Turkey shoot

The Deutschland Regiment moved to attack on 7 October, brushing past isolated pockets of Russian troops. A full regimental-scale attack the following day led to the cutting of the Smolensk-Moscow road, and the division was poised to take Gzhatsk.

Tanks of the 10th Panzer Division now joined the SS men for this attack, which went in through a blizzard that had descended on the battlefield. Assault groups from the Deutschland Regiment rode to Gzhatsk on the back of the panzers, while to the south the Der Führer Regiment launched an outflanking attack to catch any Russians fleeing the town. The SS men and panzer troops rampaged through Soviet truck columns, machine-gunning hundreds of helpless Red Army men. During the freezing night that followed, Soviet troops in white camouflage launched repeated counterattacks. A build-up of Russian forces was detected the next day, and a spoiling attack was launched by the Der Führer Regiment that scattered the Soviet 18th Tank Brigade.

Hausser is wounded

With the encirclement operation now complete and 660,000 Russians captured, General Hoepner ordered Das Reich to push eastwards. The division's objective was the town of Mozhaisk, which formed the centre of the Soviet capital's outer defensive ring. Two regimental-sized battlegroups were sent to attack on 11 October, only to run into heavy Soviet resistance from infantry supported by tanks and armoured trains.

Waffen-SS 88mm flak guns were deployed forward to counter the Soviet tanks, and then tanks of the 10th Panzer Division were brought up to hit the T-34s' flanks, where their armour was weakest. The intervention of the panzers turned the battle, allowing the Waffen-SS infantrymen to penetrate into the heart of the Soviet bunker complexes. The heavy fighting brought Hausser up to the front to encourage his men but he was badly injured during one T-34 attack, losing an eye and part of his jaw to a shell fragment. The SS officer had to be evacuated from the battlefield for several weeks.

The battle for Mozhaisk

A handful of Soviet heavy tanks (probably T-35s) now appeared and attacked the Deutschland Regiment, until a 150mm howitzer could be brought up to knock them out. Waves of T-34s were then sent into action to push the SS regiment back. Only heavy artillery fire was able to stabilize the situation and drive off the Soviet assaults. One more day of Waffen-SS attacks, backed by Stuka dive-bombers, finally cracked the Soviet defences open to allow the division to move forward to begin its assault on the main Moscow Line defences. Backed by fire from Nebelwerfer rocket launchers, the SS troops struck at the Soviet defences around Borodino, which were held by newly arrived Mongolian troops.

Freezing rain and snow were now falling throughout the day and night, making life very miserable for the SS men, who had not yet received any winter uniforms or equipment. Fortunately, the cold weather kept the ground firm, so Das Reich's supporting panzers could still roar to their assistance when heavy Russian resistance was encountered.

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