16(28).12.1897–27.06.1973
Marshal Soviet Union
Was born in Vologda region in the village of Lodeyno in a peasant family. In 1916 he was drafted into the army. Upon completion of the training team, junior non-commissioned officer Art. division is sent to the Southwestern Front. Having joined the Red Army in 1918, he took part in battles against the troops of Admiral Kolchak, Ataman Semenov, and the Japanese. Commissioner of the armored train "Grozny", then brigades, divisions. In 1921 he took part in the storming of Kronstadt. Graduated from the Academy. Frunze (1934), commanded a regiment, division, corps, 2nd Separate Red Banner Far Eastern Army (1938–1940).
During the Great Patriotic War he commanded the army and fronts (pseudonyms: Stepin, Kyiv). Participated in the battles of Smolensk and Kalinin (1941), in the battle of Moscow (1941–1942). During the Battle of Kursk, together with the troops of General N.F. Vatutina defeated the enemy on the Belgorod-Kharkov bridgehead - a bastion of Germany in Ukraine. On August 5, 1943, Konev’s troops took the city of Belgorod, in honor of which Moscow gave its first fireworks, and on August 24, Kharkov was taken. This was followed by the breakthrough of the “Eastern Wall” on the Dnieper.
In 1944, near Korsun-Shevchenkovsky, the Germans set up “New (small) Stalingrad” - 10 divisions and 1 brigade of General V. Stemmeran, who fell on the battlefield, were surrounded and destroyed. I. S. Konev was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (02/20/1944), and on March 26, 1944, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front were the first to reach the state border. In July-August they defeated the Army Group “Northern Ukraine” of Field Marshal E. von Manstein in the Lvov-Sandomierz operation. The name of Marshal Konev, nicknamed “general forward”, is associated with brilliant victories in final stage war - in the Vistula-Oder, Berlin and Prague operations. During Berlin operation his troops reached the river. Elbe near Torgau and met with the American troops of General O. Bradley (04/25/1945). On May 9, the defeat of Field Marshal Scherner near Prague ended. The highest orders of the “White Lion” 1st class and the “Czechoslovak War Cross of 1939” were a reward to the marshal for the liberation of the Czech capital. Moscow saluted the troops of I. S. Konev 57 times.
In the post-war period, the marshal was the Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces (1946–1950; 1955–1956), the first Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact states (1956–1960).
Marshal I. S. Konev - twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of Czechoslovakia socialist republic(1970), Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1971). A bronze bust was installed in his homeland in the village of Lodeyno.
He wrote memoirs: “Forty-fifth” and “Notes of the Front Commander.”
He was buried on Red Square in Moscow near the Kremlin wall.
Marshal I. S. Konev had:
- two Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 06/1/1945),
- 7 Orders of Lenin,
- Order of Victory (30.03.1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 3 orders Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- 2 Orders of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- order Red Star,
- a total of 17 orders and 10 medals;
- honorary personalized weapon - saber with the Golden Coat of Arms of the USSR (1968),
- 24 foreign awards (including 13 foreign orders).
V.A. Egorshin, “Field Marshals and Marshals.” M., 2000
Konev Ivan Stepanovich
Born on December 16 (December 28), 1897 in the village of Lodeyno, Podosinovsky district, Kirov region, from peasants, Russian.
In 1912, he graduated from the Zemstvo School, in 1926 - Advanced training courses for senior command personnel at the Military Academy. M.V. Frunze, and in 1934 - a special faculty of the same academy.
In the Soviet army from August 1918; until June 1919 - military commissar of the Nikolsky district military commissariat of the Northern Territory; Commissioner of an armored train (until July 1920); brigade commander (until April 1921), division commander (until October 1921); chief of staff of the army (November 1922) commander of the corps (August 1924) and rifle division (September 1925).
The certification for 1926 noted that he was “an proactive, energetic and decisive commander. The general and military outlook is sufficient...”
From July 1926 - commander-military commissar of the regiment (until March 1930), assistant and acting commander of the rifle division (March 1930-March 1931), commander-military commissar of the division (March 1931-December 1932 .). Since December 1934 - commander of a rifle division.
The certification for 1936 emphasized that his “military training after graduating from the academy was quite satisfactory. Commanding the division, he had great achievements, especially during the maneuvers of 1936. His character is firm and persistent.”
From September 1937 - commander of a special rifle corps (until September 1938), army commander (until June 1940), commander of the Trans-Baikal, then North Caucasian military districts (until June 1941).
During the Great Patriotic War - commander of the 19th Army (June-October 1941), one month - deputy commander of the troops of the Western Front, commander of the troops of the Kalinin Front (November 1941-August 1942), Western Front (until February 1943), Northwestern Front (March-June 1943), Steppe Front (June 1943-May 1944), 1st Ukrainian Front (May 1944-May 1945).
After the war I.S. Konev - Commander-in-Chief of the Central Group of Forces in Austria (May 1945-April 1946), First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces - Deputy Minister of Defense for the Ground Forces (June 1946-March 1950), Chief Inspector Soviet army- Deputy Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR (March 1950-November 1951), commander of the Carpathian Military District (November 1951-March 1955), First Deputy Minister of Defense and Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces (until March 1956) , First Deputy Secretary of Defense for General Affairs (until April 1960), Inspector General of the Group of Inspectors General of the Ministry of Defense (until August 1961), Commander-in-Chief of the Group Soviet troops in Germany (until April 1962) and again inspector general of the Ministry of Defense (until May 1973).
I.S. Konev - twice Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944 and 06/1/1945) He was awarded 7 Orders of Lenin (07/29/1944, 02/21/1945, 12/27/1947, 12/18/1956, 12/27 .1957, 12/27/1967, 12/27/1972), Order of the October Revolution (02/22/1968), 3 Orders of the Red Banner (02/22/1938, 11/3/1944, 06/20/1949 .), 2 Orders of Suvorov, 1st degree (08/27/1943, 05/17/1944), 2 Orders of Kutuzov, 1st degree (04/9/1943, 07/28/1943), Order of the Red Star (08/16/1936). ), the Order of Victory (03/30/1945), the Weapon of Honor with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR (02/22/1968), as well as 10 medals of the USSR and 24 orders and medals of foreign states.
Military ranks: Army commander 2nd rank - awarded in March 1939, Lieutenant General - June 4, 1940, Colonel General - September 19, 1941, Army General - August 26, 1943, Marshal of the Soviet Union - February 20, 1944.
Member of the CPSU since 1918, member of the CPSU Central Committee since 1952, deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 1st–8th convocations.
Marshals of the Soviet Union: personal stories tell. M., 1996
11/19 (12/1). 1896—06/18/1974
Great commander
Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of Defense of the USSR
Born in the village of Strelkovka near Kaluga in a peasant family. Furrier. In the army since 1915. Participated in the First World War, a junior non-commissioned officer in the cavalry. In the battles he was seriously shell-shocked and awarded 2 Crosses of St. George.
Since August 1918 in the Red Army. During the Civil War, he fought against the Ural Cossacks near Tsaritsyn, fought with the troops of Denikin and Wrangel, took part in the suppression of the Antonov uprising in the Tambov region, was wounded, and was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After Civil War commanded a regiment, brigade, division, corps. In the summer of 1939, he carried out a successful encirclement operation and defeated a group of Japanese troops under General. Kamatsubara on the Khalkhin Gol River. G. K. Zhukov received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of the Red Banner of the Mongolian People's Republic.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941 - 1945) he was a member of the Headquarters, Deputy Supreme Commander-in-Chief, and commanded the fronts (pseudonyms: Konstantinov, Yuryev, Zharov). He was the first to be awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union during the war (01/18/1943). Under the command of G.K. Zhukov, troops of the Leningrad Front, together with the Baltic Fleet, stopped the advance of Army Group North of Field Marshal F.W. von Leeb on Leningrad in September 1941. Under his command, the troops of the Western Front defeated the troops of Army Group Center under Field Marshal F. von Bock near Moscow and dispelled the myth of the invincibility of the Nazi army. Then Zhukov coordinated the actions of the fronts near Stalingrad (Operation Uranus - 1942), in Operation Iskra during the breakthrough Leningrad blockade(1943), in the battle of Kursk Bulge(summer 1943), where Hitler’s “Citadel” plan was thwarted and the troops of Field Marshals Kluge and Manstein were defeated. The name of Marshal Zhukov is also associated with victories near Korsun-Shevchenkovsky and the liberation of Right Bank Ukraine; Operation Bagration (in Belarus), where the Vaterland Line was broken and Army Group Center of Field Marshals E. von Busch and W. von Model was defeated. At the final stage of the war, the 1st Belorussian Front, led by Marshal Zhukov, took Warsaw (01/17/1945), defeated Army Group “A” of General von Harpe and Field Marshal F. Scherner with a dissecting blow in the Vistula-Oder operation and victoriously ended the war with a grandiose Berlin operation. Together with the soldiers, the marshal signed the scorched wall of the Reichstag, over the broken dome of which the Victory banner fluttered. On May 8, 1945, in Karlshorst (Berlin), the commander accepted unconditional surrender from Hitler’s Field Marshal W. von Keitel fascist Germany. General D. Eisenhower presented G. K. Zhukov with the highest military order of the United States “Legion of Honor”, the degree of Commander-in-Chief (06/5/1945). Later in Berlin at the Brandenburg Gate, the British Field Marshal Montgomery placed on him the Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, 1st Class, with star and crimson ribbon. On June 24, 1945, Marshal Zhukov hosted the triumphal Victory Parade in Moscow.
In 1955-1957 “Marshal of Victory” was the Minister of Defense of the USSR.
American military historian Martin Kaiden says: “Zhukov was the commander of commanders in the conduct of war by mass armies of the twentieth century. He inflicted more casualties on the Germans than any other military leader. He was a "miracle marshal". Before us is a military genius."
He wrote the memoirs “Memories and Reflections.”
Marshal G.K. Zhukov had:
- 4 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (08/29/1939, 07/29/1944, 06/1/1945, 12/1/1956),
- 6 Orders of Lenin,
- 2 Orders of Victory (including No. 1 - 04/11/1944, 03/30/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov, 1st degree (including No. 1), a total of 14 orders and 16 medals;
- honorary weapon - a personalized saber with the golden Coat of Arms of the USSR (1968);
- Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1969); Order of the Tuvan Republic;
- 17 foreign orders and 10 medals, etc.
In 1995, a monument to Zhukov was erected on Manezhnaya Square in Moscow.
Vasilevsky Alexander Mikhailovich
18(30).09.1895—5.12.1977
Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR
Born in the village of Novaya Golchikha near Kineshma on the Volga. Son of a priest. He studied at the Kostroma Theological Seminary. In 1915, he completed courses at the Alexander Military School and, with the rank of ensign, was sent to the front of the First World War (1914-1918). Staff Captain tsarist army. Having joined the Red Army during the Civil War of 1918-1920, he commanded a company, battalion, and regiment. Graduated in 1937 Military Academy General Staff. From 1940 he served in the General Staff, where he was caught by the Great Patriotic War(1941-1945). In June 1942, he became the Chief of the General Staff, replacing Marshal B. M. Shaposhnikov in this post due to illness. Of the 34 months of his tenure as Chief of the General Staff, A. M. Vasilevsky spent 22 directly at the front (pseudonyms: Mikhailov, Alexandrov, Vladimirov). He was wounded and shell-shocked. Over the course of a year and a half, he rose from major general to Marshal of the Soviet Union (02/19/1943) and, together with Mr. K. Zhukov, became the first holder of the Order of Victory. Under his leadership, the largest operations of the Soviet Armed Forces were developed. A. M. Vasilevsky coordinated the actions of the fronts: in Battle of Stalingrad(Operation “Uranus”, “Little Saturn”), near Kursk (Operation “Commander Rumyantsev”), during the liberation of Donbass (Operation “Don”), in the Crimea and during the capture of Sevastopol, in the battles in Right Bank Ukraine; V Belarusian operation"Bagration".
After the death of General I. D. Chernyakhovsky, he commanded the 3rd Belorussian Front in East Prussian operation, which ended with the famous “star” assault on Koenigsberg.
On the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, Soviet commander A. M. Vasilevsky smashed Nazi field marshals and generals F. von Bock, G. Guderian, F. Paulus, E. Manstein, E. Kleist, Eneke, E. von Busch, W. von Model, F. Scherner, von Weichs, etc.
In June 1945, the marshal was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet troops at Far East(pseudonym Vasiliev). For the quick defeat of the Kwantung Army of the Japanese under General O. Yamada in Manchuria, the commander received a second Gold Star. After the war, from 1946 - Chief of the General Staff; in 1949-1953 - Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR.
A. M. Vasilevsky is the author of the memoir “The Work of a Whole Life.”
Marshal A. M. Vasilevsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 09/08/1945),
- 8 Orders of Lenin,
- 2 orders of "Victory" (including No. 2 - 01/10/1944, 04/19/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 2 Orders of the Red Banner,
- Order of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of the Red Star,
- Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" 3rd degree,
- a total of 16 orders and 14 medals;
- honorary personal weapon - saber with the golden Coat of Arms of the USSR (1968),
- 28 foreign awards (including 18 foreign orders).
Konev Ivan Stepanovich
16(28).12.1897—27.06.1973
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the Vologda region in the village of Lodeyno in a peasant family. In 1916 he was drafted into the army. Upon completion of the training team, junior non-commissioned officer Art. division is sent to the Southwestern Front. Having joined the Red Army in 1918, he took part in battles against the troops of Admiral Kolchak, Ataman Semenov, and the Japanese. Commissioner of the armored train "Grozny", then brigades, divisions. In 1921 he took part in the storming of Kronstadt. Graduated from the Academy. Frunze (1934), commanded a regiment, division, corps, and the 2nd Separate Red Banner Far Eastern Army (1938-1940).
During the Great Patriotic War he commanded the army and fronts (pseudonyms: Stepin, Kyiv). Participated in the battles of Smolensk and Kalinin (1941), in the battle of Moscow (1941-1942). During the Battle of Kursk, together with the troops of General N.F. Vatutin, he defeated the enemy on the Belgorod-Kharkov bridgehead - a German bastion in Ukraine. On August 5, 1943, Konev’s troops took the city of Belgorod, in honor of which Moscow gave its first fireworks, and on August 24, Kharkov was taken. This was followed by the breakthrough of the “Eastern Wall” on the Dnieper.
In 1944, near Korsun-Shevchenkovsky, the Germans set up “New (small) Stalingrad” - 10 divisions and 1 brigade of General V. Stemmeran, who fell on the battlefield, were surrounded and destroyed. I. S. Konev was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (02/20/1944), and on March 26, 1944, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front were the first to reach the state border. In July-August they defeated the Army Group “Northern Ukraine” of Field Marshal E. von Manstein in the Lvov-Sandomierz operation. The name of Marshal Konev, nicknamed “the forward general,” is associated with brilliant victories at the final stage of the war - in the Vistula-Oder, Berlin and Prague operations. During the Berlin operation, his troops reached the river. Elbe near Torgau and met with the American troops of General O. Bradley (04/25/1945). On May 9, the defeat of Field Marshal Scherner near Prague ended. The highest orders of the “White Lion” 1st class and the “Czechoslovak War Cross of 1939” were a reward to the marshal for the liberation of the Czech capital. Moscow saluted the troops of I. S. Konev 57 times.
In the post-war period, the marshal was the Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces (1946-1950; 1955-1956), the first Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact member states (1956-1960).
Marshal I. S. Konev - twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1970), Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1971). A bronze bust was installed in his homeland in the village of Lodeyno.
He wrote memoirs: “Forty-fifth” and “Notes of the Front Commander.”
Marshal I. S. Konev had:
- two Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 06/1/1945),
- 7 Orders of Lenin,
- order of the October Revolution,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- Order of the Red Star,
- a total of 17 orders and 10 medals;
- honorary personalized weapon - a saber with the Golden Coat of Arms of the USSR (1968),
- 24 foreign awards (including 13 foreign orders).
Govorov Leonid Alexandrovich
10(22).02.1897—19.03.1955
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Butyrki near Vyatka in the family of a peasant, who later became an employee in the city of Elabuga. A student at the Petrograd Polytechnic Institute, L. Govorov, became a cadet at the Konstantinovsky Artillery School in 1916. He began his combat activities in 1918 as an officer in the White Army of Admiral Kolchak.
In 1919, he volunteered to join the Red Army, participated in battles on the Eastern and Southern fronts, commanded an artillery division, and was wounded twice - near Kakhovka and Perekop.
In 1933 he graduated from the Military Academy. Frunze, and then the General Staff Academy (1938). Participated in the war with Finland of 1939-1940.
In the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), artillery general L.A. Govorov became the commander of the 5th Army, which defended the approaches to Moscow in the central direction. In the spring of 1942, on instructions from I.V. Stalin, he went to besieged Leningrad, where he soon led the front (pseudonyms: Leonidov, Leonov, Gavrilov). On January 18, 1943, the troops of generals Govorov and Meretskov broke through the blockade of Leningrad (Operation Iskra), delivering a counter-attack near Shlisselburg. A year later, they struck again, crushing the Germans' Northern Wall, completely lifting the blockade of Leningrad. The German troops of Field Marshal von Küchler suffered huge losses. In June 1944, troops of the Leningrad Front carried out the Vyborg operation, broke through the “Mannerheim Line” and took the city of Vyborg. L.A. Govorov became Marshal of the Soviet Union (06/18/1944). In the fall of 1944, Govorov’s troops liberated Estonia, breaking into the enemy “Panther” defenses.
While remaining commander of the Leningrad Front, the marshal was also the representative of Headquarters in the Baltic States. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In May 1945, the German army group Kurland surrendered to the front forces.
Moscow saluted the troops of commander L. A. Govorov 14 times. In the post-war period, the marshal became the first Commander-in-Chief of the country's air defense.
Marshal L.A. Govorov had:
- Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union (01/27/1945), 5 Orders of Lenin,
- Order of Victory (05/31/1945),
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- Order of the Red Star - a total of 13 orders and 7 medals,
- Tuvan "Order of the Republic",
- 3 foreign orders.
Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich
9(21).12.1896—3.08.1968
Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Marshal of Poland
Born in Velikiye Luki in the family of a railway driver, a Pole, Xavier Jozef Rokossovsky, who soon moved to live in Warsaw. He began his service in 1914 in the Russian army. Participated in the First World War. He fought in a dragoon regiment, was a non-commissioned officer, was wounded twice in battle, was awarded the St. George Cross and 2 medals. Red Guard (1917). During the Civil War he was again wounded 2 times and fought in Eastern Front against the troops of Admiral Kolchak and in Transbaikalia against Baron Ungern; commanded a squadron, division, cavalry regiment; awarded 2 Orders of the Red Banner. In 1929 he fought against the Chinese at Jalainor (conflict on the Chinese Eastern Railway). In 1937-1940 was imprisoned as a victim of slander.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he commanded a mechanized corps, army, and fronts (Pseudonyms: Kostin, Dontsov, Rumyantsev). He distinguished himself in the Battle of Smolensk (1941). Hero of the Battle of Moscow (September 30, 1941—January 8, 1942). He was seriously wounded near Sukhinichi. During the Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943), Rokossovsky’s Don Front, together with other fronts, was surrounded by 22 enemy divisions with a total number of 330 thousand people (Operation Uranus). At the beginning of 1943, the Don Front eliminated the encircled group of Germans (Operation “Ring”). Field Marshal F. Paulus was captured (3 days of mourning were declared in Germany). IN Battle of Kursk(1943) Rokossovsky's central front was defeated German troops General Model (Operation Kutuzov) near Orel, in honor of which Moscow gave its first fireworks (08/05/1943). In the grandiose Belorussian operation (1944), Rokossovsky’s 1st Belorussian Front defeated Field Marshal von Busch’s Army Group Center and, together with the troops of General I. D. Chernyakhovsky, surrounded up to 30 drag divisions in the “Minsk Cauldron” (Operation Bagration). . On June 29, 1944, Rokossovsky was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. The highest military orders “Virtuti Militari” and the “Grunwald” cross, 1st class, were awarded to the marshal for the liberation of Poland.
At the final stage of the war, Rokossovsky's 2nd Belorussian Front participated in the East Prussian, Pomeranian and Berlin operations. Moscow saluted the troops of commander Rokossovsky 63 times. On June 24, 1945, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, holder of the Order of Victory, Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky commanded the Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow. In 1949-1956, K.K. Rokossovsky was the Minister of National Defense of the Polish People's Republic. He was awarded the title of Marshal of Poland (1949). Returning to the Soviet Union, he became the chief inspector of the USSR Ministry of Defense.
Wrote a memoir, A Soldier's Duty.
Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 06/1/1945),
- 7 Orders of Lenin,
- Order of Victory (30.03.1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 6 Orders of the Red Banner,
- Order of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- a total of 17 orders and 11 medals;
- honorary weapon - saber with the golden coat of arms of the USSR (1968),
- 13 foreign awards (including 9 foreign orders)
He was buried on Red Square in Moscow near the Kremlin wall. A bronze bust of Rokossovsky was installed in his homeland (Velikie Luki).
Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich
11(23).11.1898—31.03.1967
Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of Defense of the USSR
Born in Odessa, he grew up without a father. In 1914, he volunteered for the front of the 1st World War, where he was seriously wounded and awarded the St. George Cross, 4th degree (1915). In February 1916 he was sent to France as part of the Russian expeditionary force. There he was again wounded and received the French Croix de Guerre. Returning to his homeland, he voluntarily joined the Red Army (1919) and fought against the whites in Siberia. In 1930 he graduated from the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. In 1937-1938, he volunteered to take part in battles in Spain (under the pseudonym “Malino”) on the side of the republican government, for which he received the Order of the Red Banner.
In the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he commanded a corps, an army, and a front (pseudonyms: Yakovlev, Rodionov, Morozov). He distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad. Malinovsky’s army, in cooperation with other armies, stopped and then defeated Army Group Don of Field Marshal E. von Manstein, which was trying to relieve Paulus’s group encircled at Stalingrad. The troops of General Malinovsky liberated Rostov and Donbass (1943), participated in the cleansing of Right Bank Ukraine from the enemy; Having defeated the troops of E. von Kleist, they took Odessa on April 10, 1944; together with the troops of General Tolbukhin, they defeated the southern wing of the enemy front, encircling 22 German divisions and the 3rd Romanian Army in the Iasi-Kishinev operation (08.20-29.1944). During the fighting, Malinovsky was slightly wounded; On September 10, 1944, he was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. The troops of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky, liberated Romania, Hungary, Austria, and Czechoslovakia. On August 13, 1944, they entered Bucharest, took Budapest by storm (02/13/1945), and liberated Prague (05/9/1945). The marshal was awarded the Order of Victory.
From July 1945, Malinovsky commanded the Transbaikal Front (pseudonym Zakharov), which dealt the main blow to the Japanese Kwantung Army in Manchuria (08/1945). Front troops reached Port Arthur. The marshal received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Moscow saluted the troops of commander Malinovsky 49 times.
On October 15, 1957, Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky was appointed Minister of Defense of the USSR. He remained in this position until the end of his life.
The Marshal is the author of the books “Soldiers of Russia”, “The Angry Whirlwinds of Spain”; under his leadership, “Iasi-Chisinau Cannes”, “Budapest - Vienna - Prague”, “Final” and other works were written.
Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (09/08/1945, 11/22/1958),
- 5 Orders of Lenin,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- a total of 12 orders and 9 medals;
- as well as 24 foreign awards (including 15 orders of foreign states). In 1964 he was awarded the title of People's Hero of Yugoslavia.
Tolbukhin Fedor Ivanovich
4(16).6.1894—17.10.1949
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Androniki near Yaroslavl in a peasant family. He worked as an accountant in Petrograd. In 1914 he was a private motorcyclist. Having become an officer, he took part in battles with Austro-German troops and was awarded the Anna and Stanislav crosses.
In the Red Army since 1918; fought on the fronts of the Civil War against the troops of General N.N. Yudenich, Poles and Finns. He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
In the post-war period, Tolbukhin worked in staff positions. In 1934 he graduated from the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. In 1940 he became a general.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he was the chief of staff of the front, commanded the army and the front. He distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad, commanding the 57th Army. In the spring of 1943, Tolbukhin became commander of the Southern Front, and from October - the 4th Ukrainian Front, from May 1944 until the end of the war - the 3rd Ukrainian Front. General Tolbukhin's troops defeated the enemy at Miussa and Molochnaya and liberated Taganrog and Donbass. In the spring of 1944, they invaded Crimea and took Sevastopol by storm on May 9. In August 1944, together with the troops of R. Ya. Malinovsky, they defeated the army group “Southern Ukraine” by General. Mr. Frizner in the Iasi-Kishinev operation. On September 12, 1944, F.I. Tolbukhin was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
Tolbukhin's troops liberated Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary and Austria. Moscow saluted Tolbukhin's troops 34 times. At the Victory Parade on June 24, 1945, the marshal led the column of the 3rd Ukrainian Front.
The marshal's health, undermined by the wars, began to fail, and in 1949 F.I. Tolbukhin died at the age of 56. Three days of mourning were declared in Bulgaria; the city of Dobrich was renamed the city of Tolbukhin.
In 1965, Marshal F.I. Tolbukhin was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
People's Hero of Yugoslavia (1944) and "Hero of the People's Republic of Bulgaria" (1979).
Marshal F.I. Tolbukhin had:
- 2 Orders of Lenin,
- Order of Victory (04/26/1945),
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- Order of the Red Star,
- a total of 10 orders and 9 medals;
- as well as 10 foreign awards (including 5 foreign orders).
He was buried on Red Square in Moscow near the Kremlin wall.
Meretskov Kirill Afanasyevich
26.05 (7.06).1897—30.12.1968
Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Nazaryevo near Zaraysk, Moscow region, into a peasant family. Before serving in the army, he worked as a mechanic. In the Red Army since 1918. During the Civil War he fought on the Eastern and Southern fronts. He took part in battles in the ranks of the 1st Cavalry against Pilsudski's Poles. He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
In 1921 he graduated from the Military Academy of the Red Army. In 1936-1937, under the pseudonym "Petrovich", he fought in Spain ( awarded with orders Lenin and the Red Banner). During the Soviet-Finnish War (December 1939 - March 1940) he commanded the army that broke through the Manerheim Line and took Vyborg, for which he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (1940).
During the Great Patriotic War, he commanded troops in the northern directions (pseudonyms: Afanasyev, Kirillov); was a representative of the Headquarters on the North-Western Front. He commanded the army, the front. In 1941, Meretskov inflicted the first serious defeat of the war on the troops of Field Marshal Leeb near Tikhvin. On January 18, 1943, the troops of generals Govorov and Meretskov, delivering a counter strike near Shlisselburg (Operation Iskra), broke the blockade of Leningrad. On January 20, Novgorod was taken. In February 1944 he became commander of the Karelian Front. In June 1944, Meretskov and Govorov defeated Marshal K. Mannerheim in Karelia. In October 1944, Meretskov's troops defeated the enemy in the Arctic near Pechenga (Petsamo). On October 26, 1944, K. A. Meretskov received the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union, and from the Norwegian King Haakon VII the Grand Cross of St. Olaf.
In the spring of 1945, the “cunning Yaroslavets” (as Stalin called him) under the name of “General Maksimov” was sent to the Far East. In August - September 1945, his troops took part in the defeat of the Kwantung Army, breaking into Manchuria from Primorye and liberating areas of China and Korea.
Moscow saluted the troops of commander Meretskov 10 times.
Marshal K. A. Meretskov had:
- Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union (03/21/1940), 7 Orders of Lenin,
- Order of Victory (8.09.1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 4 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 Orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- 10 medals;
- an honorary weapon - a saber with the Golden Coat of Arms of the USSR, as well as 4 highest foreign orders and 3 medals.
To the Prague monument Soviet Marshal Additional bronze plaques will be installed for Ivan Konev with information about the biography of the Soviet military leader, who took part not only in the liberation of Europe and Prague from the Nazis, but also in the suppression of the Hungarian revolution and intelligence activities before the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia. The decision was made by the administration of the Prague 6 metropolitan area. Czech communists are categorically against the appearance of information signs.
To be remembered
District Mayor of Prague 6 Ondřej Kolář
His decision to install three plaques on the monument to the Soviet military leader - in Czech, Russian and English languages- the administration of the sixth Prague district received on the eve of the 120th anniversary of the birth of the marshal, born on December 19 (28), 1897.
The mayor of the Prague 6 district, Ondřej Kolář, in an interview with the Russian Service of Radio Prague, said that at their meeting, members of the municipal council approved the following text: “Marshal Ivan Stepanovich Konev commanded the 1st Ukrainian Front, whose units took part in the decisive attack on Berlin and the liberation of the northern, central and eastern parts of the Czech Republic, and were also the first to enter Prague on May 9, 1945. In the fall of 1956, Marshal Konev commanded the bloody suppression of the Hungarian uprising by the Soviet army, and in 1961 in Berlin, as the commander of a group of Soviet troops, he participated in the denouement of the so-called Second Berlin crisis and the construction of the Berlin Wall. In the summer of 1968, Marshal Konev personally supervised the reconnaissance work before the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops.”
Information boards on the monument should appear before the end of June 2018 - by this time the general restoration of the monument to Ivan Konev will be completed. The district administration intends to invest about 650 thousand crowns (more than 25 thousand euros) in restoration and repair work.
Representatives of the Communist Party of the Czech Republic and Moravia do not like the municipality's plans.
A member of the municipal council of the Prague 6 district and the Prague city council from the Communist Party, Ivan Gruz, in an interview with Radio Prague, said that not all voting participants supported the installation of signs - out of 45 council members, 29 people voted in favor. At the same time, as Ivan Gruza emphasized, only two openly expressed categorical disagreement with this project.
Ivan Gruza considers the placement of signs on the Konev monument “an insult to the memory of the victims suffered by the Red Army during the liberation of Europe.” Therefore, a member of the Communist Party is sure, they should not be there.
“If we conducted an “audit” of the biographies of all those people to whom monuments were erected in Prague, we would learn a lot about them interesting facts. However, no one wants to do this, and this idea concerns only one single monument. The initiative comes from former members of the TOP-09 party, who are today supported by another right-wing party - the Civic Democrats.
The board that it was decided to place there distracts attention from the essence of the monument itself. This monument was erected to the liberator, the representative of the Red Army, the commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, whose units liberated Czechoslovakia and Prague. I will also allow myself to remind you of the more than 140 thousand Red Army soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the sake of our freedom. Now they should disappear from the memory of Prague residents? All this is just a continuation of what began shortly after 1989. Then in pink color The monument to the Red Army soldiers, erected in the Smichov district of Prague, was repainted. Tank No. 23 stood there, symbolizing the entry of the Red Army into Prague on May 9, 1945. This tank was soon removed,”- reminds the representative of the Communist Party Ivan Gruz.
Bronze Konev will remain in place
The mayor of the Prague 6 district, Ondřej Kolář, from the TOP-09 party, refutes suspicions of an intention to remove the monument to the Soviet Marshal, which currently stands on the Interbrigade Square.
“The Communist Party of the Czech Republic and Moravia, a descendant of the deceased Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, is trying to form an opinion in society that I and my colleagues from the Prague 6 district administration are striving to “rewrite history by removing the monument to Marshal Konev” or are somehow belittling its significance.
I never wanted to remove the monument to Marshal Konev. If this had to be done, then no later than 1990, when society was strong revolutionary sentiments. It was then that the monument to Lenin was removed from Victory Square (Vítězné nám.). Monuments to Konev and Lenin stood almost next to each other - Interbrigade Square is located a kilometer from Victory Square.
However, I believe that the person to whom this monument was erected, whether we like it or not, is an inseparable part of Czech history. He commanded the 1st Ukrainian Front, parts of which took part in the liberation of the Czechoslovak Republic, or rather the protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. No one can take this away, it happened, it’s a given. That is why I said that this monument should remain here, however... Since the monument suffers from historical inaccuracy - it states that “Marshal Konev saved Prague from destruction” - we must supplement the monument with information boards that will provide historical facts that will allow passers-by to draw their own conclusions about who Marshal Konev really was . It is necessary for people to know about all the intertwinings historical events in the 20th century, when in the blink of an eye allies became enemies, and liberators became occupiers, and other similar historical contradictions that also took place,”- the head of the Prague 6 district, Ondřej Kolář, is confident.
Member of the Prague 6 municipal council Ivan Gruza does not believe the words of the district head: “Mr. Headman today claims that everything that is happening does not concern the future fate of the monument, that he decided to leave it in its place. The approach to the issue of the monument to Konev is individual, specific, tendentious. I would like to remind you that placing additional information plaques on monuments is not something that happens as a matter of course. In Prague, for example, there are monuments to Churchill and Masaryk. The biographies of these people also have something to pay attention to.
Churchill, for example, held on to Britain's colonial possessions by force. At the end of World War II he supported the bombing of Dresden. He was indifferent to the fate of the 2.5 million Bengalis who died in the 40s.
Or pay attention to Masaryk - the first Czechoslovak president and supreme commander. Under him, they shot at people who went on strike, wanting a better life, since they did not have work. The gendarmes also shot at children. However, you will not find an additional information board anywhere on the Churchill or Masaryk monuments.
“I repeat that everything that is happening is tendentious, and this is just a stage on the way to achieving one single goal - to ensure the disappearance of the monument to Marshal Konev from public space,”- says a representative of the parliamentary Communist Party.
Let's return to the mayor of Prague 6, Ondřej Kolář. Were there ever any plans to remove the monument to Marshal Ivan Konev?
“To answer this question, I need to dive deeper into history. In 1992 or 1993, the district Culture Commission discussed a similar topic, as we do today. They were thinking future fate monument - remove it or leave it in place? The deputy headwoman, Mrs. Frankenberg, formed a group of historians and other specialists who were supposed to discuss everything. The answer was unequivocal - the monument should be preserved, but the inscription on it must be changed, since the current text does not correspond to reality. The implementation of the plan, however, was postponed for some time, although a text had already been developed for discussion in the district council.
People started talking about the monument to Marshal Konev again in 2009-10, when plans for the general reconstruction of the International Brigade Square were ready. There were supposed to be underground garages there. Changes had to be made to the monument as well. It was supposed to become less pompous, the pedestal was supposed to be reduced, and the entire monument was supposed to be moved a little further from the Avenue of the Yugoslav Partisans.
The project was discussed with the embassy Russian Federation. The ambassador supported him, emphasizing only that there should be room at the monument for laying flowers and wreaths. The administration naturally agreed. These plans also turned out to be frozen.The next time they started talking about Konev was in 2014 in connection with the preparations for celebrating the anniversary of the end of World War II. Then several people spoke at the municipal council, saying that the monument “is a disgrace” and calling for its removal. It was then that we stated that the appropriate moment to remove the monument had already been missed and proposed placing information boards on it. The Russian embassy then accused us of “trying to rewrite history.”
Well, this year, since the project for the reconstruction of the monument is almost ready, we again turned to the Russian Embassy with this information and explanations that our actions are not at all connected with the desire to rewrite history and offer its alternative interpretation.
However, the letter also said that if the Russian representative office prevents us from implementing projects that are within the competence of the self-government body, and in the case of repairing a monument owned by the district, this is exactly the case, then we will be forced to look for other options, like with the monument make do. One of these options, although controversial, is to transfer the statue of Marshal Konev as a gift to the Embassy of the Russian Federation, which will prevent its damage. And this happens almost every day.”
According to the mayor of the sixth Prague district, Ondřej Kolář, the Russian diplomatic mission, by the time the interview was recorded, had not responded to the mentioned letter.
Same approach
In connection with the decision to place information boards on the monument to Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev, the question arises - why, in this case, not supplement all monuments erected in the country with similar plaques?
We again give the floor to Ivan Gruz, member Municipal Council Prague 6 from the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia: “If such a decision were supported by the majority, and we were talking about adding information boards to the most various monuments, then this option would be acceptable. However, this is not currently discussed. Now we are talking about an isolated case, with a specific approach to the problem.
This situation was created by part of the representatives of the right-wing political spectrum. Unfortunately, some council members missed the point. They think that we're talking about only about additional information, which must be provided to citizens, which is why they joined the ranks of those who supported the mentioned decision. However, we are not talking about a 100% majority here.”
Ondřej Kolář takes a slightly different position: “They gave me the example of Winston Churchill. Why, they say, don’t we want to add an information board to his monument, because he did not only good deeds. The death of 3,000 Bengalis is cited as an example. The death of the Bengalis is a terrible episode in history, but it has nothing to do with the history of Czechoslovakia. As far as I know, Churchill has nothing to do with any of the cases of the occupation of Czechoslovakia. In this he differs from Marshal Konev, who in 1968 conducted reconnaissance preparations before the invasion of the Warsaw Pact troops into Czechoslovakia.
My answer is yes, supplement the monuments with information that will explain who this person was. However, such people who have a monument with additional information boards should have a connection with the history of the Czech Republic and Czechoslovakia, and if there is no such connection, let the biographies of such people be studied in history lessons. As for Marshal Konev, his connection with Czechoslovak history is very expressive. Unfortunately, both positive and negative.”
======================================================
My opinion on this issue It’s quite clear: a monument to the Soviet punitive has no place in the center of the capital of the country that he occupied in 1968. Participation in the suppression of the Hungarian national uprising of 1956 and the Czech national uprising of 1968 outweighs all other pages and details of his biography. In this place, a monument to the soldiers of the 1st ROA Division, who saved Prague from destruction and thousands of Prague residents from death, would look much better. The optimal way out of the situation would be to hold a city referendum on this issue, and my intuition tells me that the majority of Prague residents would prefer to remove the red idol from the square of their city.
Liberators of Prague from the 1st Division of the ROA (VS KONR). A guide from the Czech partisans walks in a helmet with a bandage on his sleeve.
Date of Birth: |
|
Place of Birth: |
Village of Lodeino, Vologda province, Russian Empire (now Podosinovsky district, Kirov region) |
Date of death: |
|
A place of death: |
Moscow, USSR |
|
|
|
Years of service: |
|
Marshal of the Soviet Union |
|
Commanded: |
Command of fronts, military districts |
Battles/wars: |
World War I,
Battle of Rzhev, Battle of Kursk, Battle of the Dnieper, Lviv-Sandomierz operation, Vistula-Oder operation, Berlin operation |
Autograph: |
|
|
Foreign awards |
|
Interwar period
The Great Patriotic War
Post-war period
Military ranks
Monuments
Documentary film
(December 16 (28), 1897 - May 21, 1973) - Soviet commander, Marshal of the Soviet Union (1944), twice Hero of the Soviet Union (1944, 1945).
Early life and civil war
Born on December 28, 1897 in the village of Lodeyno (now Podosinovsky district, Kirov region) in a peasant family. He graduated from the Zemstvo School in the neighboring village of Pushma in 1912. From the age of 12 he worked as a timber raftsman.
Member of the First World War. In the spring of 1916 he was drafted into the army. After a training artillery team, junior non-commissioned officer Konev was sent to the Southwestern Front in 1917. Demobilized in 1918.
In the same 1918, he joined the Bolshevik Party and was elected district military commissar in the city of Nikolsk, Vologda province. After that, he fought in the ranks of the Red Army on the Eastern Front against the troops of A.V. Kolchak and other White Guard formations in Transbaikalia and the Far East. He was a commissar of an armored train, a commissar of a rifle brigade, a division, and the headquarters of the People's Revolutionary Army of the Far Eastern Republic. Among other delegates of the 10th Congress of the RCP(b), he took part in the suppression of the Kronstadt uprising in 1921.
Interwar period
After the end of the Civil War, he became a military commissar of the 17th Primorsky Rifle Corps. From August 1924 - commissar and head of the political department of the 17th Nizhny Novgorod Rifle Division. He graduated from the Advanced Training Course for Higher Command Staff at the M.V. Frunze Military Academy in 1926, then was commander and commissar of the 50th Infantry Regiment. Graduated from the Military Academy named after M. V. Frunze in 1934. From December 1934 he commanded the 37th Infantry Division, and from March 1937 - the 2nd Infantry Division. In 1935 he received the rank of division commander. In 1938, he was appointed commander of the Special Rifle Corps on the territory of the Mongolian People's Republic, and from July 1938, commander of the 2nd Red Banner Army stationed in the Far East. From June 1940 he commanded the troops of the Trans-Baikal Military District, and from January 1941 - the North Caucasus Military District.
The Great Patriotic War
During the Great Patriotic War, Lieutenant General I. S. Konev took over as commander of the 19th Army, hastily formed from the troops of the North Caucasus Military District. The army was initially sent to the Southwestern Front, but already in early July, due to the catastrophic development of the situation in the western direction, it was transferred to the Western Front. During the Battle of Smolensk, the army troops suffered heavy losses, but avoided defeat and stubbornly defended themselves. Konev's actions as army commander were highly appreciated by I.V. Stalin.
At the beginning of September 1941, Konev was appointed commander of the troops of the Western Front, and at the same time he was awarded the rank of colonel general. He commanded the troops of the Western Front for just over a month (September - October 1941), during which time the front under his command suffered one of the heaviest defeats of the entire war in the Vyazemsk disaster. The losses of the front troops amounted, according to various estimates, from 400,000 to 700,000 people killed and captured. To investigate the causes of the front disaster and punish Konev, a commission of the State Defense Committee headed by V. M. Molotov and K. E. Voroshilov arrived. Konev was saved from trial and possible execution by G.K. Zhukov, who proposed leaving him as deputy front commander, and a few days later recommended Konev for the post of commander of the Kalinin Front. Konev commanded this front from October 1941 to August 1942, took part in the battle for Moscow, carried out the Kalinin defensive operation and the Kalinin offensive operation. Since January 1942, Konev’s name has been closely associated with the difficult and unsuccessful Battle of Rzhev for the Soviet troops; his troops participated in the Rzhev-Vyazemsk operation of 1942, and suffered a new defeat in the Kholm-Zhirkovsky defensive operation.
From August 1942 to February 1943, Konev again commanded the Western Front and, together with G.K. Zhukov, carried out the First Rzhev-Sychev Operation and Operation Mars, in which the troops of his front, with huge losses, achieved only a slight advance of several tens of kilometers. In February 1943, the Zhizdra operation was also unsuccessful, after which at the end of February Konev was removed from his post as commander of the Western Front and appointed to command the much less important North-Western Front. However, he failed to distinguish himself there as well; the troops of this front suffered heavy losses and did not achieve success in the Starorussian operation.
|
ORDER OF THE Supreme Command Headquarters No. 0045
Headquarters of the Supreme High Command I. STALIN TsAMO. F. 148a. Op. 3763. D. 142. L. 36. Original. |
In July 1943, Konev was appointed commander of the troops of the Steppe Front, at the head of which he managed to achieve success in the Battle of Kursk, in the Belgorod-Kharkov operation and in the battle for the Dnieper. In August 1943, troops of Konev’s Steppe Front liberated Belgorod and Kharkov, and in September 1943, Poltava and Kremenchug, acting during the Poltava-Kremenchug operation. At the end of September 1943, his armies crossed the Dnieper on the move.
In October 1943, the Steppe Front was renamed the 2nd Ukrainian Front, Konev remained its commander and carried out the Pyatikhatskaya and Znamenskaya operations in October - December 1943, and the Kirovograd operation in January 1944. Konev’s grandiose success as a commander was the Korsun-Shevchenko operation, where for the first time since Stalingrad a large enemy group was surrounded and defeated. For skillful organization and excellent leadership of the troops in this operation, on February 20, 1944, Konev was awarded the military rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. In March - April 1944, he carried out one of the most successful offensives of the Soviet troops - the Uman-Botosha operation, in which, during a month of fighting, his troops traveled over 300 kilometers to the west through muddy roads and impassable roads and on March 26, 1944, they were the first in the Red Army to cross state border, entering the territory of Romania.
From May 1944 until the end of the war he commanded the 1st Ukrainian Front. In July - August 1944, under his command, front troops defeated the Army Group "Northern Ukraine" of Colonel General Joseph Harpe in the Lvov-Sandomierz operation, captured and in the subsequent two-month battles held the Sandomierz bridgehead, which became one of the springboards for striking Hitler's Germany. Also, part of the front forces took part in the East Carpathian operation.
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the presentation of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal was awarded to Ivan Stepanovich Konev on July 29, 1944 for skillful leadership of front troops in major operations in which strong enemy groups were defeated, personal courage and heroism.
In January 1945, front troops, as a result of a swift attack and a flanking maneuver in the Vistula-Oder operation, prevented the retreating enemy from destroying the industry of Silesia, which was of great economic importance for friendly Poland. In February 1945, Konev's troops carried out the Lower Silesian operation, and in March - the Upper Silesian operation, achieving significant results in both. His armies performed brilliantly in the Berlin operation and in the Prague operation.
The second Gold Star medal was awarded to Marshal I. S. Konev on June 1, 1945 for exemplary leadership of troops in the final operations of the Great Patriotic War.
Post-war period
After the war in 1945-1946 - Commander-in-Chief of the Central Group of Forces in Austria and High Commissioner for Austria. Since 1946 - Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces - Deputy Minister Armed Forces THE USSR. Since 1950 - Chief Inspector of the Soviet Army - Deputy Minister of War of the USSR. In 1951-1955 - commander of the Carpathian Military District. In 1953 - Chairman of the Special Judicial Presence, which tried L.P. Beria and sentenced him to death.
In 1955-1956 - 1st Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR and Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces. In 1956-1960 - 1st Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR, from 1955 at the same time Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact countries (in this capacity he led the suppression of the Hungarian uprising of 1956). In 1960-1961 and from April 1962 in the Group of Inspectors General of the USSR Ministry of Defense. In 1961-1962, during the Berlin crisis, he was Commander-in-Chief of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany.
Military ranks
- Divisional commander - from November 26, 1935
- Komkor - since February 22, 1939
- Commander 2nd rank - since 1939
- Lieutenant General - from June 4, 1940
- Colonel General - since September 11, 1941
- Army General - since August 26, 1943
- Marshal of the Soviet Union - from February 20, 1944
Awards, membership in organizations
Memory
- His name was given to the Alma-Ata Higher Combined Arms command school, MMF vessel
- Streets in Moscow, Donetsk, Slavyansk, Kiev, Kharkov, Poltava, Cherkassy, Kirovograd, Belgorod, Barnaul, Vologda, Omsk, Irkutsk, Prague, Smolensk, Tver, Beltsy are named after Konev; street and adjacent square in Kirov; microdistrict in Stary Oskol
Monuments
- Memorial complex "Height of Konev" in the Kharkov region. From there, the order was given to begin the assault on Kharkov for the final liberation of the city from the Nazi invaders.
- A bronze bust was installed in his homeland.
- The granite monument was installed in Kirov on the square of the same name next to the adjacent street of the same name (moved in 1991 from Krakow, where it stood previously).
- A bronze bust was installed in Belgorod on a street named after him.
- Monument in Prague, erected in 1970 on the Interbrigade Square. Sculptor Z. Kribus.
- Memorial plaque on house number 30 on Bolshaya Pokrovskaya street in Nizhny Novgorod, which housed the headquarters of the 17th Nizhny Novgorod Rifle Division, which Konev commanded in 1922 - 1932. Description of the monument- against the backdrop of a five-pointed star - a bronze bust of I. S. Konev. The Marshal is depicted in full dress uniform, with two Gold Star medals on his chest. Below in bronze letters is the text: “In this building was the headquarters of the 17th Infantry Division, which was commanded from 1922 to 1932 by the famous commander, Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Stepanovich Konev.” The opening of the memorial plaque took place in 1985.
- Memorial plaque in Omsk on house No. 12-1 on Konev Street. Description of the monument— bust of Konev I. S. Marshal is depicted in full dress uniform, with medals and orders on his chest. Installed in 2005 on the initiative of a resident of the Nazarenko house, Evgeniy Alekseevich.
- The monument was erected in Vologda, in the park at the intersection of Mozhaisky and Konev streets, on May 7, 2010. Sculptor O. A. Uvarov.
Family
The first wife is Anna Voloshina, from her there are two children: daughter Maya and son Geliy. The second is an orderly, Antonina Vasilievna, and from her is a daughter, Natalya.
Documentary film
- “Marshal Konev’s Madonna” - Channel One, 2009
- The Tale of Marshal Konev. Documentary. TsSDF (RTSSDF). 1988. 99 minutes.
- Generals. TsSDF (RTSSDF). 1988. 59 minutes.
Ivan Stepanovich Konev born December 16 (28), 1897 in the village of Lodeyno, Shchetkinsky volost, Nikolsky district, Vologda province (now Podosinovsky district, Kirov region), in a peasant family. He graduated from a rural school and a zemstvo school. From the age of 12 he worked in timber rafting and on his father’s farm.
In 1916 he was called up to military service: was a soldier of the 2nd heavy artillery brigade in Moscow, then graduated from the training team and became a junior fireworksman of the 2nd separate artillery division. After demobilization in 1918. joined the ranks of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks), a member of the Nikolsky district executive committee and the military commissar of the district. During the Civil War, he volunteered to go to the front and fought against the troops of A.V. Kolchak, G.M. Semenov, and the Japanese occupiers. He was a commissar of an armored train, a rifle brigade, a division, and showed military talent and courage. In 1921 as a delegate to the Tenth Congress of the RCP(b) he took part in the suppression of the Kronstadt rebellion. In 1921 - 1922 I.S. Konev - commissar of the headquarters of the People's Revolutionary Army of the Far Eastern Republic, in 1923 - 1924. - 17th Primorsky Rifle Corps, and then - 17th Rifle Division. When in 1924 The division was redeployed to the Moscow Military District, its commander K.E. Voroshilov suggested: “You, Comrade Konev, according to our observations, are a commissar with a commanding streak. It's a happy combination. Go to team courses and learn.”
In 1926, Ivan Stepanovich completed advanced training courses for senior command personnel at the Military Academy named after. M.V. Frunze. And in 1934 he completed his studies at a special faculty of the same academy (“he mastered the academic course perfectly and is worthy of nomination to the position of commander and commissar of the rifle corps”). In 1934 -1941. commanded a division, corps, a special group of Soviet troops in the MPR, the 2nd separate Red Banner Far Eastern Army, troops of the Transbaikal and North Caucasus military districts. In July 1938, he was awarded the rank of corps commander, and in March 1939 - army commander of the 2nd rank.
Second world war I.S. Konev began as commander of the 19th Army. For successful fighting near Smolensk, Konev was awarded the rank of colonel general.
On September 12, 1941, a high appointment came to the post of commander of the troops of the Western Front (September - October 1941). In the battles near Vyazma, I.S. Konev suffered a severe defeat from the Nazi troops. He was saved from trial and execution by G.K. Zhukov, who, with his characteristic directness, told the Supreme Commander-in-Chief that people who have combat experience should be valued.
In November 1941 I.S. Konev - commander of the troops of the Kalinin Front, Western Front (from August 1942 to February 1943), Northwestern Front (March - June 1943), Steppe Front (June 1943 - May 1944), 1st Ukrainian Front ( May 1944 to May 1945). 
Troops under the command of Ivan Stepanovich Konev inflicted a number of defeats on German troops during the defense of Moscow, liberated the city of Kalinin and in January - April 1942 advanced 250 km in the Vitebsk direction. During the Battle of the Kursk Bulge, troops of the Steppe Front took part in the Belgorod-Kharkov direction, liberating the cities of Belgorod and Kharkov. For the successful conduct of the Belgorod-Kharkov offensive operation, Ivan Stepanovich was awarded the rank of army general.
However, of course, I.S. Konev’s particular talent, as an outstanding and experienced commander, manifested itself during the brilliantly carried out Korsun-Shevchenkovsky operation, which was also called “Stalingrad on the Dnieper.”
02/20/1944 For skillful organization and excellent leadership of troops in the Korsun-Shevchenko operation, during which a large enemy group was surrounded and destroyed, Army General I.S. Konev received the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
The name of I.S. Konev, who was called the “general forward,” is associated with brilliant victories at the final stage of the Second World War - in the Vistula-Oder, Berlin and Prague operations. Moscow saluted the troops led by Marshal Konev 57 times. 
The combat experience gained during World War II was successfully used by I.S. Konev during the training and education of Soviet soldiers in the post-war period. In peacetime, Ivan Stepanovich was Commander-in-Chief of the Central Group of Forces in Austria (1945 - 1946), Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces and Deputy Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR (1946 - 1950), Chief Inspector of the Soviet Army, Deputy Minister of War of the USSR (1950 - 1951) gg.), commander of the troops of the Carpathian Military District (1951 - 1955). In 1956 - 1960 served as 1st Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR for General Issues and Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces, in May 1955 - June 1960 - Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact member states, in 1960. and from April 1962 - in the Group of Inspectors General of the USSR Ministry of Defense, in 1961 - 1962. - Commander-in-Chief of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany and again Inspector General of the USSR Ministry of Defense (until May 1973).
From 1931 to 1934 - member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, candidate member of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks from 1939 to 1952, member of the Central Committee of the CPSU since 1962, deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 1st - 8th convocations.
Ivan Stepanovich Konev died on May 21, 1973, and was buried in Moscow on Red Square near the Kremlin wall.
A bronze bust of the great commander was installed in his homeland in the village of Lodeyno. His name was given to the Alma-Ata Higher Combined Arms Command School, a Navy ship, and streets in Moscow, Donetsk, Slavyansk, Kharkov, Cherkassy, and Kropivnitsky were named after Konev.
I.S. Konev left behind his memoirs: “Forty-fifth” and “Notes of the Front Commander.”
AWARDS OF MARSHAL I.S. KONEV
ORDERS AND MEDALS OF THE USSR FOREIGN AWARDSOrder of the Red Star - 08/16/1936
Order of the Red Banner - 02/22/1938
Order of Kutuzov, 1st degree - 04/09/1943
Order of Kutuzov, 1st degree - 07/28/1943
Order of Suvorov, 1st degree - 08/27/1943
Order of Suvorov, 1st degree - 05/17/1944
Awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal - 07/29/1944.
Order of the Red Banner - 11/03/1944
Order of Lenin - 02/21/1945
Order "Victory" - 03/30/1945
Awarded the second Gold Star medal - 06/01/1945.
Order of Lenin - 12/27/1947
Order of the Red Banner - 06/20/1949
Order of Lenin - 12/18/1956
Order of Lenin - 12/27/1957
Order of Lenin - 12/27/1967
Order of the October Revolution - 22.02. 1968
Order of Lenin - December 28, 1972
Medal “XX Years of the Red Army” - 22.02. 1938
Medal "For the Defense of Moscow" - 05/01/1944
Medal “For Victory over Germany” - 09.05. 1945
Medal "For the Capture of Berlin" - 06/09/1945
Medal "For the Liberation of Prague" - 06/09/1945
Medal “In memory of the 800th anniversary of Moscow” - 09.21.1947
Medal “XXX Years of the Soviet Army and Navy” - 02/22/1948
Medal “40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR” - 02/17/1958
Medal "XX Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War" - 1965
Jubilee medal "50 years of the USSR Armed Forces" - 1968
Medal "For Military Valor" - 04/11/1970
| FOREIGN AWARDS |
| Star and badge of the Order "Virtuti Military" 1st class. - Poland Star and badge of the Order of the Renaissance of Poland, 1st class. - Poland Star and Badge of the Order of the Bath - Great Britain “Cross of Grunwald” 1st class. - Poland Order of the Partisan Star, 1st class. - SFRY Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" 2nd class. - GDR "Golden Star" of the Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic - Mongolian People's Republic Order of Sukhbaatar (1961) - Mongolian People's Republic Order of Sukhbaatar (1971) - Mongolian People's Republic Order of the Red Banner of Battle - Mongolian People's Republic French Order of the Legion of Honor 2nd class. - France Military Cross - France Order of the Legion of Honor, Commander's degree - USA Order "People's Republic of Bulgaria" 1st class. - NRB "Golden Star" of the Hero of Czechoslovakia - Czechoslovakia Order of "Klement Gottwald" - Czechoslovakia Star and badge of the Order of the White Lion, 1st class. - Czechoslovakia Order of the White Lion "For Victory" 1st class. - Czechoslovakia Military Cross 1939 - Czechoslovakia Order of Hungarian Freedom, 1st class. - VNR Order of the Hungarian People's Republic- VNR Medal "Sino-Soviet Friendship" - PRC |
