7th Guards Rifle Division

rdf:langString 7th Guards Rifle Division

rdf:langString 7th Guards Rifle Division

rdf:langString Rezekne

rdf:langString Maj. Gen. Maksim Evseevich Kozyr 10px

rdf:langString Col. Afanasy Gryaznov

rdf:langString Maj. Gen. Efim Vasilevich Bedin 10px

rdf:langString Maj. Gen. Mikhail Emmanulovich Moskalik

rdf:langString Infantry

rdf:langString Division

rdf:langString The 7th Guards Rifle Division was reformed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in September 1941, based on the 1st formation of the 64th Rifle Division and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. It was first assigned to Bryansk Front, then moved to Western Front where it took part in the early stages of the winter counteroffensive northwest of Moscow as part of 16th Army. On December 31 the 1st Guards Rifle Corps was formed for the second time and the 7th Guards was assigned to it as its core formation. It was then sent north to join Northwestern Front and became locked into the dismal fighting around Demyansk until that salient was finally evacuated by the German II Army Corps in February 1943. Through the rest of that year it participated in battles in the Staraya Russa region, mostly under command of 1st Shock Army, until in January 1944 it was transferred to the of 10th Guards Army in the Nevel region. During operations in the Baltic states that summer and autumn the 7th Guards was awarded both a battle honor and the Order of the Red Banner. In March 1945 it joined the Courland Group of Forces of Leningrad Front on the Baltic coast containing the German forces encircled in northwest Latvia. Following the German surrender it was moved to Estonia where it was disbanded in 1946.