5th Mechanised Corps (Soviet Union)

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5th Mechanised Corps
Active
  • 1st formation: 1934–1938
  • 2nd formation: 1940–1941
  • 3rd formation: 1942–1944
Country
Mechanised corps
EngagementsWorld War II
Battle honours
  • Named for Kalinovsky (1st formation)
  • Dniester (3rd formation)
  • Rymnik (3rd formation)
Commanders
Notable
commanders

The 5th Mechanised Corps was a

9th Guards Mechanised Corps
.

First formation

The 5th Mechanised Corps was formed in 1934 at

Stalinogorsk.[4]

On 15 December 1934 the corps had 525 tanks, including: 159

Mikhail Petrovich Petrov became corps commander. In September 1937 the 13th Mechanised Brigade was transferred to the 11th Mechanised Corps in the Transbaikal Military District and renamed the 32nd Mechanised Brigade.[5] In October, a new 13th Mechanised Brigade was formed in Kaluga. On 7 May 1938, the corps' Separate Tank Battalion became the Moscow Military District's 4th Light Tank Regiment. In August 1938, the corps was converted into the 15th Tank Corps[6] when the Red Army reorganized its mechanized forces to make them more tank-heavy.[7]

Second formation

The 5th Mechanised Corps (

Molotov Railway. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Makar Teryokhin. The corps' headquarters was formed from the headquarters of the 51st Rifle Corps. The 13th Tank Division was formed from the 15th Light Tank Brigade. The 17th Tank Division was formed from the 37th Light Tank Brigade and included the 199th Flamethrower and 526th Transport Battalions. The 109th Motorised Division, formerly of the 12th Rifle Corps, joined the corps at Kharanor. On 11 March 1941 Major General Ilya Alekseyenko, the 17th Tank Division commander, became the corps' commander.[8] The corps was ordered to redeploy west with the 16th Army on 25 May. It was loaded onto trains with the 57th Tank Division and moved west. On 12 June the corps arrived in the Kiev Military District and was unloaded from the trains. Corps headquarters, the 13th Tank Division, and the 109th Motorised Division were located at Berdichev. The 17th Tank Division was located at Isyaslav.[9]

When the German invasion of the Soviet Union began on 22 June, the corps was equipped with 1,070 tanks, including 59 flamethrower tanks and 10 BT-2 tanks, and at least 493

KV tanks, 10 T-34 tanks, 595 BT tanks, 242 T-26 tanks, 61 flamethrower tanks, and 59 T-37/38 amphibious tanks.[11] The corps was to advance 135 kilometres (84 mi), reaching Lepel through Senno.[12]

A burning T-34 tank of the type used by the corps.

By the time it went into battle at Lepel on 6 July, the corps was at two-thirds of its strength due to breakdowns. The corps also attacked without air support and with a shortage of anti-aircraft guns, fuel, and ammunition. Alekseyenko deployed the corps in two echelons: the 13th and 17th Tank Divisions attacked first, with the 109th Motorised Division in the second echelon.[12] The 17th Tank Division ran into the 17th Panzer Division at Senno on 6 July at the beginning of the counterattack.[13] The 13th Tank Division was attacked on its left flank by the 18th Panzer Division after advancing farther west than the 17th Tank Division. By 10 July the corps had been mostly destroyed. In the Orsha area the retreating corps was given replacement tanks and ordered to resume the attack the next day.[14] The corps counterattacked toward Vitebsk from the south in conjunction with the 7th Mechanised Corps. Running into the 7th and 12th Panzer Divisions, the combined losses of both corps totalled 100 tanks.[15]

By the end of 15 July the corps was in the Smolensk pocket.

Syrokorenye region, 60 kilometres (37 mi) west of Smolensk, while retreating to the Gusino crossing, 45 kilometres (28 mi) west of the city.[18] On 19 July the 109th Motorised Division became the 109th Rifle Division.[10] The 13th and 17th Tank Divisions fought against the 17th and 18th Panzer Divisions in the southern part of the pocket.[19]
The corps was moved to the northeastern sector of the pocket to attack towards Dukhovshchina with orders to keep the Solovevo corridor open.[20] On 26 July it was reported to have 58 tanks left.[21] The 1st Motor Rifle Division was attached to the corps in the Smolensk Pocket by 1 August.[22] On the night of 31 July to 1 August, the corps escaped the Smolensk Pocket through a gap in the German encirclement. Corps deputy commander Major General Yevgeny Zhuravlev took command[23] after Alekseyenko died of wounds on 2 August.[24]

On 5 August, after escaping the Smolensk pocket, the corps was ordered to concentrate southeast of

Gzhatsk with the 57th Tank Division.[26] On the night of 7 to 8 August, the corps was ordered to move southeast of Gzhatsk in front reserve.[27] On 10 August the 13th Tank Division was disbanded as a result of heavy losses it had suffered in the pas month of fighting.[10] The corps was disbanded on or around 24 August 1941[28] due to the Soviet reorganization of their mechanised forces into smaller units.[29] The 17th Tank Division was converted into a tank brigade days later.[22]

Third formation

The 5th Mechanised Corps was reformed on 8 September 1942 on the basis of the

Group Stahel back to the city outskirts, but the corps was thrown back by German reinforcements. By 30 December the Soviet attack had stalled, marking the end of Operation Little Saturn.[35] Almost immediately afterwards, the corps was committed to fight in Operation Gallop from 1 January to 10 February 1943.[28] After the operation, it was withdrawn to the Volga Military District with only the 45th Mechanised Brigade assigned on 1 March. On 31 March the corps' 168th and 188th Tank Regiments were combined into the 233rd Tank Brigade.[36][37] By 1 April the 49th Mechanised Brigade was re-subordinated to the corps after being directly subordinated to the Volga Military District in March. The 49th was transferred to the Reserve of the Supreme High Command in April.[38] On 1 May the corps was part of the Steppe Military District with the 2nd, 9th, and 45th Mechanised Brigades assigned and the 233rd Tank Brigade also joined the corps. On 1 June the corps was in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command. By 1 August it was part of the Western Front.[30]

The corps fought in the Second Battle of Smolensk and in the

Smolensk–Roslavl Offensive.[30]

A destroyed Sherman of the type used by the corps.

On 1 October the corps was part of the Western Front, and by 1 November it was back in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command. On 1 January 1944 it was part of the Moscow Military District.

6th Tank Army.[42]

The corps fought in the

Soviet General Staff study) with its own attacks. Three days later, the corps was ordered to march back to Malyi Vinograd. By the end of 31 January, it held positions in the Vinograd region.[45] In early February, the corps attacked from the east towards Lysianka, Bosovka, and Malyi Vinograd against counterattacking German troops, pushing them back. On the evening of 3 February the corps was in positions between Zhabinka and Yablonovka.[46] 10 days later, German troops captured Malyi Vinograd, pushing back the corps and other units. The front stabilized and the corps with the 6th Tank Army was moved back to the second echelon of the front.[47]

In March and April 1944, the corps fought in the

Rymnik.[49]

Commanders

The following officers commanded the corps' first formation:[6]

  • Komdiv Nikolai Rakitin (May 1934 – 1936)
  • Kombrig Alexander Grechanik (1936)
  • Komdiv Mikhail Petrovich Petrov (June 1937 – August 1938)

The following officers commanded the corps' second formation:[9]

  • Lieutenant General Makar Teryokhin (July 1940 – March 1941)
  • Major General Ilya Alekseyenko (March – August 1941)
  • Major General Yevgeny Zhuravlev (August 1941)[23]

The following officer commanded the corps' third formation:[30]

  • Major General (promoted to Lieutenant General 5 November 1943) Mikhail Volkov (2 November 1942 – 12 September 1944)

Structure

The corps' first formation included the following units:[6]

  • 13th Mechanised Brigade (1st formation) (to September 1937)
  • 13th Mechanised Brigade (2nd formation) (from October 1937)
  • 14th Mechanised Brigade
  • 50th Rifle and Machine Gun Brigade
  • Separate Reconnaissance Battalion (became Separate Tank Battalion June 1937) (to 7 May 1938)

The corps' second formation included the following units:[9]

  • 13th Tank Division
  • 17th Tank Division
  • 109th Motorised Division
  • 8th Motorcycle Regiment
  • 255th Separate Communications Battalion
  • 55th Separate Road Battalion
  • 105th Corps Aviation Squadron
  • 484th Field Cash Office of the State Bank

The corps' third formation included the following units:[30]

  • 45th Mechanised Brigade
  • 49th Mechanised Brigade (to April 1943)
  • 50th Mechanised Brigade (to February 1943)
  • 2nd Mechanised Brigade (from April 1943)
  • 9th Mechanised Brigade (from April 1943)
  • 233rd Tank Brigade (from April 1943)
  • 188th Tank Regiment (October 1942 to March 1943)
  • 168th Tank Regiment (November 1942 to March 1943)
  • 1827th Heavy Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment (from July 1943)
  • 1700th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment (from June 1943)
  • 64th Separate Motorcycle Battalion (from October 1942)
  • 45th Armored Car Battalion (from October 1942 to November 1943)
  • 657th Separate Communications Battalion (from 27 July 1943)
  • 39th Separate Sapper Battalion (from 30 October 1942)
  • 81st Repair and Recovery Battalion (from 30 October 1942)
  • 159th Separate Chemical Defence Company (from 27 July 1943)
  • 6th Separate Engineer-Mine Company (from 30 October 1942)

Notes

  1. ^ Habeck 2003, p. 95.
  2. ^ Drig, Yevgeny (15 April 2006). "13 механизированная бригада" [13th Mechanized Brigade]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  3. ^ Drig, Yevgeny (2 January 2006). "14 механизированая бригада" [14th Mechanized Brigade]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  4. ^ Drig, Yevgeny (2 October 2007). "50 стрелково-пулеметная бригада" [50th Rifle and Machine Gun Brigade]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  5. ^ Drig, Yevgeny (15 April 2006). "13 механизированная бригада, 32 механизированная бригада, 15 легкотанковая бригада" [13th Mechanised Brigade, 32nd Mechanised Brigade, 15th Light Tank Brigade]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b c Drig, Yevgeny. "5 механизированный корпус имени т.Калиновского" [5th Mechanized Corps named for Kalinowsky]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  7. ^ Habeck 2003, p. 279.
  8. ^ Drig, Yevgeny (22 October 2005). "Биографии – А" [Biographies – A]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 7 April 2013. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  9. ^ a b c d Drig, Yevgeny (12 March 2007). "5 механизированный корпус" [5th Mechanized Corps]. mechcorps.rkka.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 28 June 2011. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  10. ^ a b c Glantz 2010, p. 590.
  11. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 72.
  12. ^ a b Glantz 2010, p. 74.
  13. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 73.
  14. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 75.
  15. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 79.
  16. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 121.
  17. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 166.
  18. ^ Glantz 2010, pp. 171–173.
  19. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 186.
  20. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 226.
  21. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 229.
  22. ^ a b Glantz 2010, p. 154.
  23. ^ a b Drig, Yevgeny (17 April 2006). "Биографии – Ж" [Biographies – Zh]. mechcorps.rkka.ru. Archived from the original on 10 October 2012. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  24. ^ Maslov 1998, pp. 16–17.
  25. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 354.
  26. ^ Glantz 2010, p. 356.
  27. ^ Glantz 2010, pp. 358–359.
  28. ^ a b "Перечень № 4. III. Управления механизированных корпусов" [List No. 4 Part III. Mechanised Corps Headquarters] (in Russian). Moscow: Voenizdat. 1956. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  29. ^ Zaloga & Ness 1998, p. 70.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g "5-й механизированный корпус" [5th Mechanized Corps]. tankfront.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  31. Combat composition of the Soviet Army
    , 1 November 1942
  32. ^ Glantz 2014, p. 400n8.
  33. ^ Glantz 2014, p. 35.
  34. ^ Glantz 2014, p. 53.
  35. ^ Glantz 2014, p. 73.
  36. ^ "168-й отдельный танковый полк" [168th Separate Tank Regiment]. tankfront.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  37. ^ "188-й отдельный танковый полк" [188th Tank Regiment]. tankfront.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  38. ^ "49-я механизированная бригада" [49th Mechanised Brigade]. tankfront.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 15 March 2017.
  39. ^ Istomin 1975, pp. 93–95.
  40. ^ Istomin 1975, pp. 105, 110–116.
  41. ^ Glantz & Orenstein 2003, p. 106n1.
  42. ^ Glantz & Orenstein 2003, p. 8.
  43. ^ Zetterling & Frankson 2011, pp. 97–98.
  44. ^ Zetterling & Frankson 2011, pp. 101, 117–118.
  45. ^ Glantz & Orenstein 2003, p. 21.
  46. ^ Zetterling & Frankson 2011, p. 154.
  47. ^ Glantz & Orenstein 2003, pp. 93–104.
  48. ^ Erickson 1999, p. 184.
  49. ^ "Приказы НКО за 1944 г., с грифом "Секретно"" [Orders of the NKO for 1944, marked "Secret"]. soldat.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 30 November 2016.

References

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