Editing Operation Spring Awakening (section)

== German offensive ==
[[File:German troops at the beginning of Operation Spring Awakening.jpg|thumb|German troops at the beginning of Operation Spring Awakening]]
The offensive units did not start in unison owing to complications, thus the units of the 6th SS Panzer Army began their attack at 04:00 while the 2nd SS Panzer Corps attacked at 18:30.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Norbert|first=Norbert|title=Páncélosok a Dunántúlon – Az utolsó páncélosütközetek Magyarországon 1945 tavaszán|publisher=PeKo Publishing|year=2017|isbn=978-963-454-083-0|location=Hungary|pages=57}}</ref> On the 6 March 1945, the German 6th Army, joined by the 6th SS Panzer Army launched a pincer movement north and south of Lake Balaton. Ten armoured (Panzer) and five infantry divisions, including a large number of new heavy [[Tiger II]] tanks, struck 3rd Ukrainian Front, hoping to reach the Danube and link up with the German 2nd Panzer Army forces attacking south of Lake Balaton.{{sfn|Glantz|House|1995|p=253}} The attack was spearheaded by the 6th SS Panzer Army and included once elite units such as the [[1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler]], by now seriously degraded from constant fighting and heavy losses. Dietrich's army made "good progress" at first, but as they drew near the Danube, the combination of the muddy terrain and strong Soviet resistance had ground the German advance to a halt.{{sfn|Stein|1984|p=238}}

On 10 March, the Axis forces fighting under Operation Spring Awakening around Lake Balaton had a total of 230 operational tanks and 167 operational assault guns between their 17 divisions.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nevenkin|first=Kamen|title=Bloody Vienna: The Soviet Offensive Operations in Western Hungary and Austria, March – May 1945|publisher=PeKo Publishing Kft.|year=2020|isbn=978-615-5583-26-1|location=Keszthely, Hungary|pages=10–12}}</ref> A single fully equipped late 1944 Panzer division would officially have held no fewer than 136 tanks, meaning that by 10 March the entire offensive immediately surrounding Lake Balaton had enough tanks for only 1.7 Panzer divisions as opposed to the 11 which were in action.

By the 14 March, Operation Spring Awakening was at risk of failure. The 6th SS Panzer Army was well short of its goals. The 2nd Panzer Army did not advance as far on the southern side of Lake Balaton as the 6th SS Panzer Army had on the northern side. Army Group E met fierce resistance from the Bulgarian First Army and [[Josip Broz Tito]]'s [[Yugoslav Partisans]], and failed to reach its objective of Mohács. German losses were heavy. Heeresgruppe Süd lost 15,117 casualties in the first eight days of the offensive.

On the 15 March, strength returns on this day show the ''Hohenstaufen'' Division with 35 [[Panther tank]]s, 20 [[Panzer IV]]s, 32 [[Jagdpanzer]]s, 25 [[Sturmgeschütz]]es and 220 other self-propelled weapons and armoured cars. 42% of these vehicles were damaged, under short or long-term repair. The ''Das Reich'' Division had 27 Panthers, 22 Panzer IVs, 28 Jagdpanzers and 26 Sturmgeschützes on hand (the number of those under repair is not available).<ref name="hitlers-last-offensive"/>