The 15th Army was a

field army A field army (or numbered army or simply army) is a military formation in many armed forces, composed of two or more corps and may be subordinate to an army group. Likewise, air armies are equivalent formation within some air forces, and with ...

of the Soviet

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 ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The 15th Army, as part of the 8th Army, took part in the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

from February 12 to March 13. Reformed at

Birobidzhan Birobidzhan ( rus, Биробиджа́н, p=bʲɪrəbʲɪˈdʐan; yi, ביראָבידזשאַן, ''Birobidzhan'') is a town and the administrative center of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, Russia, located on the Trans-Siberian Railway, near th ...

, Soviet Union, from the 2nd Red Banner Army in June 1940. It formed in July 1940 as part of the

Far Eastern Front The Far Eastern Front (Russian: Дальневосточный фронт) was a front — a level of military formation that is equivalent to army group — of the Red Army during the Second World War. Early war service Тhe Far Eastern Front was ...

. Until August 1945 the army defended the Far Eastern borders of the USSR. On August 5 it was incorporated into the newly created 2nd Far Eastern Front. On August 9, during the

Soviet–Japanese War The Soviet–Japanese War (russian: Советско-японская война; ja, ソ連対日参戦, soren tai nichi sansen, Soviet Union entry into war against Japan), known in Mongolia as the Liberation War of 1945 (), was a military ...

, the 15th Army, consisting of shock troops, participated in the

Sungari The Songhua or Sunghwa River (also Haixi or Xingal, russian: Сунгари ''Sungari'') is one of the primary rivers of China, and the longest tributary of the Amur. It flows about from the Changbai Mountains on the China–North Korea bord ...

operation. Its advance units entered

Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ...

on August 20. Through the end of August the 15th Army destroyed the scattered pieces of the

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

Kwantung Army ''Kantō-gun'' , image = Kwantung Army Headquarters.JPG , image_size = 300px , caption = Kwantung Army headquarters in Hsinking, Manchukuo , dates = April ...

. Conducted border operations through mid-1945. 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 ...

and the crossing of the

Amur River The Amur (russian: река́ Аму́р, ), or Heilong Jiang (, "Black Dragon River", ), is the world's List of longest rivers, tenth longest river, forming the border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China, Northeastern China (Inne ...

in August 1945. Composition April 1943 * 34th Rifle Division * 39th Rifle Division *Novoye Fortified Area * 203rd Tank Brigade Composition August 1945 *34th Rifle Division * 361st Rifle Division * 388th Rifle Division * 171st Tank Brigade In October 1953, by the order of the

Minister of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

of the USSR dated 23 April 1953, the staff of the

Far East Military District The Far Eastern Military District (russian: Дальневосточный военный округ; Dalʹnevostochnyĭ voennyĭ okrug) was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific ...

, the former 2nd Far-Eastern Front, was reorganised as the staff of the 15th Army, with its headquarters at

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk ( rus, Ю́жно-Сахали́нск, a=Ru-Южно-Сахалинск.ogg, p=ˈjuʐnə səxɐˈlʲinsk, literally "South Sakhalin City") is a city on Sakhalin island, and the administrative center of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. I ...

. In May 1957, rifle divisions were reformed into motor rifle divisions. On 17 May 1957, the 56th Rifle Division became the 56th Motor Rifle Division (in this case the 357th Rifle Regiment was renamed as the 390th Rifle Regiment);Michael Holm
33rd Red Banner Motorised Rifle Division
accessed February 2015. The 41st Rifle Red Banner Division was renamed the 41st Motor-Rifle Red Banner Division. The 79th Rifle Sakhalin Division was renamed the 79th Motor-Rifle Sakhalin Division. All three newly renamed divisions formed part of the 15th Army. On 1 April 1958 the 41st Red Banner Motor Rifle Division was disbanded. In 1960 the army headquarters was moved to

Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( rus, Хабaровск, a=Хабаровск.ogg, r=Habárovsk, p=xɐˈbarəfsk) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China ...

on the mainland and assigned a new division, the 129th Motor Rifle Division at

. After briefly being renamed the 18th Army in 1967-69 it was renamed back to the 15th Army and assigned several new divisions, the 73rd Motor Rifle Division arriving from the

North Caucasus Military District The North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Armed Forces, which became in 2010 the Southern Military District and lately also included the Black Sea Fleet and Caspian Flotilla. It comprised the Republic of Adygeya, ...

in mid 1968, two fortified areas being assigned (the 2nd and 17th), the 270th Motor Rifle Division being formed in 1970, and the 81st Guards and 135th Motor Rifle Divisions being transferred from the disbanding 45th Army Corps in November 1972. In October 1993 the 15th Army was renamed the 43rd Army Corps.

Commanders

Mikhail Kovalyov Mikhail Prokofievich Kovalyov (russian: Михаил Прокофьевич Ковалёв; – 31 August 1967) was a Soviet military officer. Mikhail Kovalyov was born to family of a peasants in stanitsa Bryukhovetskaya, Kuban Oblast. In 191 ...

(12.02.1940 — 25.02.1940) *

Vladimir Kurdyumov Vladimir Nikolayevich Kurdyumov (russian: Владимир Николаевич Курдюмов 1 October 1895, Ilmen14 February 1970) was a Soviet Lieutenant General. Kurdyumov served in the Red Army since 1918 in World War I and the Russian Civ ...

(25.02.1940 — 28.03.1940) * Leonty Cheremisov (07.1940 - 11.1941) * Michael Savushkin (11.1941 - 10.1942) * Stepan Mamonov (10.1942 - 08.1945) *

Nikolay Krylov Nikolay Krylov may refer to: *Nikolay Krylov (marshal) (1903–1972), Soviet marshal *Nikolay Krylov (mathematician, born 1879) (1879–1955), Russian mathematician *Nikolay Krylov (mathematician, born 1941) (born 1941), Russian mathematician *Niko ...

(04.1953 - 09.1953) *

Semyon Kozak Semyon Antonovich Kozak (russian: Семён Антонович Козак; – 24 December 1953) was a Ukrainian Soviet Army lieutenant general who was twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for his command of a division during World ...

(09.1953 - 12.1953) * Nikolai Trufanov (01.1954 - 01.1956)

References

External links

*Leo Niehorster
- Order of battle 22 June 1941
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2013 015 Military units and formations established in 1940 Military units and formations of the Soviet Union in the Winter War