

From March 21 to March 25, the command of the enemy took many attempts to break through to the surrounded troops. He almost succeeded in the evening of March 21, when the large grouping of the German infantry with the support of 130 tanks and assault guns struck from the district of Tarkani. As a result, parties were defended in this direction of the 18th Guards Rifle Corps were resigned. There was a threat of a breakthrough of the external entrance front. To restore the position, the Soviet command was forced to enter two small divisions in the battle from the reserve. The measures taken allowed to stabilize the front. All subsequent attempts to break through the ring were also repulsed by the troops of the 46th Army in cooperation with panenants of the Danube Military Flotilla. To the outcome of March 25, the Estergomsk-Commander Group of the enemy was completely eliminated.

Simultaneously with the destruction of the surrounded enemy, the 46th army part of the forces continued to occur on Gyor. From March 26, the troops switched to the persecution of the enemy on the entire front and March 28 mastered the cities of Komar and Gyor, clearing from the enemy the right bank of the Danube until the mouth of the River River. March 30 was taken Komarno. In the following days, the 46th Army reached the Wengero-Austrian border, and then overcame it between the Danube and the lake Nyosidler-Ze. On April 6, in the Directive of the TGK rate No. 11063 of the 46th Army, it was ordered to cross the northern coast of the Danube to bypass Vienna from the north. The same task was set before the 2nd Guards mechanized and 23rd tank corps. The Danube Military Fleets was fulfilled great work on the crossing of the troops: For three days, she transported about 46 thousand people, 138 tanks and sau, 743 guns and mortars, 542 cars, 2230 horses, 1032 tons of ammunition. In the future, when trying to promote Vienna, the army faced with a resistance of the German troops. Fearing that the upcoming will put the last road leading from Vienna, the command of the Wehrmacht took all measures to prevent this. The defense in this direction was intensified by transferring reserves and additional parts from the Austrian capital.

Allies on the anti-Hitler coalition have contributed to the defeat of the Wehrmacht. In the second half of March 1945, Anglo-American aviation inflicted a number of air strikes on important objects in South Austria, Western Hungary and South Slovakia. A number of airfields, railway units, bridges and industrial facilities underwent bombardments. According to the German command, some airlinals caused significant damage to the production of fuel. On March 15, in the diary of the Supreme Commander of the Wehrmacht, it was recorded: "As a result of aviation raids on oil and cleaning plants in Komarno, the production of fuel here ... decreased by 70 percent." And further: "... Due to the fact that the Army Groups" South "and" Center "have so far supplied fuel from Komarno, the consequences of air strikes will affect operational solutions."

Sturm Vienna

The initial intent of the commander of the 3rd Ukrainian front F. I. Tolbukhin on mastering Vienna was to apply simultaneous strikes from three directions: from the southeast by the 4th Guards Army and the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps, from the South and South-West - Forces of the 6th Guards Tank Army with the 18th Tank Corps given to it and part of the forces of the 9th Guards Army. The remaining part of the forces 9th Guards Army was supposed to get around the city from the West and cut off the enemy of the waste path.

The city itself and the approach to it were pre-prepared for defense. Anti-tank pivans were separated on the tableness of the city's appearance of the city, anti-tank and anti-personnel booms were installed. The streets of the city were intersected by numerous barricades, almost all stone buildings were adapted to long defense, in windows, basements, firing points were equipped in attics. All bridges were mined. The remains of eight tank and one infantry divisions from the 6th Tank Army of the SS were defended in the city, the personnel of the Vienna Military School and up to 15 separate battalions. In addition, four regiments of 1500 people were formed to participate in street battles by the Hitler's command from the composition of the Vienna police.

On April 5, Soviet troops tied the battles on the southern and southeastern approaches to Vienna. From the very beginning, the fights took exclusively a fierce character. The defenders provided stubborn resistance, often attending infantry and tank counterattacks. Therefore, on April 5, the 4th Guards Army, coming to Vienna from the south, did not achieve great success. At the same time, the troops of the 38th Guards Rifle Corps of the 9th Guards Army, which comes to the south-west of the city, managed to move 16-18 km. In the current situation, the Commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front decided to use the emerging success and transfer to this direction the 6th Guards Tank Army with the task of bypassing the city and strike in Vienna from the West and the North-West.

On April 7, the main forces of the 9th Guards Army and the Connection of the 6th Guards Tank Army, overcoming the Mining Massif of the Vienna Forest, went to the Danube. Now the defending troops were covered with three sides: the East, South and West. Complete the complete environment of the city was to the 46th Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, crossed through the Danube and the coming in the northwestern direction. However, on the way to Vienna, the enemy rendered her stubborn resistance. To avoid a new environment, the German command strengthened his troops, acting against the 46th army, by transferring additional forces from depth and even from the most Austrian capital.

On April 8, the battles in the city flared up with a new force. For each quarter, often for individual homes, they were brutal contractions. During the day of the battle, the troops of the 4th and 9th Guards armies were deployed deep into the city, where they entered tactical interaction. On the same day, the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps took Schwear Harden in the southern part of the city. In the next two days, the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian front with battles continued to step towards the city center. Fights did not stop neither day nor at night. To the end of April 10, the enemy garrison was clamped from three sides, continuing to resist only in the city center. In the current situation, the German command took all the measures to keep the only not blown bridge over the Danube - the Imperial Bridge, which was allowed to bring their remaining parts to the northern bank of the river. The Soviet command, in turn, tried to capture the bridge to prevent the enemy's waste. For this, on April 11, in the area of \u200b\u200bthe Bridge, the Danube Military Flotily landed the landing as in the reinforced battalion of the 217th Guards Rifle Shelf. However, after disembarking, paratroopers met strong firing resistance and were forced to heal, without reaching the goal of 400 meters.

After analyzing the established situation, the FRONT Military Council decided to carry out simultaneous assault on all the forces participating in the city battles. Special attention was paid to the suppression of German artillery before starting and during the assault. The appropriate tasks were delivered to the commander of the front artillery of the Colonel Colonel M. I. M. I. Nedel and the Commander of the 17th Aircraft Army Colonel-General V. A. Sudsez.

By the middle of the day, on April 13, as a result of a well-trained Vienna's storm was purified from German troops. During the battle in the area of \u200b\u200bthe Imperial Bridge, a second landing line was planted as part of the battalion of the 21st Guards Rifle Regiment of the 7th Guards Airborne Division. The bridge was mined by German troops, but the rapid and bold actions of the paratroopers prevented an explosion. After taking the city of the Military Commandan of the city, the commander of the 33rd Guards Rifle Corps was appointed Lieutenant General Lebedenko N. F. Lieutenant General Lebedenko, he was replaced by the commander of Vienna, Lieutenant Gharatov, who was the first commandant.

Results of the operation

As a result of the Soviet offensive, a large grouping of the enemy was defeated. The troops of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts completed the liberation of Hungary, liberated the eastern regions of Austria with its capital - Vienna. Germany has lost control over the large industrial center - the Viennese Industrial District, as well as important in economically, the Nagykanizh oil area. The beginning of the restoration of Austrian statehood was found. During the offensive, hundreds of settlements were released. Among them are in Austria of the city: Brooke, Wiener Neustadt, Glognitz, Kornevurg, Nejneprkhen, Floridsdorf, Eisenstadt; in Hungary: Boegen, Vesvar, Veszprem, Delivery, Estergom, Zaregersseg, Zirsz, Kapava, Körend, Kezeg, Kester, Mosquito, Magiamarovar, Mark, Martziel, Nitarbiom, Nagykanja, Nadyatad, Nevavy, Dad, Szekesfejervar, Songgothard, Szombathely, Felsugalla (now part of Tatabania), Tata, Chorna, Churgo, Sharvar, Shopron, Egening.

Memory

50 parts and compounds that distinguished in battles behind Vienna received the wernations of the "Viennese". The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR established the Medal "For Taking Vienna". In August 1945, a monument to Soviet soldiers who died in the battles for the liberation of the country was established in Vienna on Schwarzenbergplatz.

Losses

Germany

The exact data on the losses of the German and Hungarian troops, incurred in the reflection of the Soviet attack on Vienna, is not. It is known that in 30 days by the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front and the 2nd Ukrainian Front, which in the same period she had an offensive in Czechoslovakia, more than 130,000 people were captured, over 1,300 tanks and assault guns were captured and destroyed, 2250 field guns.

the USSR

The total losses of the Red Army during the operation amounted to 167,940 people, of which irrevocable - 38661 people, as well as 600 tanks and SAU, 760 guns and mortars, 614 combat aircraft. Bulgarian troops lost 9805 people, from them irretrievably - 2698 people.

The initial idea of \u200b\u200bthe offensive in the Viennese direction the bid of the Supreme Commander Outlined in the Directive of February 17, 1945. However, it was not possible to realize it in connection with a sharply changed setting. In the last decade of February, German troops were eliminated by the 19th Guards Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front on the Republic. HRN, and also began the concentration of tank divisions against the 3rd Ukrainian Front. In the current conditions, the TGC rate ordered the commander of his troops to Marshal of the Soviet Union to gain a foothold on the boreh and reflect the opponent's blows on it.

Three days after the start of the Balaton defensive operation, on March 9, the Supreme Commander culpes the tasks of two fronts. Unlike the initial design, the main role in the upcoming offensive operation, which was subsequently obtained the name "Vienna", was given to the 3rd Ukrainian Front. He was ordered no later than March 15-16 to go without a prompt pause from defense to the offensive and strike in the direction of Dad, Shopron. On March 17-18, the 46th Army and the 2nd Guards Mechanized Corps of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, who had the task of conducting an offensive with the support of the Danube military flotilla and the 5th air army in the direction of Diere, should be projected to active actions.

Commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front allocated 9-yd to the main shock grouping (received from the reserve of the VGK rate) and the 4th Guards Army General-Pol Colonel V.A. Glagolev and Lieutenant General N.D. Captureaeva - only 18 rifle divisions, 3,900 guns and mortars, 197 tanks and self-propelled artillery installations. At the first stage, they had to surround and defeat the enemy grouping in the south and south-west of Temples, as well as to cut the possible ways to depart the main forces of the 6th Tank Army of the SS, which, after the localization of their depinge in the Oz region. Balaton was in the operational "bag." The destruction of the latter was imposed on the 27th and 26th army of the Lieutenant General and the 18th and 23rd Tank and the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps (only 217 tanks and SAU). The task of the 57th and Bulgarian 1st armies of Lieutenant and V. Lieutenant army was in the defeat of the German 2nd tank army in the area of \u200b\u200bNitcanigi. Support for terrestrial troops was carried out by the 17th air army (Colonel-General V.A. Sudetz), which had 837 aircraft.

In most directions, the enemy in mid-March hastily carried out the transition from the offensive to defense on the previously reached boundaries and sought to prepare them in engineering. The exception was an Estergom site, Temkesfeherwar, busy in advance. Here, in the main defense line, a depth of 5-7 km was two - three lines of trenches with tremexy firing dots, the approaches to which were covered with wire barriers and mine-fields. On the removal of 10-20 km from the front edge passed the second strip. It contains separate reference points and resistance sites. In the operational depth, equipment was carried out on the West Bank. Slave, which has already constituted a difficultly loose natural obstacle. A large number of different defensive structures built using the advantages of strongly rough terrain was also on the approaches to the capital of Austria - Vienna. Their density increased as the city approaches.

The offensive of the main shock grouping of the 3rd Ukrainian Front began in the afternoon of March 16 after artillery and aviation training. The compounds of the 9th and 4th Guards armies successfully overcame the first position of the enemy defense, but in the future the pace of their promotion slowed down. First of all, it was due to a disadvantage of the battle orders of direct support for infantry and SAU, as well as the guard of accompaniment artillery. As a result, the deprint of Soviet troops in defense to the outcome of the day was from 3 to 7 km. The task of the first day of the offensive was not fulfilled. In order to increase the force of impact, the TGK rate passed the 3rd Ukrainian front of the 6th Guards Tank Army of Colonel-General, who was part of the 2nd Ukrainian Front and was located in the Budapest area. Entering it into battle after regrouping could be carried out no earlier than two days.

During March 17, the 9th and 4th Guards armor divisions continued to slowly close the enemy and increased the disc on his defense only up to 10 km. I did not make a fracture into the course of hostilities and the next day. From morning March 19, the commission began in the battle of the 6th Guards Tank Army, the task of which was to complete the environment of the grinding groups of the German troops south-east and south-west of sexferevara. However, her tank corps met the resistance of numerous tactical groups of the enemy (several tanks and assault tools), could not break away from the rifle parts and in the end did not have a significant effect on the overall rates of the offensive. In such an atmosphere, the command of the Army Group "South" got the opportunity to increase efforts against the associations of the right wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front at the expense of the maneuver from the non-compliant areas and the beginning of the 6th Tank Army of the SS from the South-Eastern Temples area.

In an effort to exclude her exit from the outlined environment, Marshal of the Soviet Union F.I. Tolbukhin decided to strike the 4th Guards, 27th and 26th armies to launch the enemy grouping into two isolated parts. At the same time, the 9th Guards and 6th Guards Tank Army had to continue the offensive in the same direction in order to exclude the approach of enemy reserves.

In the next two days, March 20 and 21, heavy battles were conducted on the right wing of the front. German tank divisions using numerous rivers, channels, defiles and mine harnesses, fire and counterattacks restrained the promotion of Soviet troops, inflicting them a significant damage in people and military equipment. Only on March 21, the main forces of the 6th Pan Army of the SS were blocked in the Temkekeerer, Berkhid, Polgardee. True, they soon have a powerful blow along the North Bank of Oz. Balaton broke through to the West.

In the direction of another strike, the 46th Army General Lieutenant A.V. Petrushevsky, by going to the offensive on March 17, on the first day broke the defense of the enemy and provided the commissioning of the 2nd Guards Mechanized Corps of Lieutenant General K.V. Sviridova. His brigade to the outcome of March 20 came to the Danube and deeply embraced from the South-West, the Estergomsko-Commodity grouping of the enemy, which counted about 17 thousand people. In general, from March 16 to March 25, the troops of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts broke the resistance of the German and Hungarian army associations between R. Danube and Oz. Balaton, overcame Mount Worthshheldesheh and Bacon Forest, advanced to a depth of 80 km and created the conditions for the development of the offensive to Vienna.

In the course of the prosecution of the enemy, unfolding from March 26, the 46th Army together with the Danube Military Flotilla (Council Admiral G.N. Bachelor) eliminated the Estergomsk-Comedan Group, took possession of the cities of Komar and Gyor, completely cleaned from the enemy troops South Coast of the Danube from the enemy troops Estergoma to mouth r. Slave. At the same time, the division of the 9th and 4th Guards armies with the go forced this river and continued the offensive in the direction of Schopron. As they approach the Hungarian-Austrian border began to significantly weaken the resistance of the Hungarian parts. Only for three days south of r. Danube from their composition gave rise to about 45 thousand soldiers and officers. On March 30, the compounds of the 6th Guards Tank Army with the move broke through the border strengthening of South Schopron and at the 20-kilometer plot invaded the limits of Austria. Already by April 4, the main forces of the percussion group of the 3rd Ukrainian front went on the approach to Vienna.

In connection with the deep promotion of the armies of his right wing in the direction of Schopron, and the 27th and 26th armies at Zalaegerseg and the Szobel, the German 2nd tank army, which occupied the defense in the Nadcanigi region, was deeply covered from the north. Fearing to be cut off from messages with Germany, her command March 28 began the removal of his troops. The next day, the 57th and Bulgarian 1st Army were transferred to the offensive on the left wing. On April 1, their compounds with the battles were traded by the center of the Netheless region of Hungary - the city of Nadridge.

On the same day, the Supreme Commanding rate issued a directive on the development of further offensive. She ordered the 3rd Ukrainian front forces by the right wing no later than April 10-15 to master Vienna, and the armies of the center and the left wing were to consolidate at the turn of the Muri, Moore and Drava. The 46th Army with the 2nd Guards mechanized and 23rd tank (transmitted from the 3rd Ukrainian Front) The buildings had to cross the right bank of the Danube on the left and cut off the way of waste of the Vienna enemy grouping to the north.

On the approaches to the capital of Austria and in the city itself occupied the defense of the part of eight tank and one infantry divisions, who were departed with the battles from the region of Oz. Balaton, as well as up to fifteen separate infantry battalions and folksturma battalions. Here, numerous defensive positions and engineering facilities were prepared in advance. German troops blocked the street by barricades and mined slabs, there were firepoints in the houses, in the destroyed buildings there were carefully disguised tanks and guns, intended for the place of fire with a straight entrance, all bridges through the Danube prepared for an explosion.

Marshal of the Soviet Union F.I. Tolbukhin decided to master the veloy to cause several simultaneous strikes from different directions: from the southeast by the 4th Guards Army and the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps (85 serviceable tanks and sau); From the south, the West and the North-West, the 6th Guards Tank and the 9th Guards Army, for which they were to get around the city through the Eastern Vogues of the Alps.

Fights on the immediate approaches to Vienna began on April 5th. But throughout the day, rifle compounds only slightly sweating the enemy. Using numerous water barriers prepared for defense and settlements, which were extremely limited to tank maneuver, he did not allow the front to strike the facility to break through to the city. This result was achieved only in the evening of the next day, when the compounds 4th and part of the forces of the 9th Guards armies with the support of the 1st Guards Mechanized Lieutenant General I.N. Rusdiasov came out to the southern and western wednesses of Vienna and tied the battles on her streets. At the same time, the 6th Guards Army and the two rifle buildings of the 9th Guards Army made a maneuver through the eastern spurs of the Alps, went to the Western approach to the city and cut the path of waste of the enemy.

During April 7-9, Soviet troops, widely using assault groups, in which rifle units, tanks and sau, escort and sappers, were fighting for each quarter and a separate house. The fighting did not stop at night, for which reinforced rifle battalions were distinguished from the divisions. On April 10, parts of the 4th Guards Army were traded by central quarters of Vienna and discarded the opposing enemy for the Danube Channel.

This channel was a serious artificial obstacle. Its depth reached 3 m, and the width - 40-60 m. Vertical, lined with the granite of the shore height 6-7 m extremely hampered forcing. In addition, German divisions were destroyed with all the crossings and raised gateways. In stone buildings along the canal, they equipped firepoints and observation points, which allowed them to control all the approaches to the front edge.

In order to fire on the enemy, it was necessary to undermine the walls of the houses and in the trolved proasses to install implements and mortars. According to their low densities, they did not allow reliably to suppress the firing means of the enemy. I could not break his resistance and assault sapper groups, which forced the channel on the subwoofers and set fire to the buildings with bottles with a combustible mixture. And only the approach of the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps was able to make a fracture into the situation. Using the fire of tank guns, the rifle compounds of the 4th Guards Army on the night of April 11 overcame the Danube Canal and began to move towards the railway bridge.

To 14 o'clock on April 13, that is, the seventh days of battles, the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian front ended the defeat of the garrison of the vein and completely seized the capital of Austria. Two days later, the 46th Army, the 23rd Tank and the 2nd Guards Mechanized Corps of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, after crossing the northern shore of the river. Danube, went to the area of \u200b\u200bthe north-west of the city. However, delays in overcoming the river and during the nomination were not allowed to in time to intercept the path of waste of the Vienna grouping of the enemy to the north. Therefore, part of its forces was able to avoid destruction and captivity.

As a result of the operation, the troops of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts defeated the main forces of the German group of the "South" armies, completely cleaned the territory of Hungary from the enemy, released a significant part of Czechoslovakia and the eastern districts of Austria with its capital. They captured more than 130 thousand soldiers and officers, destroyed and seized over 1,300 tanks and assault guns, more than 2250 field weapons, a large number of other military equipment. At the same time, the losses of two fronts amounted to 167,940 people, of which 38 661 are irretrievable, 603 tanks and SAU, 764 guns and mortars, 614 aircraft. For courage, heroism and high military skills, manifested during the Vienna operation, 50 compounds and parts were awarded the honorary name "Viennese". By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 9, 1945, the medal "For the capture of Vienna" was established, which were awarded more than 268 thousand Soviet soldiers.

Sergey Lipatov,
Researcher of the Research Institute
(military history) of the Military Academy
General Staff of the Armed Forces

On March 16, 1945, the Vienna Offensive Operation of the Red Army began, deprived of the latter hopes for the warning of the war ...

In the spring of 1945, the outcome of war was already obvious to all its participants. The main goal of the highest leaders of Nazi Germany was the maximum delaying of the inevitable outcome in the calculation of the separation world with the United States and the United Kingdom. The priority task of the Soviet Union is the final defeat of the Third Reich, its coercion to unconditional surrender.
On February 17, 1945, the Directive of the Supreme Commandment rate before the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts was tasked with the preparation of the offensive on one of the European capitals, still remaining in the hands of the Nazis - Vienna.


Austria, deprived of independence in 1938, as a result of the anchlus, was at the final stage of war in a dual situation. On the one hand, the Austrians became one of the victims of Nazi aggression. On the other hand, the Nazi sentiments were strong in Austria, and parts of the Wehrmacht and the SS throughout the war were consistently replenished with ideological supporters from the Motherland of the Fuhrer of the Third Reich.
The leaders of Nazi Germany, pushing the Austrians to the resistance to the upcoming parts of the Red Army, promised them the "bloody horrors of the Stalinist occupation." The work of Hitler's propagandists allowed to form a folksturma detachment in Vienna, who were to hold the final collapse of Reich in Vienna.

"Spring awakening" failed

The beginning of the Soviet offensive was scheduled for March 15. Almost simultaneously with the decision to prepare the Vienna offensive operation, the Soviet command received information on the preparing powerful strike of the Nazis in the area of \u200b\u200bLake Balaton.
It was decided to repel the offensive of the Germans in the Balaton region, not ceasing preparation for the occurrence of Vienna.
The Operation of the Wehrmacht "Spring Awakening" was the last onset of Germans in World War II and the last defensive operation in it of the Red Army.
During the nine-day onset of the Nazis in the direction of the main strike, they managed to move 30 km, but it did not succeed.
By March 15, the offensive of the Germans stopped, their reserves were exhausted. There was an excellent situation for the transition of Soviet troops to his own offensive.


The plan of the operation provided for the deployment of the main strike by the 4th and 9th Guards armies from the north-west district of South-West in the aim of the 6th SS Tank Army. In the future, the main forces were assumed to develop an offensive in the direction of Dad, Shopron and further to the Hungarian-Austrian border, part of the forces to adopt on Szombathely and Zalaegerseg to cover the enemy from the north of the Nastridge.
The 26th and 27th army had to start an offensive later and contribute to the destruction of the opponent surrounded by that time. The 57th and 1st Bulgarian army, acting on the left wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, had to go to the offensive of the south of Lake Balaton with the task of defeating the opponent enemy and master the oil-bearing area with the center in the city of Nadridge.

Successful from the boiler

The 3rd Ukrainian front commanded Marshal Fedor Tolbukhin, the 2nd Ukrainian Front - Marshal Rodion Malinovsky, the Allied 1st Bulgarian Army - General Vladimir Stalchev.
The offensive of the Soviet troops began on March 16, 1945 at 15 hours 35 minutes. Artillery preparation turned out so powerful as the 4th, and the 9th Guards Army of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, the first to come to the offensive, at first did not meet resistance at all. Then, however, the enemy has hastily shifting the guardsmen of the fresh parts.
At the first stage, fierce battles turned over the Hungarian Temples, the major center of the German defense, whose occupation by Soviet troops threatened them to go to the rear to the Nazis and the full environment of the German group.


Photo Aron Zamsky. Author's signature: "On the roads of war. Offensive on Vienna in German technology.
On March 18, the Soviet troops managed to move to a depth of about 18 km and expand the breakthrough to 36 km on the front. The 6th Guards Tank Army of the 3rd Ukrainian Front was introduced into the breakthrough, however, the Germans for reflection of the offensive pulled out parts from other sites: three tank and one infantry division. Despite this, the Soviet troops managed to move forward for another 8 kilometers. March 20th it was time to hit the 26th and 27th army.
Above the Balaton grouping of Nazis, the threat of a complete environment and defeat. The main power of the Germans in the area - the 6th such army of the SS - was removed through the corridor remained in their hands the width of about two and a half kilometers.

Bulgarians and cavalrymen deprived the Wehrmacht of fuel

Avoid the environment of the Germans managed, but the Soviet troops could not stop. It is going to cross the River River River, the Red Army rushed to the Hungarian-Austrian border.
On March 25, the 2nd Ukrainian Front began an offensive on Bratislava, which deprived the German command of the possibility of transferring reserves to the Viennese direction.


On March 29, 1945, on the left wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, the 57th and 1st Bulgarian army were moved to the offensive in the direction of Nadridge. A day later, the raid began the raid of the 5th Guards Cavalry Corps in the rear of the German group in the Nitskani area.
Soon the Soviet and Bulgarian troops were traded by the Nadridge - the center of one of the last Germans remained in the hands of the Netheman. Thus, the Wehrmacht was in the conditions of an acute fuel crisis.
On April 1, 1945, the Supreme Compact rate clarifies the task - the main forces of the 3rd Ukrainian front ordered to master the capital of Austria and no later than April 12-15 to reach Tuln, St. Pelten, Noah Lengbach.

"Alpine Fortress"

After severe March fighting, the onset of the Red Army in the first days of April is developing rapidly. Already by April 4, the impact grouping of the 3rd Ukrainian Front reached the approach to Vienna.
The German command intended to defend Vienna to the end. The most important objects of the city, its main attractions were mined, at home turned into fortified firepoints.
The city was defended by part of the 6th Tank Army of the SS, who left Balaton, 15 separate infantry battalions and folksturma battalions, cadets of the Vienna Military School, 4 Summary Regiment of the Vienna Police of 1500 people.


The defense of Vienna contributed to its geographical position - from the West Vienna covered the ridge of mountains, and with the Northern and Eastern Parties - a powerful water barrier, wide and centuries-based Danube. On the south side on the approaches to the city of the city, the Germans created a powerful fortified area, which consisted of anti-tank RVs, a developed system of fortification facilities - trenches, dollars and sucks. Gitlerians dubbed Vienna "Alpine Fortress".
Before the Soviet command, there was a difficult task - it is not easy to take the city in the shortest possible time, but also to prevent the large-scale destruction of the ancient pearl of Europe.

Handling Marshal Tolbukhina

The attack on Vienna began on April 5th. Marshal Tolbukhina's initial intent was to apply simultaneous strikes from three directions: from the southeast - forces of the 4th Guards Army and the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps, from the South and South-West - forces of the 6th Guards Tank Army with 18 "Tank corps and part of the forces of the 9th Guards Army. The remaining part of the forces 9th Guards Army was supposed to get around the city from the West and cut off the enemy of the waste path.
On April 5 and 6, fierce battles were launched on the southern and southeastern approaches to the city. The enemy tried to move in counterattack and rendered desperate resistance.
On April 6, Fyodor Tolbukhin on Radia turned to the population of Vienna with a call to stay on the ground, in every way to prevent the fascists in an attempt to destroy the city, its historical monuments and assist Soviet troops. A lot of Austrians responded to this appeal.


Fedor Tolbukhin is a Soviet warlord, Marshal of the Soviet Union, the Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously), the People's Hero of Yugoslavia, the Hero of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (posthumously), the Kavaler of the Order "Victory".
On April 7, the main forces of the 9th Guards Army and the Connection of the 6th Guards Tank Army, overcoming the Mining and Forest Massif of the Vienna Forest, went to the Danube. Thus, the German grouping was covered by the Soviet troops from the East, the South and the West. With tremendous labor, the Nazis held back the offensive of the 46th Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, which could slam the boiler.
In Vienna, heavy street fighting, which went and day, and at night. On April 9, 1945, the Tank Battalion of the 6th Guards Tank Army was broken through the center of Vienna under the command of the guard of Captain Dmitry Voza. During the day, the battalion retained the position until the basic forces of the tank brigade were approached. For this feat, Dmitry Fedorovich Voz was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.

Landing on the imperial bridge

To the end of April 10, the German garrison in Vienna continued the fierce resistance in the center of the city, holding an imperial bridge under his control - the only surviving bridge over the Danube. The imperial bridge allowed to interact with the Western and Eastern Vienna defense sites.
The bridge was mined, and the German command in the hopeless situation for himself intended to blow it up, which would force the Soviet troops with the fight to force the full Danube and lead heavy battles on the seizure and retention of the bridgeheads.
To capture the imperial bridge, it was decided to carry out a landing operation using armored players of Danube military flotilla.


The task was tasked before the landing - dropping off the boats on both shores of the Danube at the bridge, capture it and keep it before the mainstream approach.
The area of \u200b\u200bthe landing includes about 100 fighters of the rifle company of the 80th Guards Rifle Division. In strengthening, one 45mm cannon and four machine guns were granted. The artillery of the Danube Flotilla and Army artilleryrs should be covered with the paratroopers.
The task was incredibly complex - the armored trainer to the place of landing should have been going along the shores controlled by the Nazis, past the fortified firepoints, bypassing the destroyed bridges and flooded ships, and all this in the bright day of the day.

Three days of fire and blood

The operation began in the morning of April 11. A group of five armored meters went to a breakthrough to the Imperial Bridge, the rest of the ships were supposed to suppress the firing points of the enemy on the shores.
The audacious idea of \u200b\u200bthe Soviet command was for the Nazis complete surprise, which allowed the boats with the landing to get to the point of landing without loss. The imperial bridge was captured by a rapid attack.
The command of the Vienna garrison realized the whole seriousness of what happened. The tanks, self-propelled and infantry with the order will immediately transferred to the bridge to repel the bridge in order for anything. The fire of enemy artillery fell on the Soviet armor. With great difficulty, they returned to the base.
The Soviet landing, holding the imperial bridge, was under the continuous enemy fire. Attacks went alone for one, but the company stood to death.


Soviet sappers suggest crossing the Danube Canal in the center of the city of Vienna. 2nd Ukrainian.
The bloody battle for the bridge, which has become key in the battle of Vienna, last three days. On the night of April 13, the Battalion of the 7th Guards Airborne Division was to break through to the bridge. In response, the Germans threw everything left in the reserve to the bridge. Both sides carried heavy losses.
In the morning of April 13, a consolidated assault detachment of the marines was broken to the bridge under the command of Senior Lieutenant Kochkin. A rifle regiment of the 80th Guards Rifle Division was introduced into the breakthrough. After some time, the main forces of the Division, with the support of self-propeller, the 2nd Guards Mechanized Brigade, cutting the Eastern group of the Germans, went to the bridge.
16 self-propelled artillery installations at high speed overcame the bridge and occupied a circular defense on the West Bank. Sapiers of the approached parts removed from the bridge all the explosives left by the Nazis. The bridge completely passed under the control of Soviet troops, the threat of his destruction was liquidated. For the Vienna grouping, the Germans were all over. Its eastern part, devoid of conversations with Western, cut into several isolated groups, was finally divided into outcome on April 13. The western part of the grouping began a hurry departure from the city.
On the night of April 14, Vienna completely passed under the control of the Soviet troops.
Among those who fought with the Nazis on the Imperial Bridge, there was also a 19-year-old Red Dog Georgy Yumatov, the future star of Soviet cinema, who played a brilliant role in the film "Officers".


Members of the landing were presented to orders and medals, and six fighters who prevented undermining the imperial bridge, was awarded the title of Heroes of the Soviet Union.
An obelisk in honor of the Soviet soldiers who saved this invaluable historical history of the city from the veins before the Imperial Bridge.
50 Soviet parts and compounds distinguished in battles for Vienna received the honorary names of "Viennese". The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR established the Medal "For Taking Vienna". In August 1945, a monument to Soviet soldiers who died in the battles for the liberation of the country was established in Vienna on Schwarzenbergplatz.

There was Berlin ahead

During the Vienna offensive operation, Soviet troops lost 167,940 people killed and injured. The irrevocable losses of the Red Army amounted to 38,661 people. The losses of the Union Bulgarian army amounted to 9805 people killed and injured, of which 2698 people are irretrievable losses.
There are no accurate data on German losses. The fact is that from the beginning of 1945, a full chaos, similar to what was happening in the Red Army by the tragic in the summer of 1941, reigned in the Wehrmacht's documents.


It is known that more than 400-thousand grouping of German troops in Western Hungary and East Austria actually ceased to exist. About 130 thousand German soldiers and officers were captive.
With the defeat of the Hitler's group in Austria and the taking of Vienna, the plans of the leaders of the Third Reich on the delay of war were finally collapsed.
Before the start of the offensive on Berlin, three days remained ...

Which ended on April 13, 1945 by the liberation of the capital of Austria from the Nazis, was one of the final Great Patriotic War. Therefore, at the same time, quite simple, and incredibly severe. Such is the eternal dialectic of the last decisive fighting.

The relative ease is relatively with other operations - is due to the fact that the scheme of the destruction of enemy groups has already been worked out. In addition, by April 1945 there was no doubt about the inevitability and intimacy of victory.

But this is the severity, mostly psychological. Is it easy to go to death when "a little more, one more," understand that you can die on the eve of the onset of peacetime. And this is against the background of fatigue. Here's how it describes the feelings of those days a participant in battles, Colonel-General Alexei Yolovt: "Another ruffle, fights are going, but in everything you feel the imminent end of the war: and in the harsh expression of tired individuals soldiers, thirsty, and in the flowering of nature, frightened by Silence, and in the victorious movement of the formidable military equipment, aspiring to the West. "

It's like that. Vienna operation was not a dashing spring walk. General our losses amounted to 168 thousand people. It was necessary to force rivers, take three defensive bands, reinforced with an extensive system of trenches and moves. The Army Group "South" fiercely resisted, although it was resistance to despair paroxysm.

But according to the degree of desperation and the intensity of the battles behind Vienna did not have a comparison with the preceding combat actions in Hungary. Judge for yourself: the distance from Yugoslavia to Austria troops of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts passed in seven months. In October 1944, completing Belgrade operation, joined the Hungarian territory. And only at the end of March reached the border with Austria. And the direct assault vein took only 10 days.

Nazi leadership defended the bridgeheads in Hungary even to the detriment of the defense of the actual German lands and borders by Oder. The battle for Budapest and the subsequent Balaton surgery included the number of the most bloody. For such persistence, which may seem meaningless, there were several reasons.

Before the Wehrmacht, the task was not just stopped to stop the victorious red army, but also to keep oil retained areas in the West of Hungary, who acquired a special value after the loss of Romanian oilmiths.

But there was another circumstance, because of which battles were so strong in two neighboring countries. Here I will have to turn to family memories. Mom went to the audio all this way from Belgrade to Vienna, together with its air strike, as part of the 2nd Ukrainian Front. Like most frontovikov, she did not really love to remember weekdays of war. However, the attitude towards our military civilian population of countries liberated from Nazism, told a lot and willingly. The contrast between the Raduins of Yugoslavov and a completely different attitude from Magyar was very striking.

That's what a picture is made up of her memories. In Hungary, what is called, "shot every house." Each movement step was given with great difficulty. Constantly had to wait for a blow to the back. And not only from enemy fighters, ideological Nazis-Salashistov, but even just from the townsdays. So, in one of the towns it was cut by an ax of the Mine Friend-Single-Paul Mine, which by negligence was released in the evening. Including because of this, the battles for Budapest and other Hungarian cities were hard and difficult.

In Austria, nothing like this was. The local population, of course, did not meet the Red Army with bread and salt, but did not prevent her promotion through the territory of his country. Outows occupied a purely neutral position of contemposes. As the story testifies, the inhabitants of Austria almost always reacted to foreign armies, quietly passing them into the capital and providing the military to find out relations with the enemy.

It happened this time. In the suburbs and in the Vienna itself, only professional troops continued to resist. Sometimes - violently and desperate. But too much strength was given to the Wehrmacht in those terrible Hungarian battles. And it could not affect the numerical superiority of the advancing liberators. Superiority in everything - and lively, and in the technique. And in battle setting, if you take an intangible side.
On April 3, our troops came to Vienna, in a few days it was completely surrounded, and 13 numbers were all over. This operation looked even elegant, in the style of the Motherland "King Waltz". It was possible and quickly, but the command decided and guard people, and not turn one of the most beautiful cities in Europe into the ruins, as I had to do, for example, with Budapest.

Saving intact Viennese Palaces, bridges and other architectural attractions, Soviet troops in record time - by August 1945 - decorated the city by the monument to the Soldier-liberator. The medals "For Taking Vienna" were awarded about 268 thousand soldiers and officers.

But it is later. In the meantime, to the end of the Great Patriotic War remained less than a month. The road to Prague and from the south to Berlin was finally cleaned from enemies.

Cancel anchlus
April 13, 1945 Soviet troops liberated the capital of Austria Vienna

The Vienna Offensive Operation is known less than the Balaton defensive prior to it, but its value is great: restoring the sovereignty of Austria, she deprived Hitler's hope of tightening the war and cut off the strategic oil fields from Germany. On this topic: So started Nazism

Soviet troops in Vienna

"Eastern Border"

Part of the third Reich Austria was as a result of anchlus (literally "accession") conducted by German troops on March 12-13, 1938: this allowed Hitler to increase the territory of Germany by 17%, and the population is 6.7 million people. Despite the fact that Hitler replaced the name "Austria" (Österreich - "Eastern Reich") less proud Ostmark ("Eastern Border"), a significant number of citizens eliminated by the independent state sympathized with the ideas of Nazism. Soldiers recruited in Austria served in the Wehrmacht and the SS. In addition, Austria and Hungary supplied Germany with strategically important raw materials - oil.

In the 1943 received allies of the Moscow Declaration of 1943, the Anchlus was announced invalid: without freeing Austria from responsibility for participating in the war on the side of Hitler's Germany, the USSR, the United States and the United Kingdom expressed the desire to "see the restored free and independent Austria". To specific cases, this desire was enhanced in 1945, during the Vienna offensive operation. Taking the ancient capital of Habsburg - Vienna - was planned by the Soviet command back in March 1945. The 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts were to prepare and carry out an offensive operation. However, the powerful offensive of the Germans under the code name "Spring Awakening" made to revise the original plan: during the last major defensive operation of the Red Army - the Balatonian - troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, continuing to prepare for the offensive, temporarily moved to defense, exhausting the tank group of the enemy.

A month later, the defense was changed with the onset: on March 16, at 15 35 minutes after the hourly artillery preparation of the troops of the two Guards armies of the right wing of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, passed to the offensive in the Viennese direction. Bringing the enemy defense from the city of Gunt to Lake Balaton, the troops of the front by March 25 came to Line Veszpreter - Balaton and began the persecution of the enemy. On March 17, they switched to the offensive in the direction of Dad - Gyor troops of the left wing of the 2nd Ukrainian Front. By March 25, the "boiler" north of the commodity was pleased with four enemy infantry divisions, which were completely destroyed by March 27. On April 1, the 57th and 1st Bulgarian armies were traded by the last Hitler's oil area in Western Hungary - Nadridge. On April 4, the troops of the 2nd Ukrainian Front released Bratislava and, pursuing the enemy, completely completed the liberation of Hungary. The road to Vienna was open.

On the approaches

The scale of the Vienna offensive operation is eloquently says the number of troops involved on both sides. The grouping of two fronts numbered 639 thousand people, over 12 thousand guns and mortars, more than 1.3 thousand tanks and sau, about a thousand aircraft and 50 river ships. They were opposed by the troops of the German-fascist group of the Army "South" and part of the Forces of the Army Group "F" - 410 thousand people, 5.9 thousand guns and mortars, 700 tanks and assault guns, 700 aircraft.

Commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front Fedor Ivanovich Tolbukhin planned a simultaneous blow from three directions: from the southeast, the 4th Guards Army and the 1st Guards Mechanized Corps, from the South and South-West - forces of the 6th Guards Tank Army With her the 18th tank corps and part of the forces of the 9th Guards Army. The remaining part of the forces of the 9th Guards Army was to get around the city from the West and cut off the enemy of the waste path.

Nazis were not intended to give the city easily: the troops falling in Vienna in advance created a whole network of fortifications using artificial border fortifications, as well as natural barriers - mountains, forests, rivers, floats. At the outer border of the city of the street crossed anti-tank rs and barriers, all the bridges were mined. Tens of barricades were built in the depths of the city. Numerous firepoints were equipped in homes.

Vienna defended the remains of eight tank and one infantry divisions from the 6th SS Tank Army, the personnel of the Vienna Military School, as well as 15 separate battalions. In addition, four regiments of 1500 people were formed to participate in street battles from the Vienna Police. The head of the defense of Vienna was appointed commander of this army, the Colonel Military Troops of the CC Josef Dietrich, who at the beginning of the offensive operation said: "Vienna will be preserved for Germany." The choice was not accidental. In 1938, Dietrich headed the military unit who took part in the Anshlus, and since then he had a lot of other reasons to prove his loyalty to Rehih: he participated in the occupation of the Sudechean region, Bohemia and Moravia, in the French campaign and battle for Kharkov, fought in the Balkans And against the allied troops in Ardennes.

On April 5, Soviet troops tied the battles on the southern and southeastern approaches to Vienna. It was difficult to advance - the fighters of the Red Army had to reflect tank and infantry counterattacks, and on this day the 4th Guards Army, who was coming to Vienna from the south, did not achieve great success. But the 38th Guards Rifle Corps of the 9th Guards Army, which was coming the south-west of the city, managed to move 16-18 kilometers. Tolbukhin decided to consolidate success: the 6th Guards Tank Army passed on this direction, which went around the city and hit Vienna from the West and the North-West. On April 7, the main forces of the 9th Guards Army and the Connection of the 6th Guards Tank Army, overcoming the Viennese Forest, went to the Danube. To the end of April 10, the enemy garrison was clamped from three sides.

Battle of the city

The assault of the city itself began on April 6. Fights walked day long: the main forces were fighting, and at night - special divisions. In the labyrinth of the streets of the Old Town Rifle units, separate tank crews and instrument calculations sometimes entered into real "duels". The main battle unfolded for the last surviving bridge over the Danube - the Imperial Bridge, which was also mined. The bridge was important for the promotion of Soviet troops - his subsection would make our troops forcing the Danube. For the German troops, the bridge served as the only means of communication between army groups located in the eastern and western parts of the city.

Attempts to master the bridge on April 9 and 10 ended in failure. Under these conditions, the command decided on an unusually risky operation - to land on both shores the Danube, which will be charged to capture and retain the bridge before the land parts approach. As a landing, the rifle company of the 80th Guards Rifle Division was chosen from the 4th Guards Army. The landing operation began on April 11, and only two days later the regiment of the 80th Guards Rifle Division managed, carrying major losses, break through to the bridge and connect with the landing. The detachment managed to distract attention until the main part of the division, reinforced 16 SAU, managed to switch the bridge and take a circular defense on the West Bank. The bridge was cleaned, and it became the key moment of the battle for Vienna: Sounded from the main forces of a group of Hitler's troops in the eastern part of the city on the same day were destroyed or surrendered, and groups of troops, which were in Western regions of Vienna, began a rush retreat. April 13 Vienna was completely purified from the German troops. Soviet troops continued to move behind the retreating parts of the enemy, destroying them or forcing them to surrender. Only in the period of battles behind the vein and persecution of retreating troops, the Red Army captured 130 thousand people, captured and destroyed 1345 tanks and assault guns, over 2250 guns and mortars.

The result of the Vienna offensive operation was not only the liberation of veins and a significant part of Austria, but also the application of a serious defeat of the South German Army Group, which actually ceased to exist. As a result of the battles behind Vienna, 11 German divisions were completely broken, including the entire 6th SS tank army. Losting important oil fields of Hungary, losing the Viennese Industrial District, Germany could no longer hope for the delay of war. In honor of this operation, a medal "For Taking Vienna" was established.
The original is taken by W.