Battle of the Kerch Peninsula

In May the Germans defeated Soviet offensives in the Kerch Peninsula. The Battle of the Kerch Peninsula was a World War II battle between Erich von Manstein's German and Romanian 11th Army and the Soviet Crimean Front forces in the Kerch Peninsula. It began on 26 December 1941 with an amphibious landing operation by two Soviet armies intended to break the Siege of Sevastopol. From January through April, the Crimean Front launched repeated offensives against the 11th Army, all of which failed with heavy losses. Superior German artillery firepower was largely responsible for the Soviet debacle. On 8 May 1942, the Axis struck with great force in a major counteroffensive code-named Trappenjagd which concluded by around 19 May 1942 with the liquidation of the Soviet defending forces.