81 years ago the Red Army completely liberated the Taman Peninsula, the most important outpost in the south of the country, from Wehrmacht forces, and possession of this outpost allowed it to control significant parts of the Black and Azov Seas. At the same time, the Novorossiysk-Taman strategic offensive operation, which lasted from September 10 and was the finale of the Caucasus war, was also completed. In turn, these events are divided into two stages.
The enemy offensive continued from 25 July to 31 December; Over the next nine months, Soviet troops carried out a counteroffensive, fighting against a joint group that included German armies as well as Romanians, Slovaks, and collaborators of the Caucasian peoples. .
To hold the Taman bridgehead, the enemy built a layered line of defensive fortifications – the Blue Line, which was 113 km at the front, at a depth of 20-25 km and spread over the entire peninsula, relying on natural barriers – the Kuban River, estuaries, streams, dominant heights. Many resistance centers and fortresses built here were equipped with firearms and reinforced concrete pillboxes.
The total number of the Taman group of the Germans and their allies, which included part of the 17th Army and the 1st Tank Army under the command of Erwin Eneke, reached 400 thousand people. The fighting lasted from February to September 1943.
The clearing of the Kuban lands was carried out by units of the 56th Army under the command of the future USSR Minister of Defense Andrei Grechko, in cooperation with the 9th Army of Alexei Grechkin and the 18th Army of Konstantin Leselidze. They were supported from the air by Konstantin Vershinin’s 4th Air Army. They were assisted from the sea by forces of the Black Sea Fleet and the Azov Military Fleet. Soldiers of the 54th separate pontoon battalion used the crossing park captured from the Germans when crossing the Kuban and its tributaries.
“The purpose of the front-line operation was to liberate Novorossiysk through the attacks of the 9th Army with the cooperation of the Azov squadron and the 56th Army, 18th Army and Ground Forces, which went to the village of Varenikovskaya, Gladkovskaya and Gostagaevskaya. Naval Fleet and proceed towards Verkhne-Bakansky and Anapa.
Such actions were supposed to cut off the enemy group, reach the crossings on the Staraya Kuban River and cut off the enemy’s escape route to the Kerch Strait,” Marshal Grechko recalled.
After the capture of Novorossiysk on September 16 and during fierce fighting that broke through the heavily fortified enemy defenses on the approach to Taman, the troops of the North Caucasus Front developed an offensive and approached the Kerch Strait.
Soviet soldiers systematically captured city after city and village after village. An important success was the capture of Temryuk, an important stronghold of the Germans, located at the very mouth of the Kuban and covering the Taman group from the Sea of Azov. The attackers managed to cut the Temryuk-Golubitskaya road, which was the only Nazi communications in this area and connected them to the Kerch Strait ports. But this road was also subject to raids by Soviet aviation and was controlled by small infantry detachments advancing towards it from the floodplains.
“After the liberation of Temryuk, the fascists flocked to the western part of the Taman Peninsula, towards the ports. But even there, despite the strong opposition of anti-aircraft guns, our attack aircraft and bombers outmaneuvered them.”
– wrote General Vershinin in the book “The Fourth Air Force”.
During the operation to liberate the Taman Peninsula from 10 September to 9 October, according to his memoirs, units of the 4th Air Army carried out 10,525 sorties; of them: for reconnaissance – 827, for providing amphibious assault – 415, for attacks on detached troops – 7423, for bombing floating ships – 1870. 78 floating ships of various tonnages were sunk, 57 enemy aircraft were shot down in air battles.
Frontline report “Taman rescued!” “Artillery and aviation opened powerful fire on German fortifications, smashing the remnants of the retreating enemy troops,” he emphasized.
By order of Adolf Hitler, the evacuation of Nazi troops continued until October 9. The Red Army tried every possible way to intervene in the process, but still 260 thousand soldiers, 70 thousand horses, equipment, artillery and food supplies were transported to Crimea through the Kerch Strait. The troops withdrawn from Taman were thrown into the defense of Perekop.
5 Grechko reported to the Military Council of the North Caucasus Front: “As of 7:00 on October 9, 1943, the Taman Peninsula was completely cleared of German invaders by units of the 56th Army.”
The news from the south pleased Commander-in-Chief Joseph Stalin. “In memory of the Victory”, the state leader decided to give the names “Taman”, “Temryuk”, “Anapa” and “Kuban” to the formations and units that stood out in the battles for the liberation of Taman. Converted Guard divisions were issued Guard Banners.
“Today, October 9, at 22:00, Moscow, the capital of our Motherland, in the name of the Motherland, salutes our brave troops and naval formations who liberated the Taman Peninsula with twenty artillery salvos from two hundred and twenty-four guns. I express my gratitude to all the troops under his leadership, who participated in the battles for the liberation of the Taman Peninsula, for excellent military operations. Eternal glory to the heroes who died in the struggle for freedom and independence of our homeland!” – said Stalin’s order.
At the same time, ordinary people also learned about the most important event.
“German propaganda sadly mutters: “planned evacuation.” The Red Army threw the remnants of German troops into the Kerch Strait! In the port of Taman, our aviation and artillery sank many enemy ships and thousands of German soldiers and officers. The Germans did not have time to destroy the monument to the Zaporozhye Cossacks who landed here in 1792. On the monument there is a half-erased inscription: “The order of the Cossacks to their descendants: to defeat all the infidels who came to Taman.” “The Taman lands are now completely cleared of Nazi invaders,” this is how USSR citizens were informed about the victory on the peninsula.
The irreparable losses of Soviet troops in the Novorossiysk-Taman operation amounted to 12,137 people; Hitlerite (Germans, Romanians, Slovaks) – 14,564.
The retreating Germans mined large areas, including vineyards. Hunters had to spend a lot of time clearing the land. The liberation of Taman allowed the troops of the North Caucasus Front to begin preparations for crossing the Kerch Strait and subsequent battles for Crimea.
This text was first published on October 9, 2018.
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Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.