A brutal series of Red Army offensives on the Eastern Front, the Battles of Rzhev resulted in catastrophic Soviet losses and became known as the 'Rzhev Meat Grinder'.
Key Facts
- Campaign start date
- 8 January 1942
- Campaign end date
- 31 March 1943
- Duration
- Nearly 15 months
- Nickname
- Rzhev Meat Grinder
- Theater
- Eastern Front, World War II
- Location
- Northeast Smolensk Oblast & south Tver Oblast
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following the German advance deep into Soviet territory in 1941, the Wehrmacht established a large salient around the city of Rzhev. The Red Army, seeking to exploit German overextension after the Battle of Moscow, launched offensive operations aimed at eliminating this salient and destroying German Army Group Center.
Between 8 January 1942 and 31 March 1943, the Red Army conducted multiple large-scale offensive operations against entrenched Wehrmacht forces in and around the Rzhev salient in the northeast of Smolensk Oblast and south of Tver Oblast. The fighting was characterized by repeated costly frontal assaults against well-prepared German defenses, resulting in enormous Soviet casualties.
The Soviet offensives failed to destroy the German forces or eliminate the salient through direct assault. The Wehrmacht ultimately conducted a deliberate withdrawal from the Rzhev salient in March 1943 as a strategic retrenchment. The campaign left a lasting impression on survivors due to its extreme human cost, earning its grim nickname among veterans and historians.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent