The Battle of the Dnieper River: the largest meat grinder on the Soviet-German battlefield

After the German army was defeated in Kursk in 1943, the Soviet army began to make great strides in the war against Germany. As soon as the German troops in Kursk withdrew from the battlefield, the Soviet troops followed. The German troops began to retreat. Even Hitler could not prevent the defeat of the German troops. At this time, the Soviet army's old habit of making mistakes in downwind situations began to occur, and the two sides in the Dnieper River battle were about to square up and fight with all their strength. Hitler knew that the German army would be defeated sooner or later if it retreated like this, so he issued a fatal order to hold back the Soviet army on the Dnieper River.

Once the Soviet army crosses the Dnieper River, Germany's painstaking efforts in Ukraine will be in vain. Germany plundered a large amount of resources in Ukraine, used factories here for production, and transported young adults to Germany as free labor. Hitler would not give up such a strategic location. The German army hastily built a line of defense along the Dnieper River, known as the "Eastern Barrier", in an attempt to block the Soviet army here.

The German army implemented a scorched earth policy during its retreat and destroyed all infrastructure. The Soviet army's pursuit was also difficult, but they soon advanced to the Dnieper River and started a confrontation with the German army. The Soviet army assembled an army of 2.6 million men, while the German army faced only 1.2 million men. The Soviet army boldly used paratroopers to conduct a surprise attack on the Dnieper River for the first time. 180 transport aircraft dropped paratroopers into German positions in batches under darkness.

Because the German army imitated the Soviet army and fired signal flares, the follow-up troops mistakenly dropped paratroopers above the German barracks. They suffered heavy fire from German anti-aircraft guns and machine guns, and the Soviet paratroopers suffered heavy losses. Zhukov had to stop the paratroopers' actions. The Soviet army began a tentative attack on the German defense line on the Dnieper River, looking for a breakthrough point in the defense line.

Here the Soviet army encountered stubborn resistance from the German army, and the war situation reached a stalemate. During this period, the Soviet army also suffered a lot of casualties. As the time gradually turned into winter, the advantage gradually shifted to the Soviet side. At this stage, the Soviet army tilted 9,570 tons of bombs towards the German positions and fired 55,000 rockets. The Soviet army advanced at least 300 kilometers, and Manstein was unable to do anything in the face of such fierce firepower.

The Soviet army immediately consolidated the results of the victory and continued to advance. Their next target was Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The Soviet army concentrated 40,000 superior armored troops to tear apart the German defense line. Then the Soviet army triumphantly conquered Kiev after fierce fighting. The German army was unwilling to fail and launched a counterattack in an attempt to recapture Kiev, but failed. At this point, the offensive and defensive battle on the Dnieper River ended. During the nine-month battle, there was a huge disparity in the strength of the two sides. Manstein did his best to achieve such a level with the few troops he had.

Zhukov’s purpose was to destroy the German Army Group South, but the wily Manstein did not let the Soviet army eat up his troops, avoiding the fate of the Sixth Army in Stalingrad that was completely annihilated. This also shows that Manstein's conducting art is still slightly superior, but the beholder has a different opinion.

Both the Soviet Union and Germany paid a very heavy price. The Soviet casualties as the attacker were conservatively estimated at around 120, and the German casualties were also estimated at around 900,000. Although the Soviet army suffered heavy casualties, it achieved its strategic purpose and captured Kiev. After suffering huge losses, the Soviet army was still able to be quickly replenished. The German generals will have no available soldiers and will have no fighting spirit.