Thor's Anvil

Chapter 31

Nine mobile divisions had been extracted from the grand mailed fist the Germans had used to smash through at Voronezh. Six of them went first to Smolensk, where they joined with 4th Armee to launch a perfect spoiling attack against the Russian forces that had been gathering on that front as Manstein had predicted. It was a slow, but steady advance, for many of the divisions were still worn down from the long summer offensive. But the infantry there had been fresh, and it bore a good deal of the burden of attack in the heavily wooded area north of Smolensk. The Russians gave ground stubbornly, but Zhukov could see that his plan there had been discovered, and preempted.

Now he had other plans.

“Tank production has gone up considerably,” he explained to Kirov at the new STAVKA headquarters in Leningrad. “I have been getting good and very steady deliveries now that all our relocated factory equipment has been resettled to the east. We are building new formations at Kalinin, Yaroslavl, Novgorod and even Vologda in the far north. To the east, a new industrial city has been built, and we are calling it Kirovgrad, in honor of the city they already took from us.”

“Another city named for me?” said Kirov.

“This one is far enough to the northeast to worry about losing it. In fact, there was already a town at that site named after you. We just added the suffix when it became a city. 4th Guards Army is building there, and 2nd Guards is being re-established at Perm from veterans of the Volga Front. We are giving it to Malinovsky.”

“Then you are forming new Corps with all these tanks?”

“Of course, and several will be ready sooner than we expected. We expended the last of our front line reserves in those attacks to try and save Volgograd, but now I am pulling those shock Armies out.”

“To go where?”

“The closest place where they can make a difference—the Voronezh Front.”

“Then there will be no further effort to break through to the Donets Basin?” Kirov leaned over the map, his eyes on the beleaguered formations still trapped in the south.

“Not unless you order it, but I would not advise it. You insisted on retaining that ground, and all those troops have been cut off as I told you they would be.”

“Why not take these new tank corps and smash through?”

Zhukov folded his arms. “Mister General Secretary… If I did that, and we did manage to get through Steiner’s SS Korps to make contact with those troops, what then? Will you order them out? Are you prepared to pull everything out of the Kuban now?”

Kirov’s face hardened.

“I didn’t think so,” said Zhukov. “We would waste ourselves trying to maintain that link, and it will be the subject of endless pincer attacks from east and west. That road leads us nowhere. So I have decided to move operations to the center of the board. The Germans had been carrying out a major redistribution of forces in the last month. They pulled no less than nine mobile divisions out of that bunch they had east of Voronezh., and that was what spoiled our planned Smolensk Operation. That leaves six left in the 2nd Panzer Armee under Model near Voronezh, and now that sector is ripe for counterattack.”

“What do you propose?” Any mention of a possible offensive always got Kirov’s attention.

“An offensive to either side of Voronezh, and with the aim of trapping and isolating the 2nd Panzer Army. To do this I have extended the lines of 66th, 65th and 24th Armies. They now hold the ground gained by our earlier offensives. All the Shock Armies have been pulled out. In fact, this redeployment has been underway for a month, all while Steiner moved back west of the Don and then crossed the Donets to attack towards Rostov. They will take that city, and we must be grimly resigned to that. But… while the cat is away, the mice will play.”

“But surely they will have seen this redeployment,” said Kirov. “They will react, just as they did at Smolensk.”

“They may, but their own plans did not factor this option into their thinking. For that I credit your stubbornness in the south. We have learned that a Führer Directive has compelled General Manstein to continue operating there.”

“Berzin?”

“We just got it this morning,” said the Intelligence Chief. “Führer Directive Number 46. Manstein has orders to reduce Volgograd, take Rostov, clear the Donets Basin and then prepare for operations in the Kuban by January.”

“You see?” said Kirov, somewhat indignantly. “There was good reason to hold all that ground. They want it. The Kuban is the most natural land bridge linking Volkov’s Forces with German operations. All the really well developed oil sites are there at Maykop, Grozny and Baku. Hitler wants easy and unfettered access to that oil, and my Kuban Front armies are in the way.”

“For the moment,” said Zhukov. “They won’t have the armor to stop Steiner’s SS Korps, but any defense they do make will buy us the time we need at Voronezh. A little cloak and dagger from Berzin will hopefully help us as well.”

“What do you mean? Grishin?” Kirov looked to Berzin now.

“I had a little sit down with the Commissars. Afterwards I spoke with Khrushchev and told him we were determined to go forward with some offensive in the western sector, if not at Smolensk, then on the line from there to Moscow, aimed at Vyazma, Mozhaysk, and possibly as far as Kirov. I told him the Siberians were being pulled out of the south for redeployment to that front. Then I gave him specific orders to fly to the 11th Reserve Army headquarters at Kalinin and shake things up. Bridging equipment is also being moved to that sector.”

“Nikita Khrushchev,” said Kirov, almost spitting out the words. “We have long suspected he was a leftover from Beria’s regime,” he said to Zhukov. “So then we are gambling that news of these preparations will get to Volkov somehow, and from him to the Germans. “

“Correct,” said Berzin. “If they believe it, it will mask the withdrawal of those shock armies. Once we get them north of the Don again, we will put out that lack of adequate transport is slowing down the redeployment, and that the operation must be postponed another week. This will hopefully suppress any questions about why they are still lingering north of Boguchar and Veshenskaya.”

“Then I’m sending them west,” said Zhukov, pointing at the Don bend. “Right at Rossosh. That is the breakthrough point for the southern wing of the offensive. Once through we have the option of either turning north behind Model’s Army, or simply pushing west and south to Kharkov.”

“And the northern wing?”

“6th Army has reformed at Tambov and I will hurl it right at Lipetsk on the river, and they will have more than a little help. Volsky’s 4th Mech is heading there, again with cover orders that he is going up around Moscow for the Kalinin Group ruse. And you once asked me where all our tank corps were. Well, they were mostly rebuilding; receiving all these new tanks I spoke of at the outset of this briefing. I have now placed 11th Tank Corps at Tambov with the 6th Army, 2nd Tank Corps at Morshansk, 3rd on the line north of Voronezh, 5th at Penza in deep reserve. Beyond that, all of 1st Shock Army is still in the Tula sector reserve now, and it can be moved south to support this attack. Altogether, this will be the largest offensive of the war for us, even bigger than last winter.”

“Amazing,” said Kirov, very glad to hear all this. “Not two months ago you told me we could barely scrape up the forces to mount those attacks in the south.”

“That was true then,” said Zhukov. “The good thing about those attacks is that we did not get hurt too badly. We lost one Guards rifle corps, a few more run of the mill divisions, and those two tank corps. That was the only real sting, but we’ll rebuild them. As for the Shock Armies, they remain in very good shape. They’ve had over a month to rest and refit, and in that interval a lot of formations that were building in rear areas have now become available. What I told you the last time we met was true, but remember, the enemy has pulled nine tank divisions off the line and sent them to the northern front. They did not think we had the strength to attack with what we already had in the field, but they were wrong. Now, with the arrival of these new tank Corps, I have the forces to proceed.”

“Yes, Factory 100 in Leningrad has been working around the clock,” said Kirov. “Yet don’t you think we’re asking a lot of the Siberians?”

“And they are giving it to us,” said Zhukov. “Karpov sent us a big group he had assembled at Perm. I did everything but beg him for more support, and he delivered. Those men went right back into the ranks of those five Shock Armies, and they will be ready. Yet I do not think we can go to the well there again. There is a limit to the manpower Siberia can provide us. We must raise more troops, even if we have to conscript the entire population of Leningrad. Because if this operation fails, then that is where they will come next—Leningrad. They have already redeployed those tank divisions I mentioned north of Smolensk. They joined the three others they sent north of Minsk.”

Kirov nodded. “For Leningrad,” he said. “They couldn’t break our china at Moscow, and they are still trying to smash what’s left in the cupboards by taking Volgograd and everything to the south. Now it is high time that we started throwing cups and plates around ourselves. General Zhukov, get after them. Launch this operation as soon as you deem it feasible, and keep me well informed. By the way, what will you call it this time, Pluto?”

“For the largest offensive of the war?” Zhukov shook his head. Pluto is but a barren rock, or so I am told. Neptune would be better, but it is cold and blue. So this time they will feel the wrath of red Jupiter.” He smiled. “Isn’t he the Roman god of sky and thunder, king of all the other gods?”

“Why General,” said Kirov. “I did not know you were a religious man.”

The meeting ended on a high note, and a very hopeful one. At last the relocation of the factories had taken root. The output was up, and they were producing more tanks, more planes and trucks. The slogging Red Army was finally getting more motorized, and while those forces were in no way as skilled as Germany’s Panzer Divisions, the Soviets were building more and more each month. The sheer mass of the army was daunting to any foe that contemplated battle.

That young man warned me of this long ago, thought Kirov—Fedorov. I wonder what has become of him these days? When I boasted that we already had 500 of the new T-34s back in the summer of 1941, he told me I would have to build 50,000. Now we are finally scaling up production to do that, and to build better tanks as well.

When Zhukov had departed for the front, Kirov sat with Berzin before a warming fire. “Well this is all new,” he said, “and most unexpected.”

“Yes, we are well outside the covers of that last book I saved,” said Berzin. “There was no Operation Jupiter, but I think the Saturn Operation in the Material achieved its goals.”

“So we trade one god for another,” said Kirov, “or one planet. Was Zhukov holding all this force back? Why didn’t he report the progress of these new formations during the last briefing?”

“I think he likes to keep his cards held close to his vest,” said Berzin. “From an intelligence perspective, we knew they were building, but only he can say when they are ready for operations, and he can be very tight lipped. I suppose that can be a beneficial trait.”

“For heaven’s sake. I’m the General Secretary. I should have been informed.”

“Perhaps he was telling the truth. Two months ago, none of these new formations were ready. Now they are, and that is all we need be thankful for.”

“Did you catch that business about the shift of those German tank divisions to the line of the Divina River?”

“I was aware of that. They tried to make it look like they were part of the staging for their Smolensk cleanup operation, but I could see more in those deployments. Zhukov was correct. It’s Leningrad they want next year—old Saint Petersburg. If we don’t beat them up badly enough this winter, then this is where they will attack next. The decisive battle could be fought right here.”

Kirov reached for a bottle of vodka, pouring two glasses. “You know,” he continued, “I was once warned not to come here—to Leningrad, and by that same man I mentioned a moment ago—Fedorov.”

“You have told me this before, yet in all honesty, I still have difficulty grasping what happened to you at Ilanskiy. That place is still there, the same railway inn. Are you still thinking about it?”

“Of course—it is always in the back of my mind. Yet who knows if the phenomenon I described to you still persists. 1908 was a very long time ago.”

“Perhaps,” said Berzin. “Yet the thought that a man could go there by simply taking a walk down that stairway is most unnerving. I wonder what that Russian Captain was doing there a while back? Yes, I know, I’m not supposed to wonder about things. I’m Chief of Soviet Intelligence, and I should already know. Well, no one is infallible. It has also occurred to me that the Germans might know about that place. Perhaps that was the reason they were so eager to lend Volkov all those transport planes.”

“They did him no good,” said Kirov. “No, Grishin, I think Ilanskiy is the one secret Volkov keeps tight. He certainly must know about it, as that is how he came to be here. But would he tell Hitler this? I think not. Power is power as long as you can keep it in your back pocket, and use it when necessary—like this nice big offensive Zhukov pulls out of his hat. Let us hope it takes us farther than his spoiling attacks. Volgograd was the really big victory for us in late 1942, at least according to the Material. I had hopes that something similar might be achieved with Uranus and Saturn, and when they reached the Don, and cut Steiner’s Korps off like that, I was holding my breath. I thought time would twist these events into an image of the history we have in that book, but it was not to be.”

“There was no southern pincer,” said Berzin. “Shumilov is penned up in the city with Chuikov, and the other armies that attacked from that direction are on the upper Volga. It wasn’t the same at all, so why should we expect a similar outcome?”

“Could this be it then, this Operation Jupiter?”

“We can’t know that. It isn’t anything we can read up on in the Material any longer. Now we live it day by day, and try to make the best we can of it. I will say one thing. I’m glad you have finally given up the strange notion you had in your head about trying to end this war at that railway inn.”

“Thanks to you, Grishin, my strong right arm. I would be dead already if not for you.” Kirov thought about that, for he knew exactly why that Russian Captain had been at Ilanskiy, and he knew that the strange magic that happened on that stairway still persisted.

Yes, Grishin was correct about one thing, he thought. I have finally discarded the notion of trying to end this war on that back stairway, and I think that Russian Captain has as well. No, we must win it ourselves, the hard way, with blood, fire, and steel, and we can win. That was what Fedorov was trying to tell me all those years ago. We can win.

He turned to Berzin, a smile on his face.

“Let us drink, and wait for news of this battle. And God go with our soldiers this winter, be he Jupiter, Mars, Saturn or anyone else with a claim to the heavenly throne.”

“I think the Politburo will have to weigh in on that first,” said Berzin, raising his vodka glass.

Chapter 32

By the 15th of December, the German redeployment was almost complete, and the divisions were settling in to their winter rebuilding cycle. Three Panzer Korps, (41st, 56th and 57th), of three divisions each, had been sent west. They now formed Hoth’s new 4th Panzer Armee, refitting in preparation for the Spring Offensive. Most were understrength, needing new equipment and troops, and it would take some time to flesh them out. Model was left with six divisions, three each in the 24th and 47th Panzer Korps.

The 46th Panzer Korps was pulled into reserve at Kharkov with three more divisions. But with reports of a buildup underway at Kalinin northwest of Moscow, preparations were being made to send that Korps to Vyazma, where the Germans thought they would kill two birds with one stone. If the Soviets were planning a winter attack west of Moscow, then that Korps would be perfectly placed to stop it. If nothing developed, it would still be well placed to participate in the Spring Offensive. It was never once contemplated that the Russians would strike where they did.

Quite coincidentally, three infantry divisions, the 205th, 218th and 246th, had remained in the Voronezh area after the final reduction of that pocket. Now they were being moved up to the line to relieve the 10th Panzergrenadier Division, which withdrew into a second echelon position in accordance with the German sword and shield defensive doctrine. They wanted infantry on the line, and the mobile divisions behind, and this change was taking place east of Voronezh just as the Russians began moving up to their jump off start lines for the offensive. A fourth infantry division from reserve, the 707th, was coming in on the morning train from Kursk. This was going to considerably bolster the defensive arc around Voronezh.

In the meantime, Steiner’s SS Korps fell like a storm on the defenders north of Rostov. They had a brief reprieve when Manstein had recalled Balck’s 11th Panzer and other units to hold the line of the Chir against Operations Uranus and Saturn. The Soviet defense south of the Donets was soon reduced to two small areas, one around the big industrial city of Donetsk, the other at Rostov. Neither would hold for very much longer.

Then the thunder rolled, and Jupiter began to awaken from his long slumber. A huge segment of the German line, from Serpukhov all the way south to Rossosh, now saw a sudden buildup of enemy activity. The kicker that something very unusual was up came when the first Guard Airborne was airlifted over the front south of Tula, to drop on Plavsk and cut the rail line there.

Shortly thereafter, telephones were ringing in the headquarters of 2nd Panzer Armee at Voronezh, Army Group Center at Kirov, and at Army Group Don at Morozovsk. The enemy had crossed the Don south of Rossosh, and the bridgehead at Boguchar had launched what looked to be a pinning attack against the 44th Infantry Division there. 168th and 56th Infantry to the north on the river east of Rossosh reported a considerable buildup, including numerous tank formations and bridging equipment. Then the two newly arrived infantry divisions, the 208th and 218th, both reported they had come under sudden heavy artillery bombardment, followed by a strong attack.

The 707th Reserve Division had just arrived from Kursk, badly under strength. It was nonetheless sent forward, and the men of 10th Panzergrenadier had only just settled into their reserve posting when the orders came that the division was returning to the front line. The other division that had been relieved, 3rd Panzer, was also back in action within the hour.

The initial assessment was that these were spoiling attacks, aimed at harassing the Germans and hindering their scheduled redeployments, but that river crossing operation near Rossosh got Manstein’s attention. He wanted to know more, and got on the phone to OKH to see what Halder knew.

“What word from that attack near Rossosh?”

“Keitel suggests it is no more than an attempt to enlarge their Bridgehead at Boguchar. At the moment, it is contained.”

“Contained by what?”

“360th Security Division is in Rossosh itself, and reports no enemy activity. 4th Luftwaffe Field Division has moved south of the town. That’s where the trouble is.”

“4th Luftwaffe Field Division? They can’t contain anything, particularly a heavy infantry attack.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve ordered the 167th Infantry up from Kharkov. It will be there late tomorrow.”

“Well isn’t there a panzer division available?”

“The nearest would be 17th Panzer, a hundred kilometers north and east of the Don.”

“Good lord,” said Manstein.

“Well don’t you have something at Millerovo?” Halder sounded like he was fishing.

“22nd Panzer is there, but again, that is nearly 150 kilometers to the south.”

“47th Panzer Korps has their 29th Motorized Division in reserve,” Halder replied. “General Lemelsen was going to send them out on an anti-partisan sweep. I could call them, that is unless you prefer to send the 22nd.”

“I think we had better send both divisions.” Manstein sounded concerned. “If it’s a spoiling attack, then all we do is waste a little gasoline. Yet they are crossing the river at a most unusual place, right at the seam between my command and Model’s. If it is something more….”

“Very well. I will get orders off to Model, and then the two of you can coordinate things. How is the Donets Basin Operation?”

“Coming along nicely. We’ll take Donetsk today. Steiner is outside Rostov now, and it is not as heavily defended as Volgograd was. I have ordered him to take the city, and we already have infantry over the Donets to the east.”

“The Führer will be pleased. You are two weeks ahead of schedule.”

“I’m sure he will. But Halder… Keep an eye on this. Things have been quiet, and we presumed they had played out all their trump cards in that Chir operation. They pulled out those Shock Armies, and things got even quieter.”

“We received intelligence that they are being moved up around Moscow to the Kalinin sector,” said Halder.

“Yes… I read that too. But what if they aren’t going there? What if they rolled them into a new offensive plan? We will speak again on this. Notify me if you learn anything more.”

Three hours after that phone call the entire front in the Rossosh sector erupted. Every division on the line was under heavy attack, forced into hedgehog defense and calling frantically for armor support. The ‘something more’ Manstein could smell on the cold December wind was becoming much bigger than anyone imagined.

In the sector that had been fought over so bitterly since Guderian’s offensive of 1941, the Soviets threw 16th and 38th Armies supported by two tank corps at Tula. There the German 110th Infantry was overrun, the 183rd shattered and falling back with the 197th retreating on its right. Tula fell late on the 16th, and the Soviet armor surged through openings created by the retreating German infantry and raced for the Oka River. There the 214th Tank Brigade forced a crossing at Alexin, where nothing more than a small contingent of German military police barred the way.

Just beyond the bridge, a train had arrived from the Kalinin sector, and the men of the 389th infantry disembarked as the enemy tanks appeared. The infantry rushed forward, panzerfaust teams being the only immediate AT defense, and bravely engaged the enemy armor while the engineers desperately backed the train off to avoid having the rolling stock shot to pieces. The 387th division had disembarked some miles back, and it was now coming up on the right, which gave the Germans a critical mass of decent infantry to stop that enemy thrust and organize a counterattack to try and eliminate this bridgehead. Everything else east of the Oka was ordered back over the river.

Further south, the Russians took Plavsk, and had a fast moving cavalry division approaching Mtsensk by the 18th. Behind it, a long column of tanks and AFVs in the 3rd Guard Mech Corps was pushing for Orel. That was there the water was spilling over the top of the dam, for far to the east, the German line stretched in a wide arc like a great shield, down to the upper Don, to the position beyond Voronezh, and then down to the Don Bend area near Rossosh and the enemy Boguchar Bridgehead. It was all the hard won territory Rundstedt had taken in the Summer Offensive, and now the question arose as to whether any of that ground could be held.

The stubborn defense of the German 12th Infantry Korps had held Lipetsk for three days, completely throwing off Zhukov’s timetable for a crossing of the Don there. He had a lot of force on the roads stretching all the way back to Tambov. To the south, Model’s defense in front of Voronezh was masterful, with the 24th Panzer Korps mounting timely counterattacks in a very active battle. 3rd Panzer held onto Anna until the 18th, when Model consolidated his positions, ordering it back.

Model notified Halder that Voronezh was in no immediate danger, but requested more mobile support. “This is what happens when you pull nine divisions out of the army and leave us with the bare necessity. I had to put all six panzer divisions on the line. Where did all that infantry go after we took Voronezh?”

“Ten divisions went to Manstein. The Führer is goggle eyed to smash the last of the enemy resistance in the south, particularly at Volgograd. And you know very well that the panzers were shifted to Armeegruppe Nord.”

“Volgograd? That’s useless! We don’t need it.”

“From a military standpoint, you are certainly correct, but there are political considerations. Hitler wants it, Volkov wants it even more.”

“Well it is no concern of mine,” said Model. “Aside from the fact that all that infantry could be put to better use elsewhere.”

“Particularly in the north,” said Halder. “They are rolling us back to the Oka, so your northern flank will be turned in a matter of days. Screen Voronezh as long as you can. I have sent the three divisions of 46th Panzer Korps, and three more infantry divisions, to see if we can at least slow them down in the north, but they are already approaching Mtsensk.”

“Do you know the price in blood we paid for that sector? What about Tula?”

“It was occupied two days ago. Your army is the only segment of the front still intact. The Führer is counting on you, but you should know there is a big breakthrough at Rossosh to the south, so they may be contemplating a pincer operation, with your forces in the middle.”

“I can’t do anything about that,” said Model. “Frankly, if they break through there, then I think they want Kharkov.”

“Manstein isn’t sure about that, but it will be his problem. In the meantime, stand firm. I’ll get you all the support I can.”

For once Manstein was inwardly glad that it was Halder scrimping for infantry and other reserves. He had raided the cupboard fairly well in recent months, pulling Steiner’s SS out of Volgograd and collecting ten infantry divisions there. Now the earlier theft of 14th Panzer Korps also paid him good dividends. It was his first reaction force against the Boguchar bridgehead attack, stabilizing and shoring up the southern shoulder. Yet the enemy did not want to turn in his direction, and he inwardly sensed that.

They tried me in those earlier offensives, he thought, and they know I have all of Steiner’s divisions at hand to stop any further attempt they make against the lines of communication to Volgograd. Here I am, securing that ground when it is needless to do so. We should have just yielded the city to Volkov and let him deal with it, but I think Hitler is thinking beyond this battle to the end of the war. The political reasons he mentions involve our control of the lower Volga after the war, and that is why Volkov want that city.

The campaign in the Donets Basin is now concluded. Donetsk fell last night, which leaves me ten more divisions in the 17th Armee that will be looking for work. Hitler’s expectation was that I would take Steiner’s Korps into the Kuban, but I wonder if that would be wise given the scope of this big enemy offensive. I think Hitler wants the Kuban for the same reasons he wanted Volgograd. If he can get direct control of the oil there, all the better, and he knows Volkov is waiting to occupy that entire area after we break the enemy defense. Steiner would get the job done faster, but I could just as easily send Rouff’s 17th Army into the Kuban. It has the mountain divisions, and good artillery. So I have decided. Steiner moves north, Rouff south.

As for this offensive, what exactly are the Russians up to here? This drive out of Boguchar looks like they want Kharkov, but they still would have two rivers to get over before they could threaten that city. Turning north and aiming for Kursk might serve them better. Those same rivers would cover their left flank, and such a thrust would be the southern pincer against Model’s 2nd Panzer Armee. This is what I think they are doing, which means Kharkov must be occupied by a strong Knight.

Manstein was already looking several moves ahead, beyond the winter, to the spring counteroffensive that would surely answer this impudent attack by the enemy. It would not take him long before he determined just where he would find that strong Knight. He turned to a staffer, waving him over.

“Herr General?”

“Get me General Steiner on the telephone. I have new orders for him.” Manstein would soon learn that Steiner had delivered Rostov as he promised, and Steiner would soon learn that in grateful thanks, his SS Panzer Korps was going into reserve for a much needed refit—at Kharkov.

Orel fell on December 19th, but strangely, the Russian mobile units then turned almost due south and did not persist west towards the large industrial center of Bryansk. While Model had skillfully refused his northern left flank, the Russian attack kept trying to flow around it. At the same time, as if on cue, the southern group of forces that had broken out of the Boguchar Bridgehead abandoned their westward drive towards Kharkov and turned northwest.

Manstein received the reports with a knowing nod of his head, for the Northern attack had forsaken Bryansk and Kirov when it turned south. Both groups were now heading for another city that had become famous in the war, where another great turning point battle had once been fought.

The Russians were heading for Kursk, and if they could meet there, all of the 2nd Panzer Armee would be sitting in the largest German pocket to form since the battle for Moscow in the winter of 1941.

Chapter 33

On the night of December 20, 1942, the leading unit in the Northern Group of Forces came to a halt just outside the frozen airstrip on the outskirts of Kursk. 20th Guard Tank Brigade was leading the 5th Guard Tank Corps south, eager to be the first to reach the assigned objective of Operation Jupiter. This northern pincer had every reason to claim bragging rights. It had broken through at Tula and then raced just over 185 miles in the first five days of the offensive, an average of 37 miles per day.

In Poland, the German Panzers had advanced at an average rate of 11 miles per day, and in Barbarossa they improved this to about 19 miles per day. So this lightning quick movement of a heavy mechanized force was quite astonishing, for both the Russians and Germans alike. By contrast, the Southern Group of Forces had advanced about 100 miles, or still a respectable 25 miles per day. They had faced defensive opposition the entire time, while the northern pincer had done little more than broken field running after the fall of Orel and that fateful turn to the south.

In spite of this achievement, the bag was far from closed on Model’s 2nd Panzer Armee. The Southern pincer was still 125 miles from Kursk, so Zhukov gave orders that the Northern Group should continue south towards Belgorod. That route would take them through an insignificant town with a name that also rang through Fedorov’s history, Prokhorovka.

Model realized the significance of what was happening, and while his inclination was to make a rapid withdrawal towards Kharkov, the volatile Adolf Hitler had exploded when he got news of the Russian offensive. With Both Tula and Orel now in enemy hands, Bryansk threatened, Voronezh and the lines north and south under heavy pressure, he issued one of his infamous stand fast orders, forbidding Model to withdraw. In effect, he was insisting that 2nd Panzer Armee stay in the trap the enemy was laboring so hard to close. For Hitler, the loss of Voronezh was unconscionable, the fruit of all that effort in the German Summer Offensive now about to be spoiled. He issued another Führerbefehl that demanded the city be defended to the last man, and the last bullet.

Model complained bitterly to von Rundstedt. “I still have nine divisions east of the Don! They will have that river behind them, no good bridges, and only two suitable crossing points where I can move in supply. The ice is thickening, but it still can’t take the weight of the tanks, and we will have to build pontoon bridges to cross that obstacle, coming or going. Beyond that, Kursk is virtually undefended, as is Kharkov. They can waltz in and take those cities for the cost of the petrol!”

“I understand everything you are saying,” said von Rundstedt. “But I cannot allow you to withdraw west of the Don. The Führer has forbidden any such movement. As for Kharkov, Manstein is seeing to that. I don’t know what is happening at Kursk yet, but it will be Halder’s problem.”

“Do you realize that if they get behind me I have nothing to send to that sector? It is all I can do to hold the line as it is. We remain under very heavy pressure.”

“They knew they had to lean on you heavily,” said von Rundstedt. “They needed to keep you engaged to prevent the exact same kind of sensible withdrawals you are now proposing.”

“Well we could have saved them the trouble,” said Model, the anger apparent in his voice. “Hitler has seen to that for them. Do you have any idea what Halder is sending for Kursk?”

“Not at the moment. There has been some discussion about returning some of the divisions that were moved to Armeegruppe Nord, but that will take some doing.”

“Then I certainly hope Manstein has something in his pocket. God help us if he doesn’t act swiftly.”

Manstein did have something in his pocket. He had General Felix Martin Julius Steiner, four SS Divisions and the Reichsführer Brigade. That was the first unit to go, but the trains did not stop at Kharkov. Manstein told them to move right on up to Belgorod. The 5th SS Wiking Division was next in line, with three infantry regiments, and another of tanks that had been inherited from the Brandenburg Division. Yet that was all that could be moved that day with the available rolling stock, including the tanks of the 502 SS Schwerepanzer Battalion. General Gille’s Wikings were told to assemble at Volchansk, southeast of Belgorod. The only other things that moved were some massive siege guns dubbed Karl and Dora, both bound for Volgograd.

Frustrated and angry, Model took a chance and ordered the 41st Regiment of 3rd Panzergrenadier Division to go to Kursk. It arrived at dusk, just as the Russian tankers were lining up on the frozen airfield north of the city. The place would soon become a magnet for steel, with forces on every side of the compass bearing down on the city, and using every road or rail that led to that place.

Behind that leading tank brigade was a torrent of mechanized corps, formations that had been building in reserve areas for most of the second half of 1942. Zhukov had held the line with the rifle divisions, losing more and more ground to the Germans in the summer and autumn of their offensive. Operation Blue had been a great success, and with it they had largely destroyed the old Red Army they had first engaged in 1941. The survivors formed the nucleus of new divisions, like a hard nut in the center of the fruit, and new conscripts fleshed out the peach.

Now, by late 1942, it was an all-new Red Army, more heavily motorized, better equipped, and now with hordes of fast new proven tanks. They were still outclassed by the better German designs. The old T-34 shock had long since been dispelled by the arrival of the Big Cats, and by men like Kurt Knispel and Hermann Balck who knew how to use those tanks. But now the Russians finally had mass in their mobile formations, the force to challenge the German panzers on almost equal terms, though a single German division would be the equal of a Soviet Tank Corps.

Zhukov’s fast moving Guards Mech Corps reached Kursk in great strength on the morning of the 21st of December, and when Model received the report from that one Panzergrenadier regiment he had sent there, he ordered it to get out while it still could.

Halder was at his wits end. His immediate reaction to the crisis was to reach for all the divisions that had been sent to Armeegruppe Nord, but he realized that most had been badly depleted during the long summer offensive, and much of their equipment was left behind to build up the divisions Model retained. It would be at least another month before any of them were fit for combat, and to use them now would only court their complete destruction.

His first and greatest need, however, was for more infantry to reform the ruptured front line. In the north, the line along the Oka was secure, and no longer under attack. That had obviously been a chosen stopping point for the offensive there. Model’s army was still holding, yet in grave danger of being cut off and pocketed. Manstein was secure in the south, but a lot of infantry had gone there, and now the entire 17th Army was pushing south of the Don for the Kuban Operation.

The danger zone was near Kursk, where strong enemy mobile forces had arrived in great strength. He had a division left in Prague, another in Warsaw, and then went looking as far away as Wein in Austria for more troops. Then, and without even forming Hitler, He quietly ordered the Baltic coast garrison division at Memel to board the trains, replacing it with a security regiment. He did the same for the 290th Infantry Division, a reserve unit behind the 10th Infantry Korps in Latvia.

All these divisions joined those of Army Group Center’s reserve, moving by rail to the region southwest of Kursk. He then looked for a headquarters, and tapped Hans von Salmuth and the 2nd Army, which had been withdrawn into OKW reserve for possible assignment to the Leningrad operation in the spring. He needed it now.

By raiding these far off pantries, Halder had cobbled together a new army that would soon have all of ten infantry divisions. Knowing it would soon be facing a lot of enemy armor, he then ordered in several of the Schwerepanzer Brigades that were still in the German order of Battle, refitted after the heated action of 1941. The 106th and 107th Brigades would be the first to arrive, having been in reserve for Army Group Center. There were five more behind Army Group Nord, and he stole away the 105th from its reserve posting near Minsk, again saying nothing to Hitler about this. Finally, he called Manstein and asked if there was anything more he could spare. Knowing he had a few debts to pay for his own larceny, Manstein immediately detached the 60th Panzergrenadier Division and ordered it to Prokhorovka.

When Hitler learned that the enemy had already reached Kursk, be was fuming himself up into a tirade when Halder walked in, determined to try his own hand at being a miracle worker.

“Do not be overly concerned,” he began. “Yes, this is a serious setback, but it will be managed.”

“Managed? I see nothing on the map there at all? What is to stop the Russians from going all the way to Kharkov? I should have Rundstedt taken out and shot!”

“Not yet please,” said Halder, reaching for a pen. Then he simply leaned over the map table and began sketching in a defensive line, from a point near Orel and running south parallel to the enemy line of advance on Kursk before jogging east towards Prokhorovka. To save von Rundstedt’s head, he decided to give him the credit.

“There,” he said. “Von Rundstedt is now assembling his reserve 2nd Armee under von Salmuth. And from the South front, their operation at Rostov concluded, Manstein is sending the entire SS Panzer Korps. Steiner is coming, my Führer. You can be assured he will deal with this situation in short order.”

“Steiner?” Hitler brushed the hair from his brow, his other hand hidden behind his back, the one with the palsied tremor that became worse whenever he was agitated. “I thought he was in the Kuban?”

“Manstein saw fit to pull him out, and Rouff’s 17th Army will now do the job there. They have already crossed the Don and are south of Rostov… about here I expect.”

Hitler lean in, squinting. “And where is Steiner?”

“He will assemble here, near Belgorod. It will put him in a perfect position to stop the enemy pincer operation. It would be better, of course, if Model could use his 47th Panzer Korps to strike this southern pincer from the east while Steiner crushes it from the west. Unfortunately, due to your stand fast order, that will not be possible. A pity, because this stretch of river here has only a very few decent crossing points, and Model now has it at his back. If he were on the west bank, he could hold that line with far fewer troops, and then use his panzers to attack. As it stands, there they sit, and likely for some time. A shame to see those divisions stuck east of the river like that. They were all fattened up nicely with the equipment from the other divisions we sent to Armee Group Nord.”

“Who ordered those panzers to remain east of that river?” Hitler gave Halder an indignant look. “Get them out of there immediately! Move them to assist Steiner, just as you have described it to me a moment ago. After he smashes this southern pincer, then both forces will turn north and smash the other.” He took the pencil from Halder’s hand, leaning to draw an arrow on the map, as if this whole scheme had been his design all along.

“A much better use of those divisions,” said Halder. “I have no idea who gave that order, but I will see that it is corrected immediately.” He looked at Keitel, who nodded and then quickly withdrew to get the order off to Model before Hitler changed his mind.

“But remember,” said Hitler, “Voronezh will be held. You will make certain of that.”

“Model has posted three infantry divisions there,” said Halder.

The sudden appearance on the map of a complete army that had not been there before had been a balm to Hitler, and his mood had quieted. Yet there was still a restless sense of urgency about him, and he looked about him as if the other officers had stolen something from him, slipping it back into the living room while he wasn’t looking. The threat to the hard won gains of the long summer gave him great anxiety. He had hoped that offensive would finally break his enemy, and now, seeing the Russians still had the strength to mount such an attack, was most unnerving.

On the 22nd, Kursk was firmly in the enemy’s hands, though the southern pincer had made only 20 kilometers progress against a stubborn by hopeless defense put up by the 29th Panzergrenadier Division. Only a hundred kilometers now separated the two pincers, and while elated that he was finally given permission to extract the 47th Panzer Korps, the order had come only in the nick of time for Model. Getting back over that river would not be easy, and the engineers were the first units to move, given any transport they needed.

“Get them to the crossing sites and prepare pontoons,” Model told his Chief of Staff. “The rest of the Korps will follow as soon as we can disengage, which may not be easy.”

“Then we will not take Kharkov?” Sergei Kirov was in high spirits, and to think that he now had that option before him was something he still struggled to realize.

“First things first,” said Zhukov. “Rokossovsky was a little slow with the southern pincer, so I have adjusted the planned meeting point for both groups to this town here, Prokhorovka. That puts the enemy 2nd Tank Army in the bag, and after that we will have a massive mailed fist to turn southwest towards Kharkov. Yet I propose a double thrust. Rokossovsky is going to be reinforced by the addition of 3rd Shock Army and all the mechanized forces assigned to it. They were east of Voronezh, but the Germans have finally come to their senses and started falling back towards the river. It makes no sense to leave those shock troops there. Once they redeploy south through Pavlovsk they can approach the upper Donets. This will leave the forces presently constituting that group free to drive on Kharkov.”

“And the other thrust?”

“Timoshenko’s Northern Group could reorient and drive on Bryansk, but that would see both forces taking divergent paths. My judgment would be to let them continue southwest, with the River Desna on their right.”

“Kiev?” Kirov was amazed. “I had no idea that might be within our reach this soon.”

“It may not be. Logistics will be very difficult, and we must have Kharkov first. I have surged supply deliveries to keep the mobile troops moving, but we cannot do that indefinitely. In any case, if we send Timoshenko in that direction, it would cover the flank of the Southern Group as it advances on Kharkov, and also be available to support that attack should Kiev prove to be an impractical objective, as it likely will.”

“Agreed,” said Kirov, literally rubbing his hands with anticipation. “Just getting Kharkov back again would be a great victory,” he said. “We have lost Rostov and the entire Donets Basin. Volgograd cannot be far behind. Yet in compensation we will get Voronezh and Kharkov.”

“That is the plan,” said Zhukov, though we have neither at the moment. Getting to Kursk this quickly is certainly noteworthy, but by now the enemy will be pulling in every reserve they have to try and stop us. Word is that the SS Korps is being moved north.”

“That is correct,” said Berzin. “They moved the 5th SS Division two days ago, and smaller corps assets. The 3rd SS is beginning to arrive now.”

“So you see why I have decided to reinforce Rokossovsky’s Southern Group. What we could use now is one more army to assure we don’t thin out too much as we move south. 3rd Guards Army is up near Samara, but I plan no offensive action there for some time.”

“Then move it here,” said Kirov. “We’ll deal with Volkov later. I want everything we can muster here for this offensive, and it still amazes me that you suddenly have all these armies available when only two months ago you were telling me your Operation Uranus was everything you had saved for this winter offensive.”

“It was,” said Zhukov. “That is where these shock armies in the Southern Group came from. The new mobile formations were a long time building, and 60 days ago I could not use any of them as they were being formed. They were only just starting to build up their brigades with good armor deliveries. Now we have them, and so now we will use them. Mister General Secretary, I have every hope to take Kharkov within 30 days.”

“What about the SS? What about all those new German Tiger tanks? They have been a real nemesis.”

“The SS? Tiger tanks? Not this time. The forces I have assembled in these two shock groups are massive. We have two tigers of our own out there, Timoshenko and Rokossovsky, about to meet and be harnessed to Jupiter’s mighty chariot. And if Steiner gets in my way, I will deliver his head on a platter.”