Fall 1941. The Wehrmacht command had already decided that the task of taking Moscow was solved, and redirected part of the strike forces north to Tver (then Kalinin). This was actively opposed by Guderian and von Bock (he even flew to the Stavka to persuade the Fuhrer), but the prevailing viewpoint of the commander of ground forces, Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch, who believed that the USSR has no serious reserves, so the main task is to encircle and defeat the forces that are on the front line north and south of the capital. Further deep encirclement and capture of Moscow would be "a matter of technique". An important factor was also the onset of thaw, which hindered the advance of motorized units.
The units of Army Group "Center" received in late October - early November almost two weeks vacation for rest, repair, regrouping and replenishment, but together with the enemy time received and our troops. The question was who would make the best use of this lull before the storm.
The lecture is read by Alexei Isaev.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
14 май 2024
