The 41st Guards Combined Arms Army () is a field army of the

Russian Ground Forces The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

, currently part of the

Central Military District The Order of the Red Banner Central Military District () is a Military districts of Russia, military district of Russia. It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction primarily within the centr ...

. Originally, it was formed in 1942 as part of the

Soviet 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 ...

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 ...

. It was reformed in 1998, when the

Transbaikal Military District The Transbaikal Military District () was a military district of first the Soviet Armed Forces and then the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed on 17 May 1935 and included the Buryat Republic, Chita Oblast, and Yakutia. Chita was ...

and Siberian Military District were amalgamated.

Soviet Union

The 41st army was created in May 1942, on the base of Alexander Dmitrijewitsch Beresin and German Tarasov's operational groups. Its structure also included the 134th, 135th, 179th and 234th Rifle Divisions, the 17th Guards Rifle Division, the 21st Tank Brigade, two separate Guards mortar battalions, and several other separate elements. From May to November 1942, the army was focused on defending the South-Western approach to the city of Bely. In late November, the army joined the Rzhev offensive operation (also known as "

Operation Mars Operation Mars (Russian: Операция «Марс»), also known as the Second Rzhev-Sychevka Offensive Operation (Russian: Вторая Ржевско-Сычёвская наступательная операция), was the codename f ...

"). During that time, the army fought the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

XLI Panzer Corps. The army's offensive failed, and they were surrounded by the German XXX Army Corps (Germany). By December 8, the surrounded forces were destroyed. In March 1943, the newly reinforced 41st Army joined the

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: Hist ...

Vyazma Vyazma () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District, Smolensk Oblast, Vyazemsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk, the ...

operation. The offensive was a success and German forces in the Rzhev-Vyazma area were annihilated. Following the operation, the forces of the army were transferred to the 39th Army and the 43rd Army, while the 41st Army itself was sent to 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'' ...

. On April 9, 1943, the army was disbanded and its remaining forces would form the Reserve Front.

Russian Federation

The 41st Army was reformed on 1 December 1998 from the former headquarters of the Siberian Military District at

Novosibirsk Novosibirsk is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and the Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 1,633,595, making it the most populous city in Siber ...

, part of the Siberian Military District. In 2002, the 122nd Guards Motor Rifle Division was relocated to Aleysk and became part of the army. During the Russian military reform in 2009, the division was converted into the 35th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade. On 1 September 2010, the army was transferred to the

after the Siberian Military District was disbanded. A dedicated electronic warfare battalion is scheduled to be formed within the 41st Combined Arms Army by the end of 2019.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

In the context of the prelude to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, major elements of the 41st Army were reported to have deployed west to reinforce units in the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and Southern Military Districts assembled to threaten Ukraine. These units were said to include elements of the 35th, 55th Mountain and 74th Guards Motorised Rifle Brigades, as well as elements of the 120th Artillery Brigade, and 119th Missile Brigade, and the 6th Tank Regiment of the 90th Guards Tank Division. All told, some 700 MBTs, IFVs, and SPHs, as well as Iskander ballistic missile launchers were reported to have been repositioned to the west. Starting during the early hours of February 24, 2022, elements of the 41st Army invaded Ukraine, crossing the border in the area of the tripartite border (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus) and going on the offensive towards

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. Units of the 41st Army, including the 35th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, the 74th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, and the 55th Mountain Motor Rifle Brigade were reportedly operating near the city of Chernihiv throughout February and March 2022. Major-General Andrei Sukhovetsky, the deputy chief of the 41st army, was killed during the invasion on February 28. In May 2022, parts of the 41st Combined Arms Army were part of the forces fighting in the battle of the Siverskyi Donets. By February 2023, the army continued fighting in

Luhansk Luhansk (, ; , ), also known as Lugansk (, ; , ), is a city in the Donbas in eastern Ukraine. As of 2022, the population was estimated to be making Luhansk the Cities in Ukraine, 12th-largest city in Ukraine. Luhansk served as the administra ...

along the Svatove–Kreminna line where the army's 35th Motor Rifle Brigade was seen fighting Ukrainian forces at Chervonopopivka. During the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive, the army was observed to be in the process of a slow redeployment from Luhansk to southern Ukraine in August as fighting intensified there.

Structure

June 1, 1942: * 17th Guards Rifle Division * 134th Rifle Division *

135th Rifle Division 135th may refer to: *135th (2/1st South Western) Brigade, formation of the Territorial Force of the British Army *135th (Limerick) Regiment of Foot, infantry regiment of the British Army, created and promptly disbanded in 1796 *135th (Middlesex) Ba ...

* 179th Rifle Division * 234th Rifle Division * 21st Armoured Brigade * Separate Engineer and Artillery units September 1, 1942: * 17th Guards Rifle Division * 134th Rifle Division * 179th Rifle Division * 234th Rifle Division * 21st Armoured Brigade * 104th Armoured Brigade * Separate Engineer and Artillery units December 1, 1942: * 6th Rifle Corps ** 150th Rifle Division ** 74th Rifle Brigade ** 75th Rifle Brigade ** 78th Rifle Brigade ** 91st Rifle Brigade * 17th Guards Rifle Division * 93rd Rifle Division * 134th Rifle Division * 234th Rifle Division * 262nd Rifle Division * 1st Mechanized Corps ** 19th Mechanized Brigade ** 35th Mechanized Brigade ** 37th Mechanized Brigade ** 65th Tank Brigade ** 219th Tank Brigade * 47th Mechanized Brigade * 48th Mechanized Brigade * 104th Armoured Brigade * 154th Armoured Brigade * Separate Engineer and Artillery units March 1, 1943: * 17th Guards Rifle Division * 93rd Rifle Division * 134th Rifle Division * 262nd Rifle Division * 75th Rifle Brigade * 78th Rifle Brigade * Separate Engineer and Artillery units

2009 composition

*Headquarters -

** 85th Motor Rifle Division - Novosibirsk **122nd Guards Motor Rifle Division - Aleysk ** 74th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade - Yurga **many other storage bases

2016 composition

* Army Headquarters (

) * 35th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade ( Aleysk) * 55th Mountain Motor Rifle Brigade (

Kyzyl Kyzyl ( ) is the capital city of the Republic of Tuva within the Russian Federation. Kyzyl's population is approximately History The city was founded in 1914 as Belotsarsk. It was renamed Hem-Beldir from 1918 to 1926. When the city was the ca ...

, Tuva Republic) * 7th Separate Guards Tank Brigade (Chebarkul Oblast) (together with the 32nd Separate Motor Rifle Brigade the 7th Separate Guards Tank Brigade was used to form the 90th Guards Tank Division in December 2016) * 74th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade ( Yurga) * 119th Rocket Brigade ( Yelansky) Brigade location now reported as Abakan in

Khakassia Khakassia (), officially the Republic of Khakassia, is a republic of Russia located in southern Siberia. It is situated between Krasnoyarsk Krai to the north and the Altai Republic to the south. The capital city of Khakassia is Abakan, and the ...

. * 120th Guards Artillery Brigade ( Yurga) * 61st Anti-Aircraft Rocket Brigade ( Biysk) * 35th Headquarters Brigade ( Kochenyovo) * 106th Separate Logistic Support Brigade ( Yurga) * 10th Separate NBC Protection Regiment ( Topchikha) Later (at least by 2020) the 24th (

) and the 40th Engineer-Sapper Regiments ( Ishim, Tyumen Oblast) were subordinated to the army.

Commanders

Soviet formation

* Major General German Tarasov (May - December 1942) * Major General Ivan Managarov (December 1942 -March 1943) * Major General Iosif Popov (March - April 1943)

Russian formation

* Lieutenant General Aleksandr Morozov (July 1998 - June 2001) * Lieutenant General Vladimir Kovrov (June 2001 - July 2003) * Major General (July 2003 - August 2004) * Lieutenant General Arkady Bakhin (October 2004 - January 2006) * Major General, since 2007 Lieutenant General Aleksandr Galkin (January 2006 - April 2008) * Major General (May 2008 - June 2009) * Lieutenant General (June 2009 - October 2013) * Major General, since 2014 Lieutenant General Khasan Kaloyev (October 2013 - January 2016) * Major General, since 2017 Lieutenant General (January 2016 - November 2018) * Major General Yakov Rezantsev (November 2018 - August 2020) * Major General, since 12/10/2020 Lieutenant General (August 2020 – present)

References

41st Army

{{Armies of the Russian Armed Forces 041 Armies of the Russian Federation