Chapter 36: The Romanian Pocket - June 1 to June 30, 1942
The Baltic Front
On June 7, the final pocket of trapped Soviet troops was cleared, securing western Latvia. On June 14, the last two paratroopers in Riga, having finished aiding HG Nord push the front to the Daugava River, boarded the Reich's transport ships and landed in undefended Tallinn, once again taking the city. A division of Soviet light armor and infantry was pushed out of Pärnu west, then trapped and captured.
Western Latvia was secured on June 7, stabilizing the Northern Front
The month of June was harsh for HG Nord, as the Soviets had dug in deep behind the Daugava. The sheer size of the Red Army was beginning to take a serious toll on the Wehrmact. While the Luftwaffe had complete air superiority, their bombings were ineffective given the masses of soldiers the Red Army had available. That, coupled with the heavily forested terrain, allowed the Red Army to make the Wehrmacth pay heavily for every meter of ground gained. The only edge the Heer had during these battles was the fact that HG Nord was composed of the same men who had defeated Britain, and later France. It was the men of Armee 1 and Armee 2 who had fought in Scotland, and they were the best troops available. This edge in experience began to show later during the last weeks of July, when Armee 1 broke out into Estonia, nearly linking up with Leningrad.
The Northern front on June 15
The Ukrainian Front
The bloody Battle of Podhajce on May 6 had proven to be a much greater victory than originally realized. The Soviet resistance in Ukraine had evaporated, culminating with the uncontested capture of Odessa on June 7. The situation along the southern front became chaotic, as Soviet defenders were overrun by advancing German motorized infantry and armor. The regular infantry of the 5th and 6th armies were struggling to keep up the rapid pace of advancement along the now-empty center portion of the front. The Soviets had begun a full-scale retreat to the Dnieper River, abandoning their fellow soldiers now trapped in Romania. By June 13, both the Romanians and Soviets began a race to the port of Vylkove, which the Soviet rear guard had left undefended. The Romanians would win the race on June 15, sealing the fate of the estimated 20 Soviet divisions now trapped in Romania.
June 7 - An estimated 20 Soviet divisions were trapped in Romania (Author's note: )
Despite the early successes, by mid-June the Soviets had dug in along the Dnieper River, creating a second line of defense. However, just as HG Süd's infantry was slow to catch up, the Soviet infantry was slow to cover the southern portions of the river to replace their fallen compatriots. The result was an area void of any combat personnel starting halfway down the river from Kiev all the way to Sevastopol in Crimea, with troops from both sides racing to either establish a bridgehead or prevent one from being made.
The Ukrainian front on June 13
Overall, the month of June had seen the toughest fighting yet. The worst fighting was in Belarus, where the Soviets had held firm in their conviction to not allow the Heer to reach Moscow. The bloodiest fighting occurred near Minsk, as HG Mitte fought to clear the marshes.
The battles from June etched into the war memorial in Berlin are:
Slutsk, June 3, 1942 - 1,071 German KIA, 1,619 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Bauska, June 4, 1942 - 6,427 German KIA, 5,347 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Vievis, June 5, 1942 - 1,775 German KIA, 964 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Kaisiadorys, June 6, 1942 - 1,844 German KIA, 1,332 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Aizkraukle, June 8, 1942 - 5,390 German KIA, 3,372 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Berezan', June 9, 1942 - 2,701 German KIA, 1,920 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Molodeczno, June 9, 1942 - 3,229 German KIA, 2,813 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Balti, June 10, 1942 - 2,522 German KIA, 2,564 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Birzai, June 10, 1942 - 2,972 German KIA, 1,176 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Wilejka, June 12, 1942 - 2,641 German KIA, 2,637 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Minsk, June 12, 1942 - 2,765 German KIA, 851 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Heinola, June 13, 1942 - 1,725 German KIA, 2,656 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Zaslawye, June 13, 1942 - 2,558 German KIA, 811 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Postawy, June 14, 1942 - 769 German KIA, 1,702 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Wilejka, June 16, 1942 - 2,756 German KIA, 782 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Daugavpils, June 17, 1942 - 1,153 German KIA, 1,428 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Tsybuliv, June 18, 1942 - 1,356 German KIA, 2,138 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Zaslawye, June 18, 1942 - 2,809 German KIA, 892 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Zgurovka, June 18, 1942 - 3,529 German KIA, 4,290 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Kremenchuts'ka, June 20, 1942 - 2,813 German KIA, 1,438 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Marin''ina Horka, June 20, 1942 - 1,688 German KIA, 1,134 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Polatsk, June 22, 1942 - 4,258 German KIA, 3,100 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Jeabpils, June 22, 1942 - 5,728 German KIA, 3,532 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Bobrovytsya, June 26, 1942 - 11,011 German KIA, 6,853 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Cherkasy, June 27, 1942 - 1,811 German KIA, 1,670 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Zaslawye, June 27, 1942 - 1,324 German KIA, 1,222 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Domantove, June 7, 1942 - 2,899 German KIA, 1,021 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
Zhlobin, June 28, 1942 - 1,366 German KIA, 1,519 Soviet KIA, German Victory
Ichnya, June 29, 1942 - 1,913 German KIA, 735 Soviet KIA, Soviet Victory
(Author's Note: The high concentration of lost battles near the end of June was the result of MG Süd's failed attempt to cross the Dnieper near Kiev. I even left about 8 battles I won off this list, and it's still bigger than I originally thought...)
The status of the war on June 30, 1942