The First Battle of Grozny was the Russian Army's invasion and subsequent conquest of the Chechen capital, Grozny, during the early months of the First Chechen War. The attack would last from December 1994 to March 1995, which resulted in the military occupation of the city by the Russian Army and rallied most of the Chechen nation around the government of Dzhokhar Dudayev. First Battle of Grozny Part of First Chechen War A Chechen militia fighter takes cover behind a burned-out Russian BMP-2 armoured vehicle Date 22 December 1994 - 6 March 1995 (2 months, 1 week and 5 days) Location Grozny, Chechnya, Russia 43°19′N 45°43′E Result Russian victory[a] Belligerents Russia Chechen Republic of Ichkeria Chechen Republic of Ichkeria UNA-UNSO[1] Commanders and leaders Pavel Grachev Ivan Babichev [ru] Anatoly Kvashnin Konstantin Pulikovsky Lev Rokhlin Vladimir Shamanov Viktor Vorobyov (general) [ru] † Ivan A. Savin [ru] † Dzhokhar Dudayev Aslan Maskhadov Shamil Basayev Turpal-Ali Atgeriyev Ruslan Gelayev Salman Raduyev Akhmed Zakayev Apti Tokayev [ru] † Ali Adayev [ru] † Oleksandr Muzychko Strength 40,000[2]-60,000[3] up to 1,000[4] (5,000 according to one estimate)[5] Russian claim: 12,000[3] Casualties and losses Contemporary Western estimate: Over 5,000 soldiers killed[6] Per Russia: 1,426 soldiers killed (including 408 missing) 4,670 wounded 96 captured (official figure) 62 tanks destroyed 163 other armored vehicles destroyed[7] Unknown >27,000 civilians killed, including 5,000 children (estimated)[8] The initial assault resulted in considerable Russian casualties and demoralization in the Russian forces. It took another two months of heavy fighting, and a change in tactics, before the Russian Army was able to capture Grozny. The battle caused enormous destruction and casualties amongst the civilian population and saw the heaviest bombing campaign in Europe since the end of World War II.[9]
