| 119th Motor Rifle Division (August 19, 1939 – April 17, 1940) 119th Rifle Division (April 17, 1940 – March 17, 1942) 119th Rifle Division (April 21 – December 16, 1942) 119th Rifle Division (April 19, 1943 - 1946) | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1939–1946 |
| Country |  Soviet Union |
| Branch | .svg){kind=small} Red Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | Winter War Operation Barbarossa Operation Typhoon Battle of Moscow Battles of Rzhev Operation Blue Battle of Stalingrad Operation Uranus Battle of Smolensk (1943) Battle of Nevel (1943) Polotsk–Vitebsk Offensive Operation Bagration Baltic Offensive Riga Offensive (1944) Courland Pocket |
| Decorations |  Order of Suvorov (3rd Formation) |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Maj. Gen. Aleksandr Dmitrievich Berezin Col. Ivan Yakovlevich Kulagin Col. Ivan Dmitrievich Panov Maj. Gen. Iosif Ivanovich Khorun Col. Ivan Mikhailovich Toropchin Col. Mikhail Lavrentevich Dudarenko |
The 119th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, formed three times.
It was originally raised at Krasnoyarsk in 1939 as a motor rifle division until the following year when it was reorganized as a standard Red Army rifle division, and served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. It saw very limited service in the Winter War against Finland. Following the German invasion in 1941 the first two formations of the division distinguished themselves on the battlefield, and were raised to the status of Guards Rifle divisions: the 17th Guards following the Battle of Moscow; and the 54th Guards for its successes in Operation Uranus. The division was formed for a third time in early 1943 and served for the duration of the war in the north-central sectors of the front, taking part in the offensive that drove the Nazi forces out of the Baltic States and winning a decoration for the liberation of Riga. The division was moved to the Odessa Military District soon after the end of the war, and was disbanded in the next few months.