the soviet partisan movement 1941-1944 by edgar m. howell

GERMAN OPERATIONS TO THE STALINGRAD DEBACLE 29
By 11 July one panzer unit had reached the outer defenses of Kiev,
but violent tank-led counterattacks from both north and south in the
vicinity of Zhitomir and Berdichev, the twin cities that controlled the
western approaches to the Ukrainian capital, brought forward movement
to a halt and inflicted heavy casualties on several of the armored divisions.
Meanwhile, the Seventeenth Army, moving deliberately, was pulling up
on the right. During the first three weeks of the campaign VonRundstedt
pushed steadily to the east, but had scored no gains comparable to those
of Von Bock in the center. Kept off balance by Budenny's counterblows,
he had 'been unable to encircle any large groups of the enemy or prevent
large-scale withdrawals to the Dnepr. From a strategic point of view,
Budenny's fighting retreat was a success, for it provided the time necessary
for withdrawing much of the Ukrainian industry to the east. By 16
July Von Kleist had eliminated the opposition about Zhitomir and
Berdichev and began a series of moves designed to place his armor
Behind the Reds being slowly forced back by the Seoenteenth and
Eleventh Armies. Despite heavy pressure from the north which vir- tually
tied down the Sixth Army in the Kiev-Korosten area and the ap- pearance
of fresh enemy units on his immediate left flank which at times occupied
the attention of an entire armored corps, Von Kleist swung all of his
available units to the south and drove hard on Pervomaysk and Uman to
trap the Russians against the eastward-moving infantry. By 3 August the
trap was sprung on a number of Red divisions, although others were able
to make good their escape to the east. The Pervomaysk-Uman pocket was
reduced and by 7 August the line of the Bug River secured. The tank
unitsthen drove on toward Kirovo and Krivoi Rog-the iron ore center of
European Russia-and occupied the latter on the 14th. Meanwhile the
Romanians had reached Odessa and were preparing an assault. Two days
later the Soviet forces were in retreat along the whole southern front, and
on the 17th Von Rundstedt moved to clear the entire western bank of the
Dnepr. The Russian salient around Kiev held fast, but the Soviet Fifth
Army, which had battered so hard against the northern flank of the army
group at Korosten, withdrew across the river followed by Von Reichenau
who forced a crossing above Kiev on the 25th. The same day Von Kleist
secured a bridgehead at Dnepropetrovsk, and on the 30th theEleventh
Army was over the river at Kherson. Two days later the Seventeenth
Army established another bridgehead east of Kremenchug. Thus by 1
September ArmyGroup South had cleared the right bank of the Dnepr
with the exception of the Ukrainian capital and had established
bridgeheads for each of its armies out of which to resume the offensive.
In the far south the Romanians hadlaunched their assault on Odessa, but
with little immediatesuccess.