Soviet Major Vasily Ivanovich Andreev

[Guest Rick Research]

On that first citation as a private-- a Red Star is waaaaaaaaay over the top for that. Every soldier in the Red Army would have rated one, if being alert on guard was "it." That's the one that ended up lost in the paperwork shuffle and eventually turned into a Valor Medal-- which is ALSO excesssive. The final entry shows, I think, date March 1945 but the copy of the carbon is too poor to be sure. that explains the serial number on that medal though. I'd say "Private" Andreev must have been a Marked Man as "soon to be somebody" hence the overly generous citation.

Commissars seem to always end up (like staff HQ types) with far better awards than poor Comrade Slobs in the infantry.

I think the term "Nomer" (literally "Number") refers to the position "gun crew member" and so it should say "Gun crew member, 5th Battery" rather than "Number 5 Battery."

The lack of a, an, the in Russian doesn't help.

2nd citation is calligraaphy of dazzling Would that they ALL looked like that!

3rd citation refers to him in your translation as "politics deputy commander" of the battalion which is inapt. That pairing of words suggests (in English) that he was the 2nd ranking commissar in the unit. Actually what it should be read as is "deputy battalion commander for political matters." This is the old Dual Command supervision of line officers by political commissars with veto power over the "real" commander's decisions.

Andreev was the 2nd in ACTUAL command of the battalion, as the senior commissar in the unit.

[Ed_Haynes]

I suspect a combination of the distinguished railway record and the serious (!) wound moved him up.

Somewhere in here (as I suspect is the case with most GPW Soviet groups) is a movie script much better than that "Enemy at the Gates" thing.

[Ed_Haynes]

OK, OK, I lied.

My justification is that maybe, just maybe, knowing his pre-war experience will help us understand what happened to him during the war (beyond getting his mouth shot off).

Document exterior.

Edited August 15, 2008 by Ed_Haynes

[Ed_Haynes]

Interior spread.

[Ferdinand]

Just a small addition - the Major General in post #31 isn't 'Fedyunskii' but the well-known Fedyuninsky, who became an Army General in 1955.

[Ed_Haynes]

Just a small addition - the Major General in post #31 isn't 'Fedyunskii' but the well-known Fedyuninsky, who became an Army General in 1955.

Thanks!

[Ed_Haynes]

Not to inflict more burdens on your long-suffering (and I do mean SUFFERING) translationm comrade, let me augment the record with Andreev's service record.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 2.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 3.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 4.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 5.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 6.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 7.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 8.

[Ed_Haynes]

Part 9.

[Ed_Haynes]

And, finally, part 10.

[Ed_Haynes]

Any help? There's more, but I shall wait.

[Ed_Haynes]

And, with much appreciation for what help has been offered, I still wait.

Before posting more

[Gunner 1]

Ferdinand wrote:

Just a small addition - the Major General in post #31 isn't 'Fedyunskii' but the well-known Fedyuninsky, who became an Army General in 1955

Actually it depends on the language and transliteration form being used. According to the transliteration form used by the Library of Congress the name of the Major General would be 'Fediuninskii.' Gunner 1

[Ferdinand]

True, there are a dozen ways to transliterate his name, but 'Fedyunskii' is definately not one of them, as it simply misses a syllable. :cheers:

[Gunner 1]

Ferdinand: Very true!! Gunner 1