Capture of Gorlovka
| Capture of Gorlovka | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Italian Participation in the Eastern Front | |||||||
 Italian soldiers of the CSIR attack Gorlovka on 2 November 1941 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Supported by:  Germany |
Supported by:  United Kingdom | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Giovanni Messe |
 Nikolai Vatutin | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
| 600 Soviet troops taken prisoner by General Messe | ||||||
Capture of Gorlovka was fought between the Italian forces and Soviet Union during the Eastern Front of World War II.
Background
[edit]In October 1941, the German 1st Panzer Army was making swift movements toward the Sea of Azov, causing the Soviet Southern Front to pull back. This prompted the German High Command to enact movements on Taganrog, Rostov, and Stalino. During these movements, the Italian 3rd Cavalry Division "Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta" at times moved with German units and supported them whenever possible even though the roads were poor, and the movement frameworks were minimal. The division's cavalry and 3rd Bersaglieri Regiment were able to mount fast, rapid attacks, and were able to engage in what were sometimes only skirmishes with a Soviet rearguard that was further spread out across the front, and at other times were required to push forward against dense automatic-weapon resistance. Among those attacks were a cavalry charge by elements of the Regiment "Savoia Cavalleria" and a difficult engagement by the Regiment "Lancieri di Novara". After several days of fighting, the 3rd Cavalry Division left behind its supporting small mobile groups of horse artillery that continued support, and an engagement in the breach of the Soviet defensive positions, it was then able to occupy Stalino on 20 October. Italian commanders in the 3rd Cavalry Division praised the determination, rapidity, and mobility of the unit despite fatigue, and the German commanders recognized the mobility and brute force of the division and acknowledged its participation in decisive moments, and in many cases, the support was ordered by subordinate Italian commanders.[1][2]
Battle
[edit]
Italian troops battled for Gorlovka's control[1], taking control of a city with roughly 120K individuals. Prior to attacking the city, the Italian 9th Infantry Division "Pasubio" spent one week clearing minefields from the vicinity of Gorlovka.[3][4] At the same time, the 3rd Cavalry Division mounted an aggressive attack to take control of Rukovo, an industrial community just south of Gorlovka.[5] Then, on 2nd of November, troops of the "Pasubio" Division advanced from Gorlovka's west while 3rd Cavalry Division troops came from the southeast. The Soviet 296th Rile Division was charged with defending Gorlovka. The "Pasubio" Division's 80th Infantry Regiment "Pasubio" was engaged in extremely close combat, house-to-house, while the division 79th Infantry Regiment "Pasubio" was advancing through the centre of Gorlovka with far less resistance and with the support of artillery provided by the 3rd Cavalry Division's 3rd Horse Artillery Regiment. Approximately 600 Soviet soldiers were taken as prisoners, though it remains uncertain what the complete Soviet casualty count. After the defending 296th Rifle Division withdrew from Gorlovka, a few days of combat continued as Italian troops continued their advancement towards Gorlovka and the surrounding areas to drive out the remaining defenders.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Amministratore. "C.S.I.R. - Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia". www.unirr.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2025-11-15.
- ^ Boylan, Kevin (2024-08-01). Barbarossa 1941: An Atlas of German Army Situation Maps. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 230. ISBN 978-1-4728-4393-7.
- ^ "YAHAD - IN UNUM". www.yahadmap.org. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ^ "The Italian Army in Russia: from Barbarossa to Stalingrad". Warfare History Network. 2021-09-01. Retrieved 2025-10-28.
- ^ Kirchubel, Robert (2012-09-20). Operation Barbarossa 1941 (1): Army Group South. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78200-425-7.
- ^ Cloutier, Patrick (2009). Regio Esercito: The Italian Royal Army in Mussolini's Wars, 1935-1943. P. Cloutier. pp. 140–141. ISBN 978-0-557-08181-3.