January 1945

Eastern Front

Heavy fighting rages around kattenau as the 3rd Belorussian fights its way through the town. With its line still intact but under intense pressure, the 3rd Panzer army commits the 5th Panzer Division from its reserve. After hard fighting Kattenau is retaken, prompting Chernyakhovsky to move the 11th Guards Army from the center to the right. This move is intended to support the 39th Army, currently attacking the Germans north of Schlossberg.

The 2nd Belorussian Front begins its attack into East Prussia from the Narew River, aiming to push into the Danzig region of eastern Pomerania. The main attack is led by the 2nd Shock, 48th and 3rd Armies, while the attacks on the Pultusk axis pins down the German reserves. Heavy snowfall prevents the Soviets from utilizing their overwhelming air power and after only a short time German resistance stiffens considerably.

Even this early in the offensive, Reinhardt has recognized that the 2nd Belorussian Front attack presents a major threat to his flank and request permission to pull back forces to a shorter front line. Hitler naturally refuses.

With attention fixed around Baranow, the Germans are taken by surprise as the 1st and 2nd Belorussian Fronts unleash their offensives to the north. At Magnuszew the Soviets have massed 3rd and 5th Shock Armies, 1st Polish Army and 2nd Tank Army, a force of 400,000 men with 1,700 tanks against the German VIII Corps, while to the south there is 8th Guards, 69th and 1st Guards Tank Armies against the LVI Panzer Corps (19th and 25th Panzer Divisions) of Luttwitz's 9th Army which holds the Pulawy sector. In reserve the Germans hold the XL Panzer Corps but this is to cover the entire army group area.

At 0830 hours both the Pulawy and Magnuszew bridgeheads explode into action as Soviet arty pulverize the Germans. Pushing rapidly forward, the attack forces penetrate 20 miles into the German rear. The 2nd Tank Army enters the battle at Magnuszew almost immediately. By 1030 hours the LVI Panzer Corps has moved to counterattack with its 19th and 25th Panzer Divisions, but instead of fighting as a single, powerful unit, the 19th moves to tackle the 69th and 8th Guards Armies while the 25th attempts to stop the 5th Shock Army. Despite heavy fighting the Soviet drive on, pushing west and north from Magnuszew to envelop Warsaw, while at Pulawy attacks to the west and southwest aim to encircle the junction of the 9th and 4th Panzer Armies against the Vistula. The 3rd and 5th Shock Armies rip apart the VIII Corps while the 8th Guards crush the LVI Panzer./ Despite a desperate defense the German forces are simply overwhelmed.

The 1st Ukrainian Front has completely ripped open the German line before Baranow. Nehring's XXIV Panzer Corps has been destroyed as a coherent force while the remnants of Recknagel's XLII Corps fight in isolation as the 13th and 3rd Guards Armies pour around the broken flanks. Recknagel is killed during the fighting. In order to restore the situation Hitler orders the Grossdeutschland Panzer Corps to move from Army Group Center to Army Group A.

The 27th Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front captures Lunenec in Slovakia as it pushes north from the Hungarian border. The weakness of the Soviet forces in this sector prevent any further exploitation of this gain.