The Battle of Rzhev in the summer of 1942 was part of a series of battles that lasted 15 months in the center of the Eastern Front. It is known in Soviet history of World War II as the first Rzhev–Sychyovka offensive operation, which was defined as spanning from 30 July to 23 August 1942. However, it is widely documented that the fighting continued undiminished into September and did not finally cease until the beginning of October 1942. The Red Army suffered massive casualties for little gain during the fighting, giving the battle a notoriety reflected in its sobriquet: "The Rzhev Meat Grinder".

Rzhev lies west of Moscow and was captured by the German Wehrmacht in Operation Typhoon in the autumn of 1941, which took them to the gates of Moscow. When the Soviet counteroffensive drove them back, Rzhev became a cornerstone of the Germans' defense. By mid-1942, the city stood at the apogee of a salient that protruded from the front lines, pointing in the general direction of Moscow. In July and August 1942, Stalin tasked two of his front commanders, General Georgy Zhukov (commanding the Western Front) and General Ivan Konev (commanding the Kalinin Front), to conduct an offensive to recapture Rzhev and strike a blow against Army Group Center that would push them away from Moscow. The attack would fall upon one of their main opponents of the winter battles, General Walter Model's 9th Army, which occupied the majority of the Rzhev salient.

The high losses and few gains made during the two-month struggle left a lasting impression on the Soviet soldiers who took part. In October, the strategic balance in the centre of the Eastern Front remained essentially unchanged. However, the German army had also suffered grievous losses, and whilst its defence had been tactically successful, it had achieved little more than maintaining the status quo. And although the offensive failed, Zhukov was given another chance to crush the Rzhev salient soon afterwards.

Background

The closing stages of the Battle of Moscow saw the formation of the Rzhev salient. The Soviet counter-offensive had driven the Wehrmacht from the outskirts of Moscow back more than , and had penetrated Army Group Centre's front in numerous places. Rzhev, a strategic crossroads and vital rail junction straddling the Volga, became the northern corner post of Army Group Centre's left wing. It was the only town of note for many miles and gave the 9th Army something to hang on to, in what otherwise seemed a wilderness of forest and swamp in all directions. The salient's existence was threatened at the very moment of its creation, when the Kalinin Front's 39th and 29th Armies opened a gap just west of Rzhev and thrust southwards into the German rear.

Just managing to keep the encroaching Soviet armies away from the vital rail link into Rzhev, the 9th Army, now commanded by General Model, managed to close the Rzhev gap, thereby cutting the Soviet supply lines and reducing their ability to deal a crippling blow to the whole army group. The Soviet counter-attack had run out of steam and the Germans recovered enough to mount several operations to clear up their rear area. In July 1942, Operation Seydlitz was mounted to trap and destroy the two Soviet armies and succeeded in little over a week in doing so, making the army group once more an almost credible threat to Moscow.

Prelude

Commanders

General of Panzer Troops Heinrich von Vietinghoff was senior corps commander in the 9th Army in June 1942, and temporarily led the Army at the start of the battle, whilst Model was on convalescent leave. He later commanded 10th Army and Army Group C in Italy. General of Panzer Troops Walter Model had commanded 3rd Panzer division at the start of Operation Barbarossa, and had become commander of XXXXI Motorised Corps in October 1941. He had shown great resolve in the defensive winter battles, and was promoted to 9th Army commander on 12 January 1942. He proved to be a tough soldier and a defensive specialist. Respected by Hitler, he was promoted to field marshal in March 1944.Roberts, Hitler and Churchill: Secrets of Leadership Georgy Zhukov was Chief of the General Staff when the Germans invaded the Soviet Union but, following a disagreement with Stalin concerning the defense of Kiev, was demoted to command of the Reserve Front. He became a troubleshooter, commanding the Leningrad Front in the autumn, and back to Moscow to conduct its defense and counteroffensive. Zhukov remained in the central sector, and he argued in the spring of 1942 that the Moscow axis was the most critical and that Army Group Center posed the greatest threat to the Soviet Union. To him, the German forces at Rzhev "represented a dagger pointed at Moscow". Zhukov convinced Stalin to give him the extra forces he needed. He commanded the Western Front's attacks until, in the latter part of August, Zhukov became deputy supreme commander and was transferred to Stalingrad. Later, he continued to hold the highest commands in the Soviet Army, and became a Marshal of the Soviet Union in January 1943. Zhukov remained always in the thick of the fighting until the very end of the war, commanding the 1st Belorussian Front in the assault on Berlin, still in rivalry with Konev, who commanded the 1st Ukrainian Front in the final battle. Colonel-General Ivan Konev began the war against Germany commanding the 19th Army, which become encircled around Vitebsk in the first weeks of the conflict. Stalin blamed Konev for the disaster but Zhukov intervened and ensured his survival and promotion to front commander. He went on to command the Kalinin Front in the winter battles around Moscow with distinction, and still commanded the Kalinin Front at the start of the Rzhev Operation. When Zhukov was promoted to deputy supreme commander, Konev was given overall responsibility for the continuing offensive.

Battlefield

The summer months of 1942 in the Rzhev area were warm, with long days and a high sun which allowed the area to dry out after the spring thaw.Weather data for Rzhev on ru.wikipedia.org (Russian text) Rzhev had flat, rolling country, with thick forests and patches of swamp. The neighborhood of Rzhev had open farmed land with a dense network of small village communities, which were often ribbons of houses along the roadside. The roads were mostly mud tracks that became almost impassible in the spring and autumn rains, but normally dried out in summer. Rainfall was typically moderate, but the summer months of 1942 had seen unusually heavy and persistent rainfall.

Of the Red Army's objectives, the city of Rzhev was by far the largest, with over 50,000 inhabitants. Zubtsov had under 5,000; Pogoreloye Gorodishche had but 2,500. Karmanovo, to be the scene of much bitter fighting, was in reality simply a large village.

The Volga is the longest river in Europe, and in both the central sector of the Eastern Front at Rzhev and at the southern sector at Stalingrad, German and Soviet armies struggled for mastery of its banks. Both Rzhev and Zubtsov straddled the river, which was 130 m wide at this point.Geographical Dictionary of the World, entry on Volga, p. 1938.

Of major significance to both attacker and defender were tributaries of the Volga, the Dërzha, Gzhat, Osuga, and Vazuza Rivers, which ran south to north across the line of the Soviet attack. These were normally docile and fordable at this time of year, but they had become swollen with the July rains and had risen to the depth of over 2 m. By August they constituted a major impediment to Zhukov's Western Front's attack. His forces would have to cross the Dërzha on the start line and then a further one or even two flooded rivers to reach their final objectives.

From the German point of view, the most important objective was the Viazma–Rzhev rail line,see Railway line Lihoslavl – Viazma the loss of which would sever their supply line to Rzhev and render the defense of the whole salient untenable. Also important from the Soviet perspective was the Zubtov–Shakhovskaya rail line, which ran in the direction of their intended advance, and could be used to ferry supplies forward.

Opposing forces

German order of battle

The strength of 9th Army varied considerably during mid-1942, as the Army Group shifted forces between its armies for use in different operations and defensive commitments. In early July the 9th Army was reinforced so that it could conduct Operation Seydlitz. It reached a total of 22 divisions, including four panzer divisions organised in five higher corps headquarters.Tessin, Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939–1945, 9 A Kommandoberhorden, p. 123. After the successful conclusion of the operation the army group shifted many of its offensive-capable divisions southward for its next planned attack against the Sukhimchi bulge, leaving the 9th Army at the end of July with 16 infantry divisions, organised in three corps, with 14 divisions in the line, one in reserve and another in transit.

Nearly all the divisions of Army Group Center had seen heavy winter fighting, which had sapped their fighting strength. According to rehabilitation reports, the necessity to hold the line and the "unabated intensity of defensive fighting"Grant, The German Campaign in Russia, planning and operations, p. 130. meant that the divisions could only be partially restored to strength. They would have limited mobility and reduced combat efficiency, with the greatest gap being the shortage of motor vehicles and horses.

Following the collapse of its front east of Rzhev, the army was rapidly reinforced, but the continual strain of persistent Russian attacks led General Model to demand further support. By the end of September, the army consisted of 25 divisions—half the army group strength—including 20 infantry and four panzer, as well as the Großdeutschland division.

Order of battle: 9 Army – 30 July 1942 Army Army Commander Corps Corps Commander Divisions 9th Army Heinrich von Vietinghoff XXIII Army Corps Carl Hilpert 197th, 246th, 86th, 110th, 129th, and 253rd. VI Army Corps Bruno Bieler 206th, 251st, 87th, and 256th. XXXXVI Panzer Corps Hans Zorn 14th Mot., 161st; 36th Mot., and 342nd. Army reserve 6th; Parts of 328th.

Order of battle: 9 Army – 2 October 1942 Army Army Commander Corps Corps Commander Divisions 9th Army Walter Model XXIII Army Corps Carl Hilpert 197th, 246th, 86th, 110th, and 253rd. VI Army Corps Bruno Bieler 206th, 251st, 87th, and 6th. XXVII Army Corps Walter Weiß 256th, 14th Mot., 72nd, 95th, and 129th. XXXIX Panzer Corps Hans-Jürgen von Arnim 102nd, 5th PD, 1st PD, and 78th. XXXXVI Panzer Corps Hans Zorn 2nd PD, 36th Mot., and 342nd. Army reserve 161st; 328th, 9th PD, and Großdeutschland Division

Soviet order of battle

Stalin and his command group, the Stavka, sought to develop strong concentrations of forces which would attack across narrow sectors with heavy assistance from supporting arms. For example, the Kalinin Front was told to "create a shock group" of no less than 11 rifle divisions and three rifle brigades, eight tank brigades and 10 RGK artillery regiments. To achieve these high force concentrations, the Stavka handed over from its reserve to the Kalinin Front, five rifle divisions, six tank brigades, two RGK artillery regiments of 152 mm guns, four antitank artillery regiments, and 10 M-30 battalions.