This formation first saw service in Operation Suvorov, the summer offensive of Western Front that liberated Smolensk in late September, and then fought through the autumn and winter in grinding battles towards the city of Orsha.

Its order of battle was as follows: Col. Karp Vasilyevich Sviridov remained in command from the 363rd, and would hold this position throughout the first formation, being promoted to major general on October 1.

The operational objective for the first day of the offensive was the town of Pavlinovo situated on the Smolensk - Spas-Demensk railway, 10 km to the south.

Furthermore, two key German positions at Gnezdilovo and nearby Hill 233.3 had not been identified by Soviet intelligence and so escaped the preparatory bombardment.

The Hill was not finally taken until the evening of August 10 after a massive assault led by the reinforcing 29th Guards Rifle Division supported by the 23rd Tank Brigade.

A few hours earlier the 56th Guards had captured the village of Delyagino, causing the German forces to retreat 2 km to the south.

These gains unhinged the Büffel-Stellung and allowed 10th Guards Army to finally reach the Smolensk - Spas-Demensk railway; the XII Corps was now forced to trade space for time until Sokolovsky's offensive outran its logistical support.

Despite German reinforcements by late afternoon XII Corps' front was crumbling and Soviet infantry and tanks were approaching Pavlinovo.

The objective was to finally shatter the XII Army Corps and then push mobile groups through the gaps to seize Yelnya.

10th Guards and 21st Armies attacked a German battlegroup around Terenino station, held by one infantry battalion and an engineer unit.

The next day the 10th Guards mopped up the German elements that had failed to make it over the Ugra and began pushing up the rail line toward Yelnaya.

General Sokolovsky continued local attacks through the first week of the month but his Western Front was again forced to a halt due to logistical shortages.

However it was clear by the end of the day that IX Corps was close to breaking and during the night it fell back to the next defensive line, which was mostly incomplete.

Supply problems forced the Soviet armies to pause for a few days outside Smolensk before making the final push.

At this point the 19th Guards Corps finally crossed the river and joined the pursuit, which led to the eastern approaches to Dubrovno, 15 km east of Orsha, by the end of October 11.

"[14]This renewal of the offensive began early on October 21 after a two-hour-and-ten-minute artillery preparation which struck the first defensive line of the German 197th Infantry Division.

While the remainder of 10th Guards Army cleared German defenders from the bogs south of the Verkhita River, this was also at considerable cost, and a halt was called once again at the end of October 26.

At the critical moment, Guards Lieutenant Colonel M. A. Anikin, the regimental commander, made a singularly correct decision: to cover the enemy ranks with machine gun fire and then conduct a counterattack.

Inspired by their commander and Guards Major Moskvin, his assistant for political affairs, the regiment rushed at the enemy, and the Germans, not able to withstand the hand-to-hand combat, ran back to their foxholes.

It was intended to spearhead, along with the 3rd Guards Cavalry Corps, a new offensive northward from the Nevel salient towards Idritsa, beginning on January 10, 1944.

19th and 7th Guards Rifle Corps shared a total of 10,500 personnel replacements during the move, which was finally completed on January 14.

[19] On August 5 Guards Colonel Panishev left command of the division; he was replaced four days later by Col. Vasilii Ivanovich Morozov, who would hold this position until the end of the war.

Over the next six weeks the division made steady but unremarkable progress through eastern Latvia, reaching the vicinity of Lubāna by mid-September.

The troops who participated in the liberation of Riga, by the order of the Supreme High Command of October 13, 1944, and a commendation in Moscow, are given a salute of 24 artillery salvoes from 324 guns.