The Vienna offensive was an offensive launched by the Soviet

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds, The Second, or (The) 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Minute and second of arc, ...

and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts in order to capture

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The offensive lasted from 16 March to 15 April 1945. After several days of street-to-street fighting, the Soviet troops captured the city on 13 April 1945.

Background

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

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

reached an

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

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 (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...

. As a result, the success of a Soviet offensive against Austria and subsequent occupation 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 Operation Spring Awakening () was the last major German offensive of World War II. The operation was referred to in Germany as the Plattensee Offensive and in the Soviet Union as the Balaton Defensive Operation. It took place in Western Hungary ...

(''Unternehmen Frühlingserwachen''), Sepp Dietrich's 6th SS Panzer Army retreated in stages to the

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 is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

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

Sopron Sopron (; , ) is a city in Hungary on the Austrian border, near Lake Neusiedl/Lake Fertő. History Ancient times-13th century In the Iron Age a hilltop settlement with a burial ground existed in the neighbourhood of Sopron-Várhely. When ...

and Nagykanizsa, they crossed the border between Hungary and Austria. On 25 March, the 2nd Ukrainian Front launched the Bratislava–Brno offensive by crossing the

Hron The Hron (; ; ; ) is a long left tributary of the DanubeP ...

river. On 30 March the Front crossed also the

Nitra Nitra (; also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra (river), Nitra. It is located 95 km east of Bratislava. With a population of ...

river and quickly rushed across the Danubian Lowland towards Bratislava. Having secured his right wing by 2nd Ukrainian Front, Tolbukhin was now ready to advance into Austria and take Vienna. Romanian troops, that were on the Allied side since

King Michael's Coup King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...

, also took part in the offensive.

The siege

On 2 April, Vienna Radio denied that the Austrian capital had been declared an open city. On the same day, Soviet troops approached Vienna from the south after they overran Wiener Neustadt,

Eisenstadt Eisenstadt (; ; ; or ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Austria, Austrian state of Burgenland. With a population of 15,074 (as of 2023), it is the smallest state capital and the 38th-largest city in Austria overall. It lies at the foot o ...

, Neunkirchen and Gloggnitz.

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

and

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

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 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 List of Latin phrases, Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English language, English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a Generalization, generalized solution ...

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. 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 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 using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

. The Soviet success in the western suburbs was followed quickly by infiltration 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 A ''coup de main'' (, : , ) is a swift attack that relies on speed and surprise to accomplish its objectives in a single blow. Definition The United States Department of Defense defines it as "An offensive operation that capitalizes on surprise ...

'' on 13 April, the Danube Flotilla landed troops of the 80th Guards Rifle Division and 7th Guards Airborne Division 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 Essling
Essling entry in the Viennese government's history wiki (German) () is a neighbourhood ...

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 (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

and

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

. 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 #Name, historical names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is the seat of the ...

) just behind the retreating

2nd Panzer Army The 2nd Panzer Army () was a German armoured formation during World War II, formed from the 2nd Panzer Group on October 5, 1941. Organisation Panzer Group Guderian () was formed on 5 June 1940 and named after its commander, general Heinz Gude ...

. 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, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine, or disease, whil ...

. 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 Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official surrender of all German military operations ...

. 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 The Transcaucasian Military District, a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces, traces its history to May 1921 and the incorporation of First Republic of Armenia, Armenia, Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, Azerbaijan, and Democratic Republic ...

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 Party of Austria, Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republics" because he ...

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, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

Final orders of battle (after the Vienna offensive)

Axis forces

On 30 April, the following

order of battle 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 force. Various abbr ...

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 language, Danish and ; ; ) is an independent city, independent town in the far north of the Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. After Kiel and Lübeck, it is the third-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg's ...

in north

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, near

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

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

I SS Panzer Corps The I SS Panzer Corps () was a German armoured corps of the ''Waffen-SS''. It saw action on both the Western Front (World War II), Western and Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Fronts during World War II. Formation and training The Corps was ...

*** 1st SS Panzer Division *** 12th SS Panzer Division *** 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division *** 710th Infantry division *** 356th Infantry division ** II SS Panzer Corps *** 3rd SS Panzer Division *** 2nd SS Panzer Division *** 9th SS Panzer Division *** ''Führer'' Grenadier Division *** 6th Panzer Division *** Hungarian 1st Hussar Division *** Hungarian 1st Mountain Brigade *German 6th Army – north of

*** 9th Mountain Division (near Semmering) *** 117th Jäger Division (arriving 12 April) ** III Panzer Corps *** 1st Mountain Division *** 1st Panzer Division ** IV SS Panzer Corps *** 3rd Panzer Division *** 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

100th Guards Rifle Division The 100th Guards Rifle Division was an elite Red Army airborne infantry division during World War II. The division fought in the Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive and the Vienna Offensive. Postwar, it was designated as an airborne division and disb ...

73rd Guards Rifle Division The 73rd Guards Rifle Division was reformed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in March 1943, based on the 2nd formation of the 38th Rifle Division, and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. As the 38th it ...

*** 113th Rifle Division *** 299th Rifle Division ** 133rd Rifle Corps *** 84th Rifle Division *** 104th Rifle Division *** 122nd Rifle Division * 17th Air Army * 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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