170th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)
| 170th Rifle Division (15 Sept. 1939 – 4 Oct. 1941) 170th Rifle Division (31 Jan. 1942 – July, 1945) |
|
|---|---|
| Active | Sept. 1939 – July 1945 |
| Country |
 Soviet Union
|
| Branch |
 Red Army
|
| Type | Division |
| Role | Infantry |
| Engagements |
Battle of Smolensk (1941) Battle of Demyansk Pocket Battle of Kursk Lower Dnieper Offensive Operation Bagration Lublin-Brest Offensive Vistula-Oder Offensive East Prussian Offensive |
| Decorations |
 Order of Suvorov 2nd class (2nd formation) |
| Battle honours | Rechytsa |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Col. A. M. Cheryak Col. S. G. Tziplenkov |
Order of the Red Banner (2nd formation)
The 170th Rifle Division was raised in 1939 as a standard Red Army rifle (infantry) division, as part of the prewar buildup of the Army. During July and August, 1941, it gave very effective service in the battles around Velikiye Luki until it was so severely depleted that it had to be disbanded. A new 170th was formed between December, 1941 and January 1942. From this point the division had a distinguished but relatively uncomplicated combat path, fighting in the central part of the Soviet-German front. It was given credit for the liberation of Rechytsa in late 1943, and ended the war in the conquest of East Prussia.
The division was first organized at Sterlitamak in the Ural Military District in September, 1939, based on a cadre from the 98th Rifle Division, as part of the major pre-World War II mobilization of the Red Army. The division was mostly composed of Bashkir soldiers and was commanded by Kombrig Tikhon Silkin. Division headquarters and most units were based at Sterlitamak. The 422nd Rifle and 512th Howitzer Regiments were at Belebey, and the 717th Rifle Regiment was at Davlekanovo. The 294th Light Artillery Regiment was based at Miass.
On June 22, 1941, its main order of battle was as follows:
As Operation Barbarossa began, the 170th was moving west from the Urals as part of 22nd Army's 62nd Rifle Corps, to take up positions in the vicinity of Polotsk and Vitebsk. The division defended Sebezh on the Latvian border. At the beginning of July, retreating Soviet troops came to Sebezh. On 3 July, German bombers destroyed the town. The 391st and 717th Rifle Regiment moved to the Kuznetsovka railway station, while the 422nd Rifle Regiment stayed in place. For two days, the division attempted to hold back advancing German troops. On 11 July, the division retreated to positions around Zamość station. On 13 July, the division was ordered to attack. The division was initially successful, pushing back German troops to Kuznetsovka station. However, the division was then forced to retreat back to Idritsa due to German superiority in both numbers and firepower. Around this time, Major General Silkin went missing and was presumed killed. Colonel Nikolai Laksin took command of the division.
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Wikipedia