| 109th Rifle Division (April 15, 1939 – January 1940) 109th Rifle Division (January 29, 1942 – July 30, 1942) 109th Rifle Division (August 6, 1942 – 1946) | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1939-40, 1942–46 |
| Country |  Soviet Union |
| Branch | .svg) Red Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | Siege of Sevastopol Siege of Leningrad Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive Baltic Offensive |
| Decorations |  Order of the Red Banner (3rd formation) |
| Battle honours | Leningrad (3rd formation) |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Col. Nikolai Pavlovich Krasnoretzkiy Maj. Gen.Pyotr Georgyevich Novikov Maj. Gen. Nikolai Andreevich Trushkin |
The109th Rifle Division was aRed Army infantry division that was formed three times, briefly in 1939, during 1942, and again from 1942 to 1946. The first formation of the division was converted to a mechanized division after about nine months. Its second formation served for six months in 1942 in thedefense of the fortress ofSevastopol, in the southern sector of the siege lines. After being destroyed there in July, a third division was formed by re-designating an existing rifle division nearLeningrad in August, and it successfully held its positions for nearly a year and a half, in spite of shortages of food and supplies due to theGerman/Finnish siege. The 109th then participated in theLeningrad–Novgorod Offensive that drove the Germans and Finns away from the city andlifted the siege in early 1944, helped drive Finland out of the war in theVyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive, and then joined theoffensive along the Baltic coast towards Germany. This third formation compiled an admirable record of service, but was disbanded in 1946.
The first 109th Rifle Division began forming atTatarsk in theNovosibirsk Oblast on April 15, 1939, based on a cadre provided by the 79th Rifle Regiment of the73rd Rifle Division. Col. Nikolai Pavlovich Krasnoretzkiy was appointed to command on June 1, and he would hold that post through this formation's existence. In January 1940, the division moved toKharanor to be reorganized as the109th Motorized Division.[1][2]
The division was reformed by the re-designation of the third formation of the2nd Rifle Division in January 1942 atSevastopol.[3] It consisted of, in part:
It was part of theSeparate Coastal Army, where it served for the duration of its existence. In the final defense of the Sevastopol Fortress, the 109th fought as part of the "First Sector", and its divisional commander, Maj. Gen.Pyotr Georgyevich Novikov, also served as the Sector commander. The division was tasked with the defense of the high ground that blocked German entry intoBalaclava; in fact, the 456th Rifle Regiment held the same area where the British93rd Highland Regiment made its famous"Thin Red Line" stand in October 1854.[6]
In spite of directions from above, the commander of GermanXXX Army Corps began an attack on the 109th on June 7, 1942, as part of the overall final offensive against Sevastopol. 456th Rifle Regiment inflicted heavy casualties, in part through antiaircraft and sniper fire, while the 381st Regiment, initially taken by surprise, also threw back the enemy with heavy losses. After four more days of piecemeal attacks, the German corps had suffered over 1,000 casualties for no gains. A larger-scale offensive, with armor support, began on June 11, and captured Ruin Hill from the 602nd Regiment. Despite this the division continued to resist strongly; unfortunately the adjoining388th Rifle Division defending the village of Kamary was not faring so well. Novikov decided to attempt to relieve one regiment of that division in place on the night of June 12/13, but this move was detected by the Germans who successfully launched an attack to disrupt it. Late in the afternoon of the 13th, with Soviet defenses in the center of the sector in disorder, a further German assault overwhelmed and routed the 602nd. While the rest of the division continued to hold firm, Novikov had no option but to pull his forces back 1,000 - 1,500 metres on June 16 roughly along the line of theSapun Heights.[7]
A lull set in over the next few days, but on the night of June 28/29 GermanEleventh Army launched its final assault all along the line. By the end of this disastrous day for the Soviet defenders the 109th was still relatively intact, but concentrated around Balaclava. Realizing he was about to be cut off, Novikov ordered his division to force-march toward Coastal Battery 35 on the Chersonese Peninsula, where he formed a defensive perimeter with about 50,000 men, mostly stragglers. He was handed command of the Separate Coastal Army on the 30th as the Soviet leadership fled; when he tried to follow in asub-chaser on July 2 the ship was intercepted and sunk, and Novikov was captured. 456th Rifle Regiment made a last stand around Coastal Battery 18, but by the evening of July 4 all the remaining forces on the peninsula were destroyed or captured.[8] The 109th Rifle Division was officially stricken from the Soviet order of battle on July 30.[9]
The 109th Rifle division was reformed on August 6, 1942, atPulkovo in the42nd Army ofLeningrad Front from the21st NKVD Rifle Division, which had been involved in the defense of the city for the previous twelve months.[10] Its partial order of battle became:
Upon its redesignation, the division was under the command of Col. Mikhail Danilovich Papchenko, but he was replaced within a week by Col. Nikolai Andreevich Trushkin. Trushkin was promoted to Major General on April 21, 1943, and remained in this post for most of the rest of the war.
Just prior to its re-designation, between July 20–23, the division had taken part in an attack on the German-held fortified village of Staro-Panovo, southwest of the city, which succeeded in liberating the village and part of the adjoiningUritsk.[11] Although the gains were small, it was the first time the German siege lines had been pushed back and held, boosting the morale of the defenders.[12]
In the late autumn, the division was relieved from front-line duty for nearly a month for rebuilding and replenishment, then was deployed again to the Pulkovo sector, now facing theSpanish Blue Division.[13] The Spanish were withdrawn from this sector on January 6, 1943, replaced by theGerman 23rd Infantry Division.[14]
The 109th became part (somewhat confusingly) of the109th Rifle Corps from November 1943, and remained in that Corps for the duration. In January 1944, 109th Corps left 42nd Army and was transferred to the2nd Shock Army[15] in theOranienbaum Bridgehead. Later that month, the 2nd Shock Army took a leading part inthe offensive that finally drove the German forces away from Leningrad.[16]
In May, the 109th Rifle Division was transferred north to the21st Army on theKarelian Isthmus as part of the upcomingVyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive, which aimed to force Finland out of the war.[9] During the offensive, the 109th played a crucial role in breaching the second main Finnish defences, the partially-completedVT-line, atKuuterselkä on June 15, capturing several strongpoints and forcing the Finns to retire to theVKT-line as a result. Following this, the division continued to advance on the right flank of the 21st Army, reaching positions about 15km east ofViipuri by July 15.[17] On June 22, the division was awarded the battle honor "Leningrad" as well as theOrder of the Red Banner for its role in the campaign.[18]
With Finland out of the war, the 109th made its final transfer, to8th Army in Estonia, nearNarva, in August. Until the end of the war, the division assisted in clearing the Baltic coast as far as theCourland Peninsula. On several occasions, the division served as a "follow-on" force inamphibious operations against German forces on the Baltic islands, but it never led an amphibious assault landing.[9] On December 16, General Trushkin left command of the division to Col. Moiseiy Yakovlevich Mones, but returned to the division on February 28, 1945.
The division ended the war as the109th Rifle, Leningrad, Order of the Red Banner Division (Russian: 109-я стрелковая Ленинградская Краснознамённая дивизия).[19]
The division was withdrawn with the6th Rifle Corps to theDon Military District and was disbanded in spring 1946.[20]
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