Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1944) - 6 - Luptele din Culmea Pleșului (zona Târgu Neamț)

Please turn ON English subtitle ! - Vă rog să activați subtitrarea în românește! We approach step by step the final part of the Soviet offensive at Borta Dracului (the Devil's Hole), June 3-16, 1944 and in this episode we describe the battles in the highest area, namely the Plesu Ridge. Passing over this ridge, the Red Army would have descended in the village of Nemtisor, on the Nemtisor River valley, behind the alignment of Romanian casemates located east of Târgu Neamt and which blocked access to the Neamt River valley (Ozana), the Soviets having a tactical field open to Transylvania (to Berlin ...). The hardest battles were concentrated in the area of ​​Caprariei Hill located on Plesu Ridge, but which extends south of Culesei Stream, the main axis of attack of the Soviet army and which we presented in previous episodes. The history of the battles in Plesu ridge is somehow simpler and does not bear the stamp of the tragedy in Borta Dracului. On the morning of June 3, the Soviets launched the offensive on a wide front (5 - 6 - 7 km), but which gradually narrowed as they advanced. The first Romanian alignments are shattered and in the evening the troops stop in front of the Plesu Ridge, on the alignment of which the Romanian defense was focused. During the night the exchanges of fire continue, but especially the artillery fired from all sides. At dawn on June 4, 1944, on the Bombeac road (or the Army Road, with which we also met in the Slatina Pasture area where the starting point was), a group of Soviet tankettes climbed behind the Romanian defense disposition on the Caprariei Hill, taking them by surprise, the Romanians not hearing the engines because of the explosions. There were heavy fighting in the woods. The Romanians retreat down to the village of Nemtisor, with the Soviets behind them and who reach the river with a few subunits. At this moment the Romanian front was broken in the ridge area on a width of about 1.5 km, and in the Nemtisor Valley somewhere at about 500 m. However, the Nemtisor village and the slope above the village were exposed to Romanian fire, reinforcements came and the Romanians counterattacked by pushing the Soviets to the top of the hill and then right over the ridge to Borta Dracului, so that by evening the Romanian army recovers the line of defense from the Plesu Ridge. On June 5 and 6, 1944, the Romanians consolidated their positions in the Plesu Ridge, among other things, cutting the forest to a height of 2 m, placing the treetops towards the valley and barbed wire, constituting a very effective anti-infantry barrage because it was clear that the Soviets are ready for a new offensive. The fateful day of June 7 follows with offensives from both armies and the terrible bombardment with incendiary projectiles from Borta Dracului (the Devil's Hole) that changes the course of the Soviet offensive, although they were in obvious human and technical superiority. The Soviet offensive fails, the Romanian army recovers all the positions it had before the offensive, and the front remains stable until August 23, 1944. In the video you can see several emotional traces of the fighting. List of videos: 1. The tactical situation:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   2. The beginning of the offensive:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   3. The fights in the meadows of Lingurari and Slatina:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   4. The Holy Cross Monastery:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   5. In the Borta Dracului (the Devil's Hole):    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   6. The fights in the Plesu Ridge:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...   7. The fights in Nemtisor:    • Bătălia de la Borta Dracului (3-16 iunie 1...