The 37th Army was an army of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The army was formed twice during the war. The army was part of the Southern Group of Forces in Romania and Bulgaria.

First formation

The 37th Army first formed on 10 August 1941 in the Southwestern Front with the command group from the

Kiev Fortified Region The Kiev Fortified Region (Russian abbreviation КиУР, УР-1, 1-й укреплённый район, 1-й укрепрайон) is a fortified district in the Kyiv area, a complex of defensive structures, consisting of permanent and field fo ...

and other reserves in front reserves. Upon formation, the army took up defensive positions to the west of

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

and on the left bank of the Dnieper River. During the defense of Kiev the army suffered severe losses against superior German forces. The army was surrounded in the city of Kiev and was ordered to break out on 19 September. Individual units of the army were able to break out and join forces with the front. Many of the other units of the army were destroyed. The army was disbanded on 25 September 1941.

Composition

The army had the following units assigned when formed: : 147th Rifle Division : 171st Rifle Division : 175th Rifle Division :

206th Rifle Division The 206th Rifle Division was twice formed as an infantry division of the Red Army, first as part of the prewar buildup of forces. Its first formation in March 1941 was based on the last prewar ''shtat'' (table of organization and equipment) for rif ...

284th Rifle Division The 284th Rifle Division began service as a standard Red Army rifle division shortly after the German invasion. Moved to the front soon after, it helped defend the Soviet lines west of the Ukrainian capital for more than a month, but was then destr ...

295th Rifle Division The 295th Rifle Division () was an infantry division of the Soviet Union's Red Army and later the Soviet Army, formed twice. The 295th's first formation was formed in the summer of 1941 and destroyed within months during the Battle of Kiev. Refo ...

:Artillery and other units.

Second Formation

The army was reformed on 15 November 1941 in the Southern Front for a counterattack in the Rostov area against the German

1st Panzer Army The 1st Panzer Army (german: 1. Panzerarmee) was a German tank army that was a large armoured formation of the Wehrmacht during World War II. When originally formed on 1 March 1940, the predecessor of the 1st Panzer Army was named Panzer Group ...

. These actions facilitated the

9th 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...

and 56th Armies liberation of

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...

. The army took part in the Barvenkovo-Lozovaya Offensive from 18–31 January 1942 with the goal of destroying the German Army in southern Ukraine. The army conducted defensive operations during the summer and fall of 1942 in reaction to German operations in the Southern Soviet Union. The army was transferred from the Southern Front to the Don Group of the North Caucasian Front (I Formation) in late July and then the Transcaucasian Front in August 1942. As part of the

North Caucasian Strategic Offensive The Battle of the Caucasus is a name given to a series of Axis and Soviet operations in the Caucasus area on the Eastern Front of World War II. On 25 July 1942, German troops captured Rostov-on-Don, Russia, opening the Caucasus region of t ...

in January 1943 the army liberated the towns of

Kislovodsk Kislovodsk (russian: Кислово́дск, lit. ''sour waters''; ; krc, Ачысуу) is a spa city in Stavropol Krai, Russia, in the North Caucasus region of Russia which is located between the Black and Caspian Seas. Population: History I ...

, Pyatigorsk,

Essentuki Yessentuki ( rus, Ессентуки́, p=jɪsɪntʊˈkʲiˑ) is a city in Stavropol Krai, Russia, located in the shadow of Mount Elbrus at the base of the Caucasus Mountains. The city serves as a railway station in the Mineralnye Vody—Kislov ...

and Cherkessk. The army was transferred to the North Caucasian Front(II Formation) on 24 January to participate in the

Krasnodar Offensive Krasnodar (; rus, Краснода́р, p=krəsnɐˈdar; ady, Краснодар), formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern ...

. In July the army forces were reassigned to the 9th and 56th Armies and the 37th Army was placed under

STAVKA The ''Stavka'' (Russian and Ukrainian: Ставка) is a name of the high command of the armed forces formerly in the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and currently in Ukraine. In Imperial Russia ''Stavka'' referred to the administrative staff, a ...

control. On 7 September 1943, the army was assigned to the

Steppe Front The Steppe Front (russian: Степной фронт) was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War which existed from July to October 1943. History On 9 July 1943, Stavka designated a new Reserve Front in the Voronezh region, that had ...

. The army took part in the liberation of the Left-bank Ukraine east of

Kremenchug Kremenchuk (; uk, Кременчу́к, Kremenchuk ) is an industrial city in central Ukraine which stands on the banks of the Dnipro river, Dnipro River. The city serves as the Capital city, administrative center of the Kremenchuk Raion (Raio ...

. In late September, it crossed the Dnieper River west of Keleberda and northwest of Mishurin Rog. The army was involved in offensive operations in the

Krivoy Rog Kryvyi Rih ( uk, Криви́й Ріг , lit. "Curved Bend" or "Crooked Horn"), also known as Krivoy Rog (Russian: Кривой Рог) is the largest city in central Ukraine, the 7th most populous city in Ukraine and the 2nd largest by area. Kr ...

area from October to December. Assigned to the

3rd Ukrainian Front The 3rd Ukrainian Front (Russian: Третий Украинский фронт) was a Front of the Red Army during World War II. It was founded on 20 October 1943, on the basis of a Stavka order of October 16, 1943, by renaming the Southwester ...

on 15 January 1944. Participated in the

Odessa Offensive Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern sho ...

in conjunction with the 46th Army. From 8 August, the army participated in the Jassy–Kishinev Offensive and in September the occupation of Bulgaria. By the end of September, its troops reached the area of Kazanlak, Yambol, and Burgas, where the army's combat history ended. The army remained in Bulgaria as a garrison for the rest of the war, and was redesignated the 37th Separate Army on 15 December.

Composition

The army had the following units assigned when formed: :

51st Rifle Division The 51st Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Army, formed twice. Its first formation was formed during the Russian Civil War and fought in the Perekop-Chongar Offensive in 1920. It also fought in the Soviet invasion of Poland, Wi ...

96th Rifle Division The 96th Rifle Division, also designated the 96th Mountain Division, was a division of the Red Army, active from 1923. First formation In December 1923, in the Ukrainian Military District in Vinnytsia the 96th Podolsky Territorial Rifle Divis ...

: 99th Rifle Division :

216th Rifle Division The 216th Rifle Division was a division of the Red Army and Soviet Ground Forces. It was the successor to a motorized division of that same number that was destroyed during the Battle of Uman in August 1941. It fought at Kharkov and in Karelia, C ...

253rd Rifle Division 53 may refer to: * 53 (number) * one of the years 53 BC, AD 53, 1953, 2053 * FiftyThree, an American privately held technology company that specializes in tools for mobile creation and visual thinking * 53rd Regiment Alabama Cavalry * 53rd Regiment ...

Forces assigned on 7 September 1943 upon attachment to the Steppe Front: : 57th Rifle Corps : 82nd Rifle Corps :

53rd Rifle Division The 53rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army that served from the early 1930s to the immediate postwar period following World War II. Interwar period The 53rd was formed in 1931 as a territorial division; Ivan Boldin became it ...

Forces assigned at the end of the war.Merchand, Vol. XXIII pg.50 :

34th Rifle Corps The 34th Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Red Army. It was part of the 19th Army. It took part in the Great Patriotic War. Organization * 129th Rifle Division * 158th Rifle Division * 171st Rifle Division Commanders * Divisional comma ...

:: 259th Rifle Division :: 353rd Rifle Division :: 394th Rifle Division : 66th Rifle Corps :: 195th Rifle Division :: 244th Rifle Division :: 333rd Rifle Division : 82nd Rifle Corps :: 28th Guards Rifle Division :: 92nd Guards Rifle Division :: 188th Rifle Division : 255th Naval Rifle Brigade :

35th Antiaircraft Artillery Division Military units * 35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force * 35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I * 35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 Jul ...

:Artillery, tank and engineer units.

Post-war

The army was stationed in Bulgaria with its headquarters at Sofia as part of the Southern Group of Forces from 10 June 1945. It was redesignated as the 10th Mechanized Army on 10 June 1946. It included four divisions: the 2nd Guards, 4th Guards,

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics 19 is the eighth prime number, and forms a sexy prime with 13, a twin prime with 17, and a cousin prime with 23. It is the third full re ...

, and 21st Mechanized Divisions. The 2nd Guards Mechanized Division at

Craiova Craiova (, also , ), is Romania's 6th Cities in Romania, largest city and capital of Dolj County, and situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximatel ...

was the former 2nd Guards Mechanized Corps, the 4th Guards Mechanized Division at Sofia was the former 4th Guards Mechanized Corps, the 19th Mechanized Division at

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

was the former 244th Rifle Division. The 21st Mechanized Division at Burgas was the former 223rd Rifle Division. The 21st Mechanized was withdrawn to the Soviet Union in July, leaving the army with only three divisions. The army was disbanded on 15 June 1947, along with its 19th Mechanized Division, after signing the peace treaties with Romania and Bulgaria.

Commanders

The army's first formation was commanded by the following officer: *Major General

Andrey Vlasov Andrey Andreyevich Vlasov (russian: Андрéй Андрéевич Влáсов, – August 1, 1946) was a Soviet Red Army general and Nazi collaborator. During World War II, he fought in the Battle of Moscow and later was captured att ...

(July–September 1941) The army's second formation was commanded by the following officers: *Major General (Promoted to Lieutenant General March 1942)

Anton Lopatin Anton Ivanovich Lopatin (russian: Антон Иванович Лопатин) (January 18, 1897 – April 9, 1965) was a Soviet officer during the Second World War, and Hero of the Soviet Union. Lopatin begun his service in the Red Army in 1918, ...

(October 1941 – June 1942) *Major General Pyotr Kozlov (June 1942 – May 1943) *Lieutenant General Konstantin Koroteev (May – July 1943) *Major General

Alexander Filatov Alexander Alekseyevich Filatov (russian: Александр Алексеевич Филатов; born September 5, 1940) is a Russian politician. Filatov graduated from the Kuzbass Polytechnic Institute. He worked as a miner in the city of Poly ...

(July – August 1943) *Major General

Alexander Ryzhov Alexander Ivanovitch Ryzhov () was a Soviet Army General during World War II and Hero of the Soviet Union. Biography He was born on November 23, 1895 in the village of Kuryanikha in Ivanovo Oblast. He studied at Kineshma and worked at a nota ...

(August 1943) *Lieutenant General

Mikhail Sharokhin Mikhail Nikolaevich Sharokhin (russian: Михаил Николаевич Шарохин, November 23, 1898 - September 19, 1974) was a Soviet military commander and Hero of the Soviet Union. Biography He was born in the village of Ivanovskoje ...

(August 1943 – October 1944) *Colonel General Sergey Biryuzov (October 1944 – May 1946) The 10th Mechanized Army was commanded by the following officers. * Lieutenant General

Ivan Korchagin Ivan Petrovich Korchagin (russian: Иван Петрович Корчагин; – 24 July 1951) was a Soviet Army lieutenant general and a Hero of the Soviet Union. Korchagin volunteered for the Imperial Russian Army during World War I, during ...

(12 June – 5 August 1946) * Colonel General Sergey Biryuzov (August 1946 – 15 June 1947)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:037 Field armies of the Soviet Union Military units and formations established in 1941 1941 establishments in the Soviet Union Wikipedia articles needing cleanup after translation from Russian