For the Defence of Mogilev On 1 July 1941, a composite militia battalion was formed.
For the Defence of Mogilev On 1 July 1941, a composite militia battalion was formed.
It comprised personnel from the Mogilev Regional Directorate of the NKVD and cadets from the local militia school; cadets and instructors from the Minsk Militia School, who had arrived in Mogilev on 26 June; and personnel from the Grodno Militia School. The battalion was commanded by Militia Captain Konstantin Grigoryevich Vladimirov. On the night of 11–12 July, the battalion was briefed, armed with rifles, Nagant revolvers and incendiary bottles, and sent to positions near the villages of Gai and Staroe Pashkovo, north-west of Mogilev. Throughout the day, the battalion’s companies fortified their positions and deepened the trenches and foxholes. The battalion took up a defensive line on an unnamed hill, covering the approaches to the railway junction from the Shklov Highway. Having failed at Buinichi Field on 12 July and made no headway on the Minsk Highway, the Germans concentrated substantial forces north of Mogilev. They planned to break into the city along the Shklov Highway and seize the railway junction. The militia battalion, however, stood in their way.
On 13 July, fierce fighting broke out. With the support of motorised infantry, the Germans managed to capture the villages of Staroe Pashkovo and Gai. The battalion’s 1st Company withdrew to reserve trenches. During the fighting, the militiamen captured a machine gun, submachine guns and many grenades. These weapons subsequently became the battalion’s main source of firepower. For several days, the men of the militia battalion fought heroically, holding their positions and preventing German armoured units from reaching the railway junction. Despite the enemy’s superior forces, intense artillery and mortar fire, and constant aerial bombardment, the militiamen neither faltered nor retreated. Those who were wounded but still able to hold a weapon remained in the ranks, destroying enemy personnel and equipment to the best of their ability.
On 15 July, German infantry, supported by tanks, launched an offensive from the direction of Staroe Pashkovo. The militiamen managed to set one tank ablaze, and the remaining tanks turned back. The enemy attempted to attack several times that day. Germans were killed, but the battalion’s ranks were also dwindling.
On 16 July, the battalion shortened its defensive line, moving its main forces closer to the village of Gai. The battalion’s severely depleted units took up positions at the edge of the forest, on an unnamed hill near the village of Gai.
On 18 July, the Germans launched several attacks but were unable to take the hill, where about 50 surviving militiamen had dug in. In the afternoon, the enemy began another assault. The militiamen held out with exceptional resolve, but their forces were vastly outnumbered by those of the invaders. Wounded in the head and leg, Captain Vladimirov led the remnants of the battalion in a counter-attack. His final words were: “Forward, for the Motherland!” Everyone who could still stand and hold a weapon—about 50 men—followed their commander into one final attack. The clash was brief. A shell exploded ahead, striking K. G. Vladimirov with hundreds of fragments. The courageous commander was killed. The others fought on ferociously with the last of their strength. Of the battalion’s 250 men, only 19 survived, all of them seriously wounded.
After this attack, the enemy did not immediately dare to take the hill. Militia uniforms could be seen on its slopes, and the German troops believed that defenders were still there; however, these were the bodies of fallen militiamen. Thus, for six days without sleep or rest, beneath the scorching July sun and unceasing machine-gun and mortar fire, the finest men of the Belarusian militia stood to the death, carrying out their orders and remaining faithful to the Motherland!
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