The Feat of Alexander Matrosov

Rimma Shershnyova was Belarusian. At the age of 17, having trained as a radio operator, she crossed the front line in late 1942 and joined a partisan detachment. On 24 November 1942, she took part in a partisan attack on an enemy garrison in the village of Lomovichi, Gomel Region. During the street fighting, the detachment was halted by fire from a German pillbox. A partisan named A. Bondarchuk attempted to destroy the firing position with a grenade but was struck down by a burst of machine-gun fire. Rimma then picked up the grenade and crawled closer, but she too was unable to destroy the machine-gun position. She then blocked the pillbox embrasure with her body. The young partisan died of her wounds ten days later. Rimma Ivanovna Shershnyova was posthumously awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

Tolya Komar was Russian. He performed his heroic feat one day before his 15th birthday. On 23 November 1943, he was returning from a mission with a group of Soviet reconnaissance troops when they came under fire from a German machine gun. Tolya threw a grenade at the position, but when the Soviet soldiers rose to advance, the machine gun opened fire again. The young hero then blocked it with his body. It was not until 6 April 1985, to mark the 40th anniversary of Victory, that Anatoly Grigoryevich Komar was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd Class.

Misha Belush was Belarusian. In May 1943, at the age of 16, he joined the partisans, where he derailed eight German military trains. He performed his heroic feat on 16 June 1944, on the outskirts of the village of Kupisk in the Novogrudok District of Western Belarus. He destroyed one embrasure of the bunker with a bundle of grenades and covered the other with his body. The young Mikhail Andreyevich Belush was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st Class.

Leonty Vasilyevich Kondratyev was Russian. He was born into a Don Cossack family in 1892. He was awarded the Cross of St George for bravery during the First World War. When the Great Patriotic War began, Kondratyev repeatedly volunteered for the front, but was rejected because of the effects of severe wounds sustained during the First World War and the Civil War. It was not until 1942, when the Germans reached the Caucasus, that Leonty managed to join the Red Army. On 30 October 1942, during fighting on the approaches to the city of Tuapse, Red Army private Leonty Kondratyev covered the embrasure of a German bunker with his body. He was the first person to survive after performing such a feat! Kondratyev was also the oldest, at 50, of the heroes who shielded others from the deadly fire of a German machine gun with their bodies. Leonty was taken to hospital in time, and four months later he returned to battle. On 31 March 1943, Leonty Vasilyevich Kondratyev was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union, but in April that same year he died a hero’s death.

Georgy Vasilyevich Maisuradze was a native of Georgia. On 10 October 1943, during the battle near the village of Glushets in the Gomel Region of Belarus, Georgy took part in neutralising an enemy firing position. At a critical moment in the battle, he showed great courage by using his own body to silence the machine-gun fire. He was 35 years old. Despite being gravely wounded, Georgy Maisuradze survived and was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 15 January 1944.

Stepan Ivanovich Kochnev was Russian. He performed his heroic feat on 31 December 1943, during the battle near Novaya Yekaterinovka in the Kherson Region. He was 33 years old. Kochnev commanded a platoon that came under fire from a German pillbox. Several soldiers were sent to destroy it, but some were killed and others seriously wounded. The commander then set out to suppress the firing position himself. He tried to do so with a grenade, but it failed to explode. Although already wounded by several bullets, Stepan summoned his last reserves of strength, rose to his feet and threw himself forwards, shielding the machine gun with his body. He was struck by so many bullets that he was presumed dead. Stepan Ivanovich Kochnev was posthumously nominated for the Gold Star, but received only the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd Class. Meanwhile, despite his heroic act, our troops were forced to retreat, and the gravely wounded hero was taken prisoner. On 24 April 1945, he was liberated by Red Army units, received his award and returned to civilian life.

Alexander Abramovich Udodov was Russian and came from a family of Old Believers. As a section commander, he performed his heroic feat near Sevastopol on 9 May 1944. He was not yet 27 years old. When grenades failed to silence the enemy firing position, Udodov threw himself against the embrasure. Despite being seriously wounded, the section commander continued to fight. For his heroism in battle, Sergeant Alexander Abramovich Udodov was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.

Vladimir Petrovich Mayborsky was Ukrainian. He performed his heroic feat on 13 July 1944 near the village of Cheremkhov in Ukraine’s Ivano-Frankivsk Region. He was 33 years old. Ordered to silence an enemy firing position, he crawled to within grenade-throwing distance. However, a burst of machine-gun fire shattered his legs, and the German machine gunner, believing the Red Army soldier to be dead, shifted his fire elsewhere. This allowed Mayborsky to reach the dead ground where the machine gun could no longer hit him. Summoning his last reserves of strength, Vladimir threw himself against the embrasure, thrusting a grenade into it at the final moment. Medical orderlies recovered the seriously wounded hero and took him to hospital in time. His recovery took ten months. On 24 March 1945, Sergeant Major Vladimir Petrovich Mayborsky was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.

Tovye Khaimovich Raiz was Jewish and performed his heroic feat at the age of 24. On 18 October 1944, near the town of Gumbinnen in East Prussia, he was serving as a section commander. Rather than ordering another soldier to do so, he personally set out to destroy a pillbox. As he threw a grenade, Raiz was struck by 18 bullets in the chest and right arm. Despite these extremely serious wounds, Tovye survived. For the valour and courage he displayed in destroying the pillbox, Guards Sergeant Tovye Khaimovich Raiz was awarded the Order of Glory, 3rd Class.

Sabalak Orazalinov was Kazakh and was only 19 when he performed his heroic deed. An orphan, Sabalak volunteered to destroy the bunker, saying that if he were killed, there would be ‘no one to mourn him’. On 18 November 1944, during fighting on the island of Saaremaa in Estonia, Private Orazalinov crawled up to the bunker and threw a grenade into its embrasure. As he did so, seven bullets tore through his body. Sabalak remained unconscious for 15 days, but survived. For the courage he displayed in battle, he was awarded the Medal ‘For Courage’. After the war, he raised seven children.