DATE OF BIRTH: 01.01.1906 DATE OF DEATH: 01.24.1942 HISTORY: Title: Red Army. Type of service: Ground Forces, Air Force (except for naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops. Subdivision: 332nd Rifle Volunteer Ivanovo-Polotsk twice Red Banner Order of Suvorov Division. Machine gunner 1119 rifle regiment in the 332 rifle division. The winter of 1941-1942 turned out to be very cold, and in mid-January the frost in the region was quite fierce. At the beginning of 1942, the village of Kanat was advanced, but by January 24 it was occupied. At this time, there was an offensive of the fourth shock army, 332 division, in which Vasily Ledyagin served. In winter, large formations of Germans moved across the Kanat - some in cars, some on motorcycles, and some on foot. In the evening, soldiers in white camouflage came to the house. As it turned out later from conversations, these were soldiers of the advanced reconnaissance detachment. They consisted of 20 people and settled in two huts. A sentry was put out on the street, but all night in frost "-35" he could not stand outside, so he periodically went into the house to warm up. In the morning, when the sentry once again left the house, he was noticed by the Germans, who were being led to the headman by a villager. A firefight began. A column of Germans turned to shoot from the road. There were many more of them than our soldiers. A fight ensued. Unfortunately, everyone who was in the sentry's house died. Some managed to survive from the second house. As a result, our intelligence officers in a very small composition were able to kill about 70 Germans. After the battle, on about January 25, 1942, our soldiers were buried near the river under birch trees and they were given crosses.