Ivan Chernyakhovsky - 1944: Battles in Belarus

1944: Battles in Belarus

Operation Bagration was launched after a four month break in activities because of the spring thaw. The Soviets launched their attack on June 22 on four fronts with 146 infantry and 43 armored divisions. General Bagramyan's 1st Baltic Front and General Chernyakhovsky's 3rd Belorussian Front struck to the north and south of Vitebsk and took the city on June 27. Chernyakhovsky's left wing then took Orsha - this meant that the Moscow - Minsk highway could now be used to threaten the German rear. To the south, General Zakharov's 2nd Belorussian Front, north of the Pripet Marshes, destroyed a force of 33,000 at Babruysk on that day. Chernyakhovsky's army now headed for Minsk. On July 2 his mobile forces reached Stolbtsy, 40 miles away. General Rotmistrov's tanks entered Minsk on 3 July and 50,000 Germans were trapped.

The offensive pressed on to Baranavichy (8 July) and to Hrodna (13 July). In the south Rokossovsky cleared the Pripet Marshes taking Pinsk and Kovel on 5 July. In the north Bagramyan turned to the Baltic States and took Vilnius in Lithuania and Daugavpils in Latvia on 13 July. This split the Army Group North in two (East Prussia and the Baltic States). The Soviets arrived on the Polish border within 24 days and claimed to had taken 158,000 men, 2,000 tanks, 10,000 guns, and 57,000 motor vehicles. They also claimed to have killed 38,000 Germans. It was a resounding defeat for the Germans and Hitler dismissed Busch from the command of Army Group Centre, replacing him with Model. The Soviets had swept the Germans from Belorussia by mid-July 1944 and they pressed their advantage by attacking Poland. In the north Generals Chernyakhovsky and Zakharov joined to take Bialystok on 18 July.