The Great Patriotic War

My grandfather was born in 1918 in the village of Filippovka, Utevsky district, Kuibyshev Region in a peasant family. He loved to study, was a competent specialist. Before the army he worked as a kolkhoz Accountant, head of the village club and secretary of the village council. In January 1940, he was drafted into the Red Army. The place of service was 209 Corps Artillery Regiment, the headquarters of the 3rd Division, where Tolstov Valentin acted as a Senior Clerk, having the rank of Sergeant. The Regiment was in the village Shklo, Yavorsky district of Lviv Region, near the border with Poland. The regiment was armed with 122-mm and 152-mm howitzers, had double staff, 1999 personnel. At first, the guns were only horse-drawn, but then diesel ChTZ and GAZ vehicles arrived. The regiment had 4 divisions, each with four four-gun batteries. 209 Artillery Regiment until 06/22/1941 was part of the 6th SK (Rifle Corps) of the 6th Army of the Ukrainian Military District; from 06/22/1941 as part of the 6th SK (Rifle Corps) of the 6th Army of the South-Western Front. Factually, during all of 1940, there was practically no military and political preparation, as there was simply no time for this. On this site, the construction of military camps and a fortified area began. _x000D_ The defensive line stretched for almost 50 km. Construction was carried out very intensively and all available forces were involved. In the midst of construction work, the Division was visited by the People's Commissar of Defense Marshal of the Soviet Union S.K. Timoshenko, who checked and assessed military and political training without any discounts for employment in construction. Combat training had to be done in an emergency, so as not to lose face. Since the spring of 1941, the 41st Division was already in better conditions. The divisional camp was basically built and equipped, which ensured the normal deployment of troops and the deployment of combat training. In addition to the ongoing arrangement and construction, there were other difficulties. _x000D_ The situation in Western Ukraine was very tense. There were cases when the Red Army soldiers disappeared or servicemen were killed at the hands of Ukrainian nationalists. The commanding staff were allowed to move only accompanied by orderlies. Towards the beginning of the war, the area was increasingly saturated with various saboteurs and spies. _x000D_ With the beginning of the summer of 1941, rumors began to circulate about the imminent start of the war. The Germans, not really hiding, concentrated serious forces near the borders. Intelligence was carried out constantly. Small aircraft of the "Shtorkh" type in the open appeared over the area of the Division, and then deepened in the direction of Lvov. The corps and Division commanders received strict instructions from above, which basically boiled down to not causing any inappropriate actions to conflict on the border located not far from the border, live-fire exercises in order to avoid accidental shots towards the Germans. _x000D_ Moreover, it was forbidden to open fire on planes with German identification marks, even if they violate the state border and appear in the airspace over our territory. The Regiment had its share of military repressions. In the spring of 1941, the Commander of the Regiment, Major Koryakin, and the commissar of the Regiment, Major Bilakhodze, were repressed on a false denunciation. _x000D_ At the beginning of June 1941, my grandfather's regiment left the camps for an artillery training session. _x000D_ As you know, on June 14, 1941, a week before the war, the well-known TASS report was published, denying the possibility of a German attack on the Soviet Union. The main forces were at training camps and training grounds. Despite it, two days before the war, the Division Commander, Major General N.G. Mikushev ordered the unit commanders to return all personnel from special training camps and training grounds, as well as from work on the defensive line and completely concentrate in the camps. _x000D_ This decision, in the future, allowed not only to save many lives, material and technical base, but also to hold the fortified area for a relatively long time. Whether this decision was a personal initiative or not, we will never know, so General Mikushev died near Kiev in the same year._x000D_ On June 22, the Division's forces managed to occupy pillboxes, including those that were not completed. On the same day, the 209 cap entered the order of the 41st Division and took up a firing position near Rava-Russkaya. It was this circumstance that greatly contributed to the success of the division. _x000D_ After a while, my grandfather became the gunner of a 152-mm howitzer and took on his first battle. The 209th Artillery Regiment, was the only one of 28 Artillery regiments of the RGK located in our border district, which managed to fully turn around for battle. According to grandfather's recollections, the first battle took place near the village of Shklo. He was assigned as the 152mm howitzer gunner. According to the General Staff's plan, the 41st Infantry Division of the 6th Army KOVO, together with the 209 cap, was located southeast of Sedlisk and defended the legendary Rava-Russian fortified area. This fortified area was held for a long time and only by June 29 the front of the 6th Army retreated to the western outskirts of Lvov. The state of the main forces of the army was deplorable. There was almost no support from the aviation, there were problems with supplies, and the evacuation of the wounded. Losses in manpower and equipment were very large. On the night of June 29-30, the enemy captured Lvov and the 6th Army as a whole and the 41st SD retreated towards Dubno White church. (July 1941). _x000D_ Since July 1941, the 6th Army's main problem was the threat of encirclement. By the morning of 5.7.41, the forces of the 6th Army were to withdraw to the Ostrug, Cape Lanovce, Volochisk line with the combat mission of occupying and firmly defending Izyaslavsky and Starokonstantinovsky fortified areas. Thus, the 6th Army continued its retreat to the east. Enemy forces tried to drive a wedge into the 6th Army and encircle the Soviet forces. The fighting was fierce. There is no information about 41 SD and about the 6th SC for this period. _x000D_ On July 10, the main forces of the 6th Army fought for Berdichev. On July 15, the enemy occupied Belaya Tserkov. It is known that on 12.07 it was withdrawn to the reserve and replenished in the area of Belaya Tserkov, and from 14.07 they began combat actions in the area of Belaya Tserkov. In battles for town Belaya Tserkov Valentin Tolstov was wounded and shell-shocked, but later returned to service. The 6th Army was part of the South Front. From 28.07.41. 209 regiment was part of the 26th Army of the SWF. Defense of the Dnieper. _x000D_ Since August 1941, 209 Artillery Regiment (as part of the 26th Army) defended the river Dnieper near the city of Kanev. Directly the 3rd Division of 209 Artillery Regiment was located near the station Zolotonoshi. Throughout the month, the forces of the 26th army fought hard defensive battles to protect the Kiev fortified area in the Kanev Region.The enemy was preparing a breakthrough in the Kremenchug area and to the north (between Kiev and Chernigov) of the Kanev foot strong. According to the memoirs of V.V. Tolstoy : “It was calm for five days, and then the fighting began. The few guns of the 209 Artillery Regiment were already hitting the east ... "._x000D_ Most likely, what is described can be dated to the beginning of September Kiev entrapment (end of August—September 1941). It is known that from the middle of August reconnaissance operations took place on this foot strong, no large-scale hostilities were conducted. The enemy was preparing a breakthrough in the Kremenchug area and to the north (between Kiev and Chernigov) of the Kanev footstrong. There is no exact information about the second half of August and the beginning of September, but it is known that from September 10 to 26, the process of encircling and destroying the forces of the 26th Army in the "Kiev Cauldron" took place. 26th Army fought fierce battles and tried first to hold the foot strong, and later to break out of the encirclement. _x000D_ From September 16 to September 20, the troops of the 26th Army were dismembered into Separate centers. 209 Artillery Regiment, apparently, was 20-30 km from Zolotonosha. From September 17, according to the order, the forces of the 26th Army concentrated their attack in the Lubna area. According to some documents, the forces of 209 Artillery Regiment tried to break through in the Orzhitsy area. _x000D_ According to the memoirs of V.V. Tolstoy : “209 Artillery Regiment was completely surrounded and tried to break out of the encirclement for 3 days. On the third day, an order followed: to blow up the guns, to burn the materiel. " Most likely, these events took place in the first half of September. _x000D_ _x000D_ When leaving the encirclement near the station Lubny Valentin Tolstov was wounded in the arm and taken prisoner. The most probable date of the capture is September 23-24. A more accurate place of capture is near the village of Denisovka (not far from Lubna). It is known that 209 Artillery Regiment was completely destroyed in the Kiev entrapment in the structure of the 26th Army and on 10/28/41 was excluded from the lists of the Red Army._x000D_ Before reaching Kremenchug Valentin Tolstov fled from a column of prisoners of war. He was hiding in the village of Domantovo, Zolotonosha district, Kiev Region, in the Pashchenko family (Alexey Vasilyevich, Maria Petrovna and their daughter Vera). Local policeman, Austrian Valyukh, discovered V.V. Tolstov. and handed him over to the Germans. Tolstov was sent to the station Zolotonosha, but again fled from the column to the village of Domantovo in the family to Pashchenko. On the way to Domantovo Valentin fell ill with croupous pneumonia. The Pashchenko family diligently nursed V.V. Tolstov. hiding at home, but the same policeman discovered a Soviet soldier. The policeman was going to shoot V.V. Tolstov. in Pashchenko's house, but Maria Petrovna Pashchenko persuaded not to do it for a bottle of vodka. Alexey Vasilievich Paschenko gave a receipt stating that V.V. Tolstov having recovered will not "run away". _x000D_ After 2 months of illness Tolstov V.V. was sent to the station Zolotonosha and from there on a train with prisoners of war to Germany. _x000D_ Concentration camp. There he was placed first in a concentration camp near Essen (the exact name of the camp is unknown), then near Dusseldorf (Stalag 326 (VI-K). According to V.V. Tolstov's memoirs, he was in the infirmary camp, where besides the Soviet prisoners of war, there were British, Americans and Germans in the camp. _x000D_ In the camp, VV Tolstov made rings, bracelets, which he exchanged with other prisoners for bread. According to his recollections, the bracelet "cost" 3-4 loaves, a ring—2 loaves. Tolstov V.V. recalled that his surname he was "rescued" because of his last name associated with the Great Noble Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. So in Dusseldorf one of the guards took him to the city to repair his apartment. There he said that the camp authorities and guards knew him not only "as a master jeweler ", but they also believe that he has a" distant belonging "to the" offspring of Count Tolstoy. "Perhaps this fact saved Tolstov V.V.'s life though his last name had nothing with the Count Tolstoy. _x000D_ In April 1945, a mutiny was raised in the camp. Some of the guards had chosen a side of prisoners and arrested the Commandant. Some hours later after the self-liberation of the camp, regular units of the allied American army arrived. _x000D_ Return. All Soviet prisoners of war from the camps around Dusseldorf were grouped and repatriated to the location of Soviet troops stationed along the banks of the Elbe River. _x000D_ In Regiment No. 326 Tolstov V.V. passed a medical examination and interrogation by the NKVD. For health reasons Tolstov V.V. was demobilized from the ranks of the Red Army with deregistration. (certificate of exemption from military service No. 100, which indicates that V.V. Tolstov was examined by a commission at 326 assembly and dispatch depot on November 14, 1945). _x000D_ After the war he worked in the agricultural management structures of the Stavropol district of the Kuibyshev Region as an economist and Accountant. Tolstov V.V. passed away on April 23, 1984 in the city of Togliatti.

Branch of troops: Ground Forces_x000D_ Subdivision: 4th Guards Airborne Ovruch Red Banner Orders of Suvorov and Bogdan Khmelnitsky Division. _x000D_ Semenchuk Konstantin Ivanovich (mother's grandfather) was born in September 1911 in Ukraine. The family lived in poverty. He went to the war in boots with a torn off sole. Grandfather tied it with a rag, and went to the recruiting office. The next day, my grandmother went to town and found this sole. Grandfather was 30 years old at the time. My mother says that my grandfather had various awards, but, they, the children, played with them, so they got lost. _x000D_ Great-grandfather, Kushnerchuk Ignatius, helped partisans in the Belarusian forests (Polesie). Saburov's detachment was at that time in those forests. Jan Nalepko (Repkin), Czechoslovak,was a partisan from this detachment. There was a battle for the city of Ovruch, for the railway station. At the crossroads of Frunze and Vokzalnaya streets, Yan passed away. There is a monument at this place. _x000D_ In 1968, a monument to the Liberator of Ovruch was opened in the city park. The monument is located among chestnuts. _x000D_ “Father and mother came to the opening. They were already old then. The whole city was packed with people, it was impossible to pass through” - recalls my mother, an eyewitness to this event, Natalya Konstantinovna Buraykina (Semenchuk). But I found this information about this event on the site “News of Zhitomir” (Ukraine): “_x000D_ From the very first days of the war, partisan detachments and underground organizations were created in the Region. The underground organization under the leadership of I. Redchits (Captain Krylov) was especially active. This unit carried out a number of important operations. In July 1942, the brave Commander passed away during a battle with punitive forces. The group was headed by A. S. Maloletnev ("Ivan Pisarenko"). To be able to legally meet with the underground, Maloletnev got a job as the Director of the Ovruch cinema. Having made a supply of explosives, the underground workers were going to blow up the cinema when Hitler's officers visited it. But the operation failed - the Nazis brutally dealt with the underground: 45 people were shot. But nothing could intimidate the Ovruch underground workers. Anti-fascist leaflets began to appear on the territory of the district, enemy trains with manpower and military equipment rolled downhill. _x000D_ In the summer of 1943, the partisan unit of the Hero of the Soviet Union A.N.Saburov came to the village of Selezovka. There the partisan general met with the Slovak warrior-internationalist Captain Jan Nalepkoy (Repkin) and his transfer to the partisans. From there, the glorious combat path of the Slovak detachment began as part of a partisan formation. _x000D_ On November 16, 1943, the operation to liberate Ovruch began. Detachments were thrown into battle by them. Voroshilov, them. Zhukov, them. Budyonny and the Czechoslovak detachment. After a 20-hour battle, the enemy's resistance was broken. Soon, the People's Avengers met with the advance units of the 13th Army's 4th Airborne Division. _x000D_ In the battle for Ovruch, many Nazis were destroyed, a warehouse with ammunition and fuel was captured. Liberating Ovruch, Yan Nalepka (Repkin) gave his life, who was posthumously awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union. A street and a School are named after him, and a monument is erected to him. _x000D_ For the liberation of Ovruch, 168 partisans of A. N. Saburov's formation were awarded orders and medals, and the title of Ovrutskaya was awarded to the fourth Guards Airborne Division. Materials from the personal archives of Natalya Konstantinovna Buraykina (Semenchuk), the "People's feat" site Natalya Gennadievna Polikarpova (Buraykina, Semenchuk).

Rank: Red Army Soldier._x000D_ Branch of troops: Artillery _x000D_ Tyagunov Semyon Fedotovich was born in the village of Volkhonshchino, Tambov Region on September 27, 1926. Mom was Alexandra Danilovna, dad was Fedot Dmitrievich (disappeared in the war in 1941), brother was Alexander (most of the photos are signed "In good memory to brother Shura from brother Senya"), sisters were Marusya and Tonya. He studied in the village of Sokolovo, finished 7 classes. At the beginning of the war he studied, was a cadet of the 15th Department. Motorcycle Training Regiment. In October 1944, he was sent to the front as a motorcyclist of the 421st Guards Heavy Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment from the 66th Guards Self-Propelled Artillery Brigade. _x000D_ On the website Memorial, information was found that the grandfather was listed as missing, but they sorted out the confusion, although, as far as is known, this terrible notice was sent to his mother, Alexandra Danilovna. After the end of the war, he served in Poland as a driver of the 678th motor Transport Battalion (October 1945—October 1946), 253rd Division Motorcycle Battalion (October 1946—March 1950). _x000D_ He married on May 9, 1950 to Tyagunova (Satina) Alexandra Ivanovna (labor veteran), who worked as a Teacher of History and German; she is now retired. They lived in the village of Vyachka, Kirsanov District, Tambov Region. Grandpa worked as a chauffeur. _x000D_ Grandpa had never mentioned anything about the war, and I didn't ask. And now I would very much like to listen to his stories, but too late now. I remember he loved to reread the book by Nikolai Yakovlev "Marshal Zhukov", dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Victory.

Rank: Captain. _x000D_ Branch of troops: Ground Forces, Air Force (except for naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops. _x000D_ My grandfather, Starukhin Nikolai Trofimovich, lived in the remote Siberian outback in the village Malaya Kada of the Irkutsk Region and was a hereditary hunter. _x000D_ Once he showed me "Memories and Reflections" by G.K. Zhukov and said that these military memoirs mention an episode of a combat on the river Ugra and the name of his Commander, Captain I.G. Starchak. _x000D_ From the stories of my grandfather, I learned that he was a paratrooper, but at the beginning of the war he fought in the trenches in a Separate Joined Airborne Brigade. He rose to the rank of Captain of the Red Army. After the death of N.T. Starukhin, I found the memoirs of I.G. Starchak, where, apparently, my grandfather is also mentioned, however, with a slightly distorted surname. At the same time I.G. Strachak says that during the war many soldiers and officers passed before him, and many names were erased from memory. _x000D_ The detachment of I.G. Starchak not far from Yukhnov defended by a bridge over the Ugra river, blocked the way for the Nazis, thereby giving time for the withdrawal of the Red Army and for the construction of new defensive lines. Now there is a monument to the detachment of I.G. Starchak in the form of a cannon during the Great Patriotic War. _x000D_ My grandfather N.T. Starukhin was wounded several times. He had military awards, orders and medals. He finished the war in the city of Konigsberg (Kaliningrad). After the flooding of the village of Malaya Kada by the Bratsk reservoir, my grandfather and his family moved to the village of Kaltuk, Bratsk district. _x000D_ After the war N.T. Starukhin worked as a construction foreman at the Bratsky sovkhoz. Many construction projects were built under his leadership. In the village everyone respected grandfather. He always went to School on the eve of Victory Day on May 9 and told his students about how and where he fought. At a local rally, he always stood in the ranks of veterans at the monument to the fallen fellow villagers.

Rank: Red Army Soldier _x000D_ Branch of troops: Ground Forces, Air Force (except naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops _x000D_ Subdivision: 59th Red Banner Infantry Division. _x000D_ Serdyukov Timofey Trofimovich was the legal husband (approximately since 1956) of Maria Andreevna. He was born in 1915 in the Rostov Region, Kolushkinsky district in village Kolushkino. Now the territory is included in the Tarasovsky district, Rostov Region. Before the war he was married to Zinaida Petrovna (in 1944 their son Valentin was born). _x000D_ I don’t remember when he was drafted into the Red Army, Timofei Trofimovich Serdyukov was in the documents (it was not preserved after his death) in the 80s the "Book of the Red Army Soldier". According to the documents, his last duty station was the 59th Red Banner Infantry Division. His combat path lasted from February 17, 1943 to April 30, 1943. The 59th Rifle Division was formed on March 7, 1942. He served there until February 17, 1943, there is no data in the information sources. The Red Army Soldier TT Serdyukov was declared missing in action in Ukrainian SSR Voroshilovgrad Region, Lisichansk district on July 17, 1943. _x000D_ Howver, on 17.07. 1943 it is known that he was wounded in the leg. There was a scar on his leg. In 1944 his son Valya was born. In 1956 he was officially registered with marriage. He worked until his retirement as a truck driver at a motor depot. He did not receive any jubilee awards. He passed away in 1989. _x000D_ And so far, according to the Book of Memory of the Rostov Region, volume 15, p. 532, Private Serdyukov Timofey Trofimovich, born in 1915, on July 17, 1943, missed in action!

Branch of troops: Ground forces, Air Force (except naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops _x000D_ Subdivision: 399th Infantry Novozybkovskaya Red Banner Order of Suvorov Division. _x000D_ _x000D_ Ivan Semyonov, as part of the regimental reconnaissance of the 1345th Infantry Regiment of the 399th Infantry Division, fought on the Central Front. He defended Moscow, took part in the Battle of the Kursk Bulge, beat the Nazis on the land of Belarus. For his heroism and courage, he was more than once presented to state awards. _x000D_ Today the family of Ivan Lvovich carefully preserves his medals and orders: medals "For Courage", "For Military Merit", "For Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945", the Order of the Red Star, the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree. _x000D_ He mentioned about hardships for the infantrymen, especially women, during the war. In particular, in the 16th Lithuanian Division, 60% were women. For example, they carried a 60 kg of a machine gun. We helped them as best we could. Then Stalin issued an order to leave women to serve as communication technicians, in medical battalions, at work in headquarters. _x000D_ Once our troops broke through the enemy's defenses and went on the offensive 80 km to the west. Artillery and provisions were carried on horseback. It was winter, the horses were getting stuck in the snowdrifts. The carts fell behind, we went ahead. There was no food, for 2-3 days the fighters did not receive anything. Then they delivered us flour, 200 grams per person, but there was no salt. We made cakes, rubbish, but without salt, within a week the soldiers began to get sick and fall. _x000D_ On October 13, 1943, Ivan was wounded in the head. A heavy eleven-gram bullet interrupted his right optic nerve and was stuck 2.5 mm from the cerebral cortex, threatening his life every minute. After a year of treatment in hospitals, Ivan returned home to the village of Rybnoye. Only 20% of vision remained. _x000D_ Returning home, Ivan studied to be an Accountant-economist, and before retiring worked at the Constriction Bureau in Uyara. Together with his wife Nina Ilyinichna, they raised children. Son Vitaly devoted himself to education. Alexander became a miner. Lyudmila devoted herself to trade and her youngest daughter Galina was an assistant to her father. At the request of the Chairman of the All-Russian Society of the Blind, he headed the Uyarsk Blind Society and subsequently was its Chairman. He passed away on October 16, 1995. He was buried in Uyar.

Rank: Red Army. _x000D_ Smaglyuk Dmitry Silovich walked along the roads of war from the first to the last day. He was born in 1915 into a peasant family in the village of Blagoveshchenka, Kurdai district, Dzhambul Region, Kazakhstan. In 1930 he joined the kolkhoz named after Budyonny, and from that time he began his labor activity. After graduating from the courses of tractor drivers in 1930, he began to engage in the most peaceful business to grow grains. But the war broke out, and Dmitry Silovich went to the front. _x000D_ On December 18, 1942, the chauffeur of the combat vehicle of the 2nd battery of the 228th Separate Guards Mortar Division, the Red Army Soldier Smaglyuk Dmitry Silovich, was awarded the medal "For Military Merit" for his courage and dedication in the fight against the German invaders. _x000D_ For participation in the offensive operation of Soviet units from 2 to 5 January 1944 in the direction Novosokolskoye (from the Staraya Russa Region to the Nevel Region) Smaglyuk Dmitry Silovich was awarded the Order of the Red Star. _x000D_ After the end of the war, Dmitry Silovich returned to his native Kazakhstan, where he continued his labor heroic path. In 1947, the tractor Brigade under the leadership of Dmitry Smaglyuk fulfilled the plan by 150%, saving 2.5 tons of fuel. In the same year, the Brigade worked on an area of 189 hectares, on which 22.2 centners of grain were collected from each hectare. For this valiant work, he was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor in 1948. _x000D_ In 2010, by the decision of the rural district of the village of Kainar (Blagoveshchensk), one of the streets of the village was named in honor of Dmitry Silovich Smaglyuk.

My grandfather Sakharov Vasily Illarionovich in 1936 entered the Pedagogical Institute, the Physics and Mathematics Faculty in the city of Nikolaev, Ukrainian SSR, from where in December 1936, by special order, he entered the army, and rose to the rank of Political Instructor. By the war he served in the 2nd Separate Railway Regiment in the position of Political Instructor. The regiment was located in the city of Sarny, on the eve of the war arrived in Sarny from Bessarabia, where he participated in the alteration of railway tracks to the Soviet gauge. _x000D_ A few days after the start of the war, one echelon was sent with the wives of the command staff (among them was his wife Olga, with a little daughter and mother-in-law) and the property of the regiment. At first they planned three echelons, but then, due to the complicated situation at the front, they decided to send everyone in a single echelon. On the way, the echelon was repeatedly subjected to air raids. _x000D_ My grandfather, Vasily Illarionovich Sakharov, as part of a group of several units and commanders, set off towards the front to restore the destroyed railway tracks for the delivery of replenishment and ammunition to the front, and back the wounded and property from the abandoned territories. From the command staff with his grandfather there were: _x000D_ 1) Captain Sushko. A bridge had to be mined in case the Germans broke through, but for now our echelons were leaving. There were continuous air raids on the bridge. One of the bombs hit the bridge, but fortunately it did not explode, but only damaged truss bridge._x000D_ According to the pre-war standards, the bridge was not subject to operation and remained closed until the repair was completed, but there was no time to wait and Captain Sushko made a quick, albeit risky decision. He removed the entire crew from the locomotive, climbed into the locomotive, he himself was once a machinist, drove through the damaged section twice and allowed to operate the bridge. Then we received a notice that 11 trains were coming to us from the north, from the city of Mozyr in Belarus, mainly with the troops that were cut off from our rear, the enemy tank wedge broke through (the bridge was in the city of Ovruch). _x000D_ 2) Junior Political Instructor Katyuzhan of the Brigade. He died during the air a raid from a shrapnel that hit him in the head, 3) Military Technician Grishanok, 4) Volobuev, engineer of the headquarters of the Regiment 5) Senior Lieutenant, Battalion commissar, Senior Political Instructor Sysoev. 6) Medical Instructor Loban Ivan Gerasimovich. _x000D_ At 15 - 20 km from Nizhyn, the detachment halted for the night. In the morning they found out that the road to Nizhyn was cut, and transferred to cars, had moved towards the south of the city of Prilutsk. Captain Sushko (a native of these places), deciding to go on reconnaissance patrol of the further route, took Volobuev with him and another 5—6 soldiers. They sat down in a lorry and went on reconnaissance, and nobody had never seen them again. _x000D_ Moving further, we got to the Grebenki junction station (southern railway on the Kiev-Poltava line), where we met Major Shuboderov. At the meeting, it was decided to organize the defense of the station. We broke the defense into sectors: the company of Senior Lieutenant Bondarenko, the company of Junior Lieutenant Vinnitsky, and the machine gunners of Rozhkov's platoon. _x000D_ After several days at the station, it became clear that we were cut off from the East Front and that the available forces (350 people) could not break through to the East. It was decided to move west to help the defenders in Kiev. _x000D_ A sequence military plan was developed. After leaving a few kilometers from the station, it became known that one company remained at the station, it was the Leiutenant Bondarenko's company. _x000D_ My grandfather, a Political Instructor, and Sysoev went to the station to find out why they stayed. When they arrived at the station, Bondarenko explained that a decision was made at the company meeting, that they his company occupies a perimeter defense and gives battle to the Germans here at the station. _x000D_ At the beginning of October 1941, he was wounded by a mine fragment in the arm and leg, after several days of wandering, he stopped in the village of Zelenyi Gai, Drabovsky district, at Stepan Ivanovich Kuts, (later the Germans would hang him for his connection with the underground and burn his house and shed). _x000D_ On October 10, 1941, when leaving the village of Zeleny Gai, he faced a column of Soviet prisoners of war under escort and was arrested by the Germans and sent in a general column to a field camp for prisoners of war. In the camp, he called himself the maiden name of his wife Naumenko Vasily Ivanovich. In the same camp he met his company Medical Instructor Loban Ivan Gerasimovich. He learned that among the commanders in the camp there was also a Deputy Regiment Commander was Lieutenant Bohan. My grandfather was transferred from camp to camp several times. _x000D_ While escorting through Kiev, he fled, got to his new friend Kuzemka Yevtukh in the village of Pishchiki, where he was registered with the local commandant's office. After all the non-locals were taken to a labor camp. There were several more attempts to escape, but unsuccessful. A successful attempt turned out in late autumn on the territory of Czechoslovakia, where he got to a local forester, and through him the Soviet recons transferred him with a fled comrade across the front line to the front headquarters. _x000D_ There he met his wife Olga, and after 10 days of checks, he and his comrade, through local partisans, were sent back to German captivity for agitation of Soviet citizens. The idea was that the Soviet people would not go west but return to their homeland, (they were scared to be sent to Siberia as traitors). At the end of the winter of 1945, they flee again and fall to the local partisans. _x000D_ After the departure of the Germans, before the arrival of Soviet troops, he was in the people's militia. After that, with a large wagon train of horses, he was sent to the Union, then to Lviv, where he was tested for 6 months. After the end of the special check, I went to my home in Makeevka. _x000D_ In Makeyevka, he got a job at the factory where he worked before. Then he moved to Belaya Kalitva, Rostov Region and was engaged in the electrification of the area. He had 5 children: 4 daughters and 1 son.

Branch of troops: Artillery. _x000D_ Smagin Vasily Titovich (04/12/1911 - 02/23/1991). Vasily Titovich was born and raised in the village of Konstantinovskoye, Petrovsky district, Stavropol Territory. He is buried here, too. _x000D_ He was drafted to the front in the summer of 1942. He served in the Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment as the first gunner on an anti-aircraft gun. As my grandfather said, he was a gunner of the 2nd battery of military unit 1339 ZAII-GIZA. Vasily Titovich took part in the Vitebsk offensive operation (February-March 1944). _x000D_ For the liberation of Vitebsk in Belarus, he received the gratitude of the supreme Commander-in-Chief for the liberation of Vitebsk, (this letter was handed to grandfather personally by Zhukov and it was signed by Stalin) and the medal "For Courage". _x000D_ Vasily Titovich participated in the East Prussian operation and the crossing of the Neman River (1945). He said: _x000D_ At the crossings over the Oder and Neman rivers in East Prussia there was such a fierce battle that it was hard to see, where was the sky, where was the ground. The water was boiling, the ground was burning from bombs. The planes circled in the sky like locusts. People and horses and equipment went under the water. For participation in this battle, he received a medal "For Military Merit" and gratitude for crossing the Neman river. _x000D_ Vasily Titovich took part in the assault on Konigsberg (April-May 1945). During a combat for Konigsberg my grandfather was wounded and ended up in a medical unit. Immediately after the treatment, he went back еще the war. _x000D_ Vasily Titovich was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, II degree. Also his awards: a medal “For Capture of Berlin”, a medal “For Victory over Germany”, and 14 Jubilee medals. Vasily Titovich celebrated the Victory Day in Berlin. He has 6 children, 9 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and a friendly family is growing.

Rank: Senior Lieutenant _x000D_ Spitsin Petr Andriyanovich was born in 1910 in the town of Krasnoturyisk, Sverdlovsk Region. In the 1930s, he was a people's judge of the Kumensky district of the Kirov Region. He participated in the Soviet-Finnish war, was drafted from the village of Kumeny, Kirov Region. Before the Second World War, he worked in the Control and Audit Department of the USSR People's Commissariat for Finance in the Kumensky District. He ended the Great Patriotic War as a Senior Lieutenant in the ranks of the 2nd Belorussian Front under the command of Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky. _x000D_ During the Berlin offensive operation, the troops of the 2nd Belorussian Front under the command of K. K. Rokossovsky, with their actions, fettered the main forces of the 3rd German Panzer Army, depriving it of the opportunity to participate in the battle for Berlin. Until 1948 he served in the Northern Group of Forces in Poland in the city of Legnica. He was decorated with orders and medals. In 1948 he entered and in 1953 graduated from the All-Union Legal Correspondence Institute. By profession he was a lawyer. _x000D_ Until December 15, 1955, he was in the ranks of the Soviet Army with the rank of Senior Lieutenant of justice. Wife is Klavdia Alexandrovna Spitsina, born in 1911. She was born in the village of Burry in the Kotelnichesky district of the Kirov Region. Awarded with the medal "For Valiant Labor during the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945." (Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated June 6, 1945, No. 0147405). He was a member of the Nuremberg Trials. _x000D_ The international trial of the former leaders of Hitler Germany took place from November 20, 1945 to October 1, 1946 at the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg (Germany), located in Hall 600 of the jury building. All 403 sessions of the Tribunal were public. About 60 thousand passes were issued to the courtroom. The work of the Tribunal was widely covered by the press and was broadcast live.

Rank: Major General of Aviation _x000D_ Branch of troops: Aviation _x000D_ Ivan Karpovich Starostenkov (01/29/1900 - 08/07/1975) is a Soviet military leader, Major General of Aviation. _x000D_ The biography of Ivan Karpovich starts at the beginning of the 20th century, he was born in the small village of Vydritsa, Mstislavsky district, Mogilev province. Coming from a simple peasant family, his father Starostenkov Karp Kireevich, mother Glafira Yakovlevna. In June 1919, he was drafted by the Khislavichsky Commissariat of the Smolensk Region into the ranks of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army. During the Civil War, he fought on the Eastern Front, a Red Army Soldier of a stage company of the 49th stage Battalion, and in December 1920 he was appointed assistant platoon Commander of the 46th Rifle Regiment. In May 1921, he was appointed Commander of an administrative platoon of a training and personnel sapper company stationed in Mtsensk. From December of the same year, he consistently studied at the Military Railway School, from December 1922 he was at the Yegoryevsk Theoretical Aviation School, from March 1924 he was at the 2nd Borisoglebsk Military Pilot School, and from June 1926 he was at the Shooting and Bombing School, stationed in Serpukhov. _x000D_ After graduation in February 1929, he was appointed to the position of a Junior Pilot of the 16th Reconnaissance Air Squadron, in October was transferred to the position of Flight Commander of the 15th fighter Air Squadron, in February 1933 occupied to the position of detachment Commander of the 7th cruising Air Squadron, and in February 1937 he was the Commander of the 1st Fighter Squadron. In June 1938, Starostenkov was appointed Commander of the 6th Fighter Squadron of Special Aviation, in June 1939—as Commander of the 36th Aviation Regiment (36th Aviation Division), and in January 1941—as Commander of 27 1st Fighter Aviation Division (Transcaucasian Military District). _x000D_ With the outbreak of the war, Starostenkov was in his former position. The Division under his command covered the facilities of Baku and the oil-bearing area within the boundaries of the 3rd Air Defense Corps. With the transformation of the Division into the 8th Air Defense Corps by July, Starostenkov was appointed Commander of the 66th Fighter Aviation Division on July 9, which in August was included in the Southern Front. In November 1941, he was appointed Commander of the 144th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Division, formed in Rasskazovo, after graduation from which, by November 20, the management and part of the division were relocated to the Saratov Air Center, where they were included in the Saratov-Balashov Air Defense Divisional District. _x000D_ The division performed the combat missions of air defense of industrial facilities in Saratov and Balashov, railway bridges across the Volga at Saratov and through Khoper at Balashov, railway junctions and sections of the railway within the boundaries of the divisional air defense area, and also escorted especially important aircraft. _x000D_ In March 1943, Starostenkov was appointed Commander of the 148th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Division, which, as part of the Cherepovets-Vologda Air Defense Divisional Area, defended the cities and railway junctions of Cherepovets, Vologda, Kadui, Babaevo and Efimovskaya, and the Bolshoy Dvor railway stations from air attacks. , Lezha, Nyandoma and Gryazovets and objects of railway communications, and since May 1943, after opening the Sheksna and Sukhona rivers, as well as channels for navigation, additional combat missions of the Division were to cover ships in the water section Myaksa - Cherepovets - Sheksna - Kirillov - Kubenskoe Lake - Sokol - Shuiskoe - Selische - Totma. In July 1943, the Division was included in the Air Force of the Western Front of the Air Defense. In August 1943, Colonel Starostenkov Ivan Karpovich was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, the award list says: “Disciplined, demanding of himself and his subordinates, a Commander with organizational skills. _x000D_ On October 10, 1942, during an enemy air attack on the city of Grozny, being the duty officer at the command depot, he promptly raised fighters to repel a raid and skillfully directed the attack of fighters on enemy aircraft, as a result of which there were 22 enemy aircraft in air battles. In November of the same year, the Division's Command was redeployed to Kursk, where it was included in the 9th Voronezh Fighter Air Defense Corps, after which the Division performed the combat missions of air cover for the railway junctions of Bakhmach, Konotop, Belopole, Lgov, Kursk, Voronezh and Liski. railway bridges across the Don in the Liski Region. _x000D_ In July 1944, Starostenkov was appointed Commander of the 8th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Corps, which was part of the Air Force of the Transcaucasian Air Defense Front and performed air defense missions within the borders of the Baku Air Defense Army. In the combat characteristics, it was noted: “... flies on all modern aircraft, both domestic and foreign brands. The flying technique is good. He understands quickly combat situations and makes the right decisions. Under the command of I. K. Starostenkov building for 1943-44 received and overtaken more than 1000 aircraft of foreign brands, which were also ferried from Iran to the USSR for the units of the Red Army Air Defense Agency. _x000D_ In August 1944 he was awarded the second Order of the Red Banner. After the end of the war, Starostenkov continued to command the corps, which was transformed into the Baku Air Defense Aviation Corps. In March 1950, he was appointed head of the combat training Department of higher educational institutions of the Air Force of the South Ural Military District, and in February 1952, he was appointed Deputy head of the Flight Service and Air Law Directorate of the Air Force General Staff. Major General Ivan Karpovich Starostenkov in June 1953 went into the reserve. He passed away on August 7, 1975 in Moscow. Awards: Order of Lenin; Four Orders of the Red Banner; medals.

My grandfather Alexander Pavlovich Smirnov was born on August 23, 1922 in the village of Petrino, Cherepovets district of the Vologda Region. In 1938, he graduated from the 9th grade of the Ergolsk rural School (now the village of Voskresenskoye) and went to work as an Accountant at a creamery in the village of Petrino. In 1941 he was drafted into military service by the Petrinevsky Commissariat of the Vologda Region. He fought on the Leningrad front. He was a sub-machine gunner of a company of machine gunners of the 197th Guards Rifle Order of the Kutuzov Regiment, 64th Guards Rifle Krasnoselskaya Red Banner Division. He was wounded a few times. _x000D_ Combat awards: Medal "For Courage" 08/15/1944, order No. 029-N (for combat on 07/03/44 "….. when repelling an enemy counterattack, he was wounded, but did not leave the field battle… _x000D_ "Medal" For Courage "10/16/1944, order No. 035-N (for combat on 25.10.44 “… on the SYRVE peninsula he was the first to break into the enemy's trench and personally killed 3 German soldiers from a machine gun.. ", _x000D_ Medal" For Courage "03/09/1945, order No. 07-N,"… the Commander of the sub-machine gun company of the Guard, the Senior Sergeant for being in battle 24.2.45, in the area of the river VARTAYA, while repelling the counterattacks of infiltrated German sub-machine gunners, destroyed 4 German sub-machine gunners with machine gun fire and grenades… "_x000D_ Order" Red Star "05/21/1945, order No. 041-N,"… for combat in the area of the Vartaya River on 02/23/1945, when attacking the enemy trenches, he was the first to break into the trenches and destroy 7 German soldiers with machine gun fire, in the same battle, when the platoon commander came out of action, he boldly took over command, and a platoon under his command successfully completed the combat mission of forcing the river, where he destroyed the crew of a heavy machine gun and captured 2 enemy light machine guns. "_x000D_ Medal" For Courage "06/14/1945, order No. 021-N (for combat in the area of the river Vartai, Latvian SSR, 28.2.45, "… while repelling the enemy's counterattack with machine gun fire and grenades, he destroyed 4 German soldiers, was wounded, but did not leave the battlefield before completing the combat mission…". _x000D_ He was supposed to take part in the parade on Red Square in Moscow in June 1945, but was not able to attend due to illness. _x000D_ After the war, my grandfather worked as an Accountant at a dairy (village Petrino), then as a Chief Accountant at a creamery (Ustyuzhna, Molochnoe, Vologda Oblast). From 1951 until his retirement he was the Chief Accountant of the Kaliningrad regional production association of the dairy industry. Awards: medal "For Valiant Labor"; badge "Drummer of the 9th Five-Year Plan"; medal "Veteran of Labor". He loved reading a free time. He advised his granddaughters to read A Tale of the True Man. He loved Russian folk songs. He appreciated honesty in people. He hated lies, bragging, and insolence. He passed away on October 13, 1992 in Kaliningrad.

Rank: Starshina _x000D_ Subdivision: 15th Guards Rifle Kharkov-Prague Order of Lenin, twice Red Banner Orders of Suvorov and Kutuzov Division. _x000D_ To my great regret, I did not know my grandfather. He passed away long before I was born. For some reason, it was hard to ask my grandmother about him. Now I managed to ask my mother what she remembers. My grandfather went through the entire war, but due to severe wounds he could not live a long life and passed away 12 years after its end. _x000D_ Alexey Nikolaevich was born in 1915. In 1939 he was drafted to serve on a submarine, which was based in Sevastopol. The war found Alexei when he had three children. In October 1941, he was called up by an infantryman to defend Moscow. During the siege of Koenigsberg (Kaliningrad) on April 22, 1945, my grandfather was seriously wounded. During the hostilities, he had to be both a liaison, and a machine gunner, and a simple infantryman. After a severe shrapnel wound, Alexei spent a whole year in the hospital and returned to his homeland only in 1946. _x000D_ Unfortunately, many fragments prevented my great-grandfather from leading a happy life. _x000D_ 1957, at the age of 41, the shell fragments had reached the heart. All awards were lost during Alexei's stay in the hospital, and then no one talked about his efforts. _x000D_ We found out that our grandfather had been awarded only at the website “Memory of the People”. On June 24, 1944, Alexei, being a liaison of the company Commander, was instructed to deliver an important report. On the way, Alexey faced two enemy soldiers, threw grenades at them and destroyed them. The report was delivered on time. For this effort my grandfather received the medal "For Courage".

Rank: Red Army Soldier_x000D_ Branch of troops: Communications Troops_x000D_ Division: 135th Infantry Division (1st Formation)_x000D_ _x000D_ The Great Patriotic War became a hardship for our people. We have won through the hard work of many millions of people. One of these war workers was my great-grandfather—Tuishev Khusyain Akhmedzhanovich (March 7, 1916—September 13, 1986). He was born in the village of Ust-Uza. He worked for several years at the Krasnaya Zvezda kolkhoz of the Shemysheysky district of the Penza Region. Unforgettable was the day when the first Fordson tractor and the first car were brought to the kolkhoz._x000D_ There were many who wanted to drive, but only great-grandfather was sent to the courses. My great-grandfather left for the military service in a kolkhoz car. He served on the Finnish border, took part in hostilities. He returned home in 1940 and immediately began to work in his own kolkhoz. But the war soon started. _x000D_ Chauffeur in the communications troops was the name of his military work. The first war trials began for him near Moscow. The battles were fierce here. The basic rule that the communication technician followed was: "Communication must work." _x000D_ Near Moscow, my great-grandfather came under fire and was wounded. He spent a whole month in the hospital, and then was sent to a Mechanized Regiment on the Kalinin front. Together with the First Ukrainian Front, my great-grandfather fought on the Kursk Bulge, crossed the Dnieper, liberated Ukraine and Poland. _x000D_ The Commander of his automobile unit 92431 writes in his characteristic: _x000D_ Comrade Tuishev was distinguished to be a good chauffeur who is veru much fond of cars. Comrade Tuishev knows the material part very well, his car is always kept ready for transportation and maintenance ". For exemplary performance of the command assignments, the great-grandfather was awarded the Medal "For Military Merit", the badge "Excellent Driver". Great-grandfather celebrated the victory in Berlin. He returned home in 1946. _x000D_ He came to his native village as a hero with awards: two Orders of the Red Star, the Order of the Patriotic War of the second degree, Medals "For Courage", "For Military Merit", entered in the Book of Honor of the Shemysheysky District, awarded with a Certificate of Appreciation signed by Marshal Konev, in which it is written: "Many thanks for the excellent service." I am proud and remember!

Rank: Red Army_x000D_ Branch of troops: Ground Forces, Air Force (except for naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops. _x000D_ Ivan Egorovich Turkenichev was born on October 12, 1924 in the village of Novy Liman, Voronezh Region. In 1933, his family moved to Kh. Parisian Rostov Region. After graduating from the 6th grade, he began to help his father, on an equal basis with adults, he collected potatoes in the field, carried water and grain on oxen. _x000D_ June 22, 1941 it was an ordinary day, everyone was working. And then they announced the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. In November of this year, the kolkhoz received a decree that all the cattle were evacuated across the Volga. And he, together with old men and women, drove cattle to the Elan station of the Saratov Region. _x000D_ When Ivan Yegorovich turned 18, he was sent as a recon to the 556th Rifle Regiment, which stood between Lake Chiganaki and the Don River. At the next offensive, in a hurry, he did not have time to wind up his foot bindings, but was crossing the river barefoot, the water was icy, he froze his leg. He had a fever, and when they stopped for a halt next to the shock where he was, a shell exploded and he was concussed. He lost his hearing, spoke poorly, stuttered. When we got to the medical unit, he was given the first aid and was sent to the hospital. There, without anesthesia, his left toes were amputated, he was held by five people. Then he was transferred to a hospital in the Penza Region, after treatment, the medical commission recognized him as disabled, and sent home. _x000D_ But already in November 1942 he was enlisted back into an active army. So Ivan Yegorovich ended up in besieged Leningrad. He served as a traffic cop in the 127th Separate Road Battalion on the Road of Life. He was there for a whole year and knew what 125 grams of bread for the whole day was for the civilian population, and 400 grams for soldiers, and even rotten cabbage. _x000D_ In Leningrad they lived in dugouts, there was no heat, no water, no light. They worked day and night, transporting construction materials to the "Road of Life" in an onboard vehicle. On January 18, 1944, the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts united, and the 900-day blockade of Leningrad was broken. _x000D_ In August 1944 he was transferred to Poland to the 317th Infantry Regiment. His regiment was liberating the city of Krakow. During the offensive near Breslavl in January 1945, he was wounded. And again the hospital, but there he did not stay. After some medical treatment, the soldier Turkenichev was sent to the military commandant's office in Beutkhen to protect civilians from the Banderaites. _x000D_ For good service, Ivan Yegorovich was presented with a bicycle, clothes, shoes. In a freight train, he reached the city of Voronezh. My grandfather returned from the war in August 1946.