Blue Action(also known asBlue scheme, German: Fall Blau) is the code name of the strategic offensive operation carried out by the German Defense Forces in the southern Soviet Union in the summer of 1942.This operation is the continuation of the Barbarosa operation. In the operation, the southern group army group of the German Defense Force was divided into Group A army group and Group B army group. The German attack faced two problems: first, the Soviet Red Army established a strong defense in Stalingrad (an important transportation center) on the west bank of the Volga River to continue to resist,Second, Adolf Hitler, the head of Nazi Germany, demanded to capture the oil fields in the Caucasus.
The action plan is a great challenge to the German Southern Army Group, because they need to accomplish two goals on the front of thousands of kilometers at the same time and face the five front armies of the Soviet army (the size is equivalent to the German Army Group Army Group). These Soviet front armies, from north to south, are:Voronezh Front 、Southwest Front Army、Don Front Army、StalingradFront Army andTranscaucasian Front ArmyGermany will capture after crossing the Caucasus MountainsBakuOil field.
The operation was originally calledOperation SiegfriedIs a hero in Germanic mythology, but the German head of stateAdolf HitlerWill this militaryget some actionIt is called Blue Action.
The formulation of blue action is based on the following factors:
It is expected that the 6th German Army Group[1]Successful operations and other offensive units captured most of the southern Soviet Union（Ukraine）；
Control Odessa andKievAs a stronghold of naval and air force support forces;
Attacking and occupying the armored and mechanized divisions in proper weather and terrainVolga RiverKuban Grassland in the southwest;
The Soviet city Baku (becameAzerbaijanTo supply German troops;
Capture other Soviet industrial centers in Europe, cooperate with other plans to completely defeat the Soviet Union and complete the original goal of the Barbarossa operation.
Preparation and objectives
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The German army increased the strength of the southern group army group, which was the main attack, to 100 divisions, with 5 group armies and 1500 aircrafts working together.At the same time, 52 divisions were transferred from its allies into the Soviet battlefield, including 27 divisions in Romania, 13 in Hungary, 9 in Italy, 2 in Slovakia and 1 in Spain.These 52 divisions accounted for a quarter of the Axis troops in the eastern battlefield.
The whole campaign plan is carried out in two stages.Phase I: First, the Crimean and Kharkov campaigns were carried out. The 18th Corps under the command of General Manstein captured the Kerch Peninsula and Sevastopol Fortress from April to June.At the same time, the German 6th Group Army led by Paulus and the Group Army led by Kleister launched a strong offensive in Kharkov to prepare for the attack on the Caucasus and Stalingrad.
In July, the second stage officially started: Manstein attacked Leningrad on the North Road;The focus is on the central and southern routes, attacking the Caucasus and seizing oil fields;Attack Stalingrad and encircle the Soviet army west of the Don River.The purpose is to put Stalingrad within the range of heavy weapons of the German army, so that the enemy can no longer use it as an industrial center and transportation hub.
The offensive action will cross the Kuban Prairie in the southern Soviet Union. The German army group participating in the action is:
Group A Army Group (Caucasus Campaign)
German 1st Armored Group Army
The 11th German Army Group (originally planned to land in the south of the Caucasus Mountains, then transferred to Leningrad in the north)
The 17th German Army Group
Romanian 3rd Army Group
Group B Army Group (Volga Battle)
German 2nd Army Group
German 4th Armored Group Army
The Second Group Army of Hungary
Italian 8th Army Group
The 4th Group Army of Romania
Previously, these actions were expected to form several encirclement circles for the Soviet army.The Supreme Command of the Soviet Union failed to predict the main offensive direction of the German army in 1942. Stalin predicted that the main strategic goal of the German army was Moscow and that 50% of the country's troops were concentrated in this area, while only 10% of the troops were in the southern part of the Soviet Union.
German offensive situation from May 7 to November 18, 1942
attack
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On June 28, 1942, the German army began to attack. Under the attack of the German Defense Force, the Soviet army was forced to retreat at every place. By July 5, the vanguard of the 4th Armored Group Army had reached Voronezh near the Don River, and was uncertain whether to capture the city. Therefore, the Soviet army took the opportunity to retreat. The German army tried to complete the encirclement, but found only outdated soldiers and defenders,Hitler was convinced that these were the last reserves of the Red Army. However, the Soviet Red Army did not stick to cities that were difficult to defend in the war and withdrew under good discipline.
Premature dispersal
Because of his anger at the slowness of action and his belief that the Soviet army had collapsed, Hitler made a series of changes to the plan. He wouldSouthern Group Army GroupIt is divided into two small army groups: Group A army group, which is composed ofWilhelm List Command, including the 1st Armored Army Group, the 17th Army Group and the 3rd Romanian Army Group;And Group B Army Group, under the command of Maximilian von Wicks, including the 6th Group Army, the 2nd Group Army and the 4th Armored Group Army, the 8th Group Army of Italy, the 4th Group Army of Romania and the 2nd Group Army of Hungary.
Group A army group attacks the Caucasus and occupies oil fields;Group B attacked Volga River and Stalingrad
Because the initial attack of the 6th Group Army was extremely successful, Hitler ordered the 4th Group Army to push southward to support the 1st Group Army to cross the lower reaches of the Don River. This suddenly changed Fu Group Army Group faced a huge supply and transportation problem. From the German standard, the Soviet road system was poorly developed, and the serious congestion problem hindered the progress of the two Group Army Groups,It also made the 6th Group Army lack of tank support, delayed the attack and gave the Red Army time to gather its strength.
Capture the warehouse
Group A army group captured on July 23, 1942RostovHowever, the Red Army had a fierce battle with the German army in the city and withdrew from outside the city to avoid being surrounded. As it was crossing the Don River and the 6th Group Army met fierce resistance in the north, Hitler transferred the 4th Armored Group Army back to the Volga River front.
At the end of July, the 6th Army Group moved forward again and cleared up the Red Army on the west bank of the Don River on August 10, 1942. However, the Soviet resistance in some areas prevented the B Army Group from advancing eastward.
On the contrary, Group A Army Group crossed the Don River on July 25 and started on an open front. The 17th Army Group (including the 11th Army Group) moved from the westBlack SeaThe east bank pushed eastward, while the 1st Armored Group Army moved southeastward and entered the Kuban Prairie abandoned by the Red Army. By August 9, the 1st Armored Group Army had reached the foot of the Caucasus Mountains, advancing more than 300 kilometers in two weeks.
Advance to Stalingrad
The 6th Army Group crossed the Don River on August 21, making Group B Army Group availableThe Second Group Army of Hungary, the 8th Italian Army Group andRomaniaThe 4th Group Army established defense along the banks of the Don River and reached a place 60 kilometers away from Stalingrad. At the same time, the German Air Force bombers heavily bombed the city. As a result, more than 40000 people were killed and most of the city was in ruins. The German army on the ground attacked Stalingrad on both sides, and the 6th Group Army was in the north (Frorov)The 4th Armored Group Army attacked in the south (Kogelinikovo), and a piece of land sandwiched between the two armies in the Don River and Volga River formed a bulge. Two Soviet Group Armies (the 62nd and 64th Group Armies) were in the bulge. On August 29, the 4th Armored Group Army launched a major attack on Stalingrad in the south of the bulge, and the 6th Group Army was ordered to act the same way,However, it was delayed for three days because the Soviet army launched a strong counterattack in the north, which made the Soviet army escape from the salient to encircle and retreat into Stalingrad.
Zhukov arrives
At this time,Georgi Konstantinovich ZhukovAppointed as the front commander of Stalingrad and as the representative of the Supreme Command, he has the right to deploy three front armies in this area. At the beginning of September, he launched a series of attacks to block the advance of the 6th Group Army.
At the same time, the Soviet reinforcements poured southward to strengthen the city's defense and stayed on the east bank of the Volga River to prepare for the counter attack. By mid September, the 6th Army Group had once again launched the offensive against the city after the collapse of the Soviet army's limited counter attack. By September 13, the German army reached the southern suburbs of Stalingrad and beganBattle of Stalingrad, and finally made the German army surrender for the first time.
ending
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Hitler's plan was ambitious, but it became more complicated under his intervention. In addition, he overestimated the ability of the Soviet Red Army and its commanders. Although the surrender of the 6th Group Army was a serious disaster in the eyes of ordinary Germans, the Soviet counterattack-Operation Uranus andOperation SaturnIt also ordered the German Defense Forces to withdraw from the advancing Caucasus region.
