By the MG emplacement that Alexander Matrosov covered with his body
High-quality photo of Alexander Matrosov for free download
However, the first to block the deadly enemy MG fire with his body was Alexander Pankratov on August 24, 1941. The hero was aged 24. High-quality photo of Alexander Pankratov for free download
And even though the deceased Pankratov was awarded the Hero’s Gold Star posthumously, his feat was unknown in the USSR. Nonetheless, by February 1943, Alexander Pankratov’s feat had been repeated by 44 other Soviet heroes—and only then by Matrosov.
Later, until the end of the war, Pankratov-Matrosov’s feat was accomplished by 233 Russians, 50 Ukrainians, 13 Belarusians, 5 Jews and 5 Tatars, 4 Kazakhs, 3 Armenians; 2 each—Georgians, Mari, Uzbeks, and Estonians; and one each—an Abkhaz, an Azerbaijani, a Bashkir, a Bulgarian, a Buryat, a Kyrgyz, and a Chuvash. Thus, the total number is more than 300 people. Among these heroes were even teenagers—a girl, Rimma Shershnyova (aged 17), and two boys, Tolya Komar, 15, and Misha Belush, 16.
Rimma Shershnyova was a Belarusian by nationality. At the age of 17, trained as a radio operator, she crossed the front line in late 1942 and joined a partisan detachment. On November 24, 1942, she took part in a partisan raid on the enemy garrison in Lomovichi village (Gomel Oblast, Byelorussia). During the street fighting, their unit got pinned down by fire from a German MG emplacement. Partisan A. Bondarchuk attempted to destroy that firing point with a grenade, but was struck down by machine-gun fire. After that, Rimma picked up the grenade and managed to get even closer—yet also failed to eliminate the machine gunner. She then blocked the emplacement’s embrasure with her body. Ten days later, the young partisan succumbed to her wounds. Rimma I. Shershnyova was posthumously decorated with the Order of the Red Banner.
Tolya Komar was a Russian by nationality. He performed his heroic feat the day before his 15th birthday. On November 23, 1943, he was in a group of scouts returning from a mission when they came under fire from an emplaced German machine gun. Tolya threw a grenade at it, but when the soldiers got up, the MG resumed firing. Then the young hero blocked it with his body. It was only on April 6, 1985, just before the 40th anniversary of Victory Day, that Anatoly (Tolya) G. Komar was posthumously decorated with the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class. Misha Belush was a aBelarusian by nationality. Aged 16, he joined the partisans in May 1943 and took part in derailing eight German trains. He performed his heroic feat on June 16, 1944, on the outskirts of Kupisk village (Novogrudok Region, Western Byelorussia). He disabled one embrasure of an MG emplacement with a bunch of grenades and blocked the second one with his body. Young Mikhail (Misha) A. Belush was posthumously decorated with the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class.
Throughout the Polish liberation campaign, 27 soldiers blocked embrasures of MG emplacements with their bodies; 8—in the liberation of Hungary, 6 in Czechoslovakia, 3 in Yugoslavia, 6 in Romania, 25 in Germany, another 11—in battles against the Japanese.
7 heroes survived after the feat!
Leonty Kondratiev was a Russian by nationality. He was born into a family of Don Cossacks in 1892. His bravery way back in World War I earned him the Cross of Saint George. As the Great Patriotic War began, Kondratiev repeatedly volunteered for the front, but was rejected due to the aftermath of severe injuries sustained in World War I and the Russian Civil War. It was not until 1942, with the Germans reaching the Caucasus, that Leonty managed to join the Red Army. On October 30, 1942, Private Kondratiev blocked the embrasure of a German MG emplacement with his body in a battle on the outskirts of Tuapse. He became the first to survive such a feat! Moreover, Leonty Kondratiev (aged 50!) was also the oldest hero among those who blocked the deadly fire of German MG emplacements. Leonty was brought to the hospital in time, and four months later he returned to action. On March 31, 1943, Leonty V. Kondratiev was awarded the Gold Star of Hero of the Soviet Union but died a brave death in the following month.
Georgy V. Maisuradze was a native of Georgia. In a battle near Glushets village (Gomel Oblast, Byelorussia) on October 10, 1943, Georgy was involved in the suppression of an enemy weapon emplacement. At a critical juncture in the battle, he valiantly blocked machine gun fire with his own body. He was 35 years old. Despite being severely wounded, Georgy Maisuradze survived and was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on January 15, 1944.
Stepan Kochnev was a Russian by nationality. He performed his feat on December 31, 1943, in battle near Novaya Ekaterinovka (Kherson Oblast, Ukraine), aged 33. Kochnev led a platoon that came under fire from an emplaced German machine gun. Several soldiers went to destroy it, with some ending up killed and others seriously wounded. Then the commander himself headed out to suppress the firing point. He tried to do it with a grenade, but it failed to detonate. Already hit by several bullets, Stepan then mustered his last strength, got up and dashed forward, covering the MG embrasure with his body. The hero was pierced by so many bullets that he was presumed dead. Posthumously, Stepan I. Kochnev was nominated for the Gold Star (Hero of the Soviet Union), but was only awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class. Meanwhile, despite his feat, the Soviet troops had to retreat, and the badly wounded hero was taken prisoner. On April 24, 1945, he was freed from captivity by Red Army units, received his award, and returned to civilian life.
Alexander Udodov was a Russian by nationality and came from a family of Old Believers.* Commanding the squad, he accomplished his feat on May 9, 1944 near Sevastopol. He was almost 27 years old. When the grenades failed to suppress the enemy’s firing point, Udodov blocked its embrasure with his chest. Despite being severely wounded, the squad leader kept fighting! For his heroism on the battlefield, Sergeant Alexander A. Udodov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
* A group of Russian religious dissenters who refused to accept the liturgical reforms imposed upon the Russian Orthodox Church by the Patriarch of Moscow Nikon (1652–58).Vladimir P. Mayborsky was a Ukrainian by nationality. Aged 33, he accomplished the feat on July 13, 1944 near Cheremkhov village (Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ukraine). When ordered to suppress the enemy’s firing point, he crawled up to it within grenade range. But the machine gun burst broke his legs, and the German machine gunner, believing the Red Army soldier to be dead, shifted his fire to another sector. Thanks to this, Mayborsky was able to make it to the ‘blind spot’ where the MG could no longer hit him. Vladimir gathered his last strength and threw himself at the embrasure, thrusting a grenade into it at the last moment. The badly wounded hero was picked up by paramedics and taken to the hospital in time to save him. His recovery took 10 months! On March 24, 1945, Master Sergeant Vladimir P. Mayborsky was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Tovye Reiz was a Jew by nationality and accomplished his feat at the age of 24. On October 18, 1944, near the town of Gumbinnen in East Prussia, he led a squad. However, when they faced an enemy MG emplacement, he did not order another soldier to take it out, but instead went himself. As Reiz was throwing the grenade, he sustained 18 bullet wounds to his chest and right arm. Despite being severely injured, Tovye survived. For his valor and courage in destroying the German emplaced firing point, Guards Sergeant Tovye H. Reiz was decorated with the Order of Glory, 3rd class.
Sabalak Orazalinov was a Kazakh by nationality and accomplished his feat at the age of just 19. Being an orphan, Sabalak volunteered to destroy the enemy emplaced MG, saying that if he died, there would be “no one to cry over him.” On November 18, 1944, during a battle on Saaremaa Island (Estonia), Private Orazalinov crawled up to the emplacement and tossed a grenade into its embrasure. The fighter took seven bullets as he was throwing it; he remained unconscious for 15 days—but he made it. For his bravery in battle, the hero was awarded the Medal “For Valor.” After the war, he raised seven children.
The essence of the Soviet soldiers’ sacrificial feat was best explained in a letter to his mother by 24-year-old Red Army Private Abram Levin, who blocked the embrasure of an enemy MG emplacement with his body on February 22, 1942, near Rzhev.
“Mom, time will pass, and you will understand that your son did the right thing. There are millions like me in our army, and we are obliged to defend our Homeland. We must shed our blood and give our lives to destroy fascism once and for all. There is no other way. The enemy who encroached on our sacred land must be destroyed. I’ll go to carry out my duty to my country soon. I doubt I’ll make it back alive. I’m going there to save the lives of many of my comrades in the offensive. I am going for the sake of the people, victory, for the sake of all that is beautiful in human beings.”
In 1967, Private Abram I. Levin was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class. High-quality photo of Abram Levin for free download
The 24 soldiers who accomplished the feat received no government accolades. But in their death, they fulfilled the commandment of Christ: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” and became Heroes of the Heavenly King.
Every soldier had a choice — me or the Motherland.