Kharchin, Ivan Gavrilovich

Born on December 9, 1915 in the village of Maloe Andreikovo, now in the Kostroma district of the Kostroma region . He graduated from school in the village of Karavaevo, a school of factory apprenticeship in the city of Poshekhonye-Volodarsk.

In October 1937 he was drafted into the Red Army by the Poshekhonye-Volodarsky district military enlistment office and sent to a military school. In 1939 he graduated from the Moscow Military Engineering School . At the front in World War II from December 1943. He fought on the 1st Ukrainian and 2nd Belorussian fronts.

By the summer of 1944, Senior Lieutenant Kharchin was an assistant commander of the reconnaissance company of the 40th Engineer-Sapper Brigade. During the preparation for the summer offensive, he did a great job of guiding camouflage operations in the area of ​​concentration of troops, as a result of which a covert approach of the units to the starting lines was provided. On July 14, being at the location of the infantry battalion of the 136th Infantry Division, at the critical moment of the battle he took command of the battalion, organized the reflection of the enemy’s counterattack. For these battles he received the first military award - the Order of the Red Star .

Subsequently, he fought as part of the 42nd separate combat engineer battalion of the 136th Infantry Division, and was deputy battalion commander for combatant units. For the skillful command of the units in organizing the forcing of the Vistula River in August 1944 he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner . In January 1945, in battles on the Narevsky bridgehead, he correctly organized reconnaissance and clearance in the front line, passing advancing troops through enemy minefields. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War of the 2nd degree. In January 1945 he joined the CPSU (b).

On February 24, 1945, troops of the 2nd Belorussian Front broke through the Pomeranian defensive wall and by March 27 reached the Vistula River in the Danzig area. The river at this point was divided into two branches, in the middle of which was a sandy island. The sappers were tasked with ensuring the forcing of the water barrier. Captain Kharchin himself volunteered to lead a group of sappers who were the first to begin the crossing. Under enemy fire, the soldiers crossed to the left bank, which had pontoons and boats abandoned by the Nazis. Before the opponents had time to come to their senses, the sappers seized the boats and brought them to their shore, put infantry on them and began to transport them across the Dead Wisla sleeve to the island. Forcing was carried out so quickly that the enemy did not even have time to get ready for battle and was destroyed.

Captain Kharchin immediately organized the forcing of the left branch of the river. Under enemy fire, the infantry landing on the boats faltered, some of the boats turned back. In this critical situation, Kharchin jumped into a nearby boat with his sappers and rushed to the left bank, showing the way to the rest of the landing. Inspired by the example of sappers, the infantrymen continued the crossing. The landing was successfully landed. Together with the infantrymen, a group of sappers led by Kharchin also participated in the attack on the enemy. Only when the Germans were driven back, and our infantry entrenched in the conquered bridgehead, did he leave the paratroopers and set off to lead the further crossing.

The next day, March 28, in the battle to hold the bridgehead, Captain Kharchin died. He was buried in Gdansk.

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 29, 1945, for the exemplary execution of combat missions of command on the front of the fight against German-enemy invaders and the courage and heroism shown to this, Captain Kharchin Ivan Gavrilovich was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union .

He was awarded the Orders of Lenin , Red Banner , World War 2 degree, Red Star .

• Heroes of the Soviet Union: A Brief Biographical Dictionary / Prev. ed. collegium I. N. Shkadov . - M .: Military Publishing , 1988. - T. 2 / Love - Yashchuk /. - 863 s. - 100,000 copies. - ISBN 5-203-00536-2 .
• Golubev E.P. Battle stars. Yaroslavl: Upper Volzh. Prince ed., 1972.

Ivan Gavrilovich Kharchin (Russian) . Site " Heroes of the country ". Date of treatment July 1, 2014.