The Little Land - The Battle of NovorossiyskFebruary 4 9, 1943 Stalin had been unhappy with the progress of North Caucasus Front on Krasnodor and impatient to see more success, he ordered General Ivan Petrov, commander of the Black Sea Group of Forces, to break the stalemate by a surprise invasion from the Black Sea. This would unhinge the German defense and quicken the offensive. Almost immediately, things went wrong with a bombardment from the Black Sea Fleet that merely alerted the defense