Literature
Soviet 76th Guards Airborne Division
The history of the Soviet 76th Guards Airborne Division or 76-ya Gvardeyskaya Vozdushno-Desantnaya Diviziya traces back to the Great Patriotic War, when it was the Soviet 157th Rifle Division, which was formed on September 1st, 1939. The division first fought on the Crimea and later at Stalingrad in 1942.
On March 1st, 1943, the 157th Rifle Division was reorganized as the Soviet 76th Guards Rifle Division for its heroic defense at Stalingrad. The division fought at Kursk, the Battle of the Dnieper, Operation Bagration, the East Pomeranian Offensive and finally, the Battle of Berlin. In early May of 1945, the forward elements of the 76th Guards Rifle Division met up with paratroopers of the British 6th Airborne Division at the outskirts of Wismar, which was located at the edge of the Baltic Sea.
On July 6th, 1946, the 76th Guards Rifle Division was reorganized as the 76th Guards Airborne Division, becoming part of the Soviet Airborne Forces or VDV. Until the collapse of the Soviet
