| 150th Guards Motor Rifle Division | |
|---|---|
| 150-я гвардейская мотострелковая Идрицко-Берлинская ордена Кутузова дивизия | |
 Great emblem of the 150th Motor Rifle Division | |
| Active | September 1939 – December 1946 December 2016 – present |
| Country |  Soviet Union (1939–1946) Russia (2016–) |
| Branch | .svg) Red Army Russian Ground Forces |
| Type | Division |
| Role | Mechanized infantry |
| Part of | Southern Military District 8th Guards Combined Arms Army |
| Garrison/HQ | Novocherkassk |
| Nickname | Berlin-Idritskaya |
| Engagements | |
| Decorations |  Order of Kutuzov, 2nd Class |
| Battle honours |  Guards |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Major General Vitaly Terekhin |
| Insignia | |
| Division SSI |  |
The150th Guards Motor RifleBerlin-IdritsaOrder of Kutuzov Division (Russian:150-я гвардейская мотострелковая Идрицко-Берлинская ордена Кутузова дивизия) of theRussian Ground Forces is amotorized rifle division that was re-instituted in 2016.[1][2][3] It is part of the8th Guards Combined Arms Army, which was reformed in 2017, in theSouthern Military District.
ItsRed Army predecessor fought on theEastern Front of World War II from 1941 to 1945. It gained fame when its soldiersraised the Soviet flag over theReichstag on May 2, 1945. The nickname ‘Idritskaya’ was given to the Soviet division on July 23, 1944, by the order № 207 for its heroic battle in the town of Idritsa. The division fought atSchneidemühl andBerlin.
The division was formed three times, being initially established atVyazma in September 1939. As part of the 3rd Army's 3rd Rifle Corps, the division took part in the Soviet Invasion of Poland.
Force Composition[4]
Operating as part of the9th Army on 22 June 1941, then, after theSecond Battle of Kharkov, was wiped out atIzyum in May 1942.
The division was reformed at Turga in theSiberian Military District on July 23, 1942, based on the 1st Siberian Volunteer Division. The unit was made up of over 10,000 men from Siberian factories and theKuzbass coal fields and had a cadre of 1,460 combat veterans. By September 1 it had enlisted 13,754 personnel, 43.8 percent of whom wereCommunist Party members orKomsomols. Within two weeks it was assigned to the6th "Siberian Volunteer" Rifle Corps and began moving by rail to camps near Moscow where it received the last of its support troops and transport. On September 30, the 150th set out on a 170km road march to join the22nd Army nearBelyi, part of theKalinin Front.[5]
During the Second Rzhev-Sychevka Offensive (Operation Mars) the 150th Division and the 6th Rifle Corps were referred to as "Stalin" units and were regarded as an elite force. On January 6, 1943, the division was pulled from the line and moved by rail to theVelikiye Luki area, where it served in the5th Guards Rifle Corps during the last few days ofthe battle for that city, then on the 25th staged an assault crossing of theLovat andLoknya Rivers. By the middle of February it was back in 6th Corps in 22nd Army. Over the next two months it fought in theKholm area, pinning down the German forces evacuating from theDemyansk Pocket. On April 16 the Supreme High Command recognized the service of the 6th "Siberian Volunteer" Rifle Corps by re-designating it as the19th Guards Rifle Corps, and three days later the 150th became the second formation of the22nd Guards Rifle Division.[6]
It was then re-created for the third time in September 1943. When formed for the third time, it was composed of the 127th, 144th, and 151st brigades. Initially, this division fell under the command of the34th Army. But during some time in early 1944, it was transferred to the 6th Guards Army, and then finally it was assigned to the79th Rifle Corps of the3rd Shock Army, of the1st Belorussian Front, under which it would stay on the offensive all the way fromNevel,Pskov Oblast toBerlin.
On April 22, 1945, when victory for the Soviet Army was near, an order from the Military Council of the3rd Shock Army designated the 150th Division to be one of 9 divisions to receive aspecial banner solely for the purpose of raising it over theReichstag as a sign of the Soviet victory. After crossing the Moltke Bridge on theRiver Spree on April 29, the 756th and 674th Rifle Regiments of the 150th Division captured the Interior Ministry Building, stormed the barriers in theKönigsplatz and on the 30th, breached the Reichstag. The victory banner was hoisted on the roof at 10:30 in the evening, but there was no chance to take a picture. By 2 May, the Germans defending the building were defeated and theCharlottenburger Chaussee to the south became the border between elements of the 3rd Shock Army and 8th Guards Army.Red ArmyphotographerYevgeny Khaldei then photographed soldiers of the 756th Rifle Regiment hoisting thenational flag of the Soviet Union on the roof of the Reichstag, becomingone of the most iconic images of the war.
On April 26, 1945, for its earlier heroic overnight victory at lakeWoświn east ofStargard, 150th Rifle Division was awarded theOrder of Kutuzov, second degree.
In December 1946 the division was disbanded in theGroup of Soviet Forces in Germany.[7]
15 personnel were awarded the Gold Star Medal as Heroes of the Soviet Union, while a veteran of the unit was given the Gold Star Medal as aHero of Ukraine in 2005.
The unit was re-established in December 2016 inRostov Oblast as a full motor rifle division with its division HQ scheduled to open inNovocherkassk[7][8] and was meant to become part of the 8th Combined Arms Army, as part of the broader structural reform of the Russian armed forces.[9]
The division was equipped with T-90A MBTs, BMP-3 IFVs and BTR-80 APCs, and contains as-yet undisclosed infantry, armour, artillery and SAM regiments, as well as communications, logistics and intelligence units.[10] The division's re-formation was completed by 2017.[11][12] In 2018, Russian president Putin signed decrees naming some of the division's units after localities in Belarus, Poland, and Ukraine.[13]
On the eve ofVictory Day in 2019, the commander of the Southern Military District, Colonel GeneralAleksandr Dvornikov, presented a copy of theVictory Banner to the commander of the 150th Rifle Division.[14] On 1 December 2019, the 103rd motorized rifle regiment was formed as part of the division. On 18 January 2020, the regiment was presented its renewed Colour of the 2008/2010 pattern. Creation of the new unit completed the formation of the 150th motorized rifle division.[15]
The division has been heavily engaged in theinvasion of Ukraine with its commander, Major General Oleg Mityaev, reportedly killed in action around March 18, 2022.[16]
On August 5, 2024, by Decree of thePresident of the Russian Federation, the division was granted the honorary title "Guards" for the massive heroism and bravery, fortitude and courage shown by the personnel of the division in combat operations to protect the Fatherland and state interests in armed conflicts at home and abroad over the past 85 years.[17]
103rd Motorized Rifle Regiment[19]
933rd Upper Dnipro Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment[23][24].svg) Divisions of theRussian Armed Forces | |||||
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Guards units marked inbold. | |||||
