1st Guards Army (Soviet Union)

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1st Guards Army
Soviet Guards insignia
Active
  • August–October 1942
  • November–December 1942
  • December 1942–August 1945
  • 1967–1992
Country 
Chernigov (1967–1992)
EngagementsWorld War II
DecorationsOrder of Lenin
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Andrei Grechko
Dmitry Lelyushenko


The 1st Guards Army was a

Guards field army that fought on the Eastern Front during World War II
.

First Formation

On August 6, 1942, the army formed from the

2nd Reserve Army with five Guards Rifle Divisions, the 37th, 38th, 39th, 40th and 41st. On August 9, the army was incorporated into Southeastern Front. On August 18, it was transferred to the Stalingrad Front (renamed Don Front
on September 30).

During the

Stalingrad in August 1942, the Red Army launched a counter-offensive to drive the German forces back. The 1st Guards Army and the 24th Army
launched the attack. Little success was met. The 1st Guards Army managed an advance of just a few miles, while the 24th Army was pushed back right into its start-line.

On October 16, 1942, the headquarters of the army transferred into Stavka reserve and its troops transferred to the 24th Army. On 25 October 1942 the army was disbanded, its headquarters was converted to the field management of the 2nd formation of Southwestern Front according to the Stavka directive of 22 October 1942.

Commanders

Second Formation

On November 5, 1942, 1st Guards Army was reformed from 63rd Army according to the Stavka directive of November 1. The army was a part of

Don River. The Army participated in Stalingrad strategic offensive Operation Uranus
. As the right flank of the front shock group, 1st Guards Army with 5th Tank Army created the appearance of the Stalingrad encirclement "boiler".

On December 5, 1942, 1st Guards Army is split, its left wing being renamed

3rd Guards Army of the Southwestern Front
.

Commander

  • Lieutenant General
    Dmitri Danilovich Lelyushenko
    (November – December 1942 ).

Third Formation

The 1st Guards Army was created on December 8, 1942, according to the Stavka directive of December 5, 1942. The troops of the army was formed from the part of the operational group of

Italian Eighth Army and gained a respectable amount of territory. By the end of the year, the 1st Guards Army was outside Millerovo
.

The 1st Guards Army also took part in

Soviet Southwestern Front, and took part in the victorious Soviet pushing into Germany in 1943 to 1945. Also, in 1943, the 1st Guards Army was the first unit of the soviet army to operate the new T-34/85 tank. Among its units when the war ended in 1945 was the 81st Rifle Division. In August, the 1st Guards Army became the headquarters of the Kiev Military District.[1]

Commanders

After World War II

The 98th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigade was expanded into the 86th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division on 22 August 1956, stationed at Constanța. The Special Mechanized Army became the 1st Separate Combined Arms Army in 1957, and in July 1958 withdrew from Romania to the Kiev Military District. When air defense units were reorganized on 30 July 1960 due to the replacement of anti-aircraft guns by surface-to-air missiles, the division was reorganized as the 108th Anti-Aircraft Rocket Brigade of the 1st Separate Army, a unit of the Air Defense of the Ground Forces.

In July 1958, the army was moved from its headquarters in

Chernigov
and renamed the 1st Combined Arms Army. [2] The 108th AA Rocket Brigade was based at Zolotonosha as the air defense brigade of the army for the rest of the Cold War[3]

In 1960 the army consisted of the

72nd Guards Motor Rifle Division, and the 25th Guards Motor Rifle Division
.

Formation in 1989 Formation in 1991-2 (Ukraine)
25th Guards Motor Rifle Division (Lubny) 25th Mechanised Division
47th Motor Rifle Division Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment
Belaya Tserkov
) 		72nd Mechanised Division
Cherkassy
) 		6298th Guards Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment[5]
850th Territorial Training Centre (Pyriatyn) Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment
851st Territorial Training Centre (Konotop) Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment

After the collapse of the Soviet Union the Army became the 1st Army Corps of the

Territorial Directorate "North"
.

Commanders

The following officers commanded the 1st Guards Combined Arms Army and the previous 1st Combined Arms Army.[4]

  • Lieutenant General
    Vasily Arkhipov
    (formation – 23 May 1960)
  • Colonel General
    Alexander Rodimtsev
    (23 May 1960 – 18 March 1966)
  • Lieutenant General Grigory Batalov (18 March 1966 – 13 June 1969)
  • Lieutenant General Sergey Molokoedov (13 June 1969 – 2 September 1970)
  • Lieutenant General Grigory Gorodetsky (2 September 1970 – 1973)
  • ?? (1973–1976)
  • Lieutenant General Alexander Elagin (1976 – September 1979)
  • Lieutenant General Aleksey Fyodorov (September 1979 – May 1982)
  • Lieutenant General Alexey Demidov (May 1982 – April 1985)
  • Major General Leonty Kuznetsov (May 1985 – May 1988; promoted major general 16 February 1988)
  • Lieutenant General Valentin Bobryshev (May 1988 – 1 August 1991)
  • Major General Andrei Nikolayev (1 August 1991 – February 1992)

Notes

  1. ^ Holm, Michael. "1st Guards Combined Arms Army (II)". www.ww2.dk. Retrieved 2016-01-03.
  2. ^ Feskov et al. 2013, pp. 288, 483.
  3. ^ Lensky & Tsybin 2001, p. 155.
  4. ^ a b Holm, Michael. "1st Guards Combined Arms Army (III)". www.ww2.dk. Retrieved 2016-01-03.
  5. ^ Weapons and equipment transferred to 5193rd VKhVT at Uman. Holm, 41st Guards Tank Division (II), 2015.

References

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