4th Cavalry Corps (Soviet Union)
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The 4th Cavalry Corps was a cavalry corps 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 Peop ...
, formed three times. The corps first existed between 1928 and 1938 in the
North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...
as a territorial unit, and was a
Cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...
unit for the last two years of its existence. Reformed in June 1938, the corps fought 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 ...
in September 1939 and converted into a mechanized corps in the summer of 1940. Reformed in Central Asia in January 1941, the corps served in the
Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran The Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran, also known as the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Persia, was the joint invasion of the neutral Imperial State of Iran by the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union in August 1941. The two powers announced that they w ...
in August of that year, returning to Central Asia in the fall of 1941 to receive three new cavalry divisions. It remained there until September 1942, when it departed for the
Stalingrad Front The Stalingrad Front was a front, a military unit encompassing several armies, of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. The name indicated the primary geographical region in which the Front first fought, based on the city of St ...
. During
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 ...
, the Soviet counteroffensive in 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, ...
, the 4th Cavalry Corps was intended to act as an exploitation force, but due to being understrength it was surrounded and suffered heavy losses in November and December. Its remnants did not disband until May and June 1943.


History


First Formation

The 4th Cavalry Corps was first formed as the 4th Territorial Cavalry Corps in January 1928 at
Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...
, 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 ...
. Commanded by
Mikhail Batorsky Mikhail Alexandrovich Batorsky (; 25 January 1890 8 February 1938) was a Red Army Komkor. The son of an officer and a member of the nobility, Batorsky fought in World War I as a staff officer, ending the war with the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
until October 1929, the 4th Territorial Corps included the 5th Stavropol, 11th North Caucasus Territorial and 12th Territorial Cavalry Divisions. On 2 March 1930, the 11th Cavalry Division became the 10th Cavalry Division. Corps headquarters were later moved to Armavir, where the 4th Separate Cavalry Communications Battalion began to form on 1 October 1931. In 1932, the corps' 5th Cavalry Division relocated to Ukraine and became part of the 2nd Cavalry Corps.
Iosif Apanasenko Iosif Rodionovich Apanasenko (Russian: Иосиф Родионович Апанасенко) (April 15 (April 3 O.S.), 1890 – August 5, 1943) was a Soviet division commander. Career Iosif Apanasenko was an ethnic Russian, born in a village ...
commanded the corps between November 1932 and 29 October 1935. On 25 April 1933, the corps received the honorific "named for Budyonny," in honor of Soviet cavalry commander
Semyon Budyonny Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny ( rus, Семён Миха́йлович Будённый, Semyon Mikháylovich Budyonnyy, p=sʲɪˈmʲɵn mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ bʊˈdʲɵnːɨj, a=ru-Simeon Budyonniy.ogg; – 26 October 1973) was a Russian and ...
. By 1935 the corps also included the 56th Separate Corps Aviation Detachment at
Novocherkassk Novocherkassk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located near the confluence of the Tuzlov and Aksay Rivers, the latter a distributary of the Don (river), Don River. Novocherkassk is best known as the ...
. On 21 April 1936, the corps added the 13th Don Cossack Cavalry Division, formed from a cavalry regiment of the 12th Division, and it became a Cossack unit on 13 February 1937, when the Red Army reintroduced Cossack designations. During the
Great Purge The Great Purge, or the Great Terror (), also known as the Year of '37 () and the Yezhovshchina ( , ), was a political purge in the Soviet Union that took place from 1936 to 1938. After the Assassination of Sergei Kirov, assassination of ...
, the corps went through several commanding officers: Komkor
Ivan Kosogov Ivan Dmitryevich Kosogov (, 1891 – 1 August 1938) was a Soviet Komkor (corps commander). He fought on the side of the Bolsheviks against the White movement during the Russian Civil War. He was a recipient of the Order of the Red Banner. During ...
, who took command on 7 February 1936, was arrested on 26 May 1937. His replacement, Kombrig
Arkady Borisov Arkady Borisovich Borisov (; 13 May 1901 – 27 May 1942) was a Soviet corps commander. He was born in what is now Uzbekistan. He fought for the Bolsheviks against the White movement during the civil war. He was a recipient of the Order of th ...
, was fired on 11 July, and Komdiv
Yakov Sheko Yakov Vasilyevich Sheko (; 1 April 1893 – 5 June 1938) was a Red Army ''Komdiv''. He fought in the Imperial Russian Army during World War I, rising from private to officer, and joined the Red Army in 1918, fighting in the Russian Civil War and ...
, who replaced Borisov, was arrested on 10 August. Kombrig Vasily Popov then took command and led the corps for the rest of its existence. The corps was disbanded in early 1938.


Second Formation

The headquarters of the 4th Cavalry Corps was formed from the headquarters of the
1st Red Cossack Cavalry Corps First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
in June 1938, 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 ...
. The corps included the 9th, 32nd and the 34th Cavalry Divisions when it was formed, and was commanded throughout its existence by
Komkor () is the syllabic abbreviation for corps commander (; ). It was a Military ranks of the Soviet Union, military rank in the Red Army and Red Army Air Force of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in the period from 1935 to 1940. It was als ...
Dmitry Ryabyshev Dmitry Ivanovich Ryabyshev , ( – November 18, 1985) was a Soviet military commander, commander of 8th Mechanized Corps (1941). Before World War II Ryabyshev was born in Kolotovka, Don Host Oblast, Russian Empire (in present-day Rostov O ...
. The 9th Cavalry Division transferred to the 5th Cavalry Corps in July 1939. In September, the 4th Corps fought in the Soviet invasion of Poland, occupying what is now western Ukraine. It was part of the 12th Army at the beginning of the attack on 17 September. The 26th Separate Tank Brigade was attached to the corps for the invasion. After the invasion, the 16th Cavalry Division from the 5th Cavalry Corps replaced the 32nd, which transferred to the 5th Corps, on 11 October 1939. In 1940, the corps headquarters was at
Drohobych Drohobych ( ; ; ) is a city in the south of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Drohobych Raion and hosts the administration of Drohobych urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. In 1939–1941 and 1944–1959 it w ...
, and its subordinate units were at Drohobych,
Halych Halych (, ; ; ; ; , ''Halitsch'' or ''Galitsch''; ) is a historic List of cities in Ukraine, city on the Dniester River in western Ukraine. The city gave its name to the Principality of Halych, the historic province of Galicia (Eastern Europe), ...
, and
Stanislavov Ivano-Frankivsk (, ), formerly Stanyslaviv, Stanislav and Stanisławów, is a city in western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast as well as Ivano-Frankivsk Raion within the oblast. Ivano-Frankivsk also host ...
. On 7 July 1940, the corps headquarters was used to create the headquarters of the
8th Mechanized Corps The 8th Mechanized Corps, was a mechanized corps of the Soviet Ground Forces. It was destroyed in 1941 in the beginning of Operation Barbarossa. The formation of the 8th Mechanized Corps began on June 4, 1940. The commander was General Lieutenant ...
.


Third Formation

The corps was reformed between January and 18 March 1941 in the
Central Asian Military District The Red Banner Central Asian Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces, which existed in 1926–1945 and 1969–1989, with its headquarters at Tashkent (1926–1945) and Almaty (1969–1989). By USSR Order No.304 of 4 ...
, under the command of Lieutenant General Timofey Shapkin. It included the 18th, 20th, and the
21st Mountain Cavalry Division First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
s. In mid-July, the 44th Cavalry Division replaced the 21st. During August, the corps fought in the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran, during which it was part of the
53rd Army The 53rd Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army which was formed in August 1941, disbanded in December 1941, and reformed in May 1942. It fought throughout World War II before again being disbanded after the war in October 1945. Th ...
. After crossing the Iranian border, the corps entered
Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...
, Iran's second largest city, on 28 August. In September, the 39th Mountain Cavalry Division replaced the 44th, and in November the corps headquarters and assets were transferred back to Central Asia without its front line units. The corps soon received three new formations the 61st,
63rd 63rd may refer to: ;Metro stations *Ashland/63rd (CTA station), on the Green Line *East 63rd-Cottage Grove (CTA), on the Green Line *63rd (CTA Red Line), on the Red Line *63rd Street station (SEPTA Market–Frankford Line) on the Market-Frankford L ...
, and 81st Cavalry Divisions.Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941
p. 80
With these divisions, the corps left Central Asia for the
Stalingrad Front The Stalingrad Front was a front, a military unit encompassing several armies, of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. The name indicated the primary geographical region in which the Front first fought, based on the city of St ...
at the end of September 1942. On 10 October, the corps officially transferred to the front. The corps fought in 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, ...
from 11 October to 31 December 1942. Entering the battle without the disbanded 97th Division, the corps became part of the 51st Army and 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 ...
in November. In the plan for this operation, 4th Cavalry was intended to, first, act in an exploitation role once the infantry and armor of 51st Army broke through the positions of
4th Romanian Army The Fourth Army (Armata a 4-a Română) was a field army (a military formation) of the Romanian Land Forces active from the 19th century to the 1990s. Its successor is the 4th Infantry Division. History World War I The Fourth Army fought u ...
and, second, to create an outer encirclement front to defend against expected German counterattacks to relieve the encircled German Sixth Army. The second objective was overly optimistic, because the corps was understrength in men, horses, and most equipment. To begin with, it had only two divisions. Even based on a two-division establishment, the corps was understrength in most categories: * Cavalrymen – 10,284/-1,172 * Horses – 9,284/-988 * Rifles and carbines – 7,354/-1,777 *
Submachine guns A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an automa ...
– 556/-757 *
Light machine guns A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridges of the same caliber as the other riflemen of the ...
– 264/-64 * Heavy (
DShK The DShK M1938 (Cyrillic: ДШК, for ) is a Soviet heavy machine gun. The weapon may be vehicle mounted or used on a tripod or wheeled carriage as a heavy infantry machine gun. The DShK's name is derived from its original designer, Vasily Degtya ...
) machine guns – 0/-61 * Antitank rifles – 140/-11 * 76mm artillery – 32/-26 * 45 mm antitank – 24 * 37 mm antiaircraft – 8/-4 * 120 mm mortars – 16 * 82 mm mortars – 45/+10 * 50 mm mortars – 118/+10 As can be seen, 4th Cavalry was deficient in all categories except antitank guns and mortars.David M. Glantz, ''Endgame at Stalingrad, Book One'', University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2014, pp. 130, 135. In each category, the number after the "/" is the number the corps was over or under establishment. In early December, as the Axis forces were preparing for
Operation Winter Storm Operation Winter Storm (), a German offensive in December 1942 during World War II, involved the German 4th Panzer Army failing to break the Soviet encirclement of the German 6th Army during the Battle of Stalingrad. In late November 1942 the ...
, most of the corps was surrounded near Kotelnikovo and suffered heavy losses. At the time 60% of its personnel were Kazakh, Kirghiz, Uzbek,
Tajik Tajik, Tajikistan or Tajikistani may refer to. Someone or something related to Tajikistan: Tajik * Tajiks, an ethnic group in Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan * Tajik language, the official language of Tajikistan * Tajik alphabet, Alphabet u ...
or
Turkmen Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to: Peoples Historical ethnonym * Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages Ethnic groups * Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...
, all Central Asian ethnicities. After breaking out of the pocket, the corps fought to repulse German relief operations, during which corps deputy commander Major General Yakub Kuliev was mortally wounded by a German air strike on 19 December. By 1 January the corps had been transferred to the
2nd Guards Army The 2nd Guards Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army that fought in World War II, most notably at Stalingrad. History The 2nd Guards Army was formed according to the order of the Staff of the Supreme High Command (Stavka) from O ...
, and by 1 February its remnants were directly subordinated to the Southern Front. On 21 March, the corps was transferred to the Southwestern Front. Shapkin died of a
brain hemorrhage The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...
on the next day, and was replaced by Major General
Mikhail Maleyev Mikhail Maleyev (; 1899 – 23 February 1964) was a Soviet corps commander. He fought for the Bolsheviks in the civil war against the White movement and against Nazi Germany in the Second World War. He was a recipient of the Order of Lenin, ...
on 25 March. On 27 April it was withdrawn 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'' ...
in the
Rossosh Rossosh () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. ;Urban localities * Rossosh, Rossoshansky District, Voronezh Oblast, a town in Rossoshansky District of Voronezh Oblast ;Rural localities * Rossosh, Belgorod Oblast, a ''khutor'' i ...
area, where it became part of the
Steppe Military District The Steppe Military District () was a Military districts of the Soviet Union, military district of the Soviet Union, formed twice. It was first formed in April 1943 during World War II near Voronezh as a strategic reserve, and after the beginning ...
. On 4 May, the 61st and 81st Divisions were disbanded. The corps' headquarters continued to exist, but was itself absorbed, along with rear units, into the
7th Guards Cavalry Corps The 7th Guards Cavalry Corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army was a Cavalry corps (Red Army), cavalry corps active during the World War II, Second World War. It was formed from the 8th Cavalry Corps in February 1943. Second World War 8th Cava ...
, several months later.


Commanders

The corps' first formation is known to have been commanded by the following officers. *
Mikhail Batorsky Mikhail Alexandrovich Batorsky (; 25 January 1890 8 February 1938) was a Red Army Komkor. The son of an officer and a member of the nobility, Batorsky fought in World War I as a staff officer, ending the war with the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
(January 1928 – October 1929) *
Iosif Apanasenko Iosif Rodionovich Apanasenko (Russian: Иосиф Родионович Апанасенко) (April 15 (April 3 O.S.), 1890 – August 5, 1943) was a Soviet division commander. Career Iosif Apanasenko was an ethnic Russian, born in a village ...
(November 1932 – 29 October 1935) * Komkor
Ivan Kosogov Ivan Dmitryevich Kosogov (, 1891 – 1 August 1938) was a Soviet Komkor (corps commander). He fought on the side of the Bolsheviks against the White movement during the Russian Civil War. He was a recipient of the Order of the Red Banner. During ...
(7 February 1936 – 26 May 1937; arrested) * Kombrig
Arkady Borisov Arkady Borisovich Borisov (; 13 May 1901 – 27 May 1942) was a Soviet corps commander. He was born in what is now Uzbekistan. He fought for the Bolsheviks against the White movement during the civil war. He was a recipient of the Order of th ...
(May – 11 July 1937; fired) * Komdiv
Yakov Sheko Yakov Vasilyevich Sheko (; 1 April 1893 – 5 June 1938) was a Red Army ''Komdiv''. He fought in the Imperial Russian Army during World War I, rising from private to officer, and joined the Red Army in 1918, fighting in the Russian Civil War and ...
(July – 10 August 1937; arrested) * Kombrig (promoted to Komdiv 17 February 1938) Vasily Popov (19371938) The corps' second formation was commanded by the following officer. * Komkor
Dmitry Ryabyshev Dmitry Ivanovich Ryabyshev , ( – November 18, 1985) was a Soviet military commander, commander of 8th Mechanized Corps (1941). Before World War II Ryabyshev was born in Kolotovka, Don Host Oblast, Russian Empire (in present-day Rostov O ...
(June 1938 – July 1940) The corps' third formation was commanded by the following officers. * Lieutenant General Timofey Shapkin (18 January 1941 – 22 March 1943) * Major General
Mikhail Maleyev Mikhail Maleyev (; 1899 – 23 February 1964) was a Soviet corps commander. He fought for the Bolsheviks in the civil war against the White movement and against Nazi Germany in the Second World War. He was a recipient of the Order of Lenin, ...
(25 March – 4 June 1943)


Organization

On 17 September 1939, the corps included the following units. *
32nd Cavalry Division 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...
* 34th Cavalry Division * 26th Separate Tank Brigade


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * {{Soviet Union corps Cavalry corps of the Soviet Union Military units and formations established in 1928 Military units and formations disestablished in 1938 Cossack military units and formations Military units and formations established in 1938 Military units and formations disestablished in 1940 Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943