The Battle for L'vov July 1944

The Red Army's summer offensive of 1944 against Hitler's Wehrmacht was unprecedented in terms of its scale, scope, and strategic intent and impact. For the first time in the Soviet-German War, the Soviet High Command planned a series of massive and strategic operations, each aimed at the defeat of a full German army group. The Soviets conducted the L'vov-Sandomierz operation with a single powerful front operating under close High Command control. Within a period of 15 days, over one million attacking Red Army troops, including three tank armies and two cavalry-mechanized groups, demolished the opposing German army group, captured L'vov and launched its final advance toward Berlin and the heart of Germany in January 1945. This study details how the Red Army accomplished this feat in the words of those individuals who planned and orchestrated the offensive. The volume is an unexpurgated translation of the Soviet General Staff Study No. 22, published under the rubric of war experiences and originally classified Secret. In addition, the book contains a map supplement, including terrain maps, which are vital to following the detailed action, and daily operational maps, which permit the reader to understand the general flow of the operation.