The Soviet Armed Forces delivered fresh heavy artillery to the front. As the Council of War of the Soviet Leningrad Front was convinced, that everything had been prepared for a breakthrough, July 29 turned into a decisive day in the battle for the Tannenberg Line. The defence now fell back to "Grenadierhöhe". SS-Hauptsturmführer Sigfried Scheibe, commander of "Norge's" II Battalion, led the attack and was severely wounded. "Norge" launched a ferocious counterattack on 28 July, but despite inflicting heavy casualties, the attack stalled. ![]() During this battle, the "Nordland's" commander, SS-Gruppenführer Fritz von Scholz, was fatally wounded by an artillery round. For his actions, Schrijnen was awarded the Knight's Cross.ĭespite the tenacity of the volunteer and conscript formations, the SS-men were forced back from the "Kinderheimhöhe" late on 27 July. 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". 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.ĭuring these attacks, Flemish SS-Unterscharführer Remi Schrijnen of the "Langemarck's" anti-tank company singlehandedly destroyed several Russian tanks while wounded and cut off from the rest of the Kampfgruppe. "Wallonien's" Kampgruppe, personally led by Leon Degrelle, and elements of "Estland" regiment of the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) were sent up to the "Kinderheimhöhe" to bolster the defence.ĭuring the next two-three days, the "Langemarck", "Estland", "Norge" and "Wallonien" saw extremely heavy fighting on the gentle slopes of "Kinderheimhöhe". Elements of Major Willy Jähde's were sent to help out the beleaguered infantry, and after fierce fighting, the Hill was still in the hands of Steiner's SS men. Govorov's Leningrad Front began their assaults even before the vastly outnumbered "Langemarck" and "Norge" had dug in. The "Langemarck" was thrown into the line defending "Kinderheimhöhe", with the "Norge" regiment of the "Nordland" Division alongside it. ![]() 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". 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. These three hills, known as the Sinimäed Hills, were less than imposing, and resembled gently sloping mounds rather than defensible heights. The position was located near the coastal town of Sillamäe. The Eastern hill was known as "Lastekodumägi" in Estonian or "Kinderheimhöhe" in German (Orphanage Hill), the centre was "Põrguaugu mägi" or "Grenadierhöhe" (Grenadier Hill) and the westernmost "Tornimägi" or "69.9 Höhe" (Hill 69.9, also known as "Liebhöhe" or Love Hill). The Tannenbergstellung consisted of three hills, known as Sinimäed Hills, _ru. cite web|url=|title=Estonia in World War II|publisher=okupatsioon.ee|author=Hannes Walter] The German units retreated, after the Soviet advance in Latvia, which threatned to cut off German forces in Estonia.Īfter defending the Narva bridgehead for six months, the German forces fell back to the "Tannenbergstellung" (Tannenberg Line) of July 26th, 1944. The German force of 45,000 soldiers held off a Soviet advance of 200,000 men for seven weeks at the Sinimäed Hills, destroying over a hundred Soviet battalions and 200 Soviet tanks. 1940 – 1991|year=2005] The battle is also known as The Battle of the European SS for the large number volunteers and conscripts within the Waffen SS from Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Holland Austria, France, and Belgium engaged on the German side. cite book|author=Estonian State Commission on Examination of Policies of Repression|url=|publisher=Estonian Encyclopedia Publishers|title=The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes. ![]() Tens of thousands Estonian conscripts and volunteers fought to defend their country against the looming Soviet re-occupation. The battle was fought on the Eastern Front during World War II between the forces of the German Heeresgruppe Nord and the Soviet Leningrad and Volkhov Fronts. The Battle of the Tannenberg Line (German: Tannenbergstellung Estonian: Sinimägede lahingud) was the second phase of the Soviet offensive into Estonia, also known as the Battle of Narva. ![]() Place= Narva, Sinimäed Hills, Estonia / Dünaburg, Latvia Conflict=Battle of Narva - Battle for the Tannenberg LineĬaption=Grenadiers of the "Norge" Regiment watch a Panther of the "Hermann von Salza" Abt move into position, Estonia 1944.
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