415th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)
| 415th Rifle Division (September 8, 1941 - May 29, 1945) | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1941–1945 |
| Country |
 Soviet Union
|
| Branch |
 Red Army
|
| Type | Division |
| Role | Infantry |
| Engagements |
Battle of Moscow Battles of Rzhev Battle of Smolensk (1943) Operation Bagration Vistula-Oder Offensive Battle of Berlin |
| Decorations |
 Order of Suvorov 2nd class |
| Battle honours | Mozyr |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Col. P.I. Moshchalkov |
The 415th Rifle Division was formed as a standard Red Army rifle division in the late summer of 1941 in the Far Eastern Front. It was considered to be a "sister" division to the 413th, and was one of the divisions of Siberians sent west to help defend Moscow during the winter of 1941-42. It spent much of the next year in the same general area, west of the capital, taking part in the mostly futile battles against the German-held salient at Rzhev. On January 14, 1944, the division shared credit with the 55th Rifle Division for the liberation of the city of Mozyr and was given its name as an honorific. The 415th had a distinguished career as a combat unit, ending its combat path near Berlin.
The 415th Rifle Division began forming on Sept. 8, 1941, at Vladivostok, in 25th Army on the Pacific coast. It appears to have begun forming as the "Voroshilov" Rifle Division before being assigned a divisional number. Its order of battle was as follows:
The division was considered to be ready for combat by the end of October, and shipped out to the west to join 49th Army in Western Front in mid-November. It was one of six divisions transferred from Far Eastern Front to the fighting front from September to November. Contrary to the German understanding at the time, there were no wholesale transfers from the far east to the Moscow front.
In December, as the Soviet winter counteroffensive was developing, the 415th was transferred to 43rd Army, where it would remain until July, 1942. While the offensive served to eliminate the immediate threat to Moscow, the cost to the Red Army was high. By January, the character of the division as a Siberian unit had changed. Due to the influx of casualty replacements the division was noted in this month as being 70% Georgian.
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