Zabaluev, Alexander Alekseevich

Initial Biography

Born on August 19, 1906 in the city of Kashira . Russian

After leaving school, since 1921 he worked on the construction of a railway bridge over the Akhtuba river in the Astrakhan region near the Buzan station.

Military Service

In September 1924, he entered the Odessa Infantry School as a cadet, after graduating from September 1927 he served in the 26th Odessa Border Detachment of the OGPU troops as platoon commander, assistant commander and chief of the frontier outpost, instructor of combat training of the detachment and assistant chief of the detachment for combatant unit .

In 1932 he joined the CPSU (b) .

In September 1933 he was appointed chief of staff of the 55th railway regiment of the NKVD troops (st. Kazatin ), and since February 1937 he served in the same position in the 56th railway regiment of the NKVD troops in Kiev . In 1937 he graduated from the faculty of correspondence and evening training at the Military Academy of the Red Army. M.V. Frunze .

Since September 1937, he commanded the 3rd motorized rifle regiment in the Separate motorized rifle division for special purposes of the NKVD of the USSR named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky in Moscow. In June 1939, Colonel Zabaluev was awarded the Order of the Red Star by a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR “for excellent performance in the combat training of the regiment, the fulfillment of operational tasks and the 15th anniversary of the division”.

From February 8 to March 13, 1940 he commanded a group (regiment) in the NKVD special forces detachment in the 9th Army in the Soviet-Finnish War . In 1940 he was awarded the badge “Honored Worker of the NKVD” for participating in the battles with the White Finns.

At the end of hostilities, he again commanded the former 3rd Motorized Rifle Regiment in the Separate Motorized Rifle Division for Special Purpose of the NKVD of the USSR named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky.

In May 1941 he was appointed head of the military use and service department of the Office of the Operational Forces of the NKVD of the USSR.

World War II

At the beginning of the war, on July 5, 1941, Colonel Zabaluev took command of the 252nd Infantry Division , formed from personnel and personnel of the NKVD in the city of Serpukhov .

On July 15, he was awarded the military rank of Major General .

With the adoption of the division, it was redeployed to the station of Ostashkov in the Kalinin Region , and upon arrival, it became part of the 29th army of the reserve of the High Command . Since July 20, the division along with the army was included in the Western Front . Its units crossed the Zapadnaya Dvina River and on July 28, near the village of Ilyino, Smolensk Region , entered the battle from the march. During the night, they repulsed several counterattacks of the enemy’s approached reserves, but were forced to retreat northward under pressure from superior forces. Then the division re-forced the Zapadnaya Dvina River and took up defense on its northern bank near the mouth of the Toropa River. Here she stayed until the end of August, then at the beginning of September she fought offensive battles, fulfilling the task of driving the enemy back to the west bank of the river. During them, the 456th SS Grenadier Regiment ( Battle of Smolensk ) was surrounded and defeated. In early October, the division, together with the army, was forced to withdraw in the Rzhev direction. By October 12, she concentrated in the Chertolino area and took up defense, covering the crossing of units of the 29th Army across the Volga River and further withdrawal to Rzhev . By October 15, parts of it concentrated north-east of Staritsa. Continuing their retreat, by October 19 they concentrated in the Novinki area, where they entered the battle from the march and threw the enemy back to the city of Kalinin . Since October 21, the division as part of the 31st Army of the Kalinin Front has defended the railway bridge over the Volga River in the area of ​​the city of Kalinin ( Vyazemsky and Kalinin defensive operations). On December 1, she again joined the 29th Army of the same front and from December 5 participated in the assault and liberation of the city of Kalinin. As a result of the fighting, he was released by December 16, the division entered the Kalinin station area (southwestern part of the city). In pursuit of the enemy, its units captured Danilovskaya in battle, again crossed the Volga River, liberated the village of Stanishino and by December 29 reached Kholokhovna ( Kalinin offensive operation ). For courage and heroism in these battles, skillful command of the division by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated May 5, 1942, Major General Zabaluev was awarded the Order of the Red Banner .

On January 5, 1942 he was transferred to the post of deputy commander of the 30th Army of the Kalinin Front , with which he participated in the Rzhev-Vyazemsky offensive operation . In May of that year he was sent to study at the Higher Military Academy. K.E. Voroshilova to the city of Ufa , at the end of the crash course in November, was appointed chief of staff of the Northern Group of Forces of the Transcaucasian Front ( 9th , 37th , 44th , and 58th armies). He took part in the battle for the Caucasus , in the Mozdok-Malgobek and Nalchik-Ordzhonikidze defense operations and the attack on the Nalchik-Stavropol direction. On January 24, 1943, the North Caucasian Front was created at its base, and Major General Zabaluev was appointed chief of staff. In this position he took part in the development and conduct of the North Caucasus and Krasnodar offensive operations. By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of February 22, 1943, Zabaluev was awarded the Order of Kutuzov of the 1st degree .

By order of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command of March 16, 1943, and by order of the troops of the front of March 19, he was relieved of his post (“as if he couldn’t do it”) with the command of the front troops remaining at his disposal, then he was sent to the hospital for treatment.

On April 7, 1943, it was placed at the disposal of the GUK NPO , and in the same period. e. authorized Supreme Command Headquarters on the North-Western Front .

July 15, 1943 he was appointed chief of staff of the Arkhangelsk military district , and on July 27, 1944 he was transferred to the post of chief of staff of the Siberian military district .

Post-War Career

After the war since July 9, 1945 and. D. Chief of Staff of the West Siberian Military District .

In May 1946 he was transferred to the post of senior teacher of tactics at the Higher Military Academy. K.E. Voroshilova.

On June 7, 1947, by order of the Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR, he was transferred to the reserve.

the USSR

• The order of Lenin
• two orders of the Red Banner (05/05/1942 ^{[2] [3]} , 11/03/1944)
• Order of Kutuzov I degree ^{[4] [5]} (02.22.1943)
• Order of the Red Star (ХХ.06.1939)
  • Medals, including:
  • "For the defense of Moscow"
  • "For the defense of the Caucasus"
  • "For the defense of the Soviet Arctic"
  • “For the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.”

• Public electronic document bank “Feat of the People in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945”

• Team of authors . World War II: Divisional Commanders. Military Biographical Dictionary / Ed. Coll .: N. B. Akberdin, I. I. Basik, S. A. Botzvin, n. I. Nikiforov, I. A. Permyakov, M. V. Smyslov . - M .: “Kuchkovo Field”. Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation , General Directorate of Personnel, State Institution for Work with Personnel, Institute of Military History of the Military Academy of the General Staff. The Central Archive ., 2014 .-- T. III. Commanders of rifle, mountain rifle divisions, Crimean, polar, Petrozavodsk divisions, Rebolsky divisions, fighter divisions. - S. 988-989. - 1000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-9950-0382-3 , UDC 94, BBK 63.3 (3) 722.78.