The 30th Prince Konstanty Ostrogski Mechanized Brigade is a formation of the

Ukrainian Ground Forces The Ukrainian Ground Forces (SVZSU, ), also referred to as the Ukrainian army, is a land force, and one of the eight Military branch, branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It was formed from Ukrainian units of the Soviet Army after Declaratio ...

. The full name of the unit is 30th Independent Mechanized Brigade "

Konstanty Ostrogski Konstanty Iwanowicz Ostrogski ( – 10 August 1530) was a Ruthenian prince and magnate of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He later had the title of grand hetman of Lithuania from 11 September 1497 until his death in 1530. Career Ostrogski began ...

". Following the 2014

war in Donbas The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war Timeline of the war in Donbas (2014), began in April 2014, when Russian separatist forces in Ukraine, Russian para ...

, the unit dropped all its Soviet decorations.

History

World War II

Between September 1 and October 1, 1941, the 83rd Cavalry Division was formed in the city of

Samarkand Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

. The division consisted of the following units: * 215th Cavalry Regiment * 226th Cavalry Regiment * 231st Cavalry Regiment * Separate Chemical Squadron From September 5, 1941, the commanding officer of the division was Lieutenant General Selivanov. On November 7, 1941, the division was sent to the

Volga Military District The Volga Military District (PriVO) was a military district of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation that existed from 1918 to 1989 and 1992 to 2001. The district headquarters was located at Kazan, Saratov and Kuibyshev (Samara) at differen ...

where it was assigned to the newly forming Cavalry mechanized group of the 61st Army. Until December 28, 1941, the division was fortifying near the

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

of Lysi Gory

Saratov Oblast Saratov Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Saratov. As of the 2021 Russian cens ...

. The first battle that the division took part in was near the city of Ryazhsk,

Ryazan Oblast Ryazan 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 Ryazan, which is also the oblast's largest city. Geography Ryazan Oblast ...

as part of the Cavalry mechanized group of the 61st Army as part of 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 ...

and the Soviet winter counter offensive in front of Moscow. In January 1942 the division was assigned to the 7th Cavalry Corps and was assigned to be a Mobile Group in the Moscow Defense Zone for the 61st Army. The division remained with the 7th Cavalry Corps for the rest of 1942 and when the Corps was redesignated as the

6th Guards Cavalry Corps Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six. * The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution * A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel * The fraction Music * Sixth interval (music)s: ** major sixth, a musical interval ** minor sixth ...

in January 1943 the division became the 13th Guards Cavalry Division on 19 January 1943. The division was under the command of General Major Pyotr Zubov. The 13th Guards Cavalry Division fought at

Dubno Dubno (, ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality located on the Ikva River in Rivne Oblast (oblast, province) of western Ukraine. It serves as the capital city, administrative center of Dubno Raion ...

in 1944, as well as at the

Battle of Debrecen The Battle of Debrecen, called by the Red Army the ''Debrecen Offensive Operation'', was a battle taking place from 6 to 29 October 1944 on the Eastern Front in Hungary during World War II. The offensive was conducted by the 2nd Ukrainia ...

and was with 6th Guards Cavalry Corps of the

2nd Ukrainian Front The 2nd Ukrainian Front () was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War. History On October 20, 1943, the Steppe Front was renamed the 2nd Ukrainian Front. In mid-May 1944 Malinovsky took over the 2nd Ukrainian Front. During t ...

in May 1945.

Cold War

Feskov et al. trace the unit's history as follows. At the beginning of June, the division relocated to Novohrad-Volynskyi. On 1 August 1945, the division was converted into the 11th Guards Mechanized Division. During November and December 1956, the division fought in the crushing of the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 4 November 1956; ), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was an attempted countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the policies caused by ...

. 44 soldiers of the division were killed during the campaign in Hungary. The division moved back to Novohrad-Volynskyi in January 1957. On 4 June 1957 it became the 30th Guards Tank Division, part of the 8th Tank Army. In 1960, the division's 58th Separate Tank Training Battalion was disbanded. On 19 February 1962 the 335th Separate Missile Battalion and the 108th Separate Equipment Maintenance and Recovery Battalion were activated. In 1968 the 151st Separate Guards Sapper Battalion became the 151st Separate Guards Engineer-Sapper Battalion. The 1043rd Separate Material Supply Battalion was created from the motor transport battalion in 1980. During the Cold War, the division was maintained at 25% strength. In November 1990, the division was equipped with 224

T-72 The T-72 is a family of Soviet Union, Soviet main battle tanks that entered production in 1973. The T-72 was a development based on the T-64 using thought and design of the previous Object 167M. About 25,000 T-72 tanks have been built, and refu ...

main battle tanks.

1990–present

The 30th Guards Tank Division, along with the rest of the 8th Tank Army and the

Carpathian Military District The Red Banner Carpathian Military District (, ) was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces during the Cold War and subsequently of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the early Post-Soviet period. It was established on 3 May 1946 on the ...

, became part of the

according to the order of Ukraine ''About Armed Forces of Ukraine'' from December 6, 1991. In February 1992, all units of the division pledged their allegiance to Ukraine. It was still designated a tank division as of Decree N 350/93 (August 21, 1993). On October 20, 1999, the division was awarded the Novohrad-Volynskyi designation. On July 30, 2004, the division was reformed into a brigade. As of 2006, the brigade was the only mechanized brigade that did not have any conscripts. It is also a part of Joint Rapid Reaction Forces. Over a hundred soldiers from the brigade have served in peacekeeping missions in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

. A battalion of the brigade was part of POLUKRBAT in the 2006 rotation. As of October 12, 2007, the 2nd Mechanized Battalion of the brigade was deployed in

as part of the POLUKRBAT. The commander of the brigade served as a commander of the 5th Separate Mechanized Brigade in Iraq.

Russo-Ukrainian War

War in Donbas

In the spring of 2014, after the

annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation In February and March 2014, Russia invaded the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula, part of Ukraine, and then annexed it. This took place in the relative power vacuum immediately following the Revolution of Dignity. It marked the beginning of the Russ ...

, the 30th Mechanized Brigade, one of the five brigades of the armed forces of Ukraine at the time, was sent to the south, including to the

Berdiansk Berdiansk or Berdyansk (, ; , ) is a port city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, south-eastern Ukraine. It is on the northern coast of the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Berdiansk Raion. The c ...

region, to protect against a possible invasion of mainland from Crimea. At the time, the brigade was manned by contract soldiers. The brigade participated in the armed conflict in the east of Ukraine. In the summer of 2014, the brigade took part in the battles for Savur-Mohyla. In 2015 the brigade took part in the

Battle of Debaltseve The Battle of Debaltseve was a military confrontation in the city of Debaltseve, Donetsk Oblast, between the pro-Russian separatist forces of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), and the Ukrainian Armed Forc ...

during the

.New defensive line outside Artemivsk attacked by militants, deaths reported

Ukraine Today Ukraine News Today was a Ukraine-based private English language satellite television channel and webcasting service. The channel, which was owned by the Ukrainian 1+1 group and headquartered in Kyiv, presented round-the-clock news bulletins aim ...

(May. 8, 2015)Traumas of soldiers becoming more visible after Debaltseve

Kyiv Post The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden. In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...

(March 6, 2015)Volunteer accuses separatists of killing more Ukrainian prisoners (AUDIO)

(May 1, 201) On 18 November 2015 the Soviet decorations of the brigade's full name (30th Separate Guards Mechanized Novohrad-Volynskyi Rivne Orders of the Red Banner and Suvorov Brigade) were removed, leaving the full name of 30th Separate Guards Mechanized Novohrad-Volynskyi Rivne Brigade. On 22 August 2016, its Guards title was also removed. As part of Ukrainian Independence Day celebrations on August 24, 2018, the brigade received the new honorific "

". As of 1 March 2020, the brigade had lost 178 people during the war in Donbas.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

In early May 2022, units of the 30th Mechanized Brigade conducted mortar strikes against Russian positions in Chornobaivka. Ukrainian officials characterized these as the eighteenth in a series of strikes on Russian targets in the area since the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

. From 5-13 May 2022, tanks from the 30th Mechanized Brigade repelled a river crossing by the Russian 74th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade near Dronivka. This action was part of a battle on the Siverskyi Donets river that saw the destruction of 80 pieces of equipment and of the estimated 550 Russian servicemembers conducting the operation, 485 were casualties. The battle is considered one of the "deadliest single engagements" of the war at that point. In October 2022, the brigade published footage of its operations against Russian forces in the "Bakhmut direction". During June 2023, the brigade was still operating near

Bakhmut Bakhmut is a city in eastern Ukraine. It is officially the administrative center of Bakhmut urban hromada and Bakhmut Raion in Donetsk Oblast. The city is located on the Bakhmutka River, about north of Donetsk, the administrative center ...

, amid counteroffensive operations in the area. As of July 2023, units of the brigade remained active in the "Bakhmut direction".

Gallery

USMC-100615-M-4569K-194.jpg, 30th Mechanized Brigade during training Image:30-а танкова дивізія.png, 30th Tank Division Image:30-а танкова бригада.png, 30th Tank Brigade File:30-а механізована бригада.png, 30th Mechanized Brigade

Order of battle

In 1960, the division included the following units. * 276th Tank Regiment * 282nd Guards Tank Regiment * 325th Tank Regiment * 319th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment ( Vysokaya Rech, Zhitomir Oblast) * 855th Guards Artillery Regiment * 937th Guards Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment * 54th Guards Reconnaissance Battalion * 151st Guards Sapper Battalion * 214th Guards Communications Battalion * 197th Chemical Defence Company (Vysokaya Rech, Zhitomir Oblast) * 112th Medical-Sanitary Company * Motor Transport Battalion

Division: 2003

* 276th Armor Regiment * 325th Armor Regiment * 282nd Guards Armor Regiment * 319th Mechanized Regiment * 855th Guards Artillery Regiment * 937th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment * 214th Guards Signal Battalion * 54th Guards Reconnaissance Battalion * 151st Guards Combat Engineer Battalion * 108th Maintenance Battalion * 1043rd Combat Service Support Battalion * 112th Medical Battalion * 404th Chemical Battalion

Structure

As of 2024, the brigade's structure is as follows: * 30th Mechanized Brigade,

Zviahel Zviahel (, ; ) is a city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, ...

** Headquarters & Headquarters Company ** 1st Mechanized Battalion ** 2nd Mechanized Battalion ** 3rd Mechanized Battalion ** Tank Battalion ** Field Artillery Regiment *** Headquarters & Target Acquisition Battery *** Self-propelled Artillery Battalion (

2S3 Akatsiya The SO-152 (Russian: СО-152), usually known by its Main Missile and Artillery Directorate, GRAU designation 2S3 (), is a Soviet Union, Soviet 152.4 mm self-propelled gun developed in 1968, as a response to the American 155 mm M109 how ...

) *** Self-propelled Artillery Battalion (

2S1 Gvozdika The 2S1 ''Gvozdika'' (, "Dianthus caryophyllus, Carnation") is a Soviet Self-propelled artillery, self-propelled howitzer introduced in 1972 and is in service in Russia and other countries . It is based on the MT-LBu multi-purpose chassis, mount ...

) *** Rocket Artillery Battalion (

BM-21 Grad The BM-21 "Grad" () is a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher designed in the Soviet Union. The system and the M-21OF rocket were first developed in the early 1960s, and saw their first combat use in March 1969 during the Sino-S ...

) *** Anti-tank Artillery Battalion (

MT-12 Rapira 2A19 or T-12 is a Soviet-designed 100-mm anti-tank gun. It was the first anti-tank gun to adopt a smoothbore barrel, and to introduce modern armor piercing shot, like the APFSDS. It uses long projectiles that are more powerful than its caliber ...

) ** Anti-Aircraft Missile Artillery Battalion ** Engineer Battalion ** Maintenance Battalion ** Logistic Battalion ** Reconnaissance Company **

Aerial Reconnaissance Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance for a military or Strategy, strategic purpose that is conducted using reconnaissance aircraft. The role of reconnaissance can fulfil a variety of requirements including Artillery observer, artillery spott ...

Unit "Commando Vyaloy" **

Unit "Aerobomber" ** Attack Drone Company "Angry Peregrines" **

Sniper A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with telescopic si ...

Company ** Electronic Warfare Company ** Signal Company ** Radar Company **

Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclea ...

Company ** Medical Company

Awards

The brigade has received 22 orders, and 30 of its soldiers have been decorated with medals. *

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 ...

- 276th, 325th, 282nd, 855th *

Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky () is an Order (distinction), order of merit of the Russia, Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...

- 54th * Order of Suvorov - Second Class - 325th, 282nd * Order of Kutuzov - Second Class - 325th, 282nd, 855th * Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky - Second Class - 325th, 282nd * Order of Kutuzov - Third Class - 54th * Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky - Third Class - 54th * On 7 February 1944, awarded

Rivne Rivne ( ; , ) is a city in western Ukraine. The city is the administrative center of Rivne Oblast (province), as well as the Rivne Raion (district) within the oblast.

designation *On October 20, 1999, awarded Novohrad-Volynskyi designation

Past commanders

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Selivanov September 5, 1941 – * Major-General Petr Ivanovich Zubov *

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Yuriy Muchailovich Mukolenko 2006–2007 *

Ihor Dovhan 2007–? *Colonel Oleksandr Nesterenko (2011)

References

{{Soviet Union divisions Mechanized brigades of Ukraine Military units and formations established in 2004 Military units and formations awarded the Order of the Red Banner Military units and formations of Ukraine in the war in Donbas Military units and formations of Ukraine in the Russian invasion of Ukraine