Heroes of the USSR by nationality in WWII. Heroic story

During the war years, 11 thousand people were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Many received this award posthumously. Unparalleled courage was demonstrated by soldiers of various branches of the military - from pilots to infantry, from tank crews to partisans.

The exploits of the heroes of the Second World War.

The feat of Alexander Matrosov.

One of the most famous heroes of the Second World War is Alexander Matrosov, a nineteen-year-old private in a rifle battalion. On February 27, 1943, Matrosov’s battalion received the task of attacking a village near Pskov, where German forces were located.

Continuous fire from three machine-gun bunkers did not allow the battalion to break forward. We managed to eliminate two machine guns from afar, but the third did not stop talking. Then Alexander Matrosov crawled close to the bunker and threw two grenades there.

The machine gun fell silent, but as soon as the battalion rose to attack, it came to life again. And then Sailors threw himself at the embrasure with his own body, dying, but giving his comrades the opportunity to carry out an offensive.

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya.

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, a brave partisan girl, has become synonymous with perseverance even under torture. Zoya's sabotage group carried out tasks to eliminate populated areas in which enemy forces were located.

On one of these forays, in November 1941, the girl fell into the hands of the Germans - and a Russian village resident named Sviridov noticed and gave her away.

Before she was executed, Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya was interrogated and tortured, but she endured all the bullying steadfastly and did not even give out her name, calling herself “Tanya.” On November 29, Zoya was hanged, and in the winter of 1942 it was possible to find out the real name of the heroine, and she was posthumously awarded a high award.

Pilots-heroes of the Second World War.

Especially during the war years, Soviet pilots became famous for flying combat missions in any weather and under any circumstances.

Gastello Nikolay Frantsevich. He became one of the first heroes of the Great Patriotic War. Just four days after it began, on June 26, 1941, Gastello's bomber was shot down. The pilot could have ejected with a parachute, but did not do so. Instead, he sent a burning plane to a concentration of Nazi troops - and died himself, but took many enemies with him.
Maresyev Alexey Petrovich. This famous pilot distinguished himself not only by the number of enemy aircraft he shot down, but also by his amazing will to live. After an unsuccessful combat mission in 1942, the wounded Maresyev crawled through the snow and lost both legs in the hospital. But this did not stop him from returning to duty - by training hard, he obtained permission from the command and successfully fought until 1945, shooting down many more enemy aircraft.

Heroes of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 and their exploits
The fighting has long ceased. Veterans are leaving one by one. But the heroes of the Second World War of 1941-1945 and their exploits will forever remain in the memory of grateful descendants. This article will tell you about the most prominent personalities of those years and their immortal deeds. Some were still very young, while others were no longer young. Each of the heroes has their own character and their own destiny. But all of them were united by love for the Motherland and a willingness to sacrifice themselves for its good.
Alexander Matrosov
Orphanage student Sasha Matrosov went to war at the age of 18. Immediately after the infantry school he was sent to the front. February 1943 turned out to be “hot”. Alexander’s battalion went on the attack, and at some point the guy, along with several comrades, was surrounded. There was no way to break through to our own people - the enemy machine guns were firing too densely.
Soon Sailors was the only one left alive. His comrades died under bullets. The young man had only a few seconds to make a decision. Unfortunately, it turned out to be the last in his life. Wanting to bring at least some benefit to his native battalion, Alexander Matrosov rushed to the embrasure, covering it with his body. The fire went silent. The Red Army attack was ultimately successful - the Nazis retreated. And Sasha went to heaven as a young and handsome 19-year-old guy...
Marat Kazei
When the Great Patriotic War began, Marat Kazei was only twelve. He lived in the village of Stankovo with his sister and parents. In 1941 he found himself under occupation. Marat's mother helped the partisans, providing them with her shelter and feeding them. One day the Germans found out about this and shot the woman. Left alone, the children, without hesitation, went into the forest and joined the partisans.
Marat, who managed to complete only four classes before the war, helped his older comrades as best he could. He was even taken on reconnaissance missions; and he also took part in undermining German trains. In 1943, the boy was awarded the medal “For Courage” for the heroism shown during the breakthrough of the encirclement. The boy was wounded in that terrible battle.
And in 1944, Kazei was returning from reconnaissance with an adult partisan. The Germans noticed them and began to fire. The senior comrade died. Marat fired back to the last bullet. And when he had only one grenade left, the teenager let the Germans get closer and blew himself up along with them. He was 15 years old.
Alexey Maresyev
The name of this man is known to every resident of the former Soviet Union. After all, we are talking about a legendary pilot. Alexey Maresyev was born in 1916 and dreamed of the sky since childhood. Even the rheumatism suffered did not become an obstacle to my dream. Despite the doctors' prohibitions, Alexey entered the flying class - they accepted him after several futile attempts.
In 1941, the stubborn young man went to the front. The sky turned out to be not what he dreamed of. But it was necessary to defend the Motherland, and Maresyev did everything for this. One day his plane was shot down. Wounded in both legs, Alexei managed to land the car in territory captured by the Germans and even somehow made his way to his own.
But time was lost. The legs were “devoured” by gangrene, and they had to be amputated. Where can a soldier go without both limbs? After all, she’s completely crippled... But Alexey Maresyev was not one of those. He remained in service and continued to fight the enemy.
As many as 86 times the winged machine with the hero on board managed to take to the skies. Maresyev shot down 11 German planes. The pilot was lucky to survive that terrible war and feel the heady taste of victory. He died in 2001. “The Tale of a Real Man” by Boris Polevoy is a work about him. It was Maresyev’s feat that inspired the author to write it.
Zinaida Portnova
Born in 1926, Zina Portnova faced the war as a teenager. At that time, the native Leningrad resident was visiting relatives in Belarus. Once in the occupied territory, she did not sit on the sidelines, but joined the partisan movement. I pasted leaflets, established contacts with the underground...
In 1943, the Germans grabbed the girl and dragged her to their lair. During the interrogation, Zina somehow managed to take a pistol from the table. She shot her tormentors - two soldiers and an investigator.
It was a heroic act, which made the Germans' attitude towards Zina even more brutal. It is impossible to convey in words the torment that the girl experienced during the terrible torture. But she was silent. The Nazis could not squeeze a word out of her. As a result, the Germans shot their captive without achieving anything from the heroine Zina Portnova.
Andrey Korzun

Andrei Korzun turned thirty in 1941. He was called to the front immediately, being sent to become an artilleryman. Korzun took part in terrible battles near Leningrad, during one of which he was seriously wounded. It was November 5, 1943.
While falling, Korzun noticed that the ammunition warehouse had started to catch fire. It was urgent to put out the fire, otherwise a huge explosion threatened to take many lives. Somehow, bleeding and suffering from pain, the artilleryman crawled to the warehouse. The artilleryman had no strength left to take off his overcoat and throw it into the flames. Then he covered the fire with his body. There was no explosion. Andrei Korzun did not survive.
Leonid Golikov
Another young hero is Lenya Golikov. Born in 1926. Lived in the Novgorod region. When the war began, he left to become a partisan. This teenager had plenty of courage and determination. Leonid destroyed 78 fascists, a dozen enemy trains and even a couple of bridges.
The explosion that went down in history and carried away the German general Richard von Wirtz was his doing. The car of an important rank went up in the air, and Golikov took possession of valuable documents, for which he received the Hero’s star.
The brave partisan died in 1943 near the village of Ostray Luka during a German attack. The enemy significantly outnumbered our fighters, and they had no chance. Golikov fought until his last breath.
These are just six stories out of a great many that permeate the entire war. Everyone who has completed it, who has brought victory even one moment closer, is already a hero. Thanks to people like Maresyev, Golikov, Korzun, Matrosov, Kazei, Portnova and millions of other Soviet soldiers, the world got rid of the brown plague of the 20th century. And the reward for their exploits was eternal life!

How many heroes of the Great Patriotic War were there in the Soviet Union? It would seem like a strange question. In a country that experienced the worst tragedy of the 20th century, everyone who defended it with weapons 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.

P 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 the rams they 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 Kreizer. 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.

Marine soldiers in the Kerch area. Photo: Alexander Brodsky / RIA Novosti

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 in 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 to be 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

Balkarians -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).

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?

Heroes of the Soviet Union of the 5th Army, awarded this title for battles in East Prussia. Photo: waralbum.ru

How many heroes of the Great Patriotic War were there in the Soviet Union? It would seem like a strange question. In a country that experienced the worst tragedy of the 20th century, everyone who defended it with weapons 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.

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

Pilots

A fighter pilot in front of his P-39 Airacobra. Photo: waralbum.ru

Infantrymen

Tankers

Sappers

Sappers neutralize German anti-tank mines. Photo: militariorgucoz.ru

Artillerymen

Partisans

Marines

Marine soldiers in the Kerch area. Photo: Alexander Brodsky / RIA Novosti

Political instructors

Doctors

Border guards

Signalmen

Field communications. Photo: pobeda1945.su

Cavalrymen

Paratroopers

Sailors

Soviet sailors, heroes of the storming of Berlin. Photo: radionetplus.ru

Generals

“The fight is not for glory...”

The key to victory over fascism was the unity and cohesion of the peoples of the USSR. Photo: all-retro.ru

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.

First- 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.

Second- 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.

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, fourth- 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 of the Guard, Sergeant Major 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 Khmelnytsky, 3rd degree - a kind of “soldier’s” military order.

Multinational heroism

National composition of Heroes of the Soviet Union who received this title for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War
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 ).

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)
Komi - 10
Udmurts - 11
Estonians - 11
Avars - 9
Poles - 9
Buryats and Mongols - 8
Kalmyks - 8
Kabardians - 8
Adygs - 7
Greeks - 7
Germans - 7
Komi - 6
Crimean Tatars - 6 (including 1 twice)
Chechens - 6
Yakuts - 6
Moldovans - 5
Abkhazians - 4
Laktsy - 4
Lezgins - 4
French - 4
Czechs - 4
Karachais - 3
Tuvans - 3
Circassians - 3
Balkarians -2
Bulgarians - 2
Dargins - 2
Kumyks - 2
Finns - 2
Khakass - 2
Abazinets - 1
Adjaran - 1
Altaian - 1
Assyrian - 1
Veps - 1
Spaniard - 1
Chinese (Dungan) - 1
Korean - 1
Kurd - 1
Svan - 1
Slovak - 1
Tuvinian – 1
Tsakhur - 1
Gypsy - 1
Shorets - 1
Evenk - 1

Order of Glory 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree. Photo: Central Museum of the Armed Forces

National composition of full holders of the Order of Glory who received this title for their exploits during the Great Patriotic War
The list is incomplete, compiled using data from the “Heroes of the Country” project (http://www.warheroes.ru/main.asp).

Russians - 1276
Ukrainians - 285
Belarusians - 62
Tatars - 48
Kazakhs - 30
Armenians - 19
Mordva - 16
Uzbeks - 12
Chuvash - 11
Jews - 9
Azerbaijanis - 8
Bashkirs - 7
Kyrgyz - 7
Udmurts - 6
Turkmens - 5
Buryats - 4
Georgians - 4
Komi - 4
Mari - 3
Poles - 3
Adygs - 2
Karelians - 2
Latvians - 2
Moldovans - 2
Ossetians - 2
Tajiks - 2
Khakass - 2
Abazinets - 1
Greek - 1
Kabardian - 1
Kalmyk - 1
Chinese - 1
Crimean Tatar - 1
Kumyk - 1
Lithuanian -1
Romanian - 1
Meskhetian Turk - 1
Chechen - 1
Yakut - 1

Hero of the Soviet Union (USSR) is the highest award given for personal or collective services to the Soviet state and society associated with the accomplishment of a heroic deed. The title of Hero of the Soviet Union could be given both for military exploits during the war and in peacetime. This section contains information about the heroes of the Soviet Union - the USSR and provides a description of some of their exploits. It is worth noting that during the existence of the Soviet Union, 12,777 people were awarded the title.

On April 16, 1934, by resolution of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, it was decided: to establish the highest degree of distinction - the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and to determine a sign of special distinction - the Gold Star medal. Below, in chronological order, we present the names, surnames and a brief description of the exploits of the heroes of the Soviet Union (USSR)

Heroes of the Soviet Union in pre-war times (1934-1941) - 626 people

The first heroes of the USSR - polar pilots

The first heroes were polar pilots: A. Lyapidevsky, S. Levanevsky, I. Doronin, V. Molokov, N. Kamanin, M. Slepnev and M. Vodopyanov. For the rescue of passengers and crew members in distress of the legendary steamship Chelyuskin that sank in the Bering Strait. Further awards were given to participants in the Spanish Civil War, for exploits in battles in the area of the Khalkhin Gol River, in the area of Lake Khasan and participants in the Soviet-Finnish War.

Pilot Valery Chkalov and his crew

In 1936, Valery Chkalov's crew made a non-stop flight from Moscow to Udd Island (now Chkalov Island). It was the longest flight on an airplane. The total length of the record route was 9,374 kilometers.

Heroes of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945)

The Great Patriotic War brought a lot of grief to our country, but it also revealed the heights of courage and strength of character of seemingly millions of ordinary people. The entire people, young and old, rose up to fight against fascist Germany. The Nazi attack caused an unprecedented rise in patriotism. During the war years, 11,657 people were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 3,051 of them posthumously. There were also women - 95 people, 40 of whom were posthumous

The youngest Hero of the Soviet Union - partisan Valentin Kotik

From the first days of the war, Valya began to fight the fascist invaders. In 1941, when Valya was 11 years old, together with his comrades, he managed to ambush and blow up the head of the field gendarmerie with a grenade. Then he becomes a partisan and takes active action in combat operations. Contributed to the destruction of six railway trains. Was able to locate an underground telephone cable and blow it up. It is worth noting that this was a line of communication with Hitler's headquarters in Warsaw. In October 1943, the young hero saved his squad. He noticed the approaching enemies in time, raised the alarm and was the first to enter the battle, killing several Nazis, including a German officer.

Three times Hero of the Soviet Union - Ivan Kozhedub

Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was never shot down during the Great Patriotic War, and although he was shot down, he always landed his plane. Kozhedub also has the world's first jet fighter, the German Me-262. In total, he flew 330 combat missions during the war. In these sorties, 64 enemy aircraft were destroyed. Read more in the article

Women Heroes of the Soviet Union - air regiment "Night Witches"

During the war in 1941, an unusual aviation regiment was formed to fight the fascist invader. All his warriors - from pilots and navigators to technicians - were women. “Night witches” - that’s what the enemies called this regiment. During the hostilities, the pilots of the air regiment carried out 23,672 combat missions. The breaks between flights were 5-8 minutes, sometimes during the night the crew made 6-8 flights in the summer and 10-12 in the winter. After night flights, the stiff girls had difficulty getting to the barracks. They were carried straight from the cabin by their friends, who had already managed to warm up, because their arms and legs, shackled by the cold, did not obey. Read more in the article

The oldest Hero of the Soviet Union - Matvey Kuzmin

In 1941, the village of Kurakino (Pskov region), where our hero lived, was occupied by the Germans. The commandant moved into his house, forcing the owners into the barn. So a year passed, and in February 1942, the Red Army soldiers, after successful military operations, began to oust the Nazis from this area. The Germans were faced with the task of breaking out of this place and connecting with the main units. Then the commandant summoned Matvey Kuzmin, knowing that he was an excellent hunter and tracker, and ordered him to help the Nazis - to lead a German detachment to the rear of the leading battalion of the Red Army. To which Matvey Kuzmin agreed. But an hour later, the peasant sent his grandson with a note to our people: “The Germans ordered a detachment to your rear, in the morning I will lure them to the fork near the village of Malkino, meet me.” And on the same day, the fascist detachment with its guide set off. And this is a very difficult path for a German; Kuzmin led the Nazis in circles and deliberately exhausted them. And in the morning, tired and frozen fascists found themselves at the fork in Malkino. The Germans looked around - they had been walking all night, but they had moved only a couple of kilometers from Kurakino and were now standing on the road in an open field, and twenty meters in front of them was a forest, where, now they understood for sure, there was a Soviet ambush. The German officer pulled out a pistol and emptied the entire clip into the old man. But at that same second a rifle salvo rang out from the forest, then another, and Soviet machine guns began to chatter. Not a single fascist escaped alive. The hero died and took 250 Nazi occupiers with him. Matvey Kuzmin became the oldest Hero of the Soviet Union, he was 83 years old. Thus, the peasant Matvey Kuzmin repeated the feat of Ivan Susanin

International wars

In hostilities in Hungary, North Korea, and Egypt, 15 people were awarded for heroic deeds. The Soviet Union took part in the Afghan War from December 25, 1979 to February 15, 1989. About 600 thousand Soviet citizens passed through the war, more than 15 thousand of them died. According to some reports, 86 internationalist soldiers received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 28 of them posthumously. Including Vyacheslav Alexandrov and Andrei Melnikov were posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union

Scientific field and discoverers

In addition to military exploits, feats were performed in the name of knowledge and research. Military equipment test pilots, polar explorers, participants in the exploration of the depths of the World Ocean - 250 people in total - were awarded heroes. Since 1961, the title Hero of the Soviet Union has been awarded to cosmonauts; over 30 years, 84 people have been awarded it. Including . Six people were awarded for eliminating the consequences of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. In total, during the existence of the USSR, 12 thousand 777 people received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Of these, 154 people were awarded it twice, 3 people three times, and 2 people four times. The first twice Heroes were military pilots S. Gritsevich and G. Kravchenko. Three times Heroes: air marshals A. Pokryshkin and I. Kozhedub, as well as Marshal of the USSR S. Budyonny. There are only two four-time Heroes on the list - USSR Marshals G. Zhukov and L. Brezhnev. In history, there are known cases of deprivation of the title of Hero of the Soviet Union - 72, plus 13 canceled Decrees on conferring this title as unfounded. After the collapse of the USSR, the title “Hero of the Soviet Union” ceased to exist. Instead, on March 20, 1992, the title “Hero of the Russian Federation” was established in Russia, also awarded for outstanding feats. Legally, Heroes of the Soviet Union have the same rights as Heroes of the Russian Federation.