Hermann Hoth conflict Second Battle of Kharkov
Operations in 1942
Soviet winter offensive and Case Blue
In early January 1942, Hoth became the acting commander of the entire Army Group South, just before the start of the Soviet winter offensives. In the Barvenkovo–Lozovaya offensive, the Red Army successfully drove the 17th Army back and created a bulge in the German frontline around Izium. Hoth's requests to orderly retreat during this campaign were denied by Bock who had assumed control of Army Group South. As the Soviet military had greatly enlarged the Izium bridgehead by 25 January, Hoth told Bock that the 17th Army should focus on defending Dnipropetrovsk and that only two options remained to the German defenders: a "desperate" counter-attack to stop the Red Army from reaching Dnipropetrovsk or the "quick" shifting of troops from other areas to shore up the defenses along the bulge. Bock interpreted these proposals as Hoth threatening to move his entire army westward, and ordered him to remain where he was until reserves arrived. Concluding that Hoth and his staff were "overtired", Bock also decided to temporarily transfer the 17th Army's leadership to Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist. "Less a prima donna than many German army commanders," Hoth did not oppose this change. Despite having been temporarily replaced, he avoided being sacked, and helped to stabilize the southern frontline after the Germans lost Rostov-on-Don. In the Second Battle of Kharkov during May 1942, Hoth initially led the 17th Army, but took over from General Richard Ruoff as commander of 4th Panzer Army on 15 May 1942.
battle warfare struggle fighting combat