Steppe Military District
| Steppe Military District | |
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| Active |
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| Country | Soviet Union |
| Type | Military district |
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TheSteppe Military District(Russian:Степной военный округ (СВО),romanized:Stepnoy voyennyy okrug (SVO)) was amilitary districtof theSoviet Union,formed twice. It was first formed in April 1943 duringWorld War IInearVoronezhas a strategic reserve, and after the beginning of theBattle of Kurskin July it became theSteppe Front.Postwar, the district was formed for a second time in Kazakhstan in July 1945 and demobilised troops among other duties before being disbanded in May 1946.
First formation
[edit]The Steppe Military District was first formed duringWorld War IIon 15 April 1943 in accordance with aStavkadirective of 13 April by the renaming of theReserve Front,which had been formed from the41st Armyheadquarters shortly before. The district served as a strategic reserve forStavka,and its headquarters was organised on tables of organisation and equipment for a fieldfrontcommand. It was initially commanded and organised by Lieutenant General (later Colonel General)Markian Popov.[1]The district headquarters was located nearVoronezhin the villages ofSomovo,Novaya Usman,Babilovo,Rykan, Khrenovoye, and others at various points in time. It initially included the24th(redesignated the4th Guards Armyon 16 April),46th,47th,53rd,66th(redesignated the5th Guards Armyon 5 May),5th Guards Tank,and5th Air Armies,as well as separate units completing their formation.[2][3]
Its troops were stationed inVoronezh,Kursk,Tambov,andRostov Oblasts.The district was tasked with preventing a German breakthrough fromOryolandBelgorodtowardsKurskand Voronezh, and to this end a 250-kilometre (160 mi) defensive line along theKshen RiverfromRossoshnoyetoBely Kholodezwas established and preparations made for counterattacking and going on the offensive towardsMaloarkhangelsk,Kursk, andOboyan.[4]On 25 May the27th Armyjoined the district. The movement of the 27th and 53rd Armies to the district from theNorthwestern Frontto the area east of Kursk and the movement of the 46th and 47th Armies from theNorth Caucasus Frontto the area east ofKharkovwent undetected by German intelligence.[5]The district's troops strengthened defences and received reinforcements and equipment. In June Colonel GeneralIvan Konevtook command of the district,[2]on the recommendation ofStavkarepresentativeGeorgy Zhukov.[6]
When the German offensiveOperation Citadelin theBattle of Kurskbegan on 5 July, the 27th Army defended the Kshen line on the left from Rossoshnoye to Nikolskoye, the 53rd Army in the center to Bezlepkino, and the 5th Guards Army on the right to Bely Kolodez. The 47th Army was concentrated in the area of Olkhovatka, Krivonosovka, and Kamenka, while the4th Guards Tank Corpswas in the area of Beduga Station and the10th Tank CorpsnearStary Oskol.The district's main armored striking force, the 5th Guards Tank Army, included the29th Tank Corpsin the forests west ofOstrogozhsk,the5th Guards Mechanised Corpsin the Kamenka area, and the3rd Guards Mechanised Corpsin the area of Kuzmenkov. The Steppe Military District also included three cavalry corps: the7th Guardsin the area of Belogorye andPavlovsk,the3rd Guardsin the area ofStaraya KalitvaandNovaya Kalitva,and the5th Guardsin the area of Novo-Markovka, Kirovo, and Nikolskoye.[4]
On the morning of 7 July, the 5th Guards Tank Army began its march to the front to fight at Kursk. On the same day the 10th Tank Corps transferred to theVoronezh Frontand began moving to the front. On the night of 8 July, the 47th Army was shifted forward to the area of Khmelevoye andKorocha,closer to the action.[7]On 9 July, the district became theSteppe Front.[2]
Second formation
[edit]The Steppe Military District was formed for a second time postwar when the territory of theCentral Asian Military Districtwas divided between the Steppe andTurkestan Military Districtson 9 July 1945. The district headquarters was formed from the4th Shock Armyheadquarters atAlma-Ata,and its only commander was former Central Asian Military District commander Lieutenant GeneralPavel Kurbatkin.It controlled troops on the territory of theKazakh Soviet Socialist Republic,excludingAktobe,Guryev,andWest Kazakhstan Oblasts.The district disbanded reserve and training units and demobilised combat units withdrawn to the district. On 4 February 1946 it became a territorial military district and was subordinated to the Turkestan Military District. Its headquarters was disbanded on 3 May.[2]
Commanders
[edit]The following officers commanded the district's first formation:[2]
- Lieutenant General (promoted to Colonel General in April)Markian Popov(April – June 1943)
- Colonel GeneralMax Reyter(June 1943)
- Colonel GeneralIvan Konev(June – July 1943)
The following officer commanded the district's second formation:[2]
- Lieutenant GeneralPavel Kurbatkin(July 1945 – May 1946)
References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^Glantz & House 2004,pp. 43–44.
- ^abcdefIvanov 2003,p. 660.
- ^Glantz & House 2004,p. 390n14.
- ^abGlantz & Orenstein 1999,pp. 23–24.
- ^Glantz & House 2004,p. 74.
- ^Glantz & House 2004,p. 48.
- ^Glantz & Orenstein 1999,pp. 83–88.
Bibliography
[edit]- Glantz, David M.;House, Jonathan M.(2004) [1999].The Battle of Kursk.Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas.ISBN978-0-7006-1335-9.411n133
- Glantz, David M.; Orenstein, Harold S. (1999).The Battle for Kursk 1943: The Soviet General Staff Study.London, UK: Taylor & Francis (Frank Cass).ISBN0-7146-4933-3.— This report, commissioned by the Soviet General Staff in 1944, was designed to educate the Red Army on how to conduct war operations. It was classified secret until its declassification in 1964, and was later edited and translated to English by Orenstein and Glantz. Its original title wasCollection of Materials for the Study of War Experience,No. 11 (Russian:Сборник материалов по изучению опыта войны № 11,romanized:Sbornik materialov po izucheniyu opyta voyny № 11)
- Ivanov, Sergei,ed. (2003). "Степно́й вое́нный о́круг" [Steppe Military District].Военная энциклопедия в 8 томах [Military Encyclopedia in 8 Volumes](in Russian). Vol. 7. Moscow: Voenizdat.ISBN5-203-01874-X.