10th Mechanized Corps (Soviet Union)

The 10th Mechanized Corps was a formation in the Soviet Red Army during the Second World War.

First formation
The corps was initially formed in March 1941 in response the German victories of 1940. It was attached to the Leningrad Military District, and was held in reserve near the Leningrad Fortified Region in Soviet Union. It was under the command of Major General I.G. Lazarev when the German Operation Barbarossa began in June 1941. It initially comprised the 21st and 24th Tank Divisions, and the 198th Mechanized Division.

The 10th Mechanized Corps was transported to the Finnish border near Imatra, so it was not involved in the first battles of Operation Barbarossa, being brought out of reserve on 10 July 1941. From that date, it formed part of the Luga Operational Group under the command of Lieutenant General K. P. Piadyshev, defending the 'Luga Line'. The Luga Line defenses were constructed by 55,000 civilians, which were extended from Narva to Shimsk on Lake Ilmen. It first engaged the 8th Panzer Division on 13 July 1941 along with the 177th Rifle Division, isolating it from its neighbouring divisions for several days around Dno, resulting in 70 of its 150 tanks being either destroyed or damaged.

The Luga Operational Group was encircled & destroyed on 8 August 1941 near Krasnogvardeisk, which resulted in losses of 30,000 men, 120 tanks, and 400 guns. The 10th Mechanized Corps was officially disbanded a short time later although individual units continued to exist separately for a short while.

By September 1941, the 198th Mechanized Division had become the 198th Rifle Division and the 24th Tank Division had been dissolved and reformed as the 124th Tank Battalion and 12th Tank Regiment.

Second formation
The second 10th Mechanized Corps was formed in December 1944. It did not fight in World War II. However, it participated in the Harbin–Kirin offensive operation during the Soviet invasion of Manchuria.

After the war, in January 1946, the corps was reorganized into the 10th Mechanized Division; it was part of the 25th Army of the Primorsky Military District. The division was stationed in Korea along with other units from the 25th Army until 1948. After being stationed in Korea, it was withdrawn back to the USSR and transferred to the 5th Army. The staff were stationed in the village of Sibirtsevo, Primorsky Krai.

In 1957, it was reorganized into the 84th Motorized Rifle Division, stationed in the town of Suchan, Primorsky Krai. The division was disbanded on 1 July 1958.