| 55th Army | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1941–1943 |
| Country |  Soviet Union |
| Branch | Red Army |
| Type | Combined arms |
| Part of | Leningrad Front |
| Engagements | World War II |
The 55th Army was a field army of the Red Army during World War II. It was part of the Leningrad Front and was formed on 1 September 1941. The army fought in the Sinyavino Offensive, Lyuban Offensive Operation and the Battle of Krasny Bor. On 25 December 1943, it was combined with the 67th Army. [1] [2]
The 55th Army was formed on 1 September 1941 as part of the Leningrad Front. It was formed from the Task Force of Major General I.G. Lazarev and the 19th Rifle Corps headquarters. The army fought in the Leningrad Strategic Defensive Operation. At the time, it was the largest of the four armies defending Leningrad, with up to half of the active formations. [3] Using the defenses of the Slutsk-Kolpino Fortified Area, the army defended Leningrad's southern approaches in the area of Kolpino, Krasnogvardeysk, Zaborje, Vyritsa, the Izhora River and the Tosna River. Its units stopped the German advance [4] at Putrolovo (ru), Bolshoye Kuzmino, Novaya and Verkhneye Kuzmino. From October 1941 to December 1942, the army carried out local offensives to improve its positions. In November, Vladimir Sviridov replaced Lazarev. [2] On 20 December the army began an attack at Mga, later joined by the 54th Army, to distract from the upcoming Lyuban Offensive Operation but was unsuccessful. [5] On 23 July 1942 a rifle division and a tank brigade of the army attacked the SS Polizei Division south of Kolpino. The attack made some gains. [6] On 26 September elements of two of the army's rifle divisions were sent across the Neva to reinforce the encircled 8th Army. After losing two of three bridgeheads, the 55th Army units withdrew across the Neva. [7]
In February 1943, the army fought in the Battle of Krasny Bor. The army was the left pincer of the offensive and was to attack out of Kolpino and destroy the Blue Division at Krasny Bor, then advance southeast to Tosno. A division-size attack on 8 February forced several Blue Division outposts back. On 10 February, the 55th Army attacked simultaneously with the 54th Army. The 55th Army attacked along a front of 14 kilometers, concentrating three rifle division and a tank brigade against one regiment of the Blue Division. The Soviet troops broke through the Spanish line and the army's 63rd Guards Rifle Division advanced into and captured Krasny Bor. On the army's left, its 43rd Rifle Division attacked a regiment of the SS Polizei Division, but was unable to advance. German reinforcements arrived and formed a new defensive line south of Krasny Bor, stopping the advance of the 55th Army. The army brought up its tank units and resumed the offensive towards Mishkino (ru) on 17 February but was again repulsed by Tiger tanks of Panzer-Abteilung 502. [8] During the offensive, the army advanced five kilometers and suffered more than 10,000 casualties. The army inflicted 3,645 casualties on the Blue Division. On 19 March, the army attacked again in conjunction with the 8th Army, but was forced to retreat by counterattacks from Legion Flandern and Panzer-Abteilung 502. [9] On 25 December 1943, the army was combined with the 67th Army. [2]
On 1 September 1941, the army contained the following units. [1]
The Battle of Krasny Bor was part of the Soviet offensive Operation Polyarnaya Zvezda in the Eastern Front of World War II. It called for a pincer attack near Leningrad to build on the success of Operation Iskra and completely lift the siege of Leningrad, in the process encircling a substantial part of the German 18th Army. The offensive near the town of Krasny Bor formed the western arm of the pincer. The Soviet offensive began on Wednesday, 10 February 1943, and produced noticeable gains on the first day but rapidly became a stalemate. The strong defense by the Spanish Blue Division and the German SS Polizei Division gave the German forces time to reinforce their positions. By February 13, the Soviet forces had ceased their offensive in this sector.
The 2nd Shock Army, sometimes translated to English as 2nd Assault Army, was a field army of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. This type of formation was created in accordance with prewar doctrine that called for Shock Armies to overcome difficult defensive dispositions in order to create a tactical penetration of sufficient breadth and depth to permit the commitment of mobile formations for deeper exploitation. However, as the war went on, Shock Armies lost this specific role and reverted, in general, to ordinary frontline formations.
The 42nd Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army, created in 1941.
The Red Army's 54th Army was a Soviet field army during the Second World War. It was first formed in the Leningrad Military District in August, 1941, and continued in service in the northern sector of the Soviet-German front until the end of 1944. It spent much of the war attempting to break the German siege of Leningrad, in which it helped to achieve partial success in January, 1943, and complete success one year later. During these operations the soldiers of the 54th served under five different commanders, most notably Col. Gen. Ivan Fedyuninsky in the winter of 1941–42. After helping to drive Army Group North away from Leningrad and into the Baltic states in the first nine months of 1944, the army was deemed surplus to requirements on the narrowing front, and was officially disbanded on the last day of the year.
The 67th Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army. The 67th Army was formed in October 1942 on the Leningrad Front from the Neva Operational Group. It defended the right bank of the Neva River, holding the Nevsky Pyatachok and covering the Road of Life. In January 1943 the army fought in Operation Iskra. In late December, the army was combined with 55th Army. The 67th Army headquarters was disbanded and 55th Army headquarters was renamed 67th Army headquarters. Between January and March 1944 67th Army fought in the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive, in which it captured Mga and Luga. In April the army became part of the 3rd Baltic Front and fought in the Pskov-Ostrov Offensive in July and the Tartu Offensive in August and September. The army fought in the Riga Offensive in September and October. The army then fought to eliminate the Courland Pocket. After the end of the war the army was disbanded during the summer of 1945.
The 68th Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army. It was formed in February 1943 from the headquarters of the 57th Army and fought in the Battle of Demyansk (1943) and the Staraya-Russa Offensive (1943), part of Operation Polyarnaya Zvezda. After spending several months in reserve, the army fought in the Battle of Smolensk (1943) between August and October. The army was disbanded in November and its troops became part of the 5th Army.
The 25th Mechanized Corps was a Mechanized corps of the Red Army. Formed in March 1941, the corps fought in the Battle of Smolensk. Its headquarters and that of the 20th Rifle Corps were combined in August 1941 to form the Bryansk Front headquarters.
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.
The 11th Mechanized Corps was a mechanized corps of the Red Army, formed twice. The corps was first formed as one of the original two Red Army mechanized corps from the 11th Rifle Division in Leningrad. In 1934 it was transferred to the Transbaikal Military District and in 1938 became the 20th Tank Corps. The corps was reformed in March 1941 in western Belarus. After the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the understrength corps was destroyed in the Battle of Białystok–Minsk.
The 378th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army that began forming in August 1941 in the Siberian Military District, before being sent to the vicinity of Leningrad, where it spent most of the war. The soldiers of this division fought until early 1944 to break the siege and drive off the besieging German forces, distinguishing themselves in the liberation of Novgorod. Finally, the division was redeployed to advance into the Baltic states in 1944 and into East Prussia in the winter of 1945. As the war was ending the 378th was disbanded to provide replacements for other divisions. Nevertheless, it had compiled a very creditable combat record for any rifle division.
The 364th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army during World War II.
The 374th 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 Siberian Military District. It joined the fighting front in December with the new 59th Army along the Volkhov River and it continued to serve in the fighting near Leningrad until early 1944. The dismal fighting on this front gave little opportunity for a unit to distinguish itself, and the division did not finally earn a battle honor until late January 1944, during the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive. It continued to serve in the summer and autumn offensive through the Baltic States, becoming so reduced in strength that its remaining infantry was consolidated into a single understrength regiment which nevertheless won a battle honor in the liberation of Riga. The 374th ended the war in Latvia, helping to contain and reduce the German forces trapped in the Courland Pocket, and was disbanded shortly thereafter.
The 376th 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 Siberian Military District. It followed a very similar combat path to that of the 374th Rifle Division. It joined the fighting front in December with the new 59th Army along the Volkhov River and it continued to serve in the battles near Leningrad until early 1944. The division took horrendous casualties in the combat to create and hold open a passage to the 2nd Shock Army during the Lyuban Offensive and was itself partly or fully encircled at several times during this dismal fighting. The division finally left this region as it advanced during the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive in January 1944 and in July won a battle honor in the liberation of Pskov, while its 1250th Rifle Regiment was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. In October the 376th as a whole would also receive the Red Banner for its part in the liberation of Riga. The division ended the war in Latvia, helping to contain and reduce the German forces trapped in the Courland Pocket, and was reorganized as a rifle brigade shortly thereafter.
The 377th 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 followed a very similar combat path to that of the 374th and 376th Rifle Divisions. It joined the fighting front in December with the 4th Army, and then briefly came under command of 2nd Shock Army, but soon moved to the 59th Army along the Volkhov River, and continued to serve in this Army's battles near Leningrad until early 1944. The division took very heavy casualties during the Lyuban Offensive in several attempts to relieve the beleaguered 2nd Shock Army. After rebuilding the division held the Army's bridgehead over the Volkhov during 1943, and finally advanced during the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive in January 1944, taking part in the assault that liberated Novgorod. During the spring the division saw heavy fighting in the battles for Narva before moving south for the summer offensive into the Baltic states. In September it won a battle honor in the liberation of Valga, and in October also received the Order of the Red Banner for its part in the liberation of Riga. The division ended the war in Latvia, helping to contain and reduce the German forces trapped in the Courland Pocket, and was disbanded later in 1945.
The 382nd 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 on August 10 in the Siberian Military District. It joined the fighting front in December with the new 59th Army along the Volkhov River. Apart from a few weeks in 1944 the division served in either the Volkhov Front or the Leningrad Front for the entire war. It suffered horrendous casualties after being encircled in the swamps and forests near Lyuban and was severely understrength for many months afterwards while serving on a relatively quiet front. It remained in the line in the dismal fighting near Leningrad until early 1944 with little opportunity to distinguish itself, and the division did not finally earn a battle honor until late January, 1944, during the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive. Following this the division was moved to the Karelian Isthmus and entered the summer offensive against Finland in the reserves of Leningrad Front before being assigned to the 23rd Army. Following the Finnish surrender it was redeployed westward, helping to mop up pockets of enemy forces in the Baltic states in early 1945. The 382nd ended the war in Latvia, helping to contain and reduce the German forces trapped in the Courland Pocket, and was officially disbanded in February, 1946.
Alexander Vasilievich Sukhomlin was a Soviet military commander, reaching the rank of lieutenant general in the Red Army.
The 224th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed as one of the first reserve rifle divisions following the German invasion of the USSR. A large part of this first formation took part in amphibious landings near Kerch in late December 1941 but it was encircled and destroyed during the Battle of the Kerch Peninsula in May 1942.
The 225th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, formed in December 1941 from the remnants of the pre-war 3rd Tank Division and based on the shtat of July 29, 1941. The 3rd Tank's single rifle regiment was joined by two reserve rifle regiments, and its howitzer regiment was converted to a standard artillery regiment. As part of 52nd Army in Volkhov Front it took part in largely local fighting in the Novgorod area, seeing combat in several abortive attempts to retake the city until it finally played a main role in its liberation in January 1944 and received its name as a battle honor.
The 198th Rifle Division was formed as an infantry division of the Red Army after a motorized division of that same number was reorganized in the first months of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. It was based on the shtat of July 29, 1941, with several modifications. It entered combat as a rifle division during the Tikhvin Offensive in December 1941 as a reinforcement for 54th Army, helping to drive elements of Army Group North back to the Volkhov River from their earlier gains. It would remain near that river line into early 1944. During 1942 it took part in several abortive offensives in an effort to relieve the siege of Leningrad, suffering heavy losses in one of them. In 1943 it was mainly used for line-holding duties at a reduced establishment, in an area where German forces were strictly on the defensive. The 198th was brought back up to something approaching the current establishment by the start of 1944 and, during the offensive that finally drove Army Group North away from Leningrad, it helped to maintain the offensive's momentum following the initial breakthrough as part of 119th Rifle Corps. It was finally reassigned to 3rd Baltic Front's 67th Army in April after it was halted at the Panther Line near Pskov. In August it briefly returned to 54th Army during the advance through the Baltic States, and after the capture of Riga it remained in western Latvia for the duration of the war, serving under several commands, mostly the 42nd and 10th Guards Armies. It was one of the very few divisions that served throughout the war without receiving any battle honors or decorations. Despite this, the 198th continued its service, now in western Siberia, for another 10 years, before being redesignated as the 23rd Rifle Division.
The 177th Rifle Division was formed as an infantry division of the Red Army south of Leningrad in March 1941, based on the shtat of September 13, 1939. As Army Group North advanced on Leningrad the division, still incomplete, was rushed south to the Luga area. In mid-July it helped provide the initial resistance to the LVI Motorized Corps which set up the counterstroke at Soltsy, the first significant check of the German drive on Leningrad. In August the German offensive was intensified and the defenders of Luga were encircled and forced to escape northward, losing heavily in the process. A remnant of the 177th reached Leningrad, where it received enough replacements to again be marginally combat-effective. In October to was moved to the Neva River line as part of the Eastern Sector Operational Group. After briefly coming under command of 55th Army it was moved across Lake Ladoga to join 54th Army. It remained in this Army, as part of Volkhov Front, almost continuously until early 1944, serving west of the Volkhov River. It took part in the winter offensive that finally drove Army Group North away from Leningrad and earned a battle honor for the liberation of Lyuban, where part of it had been raised in 1941. Following this victory it was reassigned to 2nd Shock Army in Leningrad Front, and took part in the unsuccessful efforts to retake the city of Narva, before being removed to the Reserve of the Supreme High Command in April for further rebuilding and replenishment. It returned to the fighting front at the beginning of May in 21st Army facing Finland. At the outset of the final offensive against Finland it was in 23rd Army in the Karelian Isthmus. During this operation it advanced through the central part of the isthmus against determined Finnish resistance. The division remained facing Finland until early 1945, when it was moved to Latvia and spent the remainder of the war containing the German forces trapped in Courland, eventually assisting in clearing the region after the German surrender in May. It was moved to the Gorkii Military District in August, and was disbanded there in April 1946.
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