5th Guards Army (Soviet Union)
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The 5th Guards Army was a Soviet Guards formation which fought in many critical actions 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 ...
under the command of General
Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov (), born with the surname "Zhidov" (, 30 March 1901 – 30 November 1977), was a Soviet military officer in the Red Army, who during World War II commanded the 66th Army, later renamed the 5th Guards Army, from the Battl ...
. The 5th Guards Army was formed in spring 1943 from 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, ...
in recognition of that army's actions during 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 5th Guards Army fought in the
Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk, also called the Battle of the Kursk Salient, was a major World War II Eastern Front battle between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in southwestern Russia during the summer of 1943, resulting in ...
, Belgorod-Khar'kov Offensive Operation,
Battle of the Dnieper The Battle of the Dnieper was a military campaign that took place in 1943 on the Eastern Front of World War II. Being one of the largest operations of the war, it involved almost four million troops at one point and stretched over a front. Ov ...
,
Uman–Botoșani Offensive The Uman–Botoșani offensiveTsouras, p. 244 or Uman–Botoshany offensive () was a part of the Dnieper–Carpathian offensive, carried out by the Red Army in the western Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic against the German 8th Army (Wehrma ...
,
Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive The Lvov–Sandomierz offensive or Lvov–Sandomierz strategic offensive operation () was a major Red Army operation to force the German troops from Ukraine and Eastern Poland. Launched in mid-July 1944, the operation was successfully completed ...
, Vistula–Oder Offensive,
Berlin Offensive The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...
, and the Prague Offensive. During the Berlin Offensive elements of the army linked up with American troops at
Torgau Torgau () is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen. Outside Germany, the town is best known as where on 25 April 1945, the United States and Soviet Armies first met near ...
on the
Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...
. Postwar, the army was disbanded as part of 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 ...
.


History

On 5 May 1943, the 66th Army was renamed to the 5th Guards Army in accordance with a
Stavka The ''Stavka'' ( Russian and Ukrainian: Ставка, ) is a name of the high command of the armed forces used formerly in the Russian Empire and Soviet Union and currently in Ukraine. In Imperial Russia ''Stavka'' referred to the administrat ...
directive dated 16 April 1943. It included the 32nd and 33rd Guards Rifle Corps. The 5th Guards Army fought under command of the
Steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...
,
Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) 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 Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...
, and
2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds, The Second, or (The) 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Minute and second of arc, ...
and 1st Ukrainian Fronts from 1943 until the end of the war. In 1943, the army fought in the Battle of Kursk at
Prokhorovka Prokhorovka () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. ;Urban localities *Prokhorovka, Belgorod Oblast, a settlement in Prokhorovsky District of Belgorod Oblast ;Rural localities * Prokhorovka, Irkutsk Oblast, a village in Osin ...
. The Steppe Front formed the strategic reserve for the battle. On 6 July, the army began moving up from its reserve positions. On 8 July the army was reassigned to the Voronezh Front. On the night of 10 July the army's 33rd Guards Rifle Corps arrived at Prokhorovka. On the night of 11 July the army's 32nd Guards Rifle Corps took up defensive positions on the
Psel River The Psel or Psyol (; ) is a river, a left tributary of the Dnieper, which flows through Russia and Ukraine. The Psel has a length of and a drainage basin of .
at
Oboyan Oboyan () is a town and the administrative center of Oboyansky District in Kursk Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Psyol at its confluence with the Oboyanka, south of Kursk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: ...
, Olkhovatka, Veselyy, and Semyonovka. On the morning of 11 July the advance of the
II SS Panzer Corps The II SS Panzer Corps was a German ''Waffen-SS'' armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during World War II. It was commanded by Paul Hausser during the Third Battle of Kharkov and the Battle of Kursk in 1943 and ...
was checked by the 33rd Guards Rifle Corps'
95th Guards Rifle Division The 95th Guards Rifle Division was reformed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in May 1943, based on the 1st formation of the 226th Rifle Division, and served in that role until well after the end of the Great Patriotic War. It ended the ...
and 9th Guards Airborne Division, operating in conjunction with other units. On 12 July the army's troops in conjunction with the
5th Guards Tank Army The 5th Guards Tank Army (Russian: 5-я гварде́йская та́нковая а́рмия) was a Soviet Guards armored formation which fought in many notable actions during World War II. The army was formed in February 1943. Until the aft ...
fought in the counterattack of the Voronezh Front and the Battle of Prokhorovka. Soldiers of the 9th Guards Airborne Division were carried on the hulls of the tanks during the charge down the slopes in front of Prokhorovka. In early August, the army fought in the Belgorod-Bogodukhov Offensive. For the offensive, the army was deployed among other armies on a line running from Gertsovka to the northern
Donets The Seversky Donets () or Siverskyi Donets (), usually simply called the Donets (), is a river on the south of the East European Plain. It originates in the Central Russian Upland, north of Belgorod, flows south-east through Ukraine (Kharkiv ...
east of Gostishchevo. On the night of 3 August, the army moved up to its start line. Within three hours of the launch of the offensive on the morning of 3 August, the army had broken through the main German positions. From 12 August 1943, the army fought in the Belgorod-Kharkhov Offensive Operation. On 7 September the army became part of the Steppe Front. During the Battle of the Dnieper, the army helped capture
Poltava Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...
on 23 September and
Kremenchug Kremenchuk (; , , also spelt Kremenchug, ) is an industrial city in central Ukraine which stands on the banks of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. The city serves as the administrative center of Kremenchuk Raion and Kremenchuk urban hromada within ...
on 29 September. The army then crossed the Dnieper and seized a bridgehead on its right bank. On 20 October Steppe Front was renamed 2nd Ukrainian Front. In early January, the 5th Guards Army fought in the Kirovograd Offensive, part of the Dnieper-Carpathian Offensive. In March and April, the army fought in the Uman-Botosani Offensive. In early May, the army reached the Romanian border. On 26 June the army became part of Stavka reserve. On 13 July it was transferred to the 1st Ukrainian Front. By mid-July, its troops were concentrated south of Ternopol. During July and August, the army fought in the Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive. For the next six months after the offensive, the army fought in heavy battles to retain the Sandomierz bridgehead. In January and February 1945 the 5th Guards Army advanced out of the bridgehead in the Sandomierz–Silesian Offensive. In February and March, the army fought to encircle German troops in Breslau and destroy German troops in the Oppeln pocket. In April and May the army fought in the Berlin Offensive and the Battle of Bautzen. It was elements of the 5th Guards Army that made contact with the U.S. Army's 69th Infantry Division at Torgau on the Elbe River on 25 April 1945, splitting the Third Reich into two separate parts. The first contact was made between patrols near
Strehla Strehla (; , ) is a small town in the district of Meißen, Saxony, Germany. It is located on the river Elbe, north of Riesa. This place name means ''arrow'' in Sorbian. Strehla includes the following subdivisions: *Forberge *Görzig/Trebnitz ...
, when U.S.
First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...
Albert Kotzebue crossed the River Elbe in a boat with three men of an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon. On the east bank, they met forward elements of the 175th Guards Rifle Regiment, part of the
58th Guards Rifle Division The 58th Guards Rifle Division () was an elite Guards infantry division of the Red Army during World War II. It was formed in June 1942 as the 1st Rifle Division (1st formation) and was converted into the 58th Guards Rifle Division at the end of ...
of the
First Ukrainian 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 ...
under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Gardiev. On 26 April, the commanders of the 69th Infantry Division of the First Army and the 58th Guards Rifle Division of the 5th Guards Army met at Torgau, southwest of
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
. The same day, another patrol under Second Lieutenant William Robertson with Frank Huff, James McDonnell and Paul Staub met Soviet
Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
Alexander Silvashko with some soldiers on the destroyed Elbe bridge of Torgau. The army advanced into Czechoslovakia in early May. Elements of the army liberated
Leitmeritz concentration camp Leitmeritz was the largest subcamp of the Flossenbürg concentration camp, operated by Nazi Germany in Leitmeritz, Reichsgau Sudetenland (now Litoměřice, Czech Republic). Established on 24 March 1944 as part of an effort to disperse and ...
on 9–10 May. At the end of the war, the 5th Guards Army included the 32nd and 33rd Guards Rifle Corps, as well as the 34th Guards Rifle Corps.
Combat composition of the Soviet Army ''Boevoi sostav Sovetskoi armii'' ("Combat composition of the Soviet army") is an official Second World War Soviet Army order of battle published in five parts from 1963 through 1990 by the Voroshilov Academy of the General Staff and Voenizdat. ...
, 1 May 1945
The army then became part of 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 ...
, possibly based in Austria. In June 1946, the 33rd Guards Rifle Corps was disbanded. On 20 July 1946, Lieutenant General
Afanasy Beloborodov Afanasy Pavlantyevich Beloborodov (; – 1 September 1990) was a general in the Red Army during the Second World War who was twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. Between 1963 and 1968, he commanded the Moscow Military District. Ea ...
became army commander. The army was disbanded on 20 March 1947. Its 14th Guards Mechanized Division became part of the 3rd Guards Mechanized Army. The 32nd Guards Rifle Corps was disbanded a little later in 1947, briefly being included in the 4th Guards Mechanized Army.


Structure


1 May 1945

;Rifle forces * 32nd Guards Rifle Corps * 33rd Guards Rifle Corps * 34th Guards Rifle Corps ; Artillery forces * 3rd Penetration Artillery Division * 155th Cannon Artillery Brigade * 10th Guards Fighter Anti-Tank Artillery Brigade * 1073rd Fighter Anti-Tank Artillery Regiment * 1075th Fighter Anti-Tank Artillery Regiment * 469th Mortar Regiment * 308th Guards Mortar Regiment * 29th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division ; Armoured forces *
4th Guards Tank Corps Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...
* 150th Tank Brigade * 39th Separate Tank Regiment * 226th Separate Tank Regiment * 1889th Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment ; Engineer forces * 3rd Pontoon-Bridge Brigade * 55th Engineer Sapper Brigade


Commanders

* Colonel General
Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov (), born with the surname "Zhidov" (, 30 March 1901 – 30 November 1977), was a Soviet military officer in the Red Army, who during World War II commanded the 66th Army, later renamed the 5th Guards Army, from the Battl ...
(5 May 1943 – 20 July 1946) * Lieutenant General
Afanasy Beloborodov Afanasy Pavlantyevich Beloborodov (; – 1 September 1990) was a general in the Red Army during the Second World War who was twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. Between 1963 and 1968, he commanded the Moscow Military District. Ea ...
(20 July 1946 – 20 March 1947)


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

* * *


External links

*
Army History at samsv.narod.ru


{{Armies of the Soviet Army G005 Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations disestablished in 1947 Guards Armies