Soviet guard
The Soviet Guard ( Russian : Советская гвардия, Sowjetskaja gwardija ) were military units of the Soviet Army and the Soviet Navy of the USSR , which were awarded this title during the Second World War .
history
Emergence
During the Second World War , the title of Guard Unit was reintroduced as an award for Soviet military formations in recognition of special achievements.
The designation Guard Unit was introduced with the Order No. 308 of the People's Commissar for Defense on September 18, 1941 for units that had performed particularly well in the fight against the Wehrmacht . This should particularly motivate the soldiers of the Soviet Army . On May 21, 1942, special rank insignia and a guard star were introduced for soldiers of the guard units , which had to be worn on the right chest. In June 1943 all Army Guard units and in 1944 the Navy units were also awarded the Order of the Red Banner .
The first units to receive these awards were the 100th, 127th, 153rd and 161st Rifle Divisions , renamed the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Guard Divisions. Initially, only smaller units were appointed guard units, but over the course of World War II , a total of eleven regular armies and six tank armies were appointed guard units.
Cold War
During the Cold War , no more units were appointed guard units, but the units that had already been appointed remained particularly well-equipped and trained troops. They were also preferably stationed in the border regions of the Warsaw Pact states .
After the end of the Soviet Union
In the Russian Federation , the units retained their title of Guard Unit, but were now referred to as the Russian Guard . Most of the units were disbanded very quickly due to lack of money.
Since 2000, September 2nd has been celebrated as Russian Guard Day in the Russian Federation in memory of the merits of the Soviet guards troops in World War II .
