Since the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, some elite units of the Russian army have successively participated in the war, and the author is more interested in the performance of the only tank group of the Russian army - the 1st Guards Tank Army.
Mention this unit, it can be said that the battle achievements are outstanding. The predecessor of the Army Group was the 1st Tank Army, which was formed on January 4, 1943. In the Battle of Proskurov-Chernov in March 1944, the corps and units of the Army Group advanced 250 kilometers in 15 days and nights, dividing Army Group South in coordination with the 4th Tank Army, cutting off the retreat of its main force into western Ukraine. Due to the outstanding combat tasks and heroism of all personnel, as well as the spirit of perseverance and bravery, it was renamed the 1st Guards Tank Army on April 25, 1944. The 6th Tank Army and the Mechanized 3rd Army under its jurisdiction were changed to the 11th Guards Tank Army and the 8th Guards Mechanized Army as early as the Battle of Kursk.
Throughout the war, the 1st Guards Tank Army participated in the Battle of Kursk, the Battle of Zhytomyr-Berdychev, the Battle of Proskurov-Chernovitz, the Battle of Lviv-Sandomierz, the Battle of Vistula-Oder, the Battle of East Pomerania and the Battle of Berlin, liberating 54 Soviet cities, 72 Polish cities and 25 German cities, destroying and capturing more than 0.55 million tanks, 491 self-propelled guns, 1161 aircraft, and 1251 armored vehicles. There are 4794 guns of various calibers, 1545 mortars, 5797 machine guns, and 31064 military vehicles.
Combat history of the 1st Guards Tank Army in World War II
During the Cold War, the army group was stationed in Germany. On the eve of the collapse of the Soviet Union, the army group had under its command the 9th Tank Division, the 11th Guards Tank Division and the 20th Guards Motorized Infantry Division, with a total of 687 tanks, 1333 armored combat vehicles, and 424 artillery pieces of various types. The 9th Tank Division was the 9th Tank Army of the Former Assault 3rd Army during World War II, the 11th Guards Tank Division was the original 11th Guards Tank Army, and the 20th Guards Motorized Infantry Division was the 8th Guards Mechanized Army under the jurisdiction of the original Army Group.
After the withdrawal of the Army Group from Germany, the 11th Guards Tank Division was assigned to Belarus, changed to a brigade in 2002, and is now stationed in Slonim, Belarus, under the full name of the 11th Independent Mechanized Brigade of the Guards Red Banner Carpathian-Berlin, which was awarded the Order of Suvorov. The 20th Guards Motorized Infantry Division was transferred to the 8th Guards Army of the North Caucasus Military District in 1993 and participated in two Chechen wars, changed to the 20th Independent Motorized Infantry Brigade of the Guards in 2009, and reinstated as a division in 2021, directly under the Southern Military Region. In 1998, the group army was renamed and abolished.
In January 2017, a ceremony was held in Smolensk to celebrate the 74th anniversary of the founding of the 1st Guards Tank Army
On November 13, 2014, the Russian army based on the units of the 20th Guards Army Group of the Western Military District, including the 2nd Guards Taman Motor Rifle Division, the 27th Guards Kantemirovka (Кантемировская) Tank Division, the 27th Independent Motor Rifle Brigade of the Sevastopol Guards stationed in Moscow, and the 6th Independent Tank Brigade stationed in Nizhny Novgorod, reorganized the 1st Guards Tank Army, which belonged to the Western Military Region and followed the original designation. In the Oginzovo region of Moscow Oblast (Одинцово) Bakovka (Баковка), it was mainly responsible for the defense of Moscow and served as a strategic mobile unit and strategic reserve force of the Western Military District, which was also the role of the army group for a long time during the Great Patriotic War and the Cold War.
In February 2022, the Russian army rebuilt the 47th Guards Tank Division on the basis of the Independent 6th Tank Brigade. Since Russia's special military operations against Ukraine, the actions of the Russian army against the 1st Army of the Strategic Reserve - Guards Tanks have naturally attracted the attention of the world. Today the army has 3 divisions, the 4th Guards Tank Division, the 47th Guards Tank Division, and the 2nd Guards Motorized Infantry Division.
Armband of the 1st Guards Tank Army
As far as strict force history is concerned, only 1 of the units under the jurisdiction of the 1st Guards Tank Army is a real old unit. It is the 1st Guards Red Banner Chertkov Tank Regiment (Unit 58190), named after Marshal Mikhail Katukiv, stationed at Kalininac, which was awarded the Order of Lenin, the Order of Suvorov, the Order of Kutuzov and the Order of Bogdan Khmelnytsky. This should be the only unit in the Russian army to have been awarded two Lenin Medals. The ministry was formerly known as the 4th Tank Brigade, formed in the Stalingrad region on September 8, 1941. From 4 October to 11 October, after seven days of fierce fighting, the brigade destroyed 133 enemy tanks, 49 artillery pieces, 8 aircraft, 15 ammunition vehicles, and 6 mortars at Mzenszynk, destroying 1 infantry regiment. On 11 November, Order No. 337 of the People's Commissar of Defense was given a special commendation, and the brigade was renamed the 1st Guards Tank Brigade, and the brigade commander Katukov was promoted to major general.
Marshal Katukov, the first commander of the 1st Guards Tank Army
During the initial Battle of Kharkov on 24 February, a detachment of the 423rd Regiment of guards motorized infantry of the 4th Guards Tank Division of the Guards Was ambushed by Ukrainian troops. After the siege was frustrated, the army group bypassed the city, first south and then west, and finally turned in the direction of Kiev.
As far as this battle is concerned, the first actual combat appearance of the 1st Guards Tank Army does not seem to be glorious enough, but it is too early to conclude that the 1st Guards Tank Army is only a regular visitor to the annual military parade, and its combat effectiveness is not good. Looking at the history of the tank army, whether it is a large-depth assault or a large-scale attack, it is quite a experience, or let us wait and see the follow-up performance of the group army.
2018 Guards Tank 1st Army Training