| 6th Guards Combined Arms Army | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6-я гвардейская общевойсковая армия | |||||
 Great emblem of the 6th Combined Arms Army | |||||
| Active | 1939–1945 1960–1998 2010–present | ||||
| Country |  Soviet Union Russia | ||||
| Branch |  Red ArmySoviet Army Russian Ground Forces | ||||
| Type | Combined Arms | ||||
| Size | Field army | ||||
| Part of | Northern Military District (1951-1960) Leningrad Military District (1960–1998) Western Military District (2010–2024) Leningrad Military District (2024–present) | ||||
| Garrison/HQ | Agalatovo,Leningrad Oblast | ||||
| Engagements | |||||
| Decorations |  Guards | ||||
| Commanders | |||||
| Current commander | Sergei Storozhenko[3] | ||||
| Notable commanders | Lieutenant GeneralAlexander Vasilyevich Peryazev [ru][4] | ||||
| Insignia | |||||
| NATO Map Symbol |
| ||||
The6th Guards Combined Arms Army (Russian:6-я гвардейская общевойсковая армия) is afield army of theRed Army and theSoviet Army that was active with theRussian Ground Forces until 1998 and has been active since 2010 as the6th Combined Arms Army (MUN в/ч 31807).
It was first formed in August 1939 in theKiev Special Military District from the Volochiskaya Army Group (a corps-sized formation).[5]
In September 1939 it participated in theSoviet invasion of Poland. At the beginning of war the Army (6th Rifle Corps,37th Rifle Corps (which included the80th,139th, and141st Rifle Divisions),4th and15th Mechanized Corps,5th Cavalry Corps, 4thFortified Region, and6th Fortified Region (Rava-Ruska), and a number of artillery and other units)[6] was deployed on the Lviv direction. It started theGreat Patriotic War as part of theSouthwestern Front. The army's headquarters was disbanded 10 August 1941 after theBattle of Uman. In this battle, the 6th Army was caught in a huge encirclement south of Kiev along with the12th Army.
It was immediately reformed within theSouthern Front on the basis of the48th Rifle Corps and other units, and defended the west bank of theDnepr River northwest ofDnipropetrovsk.[7] On 1 September 1941 it consisted of169th,226th,230th,255th,273rd, and275th Rifle Divisions,26th and28th Cavalry Divisions, 47th Rifle Regiment (15thNKVD Rifle Division), 269th, 274th, and 394th Corps Artillery Regiments, 522nd High-power Howitzer Artillery Regiment гап б/м, 671st Artillery Regiment of theReserve of the Supreme High Command (ап РВГК), 14th, 27th Separate Anti-Aircraft Artillery Divisions, and8th Tank Division.[8] It was then transferred to theSoviet Southwestern Front and took part in defensive actions in the Donbas, theBarvenkovo-Lozovaia operation, and theSecond Battle of Kharkov, but along with the57th Army, was surrounded in theIzium pocket with the loss of 200,000 plus men in casualties alone, and afterwards formally disbanded.
The Army was reformed in July 1942 for the third time from the6th Reserve Army, comprising the45th,99th,141st,160th,174th,212th,219th, and309th Rifle Divisions plus the 141st Rifle Brigade. It was assigned in sequence to theVoronezh,Southwestern, and3rd Ukrainian Fronts. In January 1943, the 6th Army smashed through the defensive lines of theAlpini divisions of theItalian 8th Army as part ofOperation Little Saturn.
In September 1943 it consisted of the4th Guards Rifle Corps (38th Guards,263rd,267th Rifle Divisions),26th Guards Rifle Corps (25th Guards,35th and47th Guards Rifle Divisions), and the33rd Rifle Corps (50th,78th,243rd Rifle Divisions).[9]
In 1944 it took part in theNikopol-Kryvyi Rih, Bereznogova-Snigorovka, andOdessa offensives. It was disbanded in June 1944.
The 6th Army was reformed in December 1944 with troops from3rd Guards and13th Armies. On 1 January 1945 the Army consisted of the22nd Rifle Corps (218th and273rd Rifle Divisions), the74th Rifle Corps (181st and309th Rifle Divisions), the359th Rifle Division, the 77thFortified Region, and other support units.[10]
During 1945 the Army took part in theSandomierz–Silesia, and theLower Silesia offensives. During the Lower Silesia offensive in February 1945, 6th Army, commanded by MarshalIvan Koniev, besieged Fortress Breslau (Festung Breslau) in theBattle of Breslau. The army besieged the city on February 13, 1945, and the encirclement of Breslau was completed the following day. The 1st Ukrainian Front forces besieged the city with the 22nd and 74th Rifle Corps, and the 77th Fortified Region, as well as other smaller units. Even approximate estimates vary greatly concerning the number of German troops trapped in Breslau. Some sources claim that there were as many as 150,000 defenders, some 80,000 and some 50,000. The Siege of Breslau consisted of destructive house-to-house street fighting. The city was bombarded to ruin by artillery of the 6th Army, as well as the2nd Air Army and the18th Air Army. During the siege, both sides resorted to setting entire districts of the city on fire.
After the end of theSecond World War, the 6th Army was withdrawn from Germany and stationed briefly in theOrel Military District before being disbanded in theVoronezh Military District late in 1945.
The 6th Army was (re)formed from the31st Rifle Corps on 2 April 1952 inMurmansk,Murmansk Oblast.[11] That year it comprised the45th Rifle Division (Pechenga, Murmansk Oblast); the67th Rifle Division (Murmansk, Murmansk Oblast); the341st Rifle Division (Alakurtti, Murmansk Oblast); and the367th Rifle Division (Sortavala,Karelian ASSR). The army was disbanded at Murmansk in early 1960.[11]
The army was reformed again from HeadquartersNorthern Military District in May–June 1960 with headquarters atPetrozavodsk.[12] On 15 January 1974, this formation was awarded theOrder of the Red Banner.[11]
In 1977 the 88th Independent Helicopter Squadron was moved fromNurmalitsy toApatity.
In 1988 the army consisted of:
In 1989 the 16th Motor Rifle Division (mobilisation) became the 5186th Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment (БХВТ) (30th мотострелковая бригада), and the 37th similarly became a weapons and equipment storage base (VKhVT). In 1994-95 the 111th Motor Rifle Division (Sortavala) became the 20th Independent Motor Rifle Brigade and shifted into the30th Guards Army Corps.
In January 1996 it consisted of the 161st Artillery Brigade, the 182nd MRL Regiment, the 485th Separate Helicopter Regiment, the 54th Motor Rifle Division (Allakurtti), and the 131st Motor Rifle Division (Pechenga).[19] It finally disbanded after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1997–98.
In 2010, as part of the creation of theWestern Military District/Western Operational-Strategic Command with headquarters at St. Petersburg, the army was reformed. The new 6th Army may include:[20]
The army took part in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Its units fought during the Northeastern Ukraine offensive aroundKharkiv, but failed to capture the city.[24] Reportedly, the army's commander, Lieutenant General Yershov, was dismissed and placed under house arrest at the end of March.[25] As of April 2023, the army is conducting operations along the Svatove-Kreminna line inLuhansk Oblast.[26] In May 2024, the 138th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade was expanded into the69th Guards Motor Rifle Division.[23]
In January 2025, the 25th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade was reformed into the 68th Motor Rifle Division.[27]
On 6 October 2025, the army was awarded the "Guards" status.[28]
| Armies |
|
|---|---|
| Guards | |
| Tank/Mechanized | |
| Guards Tank/Mechanized | |
| Shock | |
| Cavalry | |
| Sapper |
|
| Reserve Army |
|
-_Infantry_(NATO_APP-6).svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)