What can dry statistics tell us about the number of those awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and full holders of the Order of Glory?
How many heroes of the Great Patriotic War were there in the Soviet Union? It would seem a strange question. In the country that survived the worst tragedy of the 20th century, everyone who defended it in their hands at the front or at the machine tool and in the field in the rear was a hero. That is, each of its 170 million multinational people who bore the weight of the war on their shoulders.
But if we ignore the pathos and return to the specifics, the question can be formulated differently. How was it noted in the USSR that a person is a hero? That’s right, the title “Hero of the Soviet Union.” And 31 years after the war, another sign of heroism appeared: full holders of the Order of Glory, that is, those awarded all three degrees of this award, were equalized with the Heroes of the Soviet Union. It turns out that the question “How many heroes of the Great Patriotic War were there in the Soviet Union?” It would be more precise to formulate this way: “How many people in the USSR were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and became full holders of the Order of Glory for exploits performed during the Great Patriotic War?”
This question can be answered with a very specific answer: a total of 14,411 people, of which 11,739 are Heroes of the Soviet Union and 2,672 full holders of the Order of Glory.
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union during the war
The number of Heroes of the Soviet Union who received this title for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War is 11,739. This title was awarded posthumously to 3,051 of them; 82 people were subsequently deprived of their rank by court decision. 107 heroes were awarded this title twice (seven posthumously), three three times: Marshal Semyon Budyonny (all awards occurred after the war), Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Pokryshkin and Major Ivan Kozhedub. And only one - Marshal Georgy Zhukov - became Hero of the Soviet Union four times, and he earned one award even before the Great Patriotic War, and received it for the fourth time in 1956.
Among those awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union during the Great Patriotic War were representatives of all branches and types of troops in ranks from private to marshal. And every branch of the military - be it infantrymen, pilots or sailors - is proud of the first colleagues who received the highest honorary title.
Pilots
The first titles of Hero of the Soviet Union were awarded to pilots on July 8, 1941. Moreover, here too the pilots supported the tradition: six pilots were the first Heroes of the Soviet Union in the history of this award - and three pilots were the first to be awarded this title during the Great Patriotic War! On July 8, 1941, it was assigned to fighter pilots of the 158th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 41st Mixed Air Division of the Air Force of the 23rd Army of the Northern Front. Junior lieutenants Mikhail Zhukov, Stepan Zdorovtsev and Pyotr Kharitonov received awards for ramming operations carried out in the first days of the war. Stepan Zdorovtsev died the day after the award, Mikhail Zhukov died in January 1943 in a battle with nine German fighters, and Pyotr Kharitonov, seriously wounded in 1941 and returning to duty only in 1944, ended the war with 14 destroyed. enemy aircraft.
A fighter pilot in front of his P-39 Airacobra. Photo: waralbum.ru
Infantrymen
The first Hero of the Soviet Union among infantrymen on July 22, 1941 was the commander of the 1st Moscow Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Army of the Western Front, Colonel Yakov Kreiser. He was awarded for successfully holding back the Germans on the Berezina River and in the battles for Orsha. It is noteworthy that Colonel Kreizer became the first among Jewish military personnel to receive the highest award during the war.
Tankers
On July 22, 1941, three tankmen received the country's highest awards: the tank commander of the 1st Tank Regiment of the 1st Tank Division of the 14th Army of the Northern Front, Senior Sergeant Alexander Borisov, and the squad commander of the 163rd Reconnaissance Battalion of the 104th Infantry Division of the 14th Army of the Northern Front, junior sergeant Alexander Gryaznov (his title was awarded posthumously) and deputy commander of the tank battalion of the 115th tank regiment of the 57th tank division of the 20th army of the Western Front, captain Joseph Kaduchenko. Senior Sergeant Borisov died in hospital from severe wounds a week and a half after the award. Captain Kaduchenko managed to be on the lists of the dead, was captured in October 1941, tried unsuccessfully to escape three times and was released only in March 1945, after which he fought until the Victory.
Sappers
Among the soldiers and commanders of engineer units, the first Hero of the Soviet Union became on November 20, 1941, the assistant platoon commander of the 184th separate engineer battalion of the 7th Army of the Northern Front, Private Viktor Karandakov. In the battle near Sortavala against Finnish units, he repelled three enemy attacks with fire from his machine gun, which actually saved the regiment from encirclement, the next day he led the counterattack of the squad instead of the wounded commander, and two days later he carried the wounded company commander out of the fire. In April 1942, the sapper, who lost an arm in battle, was demobilized.
Sappers neutralize German anti-tank mines. Photo: militariorgucoz.ru
Artillerymen
On August 2, 1941, the first artilleryman - Hero of the Soviet Union was the gunner of the "magpie" of the 680th Infantry Regiment of the 169th Infantry Division of the 18th Army of the Southern Front, Red Army soldier Yakov Kolchak. On July 13, 1941, in an hour of battle he managed to hit four enemy tanks with his cannon! But Yakov did not learn about the conferment of a high rank: on July 23, he was wounded and captured. He was released in August 1944 in Moldova, and Kolchak achieved victory as part of a penal company, where he fought first as a rifleman and then as a squad commander. And the former penalty box, who already had the Order of the Red Star and the medal “For Military Merit” on his chest, received a high award in the Kremlin only on March 25, 1947.
Partisans
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union from among the partisans were the leaders of the Red October partisan detachment operating on the territory of Belarus: the detachment's commissar Tikhon Bumazhkov and commander Fyodor Pavlovsky. The decree on their awarding was signed on August 6, 1941. Of the two heroes, only one survived to the Victory - Fyodor Pavlovsky, and the commissar of the Red October detachment, Tikhon Bumazhkov, who managed to receive his award in Moscow, died in December of the same year, leaving the German encirclement.
Marines
On August 13, 1941, senior sergeant Vasily Kislyakov, commander of the Northern Fleet naval volunteer detachment, was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. He received a high award for his actions in mid-July 1941, when he led a platoon in place of the killed commander and, first together with his comrades, and then alone, held an important height. By the end of the war, Captain Kislyakov had several landings on the Northern Front, participating in the Petsamo-Kirkenes, Budapest and Vienna offensive operations.
Political instructors
The first decree conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on political workers of the Red Army was issued on August 15, 1941. This document awarded the highest award to the deputy political instructor of the radio company of the 415th separate communications battalion of the 22nd Estonian Territorial Rifle Corps of the North-Western Front, Arnold Meri, and the secretary of the party bureau of the 245th howitzer artillery regiment of the 37th rifle division of the 19th Army of the Western Front, Sr. political instructor Kirill Osipov. Meri was awarded for the fact that, twice wounded, he managed to stop the retreat of the battalion and led the defense of the corps headquarters. In July-August 1941, Osipov actually worked as a liaison officer for the command of a division fighting in encirclement, and crossed the front line several times, delivering important information.
Doctors
Among the army doctors who received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, the first was the medical instructor of the 14th motorized rifle regiment of the 21st motorized rifle division of the NKVD troops of the Northern Front, Private Anatoly Kokorin. The high award was awarded to him on August 26, 1941 - posthumously. During the battle with the Finns, he was the last one left in the ranks and blew himself up with a grenade to avoid being captured.
Border guards
Although the Soviet border guards were the first to take on the enemy attack on June 22, 1941, the Heroes of the Soviet Union appeared among them only two months later. But there were six people at once: junior sergeant Ivan Buzytskov, lieutenant Kuzma Vetchinkin, senior lieutenant Nikita Kaimanov, senior lieutenant Alexander Konstantinov, junior sergeant Vasily Mikhalkov and lieutenant Anatoly Ryzhikov. Five of them served in Moldova, senior lieutenant Kaimanov - in Karelia. All six received awards for their heroic actions in the early days of the war - which, in general, is not surprising. And all six reached the end of the war and continued to serve after the Victory - in the same border troops.
Signalmen
The first Hero of the Soviet Union among signalmen appeared on November 9, 1941 - he became the commander of the radio department of the 289th anti-tank fighter regiment of the Western Front, junior sergeant Pyotr Stemasov. He was awarded for his feat on October 25 near Moscow - during the battle he replaced a wounded gunner and, together with his crew, knocked out nine enemy tanks, after which he led the soldiers out of encirclement. And then he fought until the Victory, which he met as an officer.
Field communications. Photo: pobeda1945.su
Cavalrymen
On the same day as the first signalman hero, the first cavalry hero appeared. On November 9, 1941, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was posthumously awarded to the commander of the 134th Cavalry Regiment of the 28th Cavalry Division of the Reserve Army of the Southern Front, Major Boris Krotov. He was awarded the highest award for his exploits during the defense of Dnepropetrovsk. How difficult those battles were can be imagined from one episode: the last feat of the regiment commander was the blowing up of an enemy tank that had broken through into the depths of the defense.
Paratroopers
The “Winged Infantry” received its first Heroes of the Soviet Union on November 20, 1941. They were the commander of the reconnaissance company squad of the 212th Airborne Brigade of the 37th Army of the Southwestern Front, Sergeant Yakov Vatomov, and the rifleman of the same brigade, Nikolai Obukhov. Both received awards for their exploits in August-September 1941, when the paratroopers fought heavy battles in eastern Ukraine.
Sailors
Later than everyone else - only on January 17, 1942 - the first Hero of the Soviet Union appeared in the Soviet Navy. The highest award was posthumously awarded to Red Navy gunner Ivan Sivko of the 2nd volunteer detachment of sailors of the Northern Fleet. Ivan accomplished his feat, which was so highly appreciated by the country, as part of the infamous landing into the Great Western Litsa Bay. Covering the retreat of his colleagues, he, fighting alone, destroyed 26 enemies, and then blew himself up with a grenade along with the Nazis who surrounded him.
Soviet sailors, heroes of the storming of Berlin. Photo: radionetplus.ru
Generals
The first Red Army general awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was on July 22, 1941, the commander of the 19th Tank Division of the 22nd Mechanized Corps of the 5th Army of the Southwestern Front, Major General Kuzma Semenchenko. His division took an active part in the largest tank battle of the Great Patriotic War - the Battle of Dubno - and after heavy fighting it was surrounded, but the general was able to lead his subordinates across the front line. By mid-August 1941, only one tank remained in the division, and in early September it was disbanded. And General Semenchenko fought until the end of the war and in 1947 retired with the same rank in which he began to fight.
“The fight is not for glory...”
During the Great Patriotic War, there was the most honorable soldier's award - the Order of Glory. Both her ribbon and her statute were very reminiscent of another soldier's award - the insignia of the Order of St. George, the “soldier's Egor,” especially revered in the army of the Russian Empire. In total, more than a million people were awarded the Order of Glory during the year and a half of the war - from its establishment on November 8, 1943 until the Victory - and in the post-war period. Of these, almost a million received the order of the third degree, over 46 thousand - the second, and 2,672 people - the first degree; they became full holders of the order.
Of the 2,672 full holders of the Order of Glory, 16 people were subsequently deprived of the award by court decision for various reasons. Among those deprived was the only holder of five Orders of Glory - 3rd, three 2nd and 1st degrees. In addition, 72 people were nominated for four Orders of Glory, but, as a rule, did not receive an “excess” award.
Order of Glory 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree. Photo: Central Museum of the Armed Forces
The first full holders of the Order of Glory were the sapper of the 1134th Infantry Regiment of the 338th Infantry Division, Corporal Mitrofan Pitenin, and the squad commander of the 110th Separate Reconnaissance Company of the 158th Infantry Division, Senior Sergeant Shevchenko. Corporal Pitenin was nominated for the first order in November 1943 for fighting in Belarus, the second in April 1944, and the third in July of the same year. But he did not have time to receive the last award: on August 3, he died in battle. And senior sergeant Shevchenko received all three orders in 1944: in February, April and July. He ended the war in 1945 with the rank of sergeant major and was soon demobilized, returning home not only with three Orders of Glory on his chest, but also with the Orders of the Red Star and the Patriotic War of both degrees.
And there were also four people who received both signs of the highest recognition of military heroism - both the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and the title of full holder of the Order of Glory. The first is the senior pilot of the 140th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment of the 8th Guards Assault Aviation Division of the 1st Assault Aviation Corps of the 5th Air Army of the Guard, Senior Lieutenant Ivan Drachenko. He received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union in 1944, and became a full holder of the Order of Glory after being re-awarded (double award of the Order of the 2nd degree) in 1968.
The second is the commander of the gun of the 369th separate anti-tank artillery division of the 263rd rifle division of the 43rd army of the 3rd Belorussian Front, foreman Nikolai Kuznetsov. In April 1945, he received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, and after being re-awarded in 1980 (double award of the Order of the 2nd degree) he became a full holder of the Order of Glory.
The third was the commander of the gun crew of the 175th Guards Artillery and Mortar Regiment of the 4th Guards Cavalry Division of the 2nd Guards Cavalry Corps of the 1st Belorussian Front, Senior Sergeant Andrei Aleshin. He became a Hero of the Soviet Union at the end of May 1945, and a full holder of the Order of Glory after being re-awarded (double award of the Order of the 3rd degree) in 1955.
Finally, the fourth is the foreman of the company of the 293rd Guards Rifle Regiment of the 96th Guards Rifle Division of the 28th Army of the 3rd Belorussian Front Guard, foreman Pavel Dubinda. He has perhaps the most unusual fate of all four heroes. A sailor, he served on the cruiser "Chervona Ukraine" on the Black Sea, after the death of the ship - in the Marine Corps, defended Sevastopol. Here he was captured, from which he escaped and in March 1944 he was re-enlisted in the active army, but in the infantry. He became a full holder of the Order of Glory by March 1945, and in June of the same year he received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. By the way, among his awards was the rare Order of Bohdan Khmelnitsky, 3rd degree - a kind of “soldier’s” military order.
Multinational heroism
The Soviet Union was truly a multinational country: in the data of the last pre-war census of 1939, 95 nationalities appear, not counting the column “others” (other peoples of the North, other peoples of Dagestan). Naturally, among the Heroes of the Soviet Union and full holders of the Order of Glory there were representatives of almost all Soviet nationalities. Among the former there are 67 nationalities, among the latter (according to clearly incomplete data) there are 39 nationalities.
The number of heroes awarded the highest ranks among a particular nationality generally corresponds to the ratio of the number of fellow tribesmen to the total number of the pre-war USSR. Thus, the leaders in all lists were and remain Russians, followed by Ukrainians and Belarusians. But then the situation is different. For example, in the top ten awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians are followed (in order) by Tatars, Jews, Kazakhs, Armenians, Georgians, Uzbeks and Mordovians. And in the top ten full holders of the Order of Glory, after Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians, there are (also in order) Tatars, Kazakhs, Armenians, Mordovians, Uzbeks, Chuvashs and Jews.
The key to victory over fascism was the unity and cohesion of the peoples of the USSR. Photo: all-retro.ru
But judging by these statistics which people were more heroic and which were less is meaningless. Firstly, many of the nationalities of the heroes were accidentally or even deliberately indicated incorrectly or were missing (for example, the nationality was often hidden by the Germans and Jews, and the option “Crimean Tatar” was simply not there in the 1939 census documents). And secondly, even today, not all documents relating to the awarding of heroes of the Great Patriotic War have been brought together and taken into account. This colossal topic is still waiting for its researcher, who will certainly confirm: heroism is a property of each individual person, and not of this or that nation.
National composition of the Heroes of the Soviet Union who received this title for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War*
Russians - 7998 (including 70 - twice, 2 - three times and 1 - four times)
Ukrainians - 2019 (including 28 - twice),
Belarusians – 274 (including 4 twice),
Tatars - 161
Jews - 128 (including 1 twice)
Kazakhs - 98 (including 1 twice)
Armenians - 91 (including 2 twice)
Georgians - 90
Uzbeks - 67
Mordva - 66
Chuvash - 47
Azerbaijanis - 41 (including 1 twice)
Bashkirs - 40 (including 1 - twice)
Ossetians - 34 (including 1 twice)
Mari - 18
Turkmens - 16
Lithuanians - 15
Tajiks - 15
Latvians - 12
Kyrgyz - 12
Karelians - 11 (including 1 twice)
Udmurts - 11
Estonians - 11
Avars - 9
Poles - 9
Buryats and Mongols - 8
Kalmyks - 8
Kabardians - 8
Crimean Tatars - 6 (including 1 twice)
Chechens - 6
Moldovans - 5
Abkhazians - 4
Lezgins - 4
French - 4
Karachais - 3
Tuvans - 3
Circassians - 3
Balkars -2
Bulgarians - 2
Dargins - 2
Kumyks - 2
Khakass - 2
Abazinets - 1
Adjaran - 1
Altaian - 1
Assyrian - 1
Spaniard - 1
Chinese (Dungan) - 1
Korean - 1
Slovak - 1
Tuvinian – 1
* The list is incomplete, compiled using data from the “Heroes of the Country” project (http://www.warheroes.ru/main.asp) and data from the writer Gennady Ovrutsky (http://www.proza.ru/2009/08/16/ 901).
National composition of full holders of the Order of Glory, who received this title for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War**
Russians - 1276
Ukrainians - 285
Belarusians - 62
Tatars - 48
Kazakhs - 30
Armenians - 19
Mordva - 16
Uzbeks - 12
Chuvash - 11
Azerbaijanis - 8
Bashkirs - 7
Kyrgyz - 7
Udmurts - 6
Turkmens - 5
Buryats - 4
Georgians - 4
Mari - 3
Poles - 3
Karelians - 2
Latvians - 2
Moldovans - 2
Ossetians - 2
Tajiks - 2
Khakass - 2
Abazinets - 1
Kabardian - 1
Kalmyk - 1
Chinese - 1
Crimean Tatar - 1
Lithuanian -1
Meskhetian Turk - 1
Chechen - 1
** The list is incomplete, compiled using data from the “Heroes of the Country” project (http://www.warheroes.ru/main.asp).
It's time to write about a hero who became famous in the Great Patriotic War for his military exploits. After all, such people forged victory. Ivan Kozhedub became a hero of the Soviet Union three times in a row! In the history of the country, such an honor was given only to three people: actually, Kozhedub, Marshal and Minister of Defense Semyon Budyonny and pilot Alexander Pokryshkin. The hero of this article was the most effective among the pilots of the Soviet Union and the pilots of the Allied forces in the Second World War. He has 64 victories in air battles. Ivan Nikitovich received his first hero star almost 70 years ago - on February 4, 1944. At that time he was 24 years old. Three times the hero of the Soviet Union showed by his example that one in the field can be a warrior.
Born in a village into a poor family of a church elder, Ivan Nikitovich was the youngest of five children. The boy was born after a terrible famine. Vanya's father was a surprisingly educated and intelligent man for his low origin. In between hard work, he read books to the children and even wrote poetry. But not only a good education at home was given to his son by the pious church elder. The father kept the boy strict, but within reason. At the age of five, Vanya was already guarding the garden from thieves, without closing his eyes all night. This seemed a strange act: thieves were rare guests at that time. At a more conscious age, Kozhedub asked his father why he sent him to guard the garden, which no one really needed. The headman replied that this was only to instill in his son resistance to trials. 
After graduating from school, the future hero entered the Chemical Technology College, and at the same time he worked part-time in the library. Ivan Kozhedub, like , treated aviation as a hobby. Just like the first man in space, he went to a flying club, where he showed himself to be a promising pilot. Service in the army finally gave Ivan confidence in choosing a future profession. He graduates with honors from flight school and, as one of the best cadets, was offered to remain as an instructor pilot. At that time he flew UT-2 and I-16.
During the war, the young pilot was evacuated along with his entire flight school to Kazakhstan. Kozhedub passionately asked the command to send him to the front to beat the Germans. The request was granted only in 1942. In November of the same year, Ivan Nikitovich arrived in Ivanovo, where the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 302nd Fighter Aviation Division was being formed. Six months later, Kozhedub flew to the war, to the Voronezh front. 
The first air battle was rather unsuccessful for the future ace. He was shot down by a burst of fire from a Messerschmitt 109, and to top it all off, Soviet anti-aircraft guns accidentally hit his La-5. With great difficulty, Kozhedub landed the plane, but the combat vehicle could not be restored. They even wanted to remove the famous pilot from flying, transferring him to a warning post. The squadron commander stood up for the young talent. The pilot did not betray the trust of his superiors, and in the summer Ivan was awarded the rank of junior lieutenant, and a little later he became deputy commander. On July 6, 1943, on the Kursk Bulge, Kozhedub shot down his first German plane. It was a Junkers Ju-87 bomber. The next day, Ivan repeated his feat, and on July 9 he shot down two fighters at once. In August 1943, the great pilot was appointed squadron commander.
On September 30, 1943, Ivan accompanied the crossing of troops across the Dnieper. The young pilot, left in the air without cover, noticed German Junkers in the distance. Even if it was reckless, Kozhedub directed his plane into their slender wedge. The future famous ace managed to invade enemy units. The German bombers were rather confused, stopped bombing the column of troops and regrouped for the attack. Having gathered in time, the pilot noticed a Yu-87 straying from the “flock” of Junkers, which he shot down. The bombers had to retreat. After the battle, Ivan Nikitovich said a phrase that he repeated quite often afterwards: “They fight not with numbers, but with skill!”
But after just three days, Ivan had a really hard time. Kozhedub, together with his colleagues, covered the bridgehead on the river bank in nine La-5 aircraft (the pilots called them “Lavochkins”). A column of Junkers-87 bombers consisting of nine aircraft, covered by six Me-109 fighters, appeared in the sky. Kozhedub and his comrades were not at a loss and attacked significant enemy forces, who did not expect such agility. Two bombers were shot down, the column turned back, losing combat units. By October 1943, the squadron commander had flown 146 combat missions and personally shot down 20 German aircraft. 
On February 4, 1944, for the courage and military valor shown in battles with the invaders, Ivan Nikitovich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Despite frequent shelling by enemy forces, Kozhedub managed to survive in any conditions. After another destruction of the combat vehicle, a hybrid aircraft was built with the money of a local collective farmer-beekeeper, which the ace has been flying since May 1944. This continued until August, when the hero was allocated a new La-7 fighter. On August 19, for exceptional discipline and military skill, the command awarded Kozhedub the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time. He was credited with 256 combat missions and 48 downed enemy aircraft.
In mid-February 1945, Ivan Kozhedub was attacked by an unknown aircraft at that time. It was the newest German Luftwaffe fighter-bomber or Me-262. The combat vehicle was almost the most advanced miracle of the military industry of that time due to its impressive speed. But she too was shot down during a long battle by our famous pilot, who was accustomed to attacking from a long distance.
In April 1945, a rather strange story happened to Ivan. While driving German fighters away from Allied planes, Kozhedub was attacked by American combat vehicles, which confused him with a German. Ivan shot down two planes that actually belonged to the US Air Force.
On August 18, 1945, for exceptional skill, Kozhedub received the third “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union. During his entire flying career, the ace was shot down many times, but he always tried to land the plane, which he succeeded in doing. Distinguished by exceptional skill, superhuman precision and the ability to perform the most complex aerobatic maneuvers, Kozhedub rarely went into close combat, trying to hit from a long distance. In 1985, he received the rank of air marshal. The hero died on August 8, 1991.
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union was established by the Decree of the USSR Central Executive Committee of April 16, 1934. Later, on August 1, 1939, as an additional insignia for Heroes of the USSR, the Gold Star medal was approved, in the form of a five-pointed star fixed on a rectangular block, which was issued to the recipients along with the Order of Lenin and a diploma of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. At the same time, it was established that those who repeatedly performed a feat worthy of the title of Hero would be awarded the second Order of Lenin and the second Gold Star medal. When the hero was re-awarded, his bronze bust was installed in his homeland. The number of awards with the title Hero of the Soviet Union was not limited.
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union
The list of the first Heroes of the Soviet Union was opened on April 20, 1934 by polar pilots, participants in the rescue of passengers in distress on the legendary steamship Chelyuskin: Anatoly Lyapidevsky, Sigismund Levanevsky, Nikolai Kamanin, Vasily Molokov, Mikhail Vodopyanov, Mavriky Slepnev and Ivan Doronin.
Heroes of the Soviet Union of the Great Patriotic War
More than 90 percent of the total number of Heroes of the Soviet Union appeared in the country during the Great Patriotic War. 11 thousand 657 people were awarded this high title, 3051 of them posthumously. This list includes 107 fighters who became twice heroes (7 were awarded posthumously), and the total number of those awarded included 90 women (49 - posthumously).
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War were:
Air Force:
Fighter pilots junior lieutenants Mikhail Petrovich Zhukov, Stepan Ivanovich Zdorovtsev and Petr Timofeevich Kharitonov, who distinguished themselves in air battles with enemy bombers.
On June 28, these pilots, using their I-16 fighters, used ramming attacks against enemy Ju-88 bombers (the first ram was carried out 15 minutes after the start of the war by Dmitry Kokorev).
Navy:
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union in the Navy was first awarded to a sailor of the Northern Fleet, squad commander, senior sergeant Vasily Pavlovich Kislyakov, who distinguished himself during the landing in Motovsky Bay in the Arctic in July 1941 (replaced the killed commander, and then held the altitude for 7 hours) .
Infantry:
The first Hero of the Soviet Union in the ground forces was the commander of the 1st Moscow Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Army, Colonel Kreiser Yakov Grigorievich, for organizing the combat operations of the division, which, having launched a counterattack to the enemy, delayed his advance for two days at the line of the Berezina River.
Armored troops:
The first (no other data found) Heroes of the Soviet Union were the tank commander of the 1st Tank Regiment of the 1st Tank Division of the 14th Army of the Northern Front, senior sergeant Alexander Mikhailovich Borisov and the deputy commander of the tank battalion of the 115th Tank Regiment of the 57th Tank Division 20th Army of the Western Front, captain Kaduchenko Joseph Andriyanovich.
Artillery:
The first artilleryman to become a Hero of the Soviet Union was the gunner of the anti-tank battery of the 680th Infantry Regiment of the 169th Infantry Division of the 18th Army of the Southern Front, Red Army soldier Yakov Kharitonovich Kolchak.
People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs:
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union were the border guards of outpost No. 5 of the 25th Kagul border detachment of the Moldavian border district, who entered the battle on the Prut River on June 22, 1941: senior lieutenant Alexander Konstantinov Konstantinov, junior lieutenant Ivan Dmitrievich Buzytskov, junior sergeant Vasily Fedorovich Mikhalkov. For 11 days, the outpost was completely surrounded.
Also, the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to the head of outpost No. 12 of the 25th Cahul border detachment of the Moldavian border district, Lieutenant Vetchinkin Kuzma Fedorovich.
Partisans:
The first Heroes of the Soviet Union were the Belarusian secretary of the district party committee, commissar of the Red October partisan detachment Tikhon Pimenovich Bumazhkov and the commander of the same detachment Fedor Illarionovich Pavlovsky.
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union is held by four full holders of the Order of Glory:
Four times Heroes There are only two on the list - USSR Marshals Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov and Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev.
Among all the Heroes of the Soviet Union, 35% were privates and non-commissioned officers (soldiers, sailors, sergeants and foremen), 61% were officers and 3.3% (380 people) were generals, admirals and marshals.
In September 2000, in Makeyevka, on the initiative of the then mayor Vasily Dzharty, by decision of the executive committee of the city council, the Alley of Heroes was founded, on which a memorial obelisk was erected, where the names of 64 Heroes of the Soviet Union who lived and worked in Makeyevka were immortalized.
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After the end of the Great Patriotic War, many boys dreamed of becoming pilots. Nobody really thought about how difficult it is to fly in the sky. It seemed to the guys that the pilots were romantics who got great pleasure from the flight.
How did the first Hero pilots receive their titles?
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union was first awarded in 1934, although from the founding of the Soviet state until 1939 there were no wars, that is, the pilots did not carry out combat missions. Let us note that it was the pilots who became the first Heroes of the Soviet Union. These names are not as well known as the names of some aviators during the Second World War. Let us remember who these first pilots are - Heroes of the Soviet Union.
As you know, in 1934 there was an operation to rescue the Chelyuskinites. It was not possible to save people without the participation of aircraft. At the same time, the technology at that time was still poorly developed, and the rescue mission could only achieve a positive result thanks to the high professionalism and heroism of the pilots.
First Heroes by name
Nikolai Kamanin received the Gold Star of Hero No. 1 at the age of 25. He made 9 flights over the Arctic, saving 34 people (on the sunken icebreaker Chelyuskin the crew consisted of 104 people). In the photo below, Kamanin is depicted on the left.
The difficulty of the mission to rescue the sailors was that the area was not well studied at that time. Also, the pilots did not have complete confidence in the reliability of the engines, because at that time they practically did not fly over such long distances.
Mikhail Vodopyanov made three difficult flights, during which he was able to save more than 10 people. The uniqueness of this pilot's participation in the rescue operation is that several months earlier he was seriously injured and underwent long-term treatment. The authorities did not want to allow him to participate in the operation, but he insisted.
Also in this operation took part such pilots - Heroes of the Soviet Union, as Ivan Doronin, Sigismund Levanevsky, Vasily Molokov, Mavriky Slepnev. Each pilot made a huge contribution to saving people in the Arctic Ocean.
War and great pilots
Analyzing the orders for awarding the titles of Heroes of the Soviet Union during the Second World War, we discover an interesting trend: more than 50% of the noted legendary warriors who defended our Motherland from invaders were pilots. Of course, fighting on the ground is also not easy, but air battles are much more difficult than ground battles. The level of courage and endurance of Soviet pilots is simply amazing. WWII pilots - Heroes of the Soviet Union - made a huge contribution to the victory of the USSR over Nazi Germany.
In this section it is worth mentioning Alexey Maresyev and Pyotr Shemendyuk. These heroes, even despite severe physical injuries, continued to serve aviation.
For example, Maresyev is a famous hero of B. Polevoy’s work “The Tale of a Real Man.”
His plane was shot down over territory that was controlled by the Germans at that time. The pilot was unable to eject. Fell to the ground along with the car. It so happened that when he hit the ground he was thrown out of the cabin. For 18 days, the hero crawled to the front line. Discovered by Soviet children in the Novgorod region. After that, he was treated for some time in a Novgorod village. After a long treatment and amputation of both legs, he was able to return to duty and made many more combat missions.
Fighter pilots - Heroes of the Soviet Union often returned to the front after being wounded. According to verified but little-known information, about 20 Soviet pilots fought against the Nazis with amputated legs, arms or other severe limb injuries.
It is worth noting that for many pilots, WWII was not their first combat experience. Everyone knows that many Soviet military personnel took part in the fighting in Spain (civil war). For example, Sergei Gritsevets is considered one of the ace pilots of the 1930s. Belarusian by nationality, he was born in 1909 in the Grodno province. He entered aviation on a Komsomol ticket in 1931. The pilot's track record, according to official information, is 40 aircraft shot down.
Development of military aviation of the USSR
The pilots - Heroes of the Soviet Union - showed themselves well during the Second World War. Although initially the technical level of German aircraft exceeded the equipment and quality of Soviet aircraft, the level of skill of the “red” pilots, some time after the start of the war, more than compensated for all the shortcomings of the technology.
The improvement of Soviet combat aviation actually took place already during the war. The fact is that in the first days of hostilities, most Soviet aircraft were destroyed at airfields during fascist bombing. According to many experts, this is even better. If wooden planes entered into battle with Junkers or other fighters, they would not have a single chance of winning an air battle. Such determination of the Nazis saved the lives of many Soviet pilots.
During the war years, according to rough estimates, the aces shot down more than 4,000 of the best German aircraft. The rating of Soviet aces is determined primarily by the number of Junkers shot down. Let's talk about each of the best separately.
The legendary Ivan Kozhedub was born in 1920 on the territory of the Shostka region of modern Ukraine. After graduating from school in 1934, he entered the Chemical Technology College. For a long time, aviation was nothing more than a hobby for him. Kozhedub’s path in aviation began with military service in 1940. He went to the front at the end of 1942 after working as an instructor at an aviation school. By the way, the first air battle for the legendary pilot could have been his last, because first his plane was shot down by the Germans, and then by “their own”. Kozhedub passed this test and was able to land his car. In the photo below, he is shown on the right.
Such pilots, three times Heroes of the Soviet Union, like Ivan Kozhedub, quickly become professionals in their field. They don't need a lot of time to prepare. So, for some time after this accident, Kozhedub did not fly. The pilot's finest time came during the Battle of Kursk. During several combat missions in July 1943, he managed to shoot down 4 Junkers. Before the beginning of 1944, the hero’s track record already included several dozen victories. Until the end of the war, he was able to shoot down 18 aircraft of this brand.
Semyon Vorozheikin and other twice Heroes of the USSR
No one surpassed this result, and only Arseniy Aleksandrovich Vorozheikin was able to repeat it. This pilot was awarded the Hero Star twice. Vorozheikin’s overall combat result is 46 enemy aircraft shot down. Besides him, the pilots - twice - are:
- Alekseenko Vladimir Avramovich;
- Alelyukhin Alexey Vasilievich;
- Amet-Khan Sultan;
- Andrianov Vasily;
- Begeldinov Talgat Yakubekovich;
- Beda Leonid Ignatievich;
- Beregovoy Georgy Timofeevich;
- Gulaev Nikolay Dmitrievich;
- Sergei Prokofievich Denisov.
For aircraft to be used successfully, it must undergo flight tests. This is what test pilots work for. Very often they risk their lives because no one has ever flown the aircraft model they are testing before. Many were awarded the Star of the Hero of the USSR. The most outstanding tester of aviation technology of the Soviet period is considered
The crews under the leadership of Chkalov made 2 record flights for their time (Moscow-Vancouver via the North Pole and Moscow-Far East). The length of the route to Vancouver was 8504 km.
Among other Soviet test pilots, it is worth noting Stepan Mikoyan, Vladimir Averyanov, Mikhail Gromov, Ivan Dzyuba, Nikolai Zamyatin and Mikhail Ivanov. Most of these pilots had a non-technical first education, but the entire aviation elite was united by one feature: they received theoretical training in the then developed system of aviation clubs. Such unique schools provided students with the opportunity to receive theoretical and practical training at a fairly high level.
Attack aircraft of the USSR during the Second World War
Attack pilots, Heroes of the Soviet Union during the war years, occupy an honorable place in the lists of people awarded state awards for their exploits during air battles of 1941-1945. According to historical data, more than 2,200 pilots received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Moreover, it is attack aircraft that can be found the most on the list (860 names).
There are also many representatives of this type of aviation on the list of twice Heroes of the Union. As you know, the two heroic Gold Stars had 65 pilots to their credit. In this list, attack aircraft also take first place (27 people).
Who was able to receive the title of Hero three times?
Alexander Pokryshkin and Ivan Kozhedub - these pilots, three times Heroes of the Soviet Union, wrote their names in golden letters in the annals of the Second World War.
The fact is that three times the state awarded only three people with such a high rank. In addition to the two pilots, this is Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny, a military man known since the revolution. Pokryshkin received his awards according to orders dated May 24 and August 24, 1943, as well as August 19, 1944. Ivan Kozhedub was marked by orders of the Commander-in-Chief of February 4 and August 19, 1944, as well as after the end of hostilities in August 1945.
The contribution of Soviet pilots to the victory over the enemy is simply invaluable!
I don’t know how it is now, but in Soviet times, almost every schoolchild knew about the outstanding Soviet aces Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub, who shot down 62 German planes, and Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin, who brought down 59 fascists to the ground, and was awarded three times the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union for their outstanding exploits.
Pokryshkin Alexander Ivanovich(21.02 (06.03) 1913-1985) - fighter pilot, air marshal (1972), three times Hero of the Soviet Union (May 24, August 24, 1943, August 19, 1944).
Born in Novonikolaevsk (now Novosibirsk) in a working-class family. After graduating from a 7-year school, he worked as a mechanic, then graduated from the Perm Aviation School of Technicians (1933), Advanced Training Courses for Technical Staff and the Kachin Aviation School (1939).
He met the Great Patriotic War as deputy squadron commander, later became squadron commander, assistant commander and commander of the 16th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 7th Fighter Aviation Corps of the 8th Air Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front, and from May 1944 - commander of the 9th th Guards Fighter Air Division 4-1 Air Army of the North Caucasus Front.
For participation in 54 battles, in which 13 enemy aircraft were personally shot down, he was awarded the Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. Pokryshkin was awarded the second title of Hero of the Soviet Union for his participation in air battles in the Kuban (455 sorties were flown, 30 enemy aircraft were shot down).
For commanding the division in the battles over Prut, Iasi and participation in the Lvovo-Sandomierz operation (by May he made 550 combat missions, participated in 137 air battles, personally shot down 53 aircraft), he was the first to be awarded the third “Gold Star”.
In 1968 -1971 was deputy commander-in-chief of the country's air defense, and in 1972-1981. - Chairman of the Central Committee of DOSAAF USSR. Awarded many orders and medals. He was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.
Kozhedub Ivan Nikitovich- was the fifth child in a poor peasant family. His father was an extraordinary man. Torn between factory earnings and peasant labor, he found the strength to read books and even write poetry. A religious man with a subtle and demanding mind, he was a strict and persistent teacher: having diversified his son’s duties around the house, he taught him to be hardworking, persevering, and diligent. By the age of six, Ivan went to school. After finishing the seven-year school, he was admitted to the workers' department of the Shostka Chemical-Technological College, and in 1938, fate brought him to the flying club.
At the beginning of the war, Sergeant Kozhedub was even more persistently engaged in “fighter” self-education. In the fall of 1942, after numerous requests and reports, Senior Sergeant Kozhedub was sent to Moscow, from where he ended up in the 240th IAP. In August 1942, the 240th IAP was armed with the latest La-5 fighters at that time. Retraining was carried out hastily, and the regiment suffered heavy losses in the Stalingrad direction.
The following training and retraining were carried out thoroughly: at the end of December 1942, after an intense month-long theoretical training with daily lessons, the pilots began flying the new machines. On one of the training flights, when immediately after takeoff the thrust dropped sharply due to an engine failure, Kozhedub decisively turned the plane around and glided to the edge of the airfield. Having hit hard during landing, he was out of action for several days. On his first combat mission to cover an airfield, he came under attack from enemy fighters while trying to attack a group of bombers, and then came under fire from his own anti-aircraft artillery. His plane was seriously damaged, but Kozhedub miraculously survived.
During the 40th combat mission on the Kursk Bulge, paired with his constant wingman V. Mukhin, Kozhedub shot down his first German - a “laptezhnik”. Kozhedub won 4 official victories. He did not lose a single vehicle, although it happened that it caught fire, caused holes, and landed on airfields strewn with craters. Of his cars, two are the most famous. One - La-5FN with bright, white with red edging inscriptions on both sides had an amazing front-line fate. On this plane, Kozhedub fought in May - June 1944, shooting down 7 planes. The second is La-7, with tail number 27. On this fighter, Ivan Nikitovich flew in the “Marshal’s” guap, ended the war on it, and shot down 17 enemy aircraft with it.
On February 19, 1945, over the Oder, together with Dmitry Titarenko, he met the Me-262. This was one of the first air victories over a jet aircraft in world aviation. In April 1945, Kozhedub drove off a pair of German fighters from an American B-17 with a barrage and noticed a group of approaching aircraft. The Soviet ace fired at the leader - he exploded in the air.
This battle was one of the first air battles with the Americans, a harbinger of the great air war in Korea. In total, during the war, Ivan Nikitovich conducted 330 combat missions, 120 air battles, and personally shot down 62 enemy aircraft. After the Guard War, Major Kozhedub continued to serve in the 176th GIAP. At the end of 1945, on the Monino train, he met tenth-grader Veronica, who soon became his wife. In 1949, Ivan Nikitovich graduated from the VVA, received an appointment to the post of division commander near Baku, but V. Stalin left him near Moscow. Among the first, the division was armed with the MiG-15 and at the end of 1950 it was sent to the Far East. From March 1951 to February 1952, in the skies of Korea, Kozhedub’s division scored 215 victories, shot down 12 “superfortresses,” losing 52 aircraft and 10 pilots. This was one of the brightest pages in the combat use of jet aircraft in the history of the Soviet Air Force. Kozhedub was forbidden to personally participate in hostilities, and he only made training flights. During his business trip, Colonel Kozhedub not only exercised operational leadership of the division, but also took an active part in organization, training and rearmament. The life of the commander himself, who became a major general in the summer of 1953, remained unsettled. His family huddled either in a temporary hut at the airfield or in an old dacha.
A year later he was sent to study at the General Staff Academy. Part of the course was completed as an external student; after graduating from the academy, Kozhedub was appointed first deputy head of the Combat Training Directorate of the country's Air Force, from May 1958 to 1964. he was the first deputy commander of the Air Force of the Leningrad and then Moscow military districts. Until 1970, Ivan Nikitovich regularly flew fighter planes and mastered dozens of types of airplanes and helicopters. From the post of commander of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District, he returned to the post of First Deputy Head of the Air Force Combat Training Directorate, from where he was transferred almost 20 years ago. In 1978, he was transferred to the group of inspectors general of the USSR Ministry of Defense. In 1985 he was awarded the rank of air marshal. All this time, Kozhedub meekly carried out enormous public work.
Budyonny Semyon Mikhailovich(April 13 (April 25) 1883 - October 26, 1973) - one of the first Marshals of the Soviet Union in the history of the revolution in Russia. Budyonny was drafted into the pre-revolutionary Russian army at the age of 20. He came from a family of landless farm laborers. Then - an “errand boy” for a merchant, a blacksmith’s assistant, a fireman...
In the army, Budyonny was enlisted in the cavalry and participated in the Russian-Japanese War. The imperialist war began for him with the battle of Warsaw. A few days later he proved himself in reconnaissance and was awarded the St. George Cross. He finished the war on the Russian-Turkish front with a full “bow” of St. George’s crosses of all four degrees and four medals. The October Revolution took place. Demobilization began throughout the army. Together with other soldiers, the brave cavalryman was returning home, but took with him from the front a saber, a rifle and a cavalry saddle. I felt it would be useful. Soon a civil war began in the south of Russia, on the Don. The White Cossacks approached the village of Platovskaya, where the Budyonny family lived.
1918: Budyonny - detachment commander. volunteers, squadron commander, cavalry division commander, assistant regiment commander, brigade commander, acting division commander. 1919; Budyonny - commander of a division, cavalry corps, commander of the 1st Cavalry Army... Budyonny’s great merit was his understanding of the role of cavalry in the new conditions of the civil war: Budyonny’s cavalry squadrons and regiments attacked quickly and suddenly, always sought battle and invariably put to flight more numerous opponents. Semyon Mikhailovich was one of the first to strive for the creation of cavalry formations that could independently solve operational and strategic tasks. And such a formation - the first in world military history - was created; First Cavalry Army. In incredibly difficult conditions, she carried out a number of classic offensive operations, defeated the countless hordes of Mamontov and Shkuro, Denikin, Wrangel and made a huge contribution to the victory of the Soviet Republic over the White Guards and interventionists. The history of military art includes the thousand-mile journey of the First Cavalry from Kuban to Ukraine in the spring of 1920, to the South-Western Front, conceived and brilliantly carried out by Budyonny. Budyonny held the positions of a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR and an inspector of the Red Army cavalry, commander of the troops of the Moscow Military District and deputy people's commissar of defense of the USSR or, already in the Great Patriotic War, commander-in-chief of the troops of the South-Western and North Caucasus directions, commander of the cavalry of the Soviet Army and a member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. However, the latter positions were mostly honorary in nature, since already at the beginning of the Second World War, when the tasks of the cavalry began to be carried out by tank formations, Budyonny’s military knowledge became worthless. During the war of 1941 - 1945, no significant military operations were carried out with his participation. In 1924, Budyonny was involved in the political struggle on the side of I. Stalin (Stalin and Voroshilov were members of his military revolutionary council). A fragment of the biography of that time is described in merciless terms by Stalin’s secretary Bazhanov in his book of memoirs: “In the end, they somehow decided to let him attend a meeting of the famous Politburo. My memory definitely preserved this funny event. At the Politburo meeting, it was the turn of questions from the military department. I I order that the called military men, including Budyonny, be allowed into the hall. Budyonny enters on tiptoe, but with his heavy boots rattling loudly. There is a wide passage between the table and the wall, but Budyonny’s entire figure expresses fear that he might knock over or break something. They show him a chair next to Rykov. Budyonny sits down. His mustache sticks out like a cockroach. He looks straight ahead and clearly understands nothing of what is being said. He seems to be thinking: “Wow, this is the famous Politburo, which, they say, can do anything, even turn a man into a woman.” Then Budyonny became a marshal, and in 1943 he even joined the Central Committee of the party.
Three Gold Star medals were awarded to three people: Marshal of the Soviet Union Budyonny S.M. (02/01/1958, 04/24/1963, 02/22/1968), Colonel General of Aviation Kozhedub I.N. (02/04/1944, 08/19/1944, 08/18/1945) and Air Marshal A.I. Pokryshkin. (05/24/1943, 08/24/1943, 08/19/1944).