Retreat to the Carpathian Mountains (Mt. Jackson, VA)

For the event we were portraying the survivors from Infantry Regiment 572, 302nd Infantry Division. In August of 1944 the Russians, as part of the continuing Operation Bagration launched a major offensive to destroy Army Group South (then called Army Group South Ukraine) and 'liberate' the Balkans.  The other goal was to eliminate Romania, Bulgaria, and eventually Hungary from its alliance with Germany.  The initial blow came into Romania whereupon Romania made a secret peace with Russia and eventually turned their armies against their former German allies.  The bulk of the campaign in Romania feel upon the German 6th Army, under the command of  General of Artillery Fretter-Pico.  The Russian advance outmaneuvered and overwhelmed the ill-supplied and outnumbered German forces.  The desertion of whole Romanian Armies did not help the Germans and their attempts to put together patchwork defenses. In the last week of August, the bulk of the German 6th Army was trapped in a pocket between the Pruth and Husi Rivers, to include the 302nd Infantry Division.  By the end of the month, what German units were able to break out, mostly in small groups eventually fought and retreated their way up the Hungarian Border. 
 
On August 29th, General Friessner was ordered to regroup and reestablish a defense line in the Transylvania Alps and Carpathian Mountains and tie into Hungarian Army units.  Throughout September, the surviving units of the 6th regrouped in the Carpathian Mountains while other units fought delaying actions in Romania against the Russian advance, which was slowing down due to the decision by Stalin to liberate the Balkans before advancing in Hungary. By the end of September and early October, the Russians were preparing for the next push into Hungary.   During this time period, German units guarded and patrolled the mountain passes along the Carpathian Mountains, as well as picking up stragglers still streaming in from Romania.  The Russians were sending out patrols to scout the German positions and observe the mountain passes which were going to be key to the eventual Russian advance.