103rd Rifle Division

Last updated
103rd Rifle Division
Active1939–1946
CountryFlag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union
Branch Red Army
TypeInfantry
SizeDivision
Engagements World War II
Battle honours Khingan (3rd formation)

The 103rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, formed three times. It was first formed in 1939. It was converted into a motorized division and fought in the Yelnya Offensive. After being converted back to a rifle division it was destroyed in the Battle of Vyazma. The division reformed in early 1942 but was destroyed during the Second Battle of Kharkov. It was reformed a third time in the Far East in summer 1942 and participated in the Soviet invasion of Manchuria.

Contents

History

First Formation

The division was formed at Voroshilovsk in August and September 1939 [1] [2] from the 35th Rifle Regiment of the 74th Rifle Division. [3] The division was converted to a motorized division in March 1941, part of the 26th Mechanized Corps. [4] On 8 July the division became the 103rd Tank Division as a result of the reorganization of Red Army mechanized forces. [3] During July and August, it fought in the Yelnya Offensive as part of the corps, now subordinated to the 24th Army. On 28 August, it became a rifle division again. [5] In October 1941, it was surrounded and destroyed in the Spas-Demensky District, trapped in the Vyazma Pocket. [6] However, the division was only disbanded on 27 December, [7] despite coming out of the encirclement with only thirty men. [8]

Second Formation

Soviet prisoners of war after the Second Battle of Kharkov Kharkov2.jpg
Soviet prisoners of war after the Second Battle of Kharkov

The division was reformed on 9 January 1942 from the 463rd Rifle Division (originally formed 22 December 1941) at Samarkand. The 103rd was composed of the 393rd, 583rd and 688th Rifle Regiments. In early March, the division was relocated to Starobilsk with the 28th Army and fought in the Second Battle of Kharkov during May 1942. Due to supply shortages the division was not provided with food from 28 April to 2 May. [9] On 19 May, it became part of 6th Army [10] but was surrounded and destroyed at Izyum between 25 and 27 May. The division was officially disbanded on 30 June 1942. [11] [12]

Third Formation

The division was reformed a third time on 21 July 1942 in the Transbaikal Military District and served there for the duration of the war. It was with the 2nd Rifle Corps in Transbaikal Front in January 1945. [6] During August and September 1945, it fought in the Soviet invasion of Manchuria. [13] For its actions, the division was awarded the honorific "Khingan". It was disbanded in 1946 in the Transbaikal-Amur Military District. [14] [15]

Related Research Articles

The 289th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army, formed twice. The division was first formed in the summer of 1941, after the German invasion of the Soviet Union, and was sent to the front and destroyed in the Battle of Kiev in September. The division was formed a second time in October 1941 from the 5th Rifle Brigade, a separate infantry brigade fighting in the Continuation War against Finnish and German troops in Karelia. The new division spent most of the war in Karelia and in the summer of 1944 fought in the Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive, which resulted in the end of the Continuation War in September. The division was stationed at Belomorsk in Karelia until its disbandment after the end of World War II in July 1946.

The 110th Rifle Division was a formation of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the course of World War II, which was formed, dissolved, and re-formed three times throughout the war.

The 99th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army which fought in World War II. It was first formed in 1924, destroyed, reformed and raised to Guards status, and then reformed once again.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">392nd District Training Centre</span> Military unit

The 392nd Hero of the Soviet Union Marshal of the Soviet Union V. I. Petrov Pacific Red Banner Order of Kutuzov District Training Center is a training formation of the Russian Ground Forces. It is located at Knyaze-Volkonskoye in the Khabarovsk area.

The 8th Rifle Division was a military formation of the Soviet Union's Red Army in the Winter War, the Soviet invasion of Poland, and World War II. It was formed three times.

The 27th Rifle Division was a tactical unit in the Red Army of Soviet Russia and then the Soviet Union, active between 1918 and 1945. First formed during the Russian Civil War on November 3, 1918, as part of 5th Red Army. Commanded by Vitovt Putna, it was transferred to the 16th Red Army in 1920, and took part in the Polish–Soviet War. Defeated in the battles of Radzymin and Ossów, it practically ceased to exist.

The 23rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army and Soviet Army, formed three times.

The 69th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, formed twice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Utvenko</span> Red Army Lieutenant general

Alexander Ivanovich Utvenko was a Red Army Lieutenant general. Utvenko became a Red Army officer in the interwar period and was given command of a division after the German invasion of the Soviet Union. He fought in the Battle of Smolensk (1941), the Yelnya Offensive and the Battle of Moscow.

The 36th Rifle Division was a division of the Red Army and then the Soviet Army. The division was formed in 1919 as the 36th Rifle Division and fought in the Russian Civil War and the Sino-Soviet conflict of 1929. In 1937 it became the 36th Motorized Division. The division fought in the Battles of Khalkhin Gol. It was converted into a motor rifle division in 1940 and fought in the Soviet invasion of Manchuria in World War II. Postwar, it became a rifle division again before its disbandment in 1956. The division spent almost its entire service in the Soviet Far East.

The 47th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army. It was first formed in 1922 as the Georgian Rifle Division. In 1924, it became the 1st Georgian Mountain Division. The division became the 47th Georgian Mountain Rifle Division in 1936 and dropped the designation "Georgian" in 1940. It was disbanded in June 1942 after being wiped out at Izyum. In July 1942, the 47th Rifle Division was formed from the 21st Rifle Brigade. It fought in the Nevel Offensive, for which it was awarded the title "Nevel". The division was disbanded in the Baltic Military District in 1946. It was also awarded the Order of Lenin and the Order of Suvorov 2nd class. The division was reformed a third time from the 277th Rifle Division in 1955 but disbanded in July 1956.

The 79th Motor Rifle Division was a motorized infantry division of the Soviet Army. It was converted from the 79th Rifle Division in 1957 and inherited the honorific "Sakhalin". The division was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. The 79th Rifle Division fought in the Invasion of South Sakhalin in 1945 and was based at Leonidovo for most of its career.

The 120th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, formed three times. Its first formation became the 6th Guards Rifle Division for its actions in the Yelnya Offensive. Its second formation became the 69th Guards Rifle Division for its actions in the Battle of Stalingrad. The division was reformed a third time in late April 1943. It was disbanded "in place" with the Central Group of Forces in the summer of 1945.

The 49th Rifle Division was a Soviet Army infantry division, formed three times. First formed as a territorial division in 1931, the 49th Rifle Division's first formation became a regular division by 1939 and fought in the Winter War. For its actions during the war, it was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. However, the 49th Rifle Division was wiped out during the first ten days of Operation Barbarossa. Its second formation occurred in December 1941 and fought at Stalingrad, Kursk, the Vistula-Oder Offensive and the Battle of Berlin. The second formation was disbanded in 1946. The division was reformed in 1955 by renaming the 295th Rifle Division and became the 49th Motor Rifle Division in 1957.

The 50th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army from 1936 to 1946. The division took part in the Soviet invasion of Poland and the Winter War. After Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, the 50th fought in the Battle of Moscow, the Battles of Rzhev, the Donbass Strategic Offensive, the Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive, the First and Second Jassy–Kishinev Offensive, the Vistula–Oder Offensive and the Berlin Offensive.

The 53rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army that served from the early 1930s to the immediate postwar period following World War II.

The 166th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army that fought in World War II, formed twice. The division's first formation was formed in 1939 and wiped out in the Vyazma Pocket in October 1941. In January 1942, the division reformed. It fought in the Battle of Demyansk, the Battle of Kursk, Belgorod-Khar'kov Offensive Operation, Vitebsk–Orsha Offensive, Polotsk Offensive, Šiauliai Offensive, Riga Offensive and the Battle of Memel. It was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

The 26th Mechanized Corps was a Mechanized corps of the Red Army. The mechanized corps of the Red Army were reorganized after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. The corps was reorganized and disbanded before it saw action.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">7th Mechanized Corps (Soviet Union)</span> Military unit

The 7th Mechanized Corps was a mechanized corps of the Red Army, formed three times. The corps was first formed in 1934 in the Leningrad Military District and was converted into the 10th Tank Corps in 1938. The corps was reformed in the summer of 1940 in the Moscow Military District and fought in the Battle of Smolensk, after which its headquarters became part of Group Yartsevo's headquarters. The corps was formed a third time in August and September 1943. The third formation fought in the Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive, Uman–Botoșani Offensive, Second Jassy–Kishinev Offensive, Battle of Debrecen, Budapest Offensive, Bratislava–Brno Offensive, Prague Offensive, and the Soviet invasion of Manchuria. Postwar, the corps' third formation became a division and was disbanded in 1957.

References

  1. ↑ "КРАТКАЯ ИСТОРИЧЕСКАЯ СПРАВКА О ТЕРРИТОРИИ СВВАУЛШ" [History of the Location of the Stavropol Military Higher Aviation School]. svvaulsh.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  2. ↑ "Denis Osadchy". Герои страны ("Heroes of the Country") (in Russian).
  3. 1 2 Drig, Yevgeny (12 April 2007). "26 механизированный корпус" [26th Mechanized Corps]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2009-02-04. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "103-я моторизованная дивизия" [103rd Motorized Division]. samsv.narod.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  5. ↑ Glantz, David M. (2010-01-01). Barbarossa Derailed: The German advance to Smolensk, the encirclement battle, and the first and second Soviet counteroffensives, 10 July-24 August 1941. Casemate Publishers. p. 369. ISBN   9781906033729.
  6. 1 2 Poirier, Robert G.; Conner, Albert Z. (1991-07-01). Red Army: Order of Battle in the Great Patriotic War. Random House Value Publishing. ISBN   9780517071984.
  7. ↑ "103-я стрелковая дивизия" [103rd Rifle Division]. rkka.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 1 Jan 2016.
  8. ↑ Lopukhovsky, Lev (2013-08-01). The Viaz'ma Catastrophe, 1941: The Red Army's Disastrous Stand against Operation Typhoon. Helion and Company. p. 292. ISBN   9781908916501.
  9. ↑ Semidetko, Vladimir (January 2008). "ХАРЬКОВСКАЯ КАТАСТРОФА МАЯ 1942 ГОДА" [The Kharkov Disaster May 1942]. historia.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  10. ↑ Forczyk, Robert (2013-04-23). Kharkov 1942: The Wehrmacht Strikes Back. Osprey Publishing. p. 75. ISBN   9781780961576.
  11. ↑ "103-я (ф. 1941) стрелковая дивизия -" [103rd (1941) Rifle Division – Home of the Club "Memory" Voronezh State University]. samsv.narod.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  12. ↑ "103-я стрелковая дивизия" [103rd Rifle Division]. rkka.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  13. ↑ "103-я стрелковая дивизия" [103rd Rifle Division]. rkka.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  14. ↑ "Стрелковые 91–105 |" [Rifle 91–105]. myfront.in.ua (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2018-01-05. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  15. ↑ Feskov et al 2013, p. 565
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.