Belorussian Military District

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The Byelorussian Military District (alternative spelling Belorussian) was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces. Originally, the Western Military District, which was formed in April 1924 on the basis of the Russian Civil War era Western Front, was redesignated the Belorussian Military District, with its staff in Smolensk, in October 1926. It originally covered the territory of the Byelorussian SSR and parts of the Western area of the RSFSR (included Smolensk and Bryansk areas and parts of Kaluga area).

After the Soviet/German invasion of Poland in September 1939, it took in most of the former Polish area and redesignated the Belorussian Special Military District. In July 1940 it was redesignated the Western Special Military District. When the German invasion, Operation Barbarossa, began on June 22, 1941 the District was redesignated the Western Front.

The District was reformed in October 1943 from the staff of the Moscow Zone of Defense (at Smolensk, which moved to Minsk in August, 1944). From December, 1944 till July, 1945 the District was designated Byelorussian-Lithuanian (covering the territory of Belarus and Lithuania), and from July, 9, till January, 26, 1946 it was divided in two districts - Minsk District (from the staff of the Third Army), and Baranovichi District (from the staff of 3rd Belorussian Front with its headquarters staff at Bobruisk).

The district covered the territory of the Byelorussian SSR and was subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Western Strategic Direction. From the beginning of the 1950s three armies were subordinated to the district: 28th Army , 5th Guards Tank Army and 7th Tank Army - numbering 9 tank and 2 motor-rifle divisions, including training formations. On the dissolution of the Soviet Union the 28th Army, headquartered at Grodno, included the 6th Guards Tank Division (Grodno), 28th Tank Division (Slonim), 50th Guards Motor Rifle Division (Brest), and the 76th Tank Division (possibly a Category 'V'[1] cadre formation), also at Brest. The 120th 'Rogachev' Guards Motorised Rifle Division, subordinated directly to district control, was the district's most prestigious division. Aviation support was provided by 26th Air Army, and air defence by the 2nd Air Defense (PVO) Army which included 11th and 28th PVO Corps.

The forces of the district became the basis of the Armed Forces of Belarus after the district was disbanded in May 1992 after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

[edit] Commanders 1945-91

  • Marshal of the Soviet Union S K Timoshenko (до 03 1946 и 03 1949-04 1960),
  • General Colonel S G Trofimenko (04 1946-03 1949)(former commander 7th Army)
  • General Colonel V.I. Komarov (041960-071961)
  • Army General V A Penkovskiy (071961-071964)
  • General Colonel S S Маряхин (071964-091967)
  • Colonel General I.M. Tretyak (Третьяк) (09 1967-06 1976)
  • генерал-полковник ММ Зайцев (06 1976-11 1980)
  • Army General ЕФ Ивановский (12 1980-02 1985)
  • генерал-полковник В М Шураев(02 1985-01 1989)
  • генерал-полковник А И Костенко(с01 1989)

[edit] Sources

  1. ^ Feskov et al 2004
  • Feskov et al, "The Soviet Army in the Period of the Cold War, 1945-89"
  • А. Г. Ленский, Сухопутные силы РККА в предвоенные годы. Справочник. — Санкт-Петербург Б&К, 2000