The 23rd Mechanized Corps (

Military Unit Number A Military Unit Number (Russian: Войсковая часть) is a numeric alternate designation for military units in the armed forces and internal troops of post-Soviet states, originally used by those of the Soviet Union. For ground forces t ...

9841) was a

Mechanized corps Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force). As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is disti ...

of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

. Its divisions fought in the

Battle of Smolensk (1941) The first Battle of Smolensk (german: Kesselschlacht bei Smolensk, ' Cauldron-battle at Smolensk'; ) was a battle during the second phase of Operation Barbarossa, the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union, in World War II. It was fought around the ...

but the corps itself never fought as a unit. The corps became the second formation of the

23rd Rifle Corps The 23rd Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Red Army. It was part of the 4th Army. It took part in the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939. On 22 June 1941 it was part of the Transcaucasian Military District comprising the 136th and 138th Rifle ...

History

Formation

The 23rd Mechanized Corps was formed in March 1941 in the

Oryol Military District The Orel Military District ( rus, Орловский военный округ (ОрВО), r=Orlovskiy voyennyy okrug (OrVO), p=) was a military district of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and the Soviet Union. Established in 1918 ...

Voronezh Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on ...

. The corps included the 48th and 51st Tank Divisions, and the 220th Motorized Division. The 48th was at Voronezh, the 51st at

Bryansk Bryansk ( rus, Брянск, p=brʲansk) is a city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, situated on the River Desna, southwest of Moscow. Population: Geography Urban layout The location of the settlement was originally ...

, and the 220th at

Yelets Yelets, or Elets (russian: Еле́ц), is a city in Lipetsk Oblast, Russia, situated on the Bystraya Sosna River, which is a tributary of the Don. Population: History Yelets is the oldest center of the Central Black Earth Region. It was m ...

. The corps was commanded by Major General Mikhail Myasnikov.

World War II

Bundesarchiv_B_145_Bild-F016221-0014,_Russland,_Brennender_T-34

The corps was assigned to support the 24th Army on 27 June, but due to the slow deployment of the 25th Mechanized Corps was reassigned to the 19th Army on 1 July. The corps moved to the

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Viciebsk (russian: Витебск, ; be, Ві́цебск, ; , ''Vitebsk'', lt, Vitebskas, pl, Witebsk), is a city in Belarus. The capital of the Vitebsk Region, it has 366,299 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-largest ci ...

and

Liozno Liozna ( be, Лёзна, pl, Łoźna, russian: Лиозно, german: Ljesno, yi, ליאזנע ''Lyozne'') is a town in Vitebsk Region, Belarus, the capital of Liozna District. It is located close to the border with Russia by the Vitebsk-Smolen ...

region. At this time the corps had 413 tanks. These included 21 new

KV tank The Kliment Voroshilov (KV) tanks are a series of Soviet heavy tanks named after the Soviet defence commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov who operated with the Red Army during World War II. The KV tanks were known for their heavy armour pro ...

s and T-34 medium tanks. The 51st Tank Division was sent to

Rzhev Rzhev ( rus, Ржев, p=ˈrʐɛf) is a town in Tver Oblast, Russia, located 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: His ...

to support the reserve armies. On 9 July the 220th Motorized Division was ordered into action with the 19th Army, without the rest of the 23rd Mechanized Corps, which had not yet arrived in the area. On 10 July, the 51st Tank Division was assigned to the 31st Army. The 57th Tank Division was assigned to the corps to replace the 51st Division but never joined it, instead moving to

Orsha Orsha ( be, О́рша, Во́рша, Orša, Vorša; russian: О́рша ; lt, Orša, pl, Orsza) is a city in Belarus in the Vitebsk Region, on the fork of the Dnieper and Arshytsa rivers. History Orsha was first mentioned in 1067 as Rsha ...

in support of the 20th Army. On 11 July, the corps became part of 19th Army reserve in the Mogilno and

Berezino Byerazino ( be, Беразіно́, Bierazino), or Berezino (russian: Березино́, pl, Berezyna, lt, Berezinas), also known as Biarezan (Бярэзань, yi, בערעזין, Berezin), is a town on the Berezina River in Minsk Region o ...

region. The 48th Tank Division was sent to the Nevel region and became part of the 22nd Army on 12 July to lead the army's counterattack. As a result of these changes, the corps did not fight as a unit. The ' (list of Soviet units during World War II) states that the corps was converted into the

(Second Formation) on 20 July.Perechen No. 4 Part III
/ref> Corps deputy commander Yakov Sharaburko became commander of the 23rd Rifle Corps, part of the 24th Army. On 1 August it included the

100th Rifle Division The 100th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II, formed twice. In November 1923 in the Belaya Tserkov area of the Ukrainian Military District, the 45th Territorial Rifle Division was established. ...

and the 194th Mountain Rifle Division.

References

* * * {{Soviet Union corps Mechanized corps of the Soviet Union Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1941