90th Rifle Division

90th Rifle Division (February 1936 – August 8, 1946)
Soldiers of the 90th Rifle Division on the coast of the Baltic Sea, June 4, 1945
Active	1936–1946
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army (1939-46)
Type	Infantry
Size	Division
Engagements	Winter War Soviet occupation of the Baltic states (1940) Operation Barbarossa Baltic operation Leningrad strategic defensive Luga Defensive Line Siege of Leningrad Mga offensive Leningrad–Novgorod offensive Krasnoye Selo–Ropsha offensive Continuation War Vyborg–Petrozavodsk offensive East Prussian offensive East Pomeranian offensive Battle of Berlin
Decorations	Order of the Red Banner  Order of Suvorov
Battle honours	Ropsha
Commanders
Notable commanders	Komdiv Konstantin Pavlovich Pyadyshev Col. Platon Vasilevich Chernyaev Kombrig Kuzma Nikitovich Galitskii Kombrig Vladimir Ivanovich Shcherbakov Komdiv Pantelemon Aleksandrovich Zaitsev Col. Mikhail Ivanovich Golubev Col. Aleksandr Ignatevich Korolyov Col. Nikolai Nikitich Proskurin Maj. Gen. Nikolai Georgievich Lyashchenko Maj. Gen. Vasilii Lavrentevich Alekseenko

The 90th Rifle Division was formed as an infantry division of the Red Army in September 1936, in the Leningrad Military District, based on the shtat (table of organization and equipment) for rifle divisions of that period. During the Winter War with Finland it was part of the 7th Army on the Karelian Isthmus, and distinguished itself in the fighting for the Mannerheim Line, being awarded the Order of the Red Banner, as was one of its rifle regiments. In June, as part of 8th Army, it took part in the occupation of Estonia and remained there until the start of May 1941 when it was moved east into Lithuania as war with German threatened. When this began on June 22 it was still in that Army in the Baltic Special Military District, which was immediately redesignated as Northwestern Front. Deployed near the frontier with East Prussia it was struck and partly encircled; its commander and most of his staff were killed. A cadre managed to escape back into Estonia and through July and early August made a fighting withdrawal toward Narva and Kingisepp. As part of the Luga Operational Group it was encircled again south of Leningrad in late August and forced to exfiltrate through the forests and swamps to join 55th Army in Leningrad Front. It would remain under these commands, largely on the defensive and slowly rebuilding, until January 1943 when it was assigned to the Front's 67th Army just after the siege was partially lifted. During the spring it was briefly assigned the 2nd Shock Army before returning to the 67th for a July offensive toward Mga which failed to retake the key strongpoint of Sinyavino.

Formation

The 90th was formed in the Karelian Fortified Region just north of Leningrad in February 1936. Kombrig Konstantin Pavlovich Pyadyshev was appointed to command on February 17; between 1921 and 1931 he had led the 21st, 10th, and 16th Rifle Divisions but had since been in the training establishment. He would be promoted to Komdiv on November 26 but left the division on March 20, 1937, to become deputy chief of staff of Leningrad Military District. In July, Col. Platon Vasilevich Chernyaev took over as acting commander, but was replaced in November by Kombrig Kuzma Nikitovich Galitskii, who had previously served as deputy commander of 3rd Rifle Division and as chief of staff of Kharkov Military District. He was removed in July 1938 as part of the Great Purge and investigated, but later released to take command of the 24th Rifle Division in December 1939. This officer would lead both the 3rd Shock and 11th Guards Armies during the war with Germany and reached the rank of army general in 1955. From July to October 1938 Col. (later Kombrig) Vladimir Ivanovich Shcherbakov led the 90th in an acting role, before being reassigned to the 104th Mountain Rifle Division. He was replaced by Col. Pantelemon Aleksandrovich Zaitsev, who would be promoted to Kombrig on November 4, 1939, just before the start of the Winter War with Finland. He had previously served as chief of staff of the 70th Rifle Division.

In September 1939, for security and intelligence reasons, all the rifle divisions had their regiments' numbers "scrambled", and the 90th emerged with the following order of battle:

• 19th Rifle Regiment
• 173rd Rifle Regiment
• 286th Rifle Regiment
• 96th Artillery Regiment
• 149th Howitzer Artillery Regiment (until August 15, 1941)
• 66th Antitank Battalion
• 44th Reconnaissance Company
• 17th Sapper Battalion
• 69th Signal Battalion
• 26th Medical/Sanitation Battalion
• 59th Chemical Defense (Anti-gas) Platoon (later 53rd)
• 177th Motor Transport Company (later 54th)
• 168th Field Bakery (later 16th Motorized Field Bakery)
• 215th Divisional Veterinary Hospital
• 111th Divisional Artillery Workshop
• 325th Regimental Artillery Workshop
• 286th Field Postal Station (later 856th)
• 199th Field Office of the State Bank

Winter War

Before the invasion of Finland the 90th was assigned to 50th Rifle Corps of 7th Army, which would mount the attack into the Karelian Isthmus, initially under command of Komandarm 2nd Rank V. F. Yakovlev; it would later come under Komandarm 2nd Rank K. A. Meretskov, who as commander of Leningrad Military District was in charge of the entire operation. The Army contained 12 rifle divisions, although this would later rise to 14, plus three tank brigades and a mechanized corps, for a total of just under 1,000 tanks; several of the divisions were still in the process of forming up. The objective was Viipuri, breaching the Mannerheim Line and eventually driving west to Helsinki. 50th Corps was on the Army's right flank, aimed at Taipale on the east end of the Line, but the 90th was on the left flank of the Corps.

The invasion began on November 30. 50th Corps faced the Finnish III Army Corps, and by December 4 the covering troops were taking up positions in the Mannerheim Line. Two days later Yakovlev's troops pulled up to the line and stopped to regroup, bringing up their artillery. The first attempt to break the line began the same day as the 90th's Corps-mates, the 49th and 150th Rifle Divisions, attempted to cross the Taipale River against the Finnish 10th Infantry Division. This attack intensified on December 14 and continued most of the rest of the month, without any Soviet success, although the 10th Infantry was severely weakened. The 90th was deployed at the other end of Lake Suvanto opposite Kiviniemi. Here a narrow channel connected Suvanto with the rest of the Vuoksi waterway. On December 7 the 19th Rifle Regiment forced a crossing which technically breached the Mannerheim Line but was an operational dead end as both sides were committed in other places. Nevertheless, for this success the 19th would be awarded the Order of the Red Banner on January 15, 1940, the first unit decoration of the Winter War.

The war went into a lull during January as both sides reorganized. On the Soviet side the commanding headquarters was Northwestern Front under Komandarm 1st Rank S. K. Timoshenko, while Meretskov took direct command of 7th Army. This Army was split, with 13th Army taking over the Taipale sector. The 90th remained in 7th Army but was moved to 19th Rifle Corps. Timoshenko escalated air and artillery attacks on the Finnish positions on February 1 as he concentrated his forces on the Summa sector. The bombardment and probing actions grew until February 11 when the 123rd Rifle Division, also of 19th Corps, penetrated the Line along the Lähde Road with the 35th Tank Brigade. Finnish counterattacks slowed the advance but failed to push it back and soon the road to Viipuri was open, although Meretskov failed to grasp the opportunity. In the afternoon of February 15 the Finnish commander-in-chief, Field Marshal C. G. E. Mannerheim, authorized his II Army Corps to pull back to the Intermediate Line. The fighting continued until March 13 when a ceasefire took place. For its role in the victory, on April 7 the 90th would also receive the Order of the Red Banner.

Operation Barbarossa

At the outset of the German invasion on June 22 the 90th was assigned to 10th Rifle Corps of 8th Army in the Baltic Special Military District. On the same day this was redesignated as Northwestern Front. It was in the center of its Army, tying into its Corps-mate, the 10th Rifle Division, on its right, and the 125th Rifle Division of 11th Rifle Corps on the right, well to the southwest of Varniai. Colonel Golubev had his headquarters 5km northeast of Šilalė with the rifle regiments encamped at Kvėdarna, Pagramantis, and Kaltinėnai, and with one battalion of each near the frontier as a covering force. Of the rifle divisions deployed in the west the 90th was unique in still having an organic tank battalion. This was equipped with T-26 and T-37A light tanks which did not survive long once the fighting started. The division was deployed on a line some 60km long, directly in the path of German 18th Army's I Army Corps.

The District commander, Col. Gen. F. I. Kuznetsov, had disregarded the instructions of the NKO and General Staff to avoid any action that might be taken as a provocation. On June 15, alarmed by intelligence reports of the German buildup, issued orders to increase force readiness along the frontier. Without directly mentioning the buildup he stated, "Today, as never before, we must be fully combat ready. Many commanders do not understand this. But all must firmly and clearly understand that at any moment we must be ready to fulfill any combat mission." After receiving further intelligence two days later Kuznetsov ordered his forces to full military readiness on June 18. While his actions were brave in going against orders from the top and militarily correct, it's unlikely that they made any real difference when the war began.

The invasion began with an artillery preparation at 0310 hours. In the initial hours the 90th was partially surrounded and Golubev was killed in action. On July 4 the head of the Front's political department, Brigade Commissar Ryabchi, reported: "...90th Rifle Division —the remnants of the division's units have been scattered by the enemy. There is no division headquarters. The division no longer exists organizationally and is being formed anew." In the chaos Golubev's death remained unknown to higher headquarters until July 6, and Col. Ivan Ivanovich Plenkin took over the next day. Somehow the division's banner and documents were carried across the Daugava River into Estonia so it escaped being disbanded, and on July 10 it was still in 8th Army's order of battle under 10th Corps, along with the 10th Rifle and 22nd NKVD Rifle Divisions.

Leningrad strategic defensive

While the main body of Army Group North was advancing on the primary route to Leningrad, smaller forces were clearing the left flank along the Baltic coast and Estonia. Beginning on July 11 the four infantry divisions of XXXXII and XXVI Army Corps defeated 10th Corps and occupied Tartu, Pärnu, and Tallinn. 10th Corps had tied down those four divisions at the cost of heavy losses, including some 20,000 taken prisoner, but this did little to weaken the drive on Leningrad. By the beginning of August the 90th had joined the Kingisepp Sector of the Luga Operational Group. On August 6 the 90th formed the 387th (later 90th) Mortar Battalion, which would be disbanded on October 19, 1942.

The Kingisepp Sector, under command of Maj. Gen. V. V. Semashko, consisted of the 90th and 191st Rifle Divisions, two Opolcheniye divisions, and several other assets. On July 23 Hitler had reiterated his goal of taking Leningrad before marching on Moscow. Beginning on August 8, the Northern Group of Army Group North was to attack from the Poreche and Sabsk bridgeheads over the Luga, through Kingisepp toward Leningrad. On August 11, after three days of heavy fighting which cost the attackers 1,600 casualties, the XXXXI Motorized Corps and XXXVIII Army Corps were able to penetrate the defenses of 90th Rifle and 2nd Opolcheniye Divisions along the Luga at Kingisepp, Ivanovskoe, and Bolshoi Sabsk. The 8th Panzer Division was now committed, which cut the Kingisepp–Krasnogvardeisk rail line the next day. Kingisepp itself fell on August 16 and most of the defenders fell back to the Krasnogvardeisk Fortified Region. Colonel Plenkin had left the division on August 10 and was eventually replaced on August 25 by Col. Ivan Fyodorovich Abramov.

Siege of Leningrad

The fall of Krasnogvardeisk cut the communications of the Luga Operational Group with Leningrad. Luga was abandoned on August 20 and the Group, including the 90th, had to cut its way out of the encirclement to the north and east in small groups, hounded all the way by 8th Panzer, 4th SS Division Polizei, 96th, and 269th Infantry Divisions. German estimates showed losses of 30,000 personnel, 120 tanks, and 400 guns.

On August 31 the division was assigned to 55th Army in Leningrad Front. Colonel Abramov was replaced for a single day on September 10 by Col. Aleksei Andreevich Daryin, then on September 12 by Col. Aleksandr Ignatevich Korolyov. On September 8 the 20th Motorized Division reached Shlisselburg on Lake Ladoga and completed the encirclement of the city. 55th Army was now defending the Slutsk–Kolpino Fortified District from Pustoshka to the Neva with the 90th, 70th, 168th, and 4th Leningrad Opolchenie Divisions deployed on the expected German axis of attack. Stalin, reacting with anger to the completion of the encirclement, appointed Army Gen. G. K. Zhukov to command of Leningrad Front on September 9. On September 12 the 168th brought the advance of XXVIII Corps on Slutsk and Fedorovskoye to a halt after only minimal gains. Through most of the rest of the month 18th Army focused on driving north to the coast of the Baltic Sea west of Leningrad which would put its forces in its southern outskirts.

Mga Offensive

In April the 90th was moved to 2nd Shock, but a month later was directly under Front command, and in June returned to the 67th. The Army had the 30th Guards Rifle Corps plus six separate divisions under command. On May 28 Colonel Proskurin was replaced by Col. Nikolai Georgievich Lyashchenko. Proskurin became chief of staff of 46th Rifle Division but would be mortally wounded on February 1, 1944. Lyashchenko had previously led the 106th Rifle Division and the 73rd Naval Rifle Brigade, and would be promoted to major general on June 3, 1944. He would remain in command into peacetime.

After the German offensive at Kursk had been fought to a standstill the STAVKA ordered Leningrad (now under command of Col. Gen. L. A. Govorov) and Volkhov Fronts to mount an offensive which would defeat German 18th Army and prevent any possibility of restoring the Leningrad blockade. This would additionally tie down German reserves to keep them from reinforcing other sectors. The mission, per the Leningrad war diary:

Monday, 12 July. Our artillery has been concentrating along the Siniavino axis since 1 July. Today it began the planned destruction of enemy engineer works and the suppression of his artillery and mortar batteries. It is as if it were an overture to the forthcoming operation whose main mission is to spoil possible enemy attempts to restore the complete blockade of Leningrad.

The two Fronts were to attack the Mga salient from three sides with the 55th, 67th, and 8th Armies. 67th Army was responsible for the center section between the Neva and Sinyavino. If successful the XXVI Army Corps would be destroyed and both Mga and Sinyavino would be taken.

Maj. Gen. M. P. Dukhanov deployed his 67th Army in the area of Gorodok No. 2 with 30th Guards Corps as his main shock group. With armor support it was to take Arbuzovo before advancing on Mga from the north. He further deployed four divisions to the east with the 90th on the west (right) flank to attack in the direction of Sinyavino and Gontovaya Lipka to tie down the German Sinyavino grouping. Altogether XXVI Corps' 35,000 men faced a Red Army force of over 75,000 plus 120 tanks. If 67th Army succeeded the 55th would launch a supporting attack. Meanwhile, 8th Army would strike toward Mga from the east. The offensive began early on July 22 following a 150-minute artillery preparation. The 63rd Guards Rifle Division soon achieved its first day objectives, but XXVI Corps quickly reinforced its entire Sinyavino front and the battle became what one guardsman called "an offensive on our bellies." The bloody fighting continued until August 22 and ended with Sinyavino still in German control. In early September the 90th went back to the Leningrad Front reserves. In October it returned to 2nd Shock, where it was assigned to 43rd Rifle Corps in November.

Leningrad-Novgorod Offensive

43rd Corps was under command of Maj. Gen. A. I. Andreev, and also contained the 48th and 98th Rifle Divisions. 2nd Shock Army was led by Lt. Gen. I. I. Fedyuninsky. His first task was to transfer his Army into the Oranienbaum bridgehead, making use of the Baltic Fleet to move it across the ice roads over the Gulf of Finland. The process began on November 5 and continued until January 21, 1944, after the offensive had already begun.

Postwar

At the time of the German surrender the division carried the full title of 90th Rifle, Ropsha, Order of the Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Division. (Russian: 90-я стрелковая Ропшинская Краснознамённая ордена Суворова дивизия.)

According to STAVKA Order No. 11095 of May 29, 1945, part 2, the 90th and the remainder of 108th Corps are listed as being part of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany.

References

External links

• Konstantin Pavlovich Pyadyshev
• Platon Vasilevich Chernyaev
• Kuzma Nikitovich Galitskii
• Vladimir Ivanovich Shcherbakov
• Pantelemon Aleksandrovich Zaitsev
• Aleksandr Ignatevich Korolyov
• Nikolai Georgievich Lyashchenko
• Vasilii Lavrentevich Alekseenko