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3rd Guards Tank Army (Soviet Union)
Encyclopedia
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
, Poland
, 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 inactivated in 1979.
reserve) on the basis of the 55th Army in the Moscow Military District
in May 1942. It was placed under the command of General Lieutenant P. L. Romanenko. Its initial composition was 12th and 15th Tank Corps (later to become 6th and 7th Guards Tank Corps), one motor rifle division, and two rifle divisions. As part of the Soviet Western Front
, the 3rd Tank Army successfully counter-attacked the German Second Panzer Army in August 1942. Soon afterwards, in September 1942, Romanenko handed over to General Colonel P. S. Rybalko, who held command of the Army for the remainder of the war.
Committed to the fighting for Kharkov
in March 1943 as part of the Voronezh Front
, the 3rd Tank Army was subsequently pocketed and virtually destroyed by German forces. The Army's remnants were reorganised as the 57th Army.
The army was reformed as the 3rd Guards Tank Army in May 1943, including the 9th Mechanised Corps & 12th & 15th Tank Corps. In 1943, the army took part in the Orel
offensive and, assigned to the Voronezh
and First Ukrainian Fronts, played a leading role in the liberation of Left Bank Ukraine
. The army was among the first Soviet troops to reach the Dnieper River
in October 1943. In 1944, the 3rd Guards Tank Army fought in the Proskurov-Chernovits and Lvov-Sandomir offensive operations. The army subsequently fought in southern Poland, Silesia
, and the Berlin Operation
, overrunning the OKH command post at Zossen
(headquarters for German Eastern Front
operations) on April 21, 1945. Finally, the army drove on Prague, entering that city on May 9.
By 1946, the army had been re-designated as the 3rd Guards Mechanized Army and was headquartered in Luckenwalde
, Germany, as part of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany
. The 3rd Guards Mechanized Army was one of several Soviet armies used in the suppression of the 1953 uprising in East Germany
, moving the 6th Guards Tank Division into Dessau
and Wittenberg
as well as the 9th Mechanized Division into Lubben, Cottbus
, and Spremberg
. In 1957, the army was renamed the 3rd Guards Red Banner Tank Army and then again renamed as the 18th Guards Red Banner Army in 1967.
Up to 1967 it had preserved two formations which had served with it during World War II: the 6th and 7th Guards Tank Divisions (former similarly numbered Tank Corps). Its third formation - 82nd Motor Rifle Division (the former 9th MD, former 9th MK) was in 1958 withdrawn to the USSR and disbanded, and instead the 14th Guard MD was included (former 9th Guards, named for a short period the 116th Rifle Division).
Withdrawn to the Belarussian Military District in 1979, the army was inactivated the same year. After that point only 6th Guards Tank Division remained of its previous formations.
Army (Soviet Army)
An army, besides the generalized meanings of ‘a country's armed forces’ or its ‘land forces’, is a type of formation in militaries of various countries, including the Soviet Union. This article serves a central point of reference for Soviet armies without individual articles, and explains some of...
established by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
's 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...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The 3rd Tank Army was created in 1942 and fought in the southern areas of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
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 inactivated in 1979.
History
The 3rd Tank Army was formed as part of the RVGK (StavkaStavka
Stavka was the term used to refer to a command element of the armed forces from the time of the Kievan Rus′, more formally during the history of Imperial Russia as administrative staff and General Headquarters during late 19th Century Imperial Russian armed forces and those of the Soviet Union...
reserve) on the basis of the 55th Army in the Moscow Military District
Moscow Military District
The Moscow Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Leningrad Military District, the Northern Fleet and the Baltic Fleet to form the new Western Military District.-History:In the beginning of...
in May 1942. It was placed under the command of General Lieutenant P. L. Romanenko. Its initial composition was 12th and 15th Tank Corps (later to become 6th and 7th Guards Tank Corps), one motor rifle division, and two rifle divisions. As part of the Soviet Western Front
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...
, the 3rd Tank Army successfully counter-attacked the German Second Panzer Army in August 1942. Soon afterwards, in September 1942, Romanenko handed over to General Colonel P. S. Rybalko, who held command of the Army for the remainder of the war.
Committed to the fighting for Kharkov
Third Battle of Kharkov
The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of offensive operations on the Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by the German Army Group South against the Red Army, around the city of Kharkov , between 19 February and 15 March 1943...
in March 1943 as part of the Voronezh Front
Voronezh Front
The Voronezh Front was a front of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. The name indicated the primary geographical region in which the Front first fought, based on the town of Voronezh on the Don River....
, the 3rd Tank Army was subsequently pocketed and virtually destroyed by German forces. The Army's remnants were reorganised as the 57th Army.
The army was reformed as the 3rd Guards Tank Army in May 1943, including the 9th Mechanised Corps & 12th & 15th Tank Corps. In 1943, the army took part in the Orel
Oryol
Oryol or Orel is a city and the administrative center of Oryol Oblast, Russia, located on the Oka River, approximately south-southwest of Moscow...
offensive and, assigned to the Voronezh
Voronezh Front
The Voronezh Front was a front of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. The name indicated the primary geographical region in which the Front first fought, based on the town of Voronezh on the Don River....
and First Ukrainian Fronts, played a leading role in the liberation of Left Bank Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. The army was among the first Soviet troops to reach the Dnieper River
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
in October 1943. In 1944, the 3rd Guards Tank Army fought in the Proskurov-Chernovits and Lvov-Sandomir offensive operations. The army subsequently fought in southern Poland, Silesia
Silesian Offensives
The Silesian Offensives were two 1945 offensives conducted by the Soviet Red Army against the German Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front in World War II.-The offensives:...
, and the Berlin Operation
Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, was the final major offensive of the European Theatre of World War II....
, overrunning the OKH command post at Zossen
Zossen
Zossen is a German town in the district of Teltow-Fläming in Brandenburg, south of Berlin, and next to the B96 highway. Zossen consists of several smaller municipalities, which were grouped together in 2003 to form the city.-Geography:...
(headquarters for German Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
operations) on April 21, 1945. Finally, the army drove on Prague, entering that city on May 9.
By 1946, the army had been re-designated as the 3rd Guards Mechanized Army and was headquartered in Luckenwalde
Luckenwalde
Luckenwalde is the capital of the Teltow-Fläming district in the German state of Brandenburg. It is situated on the Nuthe river north of the Fläming Heath, at the eastern rim of the Nuthe-Nieplitz Nature Park, about south of Berlin...
, Germany, as part of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany
Group of Soviet Forces in Germany
The Group of Soviet Forces in Germany , also known as the Group of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany and the Western Group of Forces were the troops of the Soviet Army in East Germany....
. The 3rd Guards Mechanized Army was one of several Soviet armies used in the suppression of the 1953 uprising in East Germany
Uprising of 1953 in East Germany
The Uprising of 1953 in East Germany started with a strike by East Berlin construction workers on June 16. It turned into a widespread anti-Stalinist uprising against the German Democratic Republic government the next day....
, moving the 6th Guards Tank Division into Dessau
Dessau
Dessau is a town in Germany on the junction of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it is part of the merged town Dessau-Roßlau. Population of Dessau proper: 77,973 .-Geography:...
and Wittenberg
Wittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Germany in the Bundesland Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000....
as well as the 9th Mechanized Division into Lubben, Cottbus
Cottbus
Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :...
, and Spremberg
Spremberg
Spremberg is a village near to the city of Hoyerswerda in the Spree-Neiße district of Brandenburg, Germany. The village was first mentioned in 1956. The village alone has only 9,588 Inhabitants, the hole region has 21,361 Inhabitants-Geography:...
. In 1957, the army was renamed the 3rd Guards Red Banner Tank Army and then again renamed as the 18th Guards Red Banner Army in 1967.
Up to 1967 it had preserved two formations which had served with it during World War II: the 6th and 7th Guards Tank Divisions (former similarly numbered Tank Corps). Its third formation - 82nd Motor Rifle Division (the former 9th MD, former 9th MK) was in 1958 withdrawn to the USSR and disbanded, and instead the 14th Guard MD was included (former 9th Guards, named for a short period the 116th Rifle Division).
Withdrawn to the Belarussian Military District in 1979, the army was inactivated the same year. After that point only 6th Guards Tank Division remained of its previous formations.
Further reading
- http://militera.lib.ru/h/shein_dv01/index.html - History of the 3rd Guards Tank Army