Operation Mars
1942 Soviet offensive during World War II / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Operation Mars (Russian: Операция «Марс»), also known as the Second Rzhev-Sychevka Offensive Operation (Russian: Вторая Ржевско-Сычёвская наступательная операция), was the codename for an offensive launched by Soviet forces against German forces during World War II. It took place between 25 November and 20 December 1942 around the Rzhev salient in the vicinity of Moscow.
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (April 2009) |
Operation Mars | |||||||
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Part of the Eastern Front of World War II | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Soviet Union | Germany | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Georgy Zhukov Ivan Konev Maksim Purkayev |
Walter Model Günther von Kluge | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
702,923 personnel, 1,718 tanks[1] |
3 combined corps (with 13 infantry divisions and 2 paratrooper divisions) 2 panzer corps (5 panzer divisions, 3 motorized divisions) 1,615 tanks[clarification needed][1] Total forces: ~350,000 troops | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Isayev: 70,373 irrecoverable 145,301 wounded or sick[2] Glantz: 100,000 killed 235,000 wounded 1,600 tanks[3] |
Grossmann: 40,000 combat casualties[4] Buttar:[5] 40,000-45,000 in total |
The offensive was a joint operation of the Soviet Western Front and Kalinin Front co-ordinated by Georgy Zhukov. The offensive was one in a series of particularly-bloody engagements that are collectively known in Soviet and Russian histories as the Battles of Rzhev, which occurred near Rzhev, Sychevka and Vyazma between January 1942 and March 1943. The battles became known as the "Rzhev meat grinder" ("Ржевская мясорубка") for their huge losses, particularly on the Soviet side. For many years, they were relegated to a footnote in Soviet military history.