Battle
Siege of Breslau
15 Feb 1945 – 6 May 1945 · Breslau (Wrocław)
The siege of Festung Breslau ran from 15 February to 6 May 1945; the ring was closed by 16 February. Gauleiter Karl Hanke ordered almost all civilians to leave on 19 January 1945, and the last evacuation trains left on 8 February; the article gives estimated evacuation deaths of 90,000 to 200,000. The Soviet 6th Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front led the final assault. Generalleutnant Hermann Niehoff replaced Hans von Ahlfen as garrison commander on 8 March, chose to surrender on 5 May and the garrison laid down its arms on 6 May, after learning that Berlin had fallen.
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- [1]Siege of Breslau
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