91st Rifle Division
| 91st Rifle Division | |
|---|---|
| Active |
First Formation: 1939–1941 |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Branch |
Red Army (to 1946) Soviet Army (after 1946) |
| Engagements |
World War II Second Formation: |
| Decorations |
 Order of the Red Banner (Second Formation) |
| Battle honours | Melitopol (Second Formation) |
First Formation: 1939–1941
World War II
First Formation:
Second Formation:
The 91st Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army and Soviet Army, formed twice. The division was first formed in 1939, fought in the Winter War, and was destroyed in the Vyazma Pocket during the Battle of Moscow. It was reformed in December 1941 and fought in the Battle of Stalingrad and the Crimean Offensive, earning the honorific "Melitopol" and the Order of the Red Banner. The division was downsized into a brigade postwar but became a division again in 1953. It became a motor rifle division in 1957.
The 91st Rifle Division was formed in Achinsk by 1 December 1939 in the Siberian Military District from elements of the 94th Rifle Division as part of the 52nd Rifle Corps. The division became a motor rifle division on 5 January 1940. The division fought in the closing stages of the Winter War and returned to Achinsk in April 1940, when it became a rifle division again. On 26 June 1941, after the German invasion of the Soviet Union four days earlier, the 91st Rifle Division began loading onto trains. On 29 June it left Achinsk. Between 8 and 10 July the trains arrived in Yelnya and Sychyovka. The division and its corps, which also included the 119th Rifle Division, joined the 24th Army.
The 91st Rifle Division was active with 52nd Rifle Corps (24th Army) in June 1941, and then transferred to 19th Army, Western Front before being destroyed at Vyazma. The Soviet defense, still under construction, was overrun and spearheads of the 2nd and Third Panzer Groups met at Vyazma on 10 October 1941. Four Soviet armies (the 19th, 20th,the 24th, and 32nd) were trapped in a huge pocket just west of the city. It was formally disbanded in December 1941.
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