The unit's history stems from the 174th Rifle Division, which became the 20th Guards Rifle Division in 1942. The 174th Rifle Division fought as part of the 22nd Army in the Polotsk defensive operation, where it escaped encirclement. During the winter of 1942, it fought in defensive and counteroffensive operations in the Battle of Moscow. It was awarded the honorary title of "Guards" and was renamed into the 20th Guards Rifle Division on 17 March 1942.
In 1945, the unit became the 25th Guards Mechanized Division,[7] and in 1957, it was renamed to the 37th Guards Tank Division at Constanza with the 1st Guards Army.[1] The division moved to Kryvyi Rih in 1958 and was subordinated to the 6th Guards Army. In 1960, the 69th Separate Tank Training Battalion, which was part of the 37th Guards Tank Division, was disbanded. On 19 February 1962, the Missile Battalion and the 129th Separate Equipment Maintenance and Recovery Battalion were activated. On 11 January 1965, the 37th Guards Tank Division became the 17th Guards Tank Division, a designation it would retain until the fall of the Soviet Union.[1]
In 1968, the 26th Separate Guards Sapper Battalion became an engineer-sapper battalion. The chemical defence company activated the 44th Separate Chemical Defence Battalion in 1972. The 1055th Separate Material Supply Battalion was formed from the separate motor transport battalion.
In June 1989, the 1158th Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment was transferred to East Germany, and was replaced by the 1069th Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment of the 47th Guards Tank Division. The 25th and 92nd Tank Regiments of the 58th Tank Division replaced the division's 216th Guards and 224th Tank Regiments in June 1990. During the Cold War, the division was maintained at 60% strength.[1]
It is still designated a tank division as of Decree N 350/93 (21 August 1993), when Colonel Ivan Svidi, Commander of the 17th Tank Division, 6th Army Corps, Odesa Military District, became a major-general.
In accordance with Decree 925/98, of 23 August 1998, division commander Serhiy Andriyovych Harbuz was promoted to Major General.[8]
In September 2003, the division was downsized into a brigade.[6] After the 6th Army Corps was disbanded in 2013, the brigade became part of Operational Command East.
On 18 November 2015, its honorifics "Red Banner Order of Suvorov" were removed as part of an Armed Forces-wide removal of Soviet awards and honorifics.[9] The Kryvyi Rih battle honour remained because Kryvyi Rih is located in Ukraine.[10] On 22 August 2016 its Guards title was removed.[11]
During the Second Battle of Donetsk Airport, the word cyborg (Ukrainian: кіборг) was used to refer to the Ukrainian defenders of the airport.[12][13] It was first applied to these soldiers online, and was picked up by the Ukrainian media. It refers to the way that the airport defenders were able to fend off constant attacks by DPR forces in close quarters with little sleep or support, just as science-fiction cyborgs are "indestructible half-men, half-machines", or "superhuman".[12][14] The cyborgs have become part of Ukrainian national mythos, and are cast in a "near-legendary light" amongst many Ukrainians.[15] The term "cyborg" is usually applied to the following units: 3rd Spetsnaz Regiment, 93rd Mechanised Brigade, 79th Airmobile Brigade, 17th Tank Brigade, and the Right Sector volunteer battalion.[16]
^ ab"УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ №618/2019" [DECREE OF THE PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE №618 / 2019] (in Ukrainian). President of Ukraine. 22 August 2019. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
^"УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ № 569/2006" [Decree of the President of Ukraine No. 569/2006]. president.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). Press Service of the President of Ukraine. 23 June 2006. Archived from the original on 17 August 2007. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
^ ab"17 окрема танкова бригада" [17th Separate Tank Brigade]. Ukrainian Military Portal (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2016-08-31. Retrieved 2016-01-17.
^"УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ №646/2015" [Ukaz President of Ukraine No. 646/2015] (in Ukrainian). President of Ukraine. 18 November 2015. Archived from the original on 2016-08-31. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
^"УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ №344/2016" [Ukaz of the President of Ukraine No. 344/2016] (in Ukrainian). President of Ukraine. 22 August 2016. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
Soviet Union
Ukraine
1st Tank Battalion
17th Mechanized Infantry Battalion
2nd Rifle Infantry Battalion
17th Artillery Group
OC "North"
OC "East"
Divisions of the Soviet Union 1957–1989
