Erich von Manstein (actually: Fritz Erich von Lewinski ) was born in November 1887 and died in June 1973 at the age of 86. He was a German field marshal from the Second World War, widely recognized as the most outstanding German commander of that war. The future field marshal was born into a family with a long military tradition. After his parents were baptized, they gave little Erich to his mother's sister and her husband, who could not have children. At the age of 14, he was adopted by his adoptive parents, and over time he began to use only their surname, i.e. von Manstein. In 1900, he began his military career, entering the Prussian Cadet Corps as a cadet, and in 1906, after graduating from the secondary school-leaving examination, he joined the 3rd Expedited Guards Regiment as a cadet. In the years 1913-1914 he studied at a military academy. Erich von Manstein took an active part in World War I, fighting between Namur and the Masurian Lakes in 1914. From the summer of 1915, after suffering a serious wound and promotion to the rank of captain, he served primarily in the staffs. He ended the war as head of the operational department of the 213rd Infantry Division. In the interwar period, he stayed in Reichwechra, and his career continued to develop. At the outbreak of World War II, he was already a lieutenant general. During the September campaign in 1939, he was the chief of staff of Army Group "A". It is commonly assumed that it was Erich von Manstein who developed an essentially brilliant plan of operations against France, which went down in history as the "sickle cutting plan" and which was implemented in the period May-June 1940. It brought the Wehrmacht a great and brilliant victory. For participation in the second stage of the campaign in France, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. During the operation, Barbarossa commanded the LVI Panzer Corps, successfully operating within Army Group "North". In September, he became the commander of the 11th Army fighting in the south of the USSR. In July 1942 he took Sevastopol at its head, for which he was promoted to the rank of field marshal. As a commander of Army Group South, he won the Third Battle of Kharkiv in March 1943. A few months later he fought near Kursk in July of the same year. In March 1944 he was dismissed by Hitler from his commanding positions. Until the end of the war, he no longer commanded any units. In 1945, he was arrested by the British, and as a result of Soviet pressure, he was accused of war crimes and sentenced to 18 years in prison, but in 1950 this sentence was reduced, and in 1953 he was released from prison. After his release from prison, he made a significant contribution to the rebuilding of the German Bundeswehr as an advisor. He died on June 10, 1973.
The siege of Sevastopol, a key Soviet naval base on the Black Sea, lasted from October 30, 1941 to July 4, 1942. At the beginning of June 1942, around 204,000 soldiers were involved in the battle on the side of the Axis countries (Germany and Romania), supported by around 1,400 guns, mortars and around 450 tanks. At the same time, around 107,000 people were fighting on the Soviet side, supported by around 600 cannons and mortars. The genesis of the siege of Sevastopol dates back to the Operation Barbarossa, during which Romanian and German troops occupied a large part of the Crimean peninsula in the fall of 1941. The only point of resistance to the Axis forces was Sevastopol, located in the very south of the peninsula. Despite the attacks of Axis units in October and November 1941, the city was not seized. Moreover, in December 1941, the Soviets carried out landing operations on the Kerch, which delayed German and Romanian actions in the Sevastopol area. The regular siege of the city lasted until June 7, 1942, when the army, mainly German under the command of General Erich von Manstein, began the operation "Störfang", which led to the capitulation of the city and the port of Sevastopol by July 4, 1942. It is estimated that the Soviet side lost about 120,000 people killed, wounded and captured during the siege, while the Axis countries lost about 36,000 killed, wounded and missing.