The battle reached noon, and the battle situation between the Soviet Union and Germany basically stabilized. Peak 23S.
The fastest update. It was not until 12:30 that the German troops who had reached the river south of the city stood on the bank of the wide Dnieper River and suddenly saw a gunboat on the river, which was firing crazily.
There are also some rafts on the river with people sitting on them, moving towards the city.
"Oh my God! They actually have reserve troops! We made a mistake in judgment!" A German battalion commander was furious. He quickly reported this major discovery to his regiment commander and then the division commander.
Therefore, there were Soviet troops on the other side of the river, which Gnus had not expected.
He didn't know how many Soviet reserves there were. He only knew that it would take at least two days for Mozyr to get another batch of artillery shells. He did not change his strategy, and there was nothing he could change. The only action he took was beneficial to the battle.
, that is, to organize a logistics group and order these people who are not good at fighting to join the street fighting in Lechica like the main force.
Even with the increase in troops, facing the interior of the city where there are defense points everywhere, even though there are many German troops, in terms of infantry firepower alone, they are still relatively weak.
Because the Soviet army received a large amount of ammunition support, especially ammunition for small arms, Ponomarenko seemed to have had a premonition of this fierce street battle, and his targeted reinforcements gave the Soviet defenders plenty of bullets.
The Soviet soldiers held submachine guns and fired wildly. The water-cooled Maxims dropped from the air did not stop their firepower. Especially these Maxims, which have bulletproof shields and wheels, so that the machine gunners can fight with high mobility and go wherever they need.
The battle was still fierce. The second line of defense, which originally had three gaps cut out, was completely blocked as the defenders of the third line of defense counterattacked.
The German offensive front was suppressed. Once suppressed, it would be difficult for the Germans to organize their forces to continue to break through. At least on the 29th, they had no chance.
There were constant sounds of gunfire in the distance. At the German command tent four kilometers away, Genus said depressingly: "With our current strength alone, it is impossible to capture the city today. We need reinforcements!"
The chief of staff immediately persuaded: "Division commander, now that things have happened, we must find a way to get reinforcements from the 371st Division. Don't think about any honor being taken away. If we suffer heavy losses, our honor will be out of the question."
Genus was no longer angry about this. The atmosphere in the headquarters was extremely depressed, and many personnel were waiting for the division commander's decision.
"Forget it! Forget it! I'll make a call right now and inform the commander of our predicament. I'll also request the 371st Division to go north for reinforcements!"
Genus was mentally prepared to be scolded again, but Army Commander Hunter did not scold him.
It turns out that Genus is not the only one who is in trouble. The friendly 371st Division in the south is also facing a rather disgusting situation.
Yang Mingzhi was very worried that the German troops attacking Homnich would go south like crazy. As a result, they made no such move after reaching the river on the 28th. It was just the existence of this enemy that made it impossible for the Soviet troops to go north for reinforcements.
Lechica.
If the enemy does not move north, the Soviet army will have to fight the enemy in the woods south of Homnich.
In the forest north of Homnich, Womansky's cavalry joined two troops that had been defeated by the Germans. They sacrificed some soldiers, and by the morning of the 29th, there were still as many as 1,100 people.
Can participate in combat.
Compared with the 20,000 troops of the German 371 Division, this force is indeed very small. However, there are a thousand people here, and there are more machine guns in the troops than ordinary troops. During the firefight on the 28th, the 371 Division believed that what they encountered was
A guerrilla force with strong combat effectiveness.
The German army defeated these Soviet troops and completed their mission. However, the Soviet army had been entrenched in the forest, and the German army had to keep an eye on them all the time. Therefore, part of the 371st Division was forcibly delayed by a small Soviet force.
Living.
The Soviet army trapped in the northern forest received important supplies from the small warehouse of the cavalry battalion. Because we were facing a large-scale battle, the soldiers were in high spirits, and many comrades had died. They were not afraid, on the contrary.
, everyone is good at fighting in the forest, and they are not inferior to the German army.
What's more, Warmansky Jr. also has two radios, which save battery power and can keep in touch with his superiors.
They actually became the best sentinels for the Soviet army to monitor the German 371st Division.
German Army Commander Gunter was very aware of the importance of Lechica, and he really did not want to waste a lot of manpower and material resources with the Russians here. However, the Russians here, whose fighting will can be called the devil, were outstanding throughout the war.
Extremely rare. Regarding this, Khante thought of the example of the "Brest Siege". Liechica simply became the second in Brest. In terms of bloodshed, it was much more terrifying than Brest.
"I must end the battle in Lechica as soon as possible. The 771st Division has discovered that the northern guerrillas have begun to escape on a large scale. The Russians attacked Gomel's troops and completely blocked them. The Russians must have seen through me for being so desperate.
plan of!"
Ant is very suspicious that his enemy, the so-called "Belekov", the Soviet commander, has understood his tactics. Based on the intelligence currently available, the Russians are trying to find a way to escape from the encirclement.
"If they escape to the swamp, I won't be able to complete the annihilation mission. I don't have the slightest authority to enter the swamp to fight, and it's impossible for me to fight there! Alas! Forget it, as soon as Lechica is captured, I will immediately think
Going north, I don’t plan to waste time here!”
Then, to prevent the guerrillas from escaping, Gomel must be captured in a short time. However, judging from the current situation, the troops have lost the opportunity to defeat the enemy with one blow.
The battle turned into street fighting. The aircraft had no more artillery shells, and the remaining ones could not be transported to the front line quickly. The 370th Division suffered a lot of casualties. The division also occupied half of the city, but it was just because they lacked enough excellence.
Troops, the battle was extremely difficult.
Hangte believed that by transferring some elite troops of the 371st Division to the north to attack the city, the city could be successfully captured.
Hang Te had no more options. He ordered the 371st Division to organize two regiments and half of the No. 3 assault guns to go north for reinforcements.
This order was issued at two o'clock in the afternoon on the 29th. At this time, the exchange of fire in Lechica City continued and continued. The 371 Division moved fairly quickly. The division commander was ordered to send two of his elite troops to the north.
The troops first arrived at the riverside and then headed north along the river.
The 371st Division dispatched 5,500 men, 60 No. 3 assault guns, 10 oil trucks, and 20 half-track armored vehicles to go north together.
They took action at three o'clock in the afternoon, and the momentum they created was so huge that the main force of the Soviet army several kilometers away also noticed the abnormal changes on the battlefield.
It was said that in the afternoon, as the fierce fighting in the city of Lechica weakened a lot and the front lines of both sides basically stabilized, Lavrenti began to report his heavy losses to his superiors.
"What else can I say now? They are really trying their best. Now as you wish, we have defended Lechicha strongly and the losses have been huge." Yang Mingzhi looked at the crowd of people in the headquarters and couldn't help but say
A lot of complaints.
"It's already this time, what's the use of saying this?" Yevlov was also in a very unhappy mood. It all stemmed from Lavrenti's report. In the so-called morning battle, half of the troops were killed or injured. "They."
They were all heroes who sacrificed their lives for their country. Many people sacrificed their lives, and their sacrifices were worth it. Look, Red October finally started to pass the railway."
It turned out that just before Lavrenti sent the telegram, the 233rd Paratrooper Brigade, which was stationed far west of the city of Gomel, encountered soldiers of the Red October Guerrilla Brigade.
For example, the paratrooper brigade encountered the deputy captain of the guerrilla brigade, Boumazhkov, a man who led more than a thousand people to cross the railway line first.
This man also brings some amazing facts.
Therefore, throughout the afternoon of the 29th, the battle situation began to develop according to Yang Mingzhi's plan, but the heavy casualties of his own troops made him heartbroken.
The Soviet army's strategic retreat really began in full swing after noon on the 29th.
At the beginning, the Guerrilla Republic was worried about the Red Octobers and the Gypsymen, two guerrilla groups with over 10,000 troops, who wanted to fight. As a result, they suffered a bloody blow from the German elite. On the 28th, they began a fierce battle with the German 771 Division.
By the morning of the 29th, both armies were overwhelmed.
The First Squadron of the Red October Brigade, led by the deputy captain, took the lead in withdrawing across the railway. After a brief negotiation with the Parachute Brigade, it continued southward. During the more than ten days of fighting, the squadron suffered heavy recruitment in the countryside due to large-scale recruitment.
The squadron swelled to more than 2,000 men, but in the battle on the 28th alone, the squadron lost a thousand men!
On July 27, the actual combat strength of Red October was as high as 12,000 people. They fought in a very large area. As a result, the German 771st Division entered the battle. In more than 30 hours of fighting, they lost 4,000 people.
The rest!
Most of these lost troops were killed in action, while some were captured or simply lost contact.
In any case, the guerrillas still lost one-third of their troops and nearly half of their control area. The 771 Division had no plans to accept prisoners of war, especially when they learned that their friendly forces were fighting very hard, and they were naturally angry towards these guerrillas.
Vent. They killed all the captives, even the children.
Red October left two squadrons to contain it, and the remaining six squadrons fully retreated. Captain Pavlovsky explained to the Guerrilla Republic that all eight squadrons were expected to be withdrawn at night before midnight on the 30th.
railway.
The situation of the Gypsy brigade was similar to that of Red October. They were also oppressed by the enemies coming south from Zhlobin, and the troops lost at least two thousand people. At the same time, the troops restraining Gomel also encountered an active attack by the defenders in the city.
The German army did not have the ability to break through the parachute brigade's defense line, and the focus of its counterattack fell on the north. They defeated the gypsy defense line and left it full of loopholes.
To make matters worse, the captain of the Gypsy Brigade was killed on the spot by an 80mm mortar fired by the Germans from 1,500 meters away during the blocking battle on the morning of the 29th.
The sacrifice of the brigade captain made the gypsy people even worse. The friendly forces of Red October had just retreated, and the friendly forces of Lechica were desperately resisting. Deputy captain Gerchenko ordered a tactical retreat at noon. The brigade's commitment was similar to that of Red October, that is,
Before the new dawn, the troops will withdraw to the south of Gomel.
This is the fact faced by the Soviet army in the entire Gomel Theater in the face of the fierce offensive of the German 100th Army.
Yevlov continued: "Our friendly forces have fully retreated, and their equipment is very poor. Do you believe they can withstand the offensive of the German 771st Division? I think our 63rd Group Army, because of its huge losses, can also withstand the attack."
We cannot withstand their offensive. But after all, we are a unit with a number, and the flag of our 284th Guards Division is still hanging at this headquarters. Based on these alone, we must shoulder a heavy responsibility."
Yang Mingzhi couldn't help but his eyes lit up. He never expected that Yevlov, such a bold warrior, would actually make a lot of nonsense. He squinted and glanced at Yelentina, who was standing silently in the headquarters.
, presumably this woman taught him.
Determination, perseverance, and responsibilities. Yang Mingzhi doesn't want to talk about this for the time being, let alone show his cowardice by being speechless. Yang Mingzhi understands everyone's mentality, which is to stick to Lieqica.
Yang Mingzhi had an idea in his mind. Since the two guerrilla brigades would withdraw to the south of the railway at night, they would also retreat further south along the safe passage in the mine array at the destroyed German defense line before morning.
Theoretically, as long as the soldiers are strong enough, they can retreat to the Denipla swamp, which is only fifty kilometers away from the guerrilla republic!
The reason why the troops defended Lechica was to serve as a shield to cover the evacuation of the two guerrilla groups. Since they would withdraw from the encirclement within twelve hours, the troops holding on to Lechica did not have to continue to hold on.
Yang Mingzhi explained his plan to everyone, and no one completely denied it. Because the troops had to withdraw sooner or later, since the friendly forces could withdraw earlier, his own people also had reason to leave earlier.
However, a telegram from the cavalry battalion turned the command headquarters, which had just become tense due to the heavy casualties of the troops, into a crater about to erupt.
At this time, Yang Mingzhi, Yevlov, Salinchkin, etc., could no longer respond to the so-called "something strange in the German positions" sent by Kovpak, who was ambushing south of Homnich more than an hour ago.
"Sit back and ignore the alarm. After all, the German army is going south to fight in the swamps. It can really be described as death. A large number of German armored vehicles will be wiped out by the silt. Only a really idiot commander will order the troops to invade completely.
wetlands.
Therefore, Yang Mingzhi's order to Kovpak was to stick to the defense and take the initiative to fight guerrillas in the forests and lakes once the German army moved south.
Warmansky Jr.’s telegram changed everything!
"I saw a large number of German infantry heading north along the riverside dirt road, including a large number of armored vehicles. Our troops tried to block the attack, but were repulsed by the superior firepower of the Germans and had to withdraw into the forest again. However, the Germans did not pursue them, but continued
Heading north. I concluded that about two to three regiments of German troops were heading north to Lechicha."
This is the whole message. The atmosphere in the command headquarters is as gray as ashes.
Yang Mingzhi frowned in shock and his eyes were as bright as light bulbs. The young staff officers looked at their general's shocked look and felt like they were mourning. Even Yevlov, who was warlike and dared to fight, he
Again emphasizing courage and belief, we also know that the troops have lost a large number of elites and a large number of heavy weapons. Facing an astonishing number of German armored vehicles, if we bite the bullet and fight, it will be like an egg hitting a stone!
Finally, it was Yevlov who broke the deadlock. He made a startling statement: "We must withdraw! Tonight, we must withdraw to the other side of the river, otherwise the final achievements of our 284th Division will be really over!"