Through the winter of 1943-44 it helped to make incremental gains against the forces of Army Group Center, setting the stage for the summer offensive, during which the division would win its first decoration.

On July 28, in an unusual procedure, it was disbanded, then reformed the same day with replacement troops and the same commander and staff; due to the latter fact this was not officially considered a new formation.

A renewed German offensive drive succeeded in encircling much of 62nd Army by the end of August 8; surviving elements of the division made their way east of the river.

On August 25 the German 71st Infantry Division crossed the Don north of Kalach with two regiments, and the 399th was forced to withdraw five to eight kilometres to the east.

By September 7 it had been forced back to the western outskirts of the suburban villages of Gorodishche and Aleksandrovka; at this time it had a reported infantry strength of just 195 men.

On the following day, the German 71st Infantry Division began its assault into central Stalingrad, and the 399th was redeployed southwards, as one of Chuikov's few reserves.

For displayed cowardice – fleeing from the field of battle and abandoning units to the mercy of their fate, the commander of the associated regiment of 399th Rifle Division, Major Zhukov, and the commissar, Senior Politruk Raspopov, have been shot in front of the ranks.

"[10]Following this, the remnants of the division were relieved and ordered north to the 3rd Tank Army in the Reserve of the Supreme High Command south of Moscow.

Following this it formed a powerful shock group consisting of the 6th Guards Rifle Division, 9th Ski Brigade, three tank regiments and later the 399th and committed it in the Pokrovskoye sector.

48th Army formed two shock groups, one of which was composed of the 399th, 6th Guards and 16th Rifle Divisions, 9th Ski Brigade, the 42nd and 43rd tank regiments and over half of the Front's available artillery.

The assault began on March 6, on a sector north of Maloarkhangelsk, but the two shock groups failed to even dent the German defenses and it was called off a few days later.

48th Army did not see much action during this battle, but following the German defeat it did play an important role in the counteroffensive, Operation Kutuzov, which finally liberated Oryol.

He would be promoted to the rank of major general on June 3, 1944 and would be named a Hero of the Soviet Union on April 6, 1945;[17] he remained in command for the duration of the war.

[19] In January, 1944 the commander of the renamed Belorussian Front, Army Gen. Konstantin Rokossovsky, planned another offensive to continue his drive towards Parichi and, in the best case, Bobruisk.

On January 19 one regiment of the division, which was now in first echelon, was able to exploit the success of the neighboring 95th Rifle Corps and advance on the German strongpoint at Medved from the west.

The next day the fresh 170th Rifle Division took up the battle for Medved, and under immense pressure the defenders had no choice but to abandon that village and the nearby position at Pechishche.

After six days of intense fighting, 48th Army's shock group managed to advance between five and ten kilometres on a front of roughly 20 km (12 mi).

42nd Corps was regrouped and ordered to attack northwestward toward Dubrova, Yasvin and Sosnovka, 15–25 km (9.3–15.5 mi) west and northwest of Shatsilki, beginning on January 24.

The 48th Army command chose to make its main attack with the two rifle corps, reinforced with artillery and tanks, along the 7 km (4.3 mi) Kostyashevo - Kolosy sector, in the direction of Repki, Turki and Bobruisk, break through the German defense and then reach the rear of its Zhlobin group of forces, cut it off from the crossings over the Berezina and then encircle and destroy it in conjunction with the 65th Army.

When the offensive began on June 23 both corps faced the difficult task of crossing the broad, swampy floodplain of the Drut River, but after heavy fighting the leading troops managed to capture the second German trench line by 1100 hours.

By midnight on the 25th 42nd Corps was part of a force driving due west towards Bobriusk and threatening to cut off six German divisions southwest of the city.

[27][28] Early on the morning of June 29 the Corps relieved units of the 3rd Army along the Vlasovichi to Titovka sector and prepared to attack Bobruisk from the northeast and east.

However, reconnaissance by 356th Rifle Division discovered that the garrison had withdrawn to the city's center while a prisoner revealed that a breakout to the northwest was planned.

Fighting off several counterattacks by German infantry and tanks, 42nd Corps continued to advance on July 13, reaching a line from Kholstovo to Yuzefuv.

Over the next three days 48th Army continued to advance through difficult wooded and swampy terrain up to 30 km (19 mi), reaching the approaches to Bialystok and Brest.

The German garrison, consisting of remnants of 7th and 299th Infantry Divisions and the 30th Panzergrenadier Regiment, contested the major brick structures and a series of concrete pillboxes, but despite this units of 42nd Corps soon broke into the town.

Heavy fighting continued overnight, widely employing artillery firing over open sights and extensive use of tanks and mortars, and by morning the garrison had been destroyed with its remnants taken prisoner.

On January 26 the 42nd Corps assisted 5th Guards Tank in capturing the towns of Tolkemit and Mühlhausen, severing land communications to the Germans' East Prussian group of forces.

[36] On April 5 the division was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for its role in the liberation of the Danzig region and the capture of Marienburg and other East Prussian cities.