Map showing main military units of the Belarusian Armed Forces
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.[3]
The command traces its lineage to the 65th Army of the Red Army, a field army of the Soviet Union during World War II. It was formed in October 1942 from rebuilding elements of the first formation of the 4th Tank Army on the Don Front. The army was commanded by Pavel Batov until after the fall of Berlin, and served in various Fronts commanded by Konstantin Rokossovsky for the duration of the war.
Postwar, the 65th Army was moved to the Belorussian Military District, where it became the 7th Mechanized Army. In 1957 it became the 7th Tank Army. With the Dissolution of the Soviet Union the army became part of the Belarus Ground Forces and was downsized into the 7th Army Corps in 1993. A year later it was renamed the 65th Army Corps.
History
Creation and Initial Operations of the 65th Army
Postwar photo of Colonel-General Pavel Ivanovich Batov
4th Tank Army, under command of Maj. Gen. Vasily Kryuchenkin, launched numerous counterattacks against the German corridor to Stalingrad from August to October, 1942, until it was severely depleted in strength. (It was derisively known for a time as the "four-tank army" due to the few vehicles still operational.)[4]
Pavel Batov, who had previously commanded the 51st Army and the 3rd Army, assumed command on October 22, 1942, a command he would hold until the end of the War. He had orders to rebuild these forces as a combined-arms army, the 65th Army, as part of Rokossovsky's new Don Front. This was accomplished by mid-November, and at this time the army consisted of:
3 Army Artillery Regiments, 1 Howitzer Regiment, 5 Guards Mortar Regiments, and supporting units.[5]
65th Army played a leading role in Operation Uranus, the encirclement of the German forces at Stalingrad. Attacking out of the Kremenskaya bridgehead on the south bank of the Don. Rokossovsky later wrote in reference to Batov and his army:
"[He] displayed fine initiative with an improvised mobile task force... By striking at the enemy's flank and rear, the task force ensured the swift advance of the other units."[4]
In the lead up to Operation Ring the 65th mounted an attack by two rifle divisions against the positions of the German 44th Infantry Division on January 7, 1943. This attack penetrated the German defensive line and inflicted severe casualties. A counterattack by German armor contained the Soviet advance, but did not regain the original line, consumed scarce fuel and ammunition, and exposed the vehicles to concentrated artillery fire, leading to losses.[6]
When Ring kicked off at 0805 hours on January 10, 65th Army was backed by a 55-minute artillery barrage from over 500 guns and howitzers and 450 rocket launchers on an attack front of 12km, the highest density of Soviet artillery achieved to that point of the war. This was followed by air attacks from the 16th Air Army against positions to the rear of the main German line. About 0900 hours, shock groups of five rifle divisions of the Army, supported by the 91st Tank Brigade and six Guards heavy tank regiments (60-70 KV tanks and 21 Churchill Mark IV tanks). The front of the 44th Division was smashed quite quickly and four depleted battalions were overrun.[7]
Redeployment to Central Front
Following the German surrender at Stalingrad, Rokossovsky's forces were redeployed northwest to become the new Central Front in the region around Kursk. 65th Army exploited a gap between the weak Second German Army and the Second Panzer Army, but was brought to a halt by the spring rasputitsa, German reserves released by their evacuation of the Rzhev Salient, and the German counter-offensive to the south of Kursk. 65th Army then dug in during the three-month lull in operations, towards the northwestern sector of the Kursk salient.
At this time the order of battle of the 65th Army was as follows:
4 Separate Tank Regiments, 2 Antitank Regiments, 2 Mortar Regiments, 2 Guards Mortar Regiments, and other support units
Army strength: 100,000, 1,837 guns and mortars, 124 tanks and self-propelled guns.[8]
Due to its position in the western sector of the salient, the 65th emerged mostly unscathed from the Battle of Kursk, and was well equipped to exploit the German defeat. In late July and August the Army joined in the pursuit of German forces to the Dnepr River. On 15 Oct., with divisional and army artillery firing 1,000 shells per minute in support, the 193rd Rifle Division forced a crossing of the Dnepr.[9] From this point on, the 65th Army began earning a well-deserved reputation for its abilities in river-crossing and bridgehead operations.[10]
Operation Bagration
Rokossovsky's command was renamed 1st Belorussian Front, and in June, 1944, 65th Army took part in major strategic operations in Belorussia. The Army's order of battle at this time was as follows:
18th Rifle Corps (37th Guards, 44th Guards and 69th Rifle Divisions)
1st Guards Tank Corps (15th, 16th, 17th Guards Tank Brigades, and 1st Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade)
1 Separate Tank Regiment and 4 Separate Self-propelled Artillery Regiments, and other support units.[11]
In a well-known confrontation at the planning stage, Rokossovski convinced Stalin that, given the terrain, it was better to strike two strong blows against the German forces than just one.[12] He was counting on Batov's ability to lead his Army across swampy regions south of Bobruisk, using corduroy roads, swamp shoes, and other means. 65th Army did not disappoint, and within a few days the German Ninth Army was encircled and mostly destroyed. For his performance, Batov was promoted to Colonel General.[13]
65th Army crossed the Bug River on July 22, and pushed on to cross the Narev River, north of Warsaw, by Sept. 4. Operation Bagration had run out of steam, but Batov's army held off strong German counterattacks against the Narev bridgehead for more than two months.[13] Following this, Rokossovski was reassigned to command of 2nd Belorussian Front. A shift in Front boundaries accompanied this, and 65th and 70th Armies became part of his new command. In the following months forces were built up in the Narev bridgehead for an offensive to be launched in January.
Into Germany
During the new offensive, 65th Army forced a crossing of the Vistula River in early February. Rokossovski later noted:
"I had been with 65th Army since Stalingrad and had had ample opportunity to observe the splendid combat qualities of its men, commanders, and, of course, Pavel Batov, a brave and talented soldier."[13]
In March, 1945, the order of battle of 65th Army was as follows:
105th Rifle Corps (44th Guards, 193rd, and 354th Rifle Divisions)
1 Separate Tank Regiment and 1 Separate Self-propelled Artillery Regiment, and other support units.[14]
For the Danzig operation the army also had the 66th Guards SU Brigade attached, the Red Army's only heavy SU brigade, a potent force of 60 ISU-122 self-propelled guns.[15]
The offensive propelled 65th Army into eastern Germany, finally to the Oder River, near Stettin-an-Oder, where it once again forced a difficult river crossing in Apr. 1945. Officials of the city surrendered to Colonel A. G. Frolenkov's 193rd Rifle Division on Apr. 26.[16]
Cold War
In April 1946, the 65th Army was reorganised as the 7th Mechanised Army at Łódź. On 20 December, it became the 7th Tank Division (Mobilization), with its divisions becoming regiments. It was headquartered in Borisov from May 1948. On 21 March 1950, it was increased in strength to an army with its old designation.[17] In 1955 the 7th Mechanized Army was equipped with the IS-3, T-54, T-34 and PT-76 tanks, as well as the ISU-122 self-propelled gun.
In 1957, the 7th Mechanized Army was transformed into 7th Tank Army.
From 1960 to 1980, the basis of the 7th Tank Army was formed by the 3rd Guards Kotelnikovo, the 34th Dnieper, and the 37th Guards Rechitsa Tank Divisions. The formation actively participated in well-known large-scale exercises and maneuvers such as "Dnepr", "Neman", "Dvina", Exercise Zapad-81 and "Fall 88".[18] By a Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on 15 January 1974, for good results in combat training, the 7th Tank Army was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.[3] A USSR Ministry of Defense directive dated 25 January 1989 ordered the disbandment of the 3rd Guards Tank Division, effective from 1 June 1989. Instead, the 19th Guards Nikolaevsk-Budapest Tank Division was moved from the Southern Group of Forces in Hungary to Zaslonovo. On 7 November 1990 Tank Army had 764 T-62 and T-72 tanks, 208 infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, as well as 212 guns, mortars and multiple rocket launchers. It also included the Scud-equipped 76th Rocket Brigade.[19]
Service in the Belarus Ground Forces
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus were created on the basis of the Belorussian Military District, including the 7th Tank Army. In 1993, the 7th Tank Army was renamed the 7th Army Corps, and in 1994 the 65th Army Corps. In December 2001, as a result of the reform of the Armed Forces of Belarus, the corps was transformed into the North-Western Operational Command (NWOC).[3] Since then the troops and staff of the NWOC have participated in the exercises "Neman-2001", "Berezina-2002", "The Shield of the Fatherland – 2004", "Shield of the Union – 2006", "West-2009" and others. A joint operational exercise of the armed forces of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation, "Shield of the Union", was held in 2011. The exercise was held at the Ashuluk range in Astrakhan Oblast in the Russian Federation.[20] The command participated in exercise "West-2011".[21]
Units
The following units are part of the Northwestern Operational Command.[22]
120th Guards Rogachevskaya Mechanised Brigade (339th Guards Mechanized Group of tank and motorized infantry battalions, 334th and 355th Tank Battalions, 356th Motorized Rifle Battalion, 310th Artillery Group, 149th Separate Communications Battalion, 126th Separate Engineer Battalion, 82nd Repair and Refurbishment Battalion, Minsk)
740th Minsk Anti-Aircraft Rocket Brigade (with SAM "Osa"; Borisov)
42nd Separate Signal (Radio) Battalion
60th Communications Regiment
258th Security and Service Battalion
121st Scientific Topographical Unit
Electronic warfare troops:
244th Signals Intelligence Center
10th Electronic Warfare Battalion
Corps of Engineers:
7th Torun Order of Alexander Nevsky and the Red Star Engineering Regiment (Borisov)
Storage Bases:
814th Service Center (includes 2 repair battalions, Borisov)
19th Nikolaevsk-Budapest Red Banner Order of Suvorov 2nd class Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment (former 19th Guards Mechanized Brigade, Zaslonovo)
34th Dneprovskaya Base for Storage of Weapons Technology – possibly disbanded (former 34th Tank Division, Borisov)
The 3rd Army was a field army of the Red Army during World War II.
A tank corps was a type of Soviet armoured formation used during World War II.
Pavel Ivanovich Batov was a senior Red Army general during the Second World War and afterwards, twice Hero of the Soviet Union. Batov fought in World War I, where he was awarded the Cross of St. George twice. After being wounded in 1917, he was sent to a school in Petrograd and joined the Bolsheviks. He fought in the Russian Civil War and became an advisor with the XII International Brigade during the Spanish Civil War. During World War II, Batov commanded the 51st Army in the Crimea. In 1942, he became the commander of the 3rd Army and then the 4th Tank Army, which was renamed the 65th Army. Postwar, Batov commanded the Carpathian Military District.
The 193rd Tank Division was originally a Red Army infantry division that was reorganised after World War II as a mechanised and then a tank division of the Soviet Army.
The 34th Tank Division was a formation of the Red Army and Soviet Ground Forces that was formed twice.
The 5th Guards Tank Army was a Soviet Guards armored formation which fought in many notable actions during World War II. The army was formed in February 1943. Until the aftermath of the Vilnius Offensive in July 1944, it was commanded by Pavel Rotmistrov.
The 3rd Guards Tank Army was a tank army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II. The 3rd Tank Army was created in 1942 and fought in the southern areas of the Soviet Union and Poland, then in Germany and Czechoslovakia until the defeat of Germany in 1945. Postwar, the army served as occupation troops in East Germany, went through several name changes, and was finally deactivated in 1969.
The Soviet order of battle for Operation Uranus details the combat units of the Soviet forces that fought in Operation Uranus, the Soviet strategic counteroffensive that led to the encirclement of the German troops in Stalingrad. The order of battle lists units present on 19 November 1942, the day the operation began, from north to south.
The 55th Guards Rifle Division was a Red Army military unit, engaged in the Second World War. Its full name was the 55th Guards Rifle Irkutsk-Pinsk Order of Lenin, Order of the October Revolution, three Red Banner, Order of Suvorov 2nd degree division named after the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR.
The 7th Guards Cavalry Corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army was a cavalry corps active during the Second World War. It was formed from the 8th Cavalry Corps in February 1943.
The 11th Guards Mechanized Brigade is a unit of the Armed Forces of Belarus based in Slonim. The 11th Guards Brigade traces its history back to the 1942 formation of the 6th Tank Corps of the Soviet Army during World War II.
The 69th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, formed twice.
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 140th Rifle Division was a Red Army rifle division that saw service during the Great Patriotic War. Originally formed during the prewar buildup of the Red Army, the 140th might be regarded as the unluckiest division in the Army, as it, uniquely, had to be completely, or almost completely, re-formed three times between 1941 and 1943, being destroyed in the Uman pocket during Operation Barbarossa, the Vyasma pocket during Operation Typhoon, and on the Caucasian steppes in the face of the German summer offensive of 1942. In spite of this, the fourth formation of the 140th went on to have a very distinguished record in combat, a testament to the resiliency of the Red Army in World War II.
The 304th Rifle Division had its roots in the 109th Mechanized Division, which served before the Great Patriotic War as a mixed armor and infantry formation. Soon after the German invasion it was reorganized as a standard rifle division and renumbered as the 304th. It served in the southwestern part of the Soviet-German front for more than a year and a half, fighting under difficult conditions, including the German summer offensive of 1942. The division did not distinguish itself until Operation Uranus in late 1942 and the subsequent Operation Ring, in which it helped defeat the encircled German Sixth Army. In recognition of these successes, even before the German surrender at Stalingrad, it was raised to Guards status as the 67th Guards Rifle Division. A second 304th was raised six months later, based on a pair of rifle brigades, facing the German 17th Army in the Kuban. After helping to liberate this region the division continued in combat through Ukraine and Poland, winning its own distinctions at Zhitomir and an Order of the Red Banner, before ending the war near Prague.
The Red Army's 60th Army was a Soviet field army during the Second World War. It was first formed in reserve in the Moscow Military District in October 1941, but soon was disbanded. It was formed a second time in July 1942, and continued in service until postwar. The 60th Army was commanded by Gen. Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky for much of the war, and it was while in this command that he proved himself worthy to be promoted to the rank of General of the Army and command of a Front at the age of 38 years. Elements of the army went on to, among other things, liberate the Auschwitz concentration camp.
The 37th Guards "Rechitsa" Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army which fought during World War II.
The 137th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army in World War II. Raised in 1939 as a standard Red Army rifle division, it served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. The division fought in the central part of the Soviet-German front. It shared credit with other formations for the liberation of Bobruisk during Operation Bagration, and ended the war in the conquest of East Prussia.
The 413th Rifle Division was formed as an infantry division of the Red Army in the summer of 1941 in the Far Eastern Front. It was considered to be a "sister" division to the 415th, and was one of the divisions of Siberians sent west to help defend Moscow during the winter of 1941–42. It was assigned to the 50th Army and originally saw action in the defense of the city of Tula before going over to the counteroffensive in December, suffering massive casualties in the process. It spent much of the next year along the lines it gained over the winter, southwest of the capital, before beginning to push westward as part of Western Front's 1943 summer offensive. During the winter of 1943-44 it was in Belorussian Front gradually gaining ground towards the Dniepr River to the east of Rogachev. At the start of Operation Bagration the 413th was in the 3rd Army but was soon reassigned to the 65th Army where it remained for most of the rest of the war. The division was awarded a battle honor for its role in the liberation of Brest in July and in 1945 received both the Order of the Red Banner and the Order of Suvorov as it advanced into Poland and Germany with 2nd Belorussian Front. The 413th had a distinguished career as a combat unit, ending its combat path north of Berlin. It was disbanded in the summer of 1946.
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 occupation 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.
↑ 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 20
↑ Nikolai Litvin, 800 Days on the Eastern Front, University Press of Kansas, 2007, p 104
↑ "С днём рождения, СЗОК!"[Happy Birthday, SZOK!]. vsr.mil.by (in Russian). 22 October 2015. Archived from the original on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
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