to further expand it, was successful in helping to defend it against immediate German counterattacks. The division dug in, but on October 4 came under a massive artillery bombardment and found itself under attack by the 3rd Panzer Division and driven back towards the river. Partly owing to Colonel Dzhandzhgava's personal intervention in the battle, the bridgehead was barely held. This bridgehead would become one of the breakout points for Rokossovski's 2nd Belorussian Front in January, 1945. Dzhandzhgava was promoted to the rank of Major General on November 2. The new offensive began on January 14, and the 354th pushed on through northern Poland and eastern Germany to the Elbe River during the next few months. On February 19 the 1201st Rifle Regiment was awarded the Order of Suvorov, 3rd Degree, for its part in the liberation of Mława and other nearby towns. As the final offensive began in April, the division had 6,000 personnel; the rifle regiments had two battalions of two companies of 60 – 70 men each, machine-gun companies had only 4-5 guns each, and the mortar companies had only 3-4 mortars. The 921st Artillery Regiment had 22 guns and howitzers, while the 274th Antitank Battalion counted only eight guns left in two batteries. When the Berlin operation began on April 16 the 105th Rifle Corps consisted of the 354th, 193rd and 44th Guards Rifle Divisions. The Corps was on the right flank of 65th Army, and the 354th was in the first echelon. Part of the division was designated to reconnoiter the German positions across the Oder, and then to help lead the forcing of the east branch of the river on the 18th. Despite 65th Army's expertise in river crossings, this operation was complicated by normal spring flooding, which was worsened when the Germans opened floodgates higher up the river on April 20. At this time, most of the division was on the lowland between the Oder's east and west branches, which was soon inundated. General Dzhandzhgava gave orders that all divisional equipment was to be loaded on rafts, tied to trees to resist the floodwaters, while the personnel were also to take to the trees. As the flood abated, elements of the division crossed to the river's west bank, established a bridgehead and captured a fortified village, to which Dzhandzhgava soon transferred his command post. On May 1, Stalin gave thanks to the 354th