The port of Novorossiysk, which belongs to the Krasnodar Territory, is the largest port city on the northeastern coast of the Black Sea and the headquarters of the 47th Army of the North Caucasus Front.

The 47th Army comprises the 32nd Guards Infantry Division, the 77th Infantry Division, the 86th Naval Infantry Brigade and the 103rd Infantry Brigade, and the 126th Separate Tank Battalion.

With such a small number of troops, to defend a front more than 80 kilometers wide, the commander of the 47th Army, Major General Kotov, felt a lot of pressure.

In particular, in the last three or four days, every daytime, German reconnaissance planes have always appeared one after another over the Taman Peninsula, and then they have been surrounded and intercepted by the Soviet Air Force, and air battles have broken out almost every day.

Major General Kotov was keenly aware that the German pilots risking their lives to conduct reconnaissance over the Taman Peninsula were certainly not looking for excitement because they felt that life was boring, but that the ultimate goal was definitely to prepare for the landing operation.

He wrote down his judgment in a report and presented it to his immediate superior, Marshal Budyonny, who was soon taken seriously.

The troops that had just been withdrawn from the Crimean peninsula, the 83rd, 142nd and 154th Naval Infantry Brigades, as well as the 79th Separate Tank Battalion, were assigned to the battle sequence of the 47th Army to consolidate the defenses of the southern coast of the Taman Peninsula.

On 30 June, Major-General Kotov had just deployed his newly arrived troops, and on 1 July, the situation on the battlefield on the Taman Peninsula deteriorated dramatically.

At three o'clock in the morning, before dawn, Major General Kotov was awakened by the terrible sound of air raid sirens, and then, with the help of his adjutant, hurriedly moved from his bedroom to the basement.

No sooner had the two of them entered the basement than the rumbling sound of explosions and earthquake-like shaking sensations reached the basement.

The sound of 37-mm and 85-mm anti-aircraft guns firing pierced the walls and penetrated the ears of Major General Kotov.

With the Luftwaffe's night attack on the port of Novorossiysk, the outpost of the landing battle on the Taman Peninsula officially began.

Hiding in the basement, Major General Kotov received telegrams from various units.

At four o'clock in the morning, the 83rd Naval Infantry Brigade sent a report that the central transportation town of the Taman Peninsula had been attacked by Bere.

Half an hour later, the 83rd Naval Infantry Brigade again reported that in the north of the peninsula, another important transportation town, Timryuk, had been attacked by enemy airstrikes.

At six o'clock in the morning, the 142nd Naval Infantry Brigade sent a telegram that air strikes were placed on the positions of the city of Taman on the western coast of the Taman Peninsula, as well as in the surrounding coastal areas.

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At five o'clock in the afternoon, the 77th Infantry Division sent a telegram that the town of Anapa and the surrounding area, southwest of the port of Novorossiysk, had come under air strike.

For a whole day, the Luftwaffe carried out an endless bombardment of the coast of the Taman Peninsula, as well as various transport hubs behind the coast, and conservatively estimated that the enemy flew more than 2,000 sorties, and the port of Novorossiysk alone was subjected to three air strikes.

At seven o'clock in the afternoon, Major General Kotov finally received a decisive report.

Soviet Air Force coastal reconnaissance aircraft discovered that a large fleet, heading east on the southern coast of the Crimean Peninsula, is expected to arrive on the Taman Peninsula in the early hours of tomorrow morning.

When the telegram was sent from the various units of the army group, Major General Kotov already knew that the enemy's landing operation was about to begin, but it was impossible to determine the approximate time and specific place.

The southern coast of the Taman Peninsula is neither big nor small, and it is necessary to determine in advance which location the enemy will choose to land on the coastline of hundreds of kilometers, so that the limited reserves can be used in the most critical areas.

With sharp intuition and telegrams from various units, Major General Kotov finally came to a conclusion.

During the day, all other areas were bombed once, except for the port of Novorossiysk with three air strikes, and the enemy must have landed in the port of Novorossiysk or on the nearby coast.

After all, after the enemy landed, he was going to march inland, and in order to make a big advance, it was necessary to have a reliable port to transport supplies to the troops, and the most suitable one was the port of Novorossiysk.

Thinking of this, Major General Kotov then issued an order for the command of the army group to issue a first-class combat readiness order to the garrison of the port of Novorossiysk, as well as to the defenders in the area of the town of Grebovka, about ten kilometers southwest of the port.

After dinner, Major General Kotov received a reply from Marshal Budyonny, telling him to make sure to repel the enemy who landed on the Taman Peninsula and protect the "back" of the Front.

Major General Kotov already knew through the radio station "Deutsche Welle" that the defense line in the area of the Kagilnik River had been broken by the enemy, and if the enemy successfully landed in the area of the Taman Peninsula, the entire Southern Front and the North Caucasus Front would be in danger of being flanked by the enemy on both sides and then encircled.

Major General Kotov, well aware of the heavy responsibility of himself and the 47th Army, received the report of Marshal Budyonny, and again went to inspect the front-line positions near the port.

By this time, the German air raids had stopped, and after inspecting the defenses of the port of Novorossiysk, Major General Kotov rushed by car to the western town of Glebovka to inspect the defense of the local garrison.

The port of Novorossiysk was the most important area of the defensive line, and the 47th Guards Infantry Division, the most elite of the subordinate units of the 32nd Guards Army, and the 126th Separate Tank Battalion were responsible for the local defense.

Standing on the hill of Glebovka, north of the town of Glebovka, on the position of a howitzer battalion of the 32nd Guards Infantry Division, a subordinate of the 122nd Guards Infantry Division, Major General Kotov was condescending and had a panoramic view of the coast in the distance.

"Major Bogdanov, your artillery positions are well arranged, and from here you can tightly seal the coast, and any enemy who wants to land in front of your eyes will be bombarded to pieces by our 122-mm howitzers."

"Comrade Major General, when will the enemy arrive?" Major Bogdanov, commander of the artillery battalion, asked.

"They are on their way and are expected to arrive tomorrow," said Major General Kotov. You ······"

Major General Kotov suddenly looked up at the sky, and faintly, a roar was heard, as if swarms of mosquitoes were approaching.

"Woo······" The piercing anti-aircraft sirens sounded again, and Major General Kotov hurriedly turned around and ran into the dugout, led by Major Bogdanov.

Less than three minutes after sitting in the bomb shelter, the feeling of the ground shaking and the sound of explosions came from outside the bomb shelter.

Looking at Major Bogdanov, Major General Kotov said: "Major, you should know by now that the enemy is on our side. ”

The air raid was short but violent, and after Major General Kotov came out of the bomb shelter, he saw that the black smoke had not yet cleared over the town of Glebovka, which he had stayed at the foot of the mountain, and the town that had been damaged in the air raid had become even more dilapidated in the new round of air raids.

Returning to the port of Novorossiysk, Major General Kotov questioned the staff officers and learned that after dinner, only one area of the town of Glebovka had been hit by air strikes, and he became more and more sure of his judgment.

The place of the enemy's landing, which is definitely the port of Novorossiysk and the surrounding area, the coast of the Glebovka region, is likely to be a key attack site.

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