The 112th Tank Division was formed in August 1941, in
Primorsky Krai on the basis of the 112th Tank Regiment,
239th Motorised Division,
30th Mechanised Corps. Its order of battle was as follows: • 124th Tank Regiment (1st, 2nd, 3rd Tank Battalions, each with 32
T-26 tanks); • 125th Tank Regiment (1st, 2nd, 3rd Tank Battalions, each with 32 T-26 tanks); • 112th Motorized Regiment (1st, 2nd, 3rd Battalions) • 112th Motorized Howitzer Regiment (1st and 2nd Battalions) • 112th Sapper Battalion • 112th Antitank Battalion The division's formation was entrusted to Colonel
Andrei Getman, the former chief of staff of the 30th Mechanised Corps. Deputy Colonel Andrei Getman appointed Plato Y. Mikhailov, a division of profits experienced commanders: The division commissioner became regimental commissar Yefim V. Beznosov, to the post of chief of staff appointed Colonel Mikhail Leonov Trofymovych. By mid-October 1941, the 112th Tank Division was ready to be sent to the front. On the morning of 4 November 1941, the train carrying the divisional headquarters was attacked by German aircraft between
Ryazan and
Moscow. Four soldiers were wounded and two were killed. On 7 November, the division was unloaded at
Podolsk. The 112th Division became part of the
6th Tank Corps of the
1st Tank Army.
Western Front headquarters created a mobile mechanized cavalry group, composed of General Belov's cavalry corps and the 112th Tank Division, under the overall command of General
Alexander Belov. The group was created to prevent the German capture of
Tula.
The fighting near Moscow The 112th Tank Division saw its first combat on 16 November 1941 during the
Battle of Moscow. Together with other units, the division was involved in an offensive in the direction of
Maleev,
Vyazovka and
Vysokinichi. Amid strong resistance, however, it failed to achieve substantial results. The division was also involved in combat to the west and north-west of
Serpukhov soon afterwards. As a result of the action, an attack by the German
XIII Corps on Serpukhov was successfully repelled. After these battles, Colonel Getman's division was urgently transferred to
Kashira, where the hospitals and the front of rear services, to eliminate the German breakthrough. Until the beginning of the counter-offensive, 112th Tank Division served as a fire brigade, conducting counter-attacks on the flanks of groups of the enemy, supporting 49th and 50th Armies' thin line of defense. From December 7 to December 10 the division was united with the
340th Rifle Division under a single command. For its performance in military operations, 112th Tank Division received the
Order of the Red Banner. On 2 January 1942 the division was reorganised as the 112th Tank Brigade, maintaining its numbers and numbers of regiments, which became battalions. ==Revolutionary Mongolia (1943)==