Nothing to Fear ETO (id:#61676)

(Kharkov: Battle for the Square ID: KBFS10)   [next]   [previous]

Kharkov, Ukraine 1943-03-12 (5 others)

No balance information available

Overview:

Standing in the way of the SS was Colonel Tankopiy who had ordered elements of the 17th NKVD Rifle Brigade to different parts of Kharhov to drive the enemy back. Although he had been killed in the fighting on March 3rd, his orders were still in force and the five battalions of the Brigade, allotted out piecemeal, fought many small battles. Col. Tankopiy had assigned the 208th Separate Rifle Battalion to defend Shevchenko Park with a platoon of medium tanks from the 179th Tank Brigade and a platoon on tank riders. The NKVD units were developed as police units and were trained to fight civilians or militias, not the highly trained SS units armed with the most up-to-date weapons. The NKVD units found themselves in pitched battles in the urban environment of Khrakov and they needed to seek cover from the SS and learn to deal with their fear of the enemy, in contrast to their motto of: “If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.”

Defender: German (SS) (No more details)  

Errata (source)