Leningrad Front
The Leningrad Front was a Soviet army group created on the 27th of August 1941, when the Northern Front was divided in two. The other half became the Karelian Front. The split came just as German forces approached Leningrad, the city now called Saint Petersburg. From its first day, the new front carried one responsibility above all others: keep the city from falling. What followed was a war fought largely under blockade, with supplies arriving in small amounts across a lake. How did the front survive its first autumn? Who was trusted to lead it? And how did a force cut off from the rest of the country finally reconnect with it?
By September 1941, German forces coming from the south had been stopped on the outskirts of Leningrad. That halt did not end the danger. It began a siege, and from the 8th of September the soldiers of the front had to operate under blockade conditions with very little supply.
Some supplies still reached the city by crossing a lake, along a route remembered as the Road of Life. It was not enough to make the front comfortable, but it kept a thread open to the outside.
To the north, Finnish forces advanced no farther than the old Finnish-Soviet border. Even so, the Leningrad Front suffered severe losses on the Finnish Front.
Lieutenant General Markian Popov commanded the new front in August and September 1941. In September, Marshal of the Soviet Union Kliment Voroshilov took over for a brief spell.
Georgy Zhukov, a General of the Army, held the post from September into October 1941. Major General Ivan Fedyuninski then led the front during October of that year. Lieutenant General Mikhail Khozin followed, commanding from October 1941 until June 1942.
That made five commanders in less than a year. Then, in June 1942, Leonid Govorov arrived. He received the title Marshal of the Soviet Union in June 1944, having led the front since June 1942.
In August 1941, the Leningrad Front began with three armies: the 8th, the 23rd and the 48th. Alongside them stood three operational groups, named Koporye, Southern and Slutsk, plus the Baltic Fleet.
After the 25th of November 1942, the structure kept growing. Ordinary armies joined, including the 20th, 21st, 22nd, 42nd, 51st, 52nd, 59th and 67th. The 1st, 2nd and 4th Shock Armies were added, along with the 6th and 10th Guards Armies.
The front also gained air power in the form of the 3rd, 13th and 15th Air Armies. Some formations came and went. The 55th Army served from August 1941 to December 1943, and the 54th Army remained until October 1944, when it was disbanded.
In January 1943, forces of the Leningrad Front took the town of Shlisselburg from German forces. These were the front's first advances in years. The capture restored communications between Leningrad and the rest of the country.
A year later, in mid and late January 1944, the front joined the Volkhov Front, the 1st Baltic Front and the 2nd Baltic Front. Together they pushed back Army Group North and broke the blockade, which had lasted 28 months.
Several days after that, these forces completely liberated the Leningrad Oblast and the Kalinin Oblast. Six months later, the Leningrad Front took over the town of Narva.
On the 21st of April 1944, parts of the Leningrad Front were broken off to create the 3rd Baltic Front. The remaining front kept fighting. In June 1944, together with the Baltic Fleet, it successfully carried out the Vyborg operation. As a result, Finland would later leave the German side of the war.
From September to November 1944, the front took part in the Baltic Offensive. It advanced in the Narva-Tartu direction and then pushed on towards Tallinn.
After continental Estonia was captured, elements of the front and the Baltic Fleet helped recapture the Moonsund archipelago. Those islands were the setting for the last offensive operations the front would carry out.
After Moonsund, forces of the Leningrad Front were stationed on the Soviet-Finnish border and along the Baltic coast from Leningrad to Riga. The front was then reinforced with elements of the recently disbanded 2nd Baltic Front.
Most of these troops were posted near the Courland Pocket. Their task was to contain the German Army Group Courland, which kept resisting Soviet forces until the end of the war in Europe.
On the 24th of June 1945, the Leningrad Front was reorganized into the Leningrad Military District.
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Common questions
When was the Leningrad Front formed?
The Leningrad Front was formed on the 27th of August 1941. The Soviet Northern Front was divided into the Leningrad Front and the Karelian Front as German forces approached Leningrad.
Who commanded the Leningrad Front after June 1942?
Leonid Govorov commanded the Leningrad Front from June 1942. He was awarded the title Marshal of the Soviet Union in June 1944.
What was the Road of Life for the Leningrad Front?
The Road of Life was the route across a lake by which some supplies reached Leningrad during the blockade. The Leningrad Front otherwise operated with very little supply from the 8th of September 1941.
How did the Leningrad Front help end the siege of Leningrad?
In January 1943, the Leningrad Front took Shlisselburg and restored communications between Leningrad and the rest of the country. In mid and late January 1944, it joined the Volkhov Front and the 1st and 2nd Baltic Fronts to break the 28-month blockade.
Which armies made up the Leningrad Front when it was created?
At its creation in August 1941, the Leningrad Front included the 8th, 23rd and 48th Armies. It also had the Koporye, Southern and Slutsk operational groups and the Baltic Fleet.
What happened to the Leningrad Front at the end of World War II?
On the 24th of June 1945, the Leningrad Front was reorganized into the Leningrad Military District. Before that, part of its forces had been stationed near the Courland Pocket to contain German Army Group Courland.
All sources
2 references cited across the entry
- 2BookMarshal of Victory, Volume IIGeorgy Zhukov — Pen and Sword Books Ltd. — 1974