5th Guards Army (Soviet Union)
| 5th Guards Army | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Active | 1943–47 |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Branch | Red Army |
| Type | Field army |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Afanasy Beloborodov |
The 5th Guards Army was a Soviet Guards formation which fought in many critical actions during World War II under the command of General Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov. The 5th Guards Army was formed in spring 1943 from the 66th Army in recognition of that army's actions during the Battle of Stalingrad. The 5th Guards Army fought in the Battle of Kursk, Belgorod-Khar'kov Offensive Operation, Battle of the Dnieper, Uman–Botoșani Offensive, Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive, Vistula–Oder Offensive, Berlin Offensive, and the Prague Offensive. During the Berlin Offensive elements of the army linked up with American troops at Torgau on the Elbe. Postwar, the army was disbanded as part of the Central Group of Forces.
On 5 May 1943, the 66th Army was renamed the 5th Guards Army in accordance with a Stavka directive dated 16 April 1943. It included the 32nd and 33rd Guards Rifle Corps. The 5th Guards Army fought under command of the Steppe, Voronezh, and 2nd and 1st Ukrainian Fronts from 1943 until the end of the war. In 1943, the army fought in the Battle of Kursk at Prokhorovka. The Steppe Front formed the strategic reserve for the battle. On 6 July, the army began moving up from its reserve positions. On 8 July the army was reassigned to the Voronezh Front. On the night of 10 July the army's 33rd Guards Rifle Corps arrived at Prokhorovka. On the night of 11 July the army's 32nd Guards Rifle Corps took up defensive positions on the Psel River at Oboyan, Olkhovatka, Veselyy, and Semyonovka. On the morning of 11 July the advance of the II SS Panzer Corps was checked by the 33rd Guards Rifle Corps' 95th Guards Rifle Division and 9th Guards Airborne Division, operating in conjunction with other units. On 12 July the army's troops in conjunction with the 5th Guards Tank Army fought in the counterattack of the Voronezh Front and the Battle of Prokhorovka. Soldiers of the 9th Guards Airborne Division were carried on the hulls of the tanks during the charge down the slopes in front of Prokhorovka.
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