31st Army (Soviet Union)

31st Army (1941-1945)
Active	15 July 1941 - September 1945
Disbanded	September 1945
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army
Size	Army
Part of	Moscow Military District; Reserve Front; Western Front; Kalinin Front; 3rd Belorussian Front; 1st Ukrainian Front
Engagements	Battle of Moscow; Rzhev-Vyazma Strategic Offensive; Rzhev-Sychevka Strategic Offensive; Smolensk Strategic Offensive; Vitebsk Offensive; Operation Bagration; Gumbinnen Operation; East Prussian Offensive; Prague Operation
Commanders
Notable; commanders	See List

The 31st Army was a field army of the Red Army during the Second World War.

Formation[]

The army was formed on 15 July 1941 in the Moscow Military District. The army was ordered to create a line of defense along the line of Ostashkov - Selizharovo - Rzhev. The army was stationed between the 27th Army to the north and the 49th Army to the south.

The army was formed with the following units:

244th Rifle Division

246th Rifle Division

247th Rifle Division

249th Rifle Division

and by 1 August was assigned to the Reserve Front and had added the following units:^[1]

119th Rifle Division

110th Tank Division

43rd Corps Artillery Regiment

766th Antitank Artillery Regiment

537th Miner-Sapper Battalion

The army was assigned to the Reserve Front on 30 July 1941 and its defensive sector altered to the line Ostashkov - Dace? (Ельцы) - Tishina River. The fighting reached the army on 2 October 1941. At that time the army was composed of:^[2]

247th Rifle Division

296th Machine-Gun Artillery Battalion

297th Machine-Gun Artillery Battalion

43rd Corps Artillery Regiment

336th Corps Artillery Regiment

766th Antitank Artillery Regiment

873rd Antitank Artillery Regiment

199th Naval Artillery Battalion

282nd Naval Gun Battery

537th Miner-Sapper Battalion

Combat operations[]

1941[]

The army engaged the Germans on 2 October 1941 when the Operation Typhoon kicked off towards Rzhev. On 6 October the army formed a task force under the command of Major General Polenov and assisted by a task force from 19th Army under the command of Lieutenant General I. Boldin whose mission was to break the enemy advance on Volokolamsk and Rzhev. On 7 October the first snow fell turning the roads into mud and forcing a halt to the 3rd Panzer Group's advance. The snow and allowed the army to setup defensive positions along the Zhuralyovo − Large Yakovtsevo − Ivashkova and create a corridor for retreating Soviet troops. This began the Kalinin Defensive phase of the Moscow Strategic Defensive operations.

On 10 October the 110th Tank Division was detached and ordered to Rzhev.

On 19 October the army was reduced to:

119th Rifle Division

183rd Rifle Division

46th Cavalry Division

54th Cavalry Division

8th Tank Brigade and

Motorized Rifle Brigade of the Kalinin Front

From 19 to 22 October the army fought against German forces which had broken through the around the city of Mednoye and received the 113th and 252nd Rifle Divisions. On 22 October the army, in conjunction with the 29th and 30th Armies to liberate the city of [[Kalinin, Russia |Kalinin]]. While unable to retake the city the attack was able to draw off a number of German forces from the attack on Moscow.

On 5 December as part of the Moscow Strategic Offensive the Kalinin Front began the Kalinin Offensive. Encountering stubborn resistance and repeated counterattacks the 29th and 31st Army had by 15 December broken the flanks of the forces defending Kalinin and on 16 December 31st Army liberated the city.

On 7 January 1942 troops of the 39th, 29th, 31st and 30th Armies were stopped on prepared defensive lines north of Rhzev near Lotoshino.

1942[]

From 8 January to 20 April the army participated in the Rzhev-Vyazma Strategic Offensive. From 20 April the army moved into defensive positions east of Zubtsov, Russia.

On 23 July the army was assigned to the Western Front and took part in the Rzhev-Sychevka offensive from 30 July to 23 August, liberating the city of Zubstov on the 23rd.

From 25 November to 20 December 1942 the army participated in Operation Mars.

1943[]

On 20 March 1943 the army crossed the Dnieper River despite the complications of the spring thaw breaking up the ice on the river. The army attempted to go on the offensive but was unable to break through the German defenses and by the end of the month it was decided to discontinue the general offensive and go over on to the defense.

Composition as of 1 August 1943:^[3]

36th Rifle Corps

45th Rifle Corps

71st Rifle Corps (Headquarters only)

82nd Rifle Division

133rd Rifle Division

251st Rifle Division

392nd Gun Artillery Regiment

542nd Gun Artillery Regiment

644th Gun Artillery Regiment

646th Gun Artillery Regiment

529th Tank Destroyer Regiment

873rd Tank Destroyer Regiment

549th Mortar Regiment

341st Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1269th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1478th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

2nd Guard Motorcycle Regiment

72nd Engineer Battalion

291st Engineer Battalion

On 7 August the army went over on the offensive as part of Operation Suvorov as part of the Smolensk Strategic Offensive. The army made only limited penetrations of the German lines and beating of heavy German counterattacks the attack was suspended on 11 August. After a regrouping of forces the attack resumed on 16 August but the forces were unable to advance even a mile and the attack was again suspended on 20 August.

The attack resumed on 30 August with little progress made. That evening the German forces begin to withdraw their forces. The pursuit by Soviet forces began on 31 August with the crossing of Vopets River. After a week of retreat the Germans managed to establish a defensive line near Yartsevo and on 7 September took up defensive positions.

On 15 September they resumed the attack, crossed the Vop River and in conjunction with the 5th and 68th Armies liberated Smolensk on 25 September.

1944[]

In February - March the army participated in operations to liberate Brest.

At the opening of Operation Bagration the army consisted of:^[4]

36th Rifle Corps

71st Rifle Corps

192nd Rifle Division

113th Rifle Corps

140th Gun Artillery Brigade

392nd Corps Gun Artillery Regiment

570th Corps Gun Artillery Regiment

83rd Guards Howitzer Artillery Regiment

43rd Antitank Artillery Brigade

529th Tank Destroyer Regiment

549th Mortar Regiment

74th Guards Mortar Regiment

2nd Separate Artillery Observation Balloon Battalion

66th Antiaircraft Artillery Division

1981st Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1985th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1989th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1993rd Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1275th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1478th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

1481st Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment

525th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion

213th Tank Brigade

926th SU Regiment

927th SU Regiment

959th SU Regiment

1445th SU Regiment

52nd Armored Train Battalion

90th Pontoon-Bridge Battalion (8th Pontoon-Bridge Brigade)

14th Flamethrower Battalion

15th Flamethrower Battalion

Assigned to the 3rd Belorussian Front the army Operation Bagration participated in the elimination of German forces in the Minsk Offensive encirclement. In addition to the 31st Army the 2nd Belorussian Front's 33rd, 49th and 50th Armies were given the task of containing the Germans within the encirclement and destroying German forces in the surrounding area.

The elimination of the German forces escaping from the city took place in three phases:

5–7 July - destruction an suppression of organized attempts to break out. After the surrender of the city the German forces broke up into several disorganized group and attempted to get out of the encirclement.
8–9 July - destruction of groups which had taken refuge in the forests south-east of Minsk.
10–13 July - Soviet troops combed the woods, catching small groups of the enemy.

By the end of the summer of 1944 the forces of 3rd Belorussian Front and 31st Army had reached the approaches to the border of East Prussia.