The 273rd Rifle Division () was an infantry division of the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
's
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 ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, formed twice.
The division was first formed in the summer of 1941 and was destroyed in Ukraine during the fall of that year, Reformed in the spring of 1942, the division served through the entire war before being disbanded postwar in the summer of 1945.
History
First Formation
The 273rd began forming on 10 July 1941 at
Dniprodzerzhinsk
Kamianske (, ; ), previously known as Dniprodzerzhynsk from 1936 to 2016, is an industrial city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine, and a port on the Dnieper River. It serves as the administrative center of Kamianske Raion and Kamianske urban hr ...
, part of the
Odessa Military District
The Odessa Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military administrative division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This district consisted of Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldavia and five Oblasts of Ukraine, Ukrainian oblasts of Odesa ...
. Its basic order of battle included the 967th, 969th, and the 971st Rifle Regiments, as well as the 812th Artillery Regiment. With its formation delayed by a shortage of machine guns and other heavy weapons, the division was still forming up on 7 August, and was not assigned to the
Southern Front's
6th Army until the end of the month. In October, the 273rd was transferred to the
12th Army but disbanded after 1 November, presumably destroyed in the fighting.
Second Formation
The 273rd began forming for a second time from February to 16 May 1942, initially part of the
Ural Military District
The Red Banner Ural Military DistrictHistory of the Ural Military District / Edited by Alexander Egorovsky, Ivan Tutarinov – 1 – Moscow: Military Publishing House of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union, 1970 – 352 Pages – 11,500 ...
. It was moved west before it finished forming, being relocated to
Podolsk
Podolsk ( rus, Подольск, p=pɐˈdolʲsk) is an industrial city, center of Podolsk Urban Okrug, Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Pakhra River (a tributary of the Moskva River). Population:
History
The first mentions of the vill ...
in the
Moscow Military District
The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District () is a Military districts of Russia, military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Originally it was a district of the Imperial Russian Army until the Russian Empire's collapse in 191 ...
during March. After receiving its commander, the 273rd was assigned to the
Moscow Defence Zone
The Moscow Defence Zone was a front of the Red Army during World War II to defend Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), M ...
on 16 May and in late August transferred to 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 ...
reserves. In late September, it was transferred to the front as part of the
Don Front The Don Front was a front of the Soviet Red Army during the Second World War, which existed between September 1942 and February 1943, and was commanded during its entire existence by Konstantin Rokossovsky. The name refers to Don River, Russia.
F ...
's
1st Guards Army, north of
Stalingrad
Volgograd,. geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area o ...
. Between November 1942 and February 1943, the 273rd fought in
Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus () was a Soviet 19–23 November 1942 strategic operation on the Eastern Front of World War II which led to the encirclement of Axis forces in the vicinity of Stalingrad: the German Sixth Army, the Third and Fourth Romani ...
and
Operation Koltso as part of the
24th Army and the
66th Army
The 66th Army was a field army of the Red Army. It was established in August 1942 from the 8th Reserve Army. The 66th Army fought to break through to the Volga to the north of Stalingrad during September and October 1942. During Operation Uranus, ...
. After the end of the
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad ; see . rus, links=on, Сталинградская битва, r=Stalingradskaya bitva, p=stəlʲɪnˈɡratskəjə ˈbʲitvə. (17 July 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, ...
in February, the division became part of the
Stalingrad Group of Forces
Volgograd,. geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area o ...
in the
Reserve of the Supreme High Command
The Reserve of the Supreme High Command (Russian: Резерв Верховного Главнокомандования; also known as the '' Stavka'' Reserve or RVGK () or RGK ( comprises reserve military formations and units; the ''Stavka'' ...
(RVGK). In April, the 273rd was assigned to the
11th Army, which was sent to the
Bryansk Front
The Bryansk Front () was a Front (military formation), major formation of the Red Army during the World War II, Second World War.
First Formation (August - November 1941)
General Andrei Yeremenko was designated commander of the Front when it fi ...
in July. On 17 September, during the
Battle of Smolensk, the division participated in the recapture of
Bezhitsa
Bryansk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, situated on the Desna (river), Desna River, southwest of Moscow. It has a population of 379,152 at the 2021 census.
Bryans ...
and was awarded the honorific "Bezhitsa" for its actions.
In October, the division became part of the army's
25th Rifle Corps, now in the
Belorussian Front. At the end of the year, the corps and the 273rd were transferred to the
48th Army. In March the division was withdrawn to the RVGK and became part of the
3rd Guards Army
The 3rd Guards Army () was a field army of the Soviet Red Army that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II.
The army fought in the Battle of Berlin, during which it mopped up German resistance around Cottbus.
1942 to 1945
It was formed o ...
's
120th Rifle Corps there. In April it returned to the front with the army and corps, remaining part of these commands until October. By the end of the spring fighting in Ukraine, the 812th Artillery Regiment had been depleted so much that each 76 mm gun was manned by only 3 men, and each 122mm howitzer by 4, which made it almost impossible to the weapons without horses or trucks. In September, the division transferred to the
76th Rifle Corps 76th may refer to:
*76th Academy Awards ceremony honored films of 2003
*76th Air Army, an air army of the Soviet Air Forces from 1949 to 1980 and from 1988 to 1998
*76th Air Assault Division (Russia), a division of the Russian Airborne Troops based ...
, and a month later to the
21st Rifle Corps
The 21st Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Red Army. It was part of the Western Front. It took part in the Great Patriotic War.
The headquarters formed in the Moscow Military District in September 1939. Assigned to the WSMD with the 17th, ...
. At the end of the year, the 273rd transferred to the
6th Army and for most of 1945 was part of the 6th Army's
22nd Rifle Corps
The 22nd Rifle Corps was a corps of the Red Army, formed thrice. It was initially formed from the Estonian Army after the Soviet occupation of that country in June 1940. The corps was destroyed during the Baltic Operation. After large-scale des ...
, except for a few weeks with the
74th Rifle Corps in early February. The division fought in the
Siege of Breslau
The siege of Breslau, also known as the battle of Breslau, was a three-month-long siege of the city of Wrocław, Breslau in Lower Silesia, Nazi Germany, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland), lasting to the end of World War II in Europe. From 13 Fe ...
, receiving 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 on 4 June. The division received the honorifics "Bezhitsa Red Banner Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky" for its actions, and was disbanded in the summer of 1945 with the
Central Group of Forces
The Central Group of Forces (Russian: Центральная группа войск) was a formation of the Soviet Armed Forces used to incorporate Soviet troops in Central Europe on two occasions: in Austria and Hungary from 1945 to 1955 and tr ...
.
References
Citations
Bibliography
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{{Soviet Union divisions before 1945
273
__NOTOC__
Year 273 ( CCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Tacitus and Placidianus (or, less frequently, year 1026 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomin ...
Military units and formations established in 1941
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945
Military units and formations awarded the Order of the Red Banner