Part of the Oder–Neisse Offensive the Battle of Bautzen was one of the last
battles of WWII in Europe. We all know how WWII ended. Did you also know the German actually
WON the battle here at Bautzen? It is time for another forgotten WW2 battle episode. Stay tuned.
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By April 1945 the German Third Reich was about to collapse. Yet, many German units
kept fighting till the bitter end. After crossing the Oder river, the Soviets marched on Berlin.
In the south Polish-Soviet general Karol Świerczewski and his Polish troops were marching
towards Dresden. In the south, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (part of former Czechslovakia)
Army Group Centre – 600K men strong under Ferdinand Schörner – was located. Schörner ordered
an attack towards the southern flank in order to cut off the Soviet-Polish forces and push through
Berlin. The Germans hoped the Soviet advance to Berlin could be delayed long enough in order to
surrender the capital city to the western allies.The German forced consisted of 50,000 men with
around 300 tanks and 600 guns. It consisted of experienced troops like the Hermann Göring
Division and the 10th SS Panzer Division as well as inexperienced troops from Hitlerjugend
and Volkssturm. The Volkssturm was Germany's last-ditch army that consisted of civilian men
of which a great deal had to fight in civilian clothing. I made an indepth episode about this
army formation; links are in the description. The Polish forces consisted of five divisions
and had around 90,000 men with 500 tanks. Many of these Polish men had no experience in battle
since they were drafted only recently when the Red Army steamrolled through Poland
after the Vistula Oder Offensive. Many of its officers were Soviet officers of Polish descent.
So in short: the Poles had the numbers and the supplies, the Germans had the experience.
On April 21st the Polish forces that were driving towards Dresden were stretched over a line of 50
kilometers. The Germans made use of the gap in their lines and attacked. The 20th Panzer
Division started its drive on Bautzen, while in the east the 17th Infantry Division advanced
on Niesky and Weißenberg. And with success. The Germans linked up with several remnants
of their forces that were stuck in isolated battles. Polish general Świerczewski didn't stop
and continued his advance to Dresden. Because many communication lines were cut the local Polish and
Soviet forces were thrown into chaos. The Polish Second Army had to split up into four groups.
Some Polish units were surrounded suffering severe losses. The 16th Tank Brigade for example
lost 90%. Of the 1,300 soldiers only 100 survived. I read that in the village of Niederkaina
several hundred Volkssturm members that were captured by retreating Polish and Soviet troops
were locked in a barn that was set on
fire. Meanwhile the Germans continued their push toward Königswartha and Hoyerswerda.
Świerczewski realized the German breakthrough was serious and halted his advance on Dresden to pull
back to stop the German advance. Exept for the 9th Division that has to push forward. Because of the
broken communication lines Soviet marshall Ivan Konev ordered eight divisions from the Ukrainian
Front to reinforce the Polish positions. Meanwhile a Soviet division
was surrounded at Weißenberg and suffered heavy losses when trying to break out. The
Germans managed to capture Bautzen and link up with trapped German units there. The Poles
launched an unsuccesfull counterattack. After bloody house-to-house fighting the Germans
managed to secure the town of Bautzen. This makes the capture of Bautzen the last succesfull German
victory of WW2. Hitler congratulated Schörner on his "victory". Outside Bautzen the German attack
came to a standstill because of problems everyone was familiar with: running low on fuel supplies.
The Polish and Soviet forces managed to consolodate their defenses. The 9th Division that
pushed for Dresden was also ordered to retreat. Thinking their route of withdrawal was safe,
they suffered heavy losses when intercepted by the Germans. We're talking about 75%. Furthermore
a Polish military convoy with wounded men was ambushed and several hundred
wounded were executed. As with the previous mentioned example of the Volkssturm
members that perished in the flames of the barn at Niederkaina,
this war remained a total war were the rules of warfare were easily brushed aside by both parties.
The battle ended at the end of April. The Poles had suffered 5,000 dead. There is no consensus
on the German death toll but it seems to be less. So is there about the outcome. Can the battle be
seen as a victory or a faillure? Dresden wasn't captured and remained in German hands till the
end of the war on May 8 (or 9). So was Bautzen. The battle had no impact on the Battle of Berlin
but it did gave a number of German soldiers and civilians a possibility to reach the West. What
do you think? Was Bautzen a victory or a faillure? Leave your comments down below.