Chapter 2234

  After the order was issued, the divisions eager to replenish the supplementary troops sent small teams to the friendly defense area to look for possible prisoner-of-war camps.

  But the 284th Infantry Division, which was the first to carry out the search mission, did not find any prisoner-of-war camps, but accidentally discovered a concentration camp abandoned by the Germans. The commanders and fighters who entered the concentration camp first saw the corpses of Jews all over the ground, as well as a small number of skinny Jews in prison uniforms. They came to the commanders and fighters like walking skeletons, stretched out their hands to them, and spoke in broken Russian. , begging for food from them.

  Division Commander Ismailov asked Sokov for instructions on the phone: "Comrade Commander, our soldiers have found 126 survivors in total. How should we arrange them?"

  Ismailov’s request stumped Sokov. Regardless of whether these Jews came from Poland or Germany, they would definitely not be able to return to their original residences. After some thought, he replied: "Comrade Colonel, first place these people in a nearby town and let the local people take care of their daily life."

   "Let the locals take care of their daily life?" Ismailov said with some hesitation, "Is this appropriate?"

"There is nothing inappropriate." Sokov said impatiently: "Since they have been tortured by the Germans, isn't it only natural for the Germans to take care of them now? Alright, stop talking nonsense, follow my instructions. Order carried out."

  When Sokov put down the phone, Sidolin asked curiously: "Comrade Commander, let me ask you a question. Why is Mustache so keen on killing Jews?"

"It turned out to be very simple. He was full of hatred for the Jews." Sokov said without hesitation: "After the end of World War I, Germany's economic lifeline was in the hands of the Jews, and the currency mark used by the Germans depreciated wildly. A bread **** It even had to be sold for 500,000 marks. This alone made the Germans full of hatred for the Jews.

  When Mustache took control of the whole of Germany and was about to launch a war abroad, he found that all the military enterprises were also in the hands of the Jews. At the beginning, he also tried to negotiate to get these Jewish consortiums to support him. But after the failure of the negotiation, he changed his strategy, and simply kept on doing nothing, exterminating the Jews and confiscating their military factories, so as to complete the ideal of military industry restoration in one step. At the same time, the property of the Jews was confiscated, and a large amount of wealth was obtained to solve the welfare problems of the people and appease the emotions of the Germans. Safeguard the industrialization of Germany at the cost of Jewish life and wealth. "

  After listening to Sokov's long speech, Lunev interrupted and said: "But the Jews in our country belong to the poorest group. How could they be massacred by him?"

"It's very simple. Once the butcher's knife is lifted up, it won't be put down easily." Sokov said: "Since the Jews in Germany can be wiped out, the Jews in the occupied countries in Europe can be wiped out. The Jews in our country, although more Jews in less than European countries have money, but they are also Jews after all, so naturally they cannot escape the butcher knife of the Germans."

He didn't want to continue discussing with Sidolin and Lunev on this issue, so he changed the topic in time: "Chief of Staff, Comrade Military Commissar, I think we should talk about the capture of Berlin. Now that Marshal Zhukov is leaving The closest troops to Berlin are only 60 kilometers away. I heard that General Katukov once promised Marshal Zhukov that as long as his troops are given the main offensive task, he can reach the city of Berlin within a day and night.”

Hearing what Sokov said, Sidolin's eyes widened in surprise: "Comrade Commander, if the information you said is true, it means that if Marshal Zhukov recklessly launches an attack on Berlin, it will be tomorrow at the latest. At night, they can reach the outskirts of Berlin."

"In theory." Sokov nodded and continued: "But if he really does this, the enemies on the left and right flanks of the Belarusian First Front Army will increase their offensive strength, forcing Marshal Zhukov to draw troops from the front. , to strengthen the defenses of the flanks, and thereby weaken the forces attacking Berlin."

"Also," he nodded on the map with his hand, and continued: "The road to Berlin is not flat. There is also a Zelo Heights here. Once an effective breakthrough can be carried out, Marshal Zhukov's troops can Charge unhindered to the outskirts of Berlin."

"Even if the German army deploys a solid defense in this place, it will not be able to stop Marshal Zhukov's army." Sidolin looked at the position of the Zelo Heights and said disapprovingly: "As long as the First Belarusian Army launches a strong attack, it will be a big hit. can open the way to Berlin."

Seeing Sidolin's optimism, Sokov smiled wryly and shook his head, saying: "Comrade Chief of Staff, you are too optimistic. I think Marshal Zhukov's troops must go through fierce battles and even pay a heavy price if they want to pass this high ground." Only after casualties can we pass here."

This time even Lunev couldn't stand it anymore: "Misha, do I think you are too pessimistic? I agree with Chief of Staff Sidolin that even if the German army is heavily guarded on the Zelo Heights, it still occupies The area is limited. If Marshal Zhukov launches a strong attack, the Germans will not be able to stop their hundreds of thousands of troops. I think one day at most, no, half a day is enough, Marshal Zhukov's troops can destroy the enemy on the high ground, open the channel The road to Berlin."

Sokov knew very well that the continuous victories had made commanders at all levels inevitably feel underestimating the enemy, even the famous Zhukov was no exception. He never thought about how long it would take for the troops to rush into Berlin. The Zelow Heights, which he didn't care about, almost became his Waterloo.

"Chief of Staff, Comrade Military Commissar, come and see." Sokov pointed to the map and said to the two of them: "According to the information provided by the Front Army Command, the deployment of the German Vistula Army Group is as follows: the right-wing Ninth Army is deployed in Austria. The left bank of the Dehe River is responsible for the frontal defense of the Belarusian First Front Army's attack towards Berlin; the Second Army is deployed on the left wing, responsible for preventing our Second Front Army from advancing westward, and ensuring the Danzig Corridor, protecting the border between Danzig and the Zemland Peninsula. The passage of the Frisch Sand Tsui between them; the 11th Army is deployed in the middle, and they will gather a large number of armored troops to launch a counterattack against our army according to the requirements of the German High Command."

After listening to Sokov's introduction, the expressions on the faces of Sidolin and Lunev became serious. They realized that if they want to launch an attack on Berlin, they must first eliminate the German Vistula Army Group so that they can concentrate Forces to carry out the next step.

   "Misha," Lunev asked first, "According to your analysis, how long will it take for our army to defeat the Vistula Army Group blocking our way and continue to advance westward?"

"I estimate that this battle will last at least until April." Sokov said cautiously: "It is the season of spring thaw, and forests and swamps have adversely affected the actions of the troops on both sides. We can only wait for the ground to recover." Only when it becomes advantageous to fight can we win the final victory."

Lunev quite agrees with Sokov's statement. He went out to inspect the troops two days ago, but the road became muddy due to continuous rain. . Fortunately, a patrol team passed by nearby, and with their help, he lifted his jeep out of the mud. This is true on ordinary roads, not to mention the battlefield of combat.

"Misha is right. The current road conditions are indeed not conducive to the deployment of the troops of both sides." Lunev nodded and said: "At least until the middle and late March, when the road becomes hard, the troops of both sides can start a real battle." decisive battle."

Until the beginning of March, Zhukov saw that the coordinated operations between the Polish 1st Army and his friendly forces did not achieve the desired results. After some careful consideration, he readjusted the deployment. General Koff's 1st Guards Tank Army, General Belov's 61st Army, 2nd Army, 47th Army, and the Polish 1st Army, which had not achieved results, formed a new assault group to attack East Pomerany. Addiswa Army Group launched a full-scale offensive.

  Under the powerful offensive of Zhukov's troops, the German defense was broken through, and the two areas of Kerslin and Kolberg on the Baltic Sea coast were successively occupied. As the German defense line was split by the Soviet army, each group army fell into the encirclement of the Soviet army one after another, and the situation on the battlefield developed in a direction favorable to the Soviet army.

  The battle lasted until March 10, and the troops of the Belarusian First Front Army had basically been liberated to the Baltic Sea coast at the mouth of the Oder River. Only the Kolberg area was defended by the huge German defenders. Zhukov handed over the battle to eliminate the German army to the Polish 1st Army. The Polish troops who received the task continued to attack the German army and captured the Kolberg Fortress on March 18.

   And Rokossovsky's Belarusian Second Front Army, with the cooperation of Katukov's 1st Guards Tank Army, successfully advanced to Danzig Bay. Front troops occupied Gdynia after heavy fighting on 28 March and Danzig on 30 March, thus ending the East Pomeranian Campaign.

With the end of the Battle of East Pomerania, the battle to attack Berlin was on the agenda again. While Zhukov convened his men to discuss how to capture the Zelo Heights and open the road to Berlin, Rokosov Sky convened an emergency military meeting with his subordinates to deploy the next steps for the various armies.

In this battle of East Pomerania, which lasted for more than a month, Sokov's 48th Army has been acting as a spectator. In the next battle, Rokossovsky intends to send the most difficult The task is given to them.

Rokossovsky said in front of the commanders attending the meeting: "Comrades, after more than a month of hard work, we have finally completed the East Pomeranian campaign entrusted to us by the base camp. The Vistula Army Group commanded by Himmler has made them unable to launch any form of active offensive against us. Next, our task is to fight with Marshal Zhukov's Belarusian First Front Army and Marshal Konev's Ukrainian First Front Army. Let's march to Berlin together!"

   As soon as he finished speaking, the whole venue burst into warm applause. Although everyone knows that after the Battle of East Pomerania, the next step is to march to Berlin, but when Rokossovsky said this, the commanders present still couldn't control themselves. Emotions, warm applause for his speech.

   Rokossovsky paused, waiting for the applause to stop. But after waiting for a while, he found that the applause not only did not stop, but became more enthusiastic. In desperation, he could only raise his hands and press down a few times to signal everyone to stop applauding.

Finally, when all the applause stopped and the room became quiet again, Rokossovsky continued: "During the Battle of East Pomerania, the troops of the various armies were weakened to varying degrees. , Ammunition is also consumed a lot. Therefore, in the next period of time, the Front Army Command will seize the time to replenish you with soldiers, weapons and ammunition. During your replenishment period, all combat tasks will be carried out by General Sokov The 48th Army to complete."

  When everyone heard what Rokossovsky said, they couldn't help but feel a little conflicted in their hearts, thinking that their troops had fought **** battles on the battlefield some time ago, while Sokov's 48th Army was watching. After finally waiting for the end of the battle, all the troops were disabled, and when they had to stop and rest, the 48th Army, which had been recharging its energy, was qualified to take the lead in attacking Berlin.

Some people wanted to stand up and protest against Rokossovsky's arrangement, but after thinking about it, not only Rokossovsky valued Sokov, but also the results achieved by the group army since the beginning of Operation Bagration were not their own. What can be compared, if you really protest, the person who will not step down in the end may be yourself. Thinking of this, those who originally wanted to raise objections all shut their mouths one after another, and no one wanted to be this early bird.

When Rokossovsky expressed his thoughts, he was also worried that the commanders below would say that he was biased. Arranging such an important combat mission for Sokov's troops was tantamount to giving the 48th Army the greatest honor in the future. . But after waiting for a while, he found that no one said a word, as if acquiescing to his arrangement, he couldn't help but heaved a sigh of relief. The reason why he has not allowed Sokov's troops to enter the field is because he considered that after entering Berlin, there must be a strong force to attack the symbol of Germany - the Reichstag, and the troops capable of this task, except Sokov's Outside of the 48th Army, there were no other troops.

Now that no one objected to his arrangement, Rokossovsky called Sokov up and told him in front of everyone: "General Sokov, the task your army has accepted is an honorable and arduous task. Whether you can take the lead in capturing the Reichstag in Berlin and win honors for our Belarusian Second Front that can be recorded in history depends on your performance."

  Since we have already talked about this, it would be somewhat unreasonable for Sokov not to express his opinion. He quickly straightened his body and said loudly: "Please rest assured, Comrade Marshal, I will never disappoint your trust in me. I assure you, as long as my 48th Army enters Berlin, it will definitely be the first to capture Berlin. Reichstag troops, let the honor of our 2nd Belarusian Front go down in history forever."

When Sokov said this, he thought to himself, if it was really the troops under his command that captured the Berlin Reichstag first, then the victory flag that appeared in later generations, and the serial number written on it, should be changed by " The 1st Belarusian Front Assault 150th Division of the 79th Infantry Army of the 3rd Army" became the "48th Army of the 2nd Belarusian Front".

  (end of this chapter)