The 1st Guards Tank Brigade broke through on December 7th with the help of the 8th Guards Rifle Division, and attacked towards Volokolamsk from the southeast and south. On December 19th the town was finally liberated. The brigade continued its attacks, making ground only slowly away from Moscow. Losses were serious and many of the heroes of Mtsensk and Moscow died under the guns of the German hedgehogs that were established around every village. In mid-January, lead units of the 4th Panzer Division were dug in around several small villages, and the 1st Guards Tank Brigade was ordered to attack defensive positions of the Germans.
Objectives: Clear out the German defensive positions at the village to the southwest.
