Battle of the Blue Hills

Battle of Tannenberg Line
Part of Eastern Front (World War II)
Date 25 July – 10 August 1944 Location Sinimäed Hills, Estonia 59°22′32″N 27°51′17″E Result Tactical German victory
Belligerents
National Socialist Germany	Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Felix Steiner Fritz von Scholz	Leonid Govorov
Units involved
III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps XXVI Army Corps 4 Estonian police battalions Eastern sector, coastal defense Two Estonian border defense (Grenzschutz) regiments	2nd Shock Army 8th Army 8th 'Estonian' Rifle Corps
Strength
22,250 troops Seven tanks 70–80 assault guns 49 aircraft	136,830 troops 150 armoured vehicles 1680 assault guns 546 aircraft
Casualties and losses
2,500 dead or missing 7,500 wounded or sick 6 tanks 10,000 total casualties	35,000 dead or missing 135,000 wounded or sick 157–164 tanks 170,000 total casualties

The Battle of Blue Hills or Battle of Tannenberg Line (German: Die Schlacht um die Tannenbergstellung; Estonian: Sinimägede lahing) was a strategically important fighting on the Eastern Front of World War II. It took place between July 26 and August 12, 1944. The Waffen-SS decisively defeated a Red Army attack against Blue Hills in Estonia. Soviets lost about 200,000 men and 200 tanks.

The battle was bloodiest in the history of Estonia. The Soviet offensive to capture the Blue Hills, the combat on the hills and the defenders' counter-offensive was one of the biggest Soviet defeat in 1944.

The battle is also known as the great Battle of the European or Germanic SS because of the large number of Waffen-SS foreign volunteers engaged on the German side. Roughly a half of the infantry consisted in the local Estonian volunteers and conscripts from 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian).

The strategic aim of the Soviet assault was to occupy Estonia as a favourable basis for invasions of Finland and East-Prussia. As a result of the battle, Soviet offensive was stopped and more than 100,000 Estonian people could escape to Germany and Sweden. It also made possible for Finland to start peace negotiations with Soviet Union and to exit the war, staying independent.

Consolidation of the line

After defending the Narva bridgehead for six months, the defenders of Narva had been ordered to fall back to the Tannenbergstellung (Tannenberg Line). The Tannenbergstellung consisted of three hills, running east to west. The eastern hill was known as Orphanage Hill, the centre was Grenadier Hill and the westernmost Tower Hill.

These three hills, known as the Blue Hills, were less than imposing, and resembled gently sloping mounds rather than defensible heights.

Nonetheless, the formations of SS-Gruppenführer Felix Steiner's III SS (Germanic) Panzer Corps halted their withdrawal and fell into defensive positions on these hills. The corps was bolstered by the newly arrived Kampfgruppen of the Belgian volunteer units, the 5. SS-Freiwilligen-Sturmbrigade Wallonien and 6. SS-Freiwilligen-Sturmbrigade Langemarck. The Langemarck was thrown into the line defending Kinderheimhöhe, with the Norge regiment of the 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland alongside it.

Battles for Orphanage Hill

The forces of Soviet Marshall Leonid A. Govorov's Leningrad Front began their assaults even before the vastly outnumbered Langemarck and Norge had dug in. Elements of SS-Sturmbannführer Willy Jähde's 502.schwere Panzer Abteilung were sent to help out the beleaguered infantry, and after fierce fighting, the Hill was still in the hands of Steiner's SS men. Wallonien's Kampgruppe, personally led by Léon Degrelle, and elements of Estland regiment of the 20.Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS (Estnische Nr.1) were sent up to Orphanage Hill to bolster the defence.

During the next week, the Langemarck, Estland, Norge and Wallonien saw extremely heavy fighting on the gentle slopes of Orphanage Hill. On the 27 July, the defenders, again with the help of Jähde's Tigers, and elements of Nordland's Hermann von Salza Panzer Abt, fought off several Soviet combined arms attacks and destroyed 113 Soviet armoured vehicles, including many T-34s and assault guns.

During these attacks, Flemish SS-Unterscharführer Remi Schrijnen of the Langemarck's anti-tank company singlehandedly destroyed over a dozen Russian tanks while wounded and cut off from the rest of the Kampfgruppe. Over a 48 hour period, Schrijnen, acting as loader and gunner for his 7.5cm PaK 40 Anti-Tank gun, personally halted several Soviet tank attacks which otherwise would have encircled the Langemarck and Estland. For his actions, Schrijnen was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Despite the tenacity of the volunteer and conscript formations, the SS-men were forced back from the Orphanage Hill late on 27 July. During this battle, the Nordland's commander, SS-Gruppenführer Fritz von Scholz, was fatally wounded by an artillery round.

Norge launched a ferocious counterattack on 28 July, but despite inflicting heavy casualties, the attack stalled. SS-Hauptsturmführer Sigfried Scheibe, commander of Norge's II.Battalion, led the attack and was severely wounded. The defence now fell back to Grenadier Hill.

Battles for Grenadier Hill, July 29

Preparatory fire

The morning of July 29 began with the preparatory artillery fire of 25,000 shells shot by the Soviets. The battering covered the Tannenberg Line in a dust cloud. The forest on Blue Hills was entirely destroyed, with the trees cut at the height of 2-3 metres. While having great psychological effect, the so-called "Stalin's organs" were inaccurate causing little damage to the well-dug German troops. The 70–80 German Nebelwerfers answered. This was followed by Soviet bombers, trying to hit the last of the Waffen-SS troops, ducking down in their trenches. Disguised in camouflage, they remained unnoticed by the Soviet pilots.

Attack of Soviet main forces

The principle of the Soviet attack in the operations in the Blue Hills was an overwhelming frontal shock, with only few of the attackers presumed to reach the target. With the artillery fire preventing any reinforcements sent in from the German rear, the Soviet 8th Army went on attack and wedged in the north flank of the 11th Infantry Division. The Soviet main tactical goal Grenadier Hill was to be assaulted by the 6,000 troopers of the 109th Rifle Corps. The 109th Rifle Division attacked the "Nederland" who were covering the hill from the north. The 120th Rifle Division hit the Grenadier Hill from the east. The 72nd Rifle Division assaulted the II.Battalion, 3rd Estonian Regiment which were defending the northern flank. The 117th Rifle Corps stood ready to break through the last of the defenses. The Orphanage Hill fell entirely to the Soviets with the 191st Rifle Regiment at the head of the Soviet attack. These suffered great casualties in the fire of the last defenders who in turn were either killed or forced to the next hill the Grenadier Hill. With the seizure of the Orphanage Hill, the Soviet 201st and the 256th Rifle Divisions were exhausted as the 109th Rifle Division continued to press towards the Grenadier Hill alone. The defenders were commanded Josef Bachmeier the head of the II.Battalion, "Norge". The I. and II.Battalions, 3rd Estonian subordinated to Bachmeier had 20 to 30 men each. For the defense of the Grenadier Hill, every available Estonian was sent into battle, including communications personnel. The central command post was destroyed by the Soviet fire while the Germans, Flemish, Norwegians, Estonians escaped destruction by lying down in their bunkers. Behind them at the summit of the Grenadermägi, stood the "Nederland". The gaps created in the attacking infantry and tank line by the German artillery did not stop the Soviet advance.

Soviet encirclement of Grenadier Hill

The 109th Rifle Division passed the remnants of the II.Battalion, "De Ruyter" which used their light machine guns to cause heavy casualties to the Soviets. The Soviet attack ran into the camouflaged anti-tank gun of Remi Schrijnen standing near the northeastern corner of the hill. Meeting the Soviet attack, he fired his gun destroying seven tanks in the course of which he was severely wounded when his gun was destroyed by a IS-2 tank returning fire from 30 metres. Despite Schrijnen's heroics, the Soviet tanks besieged the Grenadier Hill and kept circling it all the while firing away at the defenders. They could not however capture the summit due to heavy casualties caused by the German anti-tank guns and the anti-aircraft guns pointing their barrels down. The other Soviet tanks reached the westernmost hill Tower Hill. The defenders in their bunkers, which were poorly fortified from the north and the flanks, were destroyed.

Re-capture of Tower Hill

By noon July 29, the Soviet forces had almost seized control of the Tannenberg Line. During the attack, the Soviets had suffered great casualties and were unable to secure their positions at Blue Hills. A fatally wounded radio operator cleared the eastern slope of the Grenadier Hill by waiting for the Soviet troops to reach his position and then ordering an artillery barrage on himself as the Soviets surrounded him. The Soviet tanks threatened the headquarters of the "De Ruyter" Regiment. The counterattack by the headquarters guards company was repelled and Obersturmbannführer Hans Collani seeing a Soviet tank from his headquarters doorstep, shot himself dead. His observations turned out as erroneous as Steiner ordered the last German tanks from the reserve commanded by Paul-Albert Kausch into the battle. He distributed his tanks in three units. One of them went on counterattack at the Soviets besieging Tower Hill, the second of them securing Narva–Tallinn Highway in the west and the third unit counterattacking between the Grenadier Hill and the railway a few kilometres to the south. The arrival of the German tanks came unexpectedly for the Soviet tanks. Probably being out of their ammunition, the Soviet tank squadron retreated and the counterattack of the "De Ruyter" repulsed the Soviets from the Tornimägi. After the counterattack, one German Panther tank remained unscathed.

Estonian re-capture of Grenadier Hill

After the German counterattack, the tactical situation at the Tannenberg Line remained unclear. The remains of the II.Battalion, "Norge" at the Grenaderimägi assaulted the Soviets. The latter suffered heavy losses but re-grouped and cut the Norwegians off at the east side of the hill. On the western terrace of the Grenaderimägi, the Kampfgruppe Bachmeier and the III.Battalion, 3rd Estonian kept resisting. The Soviets started searching the bunkers for documents and prisoners. Steiner ordered an air assault using dive bombers from Tallinn Airport. The Soviets had anticipated the attack and had moved their self-propelled anti-aircraft units to the Lastekodumägi. These shot down several German bombers and afterwards turned their fire at the German infantry.

Steiner had one more battalion to spare — the I.Battalion, Waffen Grenadier Regiment der SS 45 "Estland" (1st Estonian) which had been spared from the previous counter attacks because of the scarcity of able bodied men. Waffen-Sturmbannführer Paul Maitla requested reinforcements from the men in the field hospital. Twenty less injured men responded, joining the remains of the other destroyed units including a unit of the Kriegsmarine and supported by the single remaining Panther tank. The counter attack started from the parish cemetery south of the Tower Hill with the left flank of the assault clearing the hill of the Soviets. The attack continued towards the summit under heavy Soviet artillery and bomber attack, getting into close combat in the Soviet positions. The small German grenadier units were moved into the trenches. Running out of ammunition, the German troops used Soviet grenades and automatic weapons taken from the fallen. According to some veterans, it appeared that low flying Soviet bombers were attempting to hit every individual German soldier jumping between craters, from time to time getting buried under the soil by the explosions of Soviet shells. The Soviets were forced to retreat from the Grenadier Hill.

Soviet attempts to regain Grenadier Hill

In the afternoon of July 29, the Soviet forces made eight attempts to regain control of Grenadier Hill. The last of the defenders' reserves were sent into the battle, including the supply troops. The two assaults by Maitla's improvised platoon at the Orphanage Hill forced the Soviets to refrain from further attacks and gave the Estonians time to re-group.

August battles

There was to be no respite for the exhausted men of Steiner's corps. Throughout the month of August, the Soviets continued relentless attacks. Despite inflicting immense casualties on the Soviets, the SS units were slowly being worn down. The Nederland was now reduced to the size of a regiment, the Kampfgruppes of the Wallonien and Langemarck each to the strength of a reinforced company. The 20th Waffen-Grenadier division had virtually lost one of its regiments during the withdrawal and the subsequent fighting, and the Nordland was a shadow of its former self, with the Hermann von Salza Panzer Abt reduced to only 2 Panthers and a handful of Panzer IVs. All remaining armour available to the defenders was grouped into a Kampfgruppe, Panzerverband von Strachwitz under the command of the Großdeutschland commander and Panzer ace Generalleutnant Hyazinth Graf Strachwitz von Gross-Zauche und Camminetz. This formation, reinforced by panzers from the Großdeutschland's Panzer regiment, acted like a fire brigade, seeing heavy fighting along the Narva front and also acting on the southern flank of Army Group North.

Logic stated that Steiner's corps must be close to collapse, however the men of Armee Abteilung Narwa continued to hold, throwing back every Soviet attack and grimly holding the Grenadier Hill and Tower Hill.

Around mid August, the frustrated Russians reduced operations to patrol activities with occasional attacks. The defenders used this respite to rotate several exhausted units out of the line for a few days for rest and reft, and to strengthen their positions. For the time being, the Narva front was quiet.