. The 44th Kievskaya of the Red Banner Rifle Division of Nikolay Shchors , or 44th Kievskaya for short, was an elite military formation of the Soviet Union. Created during the beginnings of the Russian Civil War. It was destroyed during the Winter War, after being ordered to help the 163rd Rifle Division break a Finnish siege on the Raate road as part of the Special Rifle Corps 9th Army, together with the 54th Rifle Division. Afterwards it was levied and dissolved multiple times throughout the 40s and 50s until its final dissolution in 1959.
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. Other records suggest that Commander (kombrig) Alexei Vinogradov was sentenced in January 1940 to the Highest Degree of Punishment (VMN) by the Military Tribunal of the 9th Army.[6] along with his chief of staff Onufri Volkov.[7] On January 11, he was publicly executed in front of formation.
Later history
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In March 1940, the division was again redeployed to Ukraine and in June was incorporated into the 49th Rifle Corps of the 5th Army of the Southern Front. It saw no combat during the Soviet seizure and annexation of Northern Bukovina and Bessarabia.
On April 24, 1941, according to the resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) and the Council of People’s Commissars of the Soviet Union (SNK) of April 23, 1941 No. 1112-459ss, the 44th Rifle Division was reformed into a mountain rifle formation with the abandonment of the previous insignia.
It participated in the Great Patriotic War as the 44th Kiev Red Banner Mining Division named after Schors. It was part of 13th Rifle Corps, 12th Army, Kiev Special Military District in June 1941.[8]
“Captured Soviet Generals” says that the division commander, Major General S.A. Tkachenko, was captured by the Germans. The division was immediately caught up in conflict and suffered heavy losses. By 21 July 1941 the division was already short of shtat (establishment or Table of Organization and Equipment) by over 4,000 soldiers, 199 cargo trucks, and over 3,000 rifles and carbines. Divisional morale fell despite some small victories. Ultimately the division was wiped out in combat in the Battle of Uman near the village of Podvyskoe in the Kirovograd and [Uman region]
(Uman Raion - Wikipedia).[9]
The division was recreated at Leningrad in October 1941. It fought in northern Russia and Kurland with the 54th Army of Volkhov Front in January 1944 and the 67th Army of the Leningrad Front in May 1945.