The 95th Rifle Division was a Red Army Rifle Division during World War II, formed three times. The division was first formed in November 1923 with the 6th Rifle Corps. It fought in the Winter War and the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina. After Operation Barbarossa, the division fought in the retreat from Moldova and fought in the siege of Odessa and the siege of Sevastopol. It was destroyed during the siege of Sevastopol and was disbanded in late July 1942. The division was reformed in August 1942 from the 13th Motor Rifle Division NKVD and fought at the Battle of Stalingrad. For its actions during the battle, the division became the 75th Guards Rifle Division in March 1943. In April 1943, the division was formed a third time at Kaluga from the 121st Rifle Brigade. It fought in Operation Bagration.

The siege of Sevastopol, also known as the defence of Sevastopol or the Battle of Sevastopol, was a military engagement that took place on the Eastern Front of the Second World War. The campaign was fought by the Axis powers of Germany and Romania against the Soviet Union for control of Sevastopol, a port in Crimea on the Black Sea. On 22 June 1941, the Axis invaded the Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa, with Axis land forces reaching the Crimean peninsula in the autumn of 1941 and overrunning most of the area. The only objective not in Axis hands was Sevastopol. Several attempts were made to secure the city in October and November 1941. A major attack was planned for late November, but heavy rains delayed it until 17 December 1941. Under the command of Erich von Manstein, Axis forces were unable to capture Sevastopol during this first operation. Soviet forces launched an amphibious landing on the Crimean peninsula at Kerch in December 1941 to relieve the siege and force the Axis to divert forces to defend their gains. The operation saved Sevastopol for the time being, but the bridgehead in eastern Crimea was eliminated in May 1942.