332nd Rifle Division (Soviet Union)

332nd Rifle Division (August 20, 1941 – 1946)
Major General T.F. Yegoshin, KIA August 1, 1944
Active	1941–1946
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army
Type	Division
Role	Infantry
Engagements	Battle of Moscow Toropets-Kholm Offensive Battle of Smolensk (1943) Battle of Nevel (1943) Baltic Offensive Riga Offensive Battle of Memel Courland Pocket
Decorations	Order of Suvorov 2nd class
Battle honours	Ivanovo Polotsk
Commanders
Notable commanders	Col. S.A. Knyazkov Maj. Gen. T.F. Yegoshin Col. S.S. Ivanov

The 332nd Rifle Division was formed in August, 1941, as a standard Red Army rifle division, based on a militia division that had started forming about two weeks earlier; as a result it was known throughout the war as a "volunteer" division and carried the name "Ivanovo" after its place of formation. It served in the Battle of Moscow and during the winter counteroffensive was assigned to 4th Shock Army, where it would remain, apart from one brief reassignment, until the beginning of 1945, a remarkably long time under a single army's command. During this offensive it helped carve out the Toropets Salient, where it would remain until late in 1943 when it made a limited breakthrough to the west, with its army, in the area of Nevel. Throughout this period it shared a similar combat path with the 334th Rifle Division. Near the start of the 1944 summer offensive the 332nd was given credit for its role in the liberation of Polotsk and got its name as an honorific. The unit continued to give very creditable service for the duration of the war, distinguishing itself in the fighting through the Baltic states, and completing its combat path there. It continued to serve briefly into the postwar period.

The division began forming as the Ivanovo Militia Division on August 8, 1941, in the city of that name in the Moscow Military District. On August 20 it was re-designated as a regular army unit, but it retained the honorific title "Ivanovo, in the name of M.V. Frunze". Its order of battle was as follows:

Since the militia division was supposed to include both a self-propelled artillery and a tank company, it's possible it inherited some non-standard weaponry. The division included some 2,700 Communist Party members and Komsomols, giving it a good cadre of determined, if not trained, personnel. These men were also noted at the time as being 100% Russian nationals. On August 28 Colonel S.A. Knyazkov was appointed to command the division, a position he would hold until April 8, 1942.

The 332nd was first assigned to 10th Army in the Western Front in December. Later that month it was moved north by rail and assigned to the newly formed 4th Shock Army in Northwestern Front. When 4th Shock attacked in January, 1942, the division was noted as being at full strength for the tables of organization, but attacking in winter with marginal supplies, artillery and armor support soon changed that. The German forces in this sector were in even more dire straits, and the 332nd helped 4th Shock, and its running mate, 3rd Shock Army, drive deep into the left flank of Army Group Center, liberating Toropets and advancing almost to Velikiye Luki before finally running out of steam. 4th Shock would remain in this general area, just north of Velizh, until November, 1943, in Kalinin Front. Had Operation Mars in November, 1942, fared better, the 332nd would likely have taken part in an operation code-named either Jupiter or Neptune to destroy all of Army Group Center east of Smolensk.