The 176th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed as part of the prewar buildup of forces, based on the shtat (table of organization and equipment) of September 13, 1939. The division completed its formation at Kryvyi Rih in the Odessa Military District and at the time of the German invasion of the Soviet Union was in the same area, assigned to the 35th Rifle Corps. Being relatively far from the frontier it escaped the early disasters and retreated mostly in good order through southern Ukraine into the autumn as part of 9th Army. It then took part in the counteroffensive against the overextended German Army Group South that liberated Rostov-na-Donu for the first time in December. When Army Group A began its summer offensive in 1942 the 176th fell back into the Caucasus region, losing much of its strength in the process, but finally helping to take up a firm defense along the Terek River and finally in front of Ordzhonikidze. As a result of this fighting the division, along with its artillery regiment, were awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After the German 6th Army was surrounded at Stalingrad the 176th advanced into the western Caucasus and entered the so-called Malaya Zemlya bridgehead south of Novorossiysk in the spring of 1943 where it helped to defeat the German Operation Neptun in April and in the autumn took part in the liberation of the city, for which it was redesignated as the 129th Guards Rifle Division.
A new 176th was formed in the 32nd Army of Karelian Front in February 1944 based on a pair of naval rifle brigades. In late July it advanced on the Finnish town of Ilomantsi but was soon surrounded and forced to break out with heavy losses. Following this fiasco the division was moved southwest to join the 36th Rifle Corps which was in 31st Army at the start of the Vistula-Oder Offensive in January 1945. It the course of the fighting in East Prussia it received a battle honor and a decoration before moving with this Army to the Czechoslovak border region and ending the war advancing toward Prague. It was disbanded within months of the German surrender.
1st Formation The division was formed from the 123rd Rifle Regiment of the 41st Rifle Division during the 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland. The rifle regiments of the 176th formed at Nikopol while the artillery units formed at Kryvyi Rih. The cadre of the 123rd made up 30 percent of the division while the rest were mobilized reservists. Kombrig Dmitry Averin became division commander. On 28 September the newly formed division was relocated to Starokostiantyniv and entered the reserve of the Ukrainian Front. The division did not participate in the invasion and returned to Nikopol in late October where it demobilized the reservists. Over the following months it was brought back up to strength with fresh conscripts, and dispatched troops to the Winter War as replacements in January. On 27 January 1940 the division relocated to the area of Kotovsk and Ananiv in Odessa Oblast, near the Romanian border, and on 23 April the 591st Rifle Regiment was relocated to Balta. The division participated in the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia in June and July. After the end of the operation it was garrisoned in the area of Beltsy. Col. Vladimir Nikolaevich Martsinkevich was appointed to command the division on 16 July 1940. This officer had previously commanded the 173rd Rifle Division in the Winter War and would be promoted to the rank of major general on 9 November 1941. On June 22 the 176th was in 9th Army's 35th Rifle Corps with the 95th Rifle Division; the 9th was at the time a separate Army unassigned to any Front.Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 10
As of June 22, 1941 it had the following order of battle: 389th Rifle Regiment 404th Rifle Regiment 591st Rifle Regiment 300th Artillery Regiment 380th Howitzer Artillery Regiment 188th Antitank BattalionCharles C. Sharp, "Red Legions", Soviet Rifle Divisions Formed Before June 1941, Soviet Order of Battle World War II, vol. VIII, Nafziger, 1996, p. 86 433rd Antiaircraft Battery (later 203rd Antiaircraft Battalion) 128th Reconnaissance Company (later 128th Reconnaissance Battalion) 166th Sapper Battalion 197th Signal Battalion (later 1450th Signal Company) 141st Medical/Sanitation Battalion 12th Chemical Defense (Anti-gas) Company 152nd Motor Transport Company 264th Field Bakery (later 103rd Motorized Field Bakery) 287th Divisional Veterinary Hospital 1555th (later 451st) Field Postal Station 288th Field Office of the State Bank
Battles in Ukraine By July 1 the division had been shifted to the 48th Rifle Corps, still in 9th Army which was now part of Southern Front (formerly Odessa Military District).Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 17 A few days later it incorporated five battalions of militia plus survivors of the 2nd and 23rd Border Guards that had retreated from the frontier. The 176th remained with 9th Army, retreating across the southern Ukraine until October while the main forces of Army Group South were focused on the encirclement battle east of Kiev.Sharp, "Red Legions", p. 86 As of the start of September it was a separate division within 9th Army and during October it was withdrawn into the Front reserves;Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, pp. 43, 65 the 380th Howitzer Regiment was removed from the division on October 14. In November and December the 176th played a prominent role in Southern Front's successful counteroffensive at Rostov-na-Donu and the ensuing winter campaign of 1941–42.David M. Glantz, To the Gates of Stalingrad, University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2009, p. 534 At the beginning of December it was directly under command of the Front,Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 76 but during that month it was moved to 12th Army of the same Front where it remained until March 1942 when it returned to Front reserves.Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1942, pp. 12, 29, 47, 67
Battle of the Caucasus On July 7 the German 1st Panzer and 17th Armies of Army Group A launched their part of Case Blue, the summer offensive into southern Russia and the Caucasus Mountains. At this time the 176th was back in 12th Army, still in Southern Front. Just after the offensive began General Martsinkevich was moved to command of the 24th Army of the same Front;Glantz, To the Gates of Stalingrad, pp. 112, 178 he would go on to command 9th Army in August but was removed for "failure to take decisive measures" against German bridgeheads south of the Terek River. After further military education he was given command of the 134th Rifle Division. He was killed in an air attack while directing a crossing of the Vistula River on July 30, 1944, and was posthumously made a Hero of the Soviet Union.https://warheroes.ru/hero/hero.asp?Hero_id=10220. In Russian, English translation available. Retrieved October 13, 2021.Aleksander A. Maslov, Fallen Soviet Generals, ed. & trans. D. M. Glantz, Frank Cass Publishers, London, UK, 1998, pp. 153-54 He was replaced in command of the 176th by Col. Ivan Andreevich Rubaniyuk, who had been in command of the 591st Rifle Regiment from November into February and had since been serving as the division's deputy commander.
In the first weeks of the German offensive the 12th Army was forced back from its positions along the lower Don River and by July 25 the division, now described as "remnants", was helping to hold a 40 km-wide sector from Kiziterinka (20 km southeast of Rostov) eastward to Belianin (50 km southeast of Rostov) opposite the 1st Panzer Army's III Panzer Corps. By the beginning of August 12 Army had been subordinated to the Don Operational Group of North Caucasus Front; the 109th Rifle Regiment of 74th Rifle Division was also serving in 12th Army at this time. Army Group A was reorganized on August 17 after which 1st Panzer Army was ordered to advance southeast parallel to the Caucasus Mountains with the objective to seize the Terek River valley, the key cities of Ordzhonikidze and Grozny, and ultimately the oil fields at Baku.Glantz, To the Gates of Stalingrad, pp. 400-01, 414, 432
The previous day the 23rd and 3rd Panzer Divisions of XXXX Panzer Corps renewed their offensive in the direction of Mozdok. At this time the 176th had been re-subordinated to the 9th Army and was positioned in its first echelon which was along the Terek from Prokhladny eastward past Mozdok. The 3rd Panzer Division reached the northern bank of the Terek in the Mozdok region late on August 23 and captured the city two days later. After a week of confused fighting the 1st Panzer Army soon came to a virtual standstill and the Soviet defenses began reorganizing. General Martsinkevich was replaced but the forces of 9th Army continued to hold the south bank of the Terek, apart from two German-held bridgeheads.Glantz, To the Gates of Stalingrad, pp. 432-437
Battles along the Terek By the beginning of September it was noted that the personnel of the division were roughly 30-40 percent of various Caucasian nationalities.Glantz, Operation Don's Left Wing, University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2019, p. 30 At this time the 9th Army consisted of the 176th, 151st, 389th and 417th Rifle Divisions, 62nd Naval Rifle Brigade and the 11th Guards Rifle Corps, continuing to defend the Terek from south of Prokhladny eastward to south of Mozdok to just northwest of Grozny. It was tasked with preventing the German LII Army Corps and 13th Panzer Division from crossing the river and advancing on Ordzhonikidze. LII Corps began its attack at 0200 hours on September 2, attempting to thrust across the Terek against the positions of 11th Guards Corps. In two days of see-saw fighting the German force, backed by tanks of the 23rd Panzer Division, managed to secure a bridgehead nearly 3 km deep. On September 6 a mixed battlegroup from the two panzer divisions with about 40 tanks drove a deep wedge between the 9th and 8th Guards Rifle Brigades, but as it approached the northern foothills of the Terek Mountains it encountered intense artillery, Katyusha and antitank fire as well as heavy counterattacks by Soviet forces, bringing them to a temporary halt.Glantz, Armageddon in Stalingrad, University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2009, pp. 549-51
1st Panzer Army's commander, Gen. E. von Kleist, gave orders to the 5th SS Panzergrenadier Division Wiking on September 22 to advance eastward through the Terek Mountains toward either Grozny or Ordzhonikidze in cooperation with the 111th Infantry Division. Unbeknownst to Kleist part of the 176th, along with the 52nd Tank and 59th Rifle Brigades and the 75th Tank Battalion, had been concentrated for a counterattack against a perceived weak spot in the 111th's defenses in the Alkhan-Churt valley. As a result, the attack of the 5th SS ran straight into this battle group, leading to a fight that lasted most of a week before the assault collapsed in the face of fierce Soviet resistance, with both German divisions suffering heavy casualties, especially from antitank fire. Kleist blamed the failure on poor internal cohesion within the 5th SS but then on October 3 pleaded with the high command for substantial reinforcements before he could resume his advance. Meanwhile, the commander of Transcaucasian Front recommended to the STAVKA that his Northern Group of Forces, to which 9th Army belonged at this time, go over to the defensive, which was accepted on September 29.Glantz, Armageddon in Stalingrad, pp. 557-59