A new plan called for XXXXVIII Panzer Corps to move 64km (40 miles) westwards in front of the Russians, and then hit their exposed western flank, rolling up their new frontline of anti-tank guns and dug-in tanks. With the Ukraine now firmly in the grip of a heavy winter frost, the Leibstandarte Division moved at night to its jump-off point north of Zhitomir on 6 December. Peiper was again to lead the attack with his panzer regiment, armoured troop carrier battalion and the reconnaissance battalion.

The Waffen-SS tanks pressed home their advantage during the following day, but then ran out of fuel during the afternoon and had to be resupplied before the advance could continue. Stung by criticism, Peiper pushed his men forward with a vengeance on 7 December, covering more than 32km (20 miles) and cutting the road north out of Radomyschl. He then pushed southwards to reach the outskirts of the town, before turning east to close the ring around what was left of the Soviet Sixtieth Army.

For almost a week, the Leibstandarte Division held the ring around the Russian forces trapped in Radomyschl. The division's panzers were also used to force back Russian troops to the north of the town, and smash the remaining enemy armoured reserves. The advance was successful at first, but Peiper's tank crews got bogged down in a series of costly but inconclusive engagements.

Almost a month of intense combat had taken its toll on the mighty Leibstandarte Division. Its tank strength now stood at some 20 tanks fit for action, with almost 200 tanks under repair. The panzergrenadier regiments were equally stretched, and each could only muster 500 men fit to fight.

The Meleni Pocket

Another Soviet tank force was now located gathering to the northwest around Meleni, and so Balck called off his attacks on Radomyschl. The Leibstandarte and 1st Panzer Divisions were ordered to launch another of the general's favourite pincer moves, to be ready for action on 19 December. The attack rolled forward under a barrage from 30 artillery batteries and scores of Nebelwerfer launchers. At first the Leibstandarte panzergrenadiers surprised the Russians and cleared out a score of trenches with little opposition. Then the panzer kampfgruppe moved forward until it ran into a huge pak-front of anti-tank guns. Three Soviet armoured corps and elements of four infantry corps were in the salient being pushed in by the three German divisions.

During the following morning, the Leibstandarte's losses mounted, until by the end of the day the division had only 20 tanks left fit for action, including 3 Tigers. It accounted for 17 T-34s, 4 assault guns and 44 artillery pieces destroyed. The following morning one panzer company of six tanks fended off a huge Soviet tank attack, destroying twenty-one T-34s in the desperate battle.

XXXXVIII Panzer Corps could only maintain its attack for two days, but it had inflicted big losses on the Soviets, with the 1st Panzer Division smashing a two corps-sized attack and knocking out 68 tanks on 22 December. The following day Balck halted the attack so he could use his three panzer divisions to form a mobile reserve, ready to parry another Soviet attack force that was gathering to the south in XXIV Panzer Corps' sector. During the previous two months Balck and his élite panzer divisions claimed to have destroyed or captured 700 Soviet tanks and 668 anti-tank guns.

prev | next