September 1941

Eastern Front

Finnish forces take Lodenoye Pole, severing the Leningrad to Murmansk railway and securing a crossing over the Svir River. Heavy fighting rages as the Finns attempt to enlarge their bridgehead.

On the extreme northern wing the Germans unleash a new attack toward Murmansk. Bitter fighting is carried out as artillery and aerial attacks support the infantry assault.

The Germans begin their assault against the Moonzun Islands. To defend the islands the Soviets have 23,600 men and 140 artillery pieces of the 8th Army. These forces are split between 18,600 men on the islands of Saaremaa and Muhu and a further 5,000 on Hiiumaa and Vormsi. The Germans begin their attack upon Vormsi after an artillery barrage has softened the defenses. Three divisions are committed, two to land on the islands and one to defend the coasts. The small Soviet force defends stoutly, holding up the German attack.

On the southern shore of Lake Ladoga, Antonyuk's 48th Army breaks apart, enabling the 20th Motorized and 12th Panzer Divisions to take Schlusselberg, severing the last land route out of Leningrad. Some 2,500,000 civilians, together with the greater part of the Leningrad Front, have been encircled between the Germans to the south and the Finns to the north. The fighting effectively cuts apart the 48th Army, forcing half away to the east and confining the remainder inside the city. With Leningrad isolated, German bombers launch heavy raids upon the city, inflicting severe damage upon the warehouses and factories.

Chernigov falls to the XIII Corps of the 2nd Army. Shaposhinikov orders the West Front over onto the defensive, calling off the costly Dukhovschina-Yartsevo attacks. The offensive has weakened the West Front considerably.