The Battle of Borta Dracului (June 3-16, 1944) - 1 - Tactical situation ( Târgu Neamt, Moldova, Ro)

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The Battle of Borta Dracului (The Devil Hole), June 3-16, 1944 - Part 1 - The tactical situation
The Battle of Borta Dracului - The Devil Hole Battle (located in the forests of the Plesu Ridge area, only 8.3 km NW of Târgu Neamt), carried out at the beginning of June 1944, represents the most tragic episode on the Romanian territory during the Second World War. Here they faced in infernal conditions, with thousands of people crushed and burned alive on an area of ​​a few square kilometers, the Soviet Red Army on the offensive and the Romanian Army (supported by German artillery) on the defensive. In this skirmish, during a few days, a total of about 14,000 soldiers died (estimated, but fairly reliable), of which 10,000 Soviets and 4,000 Romanians (± Germans). Many of the bodies could not be buried, being abandonated on the spot for a long time. Thus, Borta Dracului goes far beyond another tragic episode, better known, of the Romanian disaster at Oarba de Mures (September 1944) where Romanian Army units were sent by the Soviet command in a suicide attack against a German fortified position. A number of 11,000 deaths were circulated for Oarba de Mures, but the real losses were much lower, a video on this topic being made by me ( • Masacrul de la OARBA D... ). The Battle of Borta Dracului represents the last victory of the Romanian Army against the Soviet Army (despite the initial loss, the Romanian lines of defense were recovered). In addition, at the critical moment, the German artillery used incendiary ammunition, probably banned and which also affected the Romanian Army. Perhaps these are the main reasons why the fights at Borta Dracului were not so well recorded in the historiography of war, especially during the communist period.
Together with Mr. Lucian Georgescu, who is the de facto guide and expert (he documented himself in the literature and over the years went on the field, but also talked to a lot of locals, some of whom actually lived the events), we followed the entire route of fightings, describing them in several episodes (videos).
In this first episode we present the situation of the front in Târgu Neamt in the period preceding the Soviet attack from Borta Dracului, this representing the final phase of the Soviet offensive Iasi - Chisinau (northern Moldova) from April 8 to June 6, 1944 and having as main landmarks the First Battle at Târgu Frumos (April 9-12), the Battle of Podu Iloaiei (April 12), culminating in the Second Battle of Târgu Frumos (May 2-8). Once the Soviet offensive stopped, the front stabilized on the alignment Gura Humorului - north Falticeni - Târgu Neamt - south Pascani - north Târgu Frumos - north Iasi - Cornesti Massif - Orhei - lower course Dniester - Black Sea. In the Gura Humorului - Târgu Neamt - Pascani sector, the Soviet 40th Army was faced by the 4th Romanian Army.
East of Târgu Neamt, the wide valley of the Neamt River (Ozana), located between the well-forested hills Boistea (south) and Plesu (north) was strongly fortified with an alignment of casemates (built in time, after the Stalingrad disaster). reinforced with minefields, barbed wire barrages, anti-tank trenches and backed by well-fixed artillery points. Our video is made near the ruins of such a casemate, near the road to Falticeni (more precisely, at the western edge of the former landfill, Putu Sac, of the city of Târgu Neamt). The Neamt River Valley (Ozana) opened the way to Transylvania ("to Berlin"), but the Red Army's attempts to break through the casemate alignment failed, and Soviet commanders sought other solutions. In these conditions, benefiting from betrayal from some locals but also Romanian soldiers, the Soviets decide to attack north of Târgu Neamt, through the forest, a less defended sector (only infantry) over Culmea Plesului (Plesu Ridge). The main direction of attack (which we will cover in the following episodes, about 10 km in a straight line) was the village of Poiana (Brusturi commune) - Poiana Arsintescu - Poiana Crucii - Poiana Haidau (or at Doi Peri, the place of the future Holy Cross Monastery) - Borta Dracului (Devil Hole) ravines - Plesu Ridge (with Caprariei Hill) - descent to Nemtisor village and Nemtisor Valley. The estimated force ratio is about 10,000 Romanian fighters against 30,000 Soviet fighters. In a first phase, Soviet subunits reached the Nemtisor Valley, but were repulsed back over the hill (Plesu Ridge). If the Red Army had managed to stabilize a bridgehead in the area of ​​Nemtisor village, then the entire defense in the Târgu Neamt area would have been compromised. Critical moments followed in which the largest and most cruel massacre on the territory of Romania took place, however, finalized with the recovery by the Romanian Army of the lost positions and the maintenance of the front until August 24, 1944.