Фронтовые откровения Отто Скорцени о наступлении на Москву лета-осени 1941 года

On September 30, 1941, German forces of Army Group Center launched a general offensive on Moscow. Operation Typhoon envisioned the encirclement and destruction of Soviet forces in the Bryansk and Vyazma area, outflanking Moscow from the north and south, and encircling it in a pincer movement. In early October, German forces, having broken through the Red Army's defenses, encircled four armies near Vyazma and two armies south of Bryansk. Losses were enormous. There were virtually no troops left in front of Moscow, and the road to the capital was open. The famous super-saboteur Otto Skorzeny took part in the offensive on Moscow. He was the same one who liberated Mussolini, kidnapped Horthy, and hunted Tito. However, in the fall of 1941, he was neither famous nor a saboteur. Skorzeny fought at the front as an officer in an artillery regiment of the SS Division "Das Reich." In early December, his regiment stood just outside Moscow, shelling the capital's outskirts. On a clear sunny day, Skorzeny himself claimed, he could see the domes of Moscow's churches through binoculars. However, he never reached Moscow. After the war, the retired SS Obersturmbannführer attempted to explain in his memoirs why Moscow was ultimately not taken. After all, they wanted to and had made serious preparations. Until recently, Skorzeny's memoirs were published in Russia in an abridged form, primarily covering his participation in special operations. The Russian version of his memoirs began in December 1941, when the Red Army launched a counteroffensive and Skorzeny was fortunate enough to be hospitalized, successfully completing his service as a frontline officer. However, the original version precedes this by another 150 pages. Today, we will touch on this initial section of his memoirs from the summer and fall of 1941. The "Riddles of History" channel on other platforms: VKontakte https://vk.com/public198638758 Telegram https://t.me/zagadki_histori