The 103rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

, formed three times. It was first formed in 1939. It was converted into a motorized division and fought in the Yelnya Offensive. After being converted back to a rifle division it was destroyed in the

Battle of Vyazma The Battle of Vyazma (November 3, 1812), occurred at the beginning of Napoleon's retreat from Moscow. In this encounter a Russian force commanded by General Miloradovich inflicted heavy losses on the rear guard of the Grande Armee. Although ...

. The division reformed in early 1942 but was destroyed during the

Second Battle of Kharkov The Second Battle of Kharkov or Operation Fredericus was an Axis counter-offensive in the region around Kharkov against the Red Army Izium bridgehead offensive conducted 12–28 May 1942, on the Eastern Front during World War II. Its objectiv ...

. It was reformed a third time in the Far East in summer 1942 and participated in the

Soviet invasion of Manchuria The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian strategic offensive operation (russian: Манчжурская стратегическая наступательная операция, Manchzhurskaya Strategicheskaya Nastu ...

History

First Formation

The division was formed at Voroshilovsk in August and September 1939 from the 35th Rifle Regiment of the 74th Rifle Division. The division was converted to a motorized division in March 1941, part of the 26th Mechanized Corps. On 8 July the division became the 103rd Tank Division as a result of the reorganization of Red Army mechanized forces. During July and August, it fought in the Yelnya Offensive as part of the corps, now subordinated to the 24th Army. On 28 August, it became a rifle division again. In October 1941, it was surrounded and destroyed in the

Spas-Demensky District Spas-Demensky District (russian: Спас-Де́менский райо́н) is an administrativeCharter of Kaluga Oblast, Article 4 and municipalLaw #354-OZ district (raion), one of the twenty-four in Kaluga Oblast, Russia. It is located in ...

, trapped in the Vyazma Pocket. However, the division was only disbanded on 27 December, despite coming out of the encirclement with only thirty men.

Second Formation

The division was reformed on 9 January 1942 from the 463rd Rifle Division (originally formed 22 December 1941) at

Samarkand fa, سمرقند , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from the top:Registan square, Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, view inside Shah-i-Zinda, ...

. The 103rd was composed of the 393rd, 583rd and 688th Rifle Regiments. In early March, the division was relocated to

Starobilsk Starobilsk ( uk, Старобільськ, russian: Старобельск) is a city in Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Starobilsk Raion. The modern settlement was founded in 1686, and it was granted city stat ...

with the 28th Army and fought in the

during May 1942. Due to supply shortages the division was not provided with food from 28 April to 2 May. On 19 May, it became part of 6th Army but was surrounded and destroyed at Izyum between 25 and 27 May. The division was officially disbanded on 30 June 1942.

Third Formation

The division was reformed a third time on 21 July 1942 in the

Transbaikal Military District The Transbaikal Military District (russian: Забайкальский военный округ) was a military district of first the Soviet Armed Forces and then the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed on May 17, 1935 and included the ...

and served there for the duration of the war. It was with the 2nd Rifle Corps in Transbaikal Front in January 1945. During August and September 1945, it fought in the

. For its actions, the division was awarded the honorific "Khingan". It was disbanded in 1946 in the Transbaikal-Amur Military District.Feskov et al 2013, p. 565

References

* *Poirer and Connor, Red Army Order of Battle {{Soviet Union divisions before 1945 Infantry divisions of the Soviet Union in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 Military units and formations established in 1939