The Hungarian Second Army was a Hungarian Field Army of World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Gusztáv Jány (awarded German Knight's Cross on 31 March 1943) from 1 March 1940 to 5 August 1943. Lieutenant General Géza Lakatos (awarded German Knight's Cross on 24 May 1944) was the commander from 5 August 1943 to 1 April 1944. Lieutenant General Lajos Veres von Dalnoki commanded from 1 April 1944 to 16 October 1944. Lieutenant General Jenö Major was the division's final commander. He commanded from 16 October 1944 to 13 November 1944. The Hungarian Second Army was disbanded 1 Dececember 1944. // Ancient and medieval military The Hungarian tribes of Árpád vezér who came to settle in the Carpathian Basin were noted for their fearsome horse-mounted warriors, who conducted frequent looting campaigns throughout much of Western Europe (once as far as Spain), terrorizing the entire population with their long... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000,000 Total dead: 50,000,000 Military dead: 8,000,000 Civilian dead: 4,000,000 Total dead 12,000,000 World War II (abbreviated WWII), or the Second World War, was a worldwide conflict... Géza Lakatos (1890 – 1967) was a general in Hungary during World War II who served briefly as Prime Minister of Hungary, under regent Miklós Horthy from August 29, 1944, until October 15, 1944. ...

Commanders

The Hungarian Second Army had four commanders from 1 March 1940 to 13 November 1944. The army's commanders were as follows:

• Lieutenant General Gusztáv Jány - From 1 March 1940 to 5 August 1943
• Lieutenant General Géza Lakatos - From 5 August 1943 to 1 April 1944
• Lieutenant General Lajos Veres von Dalnoki - From 1 April 1944 to 16 October 1944
• Lieutenant General Jenö Major - From 16 October 1944 to 13 November 1944

Occupation Duties

Hungary was an Axis state at the beginning of the European conflict. Hungary was ruled by Regent Admiral Miklós Horthy. The small Hungarian Army had three field armies formed or forming on 11 March 1940. All three field armies were to ultimately see action against the Soviets before the end of the war. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the continent. ... Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya, Duke of Szeged and Otranto (Hungarian: Vitéz* nagybányai Horthy Miklós, Szeged és Otranto hercege; Kenderes, June 18, 1868 – Estoril, February 9, 1957) was a Hungarian Admiral and statesman and served as the Regent of Hungary from March 1, 1920 until October... // Ancient and medieval military The Hungarian tribes of Árpád vezér who came to settle in the Carpathian Basin were noted for their fearsome horse-mounted warriors, who conducted frequent looting campaigns throughout much of Western Europe (once as far as Spain), terrorizing the entire population with their long...

However, on 22 June 1941, Hungary did not immediately participate in the invasion of the Soviet Union. Better yet, Adolf Hitler did not directly ask for Hungarian assistance. Hitler redirects here. ...

At the end of June in 1941, Hungary did eventually enter the war. This was after the questionable bombing of Košice (Kassa) by the Soviets.

Most of the Hungarian forces, including the three field armies, were initially relegated to occupation duties within the newly enlarged Hungarian state. Hungary now included size-able portions of land won from its less fortunate neighbors. See also the history of Europe, the history of present-day nations and states, Hungary before the Magyars, and Hungary. ...

At first, only Hungary's Karpat Group with its Gyorshadtest (Fast Moving Army Corps) was sent to fight in Russia. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Stalingrad

Operation Little Saturn and Disaster

The Hungarian Second Army is probably the best known of Hungary's World War II-era armies because of the part it played in the Battle of Stalingrad. The Hungarian Second Army was given the task of protecting the German Sixth Army's northern flank. This allowed the Sixth Army to continue to attack Soviet General Vasily Chuikov's 62nd Army defending the city of Stalingrad. The Second Army was placed on the Sixth Army's northern flank together with the Italian Eighth Army and the Romanian Third Army. The German Sixth Army's southern flank was protected by the Romanian Fourth Army. Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000,000 Total dead: 50,000,000 Military dead: 8,000,000 Civilian dead: 4,000,000 Total dead 12,000,000 World War II (abbreviated WWII), or the Second World War, was a worldwide conflict... Combatants Germany Italy Romania Hungary Croatia Soviet Union Commanders Friedrich Paulus # Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Vasiliy Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Georgy Zhukov Semyon Timoshenko Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third Army Romanian Fourth Army Hungarian Second Army Italian Eighth Army Unknown number of Germans Unknown number... The 6. ... The 6. ... Vasily Chuikov during World War II Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov (Васи́лий Ива́нович Чуйко́в) (February 12, 1900 - March 18, 1982) was a lieutenant general in the Soviet Red Army during World War II, two times Hero of the Soviet Union (1944, 1945), who after the war became a Marshal of the Soviet Union. ... The 6. ... The Italian campaign in the Soviet Union started on 14 July 1941, when Benito Mussolini joined Operation Barbarossa by ordering the preparation of an Italian military contingent destined for the Eastern Front. ... The Romanian Third Army was a field army that fought as part of the German Army Group B during World War II. It along with the Romanian Fourth Army bore the brunt of the Soviet Operation Uranus which saw the German Sixth Army encircled and destroyed during the Battle of... The 6. ... The Romanian Fourth Army was a field army that fought on the Axis side as part of the German Army Group B and later it fought on the Alliess side as part of the Soviet First Ukrainian Front during World War II. In August 1944, the Red Army entered...

The Hungarian Second Army and almost all the armies protecting the German Sixth Army's flanks were anhialated when the Soviets launched Operation Little Saturn on 16 December, 1942. The Soviets first launched Operation Uranus to cut off and trap the Sixth Army in Stalingrad. The Germans then launched Operation Winter Storm to relieve the Sixth Army. The Soviets countered with Operation Little Saturn. The part of Operation Little Saturn which mattered most to the Hungarian Second Army was the plan to anhialate what remained of the German, Romanian, Italian, and Hungarian armies protecting the Sixth Army's flanks. Clearly the Hungarian Second Army was one of the armies marked for anhialation. With the success of Operation Little Saturn (approximately 120,000 Hungarians were killed, wounded or captured), the Hungarian Second Army and the other armies protecting the German Sixth Army's flanks ceased to represent meaningful fighting forces. The fate of the Sixth Army trapped in Stalingrad was sealed. The 6. ... Soviet advances during Operations Uranus, Mars and Saturn Operation Saturn was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943. ... The eastern front at the time of Operation Uranus. ... The 6. ... Operation Winter Storm (German Unternehmen Wintergewitter) was the German Fourth Panzer Armys attempt to relieve the German Sixth Army from encirclement during the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II. The operation commenced on 12 December 1942 and was able to advance just halfway to its objective before a... The 6. ... Soviet advances during Operations Uranus, Mars and Saturn Operation Saturn was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943. ... Soviet advances during Operations Uranus, Mars and Saturn Operation Saturn was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943. ... The 6. ... Soviet advances during Operations Uranus, Mars and Saturn Operation Saturn was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943. ... The 6. ... The 6. ...

Order of Battle - 1942

In 1942, Colonel-General Gusztav Jany commanded the Hungarian Second Army during the Stalingrad disaster. The order of battle for Jany's army was as follows:

Hungarian Second Army

• IIIrd Field Corps
  • 6th Light Field Division
  • 7th Light Field Division
  • 9th Light Field Division
• IVth Field Corps
  • 10th Light Field Division
  • 12th Light Field Division
  • 16th Light Field Division
• VIIth Field Corps.
  • 19th Light Field Division
  • 20th Light Field Division
  • 23rd Light Field Division
• 1st Armored Field Division

Most of the the field divisions sent to fight at Stalingrad as part of the Second Army in 1942 were light field divisions. Hungarian divisions typically had three regiments. By comparison, "light" divisions typically had two regiments.

In addition to the three infantry corps, the Hungarian Second Army included the 1st Armored Field Division. Most of the armor in this division was included in the 30th Tank Regiment. At the time of the Battle for Stalingrad, the primary battle tank in this unit was the Czech Panzer 38(t). These were augmented by Hungarian Toldi tanks for scouting duties, Hungarian Nimrod anti-aircraft gun tanks, and Hungarian Csaba armored cars. But the tank regiment also had about ten German Panzer IV F2 tanks and a few German Panzer III tanks in its heavy tank battalion. Unfortunately there were far too few of these better German tanks to make much of a difference. Combatants Germany Italy Hungary Romania Slovakia Croatia Soviet Union Commanders Maximilian von Weichs Friedrich Paulus # Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Italo Garibaldi, Italy Gusztav Jany, Hungary Petre Dumitrescu, Romania Constantin Constantinescu, Romania Vasiliy Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Georgiy Zhukov Semyon Timoshenko Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third... The Panzer 38(t) was a Czechoslovakian tank used by Germany during World War II. (The Czechoslovak military designation was LT-38. ... The Toldi was the Hungarian light tank, based on the Swedish Landsverk L-60B tank. ... The Panzerkampfwagen IV (PzKpfw IV), more commonly referred to as the Panzer IV, was a tank developed by Germany and used extensively in World War II. It was designed initially as an infantry-support medium tank, to work in conjunction with the anti-tank Pzkpfw III. Later in the war... The Panzerkampfwagen III (PzKpfw III), more commonly referred to as the Panzer III, was a tank developed in the 1930s by Germany and used extensively in World War II. It was designed to fight other AFVs, serving alongside the infantry-support Pzkpfw IV. It soon became obsolete in this role...

Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico

Hungary becomes a battlefield

By mid August 1944, German Colonel-General (Generaloberst) Johannes Friessner's Army Group South was on the brink of collapse. To the north, the Soviet Operation Bagration was completing the destruction of Army Group Centre. Germany's former ally, Romania, declared war on Germany on 25 August 1944. Then another of Germany's former allies, Bulgaria, declared war on Germany on 8 September 1944. The subsequent drive of Soviet General Fedor Tolbukhin's 3rd Ukrainian Front far into Romania and Bulgaria destroyed any semblance of an organised German defensive line. By this time, Tolbukhin, aided by the 2nd Ukrainian Front under Soviet General Rodion Malinovsky had annihilated 13 Axis divisions, taking over 100,000 prisoners. Both Tolbukhin and Malinovsky were promoted to Marshal of the Soviet Union. Johannes Friessner (March 22, 1892-June 26, 1971) was a German general during World War II. Born in Chemnitz, Saxony, Friessner enlisted in the German army in 1911 and, after seeing extensive duty during World War I, served in the Reichswehr following the war. ... Army Group South (Heeresgruppe Süd in German) was a German Army Group during World War II. Germany used two army groups to invade Poland in 1939: Army Group North and Army Group South. ... Combatants Axis Soviet Union Commanders Ernst Busch Walther Model Ferdinand Schörner Konstantin Rokossovski Georgy Zhukov Aleksandr Vasilevsky Strength 800,000 1,700,000 Casualties (Soviet est. ... Army Group Centre (Heeresgruppe Mitte in German) was created on 22 June 1941 when Army Group B was renamed Army Group Centre. ... Marshal of the Soviet Union Fedor Tolbukhin Fyodor Ivanovich Tolbukhin (June 16, 1894 - October 17, 1949) (Russian: Фёдор Иванович Толбухин), Soviet military commander, was born into a peasant family in the rural... The Southwestern Front was a Front (military subdivision) of the Soviet Army during the Second World War. ... The Steppe Front was a Front (military subdivision) of the Soviet Army during the Second World War. ... Marshal of the Soviet Union Rodion Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky (Russian: , Rodion Jakovlevič Malinovskij; November 23, 1898-March 31, 1967) was a Soviet military commander, Defense Minister of the Soviet Union in the late 1950s and 1960s, who played a key role in World War II, including the major defeat...

General of Artillery Maximilian Fretter-Pico's recently re-formed Sixth Army represented the nucleus of what remained of Friessner's force. By October 1944, seeing that his Hungarian allies were suffering from low morale, Friessner attached the recently re-formed Hungarian Second Army under the command of Lieutenant-General Lajos Veress von Dalnoki to Fretter-Pico's army. The combination of German and Hungarian armies was designated Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico. The 6. ...

The actions of Bulgaria and Romania had opened up a 650 kilometer gap in Friessner's Army Group South. As Friessner desperately struggled to reform a defensive line, news filtered through to Berlin that the Hungarian leader, Admiral Miklós Horthy was preparing to sign a separate peace with the Soviet Union. If this happened, the entire southern front would collapse. Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya, Duke of Szeged and Otranto (Hungarian: Vitéz* nagybányai Horthy Miklós, Szeged és Otranto hercege; Kenderes, June 18, 1868 – Estoril, February 9, 1957) was a Hungarian Admiral and statesman and served as the Regent of Hungary from March 1, 1920 until October...

In August, Horthy did replace Prime Minister Döme Sztójay with the anti-Fascist General Géza Lakatos. Under the Lakatos regime, acting Interior Minister Béla Horváth ordered Hungarian gendarmes to protect any Hungarian citizen from being deported. Döme Sztójay (January 5, 1883–August 22, 1946) was a Hungarian soldier and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Hungary during World War II. Born in Versec, now it is called as VrÅ¡ac, Sztójay joined the Austro-Hungarian Army as a young man and served... Géza Lakatos (1890 – 1967) was a general in Hungary during World War II who served briefly as Prime Minister of Hungary, under regent Miklós Horthy from August 29, 1944, until October 15, 1944. ...

On 19th March 1944, as Hungarian Regent, Admiral Miklos Horthy surrounded himself with anti-fascists and as relations between Hungary and Germany became less and less cordial, German forces guaranteed Hungary's participation in the war by launching Operation Margarethe. German dictator Adolf Hitler arranged to keep Horthy busy conducting negotiations while Hungary was quietly and efficiently overrun by German ground forces in a quick and bloodless invasion. Admiral Horthy inspecting the German fleet with Adolf Hitler Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya (Vitéz Nagybányai Horthy Miklós in Hungarian) (June 18, 1868–February 9, 1957) was a Hungarian Admiral and statesman and served as the Regent of Hungary from March 1, 1920 until October... During World War II, the Germans planned two Operations Margarethe. ... Hitler redirects here. ...

In September 1944, Soviet forces crossed the Hungarian border. On 15 October 1944, Horthy announced that Hungary had signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Most Hungarian army units ignored Horthy's orders. The Germans reacted swiftly with Operation Panzerfaust. Commando leader Otto Skorzeny was sent to Hungary. In another of his daring "snatch" operations, Skorzeny kidnapped Horthy's son Nicolas. The Germans insisted that Horthy abrogate the armistice, depose the Lakatos government, and name the leader of the Arrow Cross Party, Ferenc Szálasi, as Prime Minister. Instead, Horthy agreed to abdicate. Szálasi was able take power in Hungary with Germany's backing. In October 1944, Hitler sent one of his favorite commando leaders, Otto Skorzeny, to Hungary when he received word that the countrys Regent, Miklós Horthy was secretly negotiating his countrys surrender to the looming Red Army. ... Otto Skorzeny Otto Skorzeny (Vienna, June 12, 1908 - Madrid, July 5, 1975) was an Obersturmbannführer in the German Waffen-SS during World War II. He is best-known as the commando leader who rescued Benito Mussolini from imprisonment after his overthrow. ... Flag of the Arrow Cross Party The Arrow Cross (Nyilaskereszt) originated in Hungary in the 1930s as the symbol of the leading Hungarian fascist political party, the Arrow Cross Party, led by Ferenc Szálasi, an ex-army major. ... Ferenc Szálasi Ferenc Szálasi (January 6, 1897-March 12, 1946) was a Fascist and the Prime Minister of Hungary during the final days of Hungarys participation in World War II. Born the son of a soldier in Kassa, Szálasi followed in his fathers footsteps and...

Soon all of Hungary became a battlefield. Szálasi promised greatness for Hungary and a prosperity for the peasants. But, in reality, Hungary was aready a wreck.

Success at the Battle of Debrecen and the end

In late 1944, a re-formed Hungarian Second Army enjoyed a modest level of combat success as an integral part of German General Maximilian Fretter-Pico's Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico. From 16 September 1944 to 24 October 1944, during the Battle of Debrecen, Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico managed to achieve a major win on the battle field. Avoiding encirclement itself, Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico encircled and destroyed three Soviet tank corps of Mobile Group Pliyev under the command of Issa Pliyev. Earlier, in the same battle, Mobile Group Pliyev had easily sliced through the Hungarian Third Army. But success is costly and, unable to replace lost assets, the Hungarian Second Army was disbanded on 1 December 1944. Combatants Germany, Hungary Soviet Union Commanders Johannes Friessner (Heeresgruppe Süd), Maximilian Fretter-Pico (6. ... Issa Alexandrovich Pliyev (Russian: Исса Александрович Плиев) (November 12, 1903 - 2 February 1979) was a Soviet military commander, Army General (1962), Double Hero of the Soviet Union (4. ... The Third Army was a combat formation of the Hungarian Army which saw action during World War II. Commanders Lieutenant General Elemér Gorondy-Novak (1 Mar 1940 - 1 Nov 1941) Lieutenant General Zoltén Decleva (1 Nov 1941 - 1 Dec 1942) Lieutenant General Lajos Csatay (1 Dec 1942 - 12...

Order of Battle - 1944

While the Hungarian Second Army was the primary Hungarian unit in Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico, it was not the only Hungarian unit in the army group. Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico also included the Hungarian VIIth Field Corps. In addition, the Hungarian units in Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico were not the Hungarian units which fought at the Battle of Stalingrad. Combatants Germany Italy Romania Hungary Croatia Soviet Union Commanders Friedrich Paulus # Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Vasiliy Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Georgy Zhukov Semyon Timoshenko Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third Army Romanian Fourth Army Hungarian Second Army Italian Eighth Army Unknown number of Germans Unknown number...

Hungarian units in Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico

• VIIth Field Corps
  • 8th Reserve Field Division
  • 12th Reserve Field Division
• Hungarian Second Army
  • 9th Light Field Division
  • IInd Field Corps
    • 25th Light Field Division
    • 2nd Armored Field Division
  • Group Finita
    • 7th Replacement Field Division
    • 1st Replacement Mountain Brigade
    • 2nd Replacement Mountain Brigade

In 1944, the main battle tank of the 2nd Armored Field Division was the Hungarian Turan medium tank. The Turan tank represented a limited improvement over the Czech Panzer 38(t) and the Hungarian Toldi tanks used by the 1st Armored Field Division in 1942. But the Turan I tank (with a 40mm gun) and the Turan II tank (with a short 75mm gun) were still no match for a standard Soviet T-34 tank. And, compared to the T-34, the Soviets had many much improved tanks by 1944. Unfortunately manufacture of the potentially lethal Turan III tank (with a long 75mm gun) never got beyond the prototype stage. Unfortunately for the Hungarians, the few better German Panzer IV tanks, Panzer III tanks, and Sturmgeschütz III assault guns were never made available to the them in numbers that would make a difference. 40 M Turan I was a Hungarian tank of the World War II - a total of 424 were made in two variants: Turan I with 40 mm gun and Turan II with 75 mm gun. ... 40 M Turan I was a Hungarian tank of the World War II - a total of 424 were made in two variants: Turan I with 40 mm gun and Turan II with 75 mm gun. ... The Panzer 38(t) was a Czechoslovakian tank used by Germany during World War II. (The Czechoslovak military designation was LT-38. ... The Toldi was the Hungarian light tank, based on the Swedish Landsverk L-60B tank. ... The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank first produced in 1940. ... The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank first produced in 1940. ... The Panzerkampfwagen IV (PzKpfw IV), more commonly referred to as the Panzer IV, was a tank developed by Germany and used extensively in World War II. It was designed initially as an infantry-support medium tank, to work in conjunction with the anti-tank Pzkpfw III. Later in the war... The Panzerkampfwagen III (PzKpfw III), more commonly referred to as the Panzer III, was a tank developed in the 1930s by Germany and used extensively in World War II. It was designed to fight other AFVs, serving alongside the infantry-support Pzkpfw IV. It soon became obsolete in this role... The Sturmgeschütz III (StuG III) assault gun was Germanys most produced armored fighting vehicle during World War II. It was built on the chassis of the Panzer III tank. ...

See also

• Hungary during the Second World War
• Military of Hungary - 1940/45
• Battle of Stalingrad - 1942/43
• Battle of Debrecen - 1944
• Eastern Front (World War II)
• Hungarian First Army
• Hungarian Third Army
• Gyorshadtest

// In Hungary, the Great Depression induced a drop in the standard of living and the political mood of the country shifted further toward the right. ... // Ancient and medieval military The Hungarian tribes of Árpád vezér who came to settle in the Carpathian Basin were noted for their fearsome horse-mounted warriors, who conducted frequent looting campaigns throughout much of Western Europe (once as far as Spain), terrorizing the entire population with their long... Combatants Germany Italy Romania Hungary Croatia Soviet Union Commanders Friedrich Paulus # Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Vasiliy Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Georgy Zhukov Semyon Timoshenko Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third Army Romanian Fourth Army Hungarian Second Army Italian Eighth Army Unknown number of Germans Unknown number... Combatants Germany, Hungary Soviet Union Commanders Johannes Friessner (Heeresgruppe Süd), Maximilian Fretter-Pico (6. ... Combatants Soviet Union1 Poland Germany1 Italy (to 1943) Romania Finland (to 1944) Hungary Commanders Aleksei Antonov Ivan Konev Rodion Malinovsky Kirill Meretskov Ivan Petrov Alexander Rodimtsev Konstantin Rokossovsky Pavel Rotmistrov Semyon Timoshenko Fyodor Tolbukhin Aleksandr Vasilevsky Nikolai Vatutin Kliment Voroshilov Andrei Yeremenko Matvei Zakharov Georgy Zhukov Fedor von Bock Ernst... The Hungarian First Army was a Hungarian field army of World War II. Hungary was an Axis state at the beginning of the European conflict, under Admiral Miklós Horthy. ... The Third Army was a combat formation of the Hungarian Army which saw action during World War II. Commanders Lieutenant General Elemér Gorondy-Novak (1 Mar 1940 - 1 Nov 1941) Lieutenant General Zoltén Decleva (1 Nov 1941 - 1 Dec 1942) Lieutenant General Lajos Csatay (1 Dec 1942 - 12... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

External Links

• The Hungarian 2. Army in Russia (Structure and Equipment, Summer 1942), by Jason Long.