Red Moscow

  Chapter 1790 Commendation Conference

  After a brief silence, thunderous applause resounded in the small auditorium.

  As he applauded, Sokov muttered to himself: It seems that there is still a deviation from the history in his memory. It turned out that the Supreme Command issued the commendation order on February 18, but now it has been postponed to March 1. In addition, many experts who studied this period of war history in later generations believed that only more than 10,000 of the 60,000 German troops who were besieged were annihilated, and the rest were out of the encirclement. However, according to the battle report of the Supreme Command, the number of German troops annihilated exceeded 60,000.

Smirnov on the side touched Sokov's arm with his elbow while applauding, and said emotionally: "Comrade commander, have you heard it all? Troops with outstanding military exploits in battle will receive 'Cole The title of "Sun" will also be awarded with a medal. I estimate that there are at least three divisions in our army group that can receive this honor."

"That's right." Sokov agreed with Smirnov's statement: "Our four divisions stationed near Height 239 will definitely be awarded the title of 'Korsun'. And Selivanov The General's 5th Guards Cavalry Corps may also receive the honor."

"That's for sure." Smirnov said with a smile: "In the commendation order just now, not only your name was mentioned, but General Selivanov's was also mentioned. But he was only assigned to us temporarily. Those who command cannot really be counted as part of our army. So the honor he received has nothing to do with us."

  Sokov suddenly thought at this moment, if he didn't insist on keeping Muzichenko, but let him follow Selivanov to the cavalry army, maybe he could get a medal this time.

   After Susaikov sat down, Konev stood up, raised his hands and pressed down. But the applause on the field only became slightly sparse, and after a while, it became enthusiastic again.

   It wasn't until Konev repeated this action for the fifth time that the applause on the field gradually stopped.

"Commanders, hello!" Konev said with a smile on his face: "Have you heard the commendation order from the Supreme Command to our front army? Next, I will introduce to you the emerging forces in this battle." Heroes individually and collectively.

  First of all, I would like to mention our tank units. It is precisely because of their courageous actions that they have become the main force in this campaign to encircle and wipe out the enemy group.

  Of course, all the commanders and fighters of our front army, whether they are infantry, artillery, pilots, engineers or signal soldiers, are very brave in combat. They fought in bad weather, muddy roads, complex and changeable conditions, overcame hardships and hardships, and with all their energy and physical strength, they gloriously completed the task, thus proving once again to the world that Soviet soldiers are loyal to the motherland My sons, any miracle can be wrought. "

  Konev's words were once again met with two minutes of warm applause.

   "In this battle," continued Konev, "we have emerged a lot of individual and collective heroes, and many names are worth remembering.

Second Lieutenant Abramtsev of the 2nd Battalion of the 181st Tank Brigade set up an ambush at a road intersection 3 kilometers west of Yurkovka Town, and successfully destroyed 2 tanks and 7 armored vehicles, annihilating the enemy officers and soldiers Nearly 50 people.

  During the battle near the town of Zhuerrenqi, the tanks under his command destroyed 2 enemy tanks, 4 cannons, 12 armored transport vehicles, and 80 vehicles carrying goods, and wiped out hundreds of enemy officers and soldiers. Later, because he was outnumbered, he died a heroic sacrifice and faithfully performed his military duties. In recognition of Abramtsev's heroism and bravery, the Supreme Command posthumously awarded him the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Colonel Novikov, head of the 438th Anti-Tank Artillery Regiment, led his troops to block the enemy troops trying to break through on February 17, 1944, showing the superb skills of a battle organizer and personal bravery, heroism and the quality of death. .

  The German army attacked our artillery position with a full company of officers and soldiers. Although they were severely hit by our artillery fire, there were still nearly a hundred XTL bandits who approached our artillery position. Novikov skillfully organized the counterattack and personally fought the enemy in hand-to-hand combat. After the hand-to-hand combat near the artillery ended, the enemy left 40 corpses and fled in a hurry.

   Throughout the day, the regiment repelled several enemy attacks. After the shells were fired, Novikov gathered all the officers and soldiers into the support point and led them to counterattack the attacking enemy group. Before the end of the day, he killed four enemies alone, but unfortunately he was seriously injured . In recognition of Novikov's bravery and decisiveness and his skillful command of the regiment, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet ordered him to be awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. "

Having said this, Konev took a sip of water from the teacup on the table, and continued: "The soldiers of the infantry unit are also very brave in combat. Sergeant Knyazev, the machine gun squad leader of the 1237th Regiment of the 373rd Infantry Division He took part in the battles against Rzhev, Velizh, Mirgorod, and Cherkasy, broke through the German defenses in the Smel area, and encircled and wiped out the enemy's Korsun-Shevchenkodasky group. An example of bravery and heroism shown in every battle.

   On February 15, 1944, during the battle to capture the village of Yablono Daka, Knyazev was ordered to take his own machine gun and go out to the enemy's rear to cut off the enemy's retreat. Knyazev does this very well. He eliminated more than 50 XTL bandits with a machine gun. In recognition of the bravery and heroism shown by Knyazev, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. "

Hearing this, Smirnov couldn't help being a little bit impatient, and he approached Sokov and asked in a low voice: "Comrade Commander, why does General Konev keep introducing heroes, and when will he commend us? "

"Don't worry, my Comrade Chief of Staff." Sukov felt that since Konev mentioned many times in the previous speech that many heroes and collectives emerged in this battle, although he is now introducing individuals, he will soon The group of heroes will be introduced, so he comforted Smirnov and said: "After the individual commendation is over, it is the turn of the group."

   Sure enough, in the following speech, Konev mentioned that this victory, in addition to relying on the regular army, also had the support of local guerrillas. They destroyed enemy trains carrying ammunition and technical equipment on their way to the front and wreak havoc in the rear of the German army, providing great help to the front troops.

  In addition, the residents of the liberated areas not only actively joined the army, but also assisted the logistics department in transporting supplies to ensure that the front army had enough supplies for combat and life support.

After thanking the local guerrillas and residents, Konev mentioned the commander who played a great role in this battle: "In this battle, Admiral Rotmistrov gave full play to his role. With his own knowledge and talents, he used his own tank units to inflict heavy damage on the German armored units.

  The 5th Army of the Air Force under the command of Lieutenant General Goryunov played a major role in winning the battle. Goryunov was a worthy representative of our heroic aviation, a cheerful and frank man. He is not only familiar with the tactics used by aviation, but also deeply understands the nature of modern combined arms combat. He skillfully concentrates the pilot's efforts on assisting the army, thus promoting the coordination between the air force of the front army and the ground corps and troops, and improving the combat effectiveness of aviation against the enemy. Assault effect.

In addition, Army Group Commanders General Trofimenko, General Sokov, General Koroteyev, General Garanin, most of the corps and unit commanders, especially Army Commander General Lazarev, Kiri Generals Chenko, Polozkov, and Selivanov all presented themselves as experienced and decisive military chiefs. Every single one of them has done their part to crush their loved ones.

  The command and combat support of the officers of the Front Army Command and the heads of various arms were very successful. I would like to emphasize in particular the great role played by Major General Zierling, the engineer commander of the Front Army, and Major General Culkin, the commander of the Armored Tank Mechanized Corps of the Front Army, in this battle..."

Smirnov was in a hurry. He leaned close to Sokov's ear again, lowered his voice and said in a dissatisfied tone: "Comrade Commander, our troops played a pivotal role in this battle. Why did General Konev Don't tell everyone about it? Even when you just read the list of army commanders, you were ranked second."

  Sokov didn't hear Konev praise himself alone, so he was somewhat disappointed. After all, if there is no own troops to hold on to Height 239 this time, I am afraid that more German troops will escape from the encirclement.

Konev's speech lasted another ten minutes, and then began to make a final summary: "Commanders and comrades, in this battle, the suddenness and destructiveness of the assault, the extensive maneuvering, the forward movement to the rear, the The rapidity of the movement of troops, the change and deployment of troops, the tenacity of defense and the resoluteness of attack have all been fully reflected.

  The Korsun-Shevchenkovsky battle has a large scale, and both sides have invested a lot of troops and technical equipment. On the enemy's side, there are about 26 divisions, including 9 armored divisions, and a large number of aviation and artillery, both externally and internally. In the course of the battle, this entire group of XTL bandits was almost completely crushed by our army.

The removal of the German army on the Korsun-Shevchenkovsky salient and its defense forces by our army eliminated the threat of the enemy's assault on the flanks and rear of the troops of the 1st and 2nd Ukrainian Fronts, thereby guaranteeing our The armies can maneuver along the front.

  Due to the victorious end of the battle, the enemy was completely driven from the Dnieper River, and all the enemy's attempts to restore the defense of the middle reaches of the Dnieper River were shattered. Our troops were then given favorable conditions for the subsequent campaign in right-bank Ukraine to liberate the entire south of the country from Hitler's occupiers.

  The road across the Dnieper has been opened, and new battles and new campaigns lie ahead. "

   With the end of Konev's speech, thunderous applause broke out in the small auditorium again.

   After the applause stopped, Zakharov announced loudly into the microphone: "Commanders, comrades, today's commendation meeting is over, everyone will go to their respective units. The meeting is over!"

  Hearing what Zakharov said, the commanders in the meeting stood up one after another, applauding everyone sitting on the rostrum to leave. After Konev and the others left, everyone slowly walked towards the door.

   With the support of Smirnov and Gorokhov, Sokov just arrived at the door when he was stopped by a lieutenant colonel: "Hello, is this General Sokov?"

   "I am!" After answering this question, Sokov first looked at the big-brimmed hat the other party was wearing, fearing that the top of the hat would be blue. Fortunately, the other party was only wearing an ordinary military cap, so Sokov put his heart back in his stomach, and looked at the lieutenant colonel and asked, "Comrade lieutenant colonel, what's the matter with you? "

   After the lieutenant colonel confirmed Sokov's identity, he said politely: "I send to General Zakharov, please go to the headquarters."

   "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel," Sokov learned that Zakharov was looking for him, with a surprised expression on his face, he asked tentatively, "Do you know what the Chief of Staff of the Front Army is looking for?"

   "I'm sorry, Comrade General." The lieutenant colonel replied blankly, "I was just ordered to invite you to the headquarters of the Front Army. As for what it is, I don't know much about it."

   "Comrade Commander," Smirnov said proactively, "We will go with you."

  Unexpectedly, after hearing this, the lieutenant colonel said with a serious expression: "I'm sorry, Comrade General. General Zakharov only asked me to invite General Sokov to go alone, and the rest will be spared."

Seeing that Smirnov seemed to want to say something, Sokov quickly raised his hand to stop him, and said to him and Gorokhov: "Chief of Staff, Comrade Military Commissar, you go to the parking lot and wait for me first. After I met General Zakharov, I rushed over to join you."

   After Smirnov and Zakharov left, Sokov said politely to the lieutenant colonel: "Comrade lieutenant colonel, we can set off now."

"Comrade General," the lieutenant colonel looked down at the cane in Sokov's hand, and said with concern: "The headquarters is one street away from here, and your leg is injured, so I'm afraid it will take a lot of time to walk there. I think it's better to go by car."

  The lieutenant colonel brought Sokov to the door, raised his hand and greeted the other side of the road, and soon a jeep parked on the opposite side drove over and stopped in front of the two of them.

  The lieutenant colonel stepped forward and opened the rear door, and made a gesture of invitation to Sokov: "Comrade general, please get in the car."

   After a few minutes of driving, the jeep stopped next to a three-story building.

  The lieutenant colonel, who was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, turned half-turned and said to Sokov, "Comrade General, we are here. Please get out of the car!"

   After finishing speaking, the lieutenant colonel opened the car door and got out of the car first, then came to the back to help Sokov open the car door, and helped him out of the car.

   As soon as the two entered the building, they met Zakharov head-on.

  The lieutenant colonel quickly stood at attention, raised his hand to salute the other party, and reported respectfully: "Report to Comrade Chief of Staff, General Sokov has been invited!"

"Thank you, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. You have nothing to do here, and you can take care of yourself." After saying this, Zakharov extended his hand to Sokov and said friendlyly: "Comrade Sokov, welcome You. Just because I was busy with a meeting, I didn't have time to receive you, I hope you don't mind."

"Look at what you said, Comrade Chief of Staff of the Front Army." Sokov replied with a smile: "Now that the war has subsided for the time being, if you need to find me for anything, just call me and I will answer you as soon as possible." Speed ​​up and come over to report to you."

  (end of this chapter)