surprise assault over Lake Peipus to seize the road along the north shore of the lake on 2 March. Up to 500 of them were killed by the 225th Infantry Division, with a large number of weapons, including seven assault guns gained as trophies. Units of the 59th Army attacked from the Krivasoo bridgehead on 4 March. Narva offensive, 6–24 March On 6 March, the new Soviet Narva offensive began with the air raid at Narva and the nine kilometre segment of Tallinn highway connected to the town. The explosives, attached to the main target, the bridge over Narva river were hit and blown up. The baroque style Old Town was levelled by 200 aircraft dropping 3600 bombs, with no buildings left intact. On the next night, another air raid followed at Ivangorod bridgehead on the opposite bank of the river. As the local inhabitants had been transported from the two towns, virtually no civilian casualties occurred. Instead, the German units remaining in the towns were heavily hit and a great deal of military equipment lost. In the morning of 8 March, the Soviet air force and the artillery of the 2nd Shock Army fired 100,000 shells and grenades at the three weakened German regiments defending the town. The operation continued with the assault of the 30th Guards Rifle Division and numerous tanks, focusing on the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Nederland Govorov realised that the Narva line could not be breached before the German bridgehead on the eastern side of the river was annihilated. On 11 March, a heavy assault was ordered at the ruins of the Lilienbach estate two kilometres to the north east from Narva, defended by the SS Panzergrenadier Regiment 49 De Ruyter. After an artillery duel between the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Netherland and the advancing Soviet units, the attack disintegrated into fierce hand-to-hand fighting between Soviet infantry and outnumbered SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Regiment 49 De Ruyter. After several hours of fierce combat, the 30th Guard Rifle Corps had suffered enough losses to fall back. Govorov decided to shift the focus of the Narva offensive to the north of Narva. North of Narva On 8 March, three Divisions of the 14th Rifle Corps attacked the positions of the Estonian Division in Siivertsi, five kilometres north of Narva. The artillery of the Estonian Rifle Corps was placed under their command. For the first time, Estonians