October 1 - Day of the Ground Forces of the Russian Federation
Modern military equipment and a high level of training - this is what today characterizes one of the main components of the Armed Forces of Russia - ground forces. Having a huge military arsenal, which is constantly being improved, all structural units of the ground forces in peacetime conduct the necessary training of personnel and control bodies for competent and operational conduct of military operations according to their mission. The purpose of this is the coherence in the work of all the components of the links, designed in the shortest possible time to carry out activities for the mobilization and rapid deployment of forces to repel a possible enemy attack.
Being the most numerous and varied type of troops in the existing weapons and methods of warfare, the ground forces are the main force ensuring the state integrity and the observance of the national interests of the citizens of Russia, capable of repelling and protecting their country from any aggressor at any time. It is on the Ground Forces that the mission is assigned to support the implementation of UN Security Council measures to restore peace in the hot spots of the planet, as well as to assist in eliminating the catastrophic consequences of natural disasters or large-scale accidents. At the same time, the combat readiness of the ground forces, the combat potential of the military personnel and equipment must always be maintained at the level necessary for rapid response, effectively interacting with other branches of the armed forces of the country.
May 31, 2006 by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation under number 549, the first day of October was defined as the Day of Russian Ground Forces. This date was not chosen by chance. Publishing your historical the verdict "On the notification in the Moscow and surrounding districts of a chosen thousand servants", the purpose of which was to create the first regular army units in Russia, Tsar Ivan IV, named by the people of Grozny, was hardly aware that he was becoming the founder of one of the greatest and most important for the future army of Russia. But it is the day of the publication of the aforementioned decree, October 1, 1550, that is considered the foundation day of the ground forces of the Russian State. For the sake of historical justice, it should be noted that a kind of army in Russia, representing disparate princely squads, existed before the decree of Ivan the Terrible. But the actions of these military units were inconsistent, which significantly reduced the effectiveness of the military operations, despite the heroism and dedication that the Russian army was always famous for. During the reign of Ivan the Terrible, significant military reforms were carried out, the purpose of which was not only the creation of a local army and the organization of its centralized command and supply, but also the improvement of artillery. Warriors have explosive weapons and firearms weapon. The result of the innovations was the creation of the Strelets army and the permanent guard service, and artillery outfits were transformed into independent military units. The political prerequisites for carrying out these reforms were a significant numerical increase in troops against the background of feudal fragmentation and internecine wars, deliverance from the yoke of foreign invaders, as well as the creation of a single centralized state. The simultaneous strengthening of the economic and economic aspects of life has made it possible to increase the level of provision of the army with all the necessary means. The measures taken helped the Russian army to increase its combat capability and successfully defended the interests of the Russian people in battles with numerous and well-trained enemies for a century and a half.
A completely new approach to the formation of the army was undertaken by Peter I, who in early November 1699, issued a decree “On the recruitment of soldiers from free people”. This document was the beginning of the recruitment system of the army. The territorial nature of the assembly of troops was explained by the fact that each regiment was attached to a certain province, which provided for its maintenance at its own expense. The regiments were assigned the names of the territory of deployment with all the necessary attributes in the form of distinctive signs on the uniform and their own banners. During this period, the post of commander-in-chief was established for the first time, and a special field headquarters was established, headed by the quartermaster general. Along with the opening of special military schools for the training of military art, deep military-judicial reforms were carried out, the officer service was regulated and a unified system of military training and training was developed for organizing competent management of the armed forces. It is possible that the changes were the main reason for the success of the Russian army in later military battles, when the victory in the Northern War with Sweden was won (1700-1721) and the original Russian territories captured by the enemy were returned. A heavy war, which lasted almost a quarter of a century, hardened Russian soldiers, turning them from national teams into one of the best regular armies in Europe, whose achievements the whole world admired.
The following significant changes in the territorial structure of the army occurred in the 1763 year, when all the military units existing at that time in Russia were divided into districts or divisions. Five districts were formed, named for their place of deployment: Estland, Livonia, Smolensk, St. Petersburg and Ukraine. In addition to them, the Kazan, Voronezh and Belarusian divisions were later established. The changes affected the composition of the infantry regiments. From now on, each of them consisted of twelve companies, ten of which were musketeers, and two - grenadiers. The companies were consolidated into two battalions, and in addition to them, independent artillery teams were formed, which were also part of the regiment.
One cannot but recall the significant contribution to the development of the Russian ground forces by such great military leaders as Peter Alexandrovich Rumyantsev and Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin, who cared not only about changing the structure, strategy and tactics of the Russian troops, but also about improving the conditions of service for ordinary soldiers. Further development of the ground forces occurred during the military leadership of Suvorov and Kutuzov. It was their military talent and achieved military success, when it was possible to defeat the enemy not at the expense of a higher number, but thanks to the skillful conduct of hostilities, that allowed radical changes in military-theoretical training to be made and became an example for all subsequent generations of military personnel. The high maneuverability and mobility of military units, which Kutuzov preferred, allowed the Russian troops to brilliantly conduct battles in wars with the Turkish army (1789-90 years), as well as during the Swiss and Italian campaigns (1799 years). To streamline the centralized leadership of troops under Alexander I, the military Ministry of the Ground Forces was first established, established by the Manifesto of 8 on September 1802. His successor, Alexander II, introduced universal military service, changed the methods of manning and the system of training army personnel. A special page in the history of the ground forces is the Patriotic War of the 1812 of the year, when the whole world admired the stamina and courage of Russian soldiers who managed to stop the battle-hardened, experienced and well-equipped French army, which conquered all of Europe at that time. Thanks to the high training and ability to conduct long-term hostilities in difficult conditions, the determination and courage of the Russian soldiers, the myth of the invincibility of the French was dispelled. A vivid evidence of the heroism of our troops was the historical battle of Borodino.
With the development of technological progress and the emergence of new types of weapons from the second half of the 82th century, the role of the army’s technical equipment began to change rapidly. Machine guns are replacing obsolete smoothbore guns, a wire telegraph is being introduced everywhere, and new types of guns are appearing in artillery. This necessitated the creation of new methods and forms of warfare. In addition to technical innovations, changes are taking place in the army management structures. The system of training command personnel was revised, the Military Collegium was created, as well as the Quartermaster unit and the General Staff of the army. As a result, by the beginning of the 9th century, the structure of the army was as follows: 7,5% were infantry, 1,5% were cavalry, XNUMX% were artillery, and XNUMX% were engineer troops. All divisions, depending on the type of deployment, the nature of the tasks and manning, were divided into local, field, reserve, auxiliary, Finnish and serf troops. In addition to them, irregular independent Cossack units operated. The First World War required new adjustments and additional investments in the development and support of the army. But the low economic potential against the backdrop of a looming political and industrial crisis did not make it possible to organize the supply of a multimillion-strong ground army at a sufficient level, which negatively affected the outcome of the hostilities. The army suffered huge losses, but even under such circumstances, Russian soldiers showed examples of unlimited courage and courage. Active development of such types of ground forces as aviation, engineering, railway and aeronautics, the emergence of new special forces of biological and chemical protection, the growth of the technical equipment of the army were interrupted and practically nullified during the subsequent revolutionary transformations in Russia. The Bolsheviks who came to power created a new Red Army, consisting of workers and peasants who did not possess the necessary combat skills and knowledge for waging war. Their baptism of fire took place in difficult conditions of an ongoing civil war on the one hand and military intervention on the other. The current situation required new transformations in the army. The most fruitful period for the development of the ground forces was the period after the civil war and before the outbreak of World War II, when, in addition to structural changes, a new type of mechanized mechanized forces was created, which since 1934 was renamed as armored. It was these troops, the number of which on the eve of the treacherous invasion of Germany increased by 7,4 times, made a significant contribution to the course of hostilities during the Great Patriotic War. In the same period, there is an active re-equipment of troops with more modern artillery systems, which have high tactical and technical indicators. Among them is the famous Katyusha multiple launch rocket launcher (BM-13), as well as Tanks KV-1 and T-34, automatic weapons, sniper rifles and anti-tank rifles. Before the war, the Soviet Union was not able to fully provide the army with all necessary means and to establish mass production of weapons and ammunition, all this had to be done already in wartime. By the beginning of the Nazi invasion attack, our ground forces consisted of 303 divisions, 211 of which were rifle, cavalry, motorcycle and mountain rifle divisions, 61 divisions were tank and 31 divisions were motorized. The army was armed with more than 110 thousand mortars and guns, almost 23 thousand tanks. In the early years of the war, despite the difficult conditions of warfare and the insufficient security of the army, together with the level of training of the enemy, the ground forces were able to maintain combat effectiveness and build up their strength in defensive conditions, stop the rapid attack of the enemy and proceed to destroy it. During the years of World War II, the firepower of the army significantly increased, the share of mechanized and armored forces increased from 4,4 to 11,5%, while the share of artillery increased from 12,6 to 20,7%. The number of troops has almost doubled (up to 10 million people), and the clear, flexible structure of command and control of the army ensured the effectiveness of military operations. During the war, the arms of the ground forces were updated by 80%, and some types of weapons surpassed many foreign counterparts in their combat characteristics.
Profound qualitative reforms occurred in the army during the post-war period. To ensure uninterrupted leadership, the most numerous and diverse form of the armed forces of our country in March 1946 was formed by the Ground Forces Army Main Command, which Zhukov was rightfully entrusted to head. From 1950 of the year to 1997 of the year, this control body was three times disbanded and re-established. The next large-scale stage of changes in the ground forces was in the period of the collapse of the Soviet Union, when the number of troops decreased due to natural causes by more than 1 million people. Starting from 2009, in the framework of the general reform of the Russian armed forces, instead of the usual structure, cumbersome divisions, which were difficult to manage effectively, brigades of permanent readiness were formed, which became the main tactical unit of the Russian ground forces.
Today, the Russian ground forces are subordinated to the Ministry of Defense, and six military districts (Moscow, Leningrad, North Caucasus, Volga-Urals, Far Eastern and Siberian) are evenly distributed throughout the country. The modern structure of the land forces of Russia consists of the following types of troops: motorized rifle, tank, artillery and rocket troops, air defense troops, as well as special troops, units and parts of the material and technical supply. All of these structures are organized into combined-arms armies, specialized brigades (motorized rifle and mountain, tank, air assault and cover brigades), machine-gun artillery divisions, military bases, training centers and other organizations and institutions.
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