Tolbukhin remained in this position through the opening phases of
Operation Barbarossa until August 1941, when he was made the chief of staff of the
Crimean Front, which he held until March 1942. From May to July 1942, he was the assistant commander of the
Stalingrad Military District. After that, he was the commander of the 57th Army until March 1943. The 57th was involved in the
Battle of Stalingrad, where Tolbukhin's superior, Colonel-General
Andrei Yeremenko, praised his command organization and military prowess. After his command of the 57th, Tolbukhin was placed in command of the
Southern Front. , Autumn 1944 In October 1943, the Southern Front was renamed
4th Ukrainian Front. Tolbukhin assisted
Rodion Malinovsky's
3rd Ukrainian Front in the
Lower Dnieper Offensive and
Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive. In May 1944, Tolbukhin was transferred to control of
3rd Ukrainian Front. During the Summer Campaign, from June to October 1944, Tolbukhin and Malinovsky launched their invasion of the
Balkans and were able to conquer most of
Romania. On September 12, 1944, two days after
Malinovsky was promoted to
Marshal of the Soviet Union, Tolbukhin was promoted to the same rank. While Malinovsky moved northwest, towards
Hungary and
Yugoslavia, Tolbukhin occupied
Bulgaria. Starting in the Winter Campaign, Tolbukhin shifted his army to the northwest axis, thereby liberating much of
Yugoslavia and invading southern Hungary. In late April 1945, at the end of the
Battle of Vienna, Tolbukhin acted on Stalin's order to entrust
Karl Renner with foundation of a new provisional Austrian government in order to prepare democratic elections. On 27 April, Renner was appointed provisional government leader, at Tolbukhin's authority, which renders the latter an important role in the foundation of a new Austrian republic that had been integrated into the
Third Reich (1938–1945). Tolbukhin gave the go-ahead at the location, for this important step towards an independent
Austria in the formation of the Second Republic (1945–present). After the war, Tolbukhin was commander-in-chief of the
Southern Group of Forces, which comprised the Balkan region. In January 1947, Tolbukhin was made the commander of the
Transcaucasus Military District, a post he held until his death on October 17, 1949, due to complication from diabetes. Tolbukhin is generally regarded as one of the finest Soviet generals of
World War II. Meticulous, careful, and not overly ambitious like some Soviet commanders, Tolbukhin was well respected by fellow commanders and also his men, especially since he had a dedication to keeping casualty rates low. Tolbukhin was the recipient of numerous awards and medals including the highest Soviet medal and rank, the
Order of Victory and
Hero of the Soviet Union, respectively. Tolbukhin was also
People's Hero of Yugoslavia, whose capital
Belgrade he
liberated. The urn containing his ashes is buried in the
Kremlin Wall Necropolis, and there is a monument to him in his native
Yaroslavl. The city of
Dobrich in
Bulgaria was renamed to Tolbukhin in his honor in 1949. ==Honours and awards==