18th Guards Motor Rifle Division
Encyclopedia
The 18th Guards Motor Rifle Division was formed originally as 133rd Rifle Division at Novosibirsk
or Biysk in 1939. It was redesignated as the 18th Guards
Rifle Division in March 1942 with the 51, 53, 58 Guards Rifle Regiments and 52 Guards Artillery Regiment. The division fought in the East Prussian Offensive
. The unit became 30th Guards Mechanised Division in 1945 as part of the 11th Guards Army
. In 1965 it was renumbered as 18th Guards MRD. It seems to have been stationed in the Kaliningrad
enclave with 11th Guards Army before entering Czechoslovakia
in 1968, joining the Central Group of Forces
.
In 1991 the Division was withdrawn back to Gusev
in the Kaliningrad Oblast
. The Division is now at cadre strength, as part of the third-line reserves of the Russian Ground Forces
. However there is one Russian chat-forum report that the Division has been reorganised as 79th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade . As the 280th Guards MR Regiment was the last reported unit in the area, in 2002, the 79th Brigade may have inherited its awards and honorific names.
Honorifics are Insterburgskaya Krasnoznamennaya
of Order of Suvorov
.
Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia, after Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and the largest city of Siberia, with a population of 1,473,737 . It is the administrative center of Novosibirsk Oblast as well as of the Siberian Federal District...
or Biysk in 1939. It was redesignated as the 18th Guards
Russian Guards
Guards or Guards units were and are elite military units in Imperial Russia, Soviet Union and the Russian Federation. The tradition goes back to the retinue of a knyaz of medieval Kievan Rus' and the streltsy, the Muscovite harquebusiers formed by Ivan the Terrible by 1550...
Rifle Division in March 1942 with the 51, 53, 58 Guards Rifle Regiments and 52 Guards Artillery Regiment. The division fought in the East Prussian Offensive
East Prussian Offensive
The East Prussian Offensive was a strategic offensive by the Red Army against the German Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front . It lasted from 13 January to 25 April 1945, though some German units did not surrender until 9 May...
. The unit became 30th Guards Mechanised Division in 1945 as part of 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 1965 it was renumbered as 18th Guards MRD. It seems to have been stationed in the Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
enclave with 11th Guards Army before entering 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...
in 1968, joining the Central Group of Forces
Central Group of Forces
The Central Group of Forces was a Soviet military formation used to control Soviet troops in Central Europe on two occasions: in Austria and Hungary from 1945-55 and troops stationed in Czechoslovakia after the Prague Spring of 1968....
.
In 1991 the Division was withdrawn back to Gusev
Gusev
Gusev is a town and the administrative center of Gusevsky District of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Pissa and Krasnaya Rivers, near the border with Poland and Lithuania, east of Chernyakhovsk. Population: -History:...
in the Kaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast is a federal subject of Russia situated on the Baltic coast. It has a population of The oblast forms the westernmost part of the Russian Federation, but it has no land connection to the rest of Russia. Since its creation it has been an exclave of the Russian SFSR and then the...
. The Division is now at cadre strength, as part of the third-line reserves of the Russian Ground Forces
Russian Ground Forces
The Russian Ground Forces are the land forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed from parts of the collapsing Soviet Army in 1992. The formation of these forces posed economic challenges after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and required reforms to professionalize the force...
. However there is one Russian chat-forum report that the Division has been reorganised as 79th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade . As the 280th Guards MR Regiment was the last reported unit in the area, in 2002, the 79th Brigade may have inherited its awards and honorific names.
Structure (1990s)
- 210th Motor Rifle Regiment;
- 275th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment;
- 278th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment;
- 280th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment;
- 52nd Guards Artillery Regiment;
Honorifics are Insterburgskaya Krasnoznamennaya
Red Banner
Red Banner was a symbol of the USSR associated with the Soviet state flag.Military units, institutions and organizations awarded with the Order of the Red Banner are referred to with the honorific title "of the Red Banner" Red Banner was a symbol of the USSR associated with the Soviet state...
of Order of Suvorov
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...
.