354th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)

354th Rifle Division
Maj. Gen. Vladimir Dzhandzhgava, Hero of the Soviet Union
Active	Aug. 1941 – 1946
Country	Soviet Union
Branch	Red Army
Type	Division
Role	Infantry
Engagements	Battle of Moscow Battles of Rzhev Battle of Kursk Lower Dnieper Offensive Operation Bagration Lublin-Brest Offensive East Pomeranian Offensive Berlin Strategic Offensive
Commanders
Notable commanders	Maj. Gen. D. F. Alekseev Maj. Gen. Vladimir Dzhandzhgava

The 354th Rifle Division was raised in 1941 as a standard Red Army rifle division, and served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. The division distinguished itself in at least three battles. It was credited with the liberation of the town of Kalinkovichi on 14 January 1944, and shared credit with other formations for the liberation of Bobruisk during Operation Bagration. It also played the leading role in the defense of 65th Army's bridgehead over the Narev River in Oct., 1944.

The division was organized at Penzensk in the Russian SFSR starting on Aug. 11, 1941 until the end of October, when it began moving to the front. It comprised:

Col. Dmitrii Fyodorovich Alekseev was named divisional commander on Sept. 1. Alekseev had the advantage of starting with an unusually strong cadre for this period of the war; 35 percent of his officers were active-duty, and he received a large number of high-morale, experienced Communist Party members from the Penzensk party organization.

On Nov. 26 the 354th was assigned to 16th Army, under command of K.K. Rokossovski, part of Western Front defending before Moscow. In early December the 16th Army joined in the Soviet counteroffensive against German Army Group Center. The division first went on the offensive on the morning of Dec. 3, reaching the southern outskirts of Matushkino by late afternoon. Later that month the 354th was reinforced with the 274th Antitank Battalion (12 45mm guns, 27 PTRD antitank rifles); in addition, each rifle regiment had its own company of 27 PTRDs, giving the division a very strong antitank defense for a rifle division of this period. At the same time, however, the 645th AA Battalion was replaced with the 307th AA Battery, with just 4 37mm guns. In early 1942 the 354th was further reinforced with the 516th Mortar Battalion. The division pushed on in the counteroffensive, taking the villages of Terekhovo, Kniazhevo, and Ignatkovo on Jan. 20, 1942, but by now was down to the strength of an oversize battalion.