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24th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)
Encyclopedia
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The 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Division was a rifle, then a motor-rifle division of the Red Army
of the USSR. It is now a mechanized brigade
of the Ukrainian Ground Forces
, based at Yavoriv
in the west of Ukraine.
The full name of the division was 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Motor-Rifle Berdychivska, Iron, Awards of October Revolution
, three times Red Banner
, Suvorov's
, Bogdan Khmelnytsky division.
on July 26, 1918 from voluntary groups under the name 1st Simbirsk Infantry Division. In November 1918 it was renamed as the 24th Simbirsk Rifle Division. It actively participated in the Russian Civil War
in the Volga region, in the Southern Urals Mountains, and in Polissya and Volhynia
. At this time one of its regimental commanders was a future Army General Maksim Purkayev
.
In 1922 it was renamed as the 24th Samaro-Simbirsk Iron Rifle Division. In 1924 it was again renamed as the 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Iron Rifle Division. In 1939-1940, during the Russo-Finnish War the division distinguished itself during the breaking of the Mannerheim Line
on the Karelian isthmus.
, and as part of the 21st Rifle Corps
and 13th Army
, was involved in heavy defensive fighting in Belarus. Reportedly because the division's banner (unit colours) were lost in the Minsk area it was disbanded on December 27, 1941.
In February 1942 in the Vologda
area a new 24th Rifle Division (2nd formation), with new traditions, was formed in Volgograd Oblast
as part of 17th Guards Rifle Corps. During war this division was part of armies in the Western
, Kalinin
, Stalingrad
, Don
, and Southwest
fronts, from April till May 1944. The division fought at Velikiye Luki, Stalingrad, Kiev, in the Carpathians, and at Morava Ostrava. In 1945 it was part of the 18th Army
of the 4th Ukrainian Front
.
The Division participated in Battle of Stalingrad
, the Donbass offensive operation, clearing of Left-bank Ukraine, in Zhytomyr - Berdychiv, Khmelnytskyi - Chernivtsi, Lviv - Sandomierz
, East - Carpathian, Western - Carpathian, Moravia - Ostrava and the Prague offensive operations.
The division's combat path finished on June 24, 1945, 100 km away from Prague
. The last platoon of the division participated in Parade of the Victory led by Captain Klyuyev.
On July 10, 1945 the division was disbanded, and its number given to the 294th Rifle Division which became the 24th Rifle Division (3rd formation).
(in area of Lviv
).
.
On May 19, 2001 by the decree of Leonid Kuchma
N 268/2001, division was awarded Danylo of Halych designation.
In 2003 the division was redesignated as 24th Mechanized Brigade.
).
As it was made known later, that the instructor of the political department of the division, senior Commissar A. V. Barbashev had the Banner while the division was trying to break out of the German encirclement. Barbashev died on August 6, 1941 near Anyutino village Cherykaw Raion
Mogilev Oblast
. Local farmer D.N. Tyapin later found the stained Banner on the officers corpse. He buried the body and the Banner in the local cemetery.
After clearing village Anyutino by the Soviet armies the Banner was taken and directed on to restoration. On February, 20th 1944 the restored Banner of former division was handed over to 24th Rifle Division (2nd formation). For his finding of the division's Banner, D.N. Tyapin has been honoured by being forever listed on the rolls of the 1st company of one of the division's regiments.
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The 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Division was a rifle, then a motor-rifle division of the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
of the USSR. It is now a mechanized brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
of the Ukrainian Ground Forces
Ukrainian Ground Forces
The Ukrainian Ground Forces are the land force component of the Military of Ukraine. They were formed from Soviet Army formations, units, and establishments, including three military districts , that were on Ukrainian soil when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990-92.Between the fall of the USSR and...
, based at Yavoriv
Yavoriv
Yavoriv is a city located in the Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Yavoriv Raion and rests approximately 50 km west of the oblast capital, Lviv....
in the west of Ukraine.
The full name of the division was 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Motor-Rifle Berdychivska, Iron, Awards of October Revolution
Order of the October Revolution
The Order of the October Revolution was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was awarded to individuals or groups for services furthering communism or the state, or in enhancing the defenses of the Soviet Union, military and civil...
, three times Red Banner
Order of the Red Banner
The Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
, Suvorov's
Order of Suvorov
The Order of Suvorov is a Soviet award, named after Aleksandr Suvorov , that was established on July 29, 1942 by a decision of the Presidium of Supreme Soviet of the USSR. This decoration was created to award senior army personnel for exceptional leadership in combat operations...
, Bogdan Khmelnytsky division.
Formation and Early Wars
The division was formed on the order of the Revolutionary Military CouncilRevolutionary Military Council
Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet (Революционный Военный Совет, Revolyutsionny Voyenny Sovyet; Реввоенсовет, Revvoyensovyet; also...
on July 26, 1918 from voluntary groups under the name 1st Simbirsk Infantry Division. In November 1918 it was renamed as the 24th Simbirsk Rifle Division. It actively participated in the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
in the Volga region, in the Southern Urals Mountains, and in Polissya and Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
. At this time one of its regimental commanders was a future Army General Maksim Purkayev
Maksim Purkayev
Maksim Alexeyevich Purkayev , 1894, in the village of Nalitovo, Dubyonsky Uyezd, Volhynian Governorate, Russian Empire - January 1, 1953, Moscow) was a Soviet military leader, reaching service rank of Army General....
.
In 1922 it was renamed as the 24th Samaro-Simbirsk Iron Rifle Division. In 1924 it was again renamed as the 24th Samaro-Ulyanovsk Iron Rifle Division. In 1939-1940, during the Russo-Finnish War the division distinguished itself during the breaking of the Mannerheim Line
Mannerheim Line
The Mannerheim Line was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union. During the Winter War it became known as the Mannerheim Line, after Field Marshal Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. The line was constructed in two phases: 1920–1924 and...
on the Karelian isthmus.
World War II
The division participated in fighting from the first days after the German invasion of the USSR in 1941. The division staff showed mass heroism when the German opponents arrived in the Lidy area. It also took part in the Kiev defensive operationBattle of Kiev (1941)
The Battle of Kiev was the German name for the operation that resulted in a very large encirclement of Soviet troops in the vicinity of Kiev during World War II. It is considered the largest encirclement of troops in history. The operation ran from 23 August – 26 September 1941 as part of Operation...
, and as part of the 21st Rifle Corps
Rifle corps (Soviet)
A rifle corps was a Soviet military organization of the mid-twentieth century. Rifle corps were made up of a varying number of rifle divisions, although the allocation of three rifle divisions to a rifle corps was common during the latter part of World War II.Unlike army corps formed by Germany...
and 13th Army
13th Army (Soviet Union)
The 13th Army was a name given to several field armies of the Soviet Union's Red Army, first created during the Russian Civil War...
, was involved in heavy defensive fighting in Belarus. Reportedly because the division's banner (unit colours) were lost in the Minsk area it was disbanded on December 27, 1941.
In February 1942 in the Vologda
Vologda
Vologda is a city and the administrative, cultural, and scientific center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the Vologda River. The city is a major transport knot of the Northwest of Russia. Vologda is among the Russian cities possessing an especially valuable historical heritage...
area a new 24th Rifle Division (2nd formation), with new traditions, was formed in Volgograd Oblast
Volgograd Oblast
Volgograd Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Volgograd. Population: -Geography:*Area: 113,900 km²;*Borders length: 2221,9 km²....
as part of 17th Guards Rifle Corps. During war this division was part of armies in the Western
Soviet Western Front
The Western Front was a Front of the Red Army, one of the Red Army Fronts during the Second World War. This sense of the term is different from the more general usage of military front which indicates a geographic area in wartime, although a Soviet Front usually operates within designated...
, Kalinin
Kalinin Front
The Kalinin Front was a Front of the Soviet Army during the Second World War. This sense of the term is not identical with the more general usage of military front which indicates a geographic area in wartime, although a Soviet Front may operate within designated boundaries.The Kalinin Front was...
, Stalingrad
Soviet Southern Front
The Southern Front was a Front - a roughly Army group sized formation - of the Soviet Army during the Second World War. The Southern Front directed military operations during the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina in 1940, and then was formed twice after the June 1941 German...
, Don
Don Front
The Don Front was a front of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. The name refers to Don River, Russia....
, and Southwest
Soviet Southwestern Front
The Southwestern Front was a name given to a Front by the Imperial Russian Army during the First World War, by the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic during the Russian Civil War, and by the Red Army during the Second World War.The Southwestern Front in this article describes several...
fronts, from April till May 1944. The division fought at Velikiye Luki, Stalingrad, Kiev, in the Carpathians, and at Morava Ostrava. In 1945 it was part of the 18th Army
18th Army (Soviet Union)
The 18th Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was formed on 21 June 1941 on the basis of HQ Kharkov Military District and armies of the Kiev Special Military District.The Army's commander in 1941 was General-Leitenant Andrew Kirilovych Smirnov...
of the 4th Ukrainian Front
4th Ukrainian Front
The 4th Ukrainian Front was a front of the Red Army during World War II...
.
The Division participated in Battle of Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...
, the Donbass offensive operation, clearing of Left-bank Ukraine, in Zhytomyr - Berdychiv, Khmelnytskyi - Chernivtsi, Lviv - Sandomierz
Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive
The Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive or the L'vov-Sandomierz Strategic Offensive Operation was a major Red Army operation to force the German troops from Ukraine and Eastern Poland...
, East - Carpathian, Western - Carpathian, Moravia - Ostrava and the Prague offensive operations.
The division's combat path finished on June 24, 1945, 100 km away from Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. The last platoon of the division participated in Parade of the Victory led by Captain Klyuyev.
On July 10, 1945 the division was disbanded, and its number given to the 294th Rifle Division which became the 24th Rifle Division (3rd formation).
After the war
During the post-war period a place of a disposition of a division was the Carpathian Military DistrictCarpathian Military District
The Carpathian Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1945 after the conclusion of the Second World War to 1990-91. It became part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in 1991 and was disbanded by being redesignated the Western Operational Command later in the 1990s.Two...
(in area of Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
).
Under Ukrainian Control
After disintegration of Soviet Union the division became part of the Ukrainian Ground ForcesUkrainian Ground Forces
The Ukrainian Ground Forces are the land force component of the Military of Ukraine. They were formed from Soviet Army formations, units, and establishments, including three military districts , that were on Ukrainian soil when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990-92.Between the fall of the USSR and...
.
On May 19, 2001 by the decree of Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
N 268/2001, division was awarded Danylo of Halych designation.
In 2003 the division was redesignated as 24th Mechanized Brigade.
Loss of its Banner
At the beginning of the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the division was disbanded, apparently following the loss of its Banner (divisional coloursColours, standards and guidons
In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours, standards or Guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some 5,000 years ago...
).
As it was made known later, that the instructor of the political department of the division, senior Commissar A. V. Barbashev had the Banner while the division was trying to break out of the German encirclement. Barbashev died on August 6, 1941 near Anyutino village Cherykaw Raion
Cherykaw Raion
Cherykaw Raion is a raion in Mahilyow Voblast, Belarus, the administrative center is Cherykaw....
Mogilev Oblast
Mahilyow Voblast
Mahilyow Voblasts or Mogilyov Oblast is a province of Belarus with its administrative center being Mogilyov ....
. Local farmer D.N. Tyapin later found the stained Banner on the officers corpse. He buried the body and the Banner in the local cemetery.
After clearing village Anyutino by the Soviet armies the Banner was taken and directed on to restoration. On February, 20th 1944 the restored Banner of former division was handed over to 24th Rifle Division (2nd formation). For his finding of the division's Banner, D.N. Tyapin has been honoured by being forever listed on the rolls of the 1st company of one of the division's regiments.
Russo-Finnish War
- 7th Rifle Regiment
- 168th Rifle Regiment
- 274th Rifle Regiment
- 246th Guards Artillery Regiment
- 160th Reconnaissance Battalion
- 315th Separate Armor Battalion
Late Soviet Period ~1988
- 181st Tank Regiment
- 7th Motor Rifle Regiment (Lvov)
- 310th Motor Rifle Regiment (Рава-Русская)
- 274th Motor Rifle Regiment
- 849th Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment
- 257th Guards Anti-Aircraft Rocket Regiment
2000
181st Separate Armor Regiment
7th Mechanized Regiment
274th Mechanized Regiment
310th Mechanized Regiment
56th Signal Battalion
29th Separate Reconnaissance Battalion
30th Chemical Battalion
306th Engineer Battalion
849th Artillery Regiment
396th Combat Service Support Battalion
Awards
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- 1918 - awarded Honorable banner of Supreme SovietSupreme SovietThe Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union was the Supreme Soviet in the Soviet Union and the only one with the power to pass constitutional amendments...
- On September, 28th 1918 awarded the Honorable Revolutionary Red Banner
- On December, 13th 1920 was given the honorable name "Samara"
- On October, 25th 1921 was given the honorable name "Iron"
- 1928 awarded the Honorable Revolutionary Red Banner
- On February, 1st 1933 received the Order of the Red BannerOrder of the Red BannerThe Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
- On April, 11th 1940 received the Order of the Red BannerOrder of the Red BannerThe Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
(for operations in Winter warWinter WarThe Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
) - January 1944 has received the honorable name «Berdychivskaya»
- 1944 received Order of SuvorovOrder of SuvorovThe Order of Suvorov is a Soviet award, named after Aleksandr Suvorov , that was established on July 29, 1942 by a decision of the Presidium of Supreme Soviet of the USSR. This decoration was created to award senior army personnel for exceptional leadership in combat operations...
of 2-nd class (for clearing of the city of ChernivtsiChernivtsiChernivtsi is the administrative center of Chernivtsi Oblast in southwestern Ukraine. The city is situated on the upper course of the River Prut, a tributary of the Danube, in the northern part of the historic region of Bukovina, which is currently divided between Romania and Ukraine...
) - 1944 received Order of Bogdan KhmelnitskyOrder of Bogdan KhmelnitskyOrder of Bogdan Khmelnitsky may refer to:* Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky , state military award in the Soviet Union* Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky , state military award in Ukraine...
2-nd degree (for an output(exit) in foothills of Carpathian mountains) - October 5, 1967 received the Order of the Red BannerOrder of the Red BannerThe Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
- 1978 received the Order of the October RevolutionOrder of the October RevolutionThe Order of the October Revolution was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was awarded to individuals or groups for services furthering communism or the state, or in enhancing the defenses of the Soviet Union, military and civil...
- 17 soldiers of a division were awarded ranks of the Hero of the Soviet UnionHero of the Soviet UnionThe title Hero of the Soviet Union was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society.-Overview:...
. - About 9,000 of the Division's soldiers received awards and medals
- On May 19, 2001 awarded Danylo of Halych designation.
Well-known people that served with the Division
In the division served:- Chairman of the Supreme body of USSR Shvernik, Nikolay MikhajlovichNikolay ShvernikNikolay Mikhailovich Shvernik was a Russian politician, who was the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR from March 19, 1946 until March 15, 1953...
- The marshal of Soviet Union Ivan Stepanovich KonevIvan KonevIvan Stepanovich Konev , was a Soviet military commander, who led Red Army forces on the Eastern Front during World War II, retook much of Eastern Europe from occupation by the Axis Powers, and helped in the capture of Germany's capital, Berlin....
- 6 generals of army, 2 commanders of 2-nd rank, 11 general-colonels, 25 general-lieutenants, 68 general-majors.
- Igor RodionovIgor RodionovIgor Nikolayevich Rodionov is a Russian general and Duma deputy. He is best known as a hardline politician, and for his service heading the Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation....
, later Russian Defence Minister - during Soviet period as 24th Motor Rifle Division - Defector 'Viktor SuvorovViktor SuvorovViktor Suvorov is the pen name for Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun , a former Soviet and now British writer of Russian and Ukrainian descent who writes primarily in Russian, as well as a former Soviet military intelligence spy who defected to the UK...
' (Viktor Rezun)
Past commanders
- Gay G. D. - July 27, 1918 - November 20, 1918
- Pavlovskiy V. I. - November 20, 1918 - February 2, 1919
- Vilymson E. F. - February 2, 1919 - April 25, 1919
- Myretov M. V. - April 25, 1919 - April 30, 1919
- Pavlovskiy V. I. - April 30, 1919 - July 21, 1920
- Myretov M. V. - July 21, 1920 - January 11, 1921
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Vasiliev - January 1938 - - Filip Fedorovich Aliabushev - 1936 - 193?
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Veshchev Pyotr E. - 193? - December 6, 1939 - Major GeneralMajor GeneralMajor general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Kuzma GalitskyKuzma GalitskyKuzma Nikitovich Galitsky was a Soviet army general who earned the title Hero of the Soviet Union.-Biography:Kuzma Galitsky was born on October 24, 1897 in the city of Taganrog into a worker's family. He studied at the Taganrog Boys Gymnasium, which he graduated from in 1912, and worked at the...
- December 23, 1939 - December 27, 1941 - Major GeneralMajor GeneralMajor general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Prohorov Fedor Alexandrovich January 1, 1942 - May 11, 1945 - Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Lendar Kharakhalil - July 12, 2007 - ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Volodymyr Trunovskyi July 12, 2007 - present
Source and See Also
- Ru-wiki at :ru:24-я Самаро-Ульяновская дивизия
- Divisions of the Soviet Union 1917-1945
- http://www.mil.gov.ua/index.php?part=armament&lang=en
- V.A. Andrianov, The legendary Iron Division is 85, Military Thought, 2003