Belgrade offensive

Belgrade Offensive
Part of the Eastern Front Yugoslav Front of World War II
File:Soviet T34 Belgrade.jpg A Soviet tank on the streets of Belgrade.
Date 28 September, 1944 — 20 October, 1944 Location Belgrade, Yugoslavia Result The victory of Soviet troops and Yugoslav partisans. The liberation of most of the territory of Yugoslavia.
Belligerents
Soviet Union Yugoslav Partisans Bulgaria	Germany Chetniks
Commanders and leaders
Fyodor Tolbukhin Josip Broz Tito Kimon Georgiev	Maximilian von Weichs Hans Felber Alexander Löhr
Strength
580,000 troops and partisans, 3640 shells and mortars, 520 tanks and assault guns, 1420 aircraft, 80 ships	150,000 troops, 2100 shells and mortars, 125 tanks and assault guns, 350 aircraft, 70 ships
Casualties and losses
4,350 irrecoverable, 14,488 wounded or sick	45,000

Belgrade Strategic Offensive Operation (14 September 1944 - 24 November 1944) was a military operation by the armed forces of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts (including the 2nd Bulgarian Army), in coordination with the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia (NOAYU) against Nazi Germany and its Croatian and the Serbian and Chetniks during the Great Patriotic War, to destroy the forces of German Army Group E in the Suva Planina region, and Army Group F east of Morova river, and ultimately the liberation of Belgrade.

A secondary goal of the offensive was to sever the line of retreat for German Army Group E from Greece, Albania and the southern regions of Yugoslavia through Belgrade to Hungary, including the Thessaloniki-Belgrade rail road .

Situation before the offensive

By early September 1944, two German Army Groups were deployed in the Balkans (Yugoslavia, Greece and Albania): Army Group E (southern area of operations), and Army Group F (northern area of operations). In response to the deteriorating situation in South-Eastern Europe (defeat of German forces in Yassy-Kishinev Strategic Offensive Operation that forced Bulgaria and Romania to switch sides, and the advance of the Red Army troops into the Balkans, Army Group E was ordered to withdraw into Hungary. Another Army Group was created in Hungary called "Serbia" from elements of the Army Group F.

As a result of popular armed uprising, the monarchist-fascist regime in Bulgaria was overthrown and replaced with a government of the Fatherland Front led by Kimon Georgiev. Once the new government came to power, Bulgaria declared war on Germany.

By the end of September, 3rd Ukrainian Front troops under the command of Marshal of the Soviet Union Fyodor Tolbukhin were concentrated at the Bulgarian - Yugoslav border in the area Vidin (57th Army) after a forced march through Bulgarian territory, and to the south on the Niš rail line at the junction of the Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Greece borders, was deployed the 2nd Bulgarian Army under the operational command of the 3rd Ukrainian Front. This encouraged the arrival from the Yugoslav territory of the 1st People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia troops ready to provide support with the 13th Yugoslav Corps collaborating in the liberation of Niš, and the 14th Yugoslav Corps seeing a bit more action in their support of the 57th Army’s advance to Belgrade. The 2nd Ukrainian Front’s 46th Army was deployed in the Teregova (Romania) area, poised to cut the rail link between Belgorod and Hungary to the north of the Vršac city.

Pre-operation was coordinated with the commander of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia Josip Broz Tito, who on September 21, had arrived in a Soviet plane to Romania and from there flew to Moscow where he met with Stalin. It was a considerable achievement for the two allies, in particular, because an agreement was reached on the participation of Bulgarian troops in the operation that would be conducted on Yugoslav territory.

Progress of the offensive

Even before the start of the operation the 17 Air Army (3rd Ukrainian Front]] was ordered to impede the withdrawal of German troops from Greece and southern regions of Yugoslavia. To do so, from 15 to 21 September, it carried out air attacks on the railroad bridges and other important facilities in the areas of Nis, Skopje, and Krushevatsa.

File:Soldiers March to Belgrade.jpg

Combatants from Yugoslav Fifth Brigade of Krajina (Kozara) crossing Kolubara river in their advance to Belgrade, on October 1944.

57th Army operations

The 28 September attack from the region of Vidin in the general direction of Belgrade was begun by the 57th Army troops, which, with the assistance of the Danube Military Flotilla (operating along the Danube on the Front’s northern flank of the offensive) that provided river transport to troops and military equipment, and from the 17th Air Army, in collaboration with the 14th Yugoslav Corps, and with heavy fighting in the Eastern Serbian mountains broke through the enemy's border defence, and 8 October advanced to the River Morava, capturing two bridgeheads on the Velika Plana and Palanka, where on the 12 October, the 4th Guards Mechanised Corps was introduced into the penetration after moving here from South-East Bulgaria for the development of the offensive towards Belgrade from the south. Meanwhile, the offensive was continued by the newly arrived 1st Proletarsky Yugoslav Division and the 12th Yugoslav Shock Division in the attempt to secure bridgeheads over Sava river west of Belgrade.

46th Army operations

The 10th Guards Rifles Corps of the 46th Army (2nd Ukrainian Front), together with units of the NOAYU moving via the Danube, provided more offensive strength against the Wehrmacht’s Belgrade position from the north-east. It cleared the left bank of the Yugoslav Danube and Tisza, liberating the town of Pancevo.

4th Guards Mechanised Corps races for the Belgrade

The 4th Guards Mechanised Corps, breaking through the enemy resistance south of Belgrade on October 14, approached the city and engaged in fighting on the outskirts. The 12th Yugoslav Corps advanced along the roads in the direction of Belgrade south of the Sava River. The assault of the city was delayed due to the need for a diversion of forces to eliminate of thousands of enemy troops surrounded between Belgrade and Smederevo to the south-east. On October 20, Belgrade had been completely liberated.

Belgrade Assault

Participating in the assault on the capital of Yugoslavia were

3rd Ukrainian Front: 4th Guards Mechanised Corps (lieutenant general T. V. Zhdanov Vladimir Ivanovich) in the composition of: 13th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Lieutenant Colonel Obaturov Gennadi Ivanovich), 14th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Colonel Nikitin Nicodemius Alekseyevich), 15th Guards Mechanised Brigade (Lieutenant Colonel Andrianov Mikhail Alekseyevich), 36th Guards Tank Brigade (Colonel Zhukov Peter Semenovich), 292nd Guards Self-propelled Artillery Regiment (Lieutenant Colonel Shakhmetov Semen Kondratevich), 352nd Guards Heavy Self-propelled Artillery Regiment (Colonel Tiberkov Ivan Markovich); 5th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade (Colonel Zavyalov Nikolai Ivanovich); 23rd Howitzer Artillery Brigade (Colonel Karpenko Savva Kirillovich) of the 9th Breakthrough Artillery Division (Major General art. Ratov Andrey Ivanovich); 42nd Anti-tank destroyer artillery Brigade (Colonel Leonov Constantine Alekseyevich); 22ndAnti-aircraft Artillery Division (Colonel Danshin Igor Mikhaylovich).

57th Army with 75th Rifle Corps (Major General Akimenko Andrian Zakharovich) in the composition of: 223rd Rifle Division (Colonel Sagitov Akhnav Gaynutdinovich), 236th Rifle Division (Colonel Kulizhskiy Peter Ivanovich); 73 Guards Rifle Division (Major General Kozak Semen Antonovich) of 68th Rifle Corps (Major General Shkodunovich Nikolai Nikolayevich). Danube Military Flotilla: 1st Guards Divizion Armoured Boats (lieutenant commander Barbotko Sergey Ignatevich) and 4th Guards Divizion Armoured Boats (Senior Lieutenant Butvin Kuzma [Iosifovich]) of the Brigade of Armoured Boats (captain of 2 ranks Derzhavin Pavel Ivanovich); coastal escort force (Major Zidr Klementiy Timofeevich).

17th Air Army with 10th Assault Air Corps (lieutenant general of aviation Tolstyakov Oleg Viktorovich) in the composition: 295th Fighter Air Division (Colonel Silvestrov Anatoliy Alexandrovich), 306th Assault Air Division (Colonel Ivanov Alexander Viktorovich), part of the 136th Assault Air Division (Colonel Tereckov Nikolai Pavlovich); 10th Guards Assault Air Division (Major General of Aviation Vitruk Andrey Nikiforovich), 236th Fighter Air Division (Colonel Kudryashov Vasiliy Yakovlevich), part of the 288th Fighter Air Division (Colonel Smirnov Boris Alexandrovich).

NOAYU: the 1st Army Group (General- Lieutenant Colonel Dapchevich Peko) in the composition of: the 1st proletarian division (Colonel Yovanovich Vaso), 6th proletarian division (Colonel Yovanich Dzhoko), the 5th shock division (Colonel Moracha Milutin), 21st shock division (Colonel Miloevich Miloye); 12th Army Corps (General- Lieutenant Colonel Lekich Danilo) in the composition of: the 11th shock division (Colonel Shelegovich Milosh), 16th shock division (Colonel Perichin Marco), 28th shock division (Lieutenant Colonel Nenezin Radoyitsa), 36th shock division (Lieutenant Colonel Yovich Rodoslav).

The next day, elements of the 3rd Ukrainian Front stormed Kraljevo and finally cut Thessaloniki highway to Belgrade.

2nd Bulgarian Army operations

The 2nd Bulgarian Army, in interaction with the 13th Yugoslav Army Corps advanced to from the south-east. They were responsible for ion of Nis and Leskovac and cutting the main road for departure of Army Group E along the rivers South Morava and Morava, which given the circumstances, had been forced to retreat through the mountains of Montenegro and Bosnia and was unable to strengthen the German forces in Hungary.

Results of the offensive

As a result, the Belgrade offensive defeated Army Group "Serbia", and Army Group F was forced to retreat more than 200 km to the north, ensuring favourable conditions were created for continuing conduct of the Budapest operation.

On completion of the Belgrade operation the 3rd Ukrainian Front troops were transferred to Hungary to support forces of the 2nd Ukrainian Front and subsequently assisted the Yugoslav army, to continue the liberation of their country, mainly with weapons, equipment and ammunition.

A medal "For the Liberation of Belgrade"was established by the Presidium of the Supreme Council of USSR decree on the 19 June 1945.

Sources

• Dudarenko, M.L., Perechnev, Yu.G., Yeliseev, V.T., et.el., Reference guide "Liberation of cities": reference for liberation of cities during the period of the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945, Moscow, 1985