Col. A. K. Berestov Col. F. N. Smekhotvorov Mjr. Gen. A. G. Frolenkov
Military unit
The 193rd Tank Division was originally a Red Armyinfantry division that was reorganised after World War II as a mechanised and then a tank division of the Soviet Army.
The original 193rd Rifle Division was established in the Kharkov Military District on March 14, 1941. By June 22 it was still forming near Kamenka in the Kiev Military District and its order of battle was as follows:
The division, commanded by Colonel A.K. Berestov, joined with the 195th and 200th Rifle Divisions to form the 31st Rifle Corps. At the onset of the German invasion this corps was under direct command of the Kiev Special Military District, soon renamed Southwestern Front, and was positioned in the second echelon southeast of Sarny.[3] On June 28 the Corps was assigned to 5th Army and the 193rd went into battle at Rozhits and Kivertsy. By July 8 it was down to 3,500 men and less than 35 guns and mortars of all types. On August 19, as 5th Army began its retreat, the division had only 600 men remaining; the following week it took in reservists and volunteers to a total of 4,500 men, but was almost completely lacking heavy weapons. In September the 193rd was surrounded with 5th Army in the Kiev Pocket and destroyed. The division's number was officially stricken from the Soviet order of battle on Dec. 27.[4]
On 17 September the division, commanded by Col. F. N. Smekhotvorov, was assigned to the 62nd Army and fought during the Battle of Stalingrad. On 22 Sept., the 685th Regiment was ferried from the east to the west bank of the Volga into central Stalingrad and five nights later, on the 27th, the other two regiments joined it. The 883rd and 895th were deployed in the Red October factory complex. The following day, the 883rd was attacked by German tanks. Anti-tank riflemanMikhail Panikakha was attempting to defend his position with Molotov cocktails. A German bullet ignited one of his bombs, setting him alight. He then threw himself against a tank with his remaining bomb and destroyed it, at the cost of his own life.[6] Panikakha was posthumously made a Hero of the Soviet Union in 1990.
The division was mauled and pushed back in a fierce German attack on 1 Oct. A day later, it was defending the western part of the Red October Factory, which included the kitchens, the bath house and workers' flats; it also counter-attacked Hill 107.5.[7] The regiments, down to 200 men, were unequal to the task and were pushed back by German tanks and infantry. Chuikov, writing in 1963, said that between 13 and 20 Nov. the survivors of the 193rd Rifle Division (Smekhotvorov)[8] were consolidated into the 685th Rifle Regiment - the grand total was 250 soldiers.[9] However the historian John Erickson says that by 11 Nov. the division was reduced to 1,000 personnel.[10]
At 2300 hrs. on November 12, Col. Smekhotvorov received orders from Maj. Gen. N.I. Krylov, chief-of-staff of 62nd Army, to withdraw his divisional headquarters and those of its subordinate regiments to the east bank of the Volga. The composite regiment was subordinated to the 138th Rifle Division, and the divisional artillery likewise to the chief of 62nd Army's artillery. This order officially ended the division's participation in the battle.[11]
Kursk
The rebuilding division was assigned to the 65th Army (former 4th Tank Army) in February 1943; it was under the command of Lieutenant General Pavel Batov, part of Colonel General K. K. Rokossovski'sCentral Front. The 193rd would remain under these commanders for the duration of the war.[12] The Front was redeployed to the Kursk area, where the division, now with a strength of 9,000 troops,[13] made gains in a gap between the German 2nd Army and 2nd Panzer Army until German reserves brought the advance to a halt.[14] The 193rd remained in the Kursk salient through the following months, including Operation Zitadelle. At this time the division was part of the 27th Rifle Corps, and was commanded by Major General F. N. Zhobrev. Zhobrev was replaced by Colonel A. G. Frolenkov on Aug. 28.[15] Frolenkov was eventually promoted to Maj. Gen. and named a Hero of the Soviet Union;[16] he remained in command for the rest of the war.
After the German defeat at Kursk, the Red Army launched its first summer offensive. The 193rd staged a successful assault crossing of the Dnepr River on October 15, with divisional and army artillery firing 1,000 shells per minute in support.[12] For this action the division was awarded the honorific title Dnepr. In February 1944 the division received 1,700 replacements from the 218th Reserve Rifle Regiment,[17] but remained well understrength for some time. The 193rd was joined with the 354th Rifle Division in April to form the 105th Rifle Corps,[17] commanded by General D. F. Alekseev, where it would remain for the duration of the war.
Advance
As part of Rokossovski's 1st Belorussian Front, the 193rd took part in Operation Bagration, also known as the Destruction of Army Group Centre. The 193rd assisted the 354th in liberating the city of Bobruisk from the German 9th Army on 29 June 1944, and on 8 July was credited with liberating the city of Baranovichi.[17] Racing ahead, forward detachments of the division penetrated the Bialowiecz Forest, and onwards to the Western Bug River where it was temporarily halted in late July by counterattacks by the 5th SS Panzer Division (Wiking).[18] Continuing to advance, the depleted 65th Army managed to carve out a bridgehead over the Narev River, north of Warsaw between Serotsk and Pultusk, on 5 September.[19] This bridgehead was subjected to a major surprise counterattack by German forces on 5 October, but the 193rd was successful in helping to narrowly hold it.[20]
During the next three months the division was brought up to strength again, and on 14 January 1945 participated in the massive breakout of the now-renumbered 2nd Belorussian Front from the bridgehead.[21] The 193rd reached the Vistula River on 26 January, and participated in the liberation of Danzig (Gdańsk) at the end of March.[22] In a final series of operations, the division advanced to the Oder River and helped stage an assault crossing beginning on 20 April near Stettin. The city officials surrendered to the 193rd at dawn on 26 April.[23]
By 1955 the division was reflagged as the 22nd Mechanized Division, and in 1957 was reflagged again as the 36th Tank Division. The division was restored to its World War II number - the 193rd Tank Division, on 11 January 1965 4.[24]
In 1991-2 the 193rd Tank Division incorporated the 251st, 262nd, 264th Tank, 297th Motor Rifle, 852nd Artillery (Self-propelled), 929th Anti-Aircraft Rocket Regiments, 52nd Reconnaissance Battalion, and other non-combat units.
The 193rd Tank Division was stationed at Bobruisk (Киселевичи "Бобруйск-25", Kiselevichi) in the Belorussian Military District with the 5th Guards Tank Army. In 1991 it became the 193rd Base for Storage of Weapons & Equipment (although the number needs confirmation); it came under the Armed Forces of Belarus in March 1992. It was disbanded some years later.
↑ Charles S. Sharp, "Red Legions", Soviet Rifle Divisions Formed Before June 1942, Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. VIII, Nafziger, 1996, p 93
↑ Artem Drabkin and Alexei Isaev, Barbarossa Through Soviet Eyes, trans. C. Summerville, Pen & Sword Books, Ltd., Barnsley, UK, 2012, pp xiii, 178
↑ Charles C. Sharp, "Red Swarm", Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. X, 1996, p 75. Note that Sharp misnumbers two of the rifle regiments, although he gives them correctly in "Red Legions". They are also given as stated here in other sources such as Smekhotvorov and Chuikov.
↑ David M. Glantz, Armageddon in Stalingrad, University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2009, p. 660. Glantz states that the composite regiment numbered 289 men on this date.
Guards units marked in bold unless they are in a Guards section.
Related Research Articles
The Russian Naval Infantry, often referred to as Russian Marines in the West, operate as the naval infantry of the Russian Navy. Established in 1705, they are capable of conducting amphibious operations as well as operating as more traditional light infantry.
The 8th Guards Order of Lenin Combined Arms Army is an army of the Russian Ground Forces, headquartered in Novocherkassk, Rostov Oblast, within Russia′s Southern Military District, that was reinstated in 2017 as a successor to the 8th Guards Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army, which was formed during World War II and was disbanded in 1998 after being downsized into a corps. Military Unit в/ч 61877.
The Russian 201st Military Base is a Russian military base based in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, part of the Central Military District. It was originally raised twice in World War II as part of the Soviet Union's Red Army and is now part of the Russian Ground Forces.
The Russian 102nd Military Base is a Russian military base in Gyumri, Armenia, under the command of the Southern Military District of the Russian Armed Forces.
The 2nd Guards M. I. Kalinin Taman Motor Rifle Division, commonly known as the Tamanians or Taman Division, is a Guards mechanised infantry division of the Russian Ground Forces. Its Military Unit Number is 23626.
The 59th Guards Kramatorsk Order of Red Banner, Order of Suvorov, Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Motor-Rifle Division of the Soviet Union's Red Army was initially formed near Krasnodar in March 1942 as the 197th Rifle Division. On the division's formation Colonel M. I. Zaporozhchenko took command, who stayed with the division until February 1943. Its second commander was Major-General G. P. Karamyshev from February 1943 up to the end of the war.
The 62nd Army was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War.
The 9th Bobruisk-Berlin Red Banner Order of Suvorov Tank Division was the designation of two separate formations of the Soviet Army. The original 9th Tank Division was formed in 1940 and later reorganized into a different division. During World War II, the Soviet Army formed the 9th Tank Corps, which was renamed the 9th Tank Division after the defeat of Germany in 1945. This second instance of the 9th Tank Division served with the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany from 1945 until about 1991, when it was disbanded.
The 120th Guards Mechanised Brigade is a mechanised infantry brigade of the Belarus Ground Forces. It is the heir to the traditions of the Red Army 120th Guards Rifle Division which became the 120th Guards Motor Rifle Division in 1957.
The Northwestern Operational Command (SZOK) is a command of the Belarus Ground Forces. It is headquartered at Borisov and is commanded by Major General Alexander Volfovich. The command includes a mechanized brigade and a mixed artillery brigade. It was formed in 2001 from the 65th Army Corps.
The 161st Stanislav Red Banner Order of Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Mechanised Brigade was a brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces from 1993 to 2003.
Mikhail Averyanovich Panikakha was a Red Army soldier. He was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for destroying a German tank with two Molotov cocktails while on fire during the Battle of Stalingrad.
The 354th Rifle Division was raised in 1941 as a standard Red Army rifle division, and served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. It took part in the defense of Moscow and the winter counteroffensive of 1941–42, and then in the costly battles around the German salient near Rzhev. It also served in the defensive battle of Kursk and the summer offensive that followed in 1943. The division distinguished itself in at least three battles. It was credited with the liberation of the town of Kalinkovichi on January 14, 1944, and shared credit with other formations for the liberation of Bobruisk during Operation Bagration. It also played the leading role in the defense of 65th Army's bridgehead over the Narev River in October, 1944. During the final offensives into Germany in 1945 it advanced through Poland and Pomerania and ended the war near Stettin. The 354th compiled a highly distinguished record of service, but nevertheless was disbanded in June, 1946.
The 138th Rifle Division was twice formed as an infantry division of the Red Army, first as part of the buildup of forces immediately after the start of World War II in Europe. The first formation was based on the shtat of September 13, 1939 and under this organization it took part in the Winter War against Finland, arriving at the front north of Leningrad in December and performing so capably in the battles in early 1940 that it was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. Following this it was converted to serve for two years as a mountain rifle division in the Caucasus region. Following Operation Barbarossa and the German invasion of the Crimea elements of the division were committed to amphibious landings behind enemy lines in early 1942 but these proved abortive. Soon after the 138th was converted back to a standard rifle division. Arriving on the southern approaches to Stalingrad in late July the division fought on the approaches to the city through August and into September before it was assigned to 62nd Army and shipped into the factory district in mid-October. Well into November it played a leading role in defending the Barricades (Barrikady) ordnance factory, eventually becoming isolated in a thin strip of land between the factory and the Volga which became known as "Lyudnikov's Island" after its commanding officer. Following the Soviet counteroffensive that encircled the German 6th Army and other Axis forces in and near Stalingrad the division restored contact with the rest of its Army and then helped eliminate its trapped foes, for which it was raised to Guards status as the 70th Guards Rifle Division.
The 284th Rifle Division began service as a standard Red Army rifle division shortly after the German invasion. Moved to the front soon after, it helped defend the Soviet lines west of the Ukrainian capital for more than a month, but was then destroyed in the encirclement of Kiev. A new division was formed in early 1942. It served in the early fighting against the German summer offensive of 1942 until its losses forced it to be withdrawn for rebuilding. In September it was redeployed, and played a leading role in defending the northern part of the central city and Mamayev Kurgan hill in the Battle of Stalingrad, and later in the reduction of the trapped German 6th Army during Operation Ring, for which it was raised to Guards status as the 79th Guards Rifle Division shortly after the battle ended. A third 284th was raised a few months later. It served on the quiet fronts of the Far East for most of the rest of the war before fighting briefly against the Japanese in Manchuria in August, 1945. The unit continued to serve well into the postwar period under other designations.
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 47th Guards Nizhnedneprovskaya Red Banner Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Tank Division, is a tank division of the Russian Ground Forces.
The 214th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed in the months just before the start of the German invasion, based on the shtat of September 13, 1939. It was moved to the fighting front to join 22nd Army in late June and took part in the fighting between Vitebsk and Nevel in early July, escaping from encirclement in the process, and then played a significant role in the liberation of Velikiye Luki, the first Soviet city to be retaken from the invading armies. In October it was again encircled near Vyasma during Operation Typhoon and was soon destroyed.
The 15th Guards Mozyr Red Banner Order of Suvorov Tank Division was a tank division of the Soviet Army during the Cold War that became part of the Russian Ground Forces after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The 196th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed as part of the prewar buildup of forces, based on the shtat of September 13, 1939. It began forming just months before the German invasion in the Odessa Military District. When the German invasion began it was in the 7th Rifle Corps, in the District reserves. The Corps was soon moved to the reserves of Southwestern Front, and by mid-July the division had joined 26th Army as a separate division. It took part in battles on both sides of the Dniepr River during August until it was finally encircled and destroyed in September, although it remained on the books of the Red Army until December.
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.
Mjr. Gen. A. G. Frolenkov
