page_title: Battle of Debrecen
section_title: Aftermath
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Debrecen / Aftermath
caption_attribution_description: Magyar: A hortobágyi páncéloscsata emlékműve.
context_page_description: The Battle of Debrecen, called by the Red Army the Debrecen Offensive Operation, was a battle taking place 6–29 October 1944 on the Eastern Front during World War II.
  The offensive was conducted by the 2nd Ukrainian Front under Marshal Rodion Malinovsky. It was opposed by General Maximilian Fretter-Pico's German Sixth Army and the allied Hungarian VII Army Corps of Army Group South Ukraine
  The Axis units were forced to retreat some 160 kilometers, while opposing the 2nd Ukrainian Front which had Debrecen in Hungary as its strategic objective.
context_section_description: Three corps of Malinovsky's 2nd Ukrainian Front had sustained significant losses in the fighting and the intended rapid 2nd Ukrainian Front assault on Budapest had been delayed. The Nyíregyháza counter-attack was the last time that German forces were to defeat a full-strength Red Army force on even terms. By pinching off the breakthrough exploitation group of the 2nd Ukrainian Front offensive, the Germans were able to re-establish a stable front line position, and thus, prevent the 2nd Ukrainian Front's advance from becoming a catastrophe for Wöhler. The German success, was however short-lived as Nyíregyháza was captured by the Red Army on 30 October, and another powerful Red Army offensive opened to the south with Budapest again being its objective, with the Soviets reaching the area of the Hungarian capital on 7 November 1944. The city of Debrecen fell on 20 October after two Romanian divisions, the first Romanian infantry division and the ``Tudor Vladimirescu`` division captured the city despite numerous German and Hungarian counter-attacks to stop their advance. As a result of their victory, the Romanian ``Tudor Vladimirescu`` division was renamed on Stalin`s request the ``Tudor Vladimirescu - Debrecen`` division.
  The Debrecen operation saw the forces of the 2nd Ukrainian Front advance anywhere from 60 to 120 miles further west into Hungary, leaving the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts in position to renew the offensive towards Budapest. The tank battle at Debrecen itself had drawn the German Panzer units away from defending the approaches to Budapest. Finally, the Red Army thrust occupied the eastern third of Hungary, clearing the obstacle of the Transylvanian Alps and denying their use as a winter defense position for the Axis forces.
caption: Battle of Debrecen memorial
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