page_title: 43rd Guards Rifle Division
section_title: Battle of Demyansk
hierarchical_section_title: 43rd Guards Rifle Division / Battle of Demyansk
caption_attribution_description: Русский: Демянская наступательная операция (1943).English: Demyansk offensive (1943).
context_page_description: The 43rd Guards Rifle Division was formed as an elite infantry division of the Red Army in October, 1942, based on the 1st formation of the 201st Rifle Division, and served in that role until after the end of the Great Patriotic War. The 201st was the only division made up of Latvian nationals in the Red Army until 1944, and the 43rd was immediately nicknamed the "Latvian Guards" division, which stuck through its existence. Formed in Northwestern Front, its initial service was in the dismal fighting around the Demyansk salient until that was evacuated by German Army Group North in February, 1943. Through the rest of the year it fought in that Front, mostly facing the several German strongpoints in the area of Velikiye Luki. Beginning in January, 1944 the division took part in the offensive that finally drove the German forces away from Leningrad and before the summer offensive, now in 22nd Army of 2nd Baltic Front it provided a cadre to form the 130th Latvian Rifle Corps, and it served in that Corps for the duration of the war.
context_section_description: In mid-October Marshal S. K. Timoshenko, the STAVKA coordinator for Northwestern Front's operations, began planning another offensive to cut the German corridor; in part this was intended as a diversion from the upcoming Operation Mars. The attack was to involve 11th Army from the north and 1st Shock Army from the south, to commence on October 22. However, as with Mars, this operation was postponed several time, mainly due to adverse weather. When it finally began on the night of November 23/24 the 11th Army consisted of ten rifle divisions, including the 43rd Guards, plus five rifle brigades, one tank brigade and three battalions, and 26 artillery regiments. It faced elements of the 8th Jäger, 290th and 81st Infantry Divisions, giving it an advantage of about 3:1 in infantry and 5:1 in armor, although the rough and roadless terrain and miserable weather hampered supplies and negated much of the numerical advantage.
  After probing attacks by the 202nd Rifle Division in the direction of Pustynia which gained little ground over several days, on November 27 Timoshenko ordered the two armies to commit their main forces in an attempt to break the stalemate. While the 202nd was finally able to gain its objective, overall the attackers seized only pitifully small footholds in the German defenses at the cost of heavy losses. While the STAVKA soon recognized the offensive had failed it insisted on December 8 that it continue and several equally fruitless efforts were made into mid-January, 1943. Meanwhile, on December 30 General Veikin was effectively demoted to command of the 14th Guards Rifle Regiment of 7th Guards Rifle Division, and the next day he was succeeded in command of the division by Col. Detlav Karlovich Brantkaln, who would be promoted to the rank of major general on January 29. Early in February it was transferred to the 27th Army of the same Front, which was located closer to the mouth of the Ramushevo corridor.
  In the wake of Operation Iskra, which broke the German land blockade of Leningrad in January, Marshal Georgy Zhukov conceived a plan to encircle and destroy Army Group North: Operation Polar Star. The first phase of the overall operation would be yet another attempt to cut off and eliminate the Demyansk salient. Zhukov finalized his plan during the week preceding the planned attack date of February 15, and the 11th and 27th Armies together had nine rifle divisions, including the 43rd Guards, plus 150 tanks, massed between Penno and Ramushevo against the 5th Jäger Division. However, in light of the encirclement and upcoming surrender of 6th Army at Stalingrad, on January 31 Hitler had authorized the evacuation of II Corps. Operation Ziethen began on February 17 before the delayed Soviet attack could get fully underway, and effectively short-circuited Zhukov's entire plan; 27th Army would still be redeploying as late as the 21st. Demyansk was abandoned that day and by February 26 most of the corridor was evacuated as well.
caption: Soviet positions at Demyansk, spring 1943. The 43rd Guards was near Penno in 27th Army, north of the entrance to the Ramushevo corridor.
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