The Battle of Königsberg
INTRODUCTION
This suggestion is for a new Ground Forces map, set in the city of Königsberg (Now Kaliningrad). It is based off the Battle of Königsberg in Early 1945, during the Soviet offensive into Eastern Prussia. It could serve as an interesting map, since it’s not only a less talked about battle, but would also provide sort of a view into how the city once looked before the destruction of most historical buildings.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT THE BATTLE AND MAP
Following the early stages of the East Prussia offensive, Königsberg was surrounded by Soviet Forces, though remained defended by Army Group Centre (Now renamed to Army Group North). On February 19, the 3rd Panzer Army and 4th Army engaged the 3rd Belrossian Front from Pillau (Now Baltiysk), while the 1st Infantry Division (Later joined by the 5th Panzer Division) attacked from Königsberg, lead by a captured T-34, re-opening a land corridor from Pillau to Königsberg that would hold until the final Soviet assault.
By the time of the final assault, Königsberg at this point was defended by 5 divisions, totalling about 130,000 troops, accompanied by some 108 tanks and 170 aircraft. The Soviet forces numbered about 137,000 (Though only about 25,000 actively fought), alongside some 528 tanks and 2,174 aircraft. Königsberg was quite fortified, primarily by defenses built in 1888, though modernized in recent times, including 15 interconnected forts, with integrated troop accommodations, meant to withstand weapons such as the railway guns being designed at the time as a result of the Siege of Paris in 1870. The city defenses was a set of ringed defenses, with the outer ring consisting of 12 forts, the middle ring in the outskirts and inner city, and the last one inside the city itself, essentially its own fortress, with forts, barricades, landmines, and various anti-tank defenses. The final assault began on April 6th, following four days of heavy Soviet bombardment. The first defensive ring was shattered with relative ease, having been mostly destroyed by the intense bombardment in the days prior, allowing the Second ring to be reached by noon, and was mostly overrun 3 hours later. Forts 8 and 5, however, provided heavy resistance. Day one had mixed results, with the Soviet progress being less than expected, though the morale of the defending forces was heavily shaken. April 7th saw multiple German counterattacks attempted during the night, though all failed. Fierce fighting continued at Fort 8, which fell after usage of smoke screens and flamethrowers allowed for Red Army troops to enter the fort, where German forces resisted, though surrendered after short fighting. At Fort 5, the story was similar, though fighting continued into the morning of April 8th. In the south, the 11th Guards Army slowly advanced to the Pregel/Pregolya river, having to effectively demolish every building to wipe out defending forces, while a brutal skirmish unfolded in the railway station, where most railcars became firing points. It was only secured by red Army forces after heavy losses, as well as armor and heavy gun support, after which Red Army forces reached the inner ring by dusk. At the end of the day, permission to surrender was denied by Adolf Hitler. April 8th saw continued combat in the city, while April 9th saw German Forces surrender. Some 80% of the city was destroyed, and the capture was celebrated in Moscow with a large artillery salvo, consisting of 324 cannons each firing 24 times.
Progression of the battle
THE MAP & ITS LAYOUT
This is a map of Königsberg around 1938, giving a rough idea of the city. Gameplay itself would be inside either a 1.5km by 1.5km or 2km by 2km (For reference, 2km x 2km is about the size of the Breslau map when measured on Google Earth) square, potentially centered at or around Königsberg Castle. I am mostly unsure how to place the spawns, as well as the capture zones, though I believe that, for capture zones, Königsberg Castle should be one. If the map is large enough or placed right, then perhaps the railway station could be one, due to the intense fighting that occurred there. As for BR area, I have no strong opinions on the matter. I don’t feel like it needs any restrictions, personally. Obviously, all details are up to Gaijin in the end.
Spoiler
PICTURES OF KÖNIGSBERG
Pictures of the city prior to bombing and assault damage
Aerial view of the castle and city centre during the interbellum
Königsberg Castle
Königsberg Cathedral, seen from above
Königsberg Railway Station
Pictures during and after the battle
ISU-152 with Königsberg Cathedral (?) in the background
Königsberg Castle
T-34-85 and ISU-152 in front of Königsberg Castle
An area of the Königsberg Railway Station
Undisclosed area of Königsberg
[Would you like to see this as a map in-game?]
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- No
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