The Battle of Leningrad is one of the most brutal battles in the world's recent history, and it has been called the siege of major cities for the longest time, the most destructive, and the most deadly. Fascist Germany besieged Leningrad for 900 days and nights. During these 900 days and nights, there was not only continuous bombardment of Soviet soldiers and civilians, but also terrible hunger. The Soviets suffered 3.5 million casualties (including disappearances) in the Battle of the Fortified City, while 1 million citizens starved to death. The Soviet military and civilians exchanged huge casualties for 500,000 German casualties (including missing), dealing a heavy blow to the German Army Group North. More importantly, Leningrad, by containing the German Army Group North, eased the pressure on cities such as Moscow and Stalingrad, and provided great support for the victory of the defense of these two cities. So it is not so much that the Germans besieged Leningrad, but rather that the Germans were cocooning themselves.
On June 22, 1941, the Germans blitzed the Soviet Union and attacked the Soviet hinterland in three ways. One was Army Group North, led by Marshal Leib, which attacked the Baltic coastal region and eventually pointed to Leningrad; the other was Army Group Center, led by Marshal Bork, advancing in the direction of Moscow, and all the way to Army Group South led by Marshal Lundstedt, with the operational objective being Kiev. According to Hitler's plan, Leningrad was one of the three major strategic objectives of the German army and ranked first among the three major strategic objectives.
The reason why Hitler regarded Leningrad as so important was inseparable from the strategic position of Leningrad. Leningrad was the birthplace of the October Revolution and was known as the second capital. Leningrad had ten railway lines connecting Moscow with other important economic zones of the SOVIET Union, and it was also an important port on the Baltic Sea, as well as an important naval base of the Soviet Union, where the Soviet Red Banner Baltic Fleet was stationed. Germany captured Leningrad and was not only able to make peace with the armies of its vassal state, Finland, but also to control the Baltic Sea. Sweden's iron ore was also continuously transported to Germany to support the German war.
The German advance into Leningrad was indeed very smooth at first, and it took only three months for the Germans to approach the city. But the Soviets also knew the value and significance of Leningrad, so the Soviet high command ordered the city to be held at any cost. Under the stubborn resistance of the Soviets, the Germans were blocked from attacking outside Leningrad. The Germans besieged the south of Leningrad, while the Finnish army surrounded the north of Leningrad. All rail and road traffic was cut off, and Leningrad lost all possibilities for grain and all kinds of materials by land, and only through Lake Ladoga could it obtain limited supplies. Most of Lake Ladoga was covered by German artillery fire, with only 65 kilometers of water beyond the range of German artillery fire. Later, the Germans deployed their fleets on Lake Ladoga, making it more difficult for Leningrad to get supplies.
Under the desperate resistance of the Soviets, the Germans were unable to enter Leningrad. So the Germans carried out frenzied shelling and air raids on Leningrad. The Germans attempted to destroy Leningrad's infrastructure, water supply system, etc. by bombing, and the most terrible thing was that the German army tried to starve the Leningrad soldiers and civilians through the siege of the city. In short, the Germans attempted to destroy the will of resistance of the leningrad army and civilians and force the defenders to surrender.
The German siege brought great disaster to Leningrad. Food shortages forced the government to ration the population, and from September to November 1941, in just two months, it was forced to reduce the ration of grain five times, and the final rationing standard was: workers in high-temperature workshops, 375 grams of bread per person per day, technicians and ordinary workers 250 grams, and staff and children 125 grams. In this case, thousands, sometimes more than ten thousand, died of starvation in Leningrad every day. Throughout the siege, as many as 1 million soldiers and civilians were starved to death in the city alone.
In order to survive and resist, soviet soldiers and civilians needed to deliver the most basic food, ammunition and other materials to Leningrad from the outside. The Soviets opened up a "lifeline" in Lake Ladoga. When Lake Ladoga is not frozen, it uses flat-bottom barges to transport grain and other materials. However, German aircraft indiscriminately bombed Soviet transport ships, causing great personnel and material losses to the transport team. After Lake Ladoga froze, Soviet soldiers and civilians creatively opened up a car transport line on the ice. Although German air raids continued, the line of transport supplied Leningrad in the winter, although this amount was far from enough compared to the demand in Leningrad.
For 900 days, leningrad soldiers and civilians fought hunger and death in addition to the Germans. But this heroic city survived with amazing perseverance and will. During these 900 days, the situation on the Soviet-German battlefield was still grim for the Soviet Union, but there were some positive changes. As early as August, in order to capture Leningrad as soon as possible, Hitler ordered the 39th Motorized Army to be drawn from army group Center attacking Moscow to rush north to help. The pressure on Leningrad increased, but it relieved the pressure on Moscow and provided a guarantee for the victory of the Moscow defense war. The victory in Moscow not only defended the heart of the Soviet Union, defended the dignity of the Soviet Union, and preserved the confidence of the Soviet Union in the War of Resistance, but more importantly, blocked the progress of the German army.
Therefore, although the Leningrad battlefield was in a state of stalemate, it dragged down the German Army Group North, and also allowed the German army to draw troops from army group center to support the Leningrad battlefield, which made a great contribution to the entire Soviet-German battlefield, so that the Soviet military and civilians could concentrate on the other two German troops in other battlefields.
In June 1942, the German Army Group South surrounded Stalingrad, and the Soviet and German armies fought in Stalingrad to the death, and after half a year of fighting, the Soviet army finally won the victory in the defense of Stalingrad after paying great sacrifices. After the victory of Stalingrad, the Soviet army turned to a strategic counteroffensive, and the siege of Leningrad was easily lifted.
According to Hitler's plan, the Germans first took Leningrad, which not only occupied this strategic place, but also dealt a huge blow to the will of resistance of the Soviet military and civilians because Leningrad was the birthplace of the Red Soviet Union. More importantly, Germany's Army Group North could free up its hands to support Moscow and even Stalingrad, so that new variables would appear in the Soviet-German battlefield. But Leningrad persevered with extraordinary will, dragging germany's Army Group North to its death and inflicting heavy casualties on it. Although the number of casualties between the Soviets and Germans was widespread, the Soviets could afford it, while the Germans could not afford it. You know, the Germans lost all their elite troops, not in terms of numbers alone.
Therefore, it can be said that the Battle of Leningrad, ostensibly trapping the Soviet military and civilians, was actually a cocoon of self-restraint by the German army, and the German army "tied" one of its three-way army to Leningrad, and also caused huge casualties, laying the groundwork for the failure of the other two german armies.
Author: Tu Lao Hat
bibliography:
Marv: The Recorded Campaign of the Second World War
Topaz Chapter: World War II