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In this last episode of our series in which we presented the offensive of the Red Army in Borta Dracului (June 3-16, 1944), we reach Nemtisor (village and river), the maximum point reached by the Soviet troops. It may seem strange, but the episode Nemtisor represents only the beginning of the Soviet offensive, respectively the day of June 4, 1944. Let's shed some light. Being on a rather static front for several months and seeing that it has no chance to break through the Romanian casemate alignment that blocked access to the Neamt River valley (Ozana) east of Târgu Neamt, the Soviet troops mobilized and forcibly attacked an area forested, naturally protected, but weaker guarded by the Romanian army, located north of Târgu Neamt. The main direction of attack, presented in previous episodes, was along the Culesa Valley (Poiana village - Poiana Crucii - the site of the current Holy Cross Monastery - Borta Dracului), crosses the Plesu Ridge (in the Caprarie Hill area) and descends to the Nemtisor River . The installation of a bridgehead in the Nemtisor Valley would have brought huge tactical advantages to the Red Army on its way to Berlin. On the morning of June 3, 1944, the Soviet offensive started, until evening, shattering several Romanian defense alignments, stopping in front of the last, strongest one, located along the Plesu Ridge. Due to the noise of continuous bombing and night fighting, the Soviets manage to take by surprise the Romanian defense from Plesu Ridge (in the area of Caprariei Hill) attacking with a group of tankettes on a road through the forest. The Romanians are forced to retreat to the village of Nemtisor, at that moment the front being broken on about 1.0 - 1.5 km. Some of the Soviet troops descend to Nemtisor, through an open area (pastures, gardens, the already burned houses of the village) and exposed to Romanian and German fire. The Romanian army regroups on defensive alignments prepared in advance in the edge of Braniste Forest on the other side of the Nemtisor River and executes strong fire. A few Soviet subunits reach the river, but do not resist and begin a general retreat back to the Plesu Ridge. Romanians after them. The Romanian advance was very large, so Romanian subunits are hit hard by their own artillery. However, until the evening (June 4) the Romanians push the Soviets back over the hill, re-occupying the defensive alignment on Plesu Ridge (Caprriei Hill) abandoned in the morning. It is possible that in Nemtisor there were some isolated groups of Soviets who withdrew on their own in the following days. On June 5-6, 1944, the Romanian army consolidated its positions on the Plesu Ridge, and the Soviet army prepared a new offensive. It was quite clear that a new breaking of the front was inevitable and in these conditions, as we presented in previous episodes, on June 7, 1944 German artillery fired incendiary projectiles (with phosphorus ?, banned?) into the bulk of the Soviet army in development in the Borta Dracului area. A terrible massacre takes place, with terrible scenes, in which Romanian soldiers are also involved, the two armies being simultaneously in attack and partially mixed. Shot, crushed by fallen trees, burned alive, pierced by shrapnels, dismembered and thrown through trees by blasts, thousands of dead remain on the battlefield in the forest, many of whom will not be recovered and buried in two years ( and not even now ...). It seems that the hell in Borta Dracului (the Devil's Hole) is the (psychological) moment that turns the course of the Soviet offensive, despite the obvious Soviet superiority. Until June 16, 1944, Romanian forces regained all positions lost since the beginning of the Soviet offensive, and in this area the front remained stable until August 23, 1944. This, in short (with details in the episodes of the series) is the story of the Soviet offensive at Borta Dracului , representing the largest carnage (about 14,000 soldiers, of which 10,000 Soviets and 4,000 Romanians) in the Second World War, on the Romanian territory. A pious thought for all these heroes, regardless of the army and the cause they fought for.
The End
List of videos:
1. The tactical situation: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
2. The beginning of the offensive: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
3. The fights in the meadows of Lingurari and Slatina: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
4. The Holy Cross Monastery: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
5. In the Borta Dracului (the Devil's Hole): • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
6. The fights in the Plesu Ridge: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
7. The fights in Nemtisor: • Bătălia de la Borta Dr...
29 июл 2021
