49th Army (Soviet Union)
| 49th Army | |
|---|---|
_Sleeve_patch.jpg)
49th Army sleeve patch, 2010s
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| Active | 6 August 1941 – 1945 1992–1994 2010–present |
| Country | Soviet Union/Russian Federation |
| Branch | Soviet Army/Russian Ground Forces |
| Size | Varied |
| Garrison/HQ | Stavropol (current) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Major General Sergey Sevryukov |
| Notable commanders |
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The 49th Army (Russian: 49-я армия) is a combined arms army of the Russian Ground Forces, formed in 2010 and headquartered in Stavropol.
Part of the Southern Military District, the army traces its heritage back to the Soviet Red Army's 49th Army, formed in 1941 after the German invasion of the Soviet Union in World War II. The 49th Army served through the entire war and was disbanded postwar in the summer of 1945.
On 6 August 1941, a Stavka directive ordered the formation of the 49th Army. One day later the army was formed as part of the Reserve Front, based on the 35th Rifle Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General Ivan Zakharkin. The army initially comprised 194th Mountain Rifle Division, 220th, 248th, 298th Rifle Divisions, the 4th People's Militia Division, 396th Corps Artillery Regiment, and other units. By 17 August 1941 the army was deployed in the rear of the Western Front, concentrated in the Dorogobuzh area with the task of manning the reserve defensive line of the front. On 1 October, the army was transferred to the direct subordination of Stavka and renamed the "49th Reserve Army," but was moved back to the Reserve Front on 7 October.
On 12 October 1941, the 49th Army was placed on the Mozhaisk defense line in the Kaluga area, after giving up its sector to the 32nd Army. The Mozhaisk line was credited for slowing down the German approach toward Moscow. A day later, the army was transferred to the Western Front and saw its first combat in the Mozhaisk-Malyaroslavets Defensive Operation, which lasted until 30 October. In fierce fighting from 14 to 20 November, the 49th Army was able to weaken the advancing German XIII Army Corps, finally stopping it in early December on the line west of Serpukhov and Sukhodol, 20 kilometers southeast of Aleksin. During the Soviet counteroffensive at Moscow, the army fought in the Tula Offensive between 6 and 16 December, and the Kaluga Offensive between 17 December and 5 January 1942.
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