263rd Rifle Division (Soviet Union)
| 263rd Rifle Division | |
|---|---|
| Active | July 1941–1946 |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Branch | Red Army |
| Type | Rifle division |
| Engagements | World War II |
| Battle honours | |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
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The 263rd Rifle Division (Russian: 263-я стрелковая дивизия) was an infantry division of the Red Army during World War II.
Formed in mid-1941, the division fought in the Continuation War against Finland in Karelia until the beginning of 1943, when it transferred to the Southwestern Front in Ukraine. After fighting in the Crimean Offensive in the spring of 1944, the division was transferred to the Baltics and advanced westward into East Prussia at the end of the war. Postwar, the division was withdrawn to Crimea, downsized into a separate rifle brigade, and disbanded.
The 263rd Rifle Division began forming on 10 July 1941 at Vologda in the Arkhangelsk Military District. It included the 993rd, 995th, and 997th Rifle Regiments, as well as the 853rd Artillery Regiment. In December 1941, the division became part of the Karelian Front. It spent most of the next 14 months with 26th Army facing Finnish troops north of Lake Onega in the Continuation War. In January 1943, the division was withdrawn to the Reserve of the Supreme High Command (RVGK), and relocated south to the Southwestern Front. On 11 June, Colonel Pavel Volosatykh took command of the division, which fought in the Donbass Strategic Offensive during the summer of 1943 as part of the front's 6th Army, and on 23 September it was transferred to the RVGK.
At the end of October, the 263rd became part of the 4th Ukrainian Front's 28th Army and fought in the Melitopol Offensive. On 5 November, the division moved across the Sivash, joining the 51st Army's 54th Rifle Corps in its Crimean bridgehead. It fought with the army in the Crimean Offensive in the spring of 1944, breaking through the German defensive lines on the southern coast of the Sivash and capturing Dzhankoy. On 16 April, its units captured Bakhchysarai and reached the approaches to Sevastopol. For its actions, the division was awarded the honorific "Sivash" on 24 April, and Volosatykh received the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 16 May. He was promoted to corps command on 18 April and was replaced by Major General Alexander Pykhtin. The division subsequently fought in the recapture of Sevastopol.
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