The Hungarian town of Szekesfehervar was liberated by the Red Army 80 years ago.

Exactly 80 years ago, on the evening of March 22, 1945, the Hungarian town of Szekesfehervar was liberated by soldiers of the 21st Soviet Guards Rifle Corps. For the first time, Soviet troops were able to liberate the city in December 1944, but a rapid counterattack by the Wehrmacht forces forced them to leave the newly captured city.

"Szekesfehervar is the first Hungarian capital and a city with a very dramatic history, because during the war it literally changed hands several times," Izvestia correspondent Sergei Khaidarov reports.

The city was severely damaged during the fierce fighting. Of the 7,842 buildings, 813 were completely destroyed. 2,788 buildings were seriously damaged, making them uninhabitable. After the war, sappers were able to find 81,931 explosive devices in the city and its surroundings. At the same time, mines, bombs and unexploded shells continue to be found in the city to this day.

"The troops of the 21st Soviet Guards Rifle Corps, advancing from the north-northeast, entered Szekesfehervar. Fierce battles were taking place in the streets with the remaining troops of the 5th SS Panzer Division Viking, who were retreating step by step to the southwestern part of the city," the city portal reminds.

On March 21, Karl Urlich, commander of the 5th SS Panzer Division, ordered the troops to completely withdraw from the city due to the fact that Szekesfehervar could not be held under the onslaught of the Red Army. As a result, the last German units holding the area of the railway station left their positions on March 22 at eight o'clock in the evening.

"This is a major railway junction, it was needed, there is a railway supply here. When the Soviet units entered the city here, it was the first point for the German command, which had to be recaptured, because from here you can launch a counteroffensive," explained Andrei Ogolyuk, a researcher of military graves.

Many Soviet soldiers laid down their lives in the battles for Szekesfehervar. One of them is Private D.F. Doga, the father of composer Evgeny Doga, who gained worldwide fame for writing a romantic waltz from the melodrama "My Affectionate and Gentle Beast."

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In 2025, May 9 marks the 80th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. In January 1945, the Soviet army launched an offensive against Berlin. As a result of the fighting, at 00:43 Moscow time on May 9, the commanders-in-chief signed the act of unconditional surrender of Germany, which served as the end of the war.