Gerasimenko, Vasily Filippovich

Vasily Filippovich Gerasimenko was born on April 24, 1900 in the village of Velikaya Buromka, now Chernobaevsky District, Cherkasy Region of Ukraine . Ukrainian . In 1912 he graduated from a village school, then a two-year school in Yekaterinodar .

In the Red Army since February 1918, one of the very first volunteers to join it. Active participant in the Civil War in Russia : Red Army soldier of the 1st Revolutionary Regiment, Red Army soldier of the 292nd Rifle Regiment of the 33rd Kuban Rifle Division , head of machine gun crew, assistant platoon commander. He fought on the Southern Front , was twice wounded in battles and once shell-shocked. After recovering from February 1920, he commanded a platoon of the 1st guard regiment of the Don regional military registration and enlistment office, and from July 1920, he commanded a platoon of the Rostov guard battalion.

After the Civil War, he remained in the service of the Red Army. In 1922 he graduated from the division courses of command personnel at the 37th Infantry Division . From May 1921 he served in the 110th rifle regiment: platoon commander, from August 1922 - the head of the machine gun team, from September 1924 - the assistant battalion commander, from November 1926 - the machine gun company commander, and from November 1927 - the assistant battalion commander. He also studied, in 1927 he graduated from the Joint Military School named after the Central Executive Committee of the BSSR in Minsk , in 1931 - from the Military Academy of the Red Army named after M.V. Frunze .

Since May 1931 - chief of the operational part of the headquarters of the 3rd Crimean Rifle Division , chief of the operational part of the headquarters of the Novograd-Volyn fortified area . From December 1934, he was the chief of staff of the 44th Kiev Rifle Division , and from April 1936, he was chief of staff of the 95th Rifle Division (both divisions in the Kiev Military District ). Since August 1937 - commander of the 8th Rifle Corps in the same district . Since July 1938 - Deputy Commander of the Kiev Special Military District.

In June-July 1940 he commanded the 5th Army of the Southern Front , at the head of which he participated in the deployment of Soviet troops in Bessarabia in June-July 1940. Since July 1940 - Commander of the Volga Military District .

At the beginning of World War II, Vasily Filippovich was appointed commander of the 21st Army , which was formed on the basis of the Volga Military District troops, with it arrived on the Western Front . On July 15, 1941, he replaced the wounded Lieutenant General Remezov F.N. as commander of the 13th Army of the Western Front . By that time, the 13th Army had participated in the battle of Smolensk and waged heavy battles with the 2nd Wehrmacht tank group.

At the end of July he was placed at the disposal of the USSR People's Commissariat of Defense . In September 1941 he was appointed head of the rear services of the Reserve Front , in October - assistant to the chief of rear services of the Red Army . Since November 1941 - Commander of the troops of the Stalingrad Military District .

From September 1942 to December 1943, Lieutenant General Gerasimenko commanded the 28th Army on the Southeast , Stalingrad and Southern (from January 1943) fronts. During this time, the army took part in the Battle of Stalingrad , Miuss , Donbass and Melitopol operations.

“Today, February 14, having broken the stubborn resistance of the enemy, our troops captured the city of Rostov-on-Don. In the battles for Rostov, the troops of Lieutenant General Comrade Gerasimenko V. F. distinguished themselves. ”

- From the bulletin of the Information Bureau for February 14, 1943

In January 1944 he was appointed commander of the troops of the Kharkov Military District , and in March - People’s Commissar of Defense of the Ukrainian SSR and commander of the troops of the Kiev Military District .

After the war, from October 1945, he was deputy commander of the troops of the Baltic Military District , from January 1947 he was an assistant commander for the combatant unit in this district, and from May 1949, he was an assistant commander of the troops of the Baltic Military District for military schools. Since September 1953, retired.

He was elected to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 1st convocation (1937-1946).

Vasily Filippovich Gerasimenko died on February 13, 1961 in Kiev. He was buried at the Lukyanovsky military cemetery in Kiev.

• Colonel (11.29.1935)
• Kombrig (08/08/1937)
• Divisional Commander (07/23/1938)
• Comcor (11/4/1939)
• Lieutenant General (06/04/1940)

• 2 Orders of Lenin (1941, 02.21.1945)
• 4 orders of the Red Banner (02.22.1938, 09.17.1943, 11.3.1944, ...)
• Order of Suvorov 1st degree (02/14/1943)
• Order of Kutuzov 2nd degree (01/28/1943) ^[1]
• USSR medals

In honor of the military leader the street in the cities: Astrakhan , Rostov-on-Don and Elista is named.

• Team of authors . The Great Patriotic War. The commanders. Military Biographical Dictionary / Under the General Ed. M. G. Vozhakina . - M .; Zhukovsky: Kuchkovo Field, 2005 .-- S. 42. - ISBN 5-86090-113-5 .
• Soloviev D. Yu. All the generals of Stalin. - M., 2019 .-- ISBN 9785532106444 .

• Speech by V.F. Gerasimenko at a meeting of the high command of the Red Army in December 1940
• Gerasimenko Vasily Filippovich on the website of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation