4th Infantry Division (Romania)
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| 4th Infantry Division "Gemina" Divizia 4 Infanterie "Gemina" |
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|---|---|
 Official emblem of the 4th Infantry Division |
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| Active | 14/15 August 1916 - present |
| Country | Romania |
| Branch | Romanian Land Forces |
| Role | infantry |
| Size | 4 brigades, 2 regiments and 10 auxiliary battalions |
| Garrison/HQ | Cluj-Napoca |
| Anniversaries | 15th August |
| Engagements | Battle of Odessa Battle of Sevastopol Battle of Stalingrad First Jassy-Kishinev Offensive Prague Offensive |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Major General Mircea Savu |
| Notable commanders |
Marshal Constantin Prezan General Mihail Lascăr General Constantin Constantinescu-Claps General Mihai Racoviţǎ |
The 4th Infantry Division Gemina is one of the two major units of the Romanian Land Forces, with its headquarters in Cluj-Napoca. Until June 15, 2008 it was designated as the 4th Territorial Army Corps "Mareşal Constantin Prezan" (Corpul 4 Armată Territorial "Mareşal Constantin Prezan").
Contents |
[edit] History
The Fourth Army fought in the Romanian Campaign of World War I, under the command of General Prezan.
In July 1941 it took part in the recapturing of Bessarabia and the Northern Bukovina, which was annexed by the Soviet Union the year before.
It fought on the Axis side as part of the German Army Group B and later it fought on the Allies's side as part of the Soviet Second Ukrainian Front during World War II.
From late 1942 to early 1943, the Fourth Army was almost entirely destroyed during the Battle for Stalingrad. The Romanian Third Army suffered a similar fate.
During April–May 1944 the Romanian forces led by General Mihai Racoviţǎ, together with elements of the German Eighth Army were responsible for defending Northern Romania during the Soviet First Jassy-Kishinev Offensive, and took part in the Battles of Târgu Frumos. In August 1944, the Red Army entered Romania after driving back Army Group South from the region. On August 23, Marshal Ion Antonescu was dismissed by King Michael I, and Romania declared war on Germany and Hungary some days later. The Soviets took control of the oilfields in the Ploieşti area, and the Romanian Army was used to fight German forces on the Eastern Front.
The Fourth Army became one of the Romanian armies fighting for the Red Army on the Eastern Front. In its campaign from August 1944 to May 1945, the Romanian Army lost some 64,000 men killed. The Fourth Army took part in Soviet offensives, notably at Prague in May 1945, which happened to be the last offensive it took part in World War II.
In the Prague Offensive, the Fourth Army, together with the Romanian First Army, Polish Second Army, and Soviet Second, and Fourth Ukrainian Fronts. Marshal Ivan Koniev, the commander of the First Ukrainian Front, was the main Soviet commander in the area. Together with Marshal Georgy Zhukov's First Byelorussian Front, Koniev had launched the great attack on April 16 that resulted in the fall of Berlin and Soviet victory on the Eastern Front.
The offensive started on May 6, a few days before the end of the war. German resistance in the east was now limited to small pockets scattered across Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Austria. The remnants of Army Group Center held the remaining German-controlled areas in the east. In the attack on Prague, German resistance was defeated in the city, and the Soviet, Romanian, and Polish forces entered the city on May 9. Czech partisans had been fighting the Germans there for a few days.
By May 11 and 12, all remaining German pockets of resistance in the east were defeated.
[edit] Current structure
- 4th Infantry Division - HQs Cluj-Napoca
- 81st Mechanized Operational Brigade - Bistriţa
- 191st Infantry Battalion "Colonel Radu Golescu" - Arad
- 811th Infantry Battalion "Dragonii Transilvaniei (Transylvanian Dragons)" - Dej
- 812th Infantry Battalion "Şoimii Carpaţilor (Carpathians Hawks)" - Bistriţa
- 814th Tank Battalion - Turda
- 817th Artillery Battalion "Petru Rareș" - Prundu Bârgăului
- 55th Anti-aircraft Defense Battalion - Dej
- 405th Logistics Battalion - Bistriţa
- 15th Mechanized Territorial Brigade "Podu Înalt" - Iaşi
- 33rd Mechanized Battalion "Alexandru cel Bun" - Botoşani
- 151st Infantry Battalion "Războieni" - Iaşi
- 631st Tank Battalion "Urşii Băcăuani (Bacău-Bears)" - Bacău
- 61st Mountain Troops Territorial Brigade "Virgil Bădulescu" - Miercurea Ciuc
- 17th Mountain Troops Battalion "Dragoş Vodă" - Vatra Dornei
- 22nd Mountain Troops Battalion "Cireşoaia" - Sfântu Gheorghe
- 24th Mountain Troops Battalion - Miercurea Ciuc [1]
- 26th Mountain Troops Battalion "Avram Iancu"
- 69th Artillery Regiment - Şimleul Silvaniei
- 4th Logistics Brigade - Dej
- 43rd Transport Battalion
- 4th Engineer Battalion - Deva
- 52nd Engineer Battalion - Satu Mare
- 136th Bridges Battalion - Alba Iulia
- 50th Mixed Anti-aircraft Missile Regiment "Andrei Mureşianu" - Floreşti
- 55th Signal Battalion "Napoca" - Cluj-Napoca
- 317th Reconnaissance Battalion "Vlădeasa" - Cluj-Napoca
- 400th Logistic Support Battalion
- 498th Paratroopers Battalion - Bacău
- 72nd NBC Battalion - Huşi
- 202nd NBC Battalion - Sighişoara
- 81st Mechanized Operational Brigade - Bistriţa
[edit] References
- ^ Romanian Military Press, November 2005
