Hearing the latest supreme instructions from Comrade Stalin, both Pavlov and Shaposhnikov were a little at a loss for what to do. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

Because the order on the formation of the Bryansk Front was officially issued on May 1, and now it is only May 3. The commander of the Bryansk Front, Colonel-General Golikov (formerly Deputy Chief of the General Staff and Chief of Intelligence), the Military Commissar Mehris (the king of the small reports), and the Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Kazakov, had just arrived, and the command of the Front had not yet been formed.

At the same time, the troops of the Bryansk Front were not in place, except for the 1st and 2nd Tank Armies, which were originally stationed in Moscow and Kalinin, which had been loaded and began to be transported to Bryansk, the 38th, 40th, and 48th armies attached to the Front were still being assembled. According to the previous practice of assembling and mobilizing large units of the Red Army, the main forces of the Bryansk Front were able to be deployed in the territory of the Bryansk Oblast by May 15. And it's only May 3rd!

"No, another 12 days? How can this work? Stalin listened to Pavlov's time about the dispatch of troops and immediately began to shake his head. The armored cluster of the Germans advanced dozens of kilometers in a day, and in 12 days it could reach Moscow! What else is being formed in the Bryansk Front? The direct formation of the Moscow Front was successful.

"And why are we waiting for all the army groups to be in place?" Stalin then asked rhetorically, "When will the 1st and 2nd tank armies reach Bryansk?" ”

"Tomorrow we will be able to reach the city of Bryansk," Shaposhnikov replied, "but the route of the German army to the north should be west of Gomel in Belarus, more than 250 kilometers from the city of Bryansk......"

"I don't want to hear this," Stalin interrupted Shaposhnikov and asked, "when will you be able to get to Gomel with 2 tank armies?" ”

"It will take five days," Shaposhnikov replied, "and it would be nice to be in place on May 8 and to go on the offensive on the 9th." ”

"And what about the Germans?" Stalin pointed with his pipe at the black arrow on the map that had already broken through the Dnieper near Lechtsia, "When will they get to the vicinity of Smolensk?" ”

"Now it should be only their vanguard that will break through," Shaposhnikov replied, "and they will need a maximum of two days to erect pontoon bridges that can cross the river for the large army, and at the same time the troops will need to replenish fuel, ammunition and supplies." It is estimated that their main forces will complete the crossing on May 6, and if they can start northward on the 7th, they will be able to approach Smolensk on May 12-14. ”

"So can we destroy or defeat them with tank armies of the 1st and 2nd armies?" Stalin then asked.

The 1st and 2nd Tank Armies together had 5 tank corps and 3 mechanized corps, as well as a number of artillery, cavalry and engineering units.

Each tank corps currently has 3 tank brigades (12 tank battalions) and 3 assault artillery battalions in armored forces. However, the Soviet tank battalion had far fewer tanks than the German armored battalion, and a Soviet tank battalion had only 22 T-34 tanks or 15 KV series heavy tanks or 22 T60/T70 light tanks. The standard number of self-propelled guns of a Soviet assault artillery battalion was 8-17 (8 with Su-122 assault guns and 17 with Su-85 tank destroyers).

Therefore, the number of tanks/assault guns in a Soviet tank corps is between 270 and 300 - this is of course the number at full strength, but although the number of tanks in the Soviet Union is sufficient, the equipment is not in good condition, and the equipment that can actually be used on the battlefield is often only 50%-60% of the data on paper.

At present, the mechanized corps of the USSR has a similar number of tanks/assault guns as the tank army, with a total of 9 tank battalions (2 of which are heavy tank battalions directly under the military headquarters), 4 assault artillery battalions, and 1 self-propelled artillery regiment (8 Su-122 and 17 Su-85). At full strength, a Soviet mechanized corps also had more than 250 tanks and assault artillery.

The 5 tank corps and 3 mechanized armies of the 1st and 2nd tank armies together had more than 2,100 tanks/assault guns. In terms of numbers alone, the strength is equivalent to 4 German Panzer Divisions with heavy armored battalions.

But that's just a comparison of strength on paper, what kind of situation is it to really fight, Pavlov and Shaposhnikov don't have a bottom in their hearts.

"Comrade General Secretary, at the moment we do not fully understand the strength of the armored clusters of the German troops that broke through on the southern route." Pavlov pondered the wording, "According to preliminary estimates, it was a German Panzer Army, estimated to have 5-10 Panzer divisions or Panzergrenadier Divisions, which was very powerful, and the Germans also had air superiority. ”

"That's not sure?" Stalin did not show an unhappy expression, because he himself, like Pavlov, felt uncertain. "So...... And what about the 5th Tank Army? In this way, the number of tanks/assault guns in the Bryansk Front will exceed 3,000, which will be enough to defeat the German armored cluster on the southern route, right? ”

The 5th Tank Army, which now belongs to the Western Front, is the most powerful army group in the hands of the Western Front, and is also the main armored counterattack force of the Western Front.

"But that would seriously weaken Smolensk's defenses." Pavlov whispered to Stalin that "now Smolensk has only the 3rd Army, the 5th Tank Army and the 22nd Infantry Army." ”

"Transfer Chervin's 16th Army to Smolensk." Stalin took a few puffs of his cigarette, "This army, like the 3rd Army, is a group army composed of mechanized corps, infantry corps and cavalry units, and its combat effectiveness is very strong. ”

"But after the transfer of the 16th Army, the defense of East Belarus was very empty." Shaposhnikov hurriedly said, "Now in addition to sending 2 armored clusters to outflank the Belarusian salient, the Germans have also sent a third armored group from Vilnius to the southeast to attack, the purpose is likely to cut the Belarusian salient." So we need to use the 16th Army to stop them. ”

Now Manstein's German Army Group Center had a total of 3 Panzer armies. The 4th Panzer Army, commanded by General Hoth, was the force moving south from Velikiye Luki; by Eberhard. Feng. The 1st Panzer Army, commanded by General Mackensen, was the force that had just broken through the Dnieper River at Lechitsa; by Walter. The 2nd Panzer Army, commanded by General Moder, was attacking from Vilnius and preparing to cut through the German cluster in the Belarusian salient.

Moreover, according to the provisions of the "Purple Plan", the three German Panzer armies also had plans to meet each other. If their respective attacks go well, the three Panzer Corps will join forces at the junction of the three regions in the southern part of Smolensk Oblast, the eastern part of Mogilev Oblast (part of Belarus), and the northwestern part of Bryansk Oblast.

In this way, the Belarusian salient will be surrounded and split into two, and the three Panzer armies will be able to join forces in a decisive battle with the Soviet Red Army near Smolensk, perhaps the largest in human history!

According to the mainstream view of the German General Staff and the senior generals of the Eastern Front, after this Armageddon on an unprecedented scale, if Germany did not want to destroy the Soviet Union, then the Soviet-German war should be over -- when Stalin had neither the strength to relieve Leningrad nor the forces to encircle Moscow, would there be any other way out but to sue for peace?

And this trend was undoubtedly revealed on the battlefield situation map obtained by the Soviet High Command on the afternoon of May 3.

So Stalin could also see at a glance the unprecedented crisis facing him and the Soviet power as a whole.

"Can the 16th Army hold off a German Panzer Army?" Stalin shook his head and said, "It's impossible!" If we had used the 16th Army to block the Germans attacking from Neurves, then this force would have ceased to exist in a few days! And the Red Army on the Smolensk side will also be surrounded by the enemy due to the lack of troops. In this way, the German 3rd Route Army will complete the division! At that time, the Bryansk Front will also be defeated, and the Kalinin Front, even if it recovers Velikiye Luki, will not be able to prevent the Northern Ludgers from receiving supplies from other directions. As for Smolensk, it will eventually fall in the early summer of this year...... In this way, the German army would be able to reach Moscow before the winter of 1943! ”

Stalin suddenly looked at Pavlov and Shaposhnikov with cold eyes and asked: "Is this your purpose?" Do you want to fight a battle for Moscow? ”

Stalin's mind was broken, Pavlov and Shaposhnikov trembled at the same time, Pavlov reacted relatively quickly, and immediately denied it: "Comrade General Secretary, the enemy will not approach Moscow, I assure you!" ”

"Guaranteed?" Stalin smiled, "I don't want to hear any guarantees, I want a way, what do you have a way?" ”

Pavlov and Shaposhnikov looked at each other - it was not easy to be an errand boy under the great leader of the Soviet Union!

Shaposhnikov sighed and said a plan that had just been pondered, "Use Smolensk in the middle to attract the German army on the northern route, create conditions for the Kalinin Front of the northern front to raid Velikiye Luki, for which the 16th Army needs to be transferred to Smolensk."

In order to achieve this goal, it was necessary to delay the German armored cluster that had broken through from the center of the Belorussian salient in order to concentrate three tank armies on the southern front and the German southern group...... To do this, it was necessary to take a risk on the Belarusian battlefield and transfer the 4th Army out of Minsk to cooperate with the 10th Army's central armored clusters that were delaying the Germans.

At the same time, the 11th and 13th armies, deployed on the western and southern fronts of the Belarusian salient, had to abandon their existing positions and concentrate on Minsk, ready to defend the capital of Soviet Belarus! (To be continued.) )