| 18th Army | |
|---|---|
| 18-я армия | |
| Active | 1941–1946 |
| Country |  Soviet Union |
| Branch | .svg) Red Army |
| Type | Combined arms |
| Size | Field Army Several corps or, later, divisions |
| Part of | Front or Military District |
| Engagements | Operation Barbarossa Moravian-Ostrava Offensive Operation München Rostov Defensive Operation Battle of Rostov (1941) Mius-Front Kerch–Eltigen Operation Zhitomir–Berdichev Offensive Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive Battle of the Dukla Pass Prague Offensive |
The18th Army (Russian: 18-я армия) of theSoviet Union'sRed Army was formed on 21 June 1941 on the basis of HQKharkovMilitary District and armies of theKiev Special Military District.
The Army's commander in 1941 was General-LieutenantAndrey Smirnov. The Army composition on the beginning of the war was:
It was caught soon after the start ofOperation Barbarossa in 1941 in a huge encirclement south of Kiev along with the6th Army and12th Armies. This encirclement was part of theBattle of Uman. A further formation was shattered during theBattle of the Sea of Azov in September–October 1941.
On 1 October 1943 the army consisted of20th Rifle Corps (8th Guards Rifle Brigade, 81st and 83rd Naval Rifle Brigades),55th Guards Rifle Division,89th Rifle Division,176th,318th,414th Rifle Divisions, 107th Rifle Brigade, 255th Naval Infantry Brigade, 10th Guards Separate Antitank Battalion, artillery, armoured forces, and engineers.[4]
As part of Southern, North-Caucasian,Transcaucasian Front, and the 1st and4th Ukrainian Fronts the 18th Army conducted defensive operations in right-bank Ukraine, participated in Donbass, the Rostov defensive and offensive operations, and in the fight for Caucasus. Based on the experience of theKerch - Eltigen landing operation, the Army was uniquely identified as 18thDesant Army (Russian:18-я десантная армия) for amphibious operations, between 15 February and 5 April 1944 aroundMalaya Zemlya.
For this operation the Army included:[5]
The Army reverted to its previous designation for the clearing of right-bank Ukraine, Hungary, Poland and Czechoslovakia. For much of this period the24th Rifle Division served with 18th Army, and the Division was still serving with the Army in May 1945, along with the 17th Rifle Corps (8th and138th Rifle Divisions) and aFortified Region.[6]
AfterWorld War II, the 18th Army was transformed into a Mountain Army in the territory of theCarpathian Military District andNorthern Bukovina. The1st Guards Mechanized Division came under the army's control while inIran from September 1945 to June 1946.[7] This army was disbanded in May 1946. Some of its elements, along with parts of the52nd Army were used to form the 8th Mechanised Army.
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