Tartu offensive

Tartu offensive
Part of the Eastern Front of World War II

Marshy banks of the Emajõgi River and Lake Võrtsjärv
Date10 August – 6 September 1944
Location
Southeastern Estonia
58°22′N 26°43′E / 58.367°N 26.717°E / 58.367; 26.717
Result Soviet victory
Belligerents

Nazi Germany Germany



Estonian Partisans		 Soviet Union Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Jürgen Wagner Ivan Maslennikov
Strength
65,000 personnel[1][page needed][2][page needed] 272,800 personnel[3]
Casualties and losses
? ?

The Tartu offensive operation (Russian: Тартуская наступательная операция), also known as the Battle of Tartu (Estonian: Tartu lahing) and the Battle of Emajõgi (Estonian: Emajõe lahingud, German: Schlacht am Embach) was a campaign fought over southeastern Estonia in 1944. It took place on the Eastern Front during World War II between the Soviet 3rd Baltic Front and parts of the German Army Group North.

The Soviet tactical aim was to defeat the 18th Army and to capture the city of Tartu. The strategic goal was a quick occupation of Estonia. The Soviet command planned to reach the coast of the Gulf of Riga and trap the Army Detachment "Narwa".[4] The German side involved Estonian conscripts, which fought to defend their country against the looming Soviet annexation.[5] The 3rd Baltic Front captured Tartu. The conquest caused the destruction of the Estonian National Museum and 40 million roubles worth of damage to the University of Tartu. Kampfgruppe "Wagner" stabilised the front at the Emajõgi River. The XXVIII Army Corps supported by Omakaitse militia stalled the front at the Väike Emajõgi and Gauja Rivers, preventing the 3rd Baltic Front from cutting off the "Narwa".

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference kalvo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Mart Laar. Emajõgi 1944: Teise Maailmasõja lahingud Lõuna-Eestis (Emajõgi River 1944: Battles of World War II in South Estonia. In Estonian) (in Estonian). Tallinn: Varrak.
  3. ^ G.F.Krivosheev (1997). Soviet casualties and combat losses in the twentieth century. London: Greenhill Books. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  4. ^ (in Russian) Арвед Калво (1976) Изгнание фашистов из Южной Эстонии (август - сентябрь 1944 года). [The rout of fascists from southern Estonia (August to September 1944)]. Eesti Raamat, Tallinn, p. 24
  5. ^ Estonian State Commission on Examination of Policies of Repression (2005). The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes. 1940–1991 (PDF). Estonian Encyclopedia Publishers. p. 18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 January 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2010.