Chapter Summaries

Marshal Lütjens’s German fleet tracked the Buru Fleet through the night and prepared to meet it in battle, trusting its radar-guided guns to give it the advantage. The chapter ended as four Kaiser-class Battleships opened fire on the approaching Russian Battleships.

• After seaplanes spotted the Buru Fleet, Marshal Lütjens chose to postpone an air attack until dawn rather than risk night landings for the pilots.
• The German fleet used seaplanes and radar-equipped destroyers and Light Cruisers to monitor the Buru Fleet and prevent its escape.
• At midnight, Lieutenant General Karl Wetzell reported that the Buru Fleet was heading south and would meet the German fleet in about two and a half hours.
• Marshal Lütjens ordered his gunners to prepare for a night battle and sent the aircraft carriers Archer and Capricorn farther south for safety.
• As the fleets closed to thirty kilometers, the German Navy’s four Kaiser-class Battleships fired their main guns at the Buru Fleet’s four Battleships.

Admiral Isakov’s Buru fleet came under fire from German battleships attacking accurately from more than thirty kilometers away. Unable to escape or close the distance, the Russians watched German shells strike their flagship, the Battleship Buru, and faced a humiliating defeat.

• German naval guns opened fire on Admiral Isakov’s fleet from at least thirty kilometers away, shocking the Russian commanders.
• Admiral Isakov ordered the fleet south at full speed to close the distance, but warned Admiral Orlov that retreat would leave them vulnerable to pursuit and carrier aircraft at dawn.
• German radar operators directed four Kaiser-class Battleships to concentrate their fire on the Battleship Buru.
• The German bombardment struck the Battleship Buru, destroying a 150mm Secondary Gun and killing several gunners.
• Admiral Isakov realized that the fleet was nearing destruction without being able to fight back as he had hoped.

The German fleet destroyed all four Bolshevik-class battleships of the Bolshevik Navy during a night battle. After dawn, German carrier aircraft pursued the fleeing Russian ships, sinking most of them while a few escaped.

• Marshal Lütjens and Lieutenant General Karl Weitzel celebrated the German fleet’s advantage as its battleships fired on the Russian ships.
• A German shell destroyed the Buru battleship’s No. 1 main gun turret, and the Buru sank after taking twelve hits; Admiral Isakov and others transferred to the Joseph.
• The German fleet sank the Moscow and Ulyanov battleships after concentrating its fire on each in turn.
• Admiral Isakov and the others stayed aboard the Joseph, which the German fleet sank less than half an hour after beginning its bombardment.
• The remaining Russian warships scattered, and after dawn aircraft from the Archer and Capricorn carriers sank most of them while a few escaped.

As winter set in, Joseph decided to turn the destruction of the Bolshevik Navy into a rallying symbol and then proposed a winter counterattack against Germany. Shaposhnikov was alarmed by the plan but knew Joseph’s character too well to openly oppose him.

• Germany and its allies halted their offensive, withdrew most troops to second-line positions, and sent winter supplies to the front.
• Shaposhnikov reported that the Germans had destroyed nearly the entire Bolshevik Navy, including the ships carrying Isakov, Orlov, and Viktorov.
• Joseph praised the navy’s last stand and ordered Shaposhnikov to spread its fighting spirit through the armed forces.
• Joseph decided that Russia’s bitter winter offered an opportunity to attack Germany and urged a counteroffensive.
• Shaposhnikov was dumbfounded by Joseph’s proposal and feared the Russian army would be inviting disaster.

Joseph decided to launch a large-scale winter counterattack against the Germans and assigned the task to Marshal Voroshilov’s Western Front. Voroshilov realized the plan could devastate his troops and leave him as the scapegoat if it failed.

• Shaposhnikov concealed his doubts and told Joseph that Russian soldiers could exploit the cold to surprise the Germans.
• Joseph summoned Voroshilov and ordered him to accelerate the integration of the Western Front, which gathered more than three million troops west of Moscow.
• Joseph announced that the Western Front would launch a large-scale winter counterattack to weaken the Germans before next year's battles.
• Voroshilov recognized that his poorly equipped soldiers faced mass frostbite and death, but saw no way to refuse Joseph’s order.

Joseph ordered the Western Front to launch an offensive before the end of the month, despite the risk of heavy losses. Voroshilov prepared a plan involving 1.5 million men and focused on German defenses north of Smolensk, which Joseph approved in principle.

• Joseph ordered Voroshilov to prepare a Western Front offensive and win a victory before the end of the month.
• Voroshilov asked Shaposhnikov to gather winter supplies, weapons, and ammunition for his troops.
• Voroshilov told Western Front commanders and Political Commissars about Joseph's demand and ordered preparations for an offensive involving half the Front's forces.
• After two days, Voroshilov presented a plan deploying twelve army groups, totaling 1.5 million men, to attack north of Smolensk.
• Voroshilov explained that the attack aimed to break the German defensive line and sweep through its northern positions, and Joseph approved the plan in principle.

General Zhukov took command of a twelve-corps Russian offensive against the German line, with orders to break through the Belarusian and Polish defenses in ten days. He assigned the forces to northern and southern assault groups as his officers worried about shortages and the winter cold.

• The Russian Western Front assembled twelve army corps near Velikiye Luki and south of the city for a two-pronged attack on the Belarusian and Polish forces.
• Marshal Voroshilov gave General Zhukov full command of the offensive, expecting him to bear most of the blame if it failed.
• General Zhukov met the corps commanders on December 15, where Lieutenant General Konev asked for more winter clothing and described the troops’ cold-weather hardships.
• General Zhukov promised to request more supplies but urged the commanders to prepare for the offensive ordered by Joseph.
• General Zhukov assigned six corps to the Northern Assault Group and six to the Southern Assault Group, ordering both to attack in ten days.

German intelligence revealed Russian troops advancing toward Velikiye Luki in the bitter cold, prompting Guderian to prepare Army Group B for a possible counterattack. The chapter ended with German commanders expecting the Russians to assault their defensive lines and suffer heavy losses.

• Karl Hilpert informed Guderian that German reconnaissance aircraft had spotted camouflaged Russian forces moving quickly toward Velikiye Luki.
• Guderian ordered Hilpert to gather more intelligence and summon Army Group B’s corps commanders, along with the Polish and Belarusian commanders, to a meeting in Smolensk.
• German intelligence agencies collected reports suggesting that the Russians were preparing to attack despite the severe winter weather.
• Guderian concluded that the Russian forces would strike the German defensive line and that their losses could help Germany’s campaign against Moscow the following year.

Marshal Guderian prepared the German and allied forces for an expected Russian winter offensive, while General Zhukov launched the attack on December 25. The Russian assault began against the northern defenses, and Zhukov ordered the infantry forward despite Russian artillery being outmatched.

• Marshal Guderian warned his commanders that the Russians were planning a major counterattack and ordered the frontline corps to prepare and hold their positions.
• Guderian arranged for the 1st Belarusian Army Corps, the 3rd Polish Army Corps, and the 4th Army Corps to support one another, with the German 13th Army Corps ready to reinforce them.
• German and allied forces strengthened their defenses and stocked the front with war materiel as they waited for the Russian attack.
• On December 25, General Zhukov ordered Russian forces to attack the northern lines held by the 1st Belarusian Army Corps and the 3rd Polish Army Corps.
• After seeing that Russian artillery was outnumbered and the Polish defenses remained intact, Zhukov ordered the 19th and 20th Army Corps to attack Pustoshka and the 21st and 22nd Army Corps to attack Usvyaty.

Russian forces launched a winter offensive against Polish and Belarusian defenses, but the cold and concentrated enemy fire devastated their ranks. The defenders held their lines, and their commanders prepared to exploit their firepower against the Russians.

• The Russian 19th and 20th Army Corps attacked Polish divisions despite severe cold and inadequate winter clothing, and many soldiers froze before reaching the enemy lines.
• Zhukov and Konev watched the attack and discussed the ill-timed offensive and the shortage of winter supplies.
• The Polish 22nd and 23rd Infantry Divisions opened fire with rifles, machine guns, and artillery, inflicting heavy losses on the Russian attackers.
• The Russian 21st and 22nd Army Corps attacked the Belarusian 1st and 2nd Infantry Divisions, whose soldiers repelled them with heavy fire.
• Chelyushenkov and Vashkevich learned that their frontline troops had held and expected to inflict further casualties on the Russian army.

Zhukov and Konev’s Russian forces continued a costly assault on Allied defenses in heavy snow, but the weather cleared and the German Air Force struck the exposed troops. The Russian attack turned into a massacre as German aircraft bombed and strafed their formations.

• A political officer urged the Russian soldiers to charge, but Allied fire cut down most of the attacking troops before they reached the defenses.
• Konev asked Zhukov to halt the assault, but Zhukov refused as political officers continued pressing the soldiers forward.
• The snowfall stopped unexpectedly, leaving Zhukov and Konev to realize that German aircraft could now attack.
• FW-190 and BF-109 fighters bombed and strafed the Russian formations, inflicting horrific casualties.
• Stuka dive bombers and Predator ground attack aircraft joined the assault, further devastating the Russian forces.

General Zhukov halted the disastrous Russian offensive and met with Konev and Lemezev to find a way through the enemy defenses. They agreed to try a night attack, hoping darkness would neutralize German air power and reduce the defenders’ firepower advantage.

• Konev questioned why the Russian air armies did nothing, and Zhukov explained that their aircraft and pilots were no match for the Germans.
• German air attacks devastated the Russian troops, triggering a battlefield rout that political officers could not stop.
• Zhukov refused the political officers’ demand to resume the assault, and Marshal Voroshilov suppressed their complaint against him.
• Zhukov, Konev, and Lemezev agreed that repeated daytime attacks against the well-defended positions would only cause needless losses.
• Konev proposed attacking at night, and Zhukov approved the plan despite the dangers of the winter cold.

General Zhukov and Marshal Guderian prepared their forces for a decisive night battle, with the Russians planning a renewed assault and the defenders reinforcing their lines. At 10 p.m. on December 25, Zhukov ordered the attack to begin.

• General Zhukov ordered the 19th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd Army Corps to prepare for a night assault.
• Marshal Guderian ordered Polish and Belarusian forces to reinforce the threatened positions while keeping German troops in reserve.
• Lieutenant General Chelyushenkov ordered his units to prepare reinforcements for the 1st and 2nd Infantry Divisions.
• Lieutenant General Vashkevich ordered troops to prepare to reinforce the 22nd and 23rd Polish Infantry Divisions.
• Belarusian and Polish forces laid mines, strung barbed wire, and prepared machine guns and illumination rounds.
• At 10 p.m. on December 25, General Zhukov ordered the Russian army to attack.

The Russian 21st and 22nd Army Corps launched a mass night assault on Polish and White Army defenses, hoping to break through with superior numbers. A landmine exposed the attackers, and Polish forces opened fire as the battle erupted along the front.

• The Russian and Polish forces prepared nearly all their infantry for a nighttime attack, while artillery waited in reserve.
• More than a hundred thousand Russian soldiers advanced through the freezing snow toward the Polish and White Army lines.
• Dorof and another Polish soldier discussed the possibility of a Russian attack as Russian troops approached their positions.
• A landmine exploded among the advancing Russians, waking the Polish defenders and revealing the failed surprise attack.
• Polish mortars illuminated the battlefield, and machine guns, rifles, grenade launchers, and mortars struck the Russian assault.
• Russian officers urged their troops forward, and fierce fighting began between the 1st Belorussian Front and the Polish and White Army forces.

Russian forces launched a costly frontal assault on Polish and Belarusian defenses after their night attack was discovered, while German commanders watched and expected the defenders to hold. The attack pushed close to the trenches, but the Polish lines remained under pressure and one platoon urgently requested reinforcements.

• Konev ordered a frontal assault after the Russian night attack failed, and Zhukov commanded the artillery to open fire.
• Russian and Polish-Belarusian artillery exchanged fire, with the Russians suffering heavy casualties from prepared defensive positions.
• Guderian and Karl Hilpert learned of the attack and expected the Polish and Belarusian forces to withstand it through the night.
• Russian troops repeatedly charged across the snow while Polish soldiers continued firing and killed many attackers.
• A 76.2-millimeter shell struck a Polish trench, killing several soldiers, and the platoon commander requested reinforcements as Russian troops reached the barbed wire.

The Russian Army launched a costly night assault on Polish and White Army positions but was repeatedly driven back by the defenders. At daybreak, Zhukov ordered a retreat, and German aircraft attacked the withdrawing Russians.

• Russian troops broke through sections of the barbed wire and trenches, but Polish soldiers used their defensive fire and superior protection from the cold to repel them in bayonet combat.
• Lieutenant General Vashkevich committed reserve regiments, restoring the Polish line and urging his troops to hold until dawn.
• Lieutenant General Konev ordered the Russian troops to continue attacking, while General Zhukov ordered the 33rd Army Corps into battle as the 19th and 20th Army Corps suffered heavy losses.
• Both sides committed more troops as the fighting continued, but the Russian Army failed to break through by daylight.
• General Zhukov ordered a retreat, and German Air Force fighters bombed and strafed the Russian Army.

The Polish 3rd Army Corps and the 1st Belarusian Army Corps repelled a Russian attack, prompting Marshal Guderian to praise their commanders and plan to rely more on Puppet Troops. Despite General Zhukov’s recommendation to stop the costly offensive, Marshal Voroshilov ordered the attacks to continue, leaving the Russian army to suffer further losses without breaking the defenders’ lines.

• Lieutenant General Karl Hilpert reported that the Polish and Belarusian corps had repelled the Russian attack and inflicted heavier losses than they suffered.
• Marshal Guderian praised General Vashkevich and General Chelyushev and ordered Hilpert to tell them he would report their performance to the Emperor.
• Lieutenant General Konev told General Zhukov that the failed attack had devastated the 19th Army Corps and urged conserving strength for the German offensive next spring.
• General Zhukov asked Marshal Voroshilov to halt the offensive, but Voroshilov refused to approve the request.
• General Zhukov continued the attacks at night, but the Russian army failed to break through the Polish and White Army lines and suffered far heavier losses.

After the Russian winter offensive ended with more than three hundred thousand Russian casualties, General Zhukov was summoned to the Kremlin to explain the failure. He warned Joseph that Germany’s next-year offensive could destroy Russia unless the Russian forces conserved their strength and prepared for a decisive battle.

• The Russian winter offensive ended after five days, with more than three hundred thousand Russian casualties and little damage inflicted on German forces and their allies.
• Political workers criticized General Zhukov, and Joseph summoned him to the Kremlin on December 31.
• Joseph asked Zhukov why the counterattack had failed, and Zhukov said it had been launched too hastily and at the wrong time.
• Zhukov explained that the Russian forces should regroup and prepare for Germany’s expected large-scale offensive the following year.
• Joseph considered the risk of losing six million more men, while Zhukov waited for punishment after delivering his warning.

Joseph reconsidered Zhukov’s warning and accepted that Buru was unprepared for a winter counterattack and faced a grave threat from Germany. He halted the Winter Offensive, ordered further mobilization and preparations for next spring, and reassigned Zhukov to command the newly formed Reserve Front Army.

• Joseph asked Voroshilov and Shaposhnikov whether Buru was ready for a counterattack, and Voroshilov admitted that the army lacked winter clothing and supplies had not yet reached the western front.
• Shaposhnikov warned Joseph that Buru might field more than nine million men by spring but lacked enough weapons and training to defeat the Germans, making a defensive war necessary.
• Joseph halted the Winter Offensive and ordered the troops to train and prepare to withstand the German offensive next year.
• Joseph called for Buru to mobilize its army to its limit and placed hope in the Island Nation and the United States entering the war against Germany.
• Joseph transferred Zhukov from command of the Western Front to command the newly formed Reserve Front Army.

Germans rallied behind the war against Buru, buoyed by reports of German victories and confidence in Emperor Qin Tian. On January 2, 1940, tens of thousands celebrated Poland and Belarus repelling the Russian Winter Offensive, while believing Germany might defeat Russia that year.

• Germany maintained abundant supplies early in the war while stockpiling materials for a prolonged conflict.
• Most Germans supported the war, fearing defeat would cost them their prosperity and wanting Russia punished for invading Ukraine.
• Reports of German victories, including the destruction of more than three million Russian troops, strengthened public confidence.
• On January 2, 1940, tens of thousands gathered outside the Imperial Palace to celebrate Poland and Belarus repelling the Russian Winter Offensive and reportedly destroying more than five hundred thousand Russian troops.
• The celebrating Germans praised Poland and Belarus and speculated that Germany could defeat Russia in 1940.