The 15th Rifle Corps () was a rifle corps of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

, formed five times; each formation was a distinct unit unrelated to the others. It was part of the 5th Army. It took part in the Soviet invasion of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

in 1939.

History

1922–1924 formation

The corps was formed as part of the

North Caucasus Military District The North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Armed Forces from 1992-2010. Before 1992 it had been part of the Soviet Armed Forces since 1918. In 2010 it became the Southern Military District and lately also included t ...

by an order of 27 September 1922 with the 9th Don, 22nd, and

37th Rifle Division The 37th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II. It served in the North Caucasus Military District; established at Novocherkassk in 1919. In June–July 1939 it was at Omsk preparing for action ...

s, headquartered at

Krasnodar Krasnodar, formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern Russia, with a population of 1,154,885 residents, and up to 1.263 millio ...

. The units of the corps participated in the suppression of anti-Soviet forces in the Kuban-Black Sea Oblast between November 1922 and February 1924. The corps headquarters was disbanded by an order of the district on 12 February 1924.

1934–1941 formation

The corps was formed again as part of the

Ukrainian Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

by an order of 12 May 1934, headquartered at

Chernigov Chernihiv (, ; , ) is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within the oblast. Chernihiv's population is The city was designated as a Hero City of Ukrain ...

. The corps became part of the

Kiev Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

when the Ukrainian Military District was split in June 1935. The corps participated in the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military conflict by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Second Polish Republic, Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Polan ...

, under command of Vasily Repin and as part of the 6th Army, and in October returned to the district, renamed the Kiev Special Military District. As a result of the Soviet advance into former Polish territory, the corps headquarters moved west to

Kovel Kovel (, ; ; ) is a city in Volyn Oblast, northwestern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kovel Raion within the oblast. Population: Kovel gives its name to one of the oldest runic inscriptions which were lost during World War I ...

. In January 1940 it was relocated to the 13th Army for the

Winter War The Winter War was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peac ...

, fighting in the latter between February and March. After the end of the Winter War, the 15th Corps returned to Kiev Special Military District and during June and July was assigned to the 12th Army for the occupation of Bessarabia and northern Bukovina. In July the corps returned to district control. Corps troops were the 58th Separate Communications Battalion and the 38th Separate Sapper Battalion. The corps headquarters was officially disbanded on 25 September 1941.

1942–1943 formation

The corps headquarters was reformed in

Voronezh Oblast Voronezh Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Voronezh. Its population was 2,308,792 as of the Russian Census (2021), 20 ...

in November 1942, under the command of Major General Pyotr Privalov. The corps was assigned the 172nd, 267th, and 350th Rifle Divisions. After completing its formation, the corps joined the 6th Army of the

Voronezh Front The 1st Ukrainian Front (), previously the Voronezh Front (), was a major formation of the Red Army during World War II, being equivalent to a Western army group. They took part in the capture of Berlin, the capital of Nazi Germany. Wartime ...

and entered battleon 11 December on the left bank of the

Don River The Don () is the fifth-longest river in Europe. Flowing from Central Russia to the Sea of Azov in Southern Russia, it is one of Russia's largest rivers and played an important role for traders from the Byzantine Empire. Its basin is betwee ...

near Verkhny Mamon during

Operation Little Saturn Operation Little Saturn () was a Red Army offensive on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in Don and Chir rivers region in German-occupied Soviet Union territory in 16–30 December 1942. The success of Operation Uranus, lau ...

. It fought in the destruction of Italian and German forces on the Mid-Don and on 16 December crossed the Don, entering the Kantemirovka area on 22 December. The corps then advanced into the

Donbas The Donbas (, ; ) or Donbass ( ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the Donbas is occupied by Russia as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War. The word ''Donbas'' is a portmanteau formed fr ...

towards Belokurakino, Balakleya, and Krasnograd. In January Privalov was replaced in command of Major General Afanasy Gryaznov. In the second half of February and early March the corps fought against the German counteroffensive in the

Third Battle of Kharkov The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of battles on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by Nazi Germany's Army Group South against the Soviet Red Army, around the city of Kharkov between 19 February ...

. On 16 April 1943 the 15th Rifle Corps headquarters was converted into that of the headquarters of the 28th Guards Rifle Corps. Corps troops were the 62nd Separate Communications Battalion, 1163rd Field Office of the State Bank, and 2634th Field Postal Station. The divisions of the 15th Rifle Corps were transferred to the control of the 34th Rifle Corps.

1943–1945 formation

The corps headquarters was quickly reformed in Moscow beginning on 28 May 1943. Corps troops were the 387th Separate Communications Battalion and 3689th Field Postal Station. The 918th Separate Sapper Battalion and 441st Field Vehicle Repair Base was added in April and May 1944, respectively. After the end of the war, the corps headquarters was disbanded in mid-1945 as part of the 60th Army. Its divisions were simultaneously disbanded and their personnel used to reinforce divisions of the

Northern Group of Forces The Northern Group of Armed Forces (; ) was the military formation of the Soviet Army (Russian Ground Forces starting 1992) stationed in Poland from the end of Second World War in 1945 until 1993 when they were withdrawn in the aftermath of the fa ...

Organization

1939: * 45th Rifle Division * 60th Rifle Division * 87th Rifle Division 1941: * 45th Rifle Division * 62nd Rifle Division

Commanders

* Komdiv

Pyotr Filatov Pyotr Mikhailovich Filatov (; 18 August 1893 – 14 July 1941) was a Red Army lieutenant general. A veteran of World War I, Filatov rose to brigade command during the Russian Civil War and was decorated for his actions. He held division command in ...

(Sept 1937 - June 1938) * Kombrig Fyodor Remezov (July 15 - July 23, 1938) * Komdiv Vasily Repin (July 1938 - October 1939) * Kombrig Mikhail Filippovich Korolev (November 1939 - April 1940) * Major General

Ivan Fedyuninsky Ivan Ivanovich Fedyuninsky (; July 30, 1900 – October 17, 1977) was a Soviet military leader and Hero of the Soviet Union (1939). Early life Fedyuninsky was born into a peasant family near Tugulym in the Urals. He finished the village schoo ...

(April - August 1941) * Major General Pyotr Privalov (November – December 1942) * Lieutenant General Ivan Lyudnikov (June 1943 - May 1944)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * Military documents * – Located in fond 846, opus 1, file 42 of the Central Archives of the Russian Ministry of Defence {{Soviet Union corps Rifle corps of the Soviet Union