The 124th Rifle Division was first formed as an infantry division of the Red Army in August 1939, in the Ukrainian Military District, based on the shtat (table of organization and equipment) of the following month. It remained in western Ukraine until the start of the German invasion when it was part of 5th Army in the Kiev Special Military District with its forward elements on the frontier facing units of the German 6th Army. It was largely overwhelmed in the first days, being repeatedly encircled and forced to escape. During July, as the fighting front moved east, the remainder of the 124th passed through the German rear, covering some 600km through the Pripet Marshes, with its commander killed in action during this journey. Finally reaching Soviet lines in Belarus in a much reduced state late in the month, it went back into battle north of Kyiv, eventually being transferred to 37th Army, until its remaining personnel were incorporated into 1st Airborne Corps. This unit was effectively destroyed in the Kyiv pocket in September.
A new 124th was formed based on a cadre of the original division near Voronezh beginning in late December and by January 1942 it was already at the front near Kharkiv as part of 21st Army and later 38th Army in Southwestern Front. After fighting for a bridgehead over the Donets River in March it attacked again toward Kharkiv in May, but was counterattacked on the second day and badly battered. Following the failure of this offensive the division found itself in the path of German summer offensive toward Stalingrad, first under 28th Army before returning to the 21st, as it made a reasonably effective fighting withdrawal to and over the Don River. During August it pushed back across the river with other units of the 21st and 63rd Armies against the Italian 8th Army to create a substantial bridgehead west of Serafimovich, which would be an important springboard for the upcoming winter counteroffensive. During October it attacked and caused serious losses against the Romanian forces now facing the bridgehead. Days before the start of Operation Uranus the 124th was redesignated as the 50th Guards Rifle Division.
The final 124th was formed on April 19, 1943, based on a trio of rifle brigades in 67th Army of Leningrad Front. It quickly entered the fighting front along a quiet sector and saw little combat until September when it took part in the successful effort to take the German strongpoint at Sinyavino. In January 1944, during the offensive that finally drove Army Group North away from Leningrad, it helped liberate the town of Mga and received its name as a battle honor. As the offensive continued it was transferred to 42nd Army, then 8th and 2nd Shock Armies, and was awarded the Order of the Red Banner before taking part in the fighting around Narva. It then moved back to the Leningrad region in preparation for the invasion of Finland. As part of 59th Army it made successful amphibious landings on several islands in Vyborg Bay in early July before going over to the defense for the rest of the summer. In September it was assigned to 21st Army in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command, where it remained, with one short return to the front, into December. It was now assigned to 39th Army in 3rd Belorussian Front for the offensive into East Prussia in January 1945. In recognition of its role in breaking through the German defenses it was awarded the Order of Suvorov. After Königsberg was taken in early April the 124th took part in clearing the Sambia Peninsula, and at the start of May began moving by rail to the far east. Under Transbaikal Front it advanced through the Greater Khingan range, inflicting several defeats on the defending Kwantung Army in the brief campaign and receiving "Khingan" as its second honorific. Within months it had been disbanded.
1st Formation The division was originally formed at Zhytomyr in the Ukrainian Military District on August 25, 1939, based on a cadre from the 15th Rifle Division. Kombrig Filipp Grigorevich Sushchii, who had previously served as chief of staff of both the 23rd and 5th Cavalry Divisions, was given command in September; he would have his rank modernized to that of major general on June 4, 1940. During the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939 the division was subordinated to the 37th Rifle Corps but it did not see service. At the start of the German invasion on June 22, 1941, it was part of 5th Army's 27th Rifle Corps in the Kiev Special Military District (soon redesignated as Southwestern Front).Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 9 At this time its order of battle was as follows: 406th Rifle Regiment (located at Horokhiv) 622nd Rifle Regiment (located at Poritske) 781st Rifle Regiment (located at Tartakove) 469th Light Artillery Regiment (located at Branakh) 341st Howitzer Artillery Regiment (located at Slasove and Fusove)Charles C. Sharp, "Red Legions", Soviet Rifle Divisions Formed Before June 1941, Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. VIII, Nafziger, 1996, p. 62 202nd Antitank Battalion 119th Antiaircraft Battalion 193rd Reconnaissance Company 225th Sapper Battalion 200th Signal Battalion 144th Medical/Sanitation Battalion 120th Chemical Defense (Anti-gas) Company 118th Motor Transport Battalion 147th Field Bakery 566th Field Postal Station 343rd Field Office of the State Bank The division had a total of 9,426 personnel on strength, including 925 officers and 1,530 non-commissioned officers, and these were armed with 7,786 rifles, 265 submachine guns, 481 light machine guns, 162 heavy machine guns, 54 45mm antitank guns, four 37mm and four 76mm antiaircraft guns, 34 76mm cannons and regimental guns, 32 122mm and 12 152mm howitzers, 12 120mm, 46 82mm, and 83 50mm mortars, 11 tankettes (T-37, T-38, or T-40), 11 armored cars, 248 trucks, 64 tractors, and 1,771 horses.Sharp, "Red Legions", p. 62
Sushchii's headquarters was at Horokhiv, while forward elements were along the frontier as far as Romosh and Sokal. These detachments, supported by 27th Corps' 21st Artillery Regiment, were in action by 0900 hours. However, the bulk of the division was still marching up when around 1100 it began to encounter advance units of German 6th Army. Under the circumstances there was no choice but to go into combat off the march, and while the rifle regiments put up a stiff fight and even counterattacked in places, they had no fixed defenses, leaving them vulnerable to encirclement. The division was already outflanked, with German units in Stoyanov, about 25km from the border. By 1300 the 14th Panzer Division had opened a 20km-wide gap between the 124th and the adjacent 87th Rifle Division, which was exploited by the following German troops. Both Soviet divisions attempted to hold along the "Molotov Line" but by evening German infantry had reached the railway between Sokal and Vladimir-Volinsky.Artyom Drabkin & Alexei Isaev, Barbarossa Through Soviet Eyes, trans. C. Summerville, Pen & Sword Books, Ltd., Barnsley, UK, 2012, pp. xiii, 71-72, 75 Battle of Brody
The next day the 406th Rifle Regiment was still holding at Horokhiv with the divisional headquarters, while the remaining regiments were facing encirclement in and around Myliatyn. 14th Panzer had diverted to the north, and the 75th Infantry Division was advancing on Horokhiv as 11th Panzer Division pushed eastward through its lines in the general direction of Dubno.David Stahel, Kiev 1941, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 2012, p. 70 This would lead to arguably the largest tank battle of the war over the rest of June, but the 124th was largely concerned with extricating itself from its impossible position. On June 25 Horokhiv fell after being encircled, and General Sushchii was wounded during a night attack to escape the pocket.Aleksander A. Maslov, Fallen Soviet Generals, ed. & trans. D. M. Glantz, Frank Cass Publishers, London, UK, 1998, p. 13 At about this time the division incorporated the remnants of the 90th NKVD Border Guards, which had lost up to 80 percent of its strength in the frontier battles. By June 27 the scattered elements of the division, now well in the German rear, had partly joined up with its corps-mate, the 135th Rifle Division, and was moving north. This march continued through July 1, crossing the Vladimir-VolinskyLutsk highway.Stahel, Kiev 1941, pp. 71-72
As of July 10 the 27th Corps had been disbanded and the 124th was under direct command of 5th Army,Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 24 although still out of communication. As its retreat continued, primarily through the Pripet Marshes, on July 14 General Sushchii was wounded again, this time fatally. He would be buried en route, while Col. Timofei Yakovlevich Novikov, commander of the 406th Regiment, took over command, which he would hold for the remainder of the existence of the 1st formation. Through this entire withdrawal of some 600km the division managed to hold on to its combat banners, records, and personal weapons.Maslov, Fallen Soviet Generals, p. 13 On July 24 it reached Soviet lines near Belokorovichy with 1,600 personnel still under arms,Sharp, "Red Legions", pp. 62-63 and three artillery pieces. By the end of the month, as stragglers came in, along with some individual replacements, its strength had increased to about 2,000. Battle of Kiev The 124th remained in combat through August, covering the north flank of the Kiev Fortified Region, and despite receiving 1,000 reservists mid-month was still down to 1,200 personnel two weeks later,Sharp, "Red Legions", p. 63 by which time it had been transferred to 37th Army, still in Southwestern Front.Combat Composition of the Soviet Army, 1941, p. 43 On September 4 its remaining personnel were incorporated into 1st Airborne Corps, while its command cadre was moved east from what would soon become the Kiev encirclement. 1st Airborne was not so fortunate and would be largely destroyed by the end of the month. The division was officially written off on December 27.
2nd Formation The day the 1st formation was deleted from the Red Army order of battle a new 124th was designated in the reserves of Southwestern Front,Walter S. Dunn Jr., Stalin's Keys to Victory, Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, PA, 2007, p. 101 near Voronezh. It was based on the command cadre of the original division and Colonel Novikov was in command for just two days before returning to command of the 406th Regiment and being replaced by Col. Aleksandr Kondratevich Berestov. Novikov took command of the 181st Rifle Division on June 1, 1942, but was taken prisoner on August 15 and died in captivity in December 1944. The new division's order of battle was similar to that of the 1st formation: 406th Rifle Regiment 622nd Rifle Regiment 781st Rifle RegimentSharp, "Red Tide", Soviet Rifle Divisions Formed From June to December 1941, Soviet Order of Battle World War II, Vol. IX, Nafziger, 1996, p. 28 46th Artillery Regiment 202nd Antitank Battalion (from January 19, 1942) 405th Antiaircraft Battery (later 119th Antiaircraft Battalion) 531st Mortar Battalion 193rd Reconnaissance Company 225th Sapper Battalion 200th Signal Battalion 144th Medical/Sanitation Battalion 120th Chemical Defense (Anti-gas) Company 118th Motor Transport Company 147th Field Bakery 30th Divisional Veterinary Hospital 566th Field Postal Station 343rd Field Office of the State Bank