Chapter 2103: offensive setback

"Let's take care of ourselves first." Rokossowski said: "If the troops of the Polish 1st Army cannot gain a firm foothold on the left bank of the Vistula River, it will be a fatal blow to the morale of the rebels in the city. .”

"Although the first battalion to cross the river suffered huge losses, they were just caught in a trap. Presumably the number of enemies hidden in Lazienki Palace would not be too large, otherwise they would not have allowed their remnants to flee to the river. Join the second battalion crossing the river."

Ma Linin's guess is correct. Only one company of the German army in the Lazienki Palace, equipped with eight MG42 general-purpose machine guns and six mortars, can cause such a large impact on the battalion that appeared in the palace garden in a short period of time. Loss.

   Just two days ago, several traitors from the Krajov Army led a group of German troops into the Lazienki Palace and attacked the Lyudov Army stationed here. After a fierce battle, except for a few people who escaped from danger, the rest were either killed by the Germans or became prisoners.

After the German commander learned that his troops had occupied the Lazienki Palace, a bold idea suddenly appeared in his mind, thinking that he could use the Lazienki Palace to make a fuss, so he sent a traitor from the Krajov Army , Pretending to be the commander of the persecuted Liudov Army, Krzysztov, crossed the river to the Soviet defense zone, and tried to trick some troops to come and annihilate them, thus severely hitting the morale of the Soviet army.

What the German commander did not expect was that the Soviet army was in such a hurry to cross the river that the fake Krzysztov he had sent easily won the trust of General Bellinger, and in the shortest possible time, sent a battalion of troops to the river. sent over. Due to the rush of time, the German company sticking to Lazienki Palace couldn't wait for the main force to arrive, so they rushed to attack the first battalion, which revealed their intentions.

Neither Rokossovsky nor Bellinger knew that the enemy planned to deploy a trap in the Lazienki Palace to attract more Soviet troops to enter, and then a battle of encirclement and annihilation would severely hit the Soviet army. morale. However, the German captain who was in charge of commanding the troops saw hundreds of Polish troops coming towards the palace. He was afraid that the other party would seize the palace and find a reliable foothold, so he couldn't wait to order his subordinates to launch an attack. Although such a sudden attack caught the first battalion by surprise and almost wiped out the unit, their actions exposed their own existence and made the Polish army who were about to cross the river vigilant.

   "Comrade Chief of Staff," Rokossowski asked, staring at the map, "Which unit is the closest to the crossing point of the Polish First Army?"

Malinin pointed to the map and said to Rokossovsky: "Comrade Commander, the 2nd Tank Army was originally operating in this area, but last week they were transferred to the Minsk-Mazovitsky area as a The Front Reserve, which is currently operating in this area, is Lieutenant General Gusev's 47th Army."

"I know that the defense of the 2nd Tank Army is the 47th Army of Lieutenant General Gusev." Rokossovsky said impatiently, "What I'm asking is our army who is far away from the place where the Polish 1st Army is crossing the river." Which army is it?"

  Seeing that Rokossovsky was having a fit, Malinin quickly replied, "It's Colonel Derevyanko's 324th Infantry Division."

"Immediately arrange for the division to cross the river," Rokossowski said, "At least one regiment must be sent to the opposite bank. Without their assistance, I am afraid that even if the Polish army captures Lazienki Palace and Belvedere Palace, it may not be possible." You can't stand your ground."

"Okay, Comrade Commander." Ma Linen knew very well that the Polish army's combat effectiveness is not strong, and it does not have the ability to stand alone. If it does not send troops to assist, the opponent will not be able to gain a firm foothold on the left bank, so he nodded and said: " I immediately contacted Lieutenant General Gusev and asked him to send troops from the 324th Division across the river to assist the Polish Army in combat."

  The call was quickly connected, and Ma Linin said straight to the point: "General Gusev, the commander has orders!"

   When Gusev heard Rokossovsky's order, he quickly straightened his body and said respectfully: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I'm listening, please give the order!"

   "The commander ordered that a regiment from the 324th Infantry Division be immediately dispatched to cross the river to assist the Polish Army to gain a foothold in the left bank area."

   Gusev has long been reported that the Polish army was gathering on the banks of the Vistula River. When he heard the news, he was quite surprised. Why did the Polish army prepare to cross the river to the left bank of the Vistula River without saying hello? When he received a call from Malinin at this moment, he naturally wanted to ask the question in his heart: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the Polish army is going to fight across the river, why didn't they even say hello?"

"General Bellinger personally visited the headquarters of the Front Army before arranging troops to cross the river. Their crossing operation was approved by Comrade Commander." Ma Lining continued: "But the troops that crossed the river first made little progress. It went well and suffered a lot of losses. The commander let you cross the river to help them gain a firm foothold on the other side."

   After receiving the order, Gusev did not dare to neglect, and immediately told Derevyanko to his headquarters, announcing to him the combat order conveyed by Malinin. After introducing the mission, Gusev asked with concern: "Comrade Colonel, which regiment do you plan to send to carry out this combat mission?"

   "The 772 regiment of Lieutenant Colonel Denis can carry out this task." Derevyanko replied: "I believe that with their capabilities, they will definitely be able to assist friendly forces to gain a foothold in the left bank area."

Lieutenant Colonel Denis led his 772 regiment across the river to the vicinity of the Lazienki Palace, just in time to meet the demoralized Polish army. He grabbed one of the soldiers and asked, "Hey, where is your commander?" place?"

  The soldier glanced at him, pointed to the nearby distance, and said weakly, "Our regiment leader is right there."

   After thanking the other party, Denis took the two soldiers and walked in that direction.

  A second lieutenant of the Polish Army came up to him and asked politely, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what department do you belong to? What's the matter here?"

   "It's Lieutenant Colonel Denis, commander of the 772nd Regiment of the 324th Division of the 47th Army Infantry, here to assist you in combat." After revealing his identity, Denis asked directly, "Where is your regiment commander?"

  The second lieutenant learned that Denis brought people to support him, and a surprised expression suddenly appeared on his face: "It turns out that they are here to support our friendly army. The regiment leader is nearby, and I will take you there."

   Soon, Lieutenant Colonel Denis followed the second lieutenant to a bungalow, where he met the head of the Polish Army.

  Since this is a battlefield, Denis didn't salute the other party after seeing him, but nodded at the other party, casually revealing his identity. When the head of the Polish Army saw a Soviet head, he straightened up and introduced himself: "I am Lieutenant Colonel Petrie, head of the 7th Regiment of the Polish 3rd Division."

   After the two shook hands, Denis asked, "Lieutenant Colonel Petrie, how is the situation here?"

"It's not very good, Comrade Denis." Petrie shook his head and said, "The German firepower is very fierce. Half an hour ago, I sent the second battalion to launch a charge, but it was repulsed by the enemy. It took a lot of casualties."

  Hearing what Petrie said, Denis immediately thought of the Polish soldiers he saw on the way here were all downcast, and it must be because of the failure of the attack.

   "Lieutenant Colonel Petrie, you have worked hard!" Denis said proactively: "Our regiment will be responsible for the next battle. You should take a good rest first."

   A few minutes later, a battalion of the Denis regiment launched an attack on Lazienki Palace.

When the German army discovered that some troops were approaching the Lazienki Palace, they didn't take it seriously at all. In their minds, no matter how large the Polish army was, it was nothing more than a show. As long as the machine guns and mortars fired, the opponent's attacking queue will be completely disrupted. Not long ago, the Polish army that launched an attack on the palace was defeated under the combined attack of machine guns and mortars.

   But when they saw clearly that the attacking army was not wearing Polish military uniforms, but Soviet military uniforms, they couldn't help being surprised. They didn't expect that the Soviet army would go into battle as soon as they repelled the Polish army's attack.

Since the German army never thought that the Lazienki Palace would be attacked by the Soviet army and the Polish army, they did not build any decent fortifications outside the palace. They just dug a trench and built several firepower points. The machine guns and mortars arranged in the windows of the palace are their defense system.

Facing the machine gun fire and mortar bombardment of the German army, this Soviet army fought quite methodically. Instead of rushing forward in a swarm, they formed a scattered formation and approached the German army's position relying on various concealed objects. . The battle groups rushing to the front also threw grenades from time to time, using the smoke of the explosion to block the sight of the German army, and kept approaching the palace in short bursts.

  The Soviet commanders and fighters who participated in the battle were all veterans. Their technical and tactical skills were very high, and they played very heroically. However, it is a pity that the attack they launched ended in failure.

  It turns out that the German army placed many wooden fences with barbed wire in front of the proposed line of defense. If the commanders and fighters want to rush into the German army's position, they must first remove these wooden fences that block the way. But when they moved the wooden fence, they had to slow down. As a result, the commanders and fighters inevitably became the targets of the Germans.

The battalion commander who led the charge was carried off the battlefield covered in blood, facing Denis who came to visit him, he said in shame: "I'm sorry, comrade commander, I failed your trust Leading the troops into the palace, and causing the troops to suffer such heavy losses."

"Comrade Major," Denis said comfortingly, holding the opponent's hand, "you have performed your military duties very well. Although you have withdrawn from the battle now, we will continue to fight until the Lazienki Palace is captured." location." After speaking, he stood up and ordered the health worker standing beside the stretcher, "Send the major to the river and arrange for a boat to take him back to the other side."

After the health worker carried the battalion commander away with a stretcher, Denis said to Petrie: "Comrade Petrie, the enemy's firepower is too strong, and we don't have heavy weapons. If we continue to attack by force, even if we take the palace, I'm afraid Our troops will be depleted."

  Originally, when the Soviet army entered the battle, Petrie was still secretly happy. He felt that there was no big problem in taking the palace. But now seeing that the Soviet army's attack failed, and Denis was not optimistic about the next attack, he couldn't help but feel a little anxious: "Lieutenant Colonel Denis, tell me, what should we do?"

   "We must find a way to get some artillery over here," Denis said: "As long as we use the artillery to destroy the enemy's firepower, our attack will go smoothly."

Petrie glanced in the direction of the Lazienki Palace, and couldn't help frowning: "Lieutenant Colonel Denis, the buildings in the palace are very strong, and I'm afraid ordinary artillery can't destroy them. But if we use heavy artillery, we'll have to wait until we get it." When I left the palace, it was already in ruins."

   "No, no, no, Lieutenant Colonel Petrie." Denis shook his head and said, "You have misunderstood. The shelling I am talking about is not the kind of artillery coverage you know, but the clear targeting of the German firepower points."

   "What, using artillery to target the firepower points of the German army?" Petrie asked a little puzzled: "Lieutenant Colonel Denis, I don't quite understand what you mean, can you explain in more detail?"

"This is a 'bayonet-on-cannon' tactic invented by General Sokov," Denis explained to Petrie with a smile: "It is to let the gunner shoot directly to destroy the enemy's firepower. This method of play , The damage to buildings is much better than the fire coverage style of play. And it can also carry out precise strikes according to the firepower points exposed by the enemy."

  It was the first time for Petrie to hear such a style of play, and a shocked expression appeared on his face: "How can you still destroy the enemy's firepower like this?"

The two had just finished discussing the new combat plan when they received a call from Derevyanko from the other side. He recognized that the person answering the phone was Denis, so he asked straight to the point: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what's the situation there?" So, have you taken Lazienki Palace?"

"Report to Comrade Commander," Denis replied, "Unfortunately, our first attack failed. The enemy hid in a solid building and blocked our attack with powerful firepower. If we don't destroy them If we want to take down the Lazienki Palace, our army may suffer huge casualties."

"Lieutenant Colonel Denis," Derevyanko said to him earnestly after listening to Denis' report, "whether we can take Lazienki Palace and gain a firm foothold on the left bank is directly related to whether our army can quickly Liberate Warsaw, I sincerely hope that you will not disappoint the trust of your superiors."

Although Derevyanko's voice was not loud, these words hit Denis's heart like a heavy hammer. He immediately straightened his body and replied with a firm expression: "Mr. The task of capturing the Lazienki Palace will be taken as soon as possible. But I hope you can support us with some artillery to provide the necessary artillery support for our attacking forces."

   Regarding Denis’ request, Derevyanko thought for a while and replied: “I will ask the division artillery regiment to send a company across the river to provide you with direct artillery support.”

  After the call, Denis said to Petrie: "Comrade Petrie, our division commander said that whether we can quickly capture the Lazienki Palace and gain a firm foothold on the left bank is the key to liberating Warsaw as soon as possible."