The 12th Guards Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army. Formed in 1942, the corps fought in the Vistula–Oder Offensive, East Pomeranian Offensive and

Berlin Offensive The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...

. The corps was awarded the

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

for its actions during the storming of Berlin. It was disbanded in Germany in June 1946.

History

The corps was first formed on the

Northwestern Front The Northwestern Front (Russian: ''Северо-Западный фронт'') was a military formation of the Red Army during the Winter War and World War II. It was operational with the 7th and 13th Armies during the Winter War. It was re-c ...

in December 1942, on the basis of the 384th Rifle Division. It was commanded by Major General Nikanor Zakhvatayev. In May 1944, Zakhvatayev was transferred to command the

1st Shock Army The 1st Shock Army () was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II. The 1st Shock Army was created in late 1941 and fought in the northern areas of Russia and the Baltic States until the surrender of Germany i ...

. He was replaced by Major General Mikhail Siyazov. On 29 July, Siyazov became 67th Army deputy commander and was replaced by Major General . On November 3, 1944 the corps included the 23rd Guards, 52nd Guards and

33rd Rifle Division The 33rd Rifle Division was a rifle division of the Red Army and Soviet Army, formed twice. The division was formed in 1922 at Samara and moved to Belarus in the next year. It fought in the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939 and in the O ...

s as part of the

3rd Shock Army The 3rd Shock Army () was a field army of the Red Army formed during the Second World War. The "Shock" armies were created with the specific structure to engage and destroy significant enemy forces, and were reinforced with more armoured and ar ...

. It was the main force moving forward to the railway line

Auce Auce (; ; ) is a town in Dobele Municipality, in the Semigallia region of Latvia. It is situated near the Lithuanian border. History Before the 13th century, the territory of Auce was a part of a Semigallians, Semigallian Spārnene county. Aft ...

– Layzhuva. On 2 December, the corps was part of Stavka Reserve and received orders to concentrate south of

Jelgava Jelgava () is a state city in central Latvia. It is located about southwest of Riga. It is the largest town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. Jelgava was the capital of the united Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1578–1795) and was the ad ...

for loading onto troop transports at the Jelgava, Platone, Meitene and

Joniškis Joniškis (; Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Juonėškis''; ) is a city in northern Lithuania with a population of about 9,900. It is located 39 kilometers north of Šiauliai and 14 kilometers south of the Lithuania–Latvia border. Joniškis i ...

. At the beginning of January 1945, trains carrying elements of the corps arrived at Mrozy, 50 kilometers east of Warsaw. The corps was concentrated 25 kilometers east of Warsaw, in the area of

Mińsk Mazowiecki Mińsk Mazowiecki (, ) is a town in eastern Poland with 40,999 inhabitants (2020). It is situated in the Masovian Voivodeship and is a part of the Warsaw metropolitan area. It is the capital of Mińsk County. Located 20 kilometers from the city li ...

Kałuszyn Kałuszyn is a town in Poland, seat of the Gmina Kałuszyn (commune) in Mińsk County in Masovian Voivodeship. History In the Middle Ages, a filial church of the Catholic parish in Grębków was built. In 1472, it was upgraded to a parish chur ...

, Liw and Dobre. On 14 January, the Vistula–Oder Offensive was launched. The corps was part of the army reserve in the early days of the offensive. On 19 January, the corps moved to bypass Warsaw from the north. On the morning of 20 January, the corps was in the area of

Sochaczew Sochaczew () is a town in central Poland, with 33,456 inhabitants (as of 2023). In the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), formerly in Skierniewice Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Sochaczew County and is located approximately west ...

, Lovach and

Skierniewice Skierniewice () is a city in central Poland with 45,184 inhabitants (2023), situated in the Łódź Voivodeship. It is the capital of Skierniewice County. Through the town runs the small river Łupia, also called Skierniewka. Located in the hist ...

. By the end of 25 January, it was in the area of

Izbica Izbica ( ''Izhbitz, Izhbitze'') is a town in the Krasnystaw County of the Lublin Voivodeship in eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina administrative district called Gmina Izbica. It lies approximately south of Krasnystaw and south-east of ...

Kolo Kolo may refer to: Places Poland *Koło *Koło, Łódź Voivodeship * Koło, Lublin Voivodeship *Koło, Lubusz Voivodeship Other places *Kamalanka, which was also known as ''Kolo'', an ancient kingdom in present-day Thailand * Kolo, Bosnia and He ...

and Klodawa. By the end of January, the corps had reached

Bromberg Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its left-bank tributary, the Brda, the strategic location of Bydgoszcz has made it an inland ...

. The 33rd and 52nd Guards Rifle Divisions positioned themselves at Bushkovo, Tsempelburg and Kline-Visnevka. The 23rd Guards Rifle Division was stationed in the second echelon. The 32nd and 15th SS Infantry Divisions made several attacks against the corps, supported by tanks. These attacks were repulsed. Bunkov was sent to study at the Military Academy of the General Staff on 12 February and replaced by Lieutenant General Alexander Kazankin. The 23rd and 52nd Guards Rifle Divisions took up defensive positions on the east bank of the Oder between Nieder-Krenina and Alt-Rudnitz. From 16 April, the corps was involved in the

Battle of Berlin The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...

. Kazankin was wounded on 27 April during the fighting for Berlin. He was replaced by 3rd Shock Army deputy commander Major General Alexander Filatov. On the morning of 2 May, the German troops began to surrender and the fighting ended soon after. On 11 June, the corps was awarded the

for its actions at Berlin. The corps appears to have been disbanded in June 1946, still part of the 3rd Shock Army.Feskov et al 2013, p. 397

References

External links

Corps commander list at samsv.narod.ru
{{Soviet Union corps G12 Military units and formations established in 1942 1942 establishments in the Soviet Union Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 Military units and formations awarded the Order of the Red Banner