| Moravia–Ostrava offensive | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theEastern Front ofWorld War II | |||||||
 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Germany Hungary |  Soviet Union Czechoslovakia | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Ferdinand SchörnerGotthard HeinriciWalther Nehring | Ivan PetrovAndrey Yeryomenko | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| : 250,000 killed, wounded, or captured[1] 4,000 guns, 1,570 mortars, 1,087 tanks and assault guns, and 737 aircraft destroyed or captured[2] : Unknown | : 23,960 killed 88,660 wounded[3] : 1,528 killed or wounded[4] | ||||||
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TheMoravia–Ostrava offensive operation (Russian:Моравско-Остравская наступательная операция) was an offensive by theRed Army duringWorld War II that lasted from March 10 to May 6, 1945, and was the Soviet conquest of present-day Eastern Czech Republic (Moravia also part of Polish andCzech Silesia).
In the spring of 1945, the frontline on the southwestern border ofLesser Poland ran fromWieliczka viaJaworzno andGliwice toMiędzylesie.
The4th Ukrainian Front (Colonel GeneralIvan Petrov) and the right wing of the southern2nd Ukrainian Front (Rodion Malinovsky) were far behind the other fronts of the Red Army. On the western part of the High Tatras, a frontal arch had formed, covering the northeastern and southeastern borders of Slovakia. The 4th Ukrainian Front, located in front of the western Carpathian ridge and between Dukla and Kaschau, had 317,300 men, 2,900 guns and mortars, 184 tanks and self-propelled guns and 416 aircraft at the beginning of March 1945.
The enemyArmy group Heinrici (German1st Panzer Army and1st Hungarian Army), under command ofGotthard Heinrici counted over 150,000 men, 1,500 guns and mortars, 100 tanks and 120 aircraft.
On March 10, the offensive of the 4th Ukrainian Front began with the38th Army (GeneralKirill Moskalenko) fromPszczyna andČerná Voda area. The Red Army was able to advance only 3–4 km on the first day of the attack. By the evening of March 17, the German defense had been pushed back on a 15 km wide front about 6–12 km deep. The operational targets had not been reached, but the losses were considerable. When the offensive of the60th Army (Colonel GeneralPavel Kurochkin) of the1st Ukrainian Front against the GermanXI Army Corps nearRacibórz was successful, the focus was shifted to the right wing of the front.
On 24 March, the 4th Ukrainian Front began the new major offensive. The South Upper Silesian and North Moravian industrial area was now attacked from the north and east at the same time. The 38th Army attacked the front of the GermanLIX. Armeekorps (General of the InfantryErnst Sieler) from the area aroundSohrau towardsLoslau. On the first day the German defensive lines were successfully broken through and an area of 20 km width and 7 km depth was conquered. A fast-tracked counter-attack by the German 8th and 19th Panzer Divisions near Loslau could not restore the situation. On 26 March, after a hard battle the positions atLoslau were lost. The troops of the 60th Army and the1st Guard Army (Andrei Grechko) were able to bring closer towardsBohumín.
Army GeneralAndrey Yeryomenko, appointed as the new commander of the 4th Ukrainian Front on March 26, had the units of the 38th Army attack again on March 27. His troops were able to penetrate another 5 km deep and approach theOder atBukau at a distance of 2 to 3 km. On April 2, the 95th and 126th Rifle Corps nearRogau managed to cross the Oder and form a bridgehead. At the same time, the 11th Rifle Corps crossed the river atTworkau. In the east, the Soviet18th Army was able to overcome the positions on the Tatras and takeRužomberok. Until April 5, however, the incursion of the 1st Guards and the 18th Army towardsFrankstadt, which has now been extended to a depth of 20 km, could not be extended due to increasing German resistance. On 6 April, the 60th Army of Jeremenko's Front, which had previously been subordinated to the 1st Ukrainian Front, was placed under the direction of the 4th Ukrainian Front. The1st Czechoslovak Army Corps (GeneralLudvík Svoboda, from 3 April GeneralKarel Klapálek) was transferred to the 18th Army (Lieutenant GeneralAnton Gastilovich) and was able to distinguish itself on 4 April by liberatingLiptovský Mikuláš.
The Stavka then changed the further operational plan to the southwest towardsOlomouc, because the possibility was offered to cut off the 1st Panzer Army. The aim of the Soviet offensive was to cut off its connection with theGerman 17th Army (General of the InfantryFriedrich Schulz). Field MarshalFerdinand Schörner moved five German divisions to reinforce the threatened positions of the 1st Panzer Army in theOpava area. At that time, the Germans still were able to attack the Soviets and counterattacked near the village south ofLoslau.
On April 22, Opava fell to the 60th Army, and on April 30,Ostrava fell into the hands of the 38th Army, making the positions of the GermanXXXXIX. Mountain Corps (78th, 320th Infantry 3rd and 4th Mountain Division) untenable. The 17th Guard Rifle Corps (Lieutenant GeneralNikifor Medvedev) of the Soviet 18th Army, which is still standing in the east, was finally able to force the GermanLXXII Army Corps to retreat from the northernVáh section and occupyŽilina on 30 April. The 1st Panzer Army immediately began with the retreat towards Olomouc in order to avoid encirclement. On May 6,Šternberk and the approaches to Olomouc fell into Soviet hands. Soviet troops occupied the Moravian Ostrava industrial area and created the conditions for the advance into the central areas of Czechoslovakia.
The Red Army lost 112,620 men (23,960 killed and 88,660 wounded).[5] Over 5,000 Soviet soldiers were buried in the cemetery inWodzisław Śląski. The 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps lost 1,528 killed or wounded between 12 April and 18 April during the offensive.[6] Germany suffered 250,000 casualties, 150,000 of which were captured while the rest were either killed, wounded or missing.[7]
