When Titans Clashed by David M. Glantz

Author:David M. Glantz
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
Published: 2015-09-08T04:00:00+00:00

THE FAR NORTH

Colonel General Lothar Rendulic, commander of the German Twentieth Mountain Army, had saved most of his forces while withdrawing from Finland after the latter’s September armistice with Moscow (see chapter 13). The OKW staff had persuaded Hitler that the entire region should be evacuated, but this second evacuation had not yet begun when, on 7 October 1944, the Soviets launched their last offensive in the north, the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation.45 Although this operation did not contribute decisively to ultimate Soviet victory and was dwarfed in scale by other operations to the south, it was unusual both because of its venue and because it combined land and amphibious operations.

The setting for this campaign was unique, with its harsh, lunar terrain and equally harsh weather. The fact that the ground had not yet frozen in October made cross-country movement even more difficult. The outcome of the entire offensive hinged on control and use of the few east–west roads in the area, and each side dedicated large numbers of engineer troops to creating and maintaining these roads.

Marshal Meretskov, the Karelian Front commander, and some of his subordinates were veterans of the Finnish wars and had considerable knowledge of the difficulties of Arctic warfare. Most Soviet troops in the area lacked the broader experience that their southern counterparts had acquired in the preceding three years. Still, as was characteristic of this final development of the Red Army, the Stavka provided Meretskov with a number of units that were specially configured for operations in the Arctic region. The most unusual were the 126th and 127th Light Rifle Corps, infantry units that were authorized 4,334 ski troops and naval infantry each. These units were designed to fulfill the deep penetration and bypass role ordinarily performed by large mechanized formations. Meretskov also assembled thirty engineer battalions, numerous horse-and reindeer-equipped transportation companies, and two battalions of U.S.-supplied amphibious vehicles for river crossings. Under the overall command of the Karelian Front, Lieutenant General V. I. Shcherbakov, a veteran of the Russian Civil War and the 1939 Finnish conflict, headed 14th Army, controlling Meretskov’s maneuver elements.

Meretskov aimed the main attack at the German 2nd Mountain Division on Rendulac’s southern flank, with the intent of bypassing and encircling the entire German force. The attack plan included all the elaborate preparations typical of a 1944 Soviet penetration: 2,100 artillery tubes, half of them mortars, plus 750 aircraft of 7th Air Army to support the offensive. The preparatory artillery fires included 140,000 rounds of conventional artillery and 97 tons of multiple-rocket launcher ammunition. Shcherbakov even had 110 tanks and assault guns despite the difficult terrain and the total absence of German armor in the region. Overall, 14th Army outnumbered the German XIX Mountain Corps, the target of the offensive, by 113,200 to 45,000.46

Despite these preparations, the initial attack on 7 October was hampered by poor visibility, making air and artillery support difficult. The 131st Rifle Corps quickly achieved a bridgehead over the Titovka River in the German center, but 99th Rifle Corps,

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