| 47th Guards Tank Division (1965–1997) 26th Guards Tank Division 19th Guards Mechanized Division 47th Guards Rifle Division (1942–1945) | |
|---|---|
| 47-я гвардейская танковая Нижнеднепровская Краснознамённая, ордена Богдана Хмельницкого дивизия | |
| Active |  Soviet Union (1942–1991) Russia (1991–1997) |
| Branch |  Russian Ground Forces |
| Type | Infantry (later Armor) |
| Part of | Moscow Military District 1st Guards Tank Army |
| Engagements | |
| Decorations | |
| Battle honours | Lower Dnieper |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | |
The47th Guards Nizhnedneprovskaya Red Banner Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Tank Division (Russian:47-я гвардейская танковая Нижнеднепровская Краснознамённая, ордена Богдана Хмельницкого дивизия,romanized: 47-ya gvardeyskaya tankovaya Nizhnedneprovskaya Krasnoznamonnaya, ordena Bogdana Khmel'nitskogo diviziya), was a tank division of theSoviet Armed Forces, laterRussian Ground Forces.
It was formed in October 1942, duringWorld War II from the first formation of the154th Rifle Division as the47th Guards Rifle Division. It served with the8th Guards Army from late 1943. In late 1945, the division was converted into the19th Guards Mechanized Division as part of theGroup of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany. It was ultimately relocated toHillersleben as part of the3rd Shock Army (later the 3rd Army) and served there with the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany for the rest of theCold War, being converted to the26th Guards Tank Division in 1957 and renumbered to restore its original number in 1965.
The 47th Guards Rifle Division was formed on 20 October 1942 by the conversion of the first formation of the154th Rifle Division for the latter's "courage and heroism" during theKozelsk Offensive. It included the 437th, 473rd, and 510th Rifle Regiments, the 571st Artillery Regiment, and smaller units.[1] The commander of the 154th, Major GeneralYakov Fokanov, continued in command of the 47th Guards.[2] The division's units received Guards designations on 26 December, with the rifle regiments becoming the 137th, 140th, and 142nd Guards, while the artillery regiment became the 99th Guards.[3]
On February 13, 1944, by Order No. 28, the honorary name "Nizhnedneprovskaya"- was granted to the division by the order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
In late May 1945, the division with the 8th Guards Army became part of the newly createdGroup of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany (renamed the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany (GSFG) in 1954). In late 1945, the 47th Guards Rifle Division was converted into the 19th Guards Mechanized Division. The latter included three mechanized regiments and two tank regiments: the 62nd, 63rd, and 64th Guards Mechanized Regiments, formed from the 137th, 140th, and 142nd Guards Rifle Regiments,[4] and the 26th and 153rd Tank Regiments, the former 244th Separate Tank Regiment and 153rd Tank Brigade, respectively.[5] It was subsequently transferred to the3rd Shock Army (the 3rd Army from 1954) in 1947, joining the79th Rifle Corps. The corps was renumbered as the 23rd in 1955 and disbanded a year later, leaving the division directly subordinated to the army headquarters.[6] On 17 May 1957, the division was converted into the 26th Guards Tank Division.[7] The 63rd and 64th Guards Mechanized Regiments were accordingly disbanded, while the 62nd Guards became the 245th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment.[4] To replace the disbanded units, the 49th Guards Tank Regiment was transferred to the 26th Guards from the12th Guards Tank Division.[8]
The division was renumbered as the 47th Guards to restore its World War II designation on 11 January 1965. The 49th Guards was subsequently renumbered as the 197th Guards in addition.[9] As theCold War ended, the GSFG was reduced in size and renamed the Western Group of Forces. Following theDissolution of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991, the division became part of theRussian Ground Forces. In April 1993, the division began its withdrawal toMulino,Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, in theMoscow Military District.[10]
In 1995 in the village ofShatoy during theFirst Chechen War, a checkpoint of the division's245th Motorized Rifle Regiment [ru] was captured by Chechen fighters.Aleksey Pulikovsky, an officer of the Ground Forces, and the eldest son ofGeneral-LieutenantKonstantin Pulikovsky, died whileunblocking the checkpoint on 14 December 1995.
The division was disbanded by merging it with the31st Tank Division of the Moscow Military District into the3rd Motor Rifle Division atNizhny Novgorod in 1997.
Total: 322 tanks, 271 infantry fighting vehicles, 14 armored personnel carriers, 108 self-propelled guns, 30 mortars, 18 MLRS.[10]
 Divisions of the Soviet Union 1945–1957 | |||||||||
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