Soviet Red Star to Vladimir Ivanovich Ivanov

[Ferdinand]

De following docs arrived for my Red Star number 103683. It was awarded to Vladimir Ivanovich Ivanov. He was born in 1923 in the town of Karpovo, Znamensky Region, Smolensk Oblast. He joined the Red Army on 25 Feb 1942. He was assigned to the Don Front in September 1942. Ivanov lived in Leningrad. His mother was Irina Ivanovna Ivanova. He joined the VLKSM in 1946.

According to the Award Card he was a captain in a unit I can't read and according to the Nagradnoi List a Private in the 341st Independent Rifle Batallion of the 233rd Rifle Division of the Don Front. Does this mean he was a soldier first and became an officer later? I can't read the citation (except the fact that he was a scout) so I could use some help here. The citation was signed on 3 Feb 1943 by the commander of the 341st Independent Rifle Batallion, Captain Pozdnyakov, and later in February by the commander of the 233rd Rifle Division, an officer whose name I can't read.

His awards:

Medal for Defense of Stalingrad (Ukaz 22 Dec 1942)

Order of the Red Star # 103683 (Prikaz 06 Feb 1943)

Medal for Victory over Germany (Ukaz 9 May 1945)

Medal for 30 Years Soviet Army and Fleet (Ukaz 22 Feb 1948)

Medal for Military Merit (Ukaz of 15 Nov 1950)

Order of the Red Star # 3081632 (Ukaz of 21 Aug 1953)

Auke

[Ferdinand]

Award Card, obverse:

Award Card, reverse:

Citation, upper half:

Citation, lower half:

The reverse (I think there should be some signatures here):

[Ferdinand]

And the Red Star:

[Guest Rick Research]

There isn't any date on the ARC, but he must have been commissioned after serving in the ranks. The way it is neatly filled out with the decorations and then medals, probably about 1953 from the most recent date.

It says there that he was a Kapitan commanding the tank company of the 112th Selfpropelled Tank Regiment ("Tanko-Samokhodnii Polk") of 22nd Rifles Division in 137th Rifles Corps, "D" Military District.

That's probably an abbreviation for the Far East Military District, since that's where the 22nd Rifles Division came from.

ALL tanks being "self propelled," I assume this is an awkward way of meaning what the Germans called "Sturmgesch?tz" assault guns mounted on tank bodies.

The very basic drift is that as a private out on reconnaissance, on 1 February 1943 he killed 5 German soldiers with grenades and brought back 23 as prisoners, while on the next day he killed 13 and brought back 18 as prisoners, while stopping along the way to neutralize 8 enemy mines!

Body counts in the field, like aerial victories, are always wildly speculative-- but I assume regimental command could count PRISONERS!!!!!

Apparently he was a one teenager army corps!!!!!!!

[Bill Garvy]

Looks like he was awarded another Red Star in 1953 as well, Nr. 3081632. . .

Edited August 20, 2007 by Bill Garvy

[Guest Rick Research]

Yup-- and those are very interesting as well. Born in 1923, joined in 1942--

he SHOULD have gotten his 10 years MMM in 1952/53 and his 15 years Red Star in 1957 or... oops, missed out by 1958.

2 years early for MMM, and FOUR years early for ORS long services.

He was too young to have had prior draftee service that was counted towards later career time.

Likewise-- if those were "real" awards, he should STILL have received the normal long service ones, too.

So

??????

Personnel records, I think.

[Ferdinand]

Thanks, Rick! Quite a one-man batallion!

[Paul R]

I am really starting to like these ORS citations!

[koopyetz]

Gentlemen:

Would you please provide the translation of line 5. from hand written citation. I also wish to know what the second word is on the same line.

is it сбояа?

Thank you very much

Regards

Rick

[Ferdinand]

Here's the translation of the citation:

"In fighting for "No-Name Village" on 1.2.43, Sapper-scout V.I. Ivanov and Privates Dudarevich and Pesterevy were assigned a combat mission. The mission was to clear a ridge [trans: following two words unintelligible] upon which the Germans were situated and firing upon our attacking infantrymen with flanking machinegun and rifle rifle. Private Ivanov approached undetected to the first bunker and threw two grenades into its window, killing five German soldiers. Dudarevich, Pesterevy, and Ivanov then captured 23 German soldiers. In fighting for the "Barrikady" village and factory on 2.2.43, Private Ivanov tossed grenades into a trench containing Germans attempting to resist, thus killing 13 German soldiers and capturing 18 German soldiers and officers. While conducting engineer reconnaissance of "No-Name Village", Private Ivanov uncovered and disarmed eight anti-tank mines.

3 February 1943

Commander of the 341st Independent Sapper Batallion

Captain [signed] /Pozdnyakov/

Awarded the Order of the Red Star

[?] February 1943

Commander of the 233rd Rifle Division [signed] /Barinov/"

[koopyetz]

thank you for the translation

Regards

Rick

[Ferdinand]

Now that photographic research is possible, which makes the service record photographs come out so much nicer than on the older xerox copies, I decided to request service records for my awards that hadn't been fully researched yet.

Ivanov was one of them, for whom I received not 1, but 3 Service Record Cards, with 3 nice photos of the recipient! And that within three days after I submitted my request. Hereby a public "thank you!" to Marco for his research efforts! Kudos to him and his archive men and I hope you'll continue to be in this business for a long time!

[Ferdinand]

First of all, the photos of the documents (empty parts left out):

[Ferdinand]

Close-ups of the photos. The photo on the left, showing Ivanov as a Lieutenant of Tank Troops with an M1943 service uniform in the late 40s, was on two of the Service Record Cards. The photo on the right, of Ivanov in civilian clothing, was obviously taken a couple of years later.

http://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_07_2009/post-2048-1246475348.jpghttp://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_07_2009/post-2048-1246475380.jpg

[Ferdinand]

These documents show that Ivanov was hospitalized twice after being wounded in the second half of the war, but had quite a fruitful career after his sapper and reconnaissance days in Stalingrad.

Ivanov was born on 27 July 1923 and had attended 8 classes of secondary school in Leningrad by 1940. He joined the Red Army on 25 Februari 1942 and attended the Infantry School of Veliky Ustyug, in the Vologda Oblast, were he was called for service.

As of July 1942, Ivanov fought as a reconnaissance squad commander in the 341st Independent Sapper Battalion of the 233rd Rifle Division with the Don Front and later with the 2nd Ukrainian Front. On 26 August 1943 he was lightly wounded near Gavrilovka in the Kharkov Oblast and once again on 4 January 1944.

Between his wounds, Ivanov was a miner in the same battalion. In 1946 he became a Komsomol member. After the war he attended the Tashkent Tank School, which he passed in May 1948. He was promoted several times afterwards, the last to being as a reserve officer:

- Lieutenant - 3 June 1948

- Senior Lieutenant - 21 April 1950

- Captain - 9 February 1952

- Major - 14 September 1961

- Lieutenant Colonel - 30 April 1975

His assigments:

- Cadet - Veliky Ustyug Infantry School in Veliky Ustyug - From 27 July 1942 to 25 May 1942

- Reconnaissance squad commander - 341st Independent Sapper Battalion, 233rd Rifle Division, 2nd Ukrainian Front - From July 1942 to 26 August 1943

- Wounded - Recovering in hospital nr. 5283, city of Ostrogozhsk - From 26 August 1943 to 16 December 1943

- Miner - 147th Front Reserve Rifle Regiment - From 4 January 1944 to February 1944

- Wounded - Recovering in hospital nr. 2905, nr. 1929, 2nd Ukrainian Front - From February 1944 to 18 June 1945

- Cadet - 2nd Kharkov Tank School for Selfpropelled Artillery, Turkestan Military District - From 5 September 1945 to 2 October 1945

- Cadet - Tashkent Order of Lenin Tank School named after Stalin, Turkestan Military District, city of Chirchik - From 2 October 1945 to May 1948

- Reconnaissance platoon commander - 112th Selfpropelled Tank Regiment, 22nd Rifle Division - Far Eastern Military District - Until 19 August 1948

- Tank company commander - 112th Selfpropelled Tank Regiment, 137th Rifle Corps - Far Eastern Military District - Until 24 November 1951

- At disposal of the commander of the Baltic Military District - Far Eastern Military District - Until 30 August 1954

- Tank company commander - 96th Guards Selfpropelled Tank Regiment, 51st Guards Rifle Division - Baltic Military District - Until 5 November 1954

On 30 December 1955 he was transferred to the reserves.

Ivanov was married to Lyubov [?Love?] Nikolayevna Ivanova, who was 13 years his senior. They had a son, Yuri, in 1953.