The 20th Mechanized Corps (

Military Unit Number A Military Unit Number (Russian: Войсковая часть) is a numeric alternate designation for military units in the armed forces and internal troops of post-Soviet states, originally used by those of the Soviet Union The Soviet ...

2802) was a mechanized corps 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 in March 1941, the corps was almost entirely destroyed in the

Battle of Białystok–Minsk The Battle of Białystok–Minsk was a German strategic operation conducted by the Wehrmacht's Army Group Centre under Field Marshal Fedor von Bock during the penetration of the Soviet border region in the opening stage of Operation Barbarossa, ...

and the Battle of Smolensk, in which it defended

Mogilev Mogilev (russian: Могилёв, Mogilyov, ; yi, מאָלעוו, Molev, ) or Mahilyow ( be, Магілёў, Mahilioŭ, ) is a city in eastern Belarus, on the Dnieper River, about from the border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from the bor ...

History

Formation

The 20th Mechanized Corps was formed in March and April 1941 from elements of the 4th Don Cossack Cavalry Division and the Borisov Automobile, Tank, and Cavalry Schools. Corps headquarters was located in

Borisov Borisov or Borisova may refer to: Places * Barysaw, or Borisov, Belarus ** Borisov Arena, a football stadium ** Battle of Borisov, 1812 * Borisov, Volgograd Oblast, Russia * Borišov, a mountain in Slovakia * Borisova, Perm Krai, Russia * Bor ...

. It included the 26th and 38th Tank Divisions, and the 210th Motorized Division. The 26th Tank Division was located at Krasnoye Urochishche, the 38th Tank Division at Novoborisov, and the 210th Motorized Division at

Osipovichi Asipovichy ( be, Асiповiчы; Łacinka: Asipovičy, pl, Osipowicze) or Osipovichi (russian: Осипо́вичи) is a town in Mahilyow Oblast, Belarus, located 136 km southwest of Mahilyow, 3 km south of the Minsk-Homyel express ...

. The corps was commanded by Major General Andrei Nikitin.

Defense of Minsk area

On 22 June, Germany invaded the Soviet Union in

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

. The corps fought in the

. The corps was not yet fully formed and was at cadre strength. Between 22 and 27 June the corps fought in battles in the

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

area, unsuccessfully attempting to stop the German advance towards the city. On 26 June it was ordered to conduct a counterattack with the 4th Airborne Corps at

Slutsk Slutsk ( officially transliterated as Sluck, be, Слуцк; russian: Слуцк; pl, Słuck, lt, Sluckas, Yiddish/Hebrew: סלוצק ''Slutsk'') is a city in Belarus, located on the Sluch River south of Minsk. As of 2022, its population i ...

. The corps attacked with its 93 outdated light tanks (80

T-26 The T-26 tank was a Soviet light tank used during many conflicts of the Interwar period and in World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and was one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s until its light ...

tanks and 13

BT tank The BT tanks (russian: Быстроходный танк/БТ, translit=Bystrokhodnyy tank, lit. "fast moving tank" or "high-speed tank") were a series of Soviet light tanks produced in large numbers between 1932 and 1941. They were lightly arm ...

s) and the 4th Airborne Corps advanced on foot instead of conducting an air assault due to a lack of transport aircraft. Both units were unable to stop the German advance. On 30 June the Svisloch Railroad Bridge, defended by the 4th Airborne Corps, was captured by the 4th Panzer Division, cutting off most of the 20th Mechanized Corps and a 4th Airborne Corps brigade. The corps and other remnants of Soviet units delayed the advance of the XXXXVI Motorized Corps with their resistance.

Defense of Mogilev

By 1 July it was part of the 13th Army. On 7 July the corps included about 12,000 men with 27 guns and no tanks. From 9 to 27 July it fought in and was destroyed in the

pocket. By the end of 15 July the corps was defending Mogilev alongside the

61st Rifle Corps The 61st Rifle Corps ( Russian: 61-й стрелковый корпус '' '') was a Red Army infantry corps during World War II, formed twice. The 61st Rifle Corps was formed firmed in Tula during September 1939. After Operation Barbarossa, it wa ...

and remnants of several divisions. On 21 July deputy corps commander Major General

Nikolai Vedeneyev Nikolai Denisovich Vedeneyev (; 28 March 1897 16 November 1964) was a Soviet Army lieutenant general and a Hero of the Soviet Union. Vedeneyev was drafted into the Imperial Russian Army and fought in World War I as a non-commissioned officer. H ...

took command after Nikitin was wounded and evacuated. At this time the corps defended Mogilev's eastern approaches. By 25 July, the Soviet troops in Mogilev were running out of ammunition, food and fuel. 61st Rifle Corps commander Fyodor Bakunin made the decision to withdraw against orders and called a meeting with Vedeneyev and three of the division commanders on the breakout plan. The 20th Mechanized Corps would lead the breakout towards the general direction of

Roslavl Roslavl (russian: Ро́славль, ) is a town and the administrative center of Roslavlsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia. It is a road and rail junction and a market town. Population: Climate Roslavl has a warm-summer humid continenta ...

. That night, the corps began the breakout. In the morning, the corps ran into the German 78th Infantry Division at the village of Samulki. Supported by vehicles from an attached reconnaissance battalion, the corps fought on foot and attacked the German positions. The attack was stopped by heavy German machine gun fire. Bakunin ordered the destruction of remaining equipment and ordered the survivors to disperse and break out in small groups. Between 27 and 28 July the corps broke out of the pocket with 100 to 200 men left. The ' (list of Soviet units during World War II) does not state that the corps was disbanded, although it lost most of its men during the battles in the Mogilev Pocket. The corps last appears on the

combat composition of the Soviet Army ''Boevoi sostav Sovetskoi armii'' ("Combat composition of the Soviet army") is an official Second World War Soviet Army order of battle published in five parts from 1963 through 1990 by the Voroshilov Academy of the General Staff and Voenizdat. ...

list for 10 July 1941.

Combat composition of the Soviet Army ''Boevoi sostav Sovetskoi armii'' ("Combat composition of the Soviet army") is an official Second World War Soviet Army order of battle published in five parts from 1963 through 1990 by the Voroshilov Academy of the General Staff and Voenizdat. ...

, 10 July 1941, p. 23

References

Sources

* * {{Soviet Union corps Mechanized corps of the Soviet Union Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1941