Southwestern Front (Soviet Union)

The Southwestern Front was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War, formed thrice.

Southwestern Front
Active	22 June 1941 – 12 July 1942 22 October 1942 – 20 October 1943
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army
Type	Army Group Command
Size	Several Armies
Engagements	World War II Operation Barbarossa Battle of Moscow Second Battle of Kharkov Operation Little Saturn Third Battle of Kharkov Donbas Strategic Offensive
Commanders
Notable commanders	Semyon Timoshenko Rodion Malinovsky

It was first created on June 22, 1941 from the Kiev Special Military District. The western boundary of the front in June 1941 was 865 km long, from the Pripyat River and the town of Wlodawa to the Prut River and the town of Lipkany at the border with Romania. It connected to the north with the Western Front, which extended to the Lithuanian border, and to the south with the Southern Front, which extended to the city of Odessa on the Black Sea.

Operational history

The Southwestern Front was on the main axis of attack by the German Army Group South during Operation Barbarossa. At the outbreak of war with Germany, the Front was commanded by Mikhail Kirponos and contained the Soviet 5th, 6th, 26th, and 12th Armies along the frontier. 16th and 19th Armies were in reserve behind the forward forces. These forces took part in the tank battles in western Ukraine and were surrounded and destroyed at the Battle of Uman and the Battle of Kiev (1941) in August and September 1941. Kirponos himself was killed during the Battle of Kiev.

The Front was immediately re-established with new forces. During the period of the Battle of Moscow it was under the command of Marshal Timoshenko, and included from north to south the 40th, 21st, 38th and 6th Armies. It was formally disbanded on July 12, 1942 and the forces transferred to the Stalingrad Front and Southern Front.

The Front was reformed from reserve armies on October 22, 1942. It was renamed the 3rd Ukrainian Front on October 20, 1943. 3rd Ukrainian Front's first operations were the Battle of the Dnieper and the Battle of Kiev (1943).

Southwestern Front on 22 June 1941

Composition Subordinate Front units directly under Commander of the Front:

• 31st Rifle Corps

193rd Rifle Division

195th Rifle Division

200th Rifle Division

• 36th Rifle Corps:

140th Rifle Division

146th Rifle Division

228th Rifle Division

• 49th Rifle Corps

190th Rifle Division

197th Rifle Division

199th Rifle Division

• 55th Rifle Corps

130th Rifle Division

169th Rifle Division

189th Rifle Division

• 1st Airborne Corps

1st Airborne Infantry Brigade

204th Airborne Infantry Brigade

211th Airborne Infantry Brigade

• Fortified Regions

1st Kiev

3rd Latichov

5th Khorosten

7th Novogrudok–Volynsk

13th Shepetovka

15th Ostropol

17th Izaslav

• Front Artillery

5th Anti-Tank Brigade

205th Corps Artillery Regiment

207th Corps Artillery Regiment

368th Corps Artillery Regiment

457th Corps Artillery Regiment

458th Corps Artillery Regiment

507th Corps Artillery Regiment

543rd Corps Artillery Regiment

646th Corps Artillery Regiment

305th Cannon Artillery Regiment (RGK)

355th Cannon Artillery Regiment (RGK)

4th High Power Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

168th High Power Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

324th High Power Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

330th High Power Howitzer Regiment (RGk)

526th High Power Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

331st Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

376th Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

529th Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

538th Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

589th Howitzer Regiment (RGK)

34th Independent Special Artillery Division

245th Independent Special Artillery Division

315th Independent Special Artillery Division

316th Independent Special Artillery Division

263rd Independent Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division

• Front PVO

3rd Air Defense Division

4th Air Defense Division

11th Air Defense Brigade

Air Defense Brigade Regions:

Stanislavov

Rovno

Zhitomir

Tarnopol

Vinnitsa

• Front Tank/Mechanized Troops

19th Mechanized Corps:

40th Tank Division

43rd Tank Division

213th Mechanized Division

21st Motorcycle Regiment

24th Mechanized Corps:

45th Tank Division

49th Tank Division

216th Mechanized Division

17th Motorcycle Regiment

1st Independent Armoured Car Division

• Front Air Forces

44th Fighter Aviation Division

64th Fighter Aviation Division

19th Bomber Aviation Division

62nd Bomber Aviation Division

14th Mixed Aviation Division

15th Mixed Aviation Division

16th Mixed Aviation Division

17th Mixed Aviation Division

63rd Mixed Aviation Division

36th Fighter Aviation Division (PVO)

315th Air Reconnaissance Regiment

316th Air Reconnaissance Regiment

• Front Engineer Troops

45th Engineer Regiment

1st Pontoon Bridge Regiment

Commanders

• Colonel General Mikhail P. Kirponos (June 1941 – September 1941: killed in action)
• Marshal Semyon K. Timoshenko (September 1941 – December 1941; April–July 1942)
• Lieutenant General Fyodor Kostenko (December 1941 – April 1942)
• Lieutenant General Nikolai F. Vatutin [promoted to Colonel General in December 1942] (October 1942 – March 1943)
• Colonel General Rodion Ia. Malinovsky (March 1943 – October 1943)

Further reading

• Boevoi Sostav Sovietskoi Armii Czast I 1941 goda juni–dekabr 1941 Moskva 1966 (Combat composition of the Soviet Army)
• Solonin, Mark, 22 June 1941 Bocka i obruci czili Kogda naczalas Vielikaja Oteczestvennaja vojna 2004
• Erickson, John, The Road to Stalingrad, Cassell Military Paperback, 2003
• Fugate, Bryan & Dvoriecki, Lev, Thunder on the Dnepr Presidio Press