The Caucasus and The Oil

"The Caucasus and The Oil- The German-Soviet War in the Caucasus 1942/43"  by Wilhelm Tieke.  This is a book written by Tieke, a particpant in the battles, and published in 1970.  This particular translation from German was published in 1995.  Currently reading.

The book interested me as it is one of the few translated works with tactical information of the fighting in Caucasus.  The battle conditions imposed by the geography has some unique aspects.  A very long and threatened supply line for the Germans and reinforcements impossible due to the fighting as Stalingrad and continuing Soviet counter-operations.  Dispersal of the fighting divisions over wide areas.  Panzer divisions moving and attacking through passes in the Caucasus Mountains.  Large formations of Cavalry deployed on both sides.  Soviet Air Force dominance in the skies above the battle though contested at times by as few as three or four German fighters on the whole front.  Soviet Battalion and Brigade-sized armor units equipped with Lend-lease tanks, largely Grants and Valentines.  Amphibious operations by the Soviets along the Black Sea, daring mountain assaults by German gerbigsjager, Brandenburg-er commando raids, its all there.  As happened at Moscow in 1941 and Stalingrad, the Soviets were able to hold on, repel, and counter-attack the Germans and change the course of the war.

The author tells the tactical-level story using personal sources, records from participating German officers and German military archives. If one is familiar with the sriting style of Paul Carrell, then you have an idea of Tieke styles.  Dramatic prose, lots of exclamations, tough-guy quotes, no footnotes but still an earnest work and recommended.

The book is currently on the reading list and I'll update the article when I've read it completely.

One paragraph (p. 11) is a brief story of the Viking's panzer battalion encounter with 4 sheepdog with anti-tank mines.  The mine dogs were unsuccessful and succumbed to the tanks machine-gun fire.

One dodgy translation I ran across (p. 14) "Suddenly an electronic fuzed mine zig-zagged for 250 meters through the forward-most battle group without causing any damage."  Now what the heck is that?  Remotely activated mines or fougasse I can understand, but this translation makes it sound like a poorly guided rocket was fired.   Maybe a reference to a single-shot "flame rocket" which were used in WWII? 250 meters is a long way though.  Or maybe it was a 250 meter long field of remotely detonated devices?

P. 30 and following pages tells of 16th Motorized Division crossing the Manych River.  Would make a good wargaming scenario.  

With the quick advance of the panzer divisions into the Caucasus and Kuban, Tieke is repeatedly having to describe attempts to seize bridges and fords across the numerous rivers.  Typically, the division motorcycle battalion backed up by a company of panzergrenadiers, pioneers, or tanks charges into the town or village near the town and make a mad rush for the bridge.   Half the time the bridge is demolished, and the other half they grab the bridge.  Daring stuff with Brandenburger detachments dressed as NKVD or operating as heavily armed commandos.  No mention of the panzer division's recon battalions, presumably they are filling the gap between the widely dispersed panzer divisions.

The pages around 174 describe a multi-day battle of the SS Viking Division in October '42 trying to break-through a valley against a couple of Soviet tank brigades and 2-3 regiments of infantry with AT guns, direct fire artillery, and rockets.  The battle finally brings the German advance in the Causcasus to a halt.  Around 40 German tanks with about 10 Marders against T-34's and Mk III Valentines.  Grechko's book (see below) talks about the Soviets having a density of 33 AT guns per kilometer in the Sagopshin sector against Viking.

An interesting companion to Tieke's book is one that tells the story of the Caucasus fighting from the Soviet side, "Battle for the Caucaus" by Marshall of the Soviet Union Andrei Grechko.  But that is another ride.

Overall the book portrays the tenacious ability of the German Armed Forces to generate repeated successes even as logistics and the strategic situation worsens.  The German Army's ability to form ad hoc units on a continual basis is showcased.  Marines, Flak, Naval, SS, Luftwaffe, Cossack, police, and construction units are effectively integrated into a single mission task at any organization level.  Also, in prideful fashion, the book never points out that the Germans were defeated in the Caucasus.