39th Army (Soviet Union)
Encyclopedia
The 39th Army was a Field Army
of the Soviet Union
's Red Army
formed on 15 November 1941 in the Arkhangelsk Military District
, in accordance with a directive issued by the Stavka
(command headquarters) on 2 November 1941. The army was directly subordinate to the Stavka.
on 22 December where the 39th Army took part in the Kalinin Offensive Operation. The Kalinin Offensive Operation had begun on 5 December 1941 and was one part of the Moscow Strategic Counter-Offensive. The army was within the joint sector of the 22nd Army
and 29th Army
under the command of Lieutenant-General Ivan Maslennikov. At the end of December the 39th Army broke through the enemy defenses to a significant depth. During the battles of 2-7 January 1942 the troops on the right wing reached the Volga River
and those in the center broke through a new line of defense organized by the enemy on the right bank of the Volga, covering Rzhev from the west and southwest. By the end of the operation on 8 January 1942 the 39th Army had reached the north-west of Rzhev.
The Sychevsk-Vyazma Offensive Operation (January 8 - April 20, 1942) began immediately and the 39th Army broke through the enemy defenses in a narrow sector, expanding its offensive on Sychevka and providing a corridor through the enemy front for the 29th Army
and 11th Cavalry Corps
(commanded by Colonel S.V. Sokolov). By the end of January 1942 its troops came to the Vyazma
-Smolensk
railway on the north of Yartsevo
where they met stubborn resistance of the enemy troops. In early February the enemy counter-attacks from Rzhev
and Olenino
stopped the advance of Soviet troops and the Russian troops on the Kalinin Front
were forced into a defensive situation. This resulted in the Kholm-Zhirkovsky
ledge being connected to the Kalinin Front
by a narrow corridor between Nelidovo
and Bely, where the 39th Army faced the threatening situation of having their lines of communication cut by the enemy. The 2nd Shock Army
at the Volkhov Front
was in a similar situation in the same time.
-Kholm-Zhirkovsky
in a defensive role. Here the 39th Army engaged in the defense of a salient which contained an enormous enemy force, caused by the 9th Army who were involved in Operation Seydlitz. The German operation began on 2 July against the troops of 39th Army and 11th Cavalry Corps
, which occupied the Kholm-Zhirkovsky
ledge. The Germans attacked at the narrowest part of the corridor, approximately 27–28 km, attacking in the direction of Bely and Olenino
. By 6 July the German troops had closed the corridor and the 39th Army and 11th Cavalry Corps were in encirclement and then dissected into two groups. By 8 July the 11th Cavalry Corps were subordinated to the 39th Army. The German army ceased Operation Seydlitz when it "officially ended on July 12, after reporting by radio from the Fuhrer's headquarters: 'The victory in the Summer Battle of Rzhev'."
commander, the military council of 39th Army with a group of staff officers and the wounded were evacuated in nine Po-2
light aircrafts in Andreapol
, of which three planes crashed. Surrounded parts of the 39th Army had been ordered to obey the Deputy of Maslennikov, Lieutenant-General Bogdanov, and the deputy of the political commissar of 39th Army, Division Commissar Shabalin. Battles continued for three weeks while the Germans tried to destroy the encircled groups of the 39th Army.
In late July 1942 the individual units were released from the front and, with no troops, the 39th Army was disbanded.
For the invasion of Manchuria, 39th Army was part of the Transbaikal Front
under Marshal Rodion Malinovsky
. By 22 August, the army had reached Port Arthur on the Chinese coast.
After the war, the army was stationed for many years in Mongolia
, with its headquarters at Ulan Bator.
Soviet perceptions of threat from China increased in the 1960s. A number of measures were taken to increase troop strength in the Transbaikal and in Mongolia. From the Baltic to the Far East came the 21st Guards Tank Division, of the Leningrad Military District in the ZabVO - 2nd Guards Tank Division. It also deployed 5th Guards Tank Division
, 32nd, 66th, 49th, and 111th Tank Divisions. By the early 1970s the 39th Combined-Arms Army had been strengthened in the Transbaikal, while in Mongolia there was formed a progressive group from the 39th Army.
In the late 1980s the army consisted of the 2nd Guards Tank Division, 51st Tank Division, and 12th
, 41st, and 149th Motor Rifle Divisions. The withdrawal of troops from Mongolia took 28 months. On 4 February 1989 a Sino-Soviet agreement was signed to reduce troops on the border. 15 May 1989 and the Soviet government announced a partial, then the complete withdrawal of 39th Army of the Transbaikal Military District
from Mongolia. The army consisted of more than 50,000 soldiers, 1816 tanks, 2531 armored vehicles, 1461 artillery systems, 190 aircraft and 130 helicopters. On 25 September 1992 the completion of the withdrawal was officially announced. The last Russian troops left Mongolia in December 1992.
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....
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....
'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...
formed on 15 November 1941 in the Arkhangelsk Military District
Arkhangelsk Military District
Arkhangelsk Military District existed from March 26, 1940 to December 15, 1944, and again from February 15, 1946 to June 29, 1951. Command of the district was established from command elements of the 15th Army...
, in accordance with a directive issued by the 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...
(command headquarters) on 2 November 1941. The army was directly subordinate to the Stavka.
Kalinin Offensive
On 1 December 1941 the army was entrusted to build defense lines along the eastern bank of the river Sheksna. After regrouping in the area of Torzhok it was sent to the Kalinin FrontKalinin 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...
on 22 December where the 39th Army took part in the Kalinin Offensive Operation. The Kalinin Offensive Operation had begun on 5 December 1941 and was one part of the Moscow Strategic Counter-Offensive. The army was within the joint sector of the 22nd Army
22nd Army (Soviet Union)
The 22nd Army was a field army of the Russian Ground Forces, part of the Moscow Military District. It was active from 1941 to 2010. The order for the formation's dissolution was signed by the Minister of Defence on 1 July 2009....
and 29th Army
29th Army (Soviet Union)
The Soviet Red Army's 29th Army was a field army of the Red Army and later the Russian Ground Forces.- History :It was first formed in July 1941 in the Moscow Military District on the basis of 30th Rifle Corps. The 245th, 252nd, 254th and 256th Rifle Divisions, and a number of smaller units made up...
under the command of Lieutenant-General Ivan Maslennikov. At the end of December the 39th Army broke through the enemy defenses to a significant depth. During the battles of 2-7 January 1942 the troops on the right wing reached the Volga River
Volga River
The Volga is the largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It flows through central Russia, and is widely viewed as the national river of Russia. Out of the twenty largest cities of Russia, eleven, including the capital Moscow, are situated in the Volga's drainage...
and those in the center broke through a new line of defense organized by the enemy on the right bank of the Volga, covering Rzhev from the west and southwest. By the end of the operation on 8 January 1942 the 39th Army had reached the north-west of Rzhev.
The Sychevsk-Vyazma Offensive Operation (January 8 - April 20, 1942) began immediately and the 39th Army broke through the enemy defenses in a narrow sector, expanding its offensive on Sychevka and providing a corridor through the enemy front for the 29th Army
29th Army (Soviet Union)
The Soviet Red Army's 29th Army was a field army of the Red Army and later the Russian Ground Forces.- History :It was first formed in July 1941 in the Moscow Military District on the basis of 30th Rifle Corps. The 245th, 252nd, 254th and 256th Rifle Divisions, and a number of smaller units made up...
and 11th Cavalry Corps
11th Cavalry Corps (Soviet Union)
The 11th Cavalry Corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army was a cavalry corps active during the Second World War.It was created on 12 January 1942 at Kalinin Oblast...
(commanded by Colonel S.V. Sokolov). By the end of January 1942 its troops came to the Vyazma
Vyazma
Vyazma is a town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk and Mozhaysk. Throughout its turbulent history, the city defended western approaches to the city of Moscow...
-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...
railway on the north of Yartsevo
Yartsevo
Yartsevo is a town and the administrative center of Yartsevsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vop River northeast of Smolensk. Population:...
where they met stubborn resistance of the enemy troops. In early February the enemy counter-attacks from Rzhev
Rzhev
Rzhev is a town in Tver Oblast, Russia, southwest of Staritsa and from Tver, on the highway and railway connecting Moscow and Riga. It is the uppermost town situated on the Volga River. Population:...
and Olenino
Olenino
Olenino is an urban locality and the administrative center of Oleninsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Tver on the federal "Baltic" highway . Population:...
stopped the advance of Soviet troops and the Russian troops on the Kalinin Front
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...
were forced into a defensive situation. This resulted in the Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky is an urban locality in Kholm-Zhirkovsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Smolensk, about west of Moscow, and from the Moscow-Minsk highway. Population:...
ledge being connected to the Kalinin Front
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...
by a narrow corridor between Nelidovo
Nelidovo
Nelidovo is a town and the administrative center of Nelidovsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, located in the Valdai Hills area on the Mezha River southwest of Tver. Population:...
and Bely, where the 39th Army faced the threatening situation of having their lines of communication cut by the enemy. The 2nd Shock Army
2nd Shock Army
The 2nd Shock Army was a field army of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. This type of formation was created in accordance with prewar doctrine that called for Shock Armies to overcome difficult defensive dispositions in order to create a tactical penetration of sufficient breadth and...
at the Volkhov Front
Volkhov Front
The Front was reformed on the 9 June 1942 from the Volkhov Operational Group of the Leningrad Front and served until 15 February 1944, participating in the relief of the Siege of Leningrad and taking part in other operations including:-Campaigns:...
was in a similar situation in the same time.
Kalinin defense
From February to June 1942 the 39th Army was fighting in the north-west of VyazmaVyazma
Vyazma is a town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk and Mozhaysk. Throughout its turbulent history, the city defended western approaches to the city of Moscow...
-Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky is an urban locality in Kholm-Zhirkovsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Smolensk, about west of Moscow, and from the Moscow-Minsk highway. Population:...
in a defensive role. Here the 39th Army engaged in the defense of a salient which contained an enormous enemy force, caused by the 9th Army who were involved in Operation Seydlitz. The German operation began on 2 July against the troops of 39th Army and 11th Cavalry Corps
11th Cavalry Corps (Soviet Union)
The 11th Cavalry Corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army was a cavalry corps active during the Second World War.It was created on 12 January 1942 at Kalinin Oblast...
, which occupied the Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky
Kholm-Zhirkovsky is an urban locality in Kholm-Zhirkovsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Smolensk, about west of Moscow, and from the Moscow-Minsk highway. Population:...
ledge. The Germans attacked at the narrowest part of the corridor, approximately 27–28 km, attacking in the direction of Bely and Olenino
Olenino
Olenino is an urban locality and the administrative center of Oleninsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Tver on the federal "Baltic" highway . Population:...
. By 6 July the German troops had closed the corridor and the 39th Army and 11th Cavalry Corps were in encirclement and then dissected into two groups. By 8 July the 11th Cavalry Corps were subordinated to the 39th Army. The German army ceased Operation Seydlitz when it "officially ended on July 12, after reporting by radio from the Fuhrer's headquarters: 'The victory in the Summer Battle of Rzhev'."
Evacuation and disbandment
On 17 July around 8,000 troops of the 39th Army, under the command by Maslennikov, crossed the river Obshu (which passes the Bely from northeast to southwest) to land on the north bank and occupied the area north of the village Shizderevo. On 18 July, by order of the Kalinin FrontKalinin 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...
commander, the military council of 39th Army with a group of staff officers and the wounded were evacuated in nine Po-2
Polikarpov Po-2
The Polikarpov Po-2 served as a general-purpose Soviet biplane, nicknamed Kukuruznik for maize; thus, 'maize duster' or 'crop duster'), NATO reporting name "Mule"...
light aircrafts in Andreapol
Andreapol
Andreapol is a town and the administrative center of Andreapolsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, located in the upper reaches of the Western Dvina River, west of Moscow, on the Valdai Hills...
, of which three planes crashed. Surrounded parts of the 39th Army had been ordered to obey the Deputy of Maslennikov, Lieutenant-General Bogdanov, and the deputy of the political commissar of 39th Army, Division Commissar Shabalin. Battles continued for three weeks while the Germans tried to destroy the encircled groups of the 39th Army.
In late July 1942 the individual units were released from the front and, with no troops, the 39th Army was disbanded.
Soviet invasion of Manchuria and after
On 1 May 1945 in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command, 39th Army rifle units consisted of 5th Guards Rifle Corps (17, 19 и 91 гв. сд), 94th Rifle Corps (124, 221, 358 сд), and 113th Rifle Corps (192, 262, 338 сд). Artillery forces included 139 пабр, 610 иптап, 555 минп, and the 621st Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment (зенап).For the invasion of Manchuria, 39th Army was part of the Transbaikal Front
Transbaikal Front
The Transbaikal Front was a front formed on September 15, 1941 on base of the Transbaikal Military District. Initially, it included the 17th and 36th armies, but in August 1942 the 12th Air Army was added to the front, and, finally, in June-July 1945 the 39th and the 53rd armies, the 6th Guards...
under Marshal Rodion Malinovsky
Rodion Malinovsky
Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky was a Soviet military commander in World War II and Defense Minister of the Soviet Union in the late 1950s and 1960s. He contributed to the major defeat of Nazi Germany at the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of Budapest...
. By 22 August, the army had reached Port Arthur on the Chinese coast.
After the war, the army was stationed for many years in Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, with its headquarters at Ulan Bator.
Soviet perceptions of threat from China increased in the 1960s. A number of measures were taken to increase troop strength in the Transbaikal and in Mongolia. From the Baltic to the Far East came the 21st Guards Tank Division, of the Leningrad Military District in the ZabVO - 2nd Guards Tank Division. It also deployed 5th Guards Tank Division
5th Guards Tank Division
The 5th Guards Tank Division was a tank division of the Soviet Ground Forces and Russian Ground Forces, active from around 1945 to 2009. It drew its heritage from a illustrious Soviet World War II cavalry formation, the 5th Guards Cavalry Corps...
, 32nd, 66th, 49th, and 111th Tank Divisions. By the early 1970s the 39th Combined-Arms Army had been strengthened in the Transbaikal, while in Mongolia there was formed a progressive group from the 39th Army.
In the late 1980s the army consisted of the 2nd Guards Tank Division, 51st Tank Division, and 12th
12th Amurskaya Rifle Division
The 12th Rifle Division was a military formation of the Red Army which participated in combat operations during World War II. It was formed 5 October 1923 in Omsk . On 18 February 1924, it was given the name of the Siberian Revolutionary Committee. It was part of the Western Siberian Military...
, 41st, and 149th Motor Rifle Divisions. The withdrawal of troops from Mongolia took 28 months. On 4 February 1989 a Sino-Soviet agreement was signed to reduce troops on the border. 15 May 1989 and the Soviet government announced a partial, then the complete withdrawal of 39th Army of the Transbaikal Military District
Transbaikal 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...
from Mongolia. The army consisted of more than 50,000 soldiers, 1816 tanks, 2531 armored vehicles, 1461 artillery systems, 190 aircraft and 130 helicopters. On 25 September 1992 the completion of the withdrawal was officially announced. The last Russian troops left Mongolia in December 1992.
Commanding officers
- Major-General Ivan Aleksandrovich Bogdanov (11.1941 to 12.1941 )
- Lieutenant-General Ivan Ivanovich Maslennikov (12.1941-07.1942 )