Harrison, Richard W. The Budapest Operation

An Operational-Strategic Study

The Budapest Operation (29 October 1944 to 13 February 1945): An operational-strategic study examines in detail the Red Army's operations as it approached Budapest and the final capture of the city after a long siege. The first part of the study deals with the arrival of the Red Army in central Hungary after the successful completion of Operation Iasi-Kishinev at the end of August 1944 and the subsequent development of the offensive through Romania, Bulgaria and eastern Yugoslavia. By mid-October, the Soviets were ready to continue the offensive in Hungary and its capital Budapest, the capture of which would pave the way for a further advance into Austria and southern Germany. This study examines the rapid advance to the outskirts of Budapest, where stubborn German-Hungarian resistance forced them to a halt, whereupon the Soviets attempted to encircle the city and finally closed the ring at the end of December. It also examines the Germans' repeated attempts to break the siege with several counter-offensives to the west and south of the city. However, these were all repulsed in heavy fighting, and the enemy garrison was forced to surrender on 13 February. This study also devotes considerable attention to the combat forces (artillery, armoured and mechanised forces, air force and engineer troops) during the operation. The other study is an internal document of the General Staff Academy dealing with the activities of the 3rd Ukrainian Front during the operation in Budapest. During most of the operation, the 3rd Ukrainian Front played a clearly subordinate role and was tasked with protecting the flank of the Soviet advance through Yugoslavia and Hungary, while the 2nd Ukrainian Front was to receive the credit for taking Budapest. However, fierce enemy resistance along the approaches to Budapest gradually forced the Soviet high command to shift its efforts increasingly to the right bank of the Danube, first to support the isolation of the Budapest garrison within the city and then to repel repeated German counter-offensives to liberate the city. It was the successful repulsion of these attacks by the 3rd Ukrainian Front that ultimately enabled the Soviets to achieve the surrender of the garrison and the end of the operation.