On 8 July 1941, the German High Command issued an order to Army Group Center to occupy Orsha, Smolensk, and Vitebsk. Open a road to Moscow.
On 10 July, the German 2nd Panzer Army broke through soviet positions and crossed the Dnieper and West Dvina rivers. The Soviet 16th, 19th/20/21/22nd, and Army Group were all incorporated into The Western Army Group, with commander-in-chief Timoshenko, but only 24 divisions of the above-mentioned army group reached the front line positions. Fully armed on the front from Nelidovo to Bryansk. Battle of Smolensk on 10 July. The Germans broke through the right flank and central defense line of the Soviet Army Group West, and in order to encircle Smolensk, the two German armored groups continued to attack eastward. The German 29th Motorized Infantry Division, after a long journey, had reached a distance of 18 kilometers from Smolensk.
On 14 July, the German 46th Panzer Army and the Imperial Division attacked the 10th Panzer Division of the 46th Army of Gorky and rushed to Gorky and Mstislavl after fierce fighting. In the early morning of 15 July, the German 46th Panzer Corps took control of Sverrofizi, the 29th Motorized Infantry Division occupied the southern outskirts of Smolensk, the German 18th Panzer Division occupied the northern part of Krasny, and the 17th Panzer Division captured the eastern and southern parts of Orsha. At 19:15 p.m., the 29th Division of the German 47th Motorized Army occupied the old town of Smolensk, and Smolensk was like a lamb to be slaughtered, and it was only a matter of time before it fell.
On 16 July, the Soviets continued to reinforce Gomel to Clinch. On 17 July, the German Second Air Force flew more than 600 sorties to block the Soviet 21st Army in front of Bobruisk and Zyrobin. On 18 July, the German 17th Panzer Division reached the southern part of Smolensk to block soviet counter-attacks on the city.
On 20 July, the German 46th Army captured Yelinya, 70 km east of Smolensk, forming a salient facing Moscow. In the rear of Yelnia, the trapped Soviets broke through the only gap. At this time, the Soviet army had killed 300,000 people and wounded 80,000, with an average of more than 20,000 casualties per day. The First Blitzkrieg of the German Army Group Center invaded the Soviet Union was successful. It gave the Soviets a great shock. Stalin was furious when he learned of Yelnia's fall, and ordered Timoshenko to launch a counterattack in the next few days and to send 17 divisions to Timoshenko.
From 2 to 25 July, the Soviets sent 16 infantry divisions and 4 tank divisions to launch a counterattack against the Germans at Bere, Yarzevo, and Roslav. On 26 July, the Soviet 21st Army launched a strong counter-offensive at Gomel. On this day, however, the Soviets of 10 divisions were surrounded by the German 3rd Panzer Group. On 28 July the Germans again repelled a fierce Soviet counteroffensive in the south of Smolensk, and on 30 July the Soviets launched 13 charge against the Area of Elya, all of which were defeated by the Germans.
Throughout July, the Germans invested half of the 10 divisions of the Strategic Reserve to replenish Army Group Center. On August 5, the Germans eliminated the Soviet forces encircled by Smolensk, almost completely annihilated the 16th, 19th, and 20th Armies, and on August 8 the German 2nd Army and Guderian's 2nd Army attacked south, and the Soviet Central Army began to retreat south and southeast. On 16 August, the Soviet 24/43rd Army launched a counter-offensive against the Germans in Yelnia, but although it did not make progress, the Germans in Yelnia were severely damaged. On August 21, the German 2nd Panzer Panzer Group had advanced 140 kilometers south to the Gomel area, seriously threatening the Soviet South-Soviet Front, and the Soviet High Command organized 460 aircraft to participate in the air battle, although guderian's troops were severely damaged, but still did not block the German offensive to the south. On 29 August the Germans occupied Toropetz.
On 1 September, Timoshenko commanded several armies to counterattack again, but was severely blocked by the Germans. On 10 September, the Soviets moved to strategic defense. From July 10 to September 10, the Soviets suffered more than 480,000 casualties, lost 1,348 tanks, 900 aircraft, and nearly 10,000 artillery pieces. The Germans suffered more than 140,000 casualties and more than 40,000 people were killed in battle, and the equipment losses were huge. The Battle of Smolensk was basically over, and although the Soviet army was in a passive position, the german blitzkrieg against the Soviet Union was not successful.
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