The 40th Army was a field army of the Red Army during the Second World War.
The army was formed on August 26, 1941, as part of the Southwestern Front on the basis of the 27th Rifle Corps. Disbanded in May 1946, following the demobilization of the Soviet Union.
Formation and deployment The 40th Army was formed in August 1941 as part of the Southwestern Front of the First FormationRadio control - Tachanka / [gen. ed. N. V. Ogarkova]. - M .: Military publishing house of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR, 1980. - S. 452-453. - (Soviet military encyclopedia: [in 8 volumes]; 1976–1980, v. 7). on the basis of the 27th Rifle Corps. It was deployed (as part of the airborne corps and three divisions) along the Desna River to counter the enemy's breakthrough into the rear of the Southwestern Front from the north. The 38th and 40th Armies, which were outside the pocket, were to support the withdrawal of the troops of the Southwestern Front from the encirclement by striking at Romny and Lubny.
The front command planned its actions based on the directive of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command No. 002374 on the transition of the troops of the Southwestern Front to the defense in order to prevent the enemy from seizing the Kharkov Industrial Region and Donbass.Russian archive. Great Patriotic War: Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. Documents and materials 1941. Volume 16(5-1). - M.: Terra, 1996. - S. 208. - ; In accordance with this, the Kharkov Direction was covered by two armies (21st and 38th), and Sumy by the 40th Army.
Combat actions Combat actions from 26 August to 30 September 1941 In mid–August 1941, the Southwestern Front went on the defensive on the left bank of the Dnepr River. Kiev was held by Soviet troops. The enemy could not advance in the direction of the cities of Chernigov, Konotop, Kharkov. The Headquarters of the Supreme High Command decided to create the 40th Army by allocating troops from the 37th and 26th Front Armies to ensure the junction of the Southwestern Front with the Bryansk Front and organize a strong defense along the Desna River, north of the city of Konotop. The neighbor on the right was the 21st Army of the Bryansk Front, and the neighbor on the left was the 5th Army and the 27th Rifle Corps of the Southwestern Front, which were withdrawn to the eastern bank of the Dnepr River.
By the end of August, the situation on the right flank of the Southwestern Front became more complicated. The enemy bypassed the 21st Army of the Bryansk Front, the 5th and 37th Army of the Southwestern Front on the left in the area of the cities of Chernigov, Kiev, Nezhin. There were no troops on the Desna River to repulse the enemy. The 40th Army was also unable to hold back the German troops marching towards the city of Romny.
By the beginning of September, the 40th Army at the line of Dubovichi, Chaplievka, Baturin, Volovitsa was fighting with the troops of the 2nd German Panzer Group. On the left, the 21st Army of the Bryansk Front was defending at the line of Snovsk, Semyonovka, Konyatin. Even to the east, the 5th Army of the Southwestern Front was defending at the turn of Sednev, Chernigov, Lyubech, Sorokoshichi.Red Banner Kyiv. Essays on the history of the Red Banner Kyiv Military District (1919–1979). / Ed. 2nd, rev. and additional - K. Politizdat of Ukraine, 1979. On the right, on the left bank of the Desna, the Bryansk Front held the line.
The 2nd Tank Group of Guderian of the Army Group Center, advancing in the direction of Konotop, broke through to the Desna on September 1 and captured a bridgehead near Shostka on its left bank.
The 40th Army withdrew in a southeasterly direction. The 21st Army, bypassed from the east by the troops of the 2nd Panzer Group, and from the west by the 2nd German Army, which approached Chernigov, was under the threat of encirclement and began to hastily retreat south to the Desna.
By September 10, the situation on the flanks of the Southwestern Front was difficult, the troops could be surrounded. On September 10, Colonel General Mikhail Kirponos, commander of the troops of the front, reported to the Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army Marshal of the Soviet Union Boris Shaposhnikov that the enemy was already in Romny and Grayvoron. The 21st and 40th Armies could not liquidate the enemy here. The army needed troops from the Kiev Fortified Region and a withdrawal to the border of the Psyol River. A reinforcement in the amount of two rifle divisions was received from the 26th Army of the front and they were to advance from the Bakhmach, Konotop Area.
On September 11, the commander of the front, Colonel General Mikhail Kirponos, negotiated through communications with the Supreme Commander–in–Chief Joseph Stalin and received instructions to attack the enemy's Konotop Grouping with all possible forces along with the troops of the Bryansk Front; organize defense along the Psyol River with the forces of 5–6 divisions, placing a large artillery group with a front to the north and west;Archive of the USSR Ministry of Defense, f.96-A, op. 2011, d. 5, ll. 96, 99. keep the capital of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, the city of Kiev, until the creation of defenses on the Psyol River, and only then begin the evacuation of the population, troops and property from the city.History of the Second World War 1939–1945. T. 4. - M .: Military Publishing House, 1975.
On September 15, the 1st and 2nd German Tank Groups united in the area of Lokhvitsa, surrounding many troops and the headquarters of the Southwestern Front.
On September 20, the headquarters of the Southwestern Front was destroyed, the commander of the front, Colonel General Mikhail Kirponos, died.
On September 30, a new department of the Southwestern Front was created, Marshal of the Soviet Union Semyon Timoshenko was appointed commander of the troops. The 40th Army became part of the front. The troops of the front were ordered to go over to a tough defense.Institute of Marxism-Leninism under the Central Committee of the CPSU. Documents and materials of the Department of the History of the Great Patriotic War. Inv. No. 9480, l. 344. The Military Council organizes defense at the line of Vorozhba, Lebedin, Shishaki, Krasnograd, Novomoskovsk. The commander of the 40th Army, Major General Kuzma Podlas, was given the task of closing the Sumy Direction, the troops of the 21st and 38th Armies defended the Kharkov Direction, the troops of the 6th Army covered the Donbass from the north.Institute of Marxism-Leninism under the Central Committee of the CPSU. Documents and materials of the Department of the History of the Great Patriotic War. Inv. No. 9480, l. 340. The 40th Army waged stubborn battles in the Shtepovka Area.
Combat actions from 1 to 15 October 1941 As a result of the German offensive, the troops of the Southwestern Front were covered from both flanks: the enemy penetrated deeply into the defenses of neighboring fronts, and the depth of coverage was 60–200 kilometers, and communication with adjacent formations was lost. Under these conditions, on October 6, 1941, the command of the Southwestern Front decided to withdraw the right–flank armies (40th and 21st) 45–50 kilometers to the Sumy–Akhtyrka–Kotelva Line in order to cover Belgorod and the northern approaches to Kharkov.Bagramyan I. Kh. The collapse of the myth. Waste to waste is different // This is how the war began. - M .: Military Publishing, 1971. The retreat of the Soviet troops took place under energetic pursuit by the enemy, who delivered butt–to–back blows to the retreating formations, creating a threat to their encirclement. As a result, the 29th Army Corps of the Wehrmacht broke into Sumy on the move, and the 51st Army Corps captured Akhtyrka.Vokhmyanin V.K., Podoprigora A.I. Kharkov, 1941. Part 2. City on fire. - H .: Ryder, 2009. - S. 25. - 158 p. - The planned withdrawal line was occupied by the enemy, which forced the Soviet troops to retreat further to the east.
Combat actions from 16 to 22 October 1941 In accordance with the directive of the Stavka, the front command ordered the army headquarters to withdraw troops by October 20, 1941, to the intermediate line of defense Oboyan – Belgorod – Merefa – Zmiyov – Balakleya – Barvenkovo. The retreat of the front formations was carried out in three divergent operational directions: Belgorod (40th and 21st Armies), Kharkov (38th Army) and Izyum (6th Army).Grechko A. A. Chapter 1. Beginning. Kharkov direction // Years of war. - M .: Military Publishing House, 1976. - T. 1. - 584 p. The withdrawal of the army took place in conditions of insignificant opposition from the enemy.
Stabilization of the front line While the formations of the 38th Army were fighting in the Kharkov Direction, the rest of the armies of the Southwestern Front continued to withdraw. On October 24, 1941, having broken through the defenses of the 21st Soviet Army, units of the 29th Army Corps captured Belgorod. The withdrawal of Soviet troops took place in extremely difficult weather conditions. Roads were washed out by continuous rains, and the troops operated in off-road conditions.Popel N. K. "In a difficult time." - M.-SPb.: Terra Fantastica, 2001. 2001 - 480 pages, , 5-7921-0392-5 In addition, a significant part of the equipment began to stop on the routes due to lack of fuel. The same problems were experienced by the German units of Army Group South that were pursuing them.Halder F. November 1941 // Military Diary = Kriegstagebuch / Translated by I. Glagolev. - M .: "Voenizdat", 1971. - T. 3. - 408 p. — 30,000 copies. Therefore, the main opposition to the retreating troops of the Southwestern Front was provided by enemy aviation forces. The headquarters of the Army Group South and the command of the 6th Army of the Wehrmacht considered the tasks of the Autumn Campaign completed and planned to go on the defensive in this sector of the front. Already on October 27, the main forces of the 40th, 21st and 38th Armies broke away from the enemy and had no contact with him. The battles were fought only by formations of the 6th Soviet Army, holding the defense along the Seversky Donets. By the end of October, German troops, exerting slight pressure, crossed the Donets and, having created several bridgeheads on the eastern bank, went on the defensive. Under these conditions, the command of the Southwestern Front decided to stop the withdrawal of troops and go on the defensive in the Tim–Balakleya–Izyum Sector and further along the Seversky Donets River to Yampol. This frontier allowed to ensure the uninterrupted operation of the railway line Kastornoe – Kupyansk – Lisichansk. Also, this configuration of the front line made it possible to prepare for further operations of the Red Army in order to liberate Kharkov as soon as possible.
On December 4, 1941, the Germans broke through the defense front of the 40th Army and, developing success in the northeast direction, occupied Prilepy, Lisiy Kolodets, Kuzkino and Pogozhee. The 87th Infantry Division was given the task of closing the gap, which it successfully coped with, recapturing the village of Pogozhee.
On the morning of December 8, the enemy resumed the offensive in the Kursk–Kastornoe Direction. The commander of the 40th Army set the task for the division, providing cover at the occupied line, to regroup and on foot to go to the Serebryanka–Tretyakovka–Afanasevskoe Area in order to stop the German offensive in the oncoming battle. Then, in cooperation with other units, it was to defeat the opposing enemy forces in the settlements of Leninsky and Perevalochnoe and immediately capture Cheremisinovo and the city of Shchigry.
Having traveled 40 km, the 87th Rifle Division was able to concentrate in a given area only by the evening of December 10, 1941.
On the morning of December 11, 1941, the 87th Infantry Division attacked German positions and captured two villages.
Yelets Operation