287th Rifle Division
The 287th Rifle Division was a Soviet Red Army infantry formation established twice during the Second World War.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The 287th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Soviet Red Army during the Second World War. It was created twice because its first formation was effectively destroyed during the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, while a second formation survived to the end of the war and was later disbanded. The first formation began organizing around 10 July 1941 at Yelets in the Orel Military District. Its principal components included the 866th, 868th, and 870th Rifle Regiments and the 851st Artillery Regiment. Although the division was still completing its organization, it was placed in the reserve of the Bryansk Front in August. In early October, following the German breakthrough associated with Operation Typhoon, the division was sent by rail toward the fighting near Bryansk. Eleven trains unloaded at Brasovo station, approximately 75 kilometres south of Bryansk, and the division attempted counterattacks between 3 and 5 October. It became trapped in the Bryansk pocket and was virtually destroyed by the middle of October. The formation was formally dissolved on 27 December 1941. A second 287th Rifle Division began forming at Lipetsk in late December 1941. It retained the basic regimental structure of the earlier division and incorporated survivors who had escaped the Bryansk pocket. The new formation was assigned to the Bryansk Front while still organizing, joined the 3rd Army in January 1942, and received its commander later that winter. It remained on the Bryansk Front through a succession of operations and in May 1943 moved to the 63rd Army. In October 1943, the army transferred to the Belorussian Front, and in December the division moved to the 13th Army and its 24th Rifle Corps. During 1944 and 1945 the division changed higher formations several times as Soviet forces advanced westward. It served in the 102nd Rifle Corps of the 13th Army from the summer of 1944, joined the 67th Rifle Corps of the 38th Army in November, and from December 1944 belonged to the 76th Rifle Corps of the 3rd Guards Army. Its wartime service included operations in Ukraine, Belarus, and the final advance into Germany. In late April 1945 it participated in the Berlin Offensive. On 25 April, its commander, Major General Iosif Pankratov, was killed when a large mine detonated. By the end of the war, the division carried the honorific Novograd-Volynsky and had received two Orders of the Red Banner, as well as the Orders of Suvorov, Kutuzov, and Bogdan Khmelnitsky. It was disbanded during the summer of 1945 while serving with the Central Group of Forces. As a military formation rather than a commercial organization, it had no consumer products, commercial headquarters, public website, or listed-company structure.
History
The 287th Rifle Division existed in two wartime formations. The first was organized at Yelets from approximately 10 July 1941 under the Orel Military District. Its planned order of battle included the 866th, 868th, and 870th Rifle Regiments and the 851st Artillery Regiment. The division was placed in the Bryansk Front reserve in August, but remained incompletely organized when the German offensive disrupted Soviet positions around Bryansk. The division was committed in early October 1941. Its units arrived by eleven trains at Brasovo station, south of Bryansk, between 3 and 5 October and carried out unsuccessful counterattacks. The formation was encircled in the Bryansk pocket during the German advance and was effectively destroyed by mid-October. It was formally disbanded on 27 December 1941. The second formation began at Lipetsk in late December 1941. Survivors of the first formation helped provide its initial personnel, and the division again included the 866th, 868th, and 870th Rifle Regiments with an artillery regiment. It entered the Bryansk Front structure while still forming and joined the 3rd Army in January 1942. The division fought on the Bryansk Front and transferred to the 63rd Army in May 1943. In October 1943 the 63rd Army moved to the Belorussian Front. The 287th was transferred to the 13th Army in December and subsequently served in the 24th Rifle Corps. By April 1944 its anti-tank battalion used older 76 mm M1936 or M1939 USV guns. In July it moved to the 102nd Rifle Corps. In November the division entered the 67th Rifle Corps of the 38th Army, and from December 1944 until the end of the war it served with the 76th Rifle Corps of the 3rd Guards Army. The division took part in the Berlin Offensive from late April 1945. Its commander, Major General Iosif Pankratov, was killed on 25 April when a large mine exploded. The division ended the war with the Novograd-Volynsky honorific and multiple Soviet decorations: two Orders of the Red Banner and the Orders of Suvorov, Kutuzov, and Bogdan Khmelnitsky. It was disbanded in summer 1945 with the Central Group of Forces.
- 1945
Berlin Offensive
[1]The division fought in the Berlin Offensive beginning in late April.
- 1945
Disbandment
[1]The division was disbanded during the summer while serving with the Central Group of Forces.
- 1943
Transfer to the 63rd Army
[1]In May, the division transferred from the 3rd Army to the 63rd Army on the Bryansk Front.
- 1943
Transfer to the Belorussian Front
[1]The 63rd Army moved to the Belorussian Front in October.
- 1941
First formation begins
[1]The division began organizing around 10 July at Yelets in the Orel Military District.
- 1941
First formation destroyed
[1]After entering the Bryansk fighting in early October, the division was trapped and virtually destroyed in the Bryansk pocket.
- 1941
Formal dissolution of first formation
[1]The first formation was formally disbanded on 27 December.
- 1941
Second formation begins
[1]A new 287th Rifle Division began forming at Lipetsk in late December, incorporating surviving personnel from the first formation.
Products and positioning
A wartime Soviet Red Army infantry formation organized for front-line combat.
Marketing campaigns
- 1945Berlin Offensive
Eastern Germany
The division participated in the Soviet offensive toward Berlin during the final phase of the war in Europe.
Outcome. It completed the war as a decorated division and was disbanded later in 1945.
- 1942Bryansk Front service
Soviet-German Front
The second formation served with the Bryansk Front and the 3rd Army after completing its initial organization.
Outcome. The division remained an active front-line formation and later transferred to the 63rd Army.
- 1941Bryansk Front operations
Soviet-German Front
The first formation was committed near Brasovo during the German advance and conducted counterattacks from 3 to 5 October before being encircled and destroyed.
Outcome. The first formation was virtually destroyed and formally disbanded in December.
Sources1 sources
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