“…… Fierce battles unfolded as scheduled, with anti-tank guns, cluster grenades, explosive packs and even Molotov cocktails! All the weapons that could come in handy were thrown into the battle by the Polish soldiers to block the Soviet tank clusters. And we were asked to put Soviet tanks at a distance of 500 meters before they could fire. Because then it would prevent the Soviet tank cluster from escaping very quickly. But surely this order did not consider whether the sacrifice of these young Polish lives was worthwhile? The weapons in their hands could not destroy the tank units effectively covered by the Soviet infantry, and seeing that the Soviet troops rushed in front of them, many brave Polish soldiers desperately raised their rifles with bayonets, climbed out of the hastily dug promenades, and fought hard to resist the attack of the Soviets with their flesh and blood......" The above is excerpted from the memoirs of Lieutenant General He Bolie, Chief of Staff of the Armored Corps of the Chinese National Defense Forces, "My World War II Career".

At 7:20 a.m. on November 8, the Soviets' tank cluster broke through the first line of defense of the Polish infantry and at the same time entered the "500 meters" range of fire. The tanks all looked a little damaged, and it seems that the heroic resistance of the Polish army still caused some damage to them. When the T-26 tank with the head drove to a distance of about 450 meters from the 8th Assault Gun Battalion, the 88mm cannon finally began to roar! The tank was hit and exploded! The other Soviet tanks did not stop, and continued to advance slowly and fearlessly. Then came the second and third...... It was not until the tenth Soviet tank was blown up that the Red Army tank cluster reacted. Several T-26 tanks quickly blasted into the woods with their 37mm guns, several of which hit a No. 3 assault gun, but did not cause any significant damage to its frontal 70mm thick high-quality bulletproof steel plate.

However, the Soviets apparently did not give up. The future Chief of Staff of the Wehrmacht Armoured Corps, Lieutenant General Ho Bo Lie, who was the commander of the 8th Assault Artillery Battalion that year, described it in his memoirs: "...... The battle was brutal. The tanks and infantry of the Soviets never seem to be finished! Every one of our assault guns was firing at the maximum rate of fire, and the battlefield was full of Soviet tanks that were smoking and on fire. But it is hard to believe that the tank clusters of the Soviet Red Army showed no signs of collapse. On the contrary, they burst out with greater courage in an unfavorable situation and pounced like madness on the Polish infantry line covering us...... Their efforts soon paid off. The line of Polish infantry was again broken through by the Soviets. So, we had to retreat behind another line of Polish infantry that had just been put together, and continue to fire the Soviet tanks with 88mm guns.

…… Similar battles were repeated several times. By the end of the day's fighting, I was sure that at least 100 Soviet tanks had been destroyed by our battalion! It was my first battle, and it was a pretty successful one! For me. November 8, 1937. It is undoubtedly of special commemorative significance. As a result of this battle, I received a Order of the Blue Sky and White Sun of the 1st degree, a Knight of the Order of Poland, in addition to many people in our battalion who received awards such as the Order of the Blue Sky and the White Sun of the 2nd degree, the Order of Martial Arts of the 1st degree, the Order of Martial Arts of the 2nd degree, and so on. ”

The strong combat effectiveness shown by the Chinese 8th Assault Artillery Battalion in this day's battle also saved the fate of the 1st Polish Army, which was once on the verge of collapse, but in just half a day's battle. The ministry still paid nearly 3,000 casualties. The 300 No. 2 and No. 3 tanks of the Chinese Eighth Panzer Division broke the Soviet cavalry unit and appeared on the left flank of the Soviet tank group, the first tank battle in human history. It's finally time to get staged!

At this time, Zhukov still had about 200 tanks that could move, and Hu Lian brought 300 tanks. The squadron has an absolute advantage in numbers. And in terms of the performance of the tank, the Chinese naturally have a greater advantage. However, Zhukov, the god of war of the Soviet army, is not an ordinary person, he has already prepared a killing move! It was his 12 artillery batteries armed with ZIS-1 57mm anti-tank guns. The 12 companies, with a total of 60 ZIS-1 57mm anti-tank guns, were ambushed in a Polish village in the center of the Soviet front. Now Zhukov's 4th Tank Army only needs to lead the Chinese tanks over, and it will be able to use the huge power of the 57mm anti-tank gun to teach the other side a hard lesson! However, the process of luring the enemy is quite painful, and it also looks a bit like suicide.

The roar of the engines of about 500 tanks on both sides obscured everything else on the battlefield. The 300 tanks of the squadron rushed at full speed through the smoke of gunpowder, and the mercury roared like a rain. The light tanks of the Soviet army quickly reversed and fought and retreated, trying to lead the Chinese into a trap. The retreating Soviet tanks were hit one after another, and they were directly blasted into a pile of burning parts, but they had almost no power to fight back, but the tanks of the squadron were also unable to close the distance between the two sides.

Soviet tanks fought and withdrew, and after paying a heavy price, gradually approached the intended location. At about 9:30 a.m., the tank cluster of the Chinese 8th Panzer Division, which had not been able to see through Zhukov's scheme, finally came within range of Soviet anti-tank guns. With a burst of "Bang! Bang! There was a dull bang ......", and the frontal protective steel plates of the No. 7 or eight tanks that rushed to the front were pierced. Five of the No. 2 vehicles were hit by bullets and caused a fire, followed by several loud "booms", the tanks were blown into several pieces, and all the crew members were killed. The other three were fortunate enough to be killed by an ammunition explosion and were able to be sent to the field repair shop for repairs after the battle.

The Chinese tank, which found itself in a possible anti-tank ambush trap, quickly turned its guns around and fired at the Soviet anti-tank gun positions. After dumbing out some Soviet anti-tank guns, the Chinese tanks roared again and began to chase the Soviet tanks. But it didn't take long for a few more Soviet anti-tank guns to start wielding...... Naturally, these cannons also became live targets for Chinese tanks after firing a few rounds of ammunition and were bombed into parts. However, in this way, the vigilance of the Chinese has also begun to increase, and no matter how lured by the remaining Soviet tanks, they will not pursue!

Lieutenant General Wu Tuohao, then deputy chief of staff of the Chinese Expeditionary Force (the advance force has been officially renamed the expeditionary force), personally went to the battlefield to supervise the battle. In his report to Luo Yaoguo afterwards, he described it this way: "Yesterday I personally observed the tank battle between 300 tanks of my 8th Panzer Division and 200 tanks of the enemy in the southwest of Wovomin, and hundreds of artillery pieces from both sides also participated in the battle at the same time. As a result, during the 2 and a half hour of chase, burning Soviet tanks spread all over the battlefield, and the sky was soon obscured by the black smoke produced by the burning tanks! Some Soviet T-26 light tanks were pierced by our army's 75mm caliber armor-piercing shells, which caused ammunition detonation. The turret was lifted and spun into the sky; After being shot, the out-of-control Soviet tank smashed into a ball, and the charred and deformed bodies of the burned Soviet tankmen were scattered all over the plain...... After paying a heavy price, the Soviets finally managed to introduce our tank cluster near a Polish village, where some ZIS-1 anti-tank guns were deployed! The powerful armor-piercing capabilities of this artillery quickly destroyed 8 of our tanks. The village was then bombarded by our tank guns and howitzers in the rear, but it did not destroy all the ZIS-1 anti-tank guns. They soon opened fire on us again, destroying 7 tanks again and forcing us to abandon the pursuit of the remaining Soviet tanks. As a result, the defeated Soviet troops were able to withdraw from the battlefield safely......"

After that, the situation on the battlefield gradually calmed down, and the artillery and infantry of both sides fired at each other for a while. It was around 11:30 p.m. The Soviet Red Army finally began to retreat, giving up the day's victory. And at this time, the entire field south of Vovomin was littered with the wreckage of Soviet tanks!

According to the war report jointly released by China and Poland after the war, in the battle on November 8, the Chinese and Polish coalition forces destroyed a total of 236 Soviet tanks! 1,082 Soviet officers and soldiers were captured, and 2,245 Soviet corpses were found. The price paid by the Polish army was 1,432 killed, 1,518 seriously wounded, and 542 missing; The squadron suffered 226 casualties and 103 serious wounded. 26 people were missing, 38 tanks were lost (16 of which were repaired).

……

Inside the Kremlin, Stalin's face was gloomy. Zhukov's telegram was on his desk, and Voroshilov, Shaposhnikov and Yagoda were urgently summoned.

"The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army suffered a shameful defeat in Poland! Zhukov was no longer fit to be the commander of the 27 Army. He had a serious error in his judgment of the Polish war situation, Yagoda, immediately examine him and check if he is a White Guard who has slipped through the net! He served in the tsar's army, and he also received medals! ”

In the face of Stalin's rare gaffe, the three people in the office were a little trembling, and no one dared to speak. They all knew in their hearts that Stalin was hiding the fear in their hearts. To be sure, Zhukov was in a very dangerous situation in Poland, and the task to be accomplished was very difficult. Of course, the defeat of Vovomin was due to Zhukov's underestimation of China's armored forces, but the more important reason was that Zhukov had to respond to the battle in order to complete the task of attracting and pinning down the German Army Group South. Although now defeated, compared with the series of crushing defeats of the Far Eastern Front, the defeat of Vovomin was at best a small defeat.

So Stalin was angry not because of this defeat, but because in this defeat he saw the great risks of the "Baltic coastal operation" that was about to begin! If the "Baltic Coastal Operation" failed, then the fate of the Soviet state and Stalin himself would be irretrievable!

"Do we have to reconsider the 'Baltic Sea Coast Operation'?" Stalin stared at Shaposhnikov with a stern expression, "What is the opinion of the General Staff on this?" We can't even deal with 1 Chinese Panzer Division, can we defeat a German Panzer Division with more numbers and better equipment? ”

Both Voroshilov and Shaposhnikov understood Stalin's mood at the moment, and he was now like a gambler who knew he would lose, but still gambled! And the entire Soviet Union is now in such a predicament. If the "Baltic coastal operation" had been abandoned and the main forces had been withdrawn to the Stalin line, perhaps they would have been able to hold out for a few more days, but in the end they would still be killed. And the German army that attacked Lithuania and Latvia had little hope of victory, but there was always a little ......

"I can't." Shaposhnikov didn't dare to joke with his head now, he shook his head and replied: "From the Battle of Vovomin, we can conclude that the 37mm guns of the T-26 tank do not pose much threat to the No. 2 and No. 3 tanks owned by China and Germany, and although the ZIS-1 anti-tank gun has relatively good anti-tank capabilities, it seems that it is difficult to defeat a large number of enemy tanks by relying on inconvenient artillery." ”

"Oh, so you're suggesting that I abandon the 'Baltic Coastal Operations'?" A look of indecision appeared on Stalin's face. He also knew that this 'Baltic Coastal Operation' was his last chance. If you give up. When the weather improves, not only will Germany's powerful armored forces be able to exert their maximum power, but the more powerful Luftwaffe will also dominate the skies again. When the time comes, will there be any other way out for himself and the Soviet Union except to wait for death?

"No, I also don't recommend abandoning the 'Baltic Coastal Operational Plan'. Although it was difficult for us to achieve the same victory as we did over Poland in this operation, it was impossible to destroy the German panzer divisions...... However, it is still possible that we will inflict heavy losses on Germany and force Hitler to reconsider the direction of his expansion. ”

Stalin's brow furrowed deeply. Although he felt uncertain about the decisive battle with Germany, he did not intend to sit idly by, even if it was a desperate battle with Germany!

"Alright! We cannot sit idly by. We must fight this battle! Now I announce the reorganization of the former Polish Front into the 1st Baltic Front. The former Leningrad Front was reorganized into the Second Baltic Front...... At the same time, the General Command of the Northern Front was established, and Comrade Tukhachevsky was officially appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Northern Front, Comrade Kirov as the General Political Commissar, and Comrade Gakhalepsky as the Chief of Staff of the Northern Front Command. And also...... That Zhukov first asked him to go to the General Command of the Northern Front as deputy chief of staff, and then let's see how he performs. ”

……

"The Supreme Command has already issued an order! Comrade Stalin demanded that we must strike hard at all costs the fascist bandits who are vainly trying to invade the Soviet Union! "The staff officer's loud report resounded through the General Headquarters of the Red Army on the Northern Front in the Smolny Palace in Leningrad. In the excited voice of the young staff officer, the entire command headquarters suddenly fell silent. Everyone's eyes turned to the staff officer who rushed in. Tukhachevsky, who had been standing in front of the map and silently glancing, suddenly turned around, rushed to the staff officer and snatched the telegram from him.

Sure enough, it was sent in the name of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief Stalin. It seems that the Supreme Leader has made up his mind to fight a decisive battle against fascist Germany! Tukhachevsky let out a breath of air, and the hard work of the day was swept away, and the whole person seemed to suddenly be full of energy. There is a hint of confidence in his eyes. He glanced at his political commissar Kirov. Kirov's expression was even more agitated than he was. Gritted his teeth and nodded slightly. The moment has finally come to decide the fate of the Soviet Motherland! And the commissar of Kirov is now the supreme commander of the more than three million workers' and peasants' Red Army on the Northern Front!

Seeing Kirov nodding at himself, Tukhachevsky shouted: "War Division!" Prepare to record commands. "The Northern Front Command was established on the basis of the command of the Leningrad Front. The staff officers were already in place, and now they were all gathered around the chief of staff, General Gakhalepsky, who opened the notebook and eagerly awaited Tukhachevsky's order. Now under this command, more than 70 corps have been concentrated. They will follow the orders of Tukhachevsky and Kirov and start a huge battle on the land on the Baltic coast! It was also a major battle that decided the future and fate of the Soviet Union!

Tukhachevsky glanced at the staff officers with excited faces, slowly pointed to the map, and said: "Comrades, we have achieved a great victory in the previous month's battles, thwarted the invasion attempts of fascist Poland, and regained the lost territory on the east bank of the Bouag River. And now it's the turn of fascist Germany to teach us the iron fist of the USSR! Only by defeating Germany can our Soviet Motherland be saved. So everyone must work hard! But fascist Germany was a stubborn enemy ten times stronger than fascist Poland, and in order to defeat them, we must also be prepared to suffer huge losses! In just a few words, all the Soviet officers present had solemn expressions on their faces. Tukhachevsky's face was calm and he slapped it heavily on the map: "Although our strength is not as strong as that of fascist Germany, we have concentrated this force and twisted it into a fist!" And the enemy's forces are now scattered to Poland. Now they have two army groups, Army Group North stationed in Latvia and Army Group Center stationed in Lithuania, and their total strength is estimated at around 2.5 million people! And well-equipped and well-trained. But most of them haven't actually fought a war, unlike 2 million of our 3.5 million people who are veterans of gunfire! This is our advantage, but it is not the only advantage, because we still have the initiative on the battlefield, which is very critical for operations. Now we have to take full advantage of this advantage and launch a preemptive strike to destroy or inflict heavy damage on one of these two German Army Group groups! Our main target is Army Group North, which is made up of armies from Germany, China, Italy, etc.! The German Army Group Center adopted a diversionary offensive strategy. ”

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