Siege of Breslau The Battle of Breslau , also known as the Siege of Breslau , was a three month long siege of the city of Breslau in Lower Silesia , Germany ( now Wrocław , Poland ) , lasting to the end of World War II in Europe . From February 13 , 1945 to May 6 , 1945 , German troops in Breslau were besieged by the Soviet forces which encircled the city as part of the Lower Silesian Offensive Operation . The German garrison ' s surrender on May 6 was followed by the surrender of all German forces two days after the battle . Preparations . In August 1944 , Adolf Hitler declared the city of Breslau to be a fortress ( " Festung " ) , ordering that it must be defended at all costs . He named Karl Hanke ( " Gauleiter " of Silesia since 1941 ) to be the city ' s " Battle Commander " ( " Kampfkommandant " ) . On January 19 , 1945 , the civilian population was forced to leave ( many thousands died in the bitter cold of the makeshift evacuation ; many more arrived in Dresden , to be bombed a few weeks later ) . The German Army ( " Wehrmacht Heer " ) , aided by the Home Guard ( " Volkssturm " ) and slave labourers , then turned the city into a military fortress : Breslau was to be capable of a lengthy defense against the advancing Soviets . A large area of the city center was demolished and turned into an airfield . Late in January , a regiment of Hitler Youth ( " Hitler - Jugend " ) was sent to reinforce the garrison of " Festung Breslau " . SS regiment " Besslein " ( which included volunteers from France and the Netherlands ) also took part . On February 2 , 1945 , Hanke presented colors to the newly formed Home Guard units in Breslau . On the same day , Major General Hans von Ahlfen became the garrison commander of Fortress Breslau . Ahlfen , who commanded for only three weeks , had been personally selected by the Commander - in - Chief of Army Group Center ( " Heeresgruppe Mitte " ) , Ferdinand Schörner . On March 2 , 1945 , Infantry General Hermann Niehoff replaced Ahlfen as garrison commander . Niehoff held the position until the final surrender on May 6 , 1945 . The siege . The city was besieged as part of the Lower Silesian Offensive Operation on February 13 , 1945 , by the 6th Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front commanded by Marshal Ivan Koniev , and the encirclement of Breslau was completed the following day . The 1st Ukrainian Front forces besieged the city with the 22nd and 74th Rifle Corps , and the 77th Fortified Region , as well as other smaller units . Even approximate estimates vary greatly concerning the number of German troops trapped in Breslau . Some sources claim that there were as many as 150 , 000 defenders , some 80 , 000 and some 50 , 000 . The Siege of Breslau consisted of destructive house - to - house street fighting . The city was bombarded to ruin by artillery of the Soviet 6th Army , as well as the Soviet 2nd Air Army and the Soviet 18th Air Army . During the siege , both sides resorted to setting entire districts of the city on fire . On February 15 , the German " Luftwaffe " started an airlift to aid the besieged garrison . For 76 days , until May 1 , the " Luftwaffe " made more than 2000 sorties with supplies and food . More than of supplies were delivered . On February 22 , the 6th Army occupied three suburbs of Breslau , and during the next day , the 6th Army troops were in the southern precincts of the city itself . By March 31 , there was heavy artillery fire into the north , south , and west of Breslau suburbs . The 6th Army witnesses noted that much of the city was in flames . On April 20 , General Niehoff had chocolates distributed to the troops in honor of Hitler ' s 56th birthday . On May 4 , the clergy of Breslau — Pastor Hornig , Dr . Konrad , Bishop Ferche , and Canon Kramer — demanded that Niehoff surrender the town . Niehoff dismissed the clergy without a definitive answer . In the afternoon of the same day , Pastor Hornig repeated his demand in an address to the troop commanders . Hanke ordered Niehoff not to have any further dealings with the clergy . Surrender . On 6 May , after 82 days of siege and shortly before the unconditional surrender of Germany in World War II , General Niehoff relinquished " Festung Breslau " to the Soviets . During the siege , Soviet forces inflicted approximately 30 , 000 civilian and military casualties and took more than 40 , 000 prisoners , while suffering 6 , 000 total casualties . Breslau was the last major city in Germany to surrender , only two days before the end of the war in Europe . Gauleiter Hanke had fled to Prague by the time of the city ' s surrender . Aftermath . Breslau was transferred to Poland in the aftermath of the war and renamed Wrocław . Most of the German inhabitants in Wrocław fled or were forcibly expelled between 1945 and 1949 and moved to Allied Occupation Zones in Germany . A small German minority still remains in the city .