The Vienna offensive was an offensive launched by the Soviet 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts in order to capture

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The offensive lasted from 16 March to 15 April 1945. After several days of street-to-street fighting, the Soviet troops captured the city.

Background

Vienna had been bombarded continuously for the year before the arrival of Soviet troops, and many buildings and facilities had been damaged and destroyed.

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet Union, Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as Ge ...

reached an

agreement Agreement may refer to: Agreements between people and organizations * Gentlemen's agreement, not enforceable by law * Trade agreement, between countries * Consensus, a decision-making process * Contract, enforceable in a court of law ** Meeting ...

with the Western Allies prior to April 1945 concerning the relative postwar political influence of each party in much of Eastern and Central Europe; however, these agreements said virtually nothing about the fate of Austria, then officially considered to be merely the Ostmark area of Greater Germany after the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germa ...

. As a result, the success of a Soviet offensive against Austria and subsequent liberation by the Red Army of a large part of the country would have been very beneficial for subsequent postwar negotiations with the Western Allies. After the failure of Operation Spring Awakening (''Unternehmen Frühlingserwachen''),

Sepp Dietrich Josef "Sepp" Dietrich (28 May 1892 – 21 April 1966) was a German politician and SS commander during the Nazi era. He joined the Nazi Party in 1928 and was elected to the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic in 1930. Prior to 1929, Dietrich was A ...

's 6th SS Panzer Army retreated in stages to the

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

area. The Germans desperately prepared defensive positions in an attempt to guard the city against the rapidly arriving Soviets. In the Spring of 1945, the advance of Soviet Marshal Fyodor Tolbukhin's 3rd Ukrainian Front through western

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

gathered momentum on both sides of the Danube. After they took Sopron and

Nagykanizsa Nagykanizsa (; hr, Velika Kaniža/Velika Kanjiža, or just ''Kaniža/Kanjiža''; german: Großkirchen, Groß-Kanizsa; it, Canissa; sl, Velika Kaniža; tr, Kanije), known colloquially as Kanizsa, is a medium-sized city in Zala County in south ...

, they crossed the border between Hungary and Austria. On 25 March, the 2nd Ukrainian Front launched the Bratislava–Brno offensive by crossing the Hron river. On 30 March the Front crossed also the Nitra river and quickly rushed across the

Danubian Lowland ::''The Serbian lowland is treated under Danube Plain (Serbia)'' The Danubian Lowland or Danube Lowland () is the name of the part of Little Alföld (Slovak: ''Malá dunajská kotlina'') situated in Slovakia, located between the Danube, the Lit ...

towards Bratislava. Having secured his right wing by 2nd Ukrainian Front, Tolbukhin was now ready to advance into Austria and take Vienna.

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania ** Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...

troops, that were on the Allied side since

King Michael's Coup King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ti ...

, also took part in the offensive.

The siege

On 2 April, Vienna Radio denied that the Austrian capital had been declared an

open city In war, an open city is a settlement which has announced it has abandoned all defensive efforts, generally in the event of the imminent capture of the city to avoid destruction. Once a city has declared itself open the opposing military will b ...

. On the same day, Soviet troops approached Vienna from the south after they overran Wiener Neustadt,

Eisenstadt Eisenstadt (; hu, Kismarton; hr, Željezni grad; ; sl, Železno, Austro-Bavarian: ''Eisnstod'') is a city in Austria, the state capital of Burgenland. It had a recorded population on 29 April 2021 of 15,074. In the Habsburg Empire's Kingdom ...

, Neunkirchen and Gloggnitz.

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden i ...

and

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of ...

were overrun on 4 April. After arriving in the Vienna area, the armies of the Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front surrounded, besieged, and attacked the city. Involved in this action were the Soviet 4th Guards Army, the Soviet

6th Guards Tank Army The 6th Guards Order of Red Banner Tank Army was a tank army of the Soviet Union's Red Army, first formed in January 1944 as the 6th Tank Army,Glantz (Companion), p. 66. and disbanded in Ukraine in the 1990s after the dissolution of the Soviet Un ...

, the Soviet 9th Guards Army, and the Soviet 46th Army. The " O-5 Resistance Group," Austrians led by Carl Szokoll, wanting to spare Vienna destruction, actively attempted to sabotage the German defenses and to aid the entry of the Red Army. The only major German force facing the Soviet attackers was the German II SS Panzer Corps of the 6th SS Panzer Army, along with

ad hoc Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning literally 'to this'. In English, it typically signifies a solution for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a generalized solution adaptable to collateral instances. (Compare with ''a priori''.) Com ...

forces made up of garrison and anti-aircraft units. Declared a defensive region, Vienna's defense was commanded by General Rudolf von Bünau, with the II SS Panzer Corps units under the command of SS General

Wilhelm Bittrich Wilhelm Bittrich (26 February 1894 – 19 April 1979) was a high-ranking Waffen-SS commander of Nazi Germany. Between August 1942 and February 1943, Bittrich commanded the SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer, in rear security operations (''Banden ...

. The battle for the Austrian capital was characterized in some cases by fierce urban combat, but there were also parts of the city the Soviets advanced into with little opposition. Defending in the

Prater The Prater () is a large public park in Leopoldstadt, Vienna, Austria. The Wurstelprater, an amusement park that is often simply called "Prater", lies in one corner of the Wiener Prater and includes the Wiener Riesenrad Ferris wheel. Name The ...

Park was the 6th Panzer Division, along the south side of the city were the 2nd and 3rd SS Panzer Divisions, and in the north was the ''Führer''-Grenadier Division. The Soviets assaulted Vienna's eastern and southern suburbs with the 4th Guards Army and part of the 9th Guards Army. The German defenders kept the Soviets out of the city's southern suburbs until 7 April. However, after successfully achieving several footholds in the southern suburbs, the Soviets then moved into the western suburbs of the city on 8 April with the 6th Guards Tank Army and the bulk of the 9th Guards Army. The western suburbs were especially important to the Soviets because they included Vienna's main

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

. The Soviet success in the western suburbs was followed quickly by

infiltration Infiltration may refer to: Science, medicine, and engineering *Infiltration (hydrology), downward movement of water into soil *Infiltration (HVAC), a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning term for air leakage into buildings *Infiltration (me ...

of the eastern and northern suburbs later the same day. North of the Danube River, the 46th Army pushed westward through Vienna's northern suburbs. Central Vienna was now cut off from the rest of Austria. By the 9th of April, the Soviet troops began to infiltrate the center of the city, but the street fighting continued for several more days. On the night of 11 April, the 4th Guards Army stormed the Danube canals, with the 20th Guards Rifle Corps and 1st Mechanized Corps moving on the '' Reichsbrücke'' Bridge. In a '' coup de main'' on 13 April, the Danube Flotilla landed troops of the 80th Guards Rifle Division and

7th Guards Airborne Division , image = Great emblem of the 7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division.svg , image_size = 200 , caption = 7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division great emblem , dates ...

on both sides of the bridge, cutting demolition cables and securing the bridge. However, other important bridges were destroyed. Vienna finally fell when the last defenders in the city surrendered on the same day. Bittrich's II SS Panzer Corps, however, pulled out to the west on the evening of 13 April to avoid encirclement. The same day, the 46th Army took Essling and the Danube Flotilla landed naval infantry up the river by Klosterneuburg. While the street fighting was still intensifying in the southern and western suburbs of Vienna on 8 April, other troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front by-passed Vienna altogether and advanced on

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital ...

and

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popula ...

. On the 10th, all but two of the bridges in the city had been destroyed. The Floridsdorf bridge had been left intact by a Führer Order dictating that the bridge be held at all costs. The 2nd SS Panzer, "Das Reich" left a dozen artillery pieces including 37mm anti-aircraft guns to hold off enemy attacks. That night, the "Das Reich", including their last remaining three dozen armored vehicles, pulled out of the city for the last time. Vienna had fallen, and the Germans now moved northwest to hold the next defensive line.

Aftermath

By 15 April, armies of the Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front pushed even further into Austria. The completely exhausted remnants of what had been the 6th SS Panzer Army were forced to flee to the area between Vienna and Linz. In pursuit of the retreating Germans were elements of the Soviet 9th Guards Army and the Soviet 46th Army. The 26th Army and 27th Armies advanced towards the area north of Graz just behind the retreating 6th Army. The 57th Army and the Bulgarian 1st Army advanced towards the area south of Graz (near

Maribor Maribor ( , , , ; also known by other historical names) is the second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Lower Styria. It is also the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor, the seat of the Drava sta ...

) just behind the retreating 2nd Panzer Army. None of these German armies were in any shape to do more than temporarily stall the advancing Soviet forces. Some of Vienna's finest buildings lay in ruins after the battle. There was no water, electricity, or gas — and bands of people, both foreigners and Austrians, plundered and assaulted the helpless residents in the absence of a police force. While the Soviet assault forces generally behaved well, the second wave of Soviet troops to arrive in the city were reportedly badly undisciplined. A large number of lootings and cases of rape took place in a several-week long violence that has been compared to the worst aspects of the

Thirty Years War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

. Like Bittrich, General von Bünau left Vienna before it fell to avoid capture by the Soviets. From 16 April until the war's end, he led ''Generalkommando von Bünau'', surrendering to the Americans on VE Day. Von Bünau was held as a POW until April 1947. Bittrich also surrendered to U.S. forces and was held as a prisoner by the Allies until 1954. Fyodor Tolbukhin went on to command the Soviet Southern Group of Forces and the Transcaucasian Military District until his death in 1949. Austrian politician

Karl Renner Karl Renner (14 December 1870 – 31 December 1950) was an Austrian politician and jurist of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republic" because he led the first government of German ...

set up a Provisional Government in Vienna sometime in April with the tacit approval of the victorious Soviet forces, and declared Austria's secession from the

Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Final orders of battle (after the Vienna offensive)

Axis forces

On 30 April, the following

order of battle In modern use, the order of battle of an armed force participating in a military operation or campaign shows the hierarchical organization, command structure, strength, disposition of personnel, and equipment of units and formations of the armed ...

was recorded by the German Army High Command (''Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'', or OKW). From 20 April-2 May, OKW moved from Zossen (near Berlin) to Mürwik (part of

Flensburg Flensburg (; Danish, Low Saxon: ''Flensborg''; North Frisian: ''Flansborj''; South Jutlandic: ''Flensborre'') is an independent town (''kreisfreie Stadt'') in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg is the centre of the ...

in north

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, near

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

). This order of battle shows what remained "on paper" of the German armies that fought in Hungary and Austria. *German 6th SS Panzer Army – east of

I SS Panzer Corps The I SS Panzer Corps (german: I.SS-Panzerkorps) was a German armoured corps of the Waffen-SS. It saw action on both the Western and Eastern Fronts during World War II. Formation and training The corps was raised on 26 July 1943 in Berlin ...

***

1st SS Panzer Division The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler or SS Division Leibstandarte, abbreviated as LSSAH, (german: 1. SS-Panzerdivision "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler") began as Adolf Hitler's personal bodyguard unit, responsible for guarding ...

*** 12th SS Panzer Division *** 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division *** 710th Infantry division *** 356th Infantry division ** II SS Panzer Corps *** 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf *** 2nd SS Panzer Division *** 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen *** Führer Grenadier Division ***

6th Panzer division The 6th Panzer Division ( en, 6th Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the ''Heer'', during World War II, established in October 1939. The division, initially formed as a light brigade, participated in the invasions of P ...

*** Hungarian 1st Hussar division *** Hungarian 1st Mountain brigade * German 6th Army – north of

*** 9th Mountain Division (Wehrmacht) (near Semmering) *** 117th Jäger Division (arriving 12 April) ** III Panzer Corps *** 1st Volk's Gebirgs Division *** 1st Panzer Division **

IV SS Panzer Corps The IV SS Panzer Corps was a panzer corps of the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany which saw action on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans during World War II. History The Panzerkorps was formed in August 1943 in Poitiers, France. The formation wa ...

***

3rd Panzer Division (Wehrmacht) The 3rd Panzer Division ( en, 3rd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II. The division was one of the original three tank divisions established by Germany in 1935. The division participat ...

*** 5th SS Panzer Division *** 14th SS Grenadier Division *Elements of the ''Wehrkreiskommando'' XVIII (Military District XVIII) * German 2nd Panzer Army – south of Graz (near

) ** I Cavalry Corps *** 23rd Panzer Division ***4th Cavalry Division ***3rd Cavalry Division *** 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division ** XXII Mountain Corps ***Hungarian Szent László Infantry Division *** 118th Jäger Division *** 297th Infantry Division *** 711th Infantry Division ** LXVIII Corps *** 71st Infantry Division *** 13th SS Alpine Division

Soviet and Allied forces

The order of battle for the 3rd Ukrainian Front during the same period was: *

4th Guards Army The 4th Guards Army was an elite Guards field army of the Soviet Union during World War II and the early postwar era. History On April 16, 1943, the Supreme Command ordered the army to be established. On May 5, 1943, the army was formed on the ...

** 20th Guards Rifle Corps ***

5th Guards Airborne Division Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash that ...

***

*** 80th Guards Rifle Division ** 21st Guards Rifle Corps ***

41st Guards Rifle Division The 41st Guards Rifle Division was formed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in August 1942, based on the 1st formation of the 10th Airborne Corps, and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. It was the last ...

*** 62nd Guards Rifle Division *** 66th Guards Rifle Division *** 69th Guards Rifle Division **

31st Guards Rifle Corps 31 (thirty-one) is the natural number following 30 and preceding 32. It is a prime number. In mathematics 31 is the 11th prime number. It is a superprime and a self prime (after 3, 5, and 7), as no integer added up to its base 10 digits ...

*** 4th Guards Rifle Division *** 34th Guards Rifle Division *** 40th Guards Rifle Division *

** 5th Guards Tank Corps **

9th Guards Mechanized Corps G9, G.IX, G09 or G-9 has several uses including: * Group of Nine, a group of nine European states * G9 (consortium), a group of nine Australian internet providers * ''G9'' (album), the debut album of Gloc-9v * G9, a standard bipin lightbulb soc ...

9th Guards Army The 9th Guards Army was a field army of the Red Army during World War II, which fought in the Vienna Offensive and the Prague Offensive at the end of the war. The army was formed in January 1945 and included airborne divisions converted into infant ...

** 37th Guards Rifle Corps *** 98th Guards Rifle Division *** 99th Guards Rifle Division *** 103rd Guards Rifle Division **

38th Guards Rifle Corps The 38th Guards Airborne Corps was an airborne corps of the Soviet airborne. It was activated during World War II in August 1944 and became a rifle corps in December of that year. The corps fought in the Vienna Offensive and the Prague Offensive ...

*** 104th Guards Rifle Division *** 105th Guards Rifle Division *** 106th Guards Rifle Division ** 39th Guards Rifle Corps *** 100th Guards Rifle Division *** 107th Guards Rifle Division *** 114th Guards Rifle Division * 26th Army ** 30th Rifle Corps *** 36th Guards Rifle Division ***

68th Guards Rifle Division The 68th Guards Rifle Division was reformed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in February 1943, based on the 1st formation of the 96th Rifle Division, and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. It originall ...

*** 21st Rifle Division ** 104th Rifle Corps *** 74th Rifle Division *** 93rd Rifle Division *** 151st Rifle Division ** 135th Rifle Corps ***

233rd Rifle Division The 233rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed in the months just before the start of the German invasion, based on the ''shtat'' (table of organization and equipment) of September 13, 1939. As part of 20th Ar ...

*** 236th Rifle Division * 27th Army ** 35th Guards Rifle Corps *** Guards Airborne Division *** 163rd Rifle Division *** 202nd Rifle Division ** 33rd Rifle Corps *** 78th Rifle Division *** 155th Rifle Division *** 206th Rifle Division *** 337th Rifle Division ** 37th Rifle Corps *** 108th Guards Rifle Division *** 316th Rifle Division *** 320th Rifle Division * 57th Army **

6th Guards Rifle Corps The 6th Danube Guards Rifle Corps was a Rifle Corps of the Soviet Armed Forces during World War II. During the war, it formed part of the 8th, 2nd Shock, 1st Guards, 46th, 37th, and 57th Armies. History The corps was part of the 'operat ...

***

10th Guards Airborne Division 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

*** 20th Guards Rifle Division *** 61st Guards Rifle Division ** 64th Rifle Corps *** 73rd Guards Rifle Division *** 113th Rifle Division ***

299th Rifle Division The 299th Rifle Division () was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II, formed twice. The division was first formed in the summer of 1941 and was destroyed during the Battle of Moscow in the fall of that year. Th ...

** 133rd Rifle Corps *** 84th Rifle Division ***

104th Rifle Division 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

***

122nd Rifle Division 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

17th Air Army The 17th Air Army () was an Air army of the Red Air Force and Soviet Air Forces from 1942. World War II It was formed in October (Bonn et al.: November) 1942 on the basis of the Air Forces of the Southwestern Front. Bonn et al. say that it inc ...

* 5th Guards Cavalry Corps * 1st Guards Mechanized Corps * 18th Tank Corps * 2nd Breakthrough Artillery Corps ** 9th Breakthrough Artillery Division ** 19th Breakthrough Artillery Division ** 7th Breakthrough Artillery Division * 3rd Anti-aircraft Artillery Division * 4th Anti-aircraft Artillery Division * 9th Anti-aircraft Artillery Division * 22nd Anti-aircraft Artillery Division * 1st Bulgarian Army **III Corps ***10th Infantry Division ***12th Infantry Division ***16th Infantry Division **IV Corps ***3rd Infantry Division ***8th Infantry Division ***11th Infantry Division **6th Infantry Division

Explanatory notes

References

Sources

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