Brantkalln, Detlav Karlovich

Born in the territory of the present Gulbensky region of Latvia .

Member of the RCP (b) since 1916 ^[1] .

Civil War

In 1917 he joined the Red Guard , and from August 1918 he served as a Red Army man, and then as a division commander of the 2nd Soviet Revolutionary Combined Regiment, after which he took part in hostilities on the Eastern Front of the Red Army . In December of the same year, he was appointed to the post of assistant chief of the combat communist detachment of the Starogulbene region ( Latvia ), and from February 1919 he served as company commander and battalion of the Starogulbene district military department. From June of the same year, he served as the Red Army man of the partisan detachment of the political administration of the 15th Army ( Western Front ), and from October, he was a responsible storekeeper and head of the material warehouse of the 18th Military Building of this army. Took part in hostilities against Estonian and German troops in the territory of Latvia, in the fall of 1919 - against troops under the command of General N. N. Yudenich near Petrograd .

In April 1920, Brantkaln was sent to study at the political courses of the Political Directorate of the Western Front, after which in August of the same year he was appointed military commissar of the 501st rifle regiment ( 56th Infantry Division , Western Front), after which he participated in the Soviet-Polish war in the Grodno area. From February 1921 he served as Assistant Commissar of the 497th, 498th and 499th Infantry Regiments of the same division, participated in the suppression of the Kronstadt uprising .

Interwar Time

In August 1923, Brantkaln was appointed to the post of military commissar of the 48th Infantry Regiment ( 16th Infantry Division , Leningrad Military District ), and in October 1924 - to the post of military commissar of the 104th Infantry Regiment ( 35th Infantry Division , Siberian Military district ), stationed in Irkutsk .

In August 1925, he was sent to study at the Shooting Tactical Courses, after which in September 1926 he was appointed Commander of the 15th Independent Infantry Battalion (Leningrad Military District), in October 1927 - Assistant Commander for Combat the units of the 33rd Infantry Regiment of the 11th Infantry Division , and then the 30th Cherepovets Infantry Regiment of the 10th Infantry Division .

On January 10, 1930, he was again sent to the Siberian Military District and appointed to the post of commander and military commissar of the 36th Slavgorod Infantry Regiment ( 12th Infantry Division ), and in July 1937 to the post of commandant of the Nizhne-Amur fortified area deployed in Nikolaevsk-on-Amur ). In May 1938, retiredaccording to art. 44 p. "In" .

Several relatives of Detlav Brantkalna were arrested and shot during the Great Terror ^[2] . He himself was accused of participating in the “Latvian fascist organization,” but these charges were soon dropped due to a large-scale investigation into the activities of the NKVD plenipotentiary representative for the Far East, Heinrich Lyushkov , who fled to the Japanese in the summer of 1938. During the purge of Lyushkov's people, facts of sadistic investigation methods and unjustified arrests were discovered. Soon, a number of military prisoners, including Brantkalln, were released ^{[3] [4]} . In March 1940 ^{[5] he was} reinstated in the personnel of the Red Army and appointed as a teacher at the Higher Shooting and Tactical Courses " Shot ".

Great Patriotic War

Since the beginning of the war, Detlav Karlovich Brankaln was in his former position.

In December 1942, he was appointed commander of the 43rd Guards Latvian Rifle Division , which in early 1943 as part of the 27th Army (the North-Western Front took part in hostilities during the Demyansk Offensive , but due to its failure in the front reserve and engaged in combat training until October 1943, and also carried out work on the construction of fortifications on the Lovat River. In October 1943, the division was redeployed to the Toropets area , where it was incorporated Tav 22nd Army ( 2nd Baltic Front ) and took part in the Leningrad-Novgorod operation , during which after breaking through the strong fortified long-term defense of the enemy, the division led offensive operations in the area of ​​Nasva station (40 km north of the city of Novosokolniki ).

The commander of the 97th rifle corps, Lieutenant-General Yu. V. Novoselsky, in February 1944, noted in battle characteristic:

Comrade DK Brantkaln is an experienced, trained and authoritative commander. Can organize a fight. Require the troops to perform tasks. Disciplined, strong-willed, honest and truthful general. Enjoys authority among his subordinates. Caring, hardworking. The division was militarily prepared and showed good fighting qualities in the last battles.

On June 5, 1944, Brantkaln was appointed commander of the 130th Infantry Latvian Corps , who took part in hostilities during the Baltic and Riga offensive operations , as well as in the liberation of the city of Riga . For success in these battles, the corps was awarded the Order of Suvorov, 2 degrees, and its commander Brantkaln, the Order of Kutuzov, 2 degrees. Soon the corps as part of the Leningrad Front took part in the hostilities to eliminate the enemy’s Kurland grouping .

The commander of the 22nd Army, Lieutenant-General G. P. Korotkov , assessing the commanding qualities of Brankaln, indicated that:

commander of the corps Guards. Major General Brantkaln proved himself to be a competent general who correctly understood the nature of modern combined-arms combat . Decisions in any situation takes the most expedient and most expedient, strives to bring them to life ... When organizing a battle, all branches of troops with their various techniques and capabilities are used correctly, paying special attention to the organization of their interaction at all stages. Thanks to his skillful leadership, all the tasks assigned to the corps were carried out.

Post War Career

After the war, he was in his former position.

In May 1946, he was sent to study at the Higher Academic Courses at the Higher Military Academy named after KE Voroshilov , after which in March 1947 he was appointed Deputy Commander of the 23rd Guards Rifle Corps , in April 1948 - Deputy commander of the 16th Guards Rifle Corps , and in April 1949 - to the position of Assistant Commander of the Belomorsk Military District for military schools.

Lieutenant-General Detlav Karlovich Brantkaln in March 1954 due to a long illness was credited to the General Directorate of Personnel "with retention of his pay during treatment" and in September of the same year he retired. He died on August 8, 1979 in Riga . Buried in the cemetery of Rainis .

• Two Orders of Lenin (including 02/21/1945);
• Order of the October Revolution (1979);
• Four Orders of the Red Banner (10/14/1943, 01/17/1944, 11/03/1944, 1948);
• Order of Suvorov 2 degrees (06/29/1945);
• Order of Kutuzov 2 degrees (07/29/1944);
• Medals ^[6] .

• Major General ( January 29, 1943 );
• Lieutenant General ( July 11, 1945 ).

A street in Purvciems , a residential area of ​​Riga, is named after Detlav Brankalnna.

• The team of authors . Great Patriotic: Komkory. Military Biographical Dictionary / Under the general editorship of M. G. Vozhakina . - M. Zhukovsky: Kuchkovo Pole, 2006. - T. 1. - p. 92-93. - ISBN 5-901679-08-3 .
• The team of authors . Great Patriotic: Komdivy. Military biographical dictionary. - M .: Kuchkovo Pole, 2014. - T. 3. - p. 329-331. - 1000 copies - ISBN 978-5-9950-0382-3 .