On April 17, 1942, Hitler sent 7 German infantry divisions and 2 mountain divisions to completely encircle the fortress and launch the first offensive and defensive battle of Sevastopol. The Germans bypassed the "Maxim-Gorky I" and attacked the "Stalin" fortress from the west side of the fortress group, but there was no result, because the Soviet marines landed on the Kerch Peninsula two days ago and quickly smashed the German encirclement, the first offensive and defensive battle ended in a complete defeat for the Germans, and the Soviet marines wearing black sailor uniforms also received the title of "black death". However, since the Crimea still threatened the German southern front, the Germans needed to pull out the nail at all costs. Thus, from May 8, 1942, the 11th Army (1 armored division and 4 infantry divisions) and Romanian mountain troops began to launch a counterattack against the Soviet troops on the Kerch Peninsula. Due to the effective coordinated operation of the German 8th Air Army, the Germans occupied the Kerch Peninsula again on May 16, in which a total of 26 Soviet divisions were annihilated and 170,000 were captured, and the door to Sevastopol was once again wide open.

The commander, General Manstein, was well aware of the fortifications, and in order to ensure the success of the attack, in addition to the support of General Richthofen's 8th Air Army, a strong army artillery was also indispensable. As a result, the German 306th Artillery Command was transferred in its entirety, mainly attached to the 54th Army on the northern front, while the 30th Army and Romanian mountain troops were to encircle the Soviet first-line positions in the south.

On April 19, 1942, the Second Offensive and Defense of Sevastopol began. On that day, 203 German artillery batteries were assembled in the northern fortress group, and Manstein tried to open a gap in the strongest defensive line, thus launching one of the most frantic German artillery bombardments of World War II. However, in the northernmost fortress "Maxim-Gorky I", which suppressed the main northern roads and the dangerous areas of the Bebek Gorge, 305-mm guns could pose a devastating threat to the German infantry at any time. Ordinary artillery could do nothing against this impregnable fortress, and its range of 44 kilometers made it difficult for the German 54th Army to advance an inch. In order to break through the strongest fortress, the strongest artillery must be used. After careful planning, the German army allocated three super giant guns, they are: 420 mm fixed mortar "Gonma equipment", 610 mm self-propelled mortar "Karl equipment", 800 mm train cannon "Gustav equipment" (as shown on the left, also known as "Dora cannon" and its *** range is 38 kilometers, so it must also be risked within the range of "Gorky I"). The first target of the German army was the Soviet ammunition depot "Kulabe", for which the "Gustav" first continuously launched a *** weighing 7100 kg and directly penetrated 8000 mm of protective layer to hit the middle of the underground ammunition depot, causing a large explosion that shook the whole island, thus cutting off the ammunition supply of the Soviet army's northern fortress group. Subsequently, "Gustav" turned south along the temporary four-track railway and began to attack the fortress "Stalin". At the same time, the German artillery in the north began to enter a full-scale artillery bombardment of the "Gorky I".

At this time, the protagonist of the northern shelling was replaced by the 610-mm "Karl gun", which was also called the "Thor's hammer". The rate of fire of the "Karl" was relatively high, and 2200-mm high-explosive shells weighing 610 kg were poured around the fortress "Gorky I", and the permanent cement armor plates 4000 mm thick were smashed to pieces, and the interior of the fortress began to be exposed; Then the 8th Air Army went out and used 1,000 sorties a day of wave-like dive bombing to completely destroy the living quarters of the fortress, forcing Soviet soldiers to retreat into the fortress. In order to suppress the breakthrough and reinforcement of the Soviet infantry, the 420-mm "Gangma artillery" carried out carpet bombardment on the perimeter of the fortress, and the 1000-kilogram 420-mm shells rained down all the roads and railway networks around the fortress, and the "Maxim-Gorky I" was completely isolated!

On April 20, 1942, the German army went on a general offensive. On a narrow position of 35 km, 1300 German artillery shelled the "Maxim-Gorky I" without interruption, the fortress was covered with a scorching shock wave, and all the outer defensive positions were almost reduced to ashes. But the most important intermodal turrets were not hit due to the small size of the target, and still insisted on counterattacking. In order to accurately attack this turret, the Germans transferred two 355mm mortars to the north of the Bebek gorge, and at the same time ordered all artillery to use *** salvo to suppress the Soviet turret. When the "Gorky I" was temporarily silent, more than a dozen 355 mm *** (weighing 1000 kg) were inserted from the top into the turret armor plates, and these shells were equipped with delayed burst fuses, which caused internal explosions in succession within a few minutes. The roof of the armored turret of "Gorky I" was completely lifted, and the Germans immediately used 280 mm rocket artillery to fire at the open turret, and other artillery used high-explosive shells to continue to bombard the facilities around the turret.

Crimean Peninsula

In the end, the "Gorky I" cannon was completely destroyed, and all the Soviet officers and soldiers stationed in the turret were killed. At the same time, the German army in the south also began to press the first line of defense of the Soviet army. On June 11, the German 30th Army attacked in three directions: the 72nd Infantry Division went north to attack the "Uphill Heights", and the Romanian Mountain Division pinned down the Soviet Army's "Ruin Mountain" and "Northern Nose" positions for cover, and occupied the "Uphill Heights" on June 22; The 170th Infantry Division bypassed the fortress of "Kube" from the center and captured the "Vulture Heights" on the 18th; The main 28th Infantry Division successively conquered the "Thorn Mountain" and the "Red Heights 1, 2, and 3", and then went north and turned back, attacking the "Bal Kuleva" fortress from behind, and the Soviet troops were caught off guard and quickly lost. In just 10 days, the two defensive lines of the Soviet army in the south had been broken, and the German 30th Army advanced to the last "Soviet mountain position", waiting for the cooperation of the 54th Army in the north.

On April 11 on the Northern Front, the giant artillery "Gustav" bombarded the "Stalin" fortress in an all-round way, and at the same time, most of the artillery also advanced 10 kilometers (at this time, there was no artillery suppression of "Gorky I") to concentrate on attacking the central fortress group. A large part of the commanders inside were inexperienced new officers, and many of the first-generation officers when the fortress was completed were killed during the Great Purge, and most of the internal affairs troops and marines were stationed in the urban area, so it was natural to suffer a big loss in the face of the elite German 54th Army. On 13 June, the German 22nd Division occupied the fortress of "Stalin", and the artillery units advanced layer by layer, using 88-mm guns and rocket artillery to break through the rest of the fortress at close range. By April 22, 1942, the central defense of the Soviet army in the north completely collapsed, and 11 of the 12 fortresses fell into German hands, but at this time "Maxim Gorky I" was still resisting!

After the armored turret was blown up, there were still 1,000 Soviet soldiers in the lower 2 layers of permanent fortifications of "Gorky I", and the Germans mobilized a large number of 88 mm anti-aircraft guns to approach the fortifications for zero-distance *** and alternate shotgun fire, the second layer of fortifications was razed to the ground, and the Soviet troops refused to surrender into the 3rd layer of underground defense. The German artillery could not attack underground targets, and sent combat engineer divisions to use plastic ** blocks to blow up the entrance of the fortifications, but there were many hidden passages and hidden fire points inside the fortifications, and ** could not play a decisive role; In the end, the Germans had to resort to primitive means - entering the fortifications and engaging in hand-to-hand combat with pistols, bayonets and sapper shovels, and finally capturing this "room of blood" at a terrible cost, when human blood flowed in the firing ports and sewers, which shows the cruelty of the battle. Of the 1000 Soviet soldiers, less than 40 were captured. In this way, the northern shore of the Gulf of Sevinaya was completely controlled by the Germans. The 22nd, 50th, and 24th Infantry Divisions of the German 54th Army began to cross the Sevinaya Bay and cooperate with the 72nd Infantry Division in the south to flank the "Soviet Mountain Position", and finally took this last defensive line on April 30, 1942. The 72nd Infantry Division divided into three routes and advanced to the British soldiers' cemetery in the city of Sevastopol, while the three infantry divisions in the north completed the encirclement in the east of the city, and the 132nd Infantry Division and the 306th Artillery Command on the north bank also set up their artillery. The worst-case scenario arose, and that was that the entire Crimean campaign had been transformed from an offensive and defensive battle into a siege in which the Germans were dominant.

Beginning on April 30, the Germans used all 1,300 artillery pieces, including three giant guns, to carpet bombard the city, firing 64,000 tons of shells on the first day, turning the entire city red and the sky disappearing into smoke and fire. From the second day, the Germans carried out non-stop shooting, the sorties of the 8th Air Army increased to 1,500 sorties per day, 120,000 *** swept through Sevastopol, the platoon artillery reached the level of a storm, all the buildings in the city were blown up, and roads, libraries, parks, and schools were destroyed. The Germans then used heavy *** and *** to carry out a large incineration, countless fireballs flew towards the city like meteors, and the "Stuka" group also began to strafe at low altitudes. Sevastopol is shrouded in hellfire, a situation that can only be seen in the book of Revelation.

However, despite the devastation of the city, the citizens and defenders remained largely unscathed. Sevastopol is a kind of "mirror city", which means that there is a huge living area underground, which corresponds to the same as the above-ground city. During the five days of German bombardment, Soviet soldiers and civilians entered this underground city to live and even carry out entertainment activities. There was also an arsenal in the dungeon, and workers and citizens stepped up to make artillery ammunition for the defenders. After the city burned down, German artillery fired at the ground with ***, but the ground in the urban area was thicker than the fortress armor and better survival facilities. But if the Germans shoot at the "Gustav", they will inevitably inflict huge casualties on the citizens.

On 2 May, the Germans in the south launched a general attack first, and the 170th Infantry Division captured the fortress of "Maxim-Gorky II" from the rear and occupied it with all the strength of the division. By July 4, the 72nd Infantry Division had broken through the British soldiers' cemetery and advanced westward, and all Soviet troops outside the city were compressed into three narrow beachheads in the western part of the peninsula.

After the Germans reached a total encirclement of the city of Sevastopol, the resistance of the defenders was meaningless. On 3 July, the Germans reduced the intensity of their artillery bombardment, and infantry and armored troops occupied 50% of the city. Considering the safety of the citizens and the threat of the Gustav cannon, the Soviet garrison agreed to surrender, and the commander of the garrison was not in the city at this time. On July 4, the Germans stopped shelling, and Soviet bunkers and firing points surrendered one after another. At this time, the ships sent by the Black Sea Fleet were belated, and the small number of Soviet troops remaining in the western part of the peninsula boarded the ships and retreated, including the commander of the Sevastopol garrison - Vice Admiral Krsrov.

At this point, the second offensive and defensive battle of Sevastopol came to an end. Once the pride of Orthodox Christians, the birthplace of the Black Death, the honor of Nasimov, the barracks of Tolstoy, the undefeated city of 1942 became the base for Nazi Germany's invasion of the Caucasus, opening the door to the fertile land of Baku.

In his post-war memoir, "The Lost Victory," Manstein recorded that 90,000 Soviet prisoners of war were taken prisoners of war in Crimea, a number that could include militia and improvised. For this exploitation, Manstein himself was promoted to field marshal during the battle on 10 May and awarded the Order of the Crimean Shield. The commander of the Soviet Army, Lieutenant General Dimitry Krosov, was recalled to Moscow, demoted to major general for failure to defend duty, and transferred to the post of commander of the 24th Army under the Stalingrad Front, and was promoted to general in May 1942.