Red blood on white snow...
Greater Germany, East Prussia, Rastenburg, Wolfschanze - February 13. 19.00
*The days is almost to an end, and since Jodl is in Russia at this time, the chief of the German army, Wilhelm Keitel will give the Fuhrer the news from the front. Keitel has just read through the achievements of the week, and he is not looking forward to this. Keitel moves slowly through the corridors, drops of sweat is slowly moving down his face, as he walks he wipes them off and also tries to gain some confidence...
When he reaches the Fuhrers door, he can hear voices from inside, one of them is Hitler, the other sounds familiar, but he can't determine who it is. He knocks on the door, and the door is opened from the inside. The man who was in the room, and whom now has opened the door is Erich Raeder, the commander and chief of the German navy. He greets Keitel with a "güten abend" followed by a smile on his face. The two men take their seats at the Fuhrers table.*
(Wilhelm Keitel, the man forced to bring Hitler his weekly report during Jodl's absence.)
Hitler: Good to see you Keitel, Reader was just about to tell me of the navy's progress during the last week, let us give the good admiral our full attention.
Raeder: Danke Mein Fuhrer. The Kriegsmarine has stepped up its activity massively this week. Since Stalingrad the allies have struck our supply convoys heading for Tunisia, and since we have minimal control in the Mediterranean we have not been able to do anything about this. During the last week this has changed a bit, our u-boats have struck in the north Atlantic which has made the British withdraw some of their ships from the Mediterranean and sent them back to the Atlantic, and I persuaded Göring to send some squadrons to Italy, and they have successfully attacked British raiders. Nevertheless we have lost 5 transports during the last week, an escort have also been sunk.
Hitler: Well that is not too bad. The last thing Rommel needs is more difficulty with supplies! Do you have any figures on the U-boat kills in the Atlantic?
Raeder: We have managed to get about half of our U-boats into action and they have done some very effective work. The British have lost a total of 35 transports and the U-boats have also sunk 8 escorts, my analysis's of the situation is that the British have around 350-400 transports, so if these figures keep the way they are then they should run out of ships in 12-14 weeks!
(Another British transport has been sent to the bottom.)
Hitler: Sehr güt! And you are planning to step up the activity?
Raeder: Yes Mein Fuhrer, I have ordered U-boats to try to stop the supplies which are being sent to Leningrad, other ships have been sent to stop soviet convoys on their way to Arhhangel'sk , I am also organizing surface ships, both for strikes against convoys and strikes against the Royal Navy.
Hitler: Güt, anything else?
Raeder: I am planning an amphibious attack, but I will have to discuss this more closely with Von Falkenhorst before deciding on a precise target, but the necessary forces and ships are being mustered.
Hitler: I like the sound of this, let me know when you have made the complete plans. Well, then I suppose we can move on to you Keitel.
*Keitel does not seem to excited, and especially after Raeder has just told Hitler about the successes of the Kriegsmarine. He gets a hold on himself and his voice sounds surprisingly confident.*
Keitel: This has been a very bloody week for the Whermacht Mein Fuhrer, our armies have been reinforced with replacements, but the losses have shock me to the core.
Hitler: Speak more plainly you fool! What do you mean by this!?
Keitel: Mein Fuhrer... Our losses in the east is a staggering 30 781 men. 27 100 have fallen in combat with ground forces and a further 3 681 have been killed by Russian aircraft.
*Hitler takes off his glasses, his eyes exude anger, but he manages to stay calm. Instead of raging, he silently raises his voice.*
Hitler: And the Russian losses?
Keitel: The Russians have lost 23 462 to our ground troops, and the Luftwaffe has been responsible for killing 5 267, their total is 28 729 men.
Hitler: Well.... That is lower than our losses, can you explain the cause of this?
Keitel: Yes Mein Fuhrer. Our men do not have supplies, they are fighting with bayonets and sometimes their bare hands, many of the dead are also Romanians and Hungarians. Our supply lines are interrupted by enemy bombers and they are also very long.
Hitler: Nein, nein, nein!! I will not stand for this! Either our men will have to preserve they ammunition, or something will have to be done, build up the infrastructure!!
Keitel: Aber Mein Fuhrer, that would take years.
Hitler: I don't care! Es ist Mein willen!
Keitel: Jawohl Mein Fuhrer. Do you want the details from the various fronts too?
Hitler: Of course I do!
Keitel: Very well, I will start with the Tunisian front, take a look Mein Fuhrer:
Keitel: There has been many battles in the desert during the last week, however, there are just two ongoing clashes now. The Italians withdrew from Horumt Souk a few days ago, and they finally reached the Mareth line in Gabes. General Beraudo di Palermo left behind 457 dead men in Horumt Souk before finally withdrawing, the attacking British lost 338 men. The Italians are now holding another British attack, which is made against our men holding the Mareth line, the enemy attack is not making much progress, this is partially because of General Messe's excellent defense skills, and the presence of the 15. Panzer-division. Rommels offensive has been continued, and he is now attacking the British and French in Souk Ahras, there are 5 enemy divisions in the area, but only one is fit for combat, the others are ravaged after the battles of Kassarine and Tébessa. Rommel's panzers are short on supplies, but he believes that general Von Broich who is in command of the attack can push through the enemy defenses if they are not reinforced.
(One of the many Stug III's deployed in Tunisia.)
Keitel: On the north coast we have been pushed back the entire week, the enemy attacked our men in Bizerte, and our 3 000 troops could not stop the French armored division, they had to fall back, and left behind 492 men, the French lost merely 53. During the battle of Bizerte general Ostendorff tried to take som pressure of the defenders of Bizerte, and he launched an attack against Mateur, his lightly armed mountain troops did not make much headway against the French tanks, and he called off the attack within a few days. During those days we lost 240 men, and the enemy lost 122 of their troops. The French have committed a mistake, they have dashed for Tunis without securing their supply lines through Mateur, since they have left the region the way is now clear for Ostendorff, as well as the divisions heading north to support him, and Rommel thinks he can encircle the French division and destroy them within a few weeks.
Hitler: Very well, let us hope that Rommel's offensive can take him through the allied lines and on to Oran!
Keitel: That was everything from Africa, I will begin in the east with the developments in the Kuban area:
Keitel: In this region too there has been heavy fighting, however, only three battles are ongoing, this is the 3. battle of Batajsk, the battle of Korenovsk, and the struggle for Kamensk-Sahtinskij. During last week we quickly won the 1. battle of Batajsk, and Von Manteuffels troops quickly occupied the area, in the battle the Russians lost 762 men, Von Manteuffel lost 378 of his men. At the same time we won the 2. battle of Timasevsk and recaptured that region, general Warlimont lead the attack and during the battle he lost 649 men, while the Russians lost 1167 of their men. With the success in Batajsk, and the victory in Timasevsk we had essentially encircled about 8 Russian divisions in the Kuban area.
Hitler: That is good, how did the situation develop?
(Von Manteuffel's panzer's crossing the small Весенний river.)
Keitel: At more or less the same time General Fromm won the battle of Slavjansk-na-Kubani, he lost 568 men, while the Russians lost 611 of their troops. Once this area had been held he was ordered by Von Kleist to help with the reduction of the pocket, and his men attacked the Russians in Primorsko-Ahtarsk, which fell in an hour, the Russians lost 16 men in the short skirmish, and we lost 10. At this point the Russians began their attempts to break out of the pocket, they attacked simultaneously in 4 sectors. The enemy push to take Kuban was broken off within the hour, and general Raconvitza lost only 5 men, the Russians lost 18 before breaking of the skirmish. The 3. battle of Timasevsk lasted longer, but the Russians broke off their attack against Warlimont's forces after losing 960 men, we lost 828. Their attack against Korenovsk is more serious, and they are still attacking the region, general Von Tippelskirch is a winter specialist and his men are dug in deep, but they can't win unless they are reinforced, the problem is that there are no reinforcements to send. Von Kleist tried to relieve pressure with an attack against Belorecensk, Von Weitersheim led the attack, and he lost 514 men before the attack was called off, the Russians lost 192 men. The Russians attacked Batajsk, determined to retake it, reinforcements arrived too late, and Von Manteuffel had to retreat, he left 1255 men behind, most if them Romanian cavalry, the Russians lost 514 men. Batajsk is still a contested region, most of the infrastructure is destroyed, but Von Funck, who is an excellent panzer commander is attacking the province, he assumes he can manage a breakthrough within a few days.
Hitler: That pocket will be closed again! We need a victory in the east!
Keitel: Yes of course Mein Fuhrer.
Hitler: Besides that I think the situation looks good.
Keitel: I will move on to the Don area:
Keitel: The pockets of Ostrogozsk and Volokonovka has both surrendered, the Hungarians in Ostrogozsk surrendered early last week, general Cramer had held out for a long time and having lost 3424 men he finally gave in. The Russians lost 802 men. The Italians in Volokonovka also surrendered, we have no idea of the losses in the area. Pakrowskoje was seized by our forces late this week, and general Raus lost 2332 men before the Russians withdrew, the enemy lost 3442 men. Raus's men had barely taken the area when the Russians counterattacked, the attack was ineffective and was called off quickly, Raus lost 137 men, while inflicting 975 casualties on the Russians. Further south the Russians attacked our men in Gornjacki, general Mieth put up a strong defense and the Russians called off the operation within a day, we lost 248 men, while the Russians lost 194.
(Raus's men during their defense of Pakrowskoje.)
I have been instructed by general Von Schweppenburg that he is planning an attack which will be executed as soon as enough supplies have been gathered, this attack is aimed at breaking through to general Hell's trapped men.
Hitler: Make sure that Dietrich get's his supplies!
Keitel: Jawohl Mein Fuhrer. The southern sector is next in line:
Keitel: Our attack against Kolpny was finally called off, general Petzel lost 3568 men before the firing stopped, the Russian defenders lost 2208 men. The next event was a Russian attack against general Reinhardt in Orel, the city is held by 5 divisions, however, some of them are Hungarian, and the men are short on supplies, Reinhardt thinks he can hold out, and your orders concerning retreat have been issued to the troops. To relieve pressure off Orel we launched a diversionary attack against Zmiyevka, the province which was lost by general Hahm last week. This time general Geib led the attack, however Von Manstein called it off after a few days, we lost 495 men compared to 210 Russian dead.
Hitler: Orel must be held! It is a big city, and I will not tolerate a retreat, if Reinhardt retreat's he will be shot!
Keitel :Jawohl Mein Fuhrer! In the center Von Kluge has made some progress, take a look:
Keitel: The Russians called off their attack against general Grasser in Belye Beregna, before the battle was over we 2541 of our men were killed, the Russians lost 2243 men in their attacks. As you know we attacked Ljubohna last week, and general Praun who assumed command from the Hungarian general Lakatos quickly broke through the inner Russian lines, he lost 2290 men in the process, the Russians lost 2437 men. General Schlopper has assumed command over some of the troops, and he is now pushing towards Dudorovskiy, the attack seems to be going well, and I assume that victory can be achieved within the next week.
Hitler: Very well, I think I can assume that the attack will succeed!
(Schlopper has brought up artillery to support his attack.)
Keitel: Our attack against Sukhinichi has been resumed, mostly to take pressure off Mosalsk, however general Schaal is making progress, and I think he can win the battle. The final battle was the struggle for Moslask, general Müller finally won the battle and in the process killed 2226 Russians, we lost 2895 men before victory was ours.
Hitler: I think it is very important to win the struggle for Sukhinichi, I am sure Schaal will not disappoint me, if he does...
*Keitel changes the subject by giving Hitler another map.*
Keitel: The 2. battle for Nasva ended early last week, and general Peschel lost 752 men before the Russians broke off their attack, the Russians lost 288 men. We also won the battle of Andreapol, general Panwitz seized the area early last week, he lost 1560 men, the Russians lost 2114 before they realized that further resistance was futile. We made a small push for Peno, general Von Pappenheim was very eager, and he launched the attack on his own initiative, it was called off within a day. Von Pappenheim lost 124 men, while the Russians lost 122. General Arndt launched another attack against Ploskos, mostly to take pressure off Nasva, the attack did not last long and when it was called off we had lost 42 men, the Russians lost 41 of their men in this skirmish.
Hitler: Arndt must be given more men, I want Ploskos to be taken! Es ist Mein willen!
Keitel: Of course Mein Fuhrer. The Russians have once again resumed their attack against Nasva, and Peschel's men are holding on with their fingernails, a spoiling attack will be launched against the Russians next week.
Hitler: Mein liber gott. Peschel is holding out no matter what! I want him to be promoted, and his corpsis to be renamed, "Armeekorps Nasva".
Keitel: I will see to it myself Mein Fuhrer! Shall we move on to the Leningrad area:
The Russians attacked Morozova for a third time, however, general Hilpert's men once again kept them at bay, and when the attack ended the Russians had lost 775 men, we lost 495. They also attacked Tosno for a 3. time, Von Leys men held out the attacks for many days and the Russians gave up after having lost 2145 men, Von Leys lost 1785 men. The problem in this sector is that the Russians outnumber us grossly, and they keep changing their divisions when they attack, our men have to face fresh Russians each time! The Russians have launched another attack against Von Leys men, he t5hinks he can win this one as well.
Hitler: I see the problem, but the Russians are sub-human, we are the master race, nothing can beat our troops! Von Leys is an excellent officer and I trust his competence.
Keitel: The final news are from Finland, but they are indeed good!
Keitel: General Wenck's men seized Murmansk. This means that one of the major Russian ports have been sealed, this has been a major objective since Barbarossa, and Busse's division, which is part of Wenck's corps managed to do it a few days ago.
There were no casualties because the Russians had left the city undefended.
Hitler: Wunderbar! My compliments to general Wenck!
Keitel: General Von Hengl has also launched an attack against the Russian division in Kola, they are under heavy pressure, and to exploit this general Busse have been ordered to move into Soguj which is the only possible road of retreat still open to the Russians.
Hitler: But they are not encircled at all, I do not understand?
(A German soldier firing his Panzerbuchse 38.)
Keitel: Songuj is the only province with the infrastructure required to move troops through.
Hitler: Excellent, I hope we will hear about a victory in the arctic next week.
Keitel: I think we can assume that Mein Fuhrer.
Hitler: If that was all you had for me today then I think I will say god night.
*Keitel and Rader rises, admiral Raeder looks sleepy, something which is understandable, since he has been forced to listen to Keitels report for ages now. The two men do a "Hitler salute" before leaving the Fuhrer alone.*