Petrenko, Vasily Alekseevich

Born on April 11, 1907 in the village of Yekaterinoslavka, Orenburg Province.

Pre-war time

In October 1929 he was drafted into the ranks of the Red Army and sent to the 55th Cavalry Regiment, stationed in Tambov , where he served as a Red Army soldier and one-year cadet. In November 1930, he was discharged from the army to the reserve, after which he worked as the director of the school in Kuznetsk ( Penza region ). In 1933 he graduated from the State Pedagogical Institute.

In June 1935, he was re-drafted to the Red Army, after which he was sent to study for advanced training courses for the command staff at the Joint Military School in Tashkent , after which he served in the 55th and 101st cavalry regiments as platoon and half-squadron commanders.

In September 1938 he was sent to study at the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze , after which in May 1941 he was appointed to the post of chief of the 2nd division - chief of intelligence of the 228th Infantry Division ( Kiev Military District ).

World War II

With the outbreak of the war, Petrenko was in his former position on the Southwestern Front . The 228th Infantry Division was redeployed from the Starokonstantinov region near Dubno , where it conducted heavy fighting against the 11th enemy tank division , during which it suffered heavy losses, and therefore was forced to retreat to the Rivne area. Soon the division took part in the fighting during the Kiev defensive operation . In August, he was appointed to the post of head of the operational department of the same division. During the hostilities, Petrenko was twice surrounded (in June - in the Dubno area, and in September - in the Pipyatin area).

In October, he was appointed senior assistant to the chief of the combat training department of the headquarters of the 21st Army .

In January 1942 he was appointed to the post of deputy chief, and in May of that year - to the post of chief of staff of the 169th Infantry Division , which took part in the fighting during the Kharkov battle and in the Battle of Stalingrad , and then - in Oryol , Bryansk , Gomel-Rechitsa and Rogachev-Zhlobin operations , as well as during the liberation of the cities of Zhizdra and Rogachev .

In March 1944, he was appointed chief of staff of the 41st Rifle Corps . In the period from January 1 to 12, 1945, he served as the commander of the same corps, who conducted defensive military operations north of Warsaw .

Post-War Career

After the war he was in his former position.

In January 1946 he was sent to study at the Higher Military Academy named after K. E. Voroshilov , after which in April 1948 he was appointed to the post of chief of the operational department of the headquarters of a separate mechanized army , and in January 1949 - to the post of senior lecturer of the operational art of the Higher Military Academy named after K. E. Voroshilov.

Major General Vasily Alekseevich Petrenko resigned in December 1969 . He died on April 19, 1984 in Moscow .

• Four Orders of the Red Banner ;
• Order of Kutuzov 2 degrees;
• Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 2 degrees;
• Order of the Patriotic War of 1 degree;
• Order of the Red Star ;
• Medals:
• Foreign medal.

Team of authors . World War II: Comcor. Military Biographical Dictionary / Edited by M. G. Vozhakin . - M .; Zhukovsky: Kuchkovo Field, 2006. - T. 1. - S. 427-428. - ISBN 5-901679-08-3 .