Battle of Sevastopol
The strategic Crimea peninsula port city of Sevastopol falls under the crosshairs of the restless German Army.
Germany now eyed the strategic position on the Crimea peninsula still under Soviet control. And though progress was being made, the city of Sevastopol was able to reinforce and supply resulting in some 180,000 Red Army soldiers flooding into the city. Along with an impressive head count, the city sported a fort and defensive fortifications including three rings were constructed. It would seem that this particular target would have to be paid in German blood and sweat.
German Generaloberst Erich von Manstein was charged with the task. Through an initial assault, the Russian defense holds up. A second assault through Operation Bustard is launched, this utilizing 33 massive fortification-busting artillery pieces delivered to the German Army between April and May in 1942. The assault nets some 170,000 Russian prisoners and isolates Sevastopol. Manstein therefore enacts Operation Sturgeon and calls on a 5-day artillery barrage of the city. This is compounded by bombardment from the air via Luftwaffe bombers.
German progress is halted by the valiant Soviet defense. A renewed assault under Manstein's orders yields greater results, with key Soviet hilltop positions and defensive fortifications falling under German control. The damage is such that the Soviets begin their evacuation of Sevastopol.
Germany finally takes Sevastopol and another 90,000 Soviet Army prisoners - and along with that - complete control of the Crimea peninsula and the port at Sevastopol.
Total Events: 29
1941
Thursday
September 25th |
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The Crimea finds itself cutoff from the rest of the Soviet Union by German Army forces made up of German Army Group South. |
1941
Friday
September 26th - November 26th |
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Over the course of two months, Soviet Major-General I.Y. Pretov and his band of 32,000 Independent Maritime Army soldiers set up a vast network of defenses at the fortress in Sevastopol. The defense consists of three well-defended rings. |
1941
Sunday
November 16th |
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By this date, Lieutenant-General von Manstein and his German 11th Army take most of Crimea with the exception of Sevastapol. |
1941
Wednesday
December 17th |
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Lieutenant-General von Manstein launches a major offensive against the Soviet soldiers holed up in the Sevastopol fortress. |
1941
Friday
December 26th |
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Manstein's offensive gains substantial ground, piercing the first two Soviet defensive rings. |
1941
Friday
December 26th |
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Soviet naval forces land army troops near Kerch. |
1941
Sunday
December 28th |
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More Soviet forces land near Kerch via amphibious transports, bolstering Red Army power in the area. |
1941
Sunday
December 28th |
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In the face of growing Soviet Army opposition, von Manstein calls off his offensive on Sevastopol. |
1942
Thursday
January 1st - January 31st |
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Over the course of the month, three Soviet armies, under the command of Major-General D.T. Kozlov, are called to the newly created "Crimea Front". |
1942
Wednesday
April 1st - May 31st |
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Over a two month period, German forces are resupplied and strengthened before a major offensive - Operation Bustard - to remove the Soviets from the Kerch peninsula. Among the resupply deliveries are 33 massive artillery pieces meant to destroy the Soviet defensive works at the fort in Sevastopol. |
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Lieutenant-General von Manstein launches his assault. |
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Manstein's offensive results in the taking of the Kerch peninsula from the Soviets. |
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Sevastopol is cutt off from the rest of the Soviet Union by German Army elements. |
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Manstein begins planning his next major offensive to take Sevastopol - this becomes Operation Sturgeon. |
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600 German artillery guns open fire on Sevastopol. |
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The German Luftwaffe is called in to bomb Sevastopol. |
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The German artillery guns cease fire on Sevastopol. The bombardment on the Soviets has spanned five days. |
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The German 11th Army begins their assault on Sevastopol from the north at 2:30AM. |
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The German-allied Romanian Mountain Corps and 30th Army Corps launch their attack on Sevastopol. |
1942
Friday
June 12th - June 16th |
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The German offensive against Sevastopol is repulsed by the 180,000 or so Russian soldiers holed up in the city. |
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Manstein launches another assault on Sevastopol. |
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The Romanian and German army forces capture key hilltop positions near Sevastopol. |
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German forces reach the outskirts of Sevastopol. |
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By this date, over 90% of the Soviet defensive fortifications have fallen to the Germans. |
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Evacuation of Russian soldiers from Sevastopol begins with help from the Soviet Black Sea Fleet under Vice-Admiral F.S. Oktyabrsky. |
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One last German push secures strategic positions throughout the city of Sevastopol. |
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The last of the Soviet forces are evacuated by sea leaving little to stop the German onslaught. |
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Sevastopol officially falls to German control. |
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German control and the subsequent round up on the city nets some 90,000 Soviet army prisoners of war. |
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