ROUT & SLAUGHTER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 August 1943, Page 4

ROUT & SLAUGHTER

OF THE RUMANIAN ARMY MILLION MEN SENT TO EAST FRONT. SHATTERED REMNANTS WITHDRAWN. When Antonescu hurled the Rumanian Army against the Soviet Union, it constituted a rather impressive force of about 1,000,000 men—22 or 24 infantry and four cavalry divisions, two motorised infantry brigades, four mountain infantry brigades and also some special units (the Russian Army newspaper “Red Star” wrote recently. In 1941 practically all units of the Rumanian Army were sent into action. However, the fighting efficiency of the Rumanian Army did not satisfy the German Command. With a view to raising its efficiency, the Germans assigned the Rumanians the restricted task of seizing Odessa. Nearly all the Rumanian divisions on the Soviet-Ger-man front were hurled against the city, where they lost 50 per cent of their effectives.

Some Rumanian divisions, as for insance, the Division of Guards, the Frontier Guards’ Division and the 3rd and 21st Infantry Divisions,, were totally routed. At Odessa and in the Crimea the Rumanian Army lost over 250.000 men in casualties. After the evacuation of Odessa by the Red Army, the Rumanian Government found itself compelled to withdraw its battered divisions to Rumania. Only the 3rd Rumanian Army, consisting of two mountain infantry and three cavalry brigades, continued operations against the Red Army. COSTLY CAMPAIGN. In 1942, when Hitler was preparing his “summer offensive,” Rumania’s share in the operations agaiij increased. By June 1942 practically the whole of the Rumanian Army was again in the field, and the number of divisions fighting against the Red Army reached 24 to 26. The summer campaign of 1942 took a heavy toll of the Rumanians. Their losses were so heavy that the Rumanian Government had to find some way of making them good. On November 19, 1942, the Red Army launched its offensive and its first blows fell on the 3rd Rumanian Army, which held lines south-east of Veshenskaya and south-west of Kletskaya. This army consisted of the Ist, 2nd, 4th and sth Army Corps, one cavalry division and one tank division. The Soviet artillery inflicted heavy losses. The Rumanian troops were encircled and soon the 3rd Rumanian Army found itself in hopeless straits. Several formations were surrounded and a large number of their effectives taken prisoner, including Divisional Generals Laskar and Mazarini, commanding the sth and 6th Divisions respectively, and Brigade General Stanescu. MORE DAYS OF DISASTER. Between November 19 and 30, in addition to many thousands of Germans, the Red Army troops wiped out over 30,000 Rumanians and took prisoner tens of thousands more. In addition, somewhat later the Red Army troops completely routed the 6th Rumanian Army Corps stationed south of Stalingrad, consisting of five infantry and two cavalry divisions.

By January 1, 1943, as a result of six weeks’ fighting at the approaches to Stalingrad, the Red Army had routed, in addition to the German divisions, the main forces of the Rumanian Army, viz., 12 infantry, one tank and three cavalry divisions. In addition, one infantry and one cavalry division were encircled in the Stalingrad area and later annihilated, together with the 6th German Army. The remaining Rumanian units were also routed in subsequent engagements. At least two-thirds of their total effectives were annihilated or taken prisoner. Such was the fate of the 20th and sth Infantry Divisions, the Ist Cavalry Divsion and others. No less than 30 per cent of the effectives of the 2nd, 4th and sth Army Corps were completely annihilated and the bulk of the rest taken prisoner.