307th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)

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307th Rifle Division (12 July 1941 – 30 December 1945)
Active1941–1945
CountryFlag of the USSR (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union
Branch Red Army flag.svg Red Army
TypeDivision
RoleInfantry
Engagements Battle of Smolensk
Battle of Moscow
Battle of Kursk
Operation Kutuzov
Battle of the Dniepr
Gomel-Rechitsa Offensive
Operation Bagration
Battle of Königsberg
Decorations Order of Red Banner.svg   Order of the Red Banner

Order of Suvorov 2nd class.png   Order of Suvorov

Order Kutuzov 2.png   Order of Kutuzov
Battle honours Novozybkov
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Col. Vasilii Grigorevich Terentev
Maj. Gen. Georgii Semyonovich Lazko
Maj. Gen. Mikhail Yenshin
Maj. Gen. Vasilii Nikitich Dalmatov

The 307th 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. The division distinguished itself in the intense defensive fighting around the village of Ponyri during the Battle of Kursk. It was credited with the liberation of the town of Novozybkov on 25 September 1943. After battling its way through eastern Belarus during the autumn and winter of 1943–44, and then helping complete its liberation during Operation Bagration, it was moved to East Prussia, where it took part in the Battle of Königsberg in the spring of 1945, ending the war on the Baltic coast near the Zemland Peninsula. In the course of these campaigns the 307th compiled a battle record to rival a Guards unit (which it narrowly missed out on) but was nevertheless disbanded on the second-last day of 1945.

Contents

Formation

The division began organizing at Ivanovo in the Moscow Military District on 12 July 1941, and was at the front by the middle of the next month. Its order of battle was as follows:

Col. Vasilii Grigorevich Terentev was the first divisional commander assigned. The 307th was very quickly moved to the front, arriving in 13th Army of Bryansk Front at Starodub by 15 August. The division would remain in that Front, apart from one month, until March 1943, and in that Army until July of the same year. During this entire period the division remained in the same general part of the front, between Voronezh and Tula-Oryol. [2] When it first arrived at the front, the division operated as a separate formation, but by 1 September it had been subordinated to 45th Rifle Corps. [3]

Gen. A.I. Yeryomenko, the Army commander, began ordering counterstrokes on 27 August against German forces of Second Panzer Group that had recently captured Starodub. Over the following weeks the rifle divisions of 13th Army launched numerous attacks with limited armor support against the German flank in what was clearly an uneven contest to try to disrupt the enemy armored drive south to encircle the Red Army forces defending Kiev. In these actions the 45th Rifle Corps made little progress while suffering significant losses, and on 7 September Yeryomenko wrote:

"At that time, the [enemy] units conducting the offensive along the Starodub axis began a meeting engagement with 269th, 282nd, 155th, and 307th Rifle Divisions along the Sudost' River line. Unable to withstand the attack by the motorized corps, these divisions began withdrawing in disorder behind the Desna River, while suffering heavy losses." [4]

13th Army was too far south to be caught up in Operation Typhoon, but instead was gradually pushed eastward during October and November by the south flank forces of Army Group Center until it reached the area of Yelets. On 5 November, Colonel Terentev handed command of the division to Col. Grigorii Semyonovich Lazko. After the German advance was halted at Moscow, Marshal S.K. Timoshenko led a counteroffensive by 3rd and 13th Armies against those same forces, driving them westward during December. [5] During 1942 the front in this sector was stable, with both sides committing their major forces elsewhere. This changed in the aftermath of Stalingrad. Soviet formations on the southern half of the front exploited the victory by thrusting westward, and on 12 February 1943, the 307th was pushing northwards from the area of Kursk in the general direction of Oryol, but a week later had been brought to a halt. [6]

As was the case with many other successful Red Army formations during this period, the division was considered for elevation to Guards status, but the following report from the chief of the 13th Army's political department dashed that chance:

"In connection with the proposed award of a guards banner to the 307th Rifle Division... I consider it my duty to report to you that, in my opinion, the state of affairs in the division and the course of its combat operations at present do not provide a sufficient basis for the award of that high status, since, from 13 to 21 February... the division has not fulfilled even one of its assigned missions... The required organization, precision, and vigilance is absent in the division's headquarters, units, and subunits... The division inadequately displays concern about the skillful fulfillment of combat missions... and, as a result... units are suffering excessive personnel losses... The division commander, Comrade Lazko, displays considerable conceit, [excessive] self-confidence, and unnecessary arrogance; he keeps distant from his units and the command cadre, he always "leads" from his office... Military discipline is not at the required level. There have been instances of drunkenness and dissipation among the command cadre... The division's rear services function exceptionally poorly. The soldiers in a number of subunits have not received bread or sugar in several days... They have not changed their underclothing for a long time, many are lice-ridden, and recently 16 instances of typhus were registered. The division commander displays complete indifference to all these outrages and deficiencies." – Major General Popov [7]

Even this scathing report did not prevent Lazko from being promoted to the rank of Major General on 22 February. The division would miss out on the distinction of Guard status, but would compile a worthy record nevertheless, beginning with its next battle.

Battle of Kursk

The 307th's February advance came to a halt several kilometres north of the village of Ponyri. During the following months the division fortified its positions, first as a matter of course, then more intensively as Stavka began to expect a German summer offensive against the Kursk salient. Stavka was entirely correct. [8] In March, 13th Army was transferred to Gen K.K. Rokossovsky's Central Front. Just days before the battle began, General Lazko was replaced by Maj. Gen. Mikhail Yenshin, and the division became part of the second echelon of the 29th Rifle Corps. [9] As the battle began on 5 July, the 307th strongly contested elements of the German 9th Army, particularly the 9th and 18th Panzer Divisions, both in the village and Hill 253.5 on its outskirts in what was described as the "Stalingrad of the Kursk Salient". Counter-attacks by elements of the division were backed by the 129th Tank Brigade and the 1454th SU Regiment (SU-122s). [10] The highest ground was denied to the Germans by the 1023rd Rifle Regiment. Back-and-forth fighting went on for several days, and while the Soviet forces were not able to immediately retake the village, the German thrust had been stymied far short of its goal, with significant losses, giving the Red Army, and the 307th, the victory, also at a large cost. [11]

Advance

Following the German defeat at Kursk, Central Front began advancing westward out of the salient. On 21 July, the 307th was transferred to the 70th Army, and about a month later to the 48th Army, moving to the 42nd Rifle Corps. [12] During the Front's advance westwards towards the Dniepr the division distinguished itself in the liberation of the city of Novozybkov:

"NOVOZYBKOV – Liberated on 25 September 1943 by troops of Central Front in the Bryansk and Chernigov-Pripyat operation... 307th Rifle Division (Maj. Gen. Yenshin, Mikhail Alexsandrovich)... By order of the Supreme High Command is given this name." [13]

Battles for Belarus

By the start of October, Rokossovski's Front had arrived along the Sozh River, as well as part of the Dniepr south of the Sozh. His next objectives were the cities of Gomel and Rechitsa. The preliminary plan for the offensive called for 65th Army's 19th Rifle Corps to begin an attack against the German XXXV Army Corps' defenses at Gomel on 7 October. Following a regrouping, 48th Army's 307th, 102nd and 194th Rifle Divisions would join the offensive as soon as possible, with the other four divisions of the Army to follow. This regrouping transferred the first three divisions into the bridgehead at Loev (the confluence of the Dniepr and the Sozh) between 8 and 14 October. Soon after this the 307th was moved to the 42nd Rifle Corps, which was in the first echelon on a 5-kilometre-wide sector between the village of Bushatin and the Dniepr. [14]

The Gomel-Rechitsa Offensive was launched from the Loev bridgehead early on 10 November on a front of 38 km. In three days of fighting the forces of 48th and 65th Armies managed to tear a gap 15-kilometres wide and from 8 – 12-kilometres deep in the German defenses, and were halfway to Rechitsa. By 16 November the 307th had reached as far as Sviridovichi. Over the next four days, 42nd Corps drove XXXV Corps back into Rechitsa, and on 20 November the Germans evacuated the city, crossing to the east bank of the Dniepr under pressure from the rifle Corps and 1st Guards Tank Corps to the north. Army Group Center's southern defenses were in a state of crisis by this point, and Ninth Army had been forced out of Gomel. As the German retreat continued, 42nd Corps also crossed the Dniepr and linked up with the rest of 48th Army. [15]

In December the division was transferred to 29th Rifle Corps, still in 48th Army. [16] In January, Rokossovsky planned another offensive to continue his drive towards Parichi and, in the best case, Bobruisk. Beginning on 16 January, 29th and 42nd Corps, along with a corps of 65th Army and backed by two separate tank regiments and the SU-76s of 1897th SU Regiment, [17] were to attack on a 15-kilometre-wide sector from Shatsilki on the Berezina River southwestward to Zherd Station on the Shatsilki – Kalinkovichi rail line. They faced the German 253rd Infantry Division and roughly half of the 36th Infantry Division. On the overall attack sector the Red Army had, with reserves, about a 3 to 1 advantage in infantry, but was weak in armor. The 307th was on the right of its Corps, east of Shatsilki. From the outset, the two Rifle Corps struggled to penetrate the German forward defenses. After six days of intense fighting, 48th Army's shock group managed to advance between five and ten kilometres on a front of roughly 20 km. Shatsilki fell to the 217th Rifle Division on 21 January, and the rest of 29th Corps was regrouped and ordered to attack northward toward Chirkovichi and Molcha, 8–13 km northwest of Shatsilki, beginning on 24 January. [18]

This renewed attack caught the Germans off-balance as they were preparing new defenses. In four more days of heavy fighting the 307th captured the German strongpoint at Repishche. Then, with flank support from the 73rd and 137th Rifle Divisions, it forced the 253rd Infantry to retreat with most of its remaining forces to the Chirka River. By day's end on 27 January the most advanced elements of 48th Army were just 15 km from the outskirts of Parichi. But this had come at a cost, and Rokossovsky called a temporary halt on that date, with the offensive to resume on 2 February. The new effort made only limited gains in four days of combat, and another halt was called on 6 February. On those last two days the division took in 1,500 infantry replacements from the Far East. [19] Shortly thereafter the 307th was shifted to 25th Rifle Corps, which was holding the line along the Berezina. On 24 February, following a short but intense artillery preparation, 25th Corps launched an attack across the river. The division was in the center on the Iashchitsy sector and almost immediately ran into enemy strongpoints at Dubrova and Antonovka which were only overcome after three days of hard fighting; the flanking divisions faced the same sort of difficulties. Early on the 26th the battle was reinforced by two divisions of 53rd Rifle Corps, specifically by 41st Rifle Division on the 307th's sector, and by the next day the strongpoints were taken and the German 45th Infantry Division was falling back to an intermediate line 4 – 10 km to the rear. The 307th pursued towards Korotkovichi but bogged down there in the new German defenses. This offensive was halted on 29 February after an advance of from 2 – 18 km on a 20 km front. This marked the end of Rokossovsky's winter offensives. [20]

In March the division was transferred to the 19th Rifle Corps of 50th Army, [21] still in the 1st Belorussian Front, but in April, the 50th Army was itself transferred to 2nd Belorussian Front in the buildup to Operation Bagration. From April until July the division was not assigned to any corps. [22] On the third day of Bagration, Maj. Gen. Vasilii Nikitich Dalmatov took command of the division from General Yenshin, and would remain in that post for the duration of the war; at the same time, Yenshin took over Dalmatov's 362nd Rifle Division. On 9 July the 307th was released to 49th Army from Front reserve. It was tasked, along with 38th Rifle Corps and five other separate rifle divisions, plus three NKVD border regiments, to methodically comb through the forested areas east of Minsk with light air support. This was a search and destroy mission against enemy groups that had not yet surrendered. This operation ended on 13 July, [23] after which the division returned to 50th Army. The 307th would remain in 50th Army for the duration, for most of that time in the 81st Rifle Corps. [24] On 1 September the division was recognized for its role in the Osovets Offensive with the award of the Order of Suvorov, 2nd Class. [25]

Into Germany

In February 1945, 50th Army was shifted to 3rd Belorussian Front as the war was grinding to a halt in East Prussia. The division would take part in the Siege of Königsberg, and would later join the Zemland Group of Forces, clearing the remaining German elements from the Baltic coast. [26] On 5 April, the day before the final battle for the city began, the division was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the capture of Biała Piska and other nearby towns, and its general record of service. [27] On the same day, it was also awarded the Order of Kutuzov, 2nd degree, for its role in the capture of Wormditt, Melzak, and the surrounding area. [28] When the war ended, the men and women of the division carried a title to rival most Guards divisions: 307th Rifle, Novozybkov, Order of the Red Banner, Order of Suvorov, Order of Kutuzov Division. (Russian: 307-я стрелковая Новозыбковская Краснознамённая орденов Суворова и Кутузова дивизия.)

Postwar

The division was moved to the Kiev Military District, where the corps disbanded on 30 December 1945. The division was disbanded either before or around that date. [29]

Notes

  1. ↑ Charles C. Sharp, "Red Tide", Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. IX, Nafziger, 1996, p. 70
  2. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  3. ↑ David M. Glantz, Barbarossa Derailed, Vol. 2, Helion & Co., Ltd., Solihull, UK, 2012, pp. 116, 406
  4. ↑ Glantz, Barbarossa Derailed, Vol. 2, p. 485
  5. ↑ Michael Jones, The Retreat: Hitler's First Defeat, John Murray (Publishers), London, 2009, pp. 142, 175
  6. ↑ Glantz, After Stalingrad, Helion & Co., Ltd., Solihull, UK, 2009, pp. 249, 270
  7. ↑ Glantz, After Stalingrad, pp. 272–73
  8. ↑ Robin Cross, The Battle of Kursk, Penguin Books, London, 1993, p. 91
  9. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  10. ↑ Vasiliy Krysov, Panzer Destroyer, trans. V. Kroupnik, ed. Stuart Britton, Pen & Sword Books, Ltd., Barnsley, UK, 2010, p. 40
  11. ↑ Cross, pp. 187–88. Note that Cross misnames the 1023rd Rifle Regiment as the 1032nd. The latter regiment was in the 293rd Rifle Division.
  12. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  13. ↑ http://www.soldat.ru/spravka/freedom/1-ssr-4.html. Recovered September 25, 2017
  14. ↑ Glantz, Battle for Belorussia, University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2016, pp. 103–04, 106, 175, 179
  15. ↑ Glantz, Battle for Belorussia, pp. 181–86, 200
  16. ↑ Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1944, p. 14
  17. ↑ Sharp, "Red Hammers", Soviet Self-Propelled Artillery and Lend Lease Armor 1941 – 1945, Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. XII, Nafziger, 1998, p. 91
  18. ↑ Glantz, Battle for Belorussia, pp. 482–86, 490
  19. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  20. ↑ Glantz, Battle for Belorussia, pp. 491–92, 499, 504, 517–21
  21. ↑ Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1944, p. 101
  22. ↑ Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1944, pp. 131, 162, 192
  23. ↑ Soviet General Staff, Operation Bagration, ed. & trans. R.W. Harrision, Helion & Co., Ltd., Solihull, UK, 2016, Kindle ed., vol. 2, pt. 1, ch. 4
  24. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  25. ↑ Affairs Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union 1967a, p. 476.
  26. ↑ Sharp, "Red Tide", p. 70
  27. ↑ Affairs Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union 1967a, p. 77.
  28. ↑ Affairs Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union 1967a, p. 56.
  29. ↑ Feskov et al. 2013, p. 478.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">369th Rifle Division</span> Military unit

The 369th Rifle Division began forming on 1 August 1941, as a standard Red Army rifle division, in the Chelyabinsk Oblast. After forming, it was assigned to the 39th Army which soon became part of Kalinin Front, and it participated in the near-encirclement of the German 9th Army around Rzhev in the winter counteroffensive of 1941-42. In late January 1942, it was transferred to the 29th Army of the same Front, which was very soon after encircled by German forces near Sychevka, and while it was written off by German intelligence in February, enough of the division escaped that it was not officially disbanded. By August it returned to battle, now in 30th Army of Western Front, still fighting near Rzhev. After the salient was finally evacuated in the spring of 1943 the division was moved to Bryansk Front, first in 11th Army and then in 50th Army, under which it served for most of the war. In the summer counteroffensive the 369th was awarded the battle honor "Karachev" for its part in the liberation of that city. At the start of Operation Bagration the division was in 2nd Belorussian Front and its commander, Maj. Gen. I. S. Lazarenko, was killed a few days later; despite this loss it was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for its successful crossing of the Dniepr River and the liberation of Mogilev. The division continued to advance through Belarus and into Poland and eastern Germany over the following months, but despite a fine record of service was disbanded soon after the German surrender.

The 375th Rifle Division was raised in 1941 as an infantry division of the Red Army, and served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. It began forming in August 1941 in the Urals Military District. It reached the fighting front in December, coming under command of the 29th Army in the vicinity of the Rzhev salient and it took part in the bloody and tragic battles for this heavily-fortified position until March 1943, mostly as part of 30th Army. Following the German evacuation of the salient the 375th got a brief spell in reserve before being reassigned to Voronezh Front in the buildup to the Battle of Kursk. When the offensive began it held a crucial sector on the extreme left flank of 6th Guards Army where the II SS Panzer Corps attempted to break through south of the salient. Following the German defeat the division joined in the counteroffensive towards Kharkov in August and won its first battle honor. It continued to advance through Ukraine and into Romania over the next eight months, being brought to a halt east of Iași in the spring of 1944. In late August the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts crushed the defending German and Romanian forces, and on the last day of the month the 375th played a leading role in the capture of the Romanian capital, Bucharest; it won its second battle honor and two of its rifle regiments were awarded decorations. For the duration of the war the division fought its way through Romania and Hungary, finally advancing into Austria with 7th Guards Army. Its record of admirable service was capped with the award of the Order of the Red Banner soon following the German surrender, but it was nevertheless disbanded shortly thereafter.

The 12th Guards Rifle Division was reformed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in January 1942, based on the 1st formation of the 258th Rifle Division and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. It was in 50th Army when it was redesignated but was soon assigned to the 49th Army, then to the 10th Army and finally to the 16th Army near the end of that month. In June it was assigned to the 9th Guards Rifle Corps of 61st Army where it remained almost continually for the duration of the war, serving under several Front commands but always on the central sector of the front. During the summer offensive in 1943 it fought through western Russia and into Belarus during the winter campaigns there. Along with the rest of 61st Army it took part in the second stage of Operation Bagration in the summer of 1944, advancing into the Pripyat marshes region, winning a battle honor and shortly thereafter the Order of the Red Banner. After a short time in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command it was moved to the 3rd Baltic and later the 1st Baltic Front driving into Latvia and Lithuania, being decorated with the Order of Suvorov for its part in the liberation of Riga. In December it was returned to the 1st Belorussian Front and took part in the offensives that propelled the Red Army into Poland and eastern Germany. After the fall of Berlin the division advanced to the Elbe River where it linked up with the US 84th Infantry Division. Following the German surrender it was disbanded in July 1946.

The 217th 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 formed at Voronezh and was considered a "sister" to the 222nd Rifle Division. When Operation Barbarossa began it was in 28th Army but soon after moving to the front it helped form the 43rd Army before being reassigned to 50th Army in Bryansk Front. After barely escaping disbandment during Operation Typhoon it took part in the defense of Tula; in the following counteroffensive one of its rifle regiments was so reduced by casualties that it had to be replaced by a Tula militia regiment. During the rest of 1942 and into 1943 it served in a largely defensive role as part of 49th Army and 16th Army although it took part in one abortive offensive in March 1943 north of Zhizdra. It remained in the latter Army when it was redesignated 11th Guards and fought under its command in the July-August offensive against the German-held Oryol salient before being transferred to 11th Army and winning an honorific in the advance through western Russia. In recognition of its role in the battle for Gomel it was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After winter battles in eastern Belarus the 217th played leading roles in the liberation of Zhlobin and Bobruisk in the early stages of Operation Bagration as part of 48th Army. During the Vistula-Oder offensive it took part in the liberation of Mława and then crossed into the western part of East Prussia, winning the rare distinction of the Order of Lenin in the process. It ended the war in East Prussia and remained in the Königsberg area until the spring of 1946 when it was converted to the 3rd Rifle Brigade.

References

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