| 176th Rifle Division (September 1939 - October 9, 1943) 176th Rifle Division (February 12, 1944 - July 1945) | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1939–1945 |
| Country |  Soviet Union |
| Branch | .svg){kind=small} Red Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | Operation Barbarossa Donbas–Rostov strategic defensive operation Rostov Defensive Operation Battle of Rostov (1941) Case Blue Battle of the Caucasus Kuban Bridgehead Battle of Novorossiysk Continuation War Svir-Petrozavodsk Operation Battle of Ilomantsi East Prussian Offensive Prague Offensive |
| Decorations |  Order of the Red Banner (1st formation) Order of Suvorov (2nd formation) |
| Battle honours | Masurian (2nd formation) |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Maj. Gen. Vladimir Nikolaevich Martsinkevich  Col. Ivan Andreevich Rubaniyuk Maj. Gen. Sergei Mikhailovich Bushev Col. Aleksei Grigorevich Kaverin Maj. Gen. Vasilii Ivanovich Zolotarev |
The 176th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed as part of the prewar buildup of forces, based on the shtat (table of organization and equipment) of September 13, 1939. The division completed its formation at Kryvyi Rih in the Odessa Military District and at the time of the German invasion of the Soviet Union was in the same area, assigned to the 35th Rifle Corps. Being relatively far from the frontier it escaped the early disasters and retreated mostly in good order through southern Ukraine into the autumn as part of 9th Army. It then took part in the counteroffensive against the overextended German Army Group South that liberated Rostov-na-Donu for the first time in December. When Army Group A began its summer offensive in 1942 the 176th fell back into the Caucasus region, losing much of its strength in the process, but finally helping to take up a firm defense along the Terek River and finally in front of Ordzhonikidze. As a result of this fighting the division, along with its artillery regiment, were awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After the German 6th Army was surrounded at Stalingrad the 176th advanced into the western Caucasus and entered the so-called Malaya Zemlya bridgehead south of Novorossiysk in the spring of 1943 where it helped to defeat the German Operation Neptun in April and in the autumn took part in the liberation of the city, for which it was redesignated as the 129th Guards Rifle Division.
A new 176th was formed in the 32nd Army of Karelian Front in February 1944 based on a pair of naval rifle brigades. In late July it advanced on the Finnish town of Ilomantsi but was soon surrounded and forced to break out with heavy losses. Following this fiasco the division was moved southwest to join the 36th Rifle Corps which was in 31st Army at the start of the Vistula-Oder Offensive in January 1945. It the course of the fighting in East Prussia it received a battle honor and a decoration before moving with this Army to the Czechoslovakian border region and ending the war advancing toward Prague. It was disbanded within months of the German surrender.