The Cholm Pocket

Situation

At the beginning of January 1942, the German offensive in Russia had been halted and Russian forces had taken the initiative. In the northern sector of the Eastern Front, the Russian 3rd Shock and 11th Armies forced a breach of German lines on the Waldai plateau and reached the Lovat River via Ostachkov on the 8th of January. Units of the German 16th Army began to retreat under constant pressure, allowing the Russian forces to make considerable gains. The German 39th Corps was forced back to the south west of Cholm, which was itself rapidly encircled.
Cholm was a small Russian town laying at the confluence of the Lovat and Kunya Rivers, in an area of marsh and swamp to the south of Lake Ilmen. The town sat astride a land bridge connecting Veliki Luki and Demyansk and also lay at a crossroads of major north-south and east-west road junctions. Cholm belonged to a defence line that was to be used as a starting point for further German offensive operations towards Moscow and Leningrad. These factors made it of strategic importance to both German and Russian forces.
The pocket itself measured approximately 2km square and was served by a short airstrip designed to take transport aircraft. The pocket was under constant fire from Russian artillery, and it lacked natural protection. Although most of the houses were made from wood, some of the larger buildings were constructed from stone. These included the Church, which was used as an artillery observation position, and a former Police station, which became a focal point in the defence of the town.

The Pocket

The pocket was closed on the 21st of January 1941, when Russian ski units cut the road linking 39th Corps to the west of the town. Forces within the pocket were commanded by Generalmajor Theodor Scherer and became known as 'Kampfgruppe Scherer'. The units trapped in the pocket included parts of the 123rd and 218th infantry Divisions, reconnaissance Battalion 218, a Luftwaffe field Regiment and the 65th Reserve Police Battalion. Remnants of various other units were present in the pocket as well and during the course of the siege an influx of new troops were flown in.
The airstrip soon became unusable and despite flying in supplies and evacuating 700 wounded during the early stage of the encirclement, the flights made by the Luftwaffe Ju-52's suffered 30% losses and were suspended. The re-supply of the pocket reverted to airdrops and glider landings. The glider landings began on the 16th of February and were usually carried out at first and last light. The glider landings were supported by air dropped supply containers, with over 2000 sorties being flown in this role. However this was made difficult by the small size of the pocket, and many containers landed in the Russian lines. This reasonably affective air supply operation, alongside the one carried out over the larger Demyansk pocket, mistakenly convinced Hitler that a similar operation could be successful at Stalingrad later in the campaign. Ground attack aircraft of Luftlotte 1 also provided some welcome support, when the weather allowed, to the forces trapped in the pocket.
An additional form of support was provided by an artillery position outside the town, grouped under the command of General Uckermann. The artillery positions were placed about 10km to the west of Cholm in the vicinity of Dubrowo/Tarakonovo. The fire from these artillery units was directed from inside the town by artillery observers in the church, using radio to call down fire on targets in and around the town. The German guns fired over 1000 rounds per day in support of the forces inside the pocket.

Holding On

The first Russian attacks against the town began on the 23rd of January. Russian forces, supported by tanks, probed the town from all four sides during the day trying to find a weak point to exploit. The Russian attacks managed to gain some ground in the north western part of the town, but were held elsewhere. Fortunately due to the poor ground conditions, the Russians were only able to utilize the lighter types of tank such as the T-60. Also during the day a welcome addition to the strength of the garrison arrived in the form of approximately 200 mountain troops from the 10th Machine Gun Battalion, which fought through the Russian perimeter and into the town.
On the 24th, a counter attack was mounted which managed to recapture most of the ground lost the previous day. Early on during the battle it was decided to provide two reserve battle groups with which to fight a way out of the pocket. These were held in reserve on the western side of the town and to provide a jump off point for any breakout they attacked and captured a key hill just outside the town.
Continual artillery bombardments by Russian artillery had reduced most of the buildings within the pocket to rubble. There was little shelter against the appalling Russian weather for the defenders and little cover in the frozen ground, with even trenches having to blown out of the ground using explosives. Temperatures reached almost -40°C and most movement from outside the pocket could only be made using Panje horses and sleds as repeated attempts were made by the relieving forces to break through the perimeter.
With the appalling weather and the unsanitary conditions in the pocket came widespread cases of frostbite and diseases such as typhus and dysentery. The main hospital post, located in the eastern part of the town struggled to cope with the sick and wounded. Eventually it was burned down following a Russian artillery bombardment the wounded were transported to the western part of the town, known as the 'Haarnadelcurve'.
The Russian attacks against the town became routine and were carried out at regular intervals against the same points of the defence. This allowed the garrison commander to form alarm Companies who would move around the pocket to face the next Russian attack or regain ground that had been lost in a previous attack. Russian snipers were also a constant threat as they infiltrated into the outskirts of the town and waited for targets of opportunity.
On the 23rd of February the Russians made their heaviest attack during the period of the siege. An entire infantry Division, supported by tanks assaulted the town. The encircled troops had to defend against the Russian armour with a few 37mm Pak and one 50mm Pak. The 37mm Pak's had to be fired at the heavier Russian tanks at almost point blank range to have any effect. The first attack broke down, but the Russians reformed and continued the attack, eventually pentetrating the eastern outskirts of the town. The garrisons alarm Companies were brought into action to stem the Russian advance and the attack was held. During the course of the next two days the Russians made eighteen attempts to break into the town, but all the attacks were driven back with the support of General Uckermann's artillery and Luftwaffe ground attack aircraft.
On the 24th, the Luftwaffe managed to land several transport aircraft, which brought in reinforcements and flew out some of the wounded. Also between the 9th and 12th of March a complete infantry Company was brought into the pocket using glider aircraft.
On the 1st of May another large Russian attack was launched. The pocket, which had now shrunk to less than 1km square in size was almost overrun as Russian forces came within 100m of the eastern bank of the Lovat River. Again the alarm companies swung into action and halted the Russian assault.

The Pocket is Relieved

On the morning of May 5th 1942, German forces finally broke the encirclement. Grenadier Regiment 411, commanded by Oberstleutnant Tromm and supported by Sturmgeschutze assault guns and Luftwaffe ground attack aircraft, broke through the Russian perimeter and into the town. This advance party was followed by more troops and gradually the exhausted garrison was replaced and taken out of the line.
Fighting continued around the town for several more weeks, until about mid-June, in an effort to stabilize the front in the area. The town remained in German hands until late 1944 and during this period the Russians refrained from attacking in strength at that part of the line again.

Conclusion

During the 105 days of encirclement, the garrison repelled over 100 Infantry attacks, no less than 42 of which had been supported by tanks. They themselves had carried out 10 attacks and 43 counter attacks. Of the original 5500 men trapped in the pocket at the time of the encirclement, only 1200 men remained when the siege was broken.
General Scherer was awarded the Knights Cross for his direction of the defence. In addition, as a sign of gratitude and recognition of the efforts of those who fought in the pocket, the 'Cholm Shield' was instituted by Hitler on the 1st of July 1942 and was awarded to 'all who were involved in the defence of the city of Cholm'. The award took the form of a shield with a pointed bottom. Its main feature was an Eagle with its arms outstretched. The eagle clutched in its talons an Iron Cross with a swastika in the center. Immediately beneath the eagle was the word 'CHOLM' with '1942' centered below it. The resolute defence was also chronicled by a German war corespondent, Richard Muck. The photographs in this article and the story of the siege were published afterwards in a book entitled 'The Indomitable Defenders of Cholm'. The book was later used to provide stirring propaganda in Germany.