1941At 4: 30 on June 22, Germany tore up the Soviet-German non-aggression treaty and suddenly launched a war of aggression against the Soviet Union. The Germans attempted to annihilate the Soviet troops along the Baltic Sea and captured Leningrad with the "Northern" Army Group. Attack Kiev with the "Southern" Army Group and wipe out the main Soviet forces in Ukraine west of Dnieper River; With the "Central" Army Group, they launched a pincer-like offensive in the south and north, and surrounded the Soviet troops stationed in Belarus.
After the war broke out, the Germans bombed the important cities, transportation hubs, military bases and Soviet troops marching towards the border in the western part of the Soviet Union, parachuted paratroopers in the depth of Soviet defense and seized important locations. At the same time, thousands of guns pounded Soviet frontier posts, fortifications, communication hubs and troop assembly areas, and then, under the guidance of superior tanks and motorized corps, they crossed the Baltic Sea to Carpathian Mountain at about 1500.
The overture to Misensk's Ambush was quietly played.
At the end of September, the German Central Army Group (under the jurisdiction of the 9th, 4th and 2nd Army Groups and the 3rd and 2nd Tank Clusters) attacked Kalinin, Viarima, orel and Tula in the northeast of Smolensk, Roslavly and Sautska with 1 Army Group and 1 Tank Cluster in an attempt to divide and surround the Soviet Union in Viarima first.
Then the powerful fast group surrounded and captured Moscow from the north and south. The German Southwest Assault Group, composed of the 2nd Tank Cluster (Commander General guderian) and the 2nd Army (Commander General Wedges), broke through the defense of the Soviet Bryansk Army, and its tanks entered the orel area on June 2nd, 10, which directly endangered Tula's security and constituted a situation of bypassing Moscow from the south.
In order to stop the German attack, the Soviet Union decided to assemble several reserve troops, including the 4th Brigade of Independent Tanks, in Mzensk area to stop the enemy. The prelude to Mzensk's ambush war was quietly played.
/kloc-at the beginning of 0/0, the newly formed 4th Brigade of Independent Tanks was stationed in kubinka, 60km west of Moscow, to protect the roads and railways along Moscow-Minsk. 10 On June 3rd, the 4th Brigade of the Independent Tank was incorporated into the 1 Army of the Guards Infantry. In the early morning, under the command of Colonel mikhail efimovich Katukov, the brigade commander (later the armored marshal), it was ordered to leave the suburbs of Moscow and transport it to Mirensk by railway.
The first echelon arrived at the designated area the next day and stopped the Germans on both sides of the road from Tula to orel, while the rest of the troops were still on the move.
In order to create favorable conditions for organizational defense
And in order to prevent the Germans from carrying out a sudden attack on a team that turned to defense, the brigade commander sent two powerful reconnaissance teams to orel: one was composed of 10 tanks and an infantry company riding tanks (commanded by Captain gusev), and the other was composed of eight tanks and an infantry company (commanded by Captain Boorda). In the evening, the tank brigade, an 85 mm anti-aircraft artillery battalion and an airborne battalion all arrived at the designated place.
That night, on the broad front of the brigade headquarters, 5 kilometers northeast of orel, fortifications were built using the terrain, and all tanks were ambushed and disguised. Captain Boorda's reconnaissance team was ambushed on the side of the road from Mzensk to orel. That night, the Germans made a column of about a regiment (including artillery and tanks). Drive into the ambush of the reconnaissance team. The reconnaissance team started shooting in the direct range of German tanks, destroying several German tanks.
Then, the reconnaissance team attacked and captured three prisoners, an armored transport vehicle and some combat documents. Afterwards, the reconnaissance team returned to the brigade position. After interrogating the prisoners, it was learned that the attacking Germans were the 3rd and 4th divisions of guderian tank cluster and a motorized division, and the corresponding area was only 12- 15km. Therefore, Tank Brigade 4 organized an independent defense in a very short time, and it was far away from its own infantry regiment.
To this end, the brigade was organized into two echelons. The first echelon is organized motorized infantry battalion, anti-tank artillery battalion and the 34th regiment of the People's Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The second echelon is the 4th Tank Regiment, which is mainly used for ambush and anti-assault.
The motorized infantry battalion and the 34th mixed battalion are deployed side by side; Each battalion strengthens a tank platoon, and tanks occupy the flank positions of the defense zone; The motorized infantry battalion is equipped with four 45mm anti-tank guns. Between the first and second echelon, that is, 3 kilometers southeast of Ivanovskoye, there is an ambush of medium tanks. The fire density of anti-tank firearms is 0/2 units per kilometer/kloc-,and the fire density of anti-tank firearms is the highest in the road direction, reaching 20 units per kilometer.
A 37mm anti-aircraft artillery battalion within the brigade system is responsible for air defense, which is mainly used to cover the second echelon and command post from air assault. At the same time, the brigade sent an ambush tank and attached infantry to the exposed flank.