The city of Vitebsk in Belarus was of strategic importance during the
fighting on the Eastern Front, as it controlled the route to Minsk. A
salient in the German lines, Vitebsk had been declared a Festerplatz--a
fortress town--meaning that it must be held at all costs. A task handed
to 3rd Panzer Army in 1943.
Otto Heidkämper was chief of staff of Georg-Hans Reinhardt's 3rd Panzer
Army, Army Group Center, which was stationed around Vitebsk and Smolensk
from early 1942 until June 1944. His detailed account of the defense of
Vitebsk through the winter of 1943 into 1944, right up to the Soviet
summer offensive, is a valuable firsthand account of how the operations
around Vitebsk played out. Twenty maps accompany the narrative. During
this time, 3rd Panzer Army undertook numerous military operations to
defend the area against the Soviets; they also engaged in anti-partisan
operations in the area, deporting civilians accused of supporting
partisans and destroying property.
Finally, in June 1944, the Soviets amassed four armies to take Vitebsk,
which was then held by 38,000 men of 53rd Corps. Within three days,
Vitebsk was encircled, with 53rd Corps trapped inside. Attempts to break
the encirclement failed, and resistance in the pocket broke down over
the next few days. On June 27, the final destruction of German
resistance in Vitebsk was completed. Twenty thousand Germans were dead
and another 10,000 had been captured.
