3rd border detachment of the NKVD troops

The detachment was formed in the 1920s.

Took part in the winter war

On June 22, 1941, the detachment, numbering 1364 personnel ^[1] , was on the defensive on a section of the Soviet state border in the Sortavala region.

The detachment consisted of the 1st border commandant as part of the 1st reserve frontier outpost, the 1st - 4th border outposts, the 2nd border commandant's office as part of the 2nd reserve frontier outpost, the 5th - 8th border outposts, 3rd border commandant as part of the 3rd reserve border outpost, 9th - 14th border outposts, maneuver group, commandant platoon. He was a member of the Office of the Border Troops of the NKVD of the Karelian-Finnish Border District.

The headquarters of the detachment was in Sortavala .

As part of the army from June 22, 1941 to August 13, 1942.

With the outbreak of war, during the defensive operation, the detachment became operational subordinate to the 168th Infantry Division and, having received the task together with the division of the stubborn defense strip: the Palkijärvi, Ristalahti , Stanitsa, Putsaari Island, Soanlahti sub-stations, did not allow the enemy to break through into the Sortavala direction and leave it to the north -the east coast of Lake Ladoga , ^[2] embarked on hostilities. The frontier outposts of the detachment were subordinate to the commanders of the rifle regiments, on the plots of which they were located, and were included in the battalion defense areas as rifle companies.

The flank units of the detachment entered the fighting in the first decade of July 1941, providing assistance to the neighboring 142nd (left) and 71st rifle divisions. The remaining units of the detachment entered the fighting on July 10, 1941, when Finnish troops attacked the positions of the 168th Infantry Division . In battles, the detachment received the following characteristics: “it constantly showed and continues to display extremely high combat efficiency, courage and heroism, which deserve special attention and are worthy of high praise. Being on one of the most important areas of the front, the detachment steadily repelled repeated violent attacks of a numerically many times superior enemy, inflicting heavy losses on him within two to two and a half weeks from the outbreak of hostilities. ”

So, for example, on July 23-25, 1941, a company of border guards, covering the flank of the 360th Infantry Regiment and heading to Sortavala, kept the entrusted line for two days. On July 26-27, 1941, Finnish troops broke through in the direction of Kalamo Ryutu by force to the regiment, threatening to enter Sortavala . On the orders of the commander of the 168th Infantry Division, a company of border guards was thrown into the breach with the task of restraining the enemy and ensuring the division reached a new frontier. Despite the numerical superiority of the enemy, the company went on the counterattack seven times and not only restrained the enemy, but also inflicted heavy losses on him. On the same days, the 1st commandant’s office fought with an enemy threatening to enter Lyamskel’s Hamikoski, repelling 11 attacks of the Finnish troops for 4 days. On August 1, 1941, one of the detachment groups, being sent to the Hiitol region, delayed the enemy forces that had broken through, and on August 3, 1941, the same group fought for the surrounded command post of the 588th infantry regiment and facilitated its exit from the encirclement. It was this group in the number of remaining 70 people that fell into the combined detachment of Colonel Donskov S.I. , who led the defense in the inter-grain defile , covering the roads to Kaarlahti - Kexholm . ^{[3] [4]}

From the memorandum of the command of the NKVD troops for the protection of the rear of the Karelian front about the fighting of the 3rd border detachment

“In the battles on the Karelian Isthmus in the area of ​​Toivalahti Bay, a Finnish officer gave the command:“ Go on the attack! ”- and the soldiers answered him:“ There are border guards, let the Germans go on the attack themselves! ”... One of the prisoners was interrogated a soldier of the Finnish army to the question asked: “What information do you have about us?” he replied: “We know that there are few of you in this sector, but border guards are fighting against us, and we therefore consider our attacks hopeless, we are in these attacks suffered losses of up to 70% of its composition. ” ^[four]

The detachment, excluding the group remaining in the consolidated detachment of Colonel Donskov S.I., arrived on August 7, 1941 in the Kirk-Kukkola area and was located 400 meters from the command post of the 19th Rifle Corps , from August 8, 1941 it reflects the attacks of the Finnish troops, threatening the command post, on August 9, 1941, on its own initiative, covers up the withdrawal of both the corps command and the Red Army units that were withdrawing in disarray. Since August 9, a detachment without a third border commandant defended the approaches to Kexholm . Since August 11, 1941, the detachment has been conducting continuous heavy battles on the outskirts of Kexholm , on August 20 the detachment retreated to the Sakkola station area, on the night of August 21, 1941 entered the battle on the move, covering the 461st rifle regiment in a difficult situation with a swift strike he threw back the enemy, went to his rear, defeated the artillery convoy, and seized valuable secret documents.

From August 22 to August 28, 1941, in the vicinity of the village of Vaskelovo, part of the personnel of the detachment was sent to form the 1st Rifle Division of the NKVD , and the detachment was included in the combined detachment of the border guards.

In the first two months of the war alone, the detachment reported on the destruction of more than 2,000 enemy soldiers and officers, the capture of 37 people and captured numerous valuable trophies.

On September 21, 1941, the combined detachment of border guards became a separate infantry brigade of the NKVD border troops ^[5] , where the 3rd border detachment was an integral part of the brigade.

On August 13, 1942, as part of a separate infantry brigade of the NKVD border troops, a detachment of 671 personnel ^{[6] was} transferred to the Red Army .

• Colonel Drozdov Nikolay Nikolaevich

• The order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 0205 of May 31, 1956 of the directorates, units and institutions of the NKVD troops that were part of the active army during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.