According to Chuikov's idea, the enemy's ammunition depot was destroyed, and the enemy's attack on the barricade factory and Dzerzhinsky factory would be at a standstill for at least three to five days. Unexpectedly, just one day later, the situation suddenly took a turn for the worse.
Less than an hour after the battle started, the 351st Regiment of the 308th Division, which was stationed at the Silicate Factory, was surrounded by German troops outflanking from the left and right wings. Although the commanders and soldiers performed bravely and tenaciously in the battle, they repelled the enemy's attacks many times.
, many enemies and technical equipment were eliminated. However, the battle continued until noon. Except for the thirty soldiers in the gully to the north of the factory, all the remaining commanders and fighters died heroically.
The regiment political commissar Frolov was seriously injured. In order to prevent himself from being captured by the enemy, he used the last bit of his strength to ignite the grenade tied to his body and died together with the five German soldiers who rushed up.
The 42nd Infantry Brigade and the 6th Guards Tank Brigade north of the Silicate Factory had to abandon their original defensive positions in the face of the powerful offensive of the German 389th Division and retreated to Zhytomir Street near Hill 97.7.
.
After receiving these battle reports, Chuikov felt that it was necessary to readjust the defense line, otherwise it would be difficult to block the enemy's fortifications. He grabbed the phone in front of him and ordered the communications troops to connect to the headquarters of the 308th Division, preparing to report directly to Gurdiev
give an order.
After the call was connected, he ignored the pleasantries and gave the order directly: "Colonel Gurdiev, this is Chuikov. I am ordering you now: immediately lead the surviving troops to withdraw to the new defense area in the south.
The defense zone extends southward from Statue Street, via Petrozavodsk Street to Buguruslan Street, where you will establish positions to cover the western side of the barricade factory."
"Comrade Commander," Gurdiev said hesitantly, "are we going to abandon the silicate plant just like this?"
"Comrade Colonel," Chuikov said with a straight face: "Now I don't have any extra reserves. In order to block the enemy's attack, I can only temporarily shrink the defense line. Don't worry, I won't let you fight alone. Very soon.
Soon someone will come to support you."
After ending the call with Gurdiev, Chuikov connected to Gurdiev's headquarters: "I am Chuikov, Comrade General. Now I have an important task for you to complete."
When Guryev's 39th Guards Division withdrew from the Red October Factory, there were less than 3,000 men left in the division. After this period of fighting, the number was reduced by more than one-third. But after Chuikov's call
On the phone, Guryev did not complain, but took the initiative to ask: "Comrade Commander, what is the mission?"
"The silicate plant has been occupied by the enemy. I ordered Colonel Gurdiev to transfer the remaining troops to the south." Chuikov said to Gurdiev: "The task of your division is to take over the defense of the 308th Division.
Positions to the north of the archives building and east of the stadium. Are there any difficulties?"
"There is no difficulty." Although the organization of the 39th Guards Division has been crippled, Guryev still did not complain. Instead, he confidently expressed his position to Chuikov: "Comrade Commander, as long as our Guards Division still has one
As long as the soldiers are alive, we will never let the enemy occupy the position."
"Well done, General Guryev." Seeing that Guryev was so confident, Chuikov also felt relieved: "I'm waiting for your good news."
Krylov, who had just finished the phone call, saw Chuikov put down the phone here, so he came over and asked in a low voice: "Comrade Commander, the enemy is gathering troops at the silicate plant and is preparing to launch a new attack. Do you think it's okay?
Call Sokov’s 41st Guards Division to assist in the battle?”
Just when Chuikov was hesitating, a staff officer walked over quickly and handed a newly received telegram to Krylov. After reading the contents of the telegram, Krylov couldn't help being surprised.
He quickly said to Chuikov: "Comrade Commander, the Front Army Intelligence Department has forwarded a newly intercepted German military message. It states that after two o'clock in the afternoon, the German army will dispatch no less than 800 aircraft to attack the barricade factory and Dzerzhinsky.
Carry out saturation bombing in the base factory area."
Chuikov was still hesitant at first. After hearing what Krylov said, he quickly grabbed the telegram and checked it carefully. He found that the enemy did indeed send out a large number of bombers to bomb the two factories, so he changed his mind.
He said to Krylov: "Comrade Chief of Staff, sending Sokov's troops to reinforce them right now is tantamount to letting them die. Now not only can't they be transferred into these two factories, but at the same time, we have to find a way to attack them in the shortest possible time.
The defenders and workers in the factory were evacuated to minimize the casualties caused by the bombing."
"But what if we evacuate the defenders in the factory and the enemy takes the opportunity to launch a new attack?" Krylov reminded Chuikov: "If there are too few defenders in the factory, I'm afraid they won't be able to stop the enemy at all."
"Then tell me, what should we do?"
"There are many bomb shelters and basements in the factory. Even if they are bombed by enemy planes, our soldiers and workers can find hiding places." Krylov thought of the engineering troops who were building a pontoon bridge on the Volga River and asked tentatively.
Asked Chuikov: "Enemy planes are about to carry out intensive bombing of the factory area. Should we temporarily stop our bridge-building operation on the Volga River to avoid unnecessary casualties?"
"Call Colonel Tupichev immediately and ask them to suspend the construction of the pontoon bridge." Chuikov agreed with Krylov's proposal and emphasized: "In addition, contact the front army headquarters and ask the engineers on the east coast to
We also stopped working to prevent our underwater pontoon from being discovered by enemy planes."
The silicate factory was lost under the fierce attack of the German army. The enemy gathered forces here to prepare to continue rushing to the Volga River. The Soviet army also adjusted its defenses in time to try to block the German army's advance. And in the 41st Guards Division,
In the defensive zone, the fighting was not intense. The Romanian army still stayed far away from the new workers' village, shelling and shooting randomly. As soon as they saw a figure moving in the ruins, they immediately stopped shooting and turned around to shoot at their own.
We ran from position. When we saw that there was no movement here, we turned around and came back, firing and shelling non-stop.
Papuchenko was so frustrated by the enemy's behavior that he lost his temper. He called Sokov and asked: "Comrade division commander, the enemy is wasting ammunition on our front. Do you think I can organize troops to attack and teach them a lesson?"
A meal?"
"No, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, you don't have to do anything, just stay in the ruins and sewers." Sokov said to Papuchenko: "Anyway, these enemies have been frightened by you, and they are just showing off to Germany every day.
From a human perspective, I would not dare to attack you."
Perhaps because he was worried about Papuchenko's mood, Sokov finally emphasized: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, just stay in the Workers' New Village and rest. When it's time to attack, I will give you orders...
…”
Before Sokov could finish speaking, another phone on the table rang. Sidorin picked up the phone and listened for a moment, with a shocked expression on his face. He said to Sokov in a panic: "
Comrade Division Commander, the observation post on the top of the mountain reported that a large number of enemy planes were spotted in the air, flying towards the Volga River."
This chapter has been completed!