Soldiers of Destruction

The men of the SS Totenkopf Division had stalled the advance of the Fifth Guards Tank Army in late September. Then, silence. No fighting had occurred for the past three weeks. It seemed like a dream. Time to sleep; time …

1944-10-10

TS4

The men of the SS Totenkopf Division had stalled the advance of the Fifth Guards Tank Army in late September. Then, silence. No fighting had occurred for the past three weeks. It seemed like a dream. Time to sleep; time to write; time to mend clothing; time to listen to the birds sing. Replacements arrived; weapons were stripped and cleaned. It was too good, too unreal. A feeling of unease pervaded the encampment. There was almost a sigh of relief as the dull thunder of the Russian advance began again.

Radzymin, Poland

The Kaunas Offensive was part of the third phase of the Belorussian Strategic Offensive of the Red Army in summer 1944, commonly known as Operation Bagration. The Kaunas offensive was executed by the 3rd Belorussian Front on July 28 – August 28, 1944, with the aim of destroying the German concentration on the western bank of the Neman river, the occupation of Kaunas, and reaching the boundaries of East Prussia.

Wikipedia: Kaunas Offensive

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