16th Army (Soviet Union)
Encyclopedia
The 16th Army was a Soviet field army
active from 1940 to 1945.
(uniting the forces deployed in Dauriya). General Lieutenant М. F. Лукин (июнь - август 1941) took command. In June 1941 it was relocated (with six Trans-Baikalian divisions) to Ukraine and subordinated to the Kiev Special Military District. On 1 July 1941 the 16th Army consisted of the 32nd Rifle Corps (with the 46th and 152nd Rifle Divisions), two artillery regiments, and the 5th Mechanised Corps (13th and 17th Tank Divisions and the 109th Mechanised Division). 126th Corps Artillery Regiment and the 112th Separate Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion. Army HQ was at Orel
on 22 June 1941.
On the eve of World War II
, May 25, 1941, the army received orders to relocate to the Ukraine. The first trains Army (109 th Motorized Division of the 5th Mechanized Corps) disembarked in Berdichev June 18, 1941. After the start of World War II in connection with the crisis situation prevailing on the Western Front, 26 June 1941 entered an order steerable 16th army in the area of Orsha - Smolensk. However, the breakthrough of German 11 Panzer Division in the direction of Ostrov
during the afternoon of June 26 demanded an emergency response. Lieutenant-General Mikhail Lukin took part of the 109th Motorised Division from loading and directed them towards the enemy. These units under the command of Mikhail Lukin received the name "Group Lukin."
Most of the 16th Army began concentrating in the region of Smolensk, but the 5th Mechanised Corps was transferred into the 20th army and participated in the counterattack at Lepel 6 - 9 July.
In connection with the breakthrough of the German mechanized troops to Smolensk, by order of Marshal S. К. Timoshenko on July 14, the commander of the 16th Army, MF Lukin united all units of the garrison city of Smolensk, of arriving by rail to other Army and unloaded in the region of Smolensk, as well as parts, which occupy the defense sector, directly adjacent to the city of Smolensk.
Communication with the rear could be maintained only through Solovyovsk crossing of wooded and swampy area south of Yartsevo. Street fighting began.
The Army HQ was disbanded on 8 August 1941 after encirclement (the Battle of Smolensk (1941)
) just west of Smolensk
as part of the Western Front. The army was reformed three times in 1941.
was given command of 16th Army and tasked with blocking the Volokolamsk Highway, and barring the German forces' access towards Moscow. By late November, 16th Army had gradually been forced back to a line Krasnaya Polyana-Kryukovo-Istra, but here it held firm until the Red Army
went over to the offensive in December. In January 1942 the Army was fighting on the offensive Gzhatsk direction.
In the second half of January 1942, its troops were transferred to the 5th Army, and its headquarters is directed to the area Sukhinichi
, where the Army HQ took command of the troops and the defensive line of 10th Army
. Until May 1943 the troops of the Army conducted defensive and offensive battles in Zhizdrinsky District
direction.
In July 15, 1942, Rokossovsky
was transferred to take command of the Bryansk Front
to rescue the collapse of Battle of Voronezh (1942)
. General Zhukov, the commander of Western Front
, asked for STAVKA
appointing Hovhannes Bagramyan
of the vice commander of the right neighborhood 61st Army as the commander of the 16th Army in Rokossovsky's place.
On August 11, 1942, however, German forces mounted a surprise offensive on the southern flank of Western Front, splitting the 61st Army from the 16th Army, which was not taking part in the Rzhev-Sychevka Offensive Operation. The German forces threatened Bagramyan's left flank as he quickly moved his forces to counter their movements and halted them from advancing further on September 9.
1 May 1943 on the basis of directives Stavka on 16 April 1943 the army was reorganized into the 11th Guards Army
in the Western Front.
on the island of Sakhalin
, since the spring of 1945 - also the coast of Tatar Strait by Sovetskaya Gavan
to Nikolaevsk-on-Amur.
On 5 August 1945 and having in its composition, 56 Rifle Corps, 3rd, 103 th and 104 th fortified areas, 5th and 113th separate infantry brigades, 214th Tank Brigade, a number of separate infantry, tank, artillery and other units was included in the 2nd Far East Front. 56th Rifle Corps, under General Lieutenant J.V. Novoselsky, consisted of 79th Rifle Division, 2nd Rifle Brigade, the Sakhalin Rifle Regiment, the 6th Battalion (infantry) and other formations and units.
During the Soviet-Japanese War in cooperation with the Russian Pacific Fleet held Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk operation, part of the forces involved in Kuril landing operation in 1945.
On 1 October 1945 the army entered the Far Eastern Military District
and within a month was disbanded.
Field army
A Field Army, or Area Army, usually referred to simply as an Army, is a term used by many national military forces for a military formation superior to a corps and beneath an army group....
active from 1940 to 1945.
First Formation, 16th Army
Before Operation Barbarossa, HQ 16th Army was formed in July 1940 in the Transbaikal Military DistrictTransbaikal Military District
The Transbaikal Military District was a military district of first the Military of the Soviet Union and then the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed on May 17, 1935 and included the Buryat Republic, Chita Oblast, and Yakutia. Chita was the headquarters of the district...
(uniting the forces deployed in Dauriya). General Lieutenant М. F. Лукин (июнь - август 1941) took command. In June 1941 it was relocated (with six Trans-Baikalian divisions) to Ukraine and subordinated to the Kiev Special Military District. On 1 July 1941 the 16th Army consisted of the 32nd Rifle Corps (with the 46th and 152nd Rifle Divisions), two artillery regiments, and the 5th Mechanised Corps (13th and 17th Tank Divisions and the 109th Mechanised Division). 126th Corps Artillery Regiment and the 112th Separate Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion. Army HQ was at 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...
on 22 June 1941.
On the eve of 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...
, May 25, 1941, the army received orders to relocate to the Ukraine. The first trains Army (109 th Motorized Division of the 5th Mechanized Corps) disembarked in Berdichev June 18, 1941. After the start of World War II in connection with the crisis situation prevailing on the Western Front, 26 June 1941 entered an order steerable 16th army in the area of Orsha - Smolensk. However, the breakthrough of German 11 Panzer Division in the direction of Ostrov
Ostrov
Ostrov is a town and the administrative center of Ostrovsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located on the Velikaya River, south of Pskov. Population: 27,000 ....
during the afternoon of June 26 demanded an emergency response. Lieutenant-General Mikhail Lukin took part of the 109th Motorised Division from loading and directed them towards the enemy. These units under the command of Mikhail Lukin received the name "Group Lukin."
Most of the 16th Army began concentrating in the region of Smolensk, but the 5th Mechanised Corps was transferred into the 20th army and participated in the counterattack at Lepel 6 - 9 July.
In connection with the breakthrough of the German mechanized troops to Smolensk, by order of Marshal S. К. Timoshenko on July 14, the commander of the 16th Army, MF Lukin united all units of the garrison city of Smolensk, of arriving by rail to other Army and unloaded in the region of Smolensk, as well as parts, which occupy the defense sector, directly adjacent to the city of Smolensk.
Communication with the rear could be maintained only through Solovyovsk crossing of wooded and swampy area south of Yartsevo. Street fighting began.
The Army HQ was disbanded on 8 August 1941 after encirclement (the Battle of Smolensk (1941)
Battle of Smolensk (1941)
The Battle of Smolensk was a largely successful encirclement operation by the German Army Group Centre's 2nd Panzer Group led by Heinz Guderian and the 3rd Panzer Group led by Hermann Hoth against parts of four Soviet Fronts during World War II...
) just west of Smolensk
Smolensk
Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River. Situated west-southwest of Moscow, this walled city was destroyed several times throughout its long history since it was on the invasion routes of both Napoleon and Hitler. Today, Smolensk...
as part of the Western Front. The army was reformed three times in 1941.
Second Formation, 16th Army
In September 1941 Konstantin RokossovskyKonstantin Rokossovsky
Konstantin Rokossovskiy was a Polish-origin Soviet career officer who was a Marshal of the Soviet Union, as well as Marshal of Poland and Polish Defence Minister, who was famously known for his service in the Eastern Front, where he received high esteem for his outstanding military skill...
was given command of 16th Army and tasked with blocking the Volokolamsk Highway, and barring the German forces' access towards Moscow. By late November, 16th Army had gradually been forced back to a line Krasnaya Polyana-Kryukovo-Istra, but here it held firm until 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...
went over to the offensive in December. In January 1942 the Army was fighting on the offensive Gzhatsk direction.
In the second half of January 1942, its troops were transferred to the 5th Army, and its headquarters is directed to the area Sukhinichi
Sukhinichi
Sukhinichi is a town and the administrative center of Sukhinichsky District of Kaluga Oblast, Russia, a large railway junction on the Moscow–Bryansk line, situated southwest of Kaluga. The town is located on the Bryn River. Population:...
, where the Army HQ took command of the troops and the defensive line of 10th Army
10th Army (Soviet Union)
The 10th Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was a field army active from 1939 to 1944.The Army was formed in September 1939 in the Moscow Military District, and then deployed to the Western Special Military District...
. Until May 1943 the troops of the Army conducted defensive and offensive battles in Zhizdrinsky District
Zhizdrinsky District
Zhizdrinsky District is an administrative district , one of the 24 in Kaluga Oblast, Russia....
direction.
In July 15, 1942, Rokossovsky
Konstantin Rokossovsky
Konstantin Rokossovskiy was a Polish-origin Soviet career officer who was a Marshal of the Soviet Union, as well as Marshal of Poland and Polish Defence Minister, who was famously known for his service in the Eastern Front, where he received high esteem for his outstanding military skill...
was transferred to take command of the Bryansk Front
Bryansk Front
The Bryansk Front was a Front of the Soviet Army during the Second World War.General Andrei Yeremenko was designated commander of the Front when it first formed in mid-late August 1941, comprising, in Erickson's words, 'on paper two armies, 50th and 13th, with eight rifle divisions each, three...
to rescue the collapse of Battle of Voronezh (1942)
Battle of Voronezh (1942)
The Battle of Voronezh was a battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, fought in and around the strategically important city of Voronezh on the Don river, south of Moscow, from 28 June-24 July 1942, as opening move of the German summer offensive in 1942....
. General Zhukov, the commander of Western Front
Western Front
Western Front was a term used during the First and Second World Wars to describe the contested armed frontier between lands controlled by Germany to the east and the Allies to the west...
, asked for STAVKA
Stavka
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...
appointing Hovhannes Bagramyan
Hovhannes Bagramyan
Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan , also known as Hovhannes Khachaturi BaghramyanPronunciation: Bagramyan's name is most commonly written in English as Bagramyan "bahg-rahm-yahn" or Bagramian...
of the vice commander of the right neighborhood 61st Army as the commander of the 16th Army in Rokossovsky's place.
On August 11, 1942, however, German forces mounted a surprise offensive on the southern flank of Western Front, splitting the 61st Army from the 16th Army, which was not taking part in the Rzhev-Sychevka Offensive Operation. The German forces threatened Bagramyan's left flank as he quickly moved his forces to counter their movements and halted them from advancing further on September 9.
1 May 1943 on the basis of directives Stavka on 16 April 1943 the army was reorganized into the 11th Guards Army
11th Guards Army
The 11th Guards Army was a Soviet field army active from 1943 to 1997, which traces its origins to the formation of the Soviet 16th Army in June-July 1940.-History:...
in the Western Front.
On 1 October 1941
- 38th Rifle Division
- 108th Rifle Division
- 112th Rifle Division
- 214th Rifle Division
- 127th Tank Brigade
- 49, 471, 587 corps artillery regiment (кап).
- 375 howitzer artillery regiment of Supreme High Command Reserve (гап РВГК).
- 700 antitank defense artillery regiment (ап ПТО).
- 1/10 Guards Mortar Regiment (гв. мп).
- 42, 133 Motorized Engineer Battalion (миб).
- 243, 290 Separate sapper battalion (осб).
On 1 April 1942
- 5th Guards Rifle Corps
- 11th Guards Rifle Division
- 4th Rifle Brigade
- 30th Rifle Brigade
- 115 th Rifle Brigade
- 123rd Rifle Brigade
- 12th Guards Rifle Division
- 97th Rifle Division
- 322nd Rifle Division
- 323rd Rifle Division
- 324th Rifle Division324th Rifle DivisionThe 324th Rifle Division was a Soviet infantry division of the Red Army during World War II. On 6.04.1945 it was part of the 69th Rifle Corps of the 50th Army....
- 328th Rifle Division
- 19th Rifle Brigade
- 94th Tank Brigade
- 146th Tank Brigade
- 41 Guards Corps Artillery Regiment (гв. кап).
- 486 Artillery Regiment (ап).
- 523 Cannon Artillery Regiment (пап).
- 533 antitank defense artillery regiment (ап ПТО).
- 5, 31, 240 separate Guards Mortar Battalion (огв. мдн).
- 172 separate anti-aircraft artillery battalion (озадн).
- 43 separate armored train battalion (одн бронепоездов).
- 145, 243, 451 separate engineer battalion (оиб), 835 separate sapper battalion (осб).
- 168 Fighter Aviation Regiment (иап), 693, 735 light bombardment Regiment (лбап).
On 1 January 1943
- 11 th Guards Rifle Division
- 97 th Rifle Division
- 217th Rifle Division
- 322nd Rifle Division
- 324th Rifle Division324th Rifle DivisionThe 324th Rifle Division was a Soviet infantry division of the Red Army during World War II. On 6.04.1945 it was part of the 69th Rifle Corps of the 50th Army....
- 4th Rifle Brigade
- 6th Guards Tank Brigade
- 43 separate armored train battalion (одн брп)
- 21 light artillery brigade (лабр) (6 battalion (ад)); 523 Cannon Artillery Regiment (пап); 545, 546 Mortar Artillery Regiment (аминп); 10 separate Guards Mortar Battalion (огв. мдн).
- 1280 Anti-aircraft Artillery Regiment (зенап), 4 separate anti-aircraft artillery battalion (озадн).
- 226, 243, 367 separate engineer battalion (оиб).
- 168 Mixed Aviation Regiment (сап).
Third Formation, 16th Army
16th Army was formed for the third time on 10 July 1943 in the Far Eastern Front on the basis of the Special Rifle Corps. Covered the Soviet state border with JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on the island of Sakhalin
Sakhalin
Sakhalin or Saghalien, is a large island in the North Pacific, lying between 45°50' and 54°24' N.It is part of Russia, and is Russia's largest island, and is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast...
, since the spring of 1945 - also the coast of Tatar Strait by Sovetskaya Gavan
Sovetskaya Gavan
Sovetskaya Gavan is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, and a port on the Strait of Tartary which connects the Sea of Okhotsk on the north with the Sea of Japan on the south. Population: 29,100 ; The name of the town is often informally abbreviated to "Sovgavan".-History:The bay on which...
to Nikolaevsk-on-Amur.
On 5 August 1945 and having in its composition, 56 Rifle Corps, 3rd, 103 th and 104 th fortified areas, 5th and 113th separate infantry brigades, 214th Tank Brigade, a number of separate infantry, tank, artillery and other units was included in the 2nd Far East Front. 56th Rifle Corps, under General Lieutenant J.V. Novoselsky, consisted of 79th Rifle Division, 2nd Rifle Brigade, the Sakhalin Rifle Regiment, the 6th Battalion (infantry) and other formations and units.
During the Soviet-Japanese War in cooperation with the Russian Pacific Fleet held Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk operation, part of the forces involved in Kuril landing operation in 1945.
On 1 October 1945 the army entered the Far Eastern Military District
Far Eastern Military District
The Far Eastern Military District was a military district of the Russian Ground Forces. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District....
and within a month was disbanded.
Army Commander
- M. G. Dubkov (July 1 - September 8, 1943), Maj.-Gen.
- Leonty CheremisovLeonty CheremisovLeonty Georgiyevich Cheremisov was a Soviet Red Army commander and general who led the 16th Army in the Soviet Far East during World War II from 1943 to 1945.-Biography:Leonty Cheremisov was born in 1893 and came from a working-class family...
(September 8, 1943 - October 8, 1945), Major-General (from September 8, 1945 - Lieutenant-General)