Ivan Petrovich Kuldin (1918-1944) - Soviet tank officer, participant in the Great Patriotic War , master of tank combat . During the war years on his combat account and his tank crews - 11 enemy tanks wrecked and destroyed.
| Ivan Petrovich Kuldin | |||||
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| Affiliation |  the USSR | ||||
| Type of army | armored forces | ||||
| Years of service | 1938-1944 | ||||
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| Part | 15th Panzer Division , 1st Guards Tank Brigade | ||||
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Content
Biography
Born in 1918 in the village of Staraya Yaksarka (now Shemysheysky district of the Penza region ) in a peasant family. Mordvin [1] . Sister - Anna. Being an orphan early, he began to work at the age of ten. I tried several professions, but most of all I was drawn to metal and cars; began to work as a locksmith in one of the factories of Leningrad [2] .
On the western borders of the USSR
In 1938, he was drafted into the Red Army . Learned to tanker [2] . He served in the 15th Panzer Division of the 16th Mechanized Corps , stationed in the city of Stanislav (now Ivano-Frankivsk , Ukraine ).
On the fronts of World War II from June 22, 1941. The swift offensive of German troops found parts of the 16th mechanized corps on the march. To preserve the combat effectiveness, parts of the corps with attached units began to retreat to Ruzhin and Zarudintsi ( Zhytomyr region of Ukraine). During the ensuing battles, the corps suffered heavy losses in the material part, and also experienced serious disruptions in the supply of fuel and ammunition [3] . In one of these battles near the village of Belilovka ( Ruzhinsky district of the Zhytomyr region ) BT-7 of sergeant I.P. Kuldin was shot down and burned down (later he will find his burned tank during the offensive in 1944) [4] .
By the end of July 24, the remains of the corps had retreated to the defensive line Skala - Kozhanka . At the same time, by order of the command, recall began from the front of the most valuable tank personnel, which did not have a material part and were used in battle as ordinary infantrymen [3] . The “dismounted” tanker I.P. Kuldin was sent to the emerging 4th tank brigade, whose commander was appointed Colonel M.E. Katukov (former commander of the 20th Panzer Division of the 9th Mechanized Corps ).
Eagle and Mtsensk
In October 1941, Sergeant Ivan Kuldin took part in the battles near Orel and Mtsensk with units of the German 2nd Panzer Group, Colonel General Heinz Guderian ( Oryol-Bryansk Operation ). Colonel M.E. Katukov, who did not have accurate information about the situation in Orel, sent two tank reconnaissance groups to the city. Kuldin was in the group of Senior Lieutenant A.F. Burda . Arriving at an ambush on the night of October 4, three kilometers southeast of the city, Kuldin asked the senior lieutenant for permission to take his family out of the city - his mother and wife, who had been evacuated to her mother-in-law in Orel from Stanislav, but now both were suddenly in a city captured by the Germans. Alexander Burda helped Ivan Kuldin to sneak into the city secretly at night and take his relatives out. On October 7, the Burda reconnaissance group completed its reconnaissance in battle and went without loss to the command post of Colonel Katukov, from where members of the Kuldin family, who had been in tanks for three days with the tankers, were evacuated to the rear [5] [6] .
On October 10, near Mtsensk, the crew of Ivan Kuldin accepted a battle with two enemy tanks, knocking out one of them [1] .
In Volokolamsk direction
| External Images | |
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| Advanced German units of the 11th Panzer Division near Volokolamsk . Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived June 24, 2012. | |
| One of the units of the 1st Guards Tank Brigade counterattacks para in the Volokolamsk Highway area (November 1941) (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived June 24, 2012. | |
After the battles near Mtsensk, the 4th Panzer Brigade was deployed near Moscow to the Volokolamsk direction, where it held the defenses by tank ambushes along with units of the 316th Infantry Division (Major General I.V. Panfilov ) and the Cavalry Group (Major General L. M . Dovator ). On November 16, units of the Wehrmacht launched an offensive at the junction of the 316th Infantry Division and the cavalry group of L. M. Dovator.
November 19 in the battle for the village of Novo-Petrovskoye as part of the crew of the KV-1 tank under the command of a lieutenantS. G. Korsun successfully supported the actions of four T-34s of the 33rd tank brigade , destroying one medium tank and two batteries (7 guns), after which they still repelled the German counterattack on the village [1] .
On November 26, tankers, together with units of the 316th Infantry Division, recaptured the village of Stepankovo ( Istra district of the Moscow region ). However, on the morning of November 28, after heavy mortar fire, 27 German tanks approached the village with the support of infantry and anti-tank guns. Among those who repelled this attack was the crew of the KV-1 tank as part of [2] [7] :
- tank commander senior lieutenant I.R. Strizhevsky ;
- gunner (gun commander) Senior Sergeant I.P. Kuldin;
- driver mechanic A. M. Aristov ;
- charging Vashchenko;
- shooter radio operator Vakhrameev.
As a result of the battles at the settlements of Ananovo , Kurtasovo and Stepankovo, the KV-1 crew destroyed 2 tanks and 7 enemy guns. After only 9 shells remained in the tank, the commander decided to go to the gas station. However, only upon leaving Kurtasovo, he fell under the fire of two anti-tank batteries, as a result of which the tank caught fire, and there was a danger of detonation of the warhead. The crew quickly left the wrecked car and took refuge in the forest, not noticing the loss of Kuldin. Meanwhile, the gun commander Senior Sergeant I.P. Kuldin returned to the tank, shot down the flames and brought the car into the forest [2] [8] [9] .
When we moved away from the tank, I stopped and involuntarily looked around. Our tank is standing, crushed by a pine tree, and the engine is quietly buzzing. And so I felt uneasy: as a dear man, the tank felt sorry for him, as a friend of a wounded man. And ran back to him. “I’ll save, I think, a car or perish.” I run up. You can’t get into the tank - just a hefty pine tree fell and burns, even other branches have already turned black. He pulled himself up and pushed her. Inside the car is also on. I began to extinguish the fire with gloves and sleeves. He burned his hands, his face licked with fire. And the engine - the heart of the tank - everything works. This encouraged me. He made his way to the driver's seat, grabbed the levers, pressed the accelerator, and the car went. I got out of the woods and let the whole piece of iron run - only the wind whistled; the speed completely knocked the flame.
“It could have exploded,” said Korsun.
- Could. Only then it came to mind, but at first I thought about one thing: the tank must be saved.
- gun commander senior sergeant I.P. Kuldin [10]
He took part in the battles for Kryukovo during defensive operations, and then in the counterattack of the Soviet troops near Moscow. Together with him, a sergeant, Hero of the Soviet Union I.T. Lyubushkin, fought in a carriage with a tower gunner [11] .
For the battles near Orel and in the Volokolamsk direction, the destruction of 8 enemy tanks I.P. Kuldin was awarded the Order of Lenin (June 7, 1942) [1] . Since 1942 - member of the CPSU (b) .
Tanks BT-7 and T-34 1st Guards. tbr in ambush. December 1941
Tanks T-34 1st Guards. tbr. December 1941
Kalinin Front
In 1942, I.P. Kuldin was awarded the rank of second lieutenant, and he was appointed commander of a platoon of medium tanks. The brigade was transferred to the Kalinin Front , where it participated in battles to capture a number of fortified enemy posts. Walking with his platoon at the forefront of the battalion, on November 26 and 27, 1942, together with other divisions of the battalion, captured a number of strongholds occupied by the enemy with battle. The crew of I.P. Kuldin destroyed 18 bunkers and dugouts, 2 cannons, 1 tractor and up to 70 enemy soldiers and officers. In the battle on December 1, 1942, for the fortified point of Zhernosekovo, the tank of I.P. Kuldin quickly burst into the enemy’s position and suppressed the firing points and manpower of the enemy. And when an enemy heavy tank came out to meet his tank, I.P. Kuldin rammed it. In this battle, his crew destroyed one tank, two guns, one anti-aircraft gun, 7 bunkers, 2 vehicles and up to 45 enemy soldiers and officers. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree (January 9, 1943) [2] .
From Pokrovka to Popelny
Member of the Battle of Kursk . On July 7, 1943, from the Dubrava area, the Wehrmacht part of the Wehrmacht, with forces of about 400 tanks (of which 100 Tigers), launched an offensive at the 1st (Colonel I.V. Melnikov), 3rd (Colonel A. Kh. Babadzhanyan ) and the 10th (Colonel I. Ya. Yakovlev) mechanized brigades and the 1st Guards Tank Brigade (guards Colonel V. M. Gorelov), the 14th fighter anti-tank artillery brigade RVGK (Colonel I. V. Zabotin), 28- 1st and 29th IPTABr and other parts of the gain. The tankers of the Dead Head division throttled the 1st Guards Tank Brigade three times and captured Pokrovka at the end of the day. During the day, many tankmen of the 1st Guards Tank Brigade distinguished themselves in battles. In particular, the tank company of the senior lieutenant I.P. Kuldin chalked up 28 enemy tanks destroyed, including 10 Tigers [12] .
In December 1943, a company of senior lieutenant I.P. Kuldin participated in the battles for the liberation of the Zhytomyr and Vinnitsa regions. In a week, the tankers advanced 80 km and freed dozens of villages, including the large railway junction Popelnyu . For this guard raid, Senior Lieutenant I.P. Kuldin was awarded the Order of the Red Banner (January 7, 1944) [2] .
In Western Ukraine
On March 20, 1944, troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front began an operation to liberate Western Ukraine. The tank company of senior lieutenant I.P. Kuldin was in the main direction of the strike. For four days of fighting, his crew destroyed 2 tanks, 17 guns, 150 vehicles, as well as 90 enemy soldiers and officers. More than 100 people were also captured [2] .
| External Images | |
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| Modern bridge over the Dnieper in Ustechko, 2010 | |
On March 24, 1944, when the Kuldina tank company attacked the town of Chertkov, the first went to the Dnieper near the village of Ustechko ( Zaleshchitsky District ). Despite the fact that the bridge was blown up, artillery fire and aviation actions were over the site of the breakthrough of Soviet tanks, the commander of the company of the 1st tank battalion of the guard, senior lieutenant I.P. Kuldin found a ford, crossed his own tank to the opposite bank and immediately entered there to battle. After the crossing was already captured, he was killed by a bullet, leaving the tank for reconnaissance [2] [4] .
He was buried in a mass grave in the city of Chortkov, Ternopil Oblast (now Ukraine ) [2] .
He was posthumously presented to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union , however, by order of the 1st Panzer Army he was awarded the Second Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree [2] .
In total, on his combat account and his tank crews there were 11 enemy tanks wrecked and destroyed [13] .
Monument tank in Chortkovo
Rewards
- Order of Lenin (June 7, 1942)
- Order of the Red Banner (January 7, 1944)
- two orders of World War I degree (January 9, 1943; April 8, 1944, posthumous)
Memory
In the village of Novaya Yaksarka, the Staroyaksarsky rural settlement, in honor of I.P. Kuldin, a stele was established (restored in 2012), and the street was also named after him [14] .
Photos of IP Kuldin are exhibited at the Shemysheysky Museum of Local Lore [15] [16] . In the museum of the secondary school of the village of Shemisheyka, Penza region, an exposition dedicated to the fellow tankman is presented [17] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Submission to the Order of Lenin in the electronic bank of documents “ Feat of the People ” (archive materials TsAMO , f. 33 , op. 682524 , d. 314 , p. 61 ).
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Feat of the tankman: About I.P. Kuldin .
- ↑ 1 2 Drig E. 16th Mechanized Corps (unavailable link) . Mechanized corps of the Red Army (December 20, 2009). Date of treatment May 25, 2012. Archived June 24, 2012.
- ↑ 1 2 Zhukov Yu. A. From the Dnieper to the Vistula. 1944 // People of the forties . - M .: Soviet Russia, 1975 .-- S. 266.
- ↑ Korolev V.S., Raftoppulo A.A. In the Mtsensk direction // Tank Raid: An Essay on the Life and Combat Path of the Hero of the Soviet Union Tank Guardsman Alexander Fedorovich Burda . - Donetsk: Donbas, 1978. Archived September 19, 2014 on the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Popel N.K. Chapter One // Tanks turned west . - M .; St. Petersburg: Terra Fantastica, 2001 .-- S. 33 .-- 480 p. - ISBN 5-17-005626-5 .
- ↑ Livshits Ya. L. Chapter 3. Fighting brigades on the approach to Moscow // The First Guards Tank Brigade in battles for Moscow . - 1948.
- ↑ Garin F.A. I loved them the most. Flowers on the tanks . - M .: Soviet Russia, 1973.
- ↑ Naro-Fominsk: Battles for every house, every street (inaccessible link) . The official site of the Maryino district of Moscow. Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
- ↑ Rostov A.F. Part 3. On the Volokolamsk Highway // First Tank Guards . - M .: Moscow Worker, 1975.
- ↑ That was in the forty-first near Moscow - I.T. Lyubushkin (Inaccessible link) . Tambov Regional Children's Library. Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
- ↑ Stetsenko A.S. Height 254.5. Memorial to the heroes of the Battle of Kursk. 624th kilometer of the Moscow-Simferopol highway // On the arc of fire. Guide to the memorable places of the Battle of Kursk (southern face) . - Minsk: Polymya, 1980.
- ↑ Illustrations // The combat path of the First Tank Army and its heroes / Under the general editorship of N.K. Popel, M.A. Shalin, A.G. Zhuravlev, P.L. Pavlovtsev. - 1945. - T. 1: Battle of the Kursk.
- ↑ News of the Shemysheysky district . Newspaper New Year (May 5, 2012). Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
- ↑ About the Museum . Museums of the Penza region. Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
- ↑ May 18 - International Museum Day . Newspaper New Time (05/18/2011). Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
- ↑ Davydov V.A., Yaroshenko V.V. Book of memory of the First Guards Tankers 1941-1945. (2007). Date of treatment March 29, 2013. Archived April 10, 2013.
Literature
- Popel N.K. Guards account of the company of Lieutenant Kuldin // Heroes of the Battle of Kursk. - M .: Education, 1971. - 198 p.
Links
- The feat of the tankman. About I.P. Kuldin (v. Staraya Yaksarka) . Administration of Shemysheysky district (December 17, 2009). Date of treatment March 29, 2013. (unavailable link)