2nd Baltic Front

2nd Baltic Front
2nd Baltic Front
Active	20 October 1943 - 1 April 1945
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army
Type	Army Group Command
Size	Several Armies
Engagements	World War II; Polotsk–Vitebsk Offensive; Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive; Staraya Russa-Novorzhev Offensive; Rezhitsa–Dvinsk Offensive; Madona Offensive; Riga Offensive (1944)
Commanders
Notable; commanders	Markian Popov; Andrey Yeryomenko; Leonid Govorov

The 2nd Baltic Front (Russian: 2-й Прибалтийский фронт) was a major formation of the Red Army during the Second World War.

History

The 2nd Baltic Front was formed on October 20, 1943 as a result of the renaming of the Baltic Front, itself a successor of the Bryansk Front 10 days earlier.^[1]

From 1 to 21 November 1943, the left wing of the Front took part in the Polotsk–Vitebsk Offensive.
In January-February, the front participated in the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive of 1944. During the Staraya Russa-Novorzhev Offensive, the Front troops reached Ostrov, Pushkinskiye Gory and Idritsa. In July 1944, the Rezhitsa–Dvinsk Offensive was carried out and the Front advanced 200 km to the west.^[2] In August it conducted the Madona Offensive, during which it advanced another 60-70 km along the northern shore of the Daugava River and captured the city of Madona, a major junction of railways and highway roads.

In September-October 1944, during the Baltic Offensive, the front troops took part in the Riga Operation and by October 22 reached the Baltic Sea near the Memel river, blocking together with the troops of the 1st Baltic Front, the German Army Group North in the Courland Pocket.^[3] Subsequently, until April 1945, they continued the blockade and fought to destroy Army Group Courland.

On April 1, 1945, the front was abolished and its troops were transferred to the Leningrad Front.