![A squad of Red Army machine gunners leap from tanks in an effort to halt the German advance. Soviet losses were heavy but Hitler soon called a halt to the successful Operation South Wind to mount another—Operation Spring Awakening—an attempt to secure vital oil reserves in Hungary that proved to be a failure.](https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/W-Gran-Bridge-1-HT-Mar06-LEAD2-760x348.jpg)
Joachim Peiper
Operation South Wind’s Battle for the Gran Bridgehead
By Major General Michael ReynoldsBy the end of 1944, the Soviet Red Army had surrounded the Hungarian capital of Budapest and established strong defensive positions running from Esztergom on the Danube to Lake Balaton. Read more