When they talk about the Soviet military leaders of the Great Patriotic War, they most often remember Zhukov, Rokossovsky, Konev. In honoring them, we almost forgot the Soviet generals, who made a significant contribution to the victory over Nazi Germany.

Commander Remezov

In 1941, the Red Army left town after town. Rare counteroffensives of our troops did not change the oppressive feeling of impending catastrophe. However, on the 161st day of the war - November 29, 1941 - the elite German troops of the Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler tank brigade were driven out of the largest southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. Stalin telegraphed congratulations to the senior officers taking part in this battle, including the commander of the 56th division, Fyodor Remezov.

It is known about this man that he was a Soviet general and called himself not a Russian, but a Great Russian. He was also appointed to the post of commander of the 56th, he was also on the personal orders of Stalin, who appreciated the ability of Fedor Nikitich, without losing self-control, to conduct a stubborn defense against the advancing Germans, which were much superior in strength.

For example, his strange, at first glance, decision by the forces of the 188th cavalry regiment to attack German armored vehicles on October 17, 1941 in the area of ​​Koshkino station (near Taganrog). This made it possible to withdraw the cadets of the Rostov Infantry School and parts of the 31st Division from a crushing blow. While the Germans were chasing light cavalry, running into fiery ambushes, the 56th Army received the necessary respite and was saved from the Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler tanks that had broken through the defenses. Subsequently, Remezov's bloodless fighters, together with soldiers of the 9th Army, liberated Rostov, despite Hitler's categorical order not to surrender the city. This was the first major victory of the Red Army over the Nazis.

Vasily Arkhipov

By the beginning of the war with the Germans, Vasily Arkhipov already had successful combat experience with the Finns, as well as the Order of the Red Banner for breaking through the Mannerheim Line and the title of Hero Soviet Union for the personal destruction of four enemy tanks.

According to many military men who knew Vasily Sergeevich well, at first glance he accurately assessed the capabilities of German armored vehicles, even if they were among the novelties of the fascist military-industrial complex.

So, in the battle for the Sandomierz bridgehead in the summer of 1944, his 53rd tank brigade met the "royal tigers" for the first time. The brigade commander decided to attack the steel monster on his command tank in order to inspire his subordinates by personal example.

Using the high maneuverability of his car, he several times went into the side of the "clumsy and slow beast" and opened fire. Only after the third hit did the "German" flare up. Soon his tankers captured three more "royal tigers". Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Vasily Arkhipov, about whom colleagues said “does not sink in water, does not burn in fire”, became a general on April 20, 1945.

Alexander Rodimtsev

Alexander Rodimtsev in Spain was known as Camarados Pavlito, who fought in 1936-1937 with Franco's Falangists. For the defense of the university city near Madrid, he received the first gold star of the hero of the Soviet Union. During the war with the Nazis, he was known as the general who turned the tide of the Battle of Stalingrad.

According to Zhukov, Rodimtsev’s guards literally at the last moment struck at the Germans who had come ashore on the Volga. Later, recalling those days, Rodimtsev wrote: “On the day when our division approached the left bank of the Volga, the Nazis took Mamaev Kurgan. They took it because ten fascists attacked each of our fighters, ten enemy tanks went to each of our tanks, ten Messerschmitts or Junkers had to take to the air for each Yak or Il ... the Germans knew how to fight, especially when such numerical and technical superiority.

Rodimtsev did not have such forces, but his well-trained fighters of the 13th Guards rifle division, also known as the formation of the Airborne Forces, fighting in the minority, turned the Nazi tanks of Goth into scrap metal and killed a significant number of German soldiers of the 6th army of Paulus in hand-to-hand urban battles. As in Spain, in Stalingrad, Rodimtsev repeatedly said: "but passaran, the fascists will not pass."

Alexander Gorbatov

The former non-commissioned officer of the tsarist army, Alexander Gorbatov, who was promoted to the rank of major general in December 1941, was not afraid to conflict with his superiors.

For example, in December 1941, he told his direct commander Kirill Moskalenko that it was stupid to throw our regiments into a frontal attack on the Germans if there was no objective need for this. He answered harshly to the abuse, saying that he would not allow himself to be insulted. And this is after three years of imprisonment in Kolyma, where he was shocked as an “enemy of the people” under the infamous 58th article.

When this incident was reported to Stalin, he grinned and said: "Only the grave will fix the hunchback." Gorbatov entered into a dispute with Konstantin Zhukov about the attack on Orel in the summer of 1943, demanding not to attack from the already existing bridgehead, but to force the Zushi River elsewhere. Zhukov was categorically against it at first, but, on reflection, he realized that Gorbatov was right.

It is known that Lavrenty Beria had a negative attitude towards the general and even considered the stubborn man his personal enemy. Indeed, many did not like Gorbatov's independent judgments. For example, having carried out a number of brilliant operations, including the East Prussian one, Alexander Gorbatov unexpectedly spoke out against the storming of Berlin, proposing to start a siege. He motivated his decision by the fact that the Fritz would surrender anyway, but this would save the lives of many of our soldiers who went through the entire war.

The creator of victory in the Great Patriotic War was the Soviet people. But in order to realize his efforts, to defend the Fatherland on the battlefields, it was required high level the military art of the Armed Forces, which was supported by the military leadership talent of the military leaders.

The operations carried out in the last war by our military leaders are now being studied in all the military academies of the world. And if we talk about assessing their courage and talent, then here is one of them, brief but expressive: "As a soldier who watched the campaign of the Red Army, I was imbued with the deepest admiration for the skill of its leaders." This was said by Dwight Eisenhower, a man who understood the art of war.

The harsh school of war selected and consolidated by the end of the war the most outstanding commanders in the positions of front commanders.

The main features of military leadership talent Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov(1896-1974) - creativity, innovation, the ability to make unexpected decisions for the enemy. He was also distinguished by a deep mind and insight. In the words of Machiavelli, "nothing makes a commander so great as the ability to penetrate the enemy's plan." This ability of Zhukov played especially important role in the defense of Leningrad and Moscow, when, with extremely limited forces, only due to good intelligence, anticipation of possible directions of enemy attacks, he managed to collect almost all available means and repel enemy attacks.

Another outstanding military leader of the strategic plan was Alexander Mikhailovich Vasilevsky(1895-1977). Being the chief of the General Staff for 34 months during the war, A. M. Vasilevsky was only 12 months in Moscow, in the General Staff, and 22 months was at the fronts. G. K. Zhukov and A. M. Vasilevsky had developed strategic thinking, a deep understanding of the situation. It was this circumstance that led to the same assessment of the situation and the development of far-sighted and informed decisions on offensive operation near Stalingrad, to the transition to strategic defense on the Kursk Bulge and in a number of other cases.

The invaluable quality of the Soviet commanders was their ability to take reasonable risks. This feature of military talent was noted, for example, by Marshal Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky(1896-1968). One of the remarkable pages of the military activity of K.K. Rokossovsky is the Belarusian operation, in which he commanded the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front.

An important feature of military leadership talent is intuition, which makes it possible to achieve surprise strikes. This rare quality possessed Konev Ivan Stepanovich(1897-1973). His military talent was most convincingly and vividly manifested in offensive operations, during which many brilliant victories were won. At the same time, he always tried not to get involved in protracted battles in big cities and by roundabout maneuvers forced the enemy to leave the city. This allowed him to reduce the losses of his troops, to prevent great destruction and casualties among the civilian population.

If I. S. Konev showed his best military leadership qualities in offensive operations, then Andrey Ivanovich Eremenko(1892-1970) - in the defensive.

A characteristic feature of a real commander is the originality of the idea and actions, the departure from the template, military stratagem in which the great commander A. V. Suvorov succeeded. distinguished by these qualities Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich(1898-1967). Throughout almost the entire war, a remarkable feature of his talent as a commander was that he included in the plan of each operation some kind of action unexpected for the enemy, he knew how to deceive the enemy by a whole system of well-thought-out measures.

Having experienced all the wrath of Stalin in the first days of nightmarish failures at the fronts, Timoshenko Semyon Konstantinovich asked to be sent to the most dangerous area. Subsequently, the marshal commanded strategic directions and fronts. Under his command, there were heavy defensive battles on the territory of Belarus in July - August 1941. His name is associated with the heroic defense of Mogilev and Gomel, counterattacks near Vitebsk and Bobruisk. Under the leadership of Timoshenko, the largest and most stubborn battle of the first months of the war unfolded - Smolensk. In July 1941, the troops of the Western Direction under the command of Marshal Timoshenko stopped the advance of Army Group Center.

Troops under the command of Marshal Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan actively participated in the defeat of the German - fascist troops on the Kursk Bulge, in the Belorussian, Baltic, East Prussian and other operations and in capturing the fortress of Koenigsberg.

During the Great Patriotic War Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov commanded the 62nd (8th Guards) Army, which is forever inscribed in the annals heroic defense city ​​of Stalingrad. Commander Chuikov introduced a new tactics - tactics close combat. In Berlin, V.I. Chuikov was called: "General - Sturm." After the victory in Stalingrad, operations were successfully carried out: Zaporozhye, crossing the Dnieper, Nikopol, Odessa, Lublin, crossing the Vistula, Poznan citadel, Kyustrinsky fortress, Berlin, etc.

The youngest of the commanders of the fronts of the Great Patriotic War was an army general Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky. Chernyakhovsky's troops participated in the liberation of Voronezh, Kursk, Zhitomir, Vitebsk, Orsha, Vilnius, Kaunas and other cities, distinguished themselves in the battles for Kiev, Minsk, were among the first to reach the border with Nazi Germany, and then smashed the Nazis in East Prussia.

During the Great Patriotic War Kirill Afanasyevich Meretskov commanded the troops of the northern directions. In 1941, Meretskov inflicted the first serious defeat in the war on the troops of Field Marshal Leeb near Tikhvin. On January 18, 1943, the troops of Generals Govorov and Meretskov, inflicting a counterattack near Shlisselburg (Operation Iskra), broke through the blockade of Leningrad. In June 1944 Marshal K. Mannerheim was defeated under their command in Karelia. In October 1944, Meretskov's troops defeated the enemy in the Arctic near Pechenga (Petsamo). In the spring of 1945, the “cunning Yaroslavets” (as Stalin called him) under the name of “General Maksimov” was sent to the Far East. In August-September 1945, his troops participated in the defeat of the Kwantung Army, breaking into Manchuria from Primorye and liberating areas of China and Korea.

Thus, during the years of the Great Patriotic War, many remarkable military leadership qualities were manifested in our military leaders, which made it possible to ensure the superiority of their military art over the military art of the Nazis.

In the books and journal articles below, you can learn more about these and other outstanding commanders of the Great Patriotic War, the creators of its Victory.

Bibliography

1. Aleksandrov, A. The general was buried twice [Text] / A. Aleksandrov // Echo of the planet. - 2004. - N 18/19 . - S. 28 - 29.

Biography of Army General Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky.

2. Astrakhan, V. What Marshal Bagramyan read [Text] / V. Astrakhan // Library. - 2004. - N 5.- S. 68-69

What kind of literature interested Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan, what was his circle of reading, personal library - another stroke in the portrait of the famous hero.

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4. Bushin, Vladimir. For the Motherland! For Stalin! [Text] / Vladimir Bushin. - M.: EKSMO: Algorithm, 2004. - 591s.

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The article tells about the outstanding Russian commander Marshal of the USSR G.K. Zhukov.

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The essay dedicated to a prominent and talented military leader contains fragments of the memoirs of those who fought side by side with I. A. Pliev during the Great Patriotic War.

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11. Isaev, Alexey. Our " atomic bomb"[Text]: Berlin: Zhukov's biggest victory? / Alexei Isaev // Motherland. - 2008. - N 5. - 57-62

Berlin operation of Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov.

12. Kolpakov, A. V. In memory of the marshal-commander and quartermaster [Text] / A. V. Kolpakov // Military History Journal. - 2006. - N 6. - S. 64

About V. V. Karpov and I. Kh. Bagramyan

13. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War wars [Text]: a review of the editorial mail of the "Military History Journal" // Military History Journal. - 2006. - N 5. - S. 26-30

14. Kormiltsev N.V. The collapse of the offensive strategy of the Wehrmacht [Text]: on the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Kursk / N. V. Kormiltsev // Military History Journal. - 2003. - N 8. - S. 2-5

Vasilevsky, A. M., Zhukov, G. K.

15. Korobushin, V.V. Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov: "General Govorov ... has established himself ... as a strong-willed and energetic commander" [Text] / V.V. Korobushin // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 4. - S. 18-23

16. Kulakov, A. N. Duty and glory of Marshal G.K. Zhukov [Text] / A.N. Kulakov // Military History Journal. - 2007. - N 9. - S. 78-79.

17. Lebedev I. Order "Victory" in the Eisenhower Museum // Echo of the Planet. - 2005. - N 13. - S. 33

On the mutual awarding of the highest state awards during the Second World War, major military leaders of the victorious countries.

18. Lubchenkov, Yuri Nikolaevich. The most famous commanders of Russia [Text] / Yuri Nikolaevich Lubchenkov - M .: Veche, 2000. - 638 p.

Yuri Lubchenkov's book "The Most Famous Generals of Russia" ends with the names of the marshals of the Great Patriotic War Zhukov, Rokossovsky, Konev.

19. Maganov V.N."He was one of our most capable chiefs of staff" [Text] / V. N. Maganov, V. T. Iminov // Military History Journal. - 2002. - N12 .- pp. 2-8

The activities of the chief of staff of the association, his role in organizing military operations and commanding troops, Colonel General Leonid Mikhailovich Sandalov, are considered.

20. Makar I. P."By going over to the general offensive, we will finally finish off the main enemy grouping" [Text]: on the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Kursk / IP Makar // Military History Journal. - 2003. - N 7. - pp. 10-15

Vatutin N. F., Vasilevsky A. M., Zhukov G. K.

21. Malashenko E. I. Six Fronts of the Marshal [Text] / E. I. Malashenko// Military History Journal. - 2003. - N 10. - S. 2-8

About Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Stepanovich Konev - a man of difficult but amazing fate, one of the outstanding commanders of the 20th century.

22. Malashenko E. I. Fighter of the Vyatka land [Text] / E. I. Malashenko// Military History Journal. - 2001. - N8 .- p.77

About Marshal I. S. Konev.

23. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text] / E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 1. - S. 13-17

A study about the commanders of the Great Patriotic War, who played an important role in leading the troops.

24. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text] / E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 2. - S. 9-16. - Continuation. Nachalo N 1, 2005.

25. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text]; E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 3. - S. 19-26

26. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text]; E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 4. - S. 9-17. - Continuation. Beginning NN 1-3.

27. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text]: commanders of tank troops / E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 6. - S. 21-25

28. Malashenko, E. I. Commanders of the Great Patriotic War [Text] / E. I. Malashenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 5. - S. 15-25

29. Maslov, A. F. I. Kh. Bagramyan: "... We must, we must definitely attack" [Text] / A. F. Maslov // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 12. - S. 3-8

Biography of Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan.

30. Artillery Strike Master[Text] / material prepared. R. I. Parfenov // Military History Journal. - 2007. - N 4. - S. 2nd from the region.

To the 110th anniversary of the birth of Marshal of Artillery V.I. Kazakov. short biography

31. Mertsalov A. Stalinism and war [Text] / A. Mertsalov // Motherland. - 2003. - N2 .- pp.15-17

Stalin's leadership during the Great Patriotic War. Place Zhukov G.K. in the leadership system.

32. "We're in vain now we fight” [Text] // Motherland. - 2005. - N 4. - S. 88-97

Recording of a conversation between military leaders and political workers, which took place on January 17, 1945 with General A. A. Epishev. The question of the possibility of ending the Great Patriotic War earlier was discussed. (Bagramyan, I. Kh., Zakharov, M. V., Konev, I. S., Moskalenko, K. S., Rokossovsky, K. K., Chuikov, V. I., Rotmistrov, P. A., Batitsky, P.F., Efimov, P.I., Egorov, N.V., etc.)

33. Nikolaev, I. General [Text] / I. Nikolaev // Star. - 2006. - N 2. - S. 105-147

About General Alexander Vasilyevich Gorbatov, whose life was inextricably linked with the army.

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On the establishment of the Order "Victory" and the military leaders awarded by it (Zhukov, G.K., Vasilevsky A.M., Stalin I.V., Rokossovsky K.K., Konev, I.S., Malinovsky R. Ya., Tolbukhin F.I., Govorov L.A., Timoshenko S.K., Antonov A.I., Meretskov, K.A.)

35. Ostrovsky, A. V. Lvov-Sandomierz operation [Text] / A. V. Ostrovsky // Military History Journal. - 2003. - N 7. - S. 63

About the Lvov-Sandomierz operation of 1944 on the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal I. S. Konev.

36. Petrenko, V. M. Marshal of the Soviet Union K. K. Rokossovsky: “The commander of the front and the ordinary soldier at times equally affect success ...” [Text] / V. M. Petrenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 7. - S. 19-23

About one of the most prominent Soviet commanders - Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky.

37. Petrenko, V. M. Marshal of the Soviet Union K. K. Rokossovsky: “The commander of the front and the ordinary soldier at times equally affect success ...” [Text] / V. M. Petrenko // Military History Journal. - 2005. - N 5. - S. 10-14

38. Pechenkin A. A. Front commanders in 1943 [Text] / Pechenkin A. A. // Military History Journal. - 2003. - N 10 . - pp. 9 -16

The military leaders of the Great Patriotic War: Bagramyan I. Kh., Vatutin N. F., Govorov L. A., Eremenko A. I., Konev I. S., Malinovsky R. Ya., Meretskov K. A., Rokossovsky K. K. , Timoshenko S. K., Tolbukhin F. I.

39. Pechenkin A. A. Front commanders in 1941 [Text] / A. A. Pechenkin // Military History Journal. - 2001. - N6 .- C.3-13

The article tells about the generals and marshals who commanded the fronts from June 22 to December 31, 1941. These are Marshals of the Soviet Union S. M. Budyonny, K. E. Voroshilov, S. K. Timoshenko, army generals I. R. Apanasenko, G. K. Zhukov, K. A. Meretskov, D. G. Pavlov, I. V. Tyulenev, Colonel Generals A. I. Eremenko, M. P. Kirponos, I. S. Konev, F. I. Kuznetsov, Ya. T. Cherevichenko, Lieutenant Generals P. A. Artemyev, I. A. Bogdanov, M. G. Efremov, M. P. Kovalev, D. T. Kozlov, F. Ya. Kostenko, P. A. Kurochkin, R. Ya. Malinovsky, M. M. Popov, D. I. Ryabyshev, V. A. Frolov, M. S. Khozin, Major Generals G. F. Zakharov, P. P. Sobennikov and I. I. Fedyuninsky.

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The article is devoted to the front commanders of the Red Army in 1942. The author cites full list military leaders of 1942 (Vatutin, Govorov, Golikov Gordov, Rokossovsky, Chibisov).

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On the losses of Soviet generals and admirals during the Great Patriotic War.

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On the actions of the military leaders of the Red Army in offensive operations against the German invaders in 1944.

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About the fate of the commander of the Great Patriotic War Vasily Afanasyevich Khomenko.

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Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov stayed at the post of commander-in-chief of the ground forces for a relatively short time. It must be assumed that his irreconcilable character did not come to court in the higher spheres.

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New information about the generals who died during the Great Patriotic War.

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Konev, Ivan Stepanovich (Marshal of the Soviet Union)

57. Suvorov, Victor. Suicide: Why did Hitler attack the Soviet Union [Text] / V. Suvorov. - M.: AST, 2003. - 379 p.

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G. K. Zhukov, L. A. Govorov, K. A. Meretskov, M. P. Dukhanov, V. Z. Romanovsky

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Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich.

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About the little-known pages of the life of Marshal of the Soviet Union K.K. Rokossovsky.

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Rokossovsky K. K., Zhukov G. K., Konev I. S.

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The military career of one of the most prominent commanders of the Great Patriotic War, Marshal K. A. Meretsky.

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About Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Nikolai Gerasimovich Kuznetsov.

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The history of the battle near the Khalkhin-Gol River in 1939, a biography of commander Georgy Zhukov.

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About the fate of Marshal Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov.

Starting from the pre-war years, and especially during the war, there was a continuous and fierce strategic confrontation between the parties, a confrontation between military thought, military organizations, and the art of planning and commanding the Armed Forces. Before troops and fleet forces entered into battle, there was a mental and volitional clash of generals, general staffs, commanders and staffs.

IN last years V various countries lists of the most prominent commanders were published, including the period of the Second World War. The very attempt to compile such a list, to determine the rating of the most prominent military figures deserves attention. Of course, it is not easy to compare, say, Soviet commanders with the commanders of the allied countries or the enemy. For the goals, tasks, conditions for conducting armed struggle were different. And each commander has his own special military style.

But, despite the variety of conditions, there are also military prowess, obligatory for all, such as creativity and innovation, the ability to foresee the development of events, endurance and courage, initiative, courage and determination, which in different conditions are manifested in various forms but never lose their value and meaning. It is necessary to carefully study combat experience - a clot of military wisdom that has absorbed everything positive and negative that happened in past wars, the comprehension and creative use of which invisibly connects commanders different countries and generations.

This makes it possible, with the inevitable tolerances, conventions and relativity in such cases, to a certain extent to compare and evaluate the activities of various military leaders.

Among the ratings of military leaders compiled in the West, the book by the American military historian Michael Lanning "The 100 Greatest Generals of the World" received the greatest popularity. The number indicated by the author included 17 Americans, 19 British, 12 French, 9 Germans, 4 Russian (Soviet), Chinese, Swedish and Spanish commanders. Of the figures of the Second World War period, the list includes Hitler, who suffered a crushing defeat, and there are no Stalin, Churchill, Roosevelt, who led the anti-Hitler coalition and won the Second World War. They say Churchill was not a military leader, but that applies to Hitler as well. G.K. Zhukov was assigned the 70th place, I.S. Konev - 53rd, but the fascist generals defeated by them have a higher rating. Therefore, this rating curiosity looks more like a biased intrigue, calculated to "re-war" the war on paper in order to please the current neo-ideological moods.

On May 10, 1945, the Pravda newspaper published portraits of outstanding commanders of the Second World War. According to some evidence, this list was reviewed and approved by Stalin. It does not include the Chief of the General Staff A.I. Antonov, commander of the 4th Ukrainian Front A.I. Eremenko. But presented by K.E. Voroshilov, S.M. Budyonny and S.K. Tymoshenko, with which not everyone can agree. With all the relative conditionality of the ratings, the list of generals proposed from the height of today seems to be more reasonable.

During the war, 43 commanders commanded the fronts, 55 - headed the headquarters of the fronts, about 150 generals commanded combined arms armies, 15 - tank armies (some of them for a short time). Of course, with all due respect to them, it is impossible to include all of them in the list we have prepared. Selected military leaders who are relatively long time were in their positions and showed remarkable military leadership abilities.

It is also impossible to do without mentioning the largest representatives tank troops, Air force, artillery, Air Defense Forces, heads of headquarters of an operational-strategic scale, whose role has increased significantly.

For the sake of objectivity and respect for military prowess and professionalism, in order to better understand what a strong enemy we defeated in World War II, we cannot ignore those against whom we fought. G.K. Zhukov highly appreciated some German generals. Moreover, war, battle are two-sided phenomena, where two armies, two commanders oppose each other, and it is difficult to judge them as a whole by the actions of only one side.

At one time, A. Schlieffen noted that "the perfect embodiment of the battle of Cannes is only very rare in military history, because for him, on the one hand, Hannibal is necessary, on the other, Terrentius Varro, who both in their own way contribute to the achievement of a great goal. "And not only Rokossovsky and Eremenko, but also Paulus and Manstein were near Stalingrad. From what generalized criteria did they proceed when evaluating the merits of military commanders?When determining the significance of the activities of a commander, the scale and nature of the operations carried out, the strength of the opposing enemy, the degree of complexity of the military tasks performed.Of course, the main indicator of what a commander is worth is the result military activities, the extent to which military-political and strategic goals have been achieved, whether victory over the enemy has been achieved or whether everything turned into a defeat. But, oddly enough, sometimes they try to judge military leaders in isolation from all this.

Great importance was attached to the price of victory, to what acquisitions and losses it was achieved. The difficulties that various commanders had to face in preparing and conducting operations were also taken into account. So, General Percival, commanding 60,000 British troops in the fortress of Singapore at the beginning of 1942, surrendered the garrison to the enemy with the approach of Japanese troops and the capture of reservoirs by them practically without resistance. Later, the commanders of the countries allied to us had the opportunity to slowly, for years, prepare the Normandy or Pacific landing operations. They knew that there were other armies and tough commanders like Zhukov who would selflessly fight against fascism, and victory would still be won by them. But Zhukov, Konev, Rokossovsky, Govorov and other generals had no one to rely on, they did not face the question of whether or not to defend Moscow or Leningrad. They had no other choice. They really had to defend their homeland at any cost and fight to the death. Otherwise, the fate of mankind would have been completely different, because fascism set as its goal not only to exterminate the peoples of our country, but also to establish world domination. If all this is taken into account, then it is a great sin to put Konev in the 53rd place, and Zhukov in the 70th place, and not to mention our other generals, say, the same Rokossovsky, at all.

Meanwhile, the Soviet commanders were highly appreciated by both opponents and allies. So, B. Montgomery stated in 1945: "With the beginning of this big war the British, living on their islands, all the time saw how the wonderful military leaders of Russia grew up. And one of the first names that I learned was the name of Marshal Rokossovsky. If the radio had not announced him, I would still have seen his glorious path through the fireworks in Moscow. I made my own way through Africa and was in many battles. But I think: what I did is not like what Marshal Rokossovsky did."

Significant indicators of the commander's place in history are the originality and brilliance of the military art shown by him, the novelty of the methods of conducting military operations, the contribution made to the development military science and military art, creativity and innovation, the ability each time to deeply consider the specific conditions of the current situation and find unique methods of action that are unexpected for the enemy. Based on these criteria and considerations, a list of prominent military figures and commanders of the Second World War is presented to the attention of readers.

More than once the question was discussed: who can be considered a commander? There were times when any leader of the army, independently solving military tasks, was considered a commander. But, when the scope of wars increased significantly, and they began to be waged by multimillion-strong armies, consisting of a large number of formations and formations, commanders (naval commanders) began to be called military leaders who, during the war, command operational-strategic formations - fronts and fleets.

A.M. Vasilevsky wrote on this occasion: “I believe that the point of view of our historical literature, according to which the concept of “commander” is associated with military leaders of the operational-strategic level, is correct. It is also true that those military leaders who most clearly showed on battlefields their military art and talent, courage and will to win." And further: "The decisive measure of successful military leadership during the war years, of course, was the art of performing the tasks of strategic, front-line and army operations, inflicting serious defeats on the enemy."

A careful and comparative study of the art of military leadership of the military leaders of the Second World War, continuity in the development of military affairs have actual value for the training and education of military personnel in modern conditions.

The magazine "Military Historical Archive" (No. 9, 2004) published critical remarks on the previously published rating of outstanding commanders. In particular, a claim is made regarding the absence of I.D. Chernyakhovsky. But if you look closely, it is in all the lists we have published. The author of this critical article does not agree that A.M. Vasilevsky, and believes that it would be more correct to take the second place to K.K. Rokossovsky. Some members of the commission who participated in the compilation of the rating also expressed this opinion. But the majority voted for Vasilevsky, believing that he was more than K.K. Rokossovsky, participated in the planning and conduct of operations of a strategic scale. The mentioned article also expresses disagreement with the inclusion in the list of the most prominent chiefs of staff, believing that they do not belong to the generals. We remain on the point of view that the role of the chiefs of staffs of the fronts in the system of operational-strategic leadership of the armed struggle has increased dramatically, and they should take their rightful place in history, but nevertheless we present a separate list in the ranking of the chiefs of staffs.

The fast-paced time does not become calmer. In the gallery of those who have proven themselves with better side Russian military leaders appear the names of participants in the Afghan, Chechen wars. Despite their originality, there are real heroes of these events. There is no doubt that each of the people who performed or are currently performing the task of ensuring the security of Russia would completely agree with the thought of M.A. Sholokhov (and she was supported by G.K. Zhukov) that the most difficult part of the war lay on the shoulders of a soldier. Without him, without thousands of soldiers, no commander could do anything.

As the experience of the war showed, command of troops on an operational-strategic scale in war time- this is the hardest thing to do. It is within the power of only military leaders with rich combat experience, deep military knowledge, high intellectual, strong-willed and organizational qualities. Unfortunately, when training personnel, passing military service in peacetime, these demands are often in the background, for which one has to pay heavily.

Marshal of the Soviet Union I.S. Konev wrote about this: “The war gradually moved away from command posts those who one-sidedly, mechanically understood the responsibility for the task assigned, sometimes primitively carried out orders and therefore failed ... The situation of the war better than any personnel bodies corrects the mistakes that were before it allowed by both personnel agencies and the high command to be promoted to certain posts of certain people ... The fronts were commanded not by those who were intended for this in peacetime and who ended up in these posts in the first days of the war. During the course of the war, the qualities that made them capable of leading troops on the battlefield in the conditions of modern warfare were based on great and comprehensive knowledge, experience of long service in the army - consistently, step by step, without jumping over several steps. they knew the troops, they knew the nature of the soldier. Even in peacetime, they cleverly taught the troops what would be needed in the war. They themselves learned along with the troops and, I might add, learned from the troops. All the best, advanced that the then experience gave, they took from the troops and accumulated in themselves.

Commanders, commanders who won the war were different people, each had its strengths and weak sides, a unique military style, but what Ivan Stepanovich Konev told about, as in confession, after the war, was common to them, allowed them to gain a foothold in the field of military leadership in a tough competition during a severe war.

The military art of the military leaders who won the Second World War most vividly reflected the achievements of Soviet military art in the greatest battle in history with the strongest, treacherous and cruel enemy. Therefore, their military heritage, with creative and critical use, retains its relevance in modern conditions.

LEADERS OF STATES (SUPREME COMMANDERS OF THE ARMED FORCES)

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich (1878-1953) - Generalissimo of the Soviet Union. During the Great Patriotic War - Chairman of the State Defense Committee, Chairman of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, one of the active organizers and leaders anti-Hitler coalition, Supreme Commander of the Soviet Armed Forces. As the head of the Soviet state, he made a decisive contribution to the defeat of fascist Germany and militaristic Japan and the achievement of victory in World War II.

Roosevelt Franklin Delano (1882-1945) - US President in 1933-1945, Supreme Commander of the US Armed Forces, one of the most active organizers and leaders of the anti-Hitler coalition. He made a great contribution to the defeat of fascist Germany and militaristic Japan and the achievement of victory in World War II.

Churchill Winston Leonard Spencer (1874-1965) - chairman of the military cabinet of Great Britain during the Second World War, a consistent opponent of fascism, one of the organizers and leaders of the anti-Hitler coalition. He made a great contribution to achieving victory over Nazi Germany.

Mao Zedong (1893-1976) - during the Second World War, the actual head of the Military Council of the CPC Central Committee, one of the leaders of the anti-Japanese liberation movement of the Chinese people, was the main ideologist of the people's, guerrilla war. He made a great contribution to the defeat of militaristic Japan. During World War II, China actually had two public education: the central government led by Chiang Kai-shek and the revolutionary government in the liberated areas. The most consistent struggle against the Japanese interventionists was waged by the national liberation forces led by Mao Zedong.

Tito (Broz Tito) Josip (1892-1980) - Marshal of Yugoslavia, Supreme Commander of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia in 1941-1945, which diverted up to 20 divisions of the Nazi troops. He made a significant contribution to the victory over fascism. Awarded with the Soviet order "Victory".

Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970) - general, head of the Free France organization (Fighting France since 1942). Organizer and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the patriotic movement in France, who participated in the hostilities in the Middle East and Africa, in Italy and during the liberation of France. Since June 1944 - Chairman of the Provisional Government of the French Republic.

OUTSTANDING COMMANDERS (NAVEL COMMANDERS) AND MILITARY LEADERS

I. SOVIET GENERALS AND COMMANDERS

1. Generals and military leaders of the strategic and operational-strategic level

Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich (1896-1974) - Marshal of the Soviet Union, Deputy Supreme Commander of the USSR Armed Forces, member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. He occupied one of the leading positions in the planning of operations and strategic leadership of the Armed Forces. He commanded the troops of the Reserve, Leningrad, Western, 1st Ukrainian, 1st Belorussian fronts, coordinated the actions of a number of fronts, made a great contribution to achieving victory in the battle of Moscow, in the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, in the Belorussian, Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations . Accepted the surrender of the Armed Forces of Nazi Germany. Twice awarded the Order of Victory. The main distinguishing features of his military leadership style are the unique ability to penetrate deeply into the essence of the brewing situation and each time to creatively find solutions and methods of action that best correspond to the specific conditions that have developed; high organizational qualities; huge, all-destroying will in carrying out decisions taken in life and accomplishment of tasks.

Vasilevsky Alexander Mikhailovich (1895-1977) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Boss General Staff in 1942-1945, a member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. Together with G.K. Zhukov played a leading role in planning operations and strategic leadership of the Armed Forces. Coordinated the actions of a number of fronts in strategic operations, in 1945 - commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front and commander in chief Soviet troops on Far East. Under his leadership, the Japanese Kwantung Army was defeated. Twice awarded the Order of Victory. Distinctive qualities - a deep, penetrating mind, developed strategic thinking, the ability to ensure that subordinates themselves find rational solutions when performing tasks.

Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich (1896-1968) - Marshal of the Soviet Union, Marshal of Poland. He commanded the Bryansk, Don, Central, Belorussian, 1st and 2nd Belorussian fronts, won major victories and played a big role in the defeat of the Nazi troops near Stalingrad, in Battle of Kursk, Belarusian and East Prussian operations. Awarded the Order of Victory. His military leadership in the preparation and conduct of operations was distinguished by unique elegance and efficiency, when success was ensured by careful thought and clear organization of troop actions without excessive pressure and strain.

Konev Ivan Stepanovich (1897-1973) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. He commanded the troops of the Western, Kalinin, Northwestern, Steppe, 2nd and 1st Ukrainian fronts. He distinguished himself and played an important role in achieving victory in the Battle of Smolensk, the Battle of Moscow, the Battle of Kursk, the Korsun-Shevchenko, Vistula-Oder, Berlin, and Prague operations. Awarded the Order of Victory. He possessed an extremely well-developed intuition, skillfully combined the power of artillery with speed, onslaught and suddenness of impact.

Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich (1898-1967) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Since October 1942 - Deputy Commander of the Voronezh Front, Commander of the 2nd Guards Army, Southern, Southwestern, 3rd and 2nd Ukrainian, Transbaikal Fronts. He played an important role in the defeat of the Manstein group near Stalingrad, in the liberation of Ukraine, in achieving victory in the Iasi-Kishinev, Budapest and Manchurian strategic operations. Awarded the Order of Victory. He was distinguished by the ability to create conditions for the maneuver of troops and conduct highly maneuverable fighting.

Govorov Leonid Alexandrovich (1897-1955) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From June 1942 he commanded the troops of the Leningrad Front, in February - March 1945 he simultaneously coordinated the actions of the 2nd and 3rd Baltic Fronts. He played a big role in the defense of Leningrad and the breakthrough of its blockade. Awarded the Order of Victory. A generally recognized master of the combat use of artillery, he was distinguished by the highest organization.

Antonov Alexey Innokentevich (1896-1962) - army general. Since 1942 - First Deputy Chief, Chief (since February 1945) of the General Staff, member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. Played an important role in planning operations and strategic leadership of the Armed Forces. Awarded the Order of Victory.

Timoshenko Semyon Konstantinovich (1895-1970) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. To the Great Patriotic war- People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, member of the Supreme Command Headquarters, commander-in-chief of the Western, South-Western directions, from July 1942 he commanded the Stalingrad and North-Western fronts. Since 1943 - the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the fronts. His difference is his closeness to the troops, a particularly sensitive understanding of military life. Awarded the Order of Victory.

Tolbukhin Fedor Ivanovich (1894-1949) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. At the beginning of the war - chief of staff of the district (front). Since 1942 - Deputy Commander of the Stalingrad Military District, Commander of the 57th and 68th Armies, the Southern, 4th and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts. One of the active participants in the Battle of Stalingrad, played an important role in the operations to liberate Ukraine, Bulgaria and other Balkan countries. Its distinguishing feature is a special ability to organize operational camouflage and achieve surprise strikes. Awarded the Order of Victory.

Meretskov Kirill Afanasyevich (1897-1968) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Since the beginning of the war - the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the Volkhov and Karelian fronts, commanded the 7th and 4th armies. From December 1941 - commander of the Volkhov, Karelian and 1st Far Eastern fronts. He especially distinguished himself during the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army in 1945. He was awarded the Order of Victory. He was distinguished by thoroughness and foresight.

Shaposhnikov Boris Mikhailovich (1882-1945) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, Chief of the General Staff in the most difficult period of defensive operations in 1941. He made an important contribution to the organization of the defense of Moscow and the transition of the Red Army to the counteroffensive. From May 1942 - Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, head of the Military Academy of the General Staff. main feature- analytical mind and deep theoretical knowledge, composure and endurance in the most difficult situations.

Chernyakhovsky Ivan Danilovich (1906-1945) - army general. He commanded a tank corps, the 60th Army, from April 1944 - the 3rd Belorussian Front. He showed a bright talent and especially distinguished himself during the Belarusian and East Prussian operations. Distinguished by the ability to conduct highly maneuverable combat operations. Mortally wounded in February 1945.

Vatutin Nikolai Fedorovich (1901-1944) - army general. Since June 1941 - Chief of Staff of the North-Western Front, First Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Commander of the Voronezh, South-Western and 1st Ukrainian Fronts. He showed the highest military art in the Battle of Kursk, when crossing the river. Dnieper and the liberation of Kyiv, in the Korsun-Shevchenko operation. Mortally wounded in battle in February 1944. His distinguishing feature is the careful planning of operations and the ability to organize the crossing of water barriers.

Bagramyan Ivan Khristoforovich (1897-1982) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Chief of Staff of the Southwestern Front, then at the same time the headquarters of the troops of the Southwestern direction, commander of the 16th (11th Guards) Army. From 1943 he commanded the troops of the 1st Baltic and 3rd Belorussian fronts. He showed military leadership talent and especially distinguished himself during the Belarusian and East Prussian operations. He stood out for his ability to prudently and flexibly respond to imminent changes in the situation, he strove not to bring the development of events to the point where it was necessary to drastically change the decisions made.

Eremenko Andrei Ivanovich (1892-1970) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. He commanded the Bryansk Front, the 4th Shock Army, the South-Eastern, Stalingrad, Southern, Kalinin, 1st Baltic Fronts, the Separate Primorsky Army, the 2nd Baltic and 4th Ukrainian Fronts. He showed great courage and distinguished himself in Battle of Stalingrad. He stood out among other commanders with special tenacity in keeping the actions of his subordinates within the framework of the decisions made, strict exactingness and powerful organizational acumen in putting them into practice.

Petrov Ivan Efimovich (1896-1958) - army general. Since May 1943 - Commander of the North Caucasian Front, 33rd Army, 2nd Belorussian and 4th Ukrainian Fronts, Chief of Staff of the 1st Ukrainian Front. He showed great courage and military talent in the defense of Odessa, Sevastopol and North Caucasus, had the ability to solve challenging tasks limited forces and resources.

Sokolovsky Vasily Danilovich (1897-1968) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Chief of Staff of the Western Front, Western Direction, in 1943-1944. - Commander of the Western Front, from April 1944 - Chief of Staff of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Deputy Commander of the 1st Belorussian Front. He showed the most skillful actions during the preparation and conduct of the Smolensk operation of 1943.

Popov Markian Mikhailovich (1902-1969) - army general. Commander of the Northern and Leningrad Fronts, 61st, 40th and 5th Shock Armies, Deputy Commander of the Stalingrad and Southwestern Fronts, Commander of the Reserve Front, the troops of the Steppe Military District, the Bryansk, Baltic and 2nd Baltic Fronts, since April 1944 - chief of staff of the Leningrad, 2nd Baltic fronts. He showed the most skillful actions during the preparation and conduct of the Oryol operation in 1943.

Purkaev Maxim Alekseevich (1894-1953) - army general. Since June 1941 - chief of staff of the Southwestern Front, commander of the 60th (3rd shock) army, Kalinin, Far Eastern and 2nd Far Eastern fronts. He most clearly showed his leadership qualities during the Manchurian strategic operation in 1945.

Zakharov Georgy Fedorovich (1897-1957) - army general. From August 1941 - Chief of Staff, Commander of the Bryansk Front, Deputy Commander Western Front, chief of staff of the North Caucasian direction, then the North Caucasian and South-Eastern fronts, deputy commander of the Stalingrad and Southern fronts, in 1943-1945. - Commander of the 51st and 2nd Guards Armies, 2nd Belorussian Front, 4th Guards Army, Deputy Commander of the 4th Ukrainian Front.

2. Naval commanders of the strategic and operational-strategic level

Kuznetsov Nikolai Gerasimovich (1902-1974) - Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union. People's Commissar of the Navy in 1939-1946, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. He ensured the organized entry of the fleet forces into the war. Skillfully organized the interaction of the forces of the Navy with the troops in the coastal areas, the fight against maritime forces enemy. He organized the successful conduct of landing operations in the Crimea and the North Caucasus.

Isakov Ivan Stepanovich (1894-1967) - Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union. In 1938-1946. - Deputy and First Deputy People's Commissar of the Navy, simultaneously in 1941-1943. Chief of the Main Staff of the Navy. He ensured the successful management of the forces of the fleets during the war.

Tributs Vladimir Filippovich (1900-1977) - admiral. Commander of the Baltic Fleet in 1939-1947 He showed courage and skillful actions during the relocation of the BF forces from Tallinn to Kronstadt and during the defense of Leningrad.

Golovko Arseny Grigorievich (1906-1962) - Admiral. In 1940-1946. - Commander of the Northern Fleet. Provided (together with the Karelian Front) a reliable cover for the northern flank of the Soviet Armed Forces and sea lanes for deliveries by the Allies.

Oktyabrsky (Ivanov) Philip Sergeevich (1899-1969) - Admiral. Commanding Black Sea Fleet from 1939 to June 1943 and from March 1944. From June 1943 to March 1944 - commander of the Amur military flotilla. He ensured the organized entry into the war of the Black Sea Fleet and successful operations during the war.

Zhavoronkov Semyon Fedorovich (1899-1967) - Air Marshal. During the war years, he was commander of the Navy Aviation. He ensured the survivability of naval aviation at the beginning of the war, the build-up of its efforts and skillful combat use in the subsequent period.

3. Commanders of the types of the Armed Forces, military branches, deputies of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, heads of the main departments of the People's Commissariat of Defense of the USSR

Voronov Nikolai Nikolaevich (1899-1968) - Chief Marshal of Artillery. During the war years, he was the head of the Main Air Defense Directorate of the country, the head of artillery of the Soviet Army, and the deputy people's commissar of defense of the USSR. Since 1943 - commander of the artillery of the Soviet Army, representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the fronts during the Stalingrad and a number of other operations. He developed the most advanced theory and practice of the combat use of artillery for his time, incl. artillery offensive, for the first time in history created a reserve of the Supreme High Command, which made it possible to maximize the use of artillery (40% of artillery was constantly at war with the enemy, 60% in the Soviet army).

Novikov Alexander Alexandrovich (1900-1976) - Air Chief Marshal. Commander of the Air Force of the Northern and Leningrad Fronts, Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR for Aviation, Commander of the Air Force of the Soviet Army. Skillfully led the combat use of the Air Force during the war years.

Shcherbakov Alexander Sergeevich (1901-1945) - Colonel General. Secretary of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, First Secretary of the Moscow City Party Committee, from June 1942 - Head of the Main Political Directorate of the Soviet Army, Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, head of the Soviet Information Bureau. He did a lot of work on the political education of the personnel, maintaining a high moral and psychological mood of the troops.

Khrulev Andrey Vasilievich (1892-1962) - army general. Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR (until May 1943) - Head of the Main Directorate of Logistics of the Soviet Army, Head of Logistics of the Soviet Army. He ensured the rearrangement of the Logistics of the Armed Forces, taking into account the requirements of wartime. In exclusively difficult conditions organized basically uninterrupted material support of the Armed Forces.

Fedorenko Yakov Nikolaevich (1896-1947) - marshal of the armored forces. In 1940-1942. - Head of the Main Armored Directorate, Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. From December 1942 - commander of the armored and mechanized troops of the Soviet Army, representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the fronts during the Moscow, Stalingrad and Kursk battles and other operations. He made a significant contribution to the development and improvement of armored and mechanized troops, the methods of their combat use, to the training of personnel, the repair and restoration of military equipment and the replenishment of troops with it.

Gromadin Mikhail Stepanovich (1899-1962) - Colonel General. During the war years - Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR for Air Defense and Commander of the Air Defense Forces of the country, since 1943 - Commander of the Western, Northern and Central Air Defense Fronts, He played a particularly important role in organizing the air defense of Moscow in 1941.

Peresypkin Ivan Terentyevich (1904-1978) - Marshal of the Signal Corps. Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR (until 1944) - Head of the Main Directorate of Communications of the Soviet Army. He did a great job of organizing communications and ensuring uninterrupted command and control of troops.

Kovalev Ivan Vladimirovich (1901-1993) - lieutenant general. Head of the Department of Military Communications of the Soviet Army, at the same time (since 1944) People's Commissar of Railways of the USSR. In the most difficult conditions of the war, he ensured the smooth functioning of railways, supplying the fronts with everything necessary and regrouping troops.

Yakovlev Nikolai Dmitrievich (1898-1972) - Marshal of Artillery. Head of the Main Artillery Directorate of the Soviet Army. He made a great contribution to the modernization and further development artillery equipment, the supply of fronts with artillery systems and ammunition.

Vorobyov Mikhail Petrovich (1896-1957) - Marshal of the Engineering Troops. Since 1942 - the head of the engineering troops of the Soviet Army. He made a great contribution to the development of military engineering during the war, to the creation of defensive lines, engineering support for forcing water barriers and the offensive of Soviet troops.

4. Staff commanders of the strategic and operational-strategic level

Zakharov Matvey Vasilievich (1898-1972) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. During the war years - Chief of Staff of the 9th Army, High Command Northwest Direction, Kalinin, Reserve, Steppe, 2nd Ukrainian and Transbaikal fronts. He was distinguished by the ability to clearly plan operations and high efficiency in the work to ensure command and control.

Shtemenko Sergey Matveyevich (1907-1976) - army general. During the war, in the Operational Directorate of the General Staff: Deputy Chief, Head of Direction, First Deputy Chief, from May 1943 - Head of Directorate. He showed the high art of staff work in collecting and summarizing data on the operational and strategic situation, bringing the tasks set by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command to the troops, planning operations and ensuring command and control of the Armed Forces.

Ivanov Semyon Pavlovich (1907-1993) - army general. Since 1942 - chief of staff of the Southwestern, Voronezh, 1st Ukrainian, Transcaucasian and 3rd Ukrainian fronts, since June 1945 - chief of staff of the High Command of the Soviet troops in the Far East. He was distinguished by special thoroughness in the organization of operational work, the ability to foresee the development of events, and a great initiative in command and control.

Malinin Mikhail Sergeevich (1899-1960) - army general. Since 1942 - chief of staff of the Bryansk, Don, Central, Belorussian and 1st Belorussian fronts. The main feature of his work is the thoroughness of planning operations, a creative approach to organizing command and control, the desire not to wait for instructions from the commander, but to proactively make the necessary rational proposals.

Kurasov Vladimir Vasilievich (1897-1973) - army general. During the war years - chief of staff, commander of the 4th shock army, chief of staff of the Kalinin, 1st Baltic fronts, Zemland group of troops. paid Special attention clarity and thoughtfulness of the planning of operations, the main efforts of the headquarters were directed to organizational work in the troops to ensure the fulfillment of the assigned tasks.

Pokrovsky Alexander Petrovich (1898-1979) - Colonel General. During the war - chief of staff of the reserve army group, the High Command of the South-Western Direction, 60th, 33rd armies. From February 1943 - Chief of Staff of the Western (3rd Belorussian) Front. paid great attention planning operations, organizing the work of the headquarters itself, but underestimated the organizational work in the troops.

Biryuzov Sergei Semenovich (1904-1964) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. Since 1943 - chief of staff of the Southern (4th Ukrainian) and 3rd Ukrainian fronts, commander of the 37th army. An experienced staff worker with pronounced commanding inclinations, he had great organizational skills.

Sandalov Leonid Mikhailovich (1900-1987) - Colonel General. Chief of Staff of the 4th Army, Central and Bryansk Fronts, 20th Army, 2nd Baltic and 4th Ukrainian Fronts. He was distinguished by a high staff culture and the ability to organize the coordinated work of the headquarters with the military branches.

Vorozheikin Grigory Alekseevich (1895-1974) - Air Marshal. During the war years - Commander of the Air Force of the Central Front, Chief of Staff of the Red Army Air Force, First Deputy Commander of the Red Army Air Force. Along with the organization of the precise work of the Air Force headquarters, he paid much attention to interaction with the headquarters of the fronts and fleets.

5. Commanders of combined arms armies

Chuikov Vasily Ivanovich (1900-1982) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From September 1942 - Commander of the 62nd (8th Guards) Army. Particularly distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad.

Batov Pavel Ivanovich (1897-1985) - army general. Commander of the 51st, 3rd armies, assistant commander of the Bryansk Front, commander of the 65th army. One of the most experienced army commanders, he was distinguished by a special ability to substantively organize interaction and prepare troops for an operation.

Beloborodov Afanasy Pavlantievich (1903-1990) - army general. With the beginning of the war - the commander of a division, a rifle corps. Since 1944 - commander of the 43rd, in August - September 1945 - the 1st Red Banner Army. One of the masters of organizing and implementing interaction between infantry, tanks and artillery.

Grechko Andrei Antonovich (1903-1976) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From April 1942 - commander of the 12th, 47th, 18th, 56th armies, deputy commander of the Voronezh (1st Ukrainian) front, commander of the 1st Guards Army. One of the most experienced army commanders, he was distinguished by his ability to create conditions for the maneuver of troops, boldly and widely maneuvered forces and means during operations.

Krylov Nikolai Ivanovich (1903-1972) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From July 1943 he commanded the 21st and 5th armies. He had unique experience in defending the besieged major cities, being the chief of staff of the defense of Odessa, Sevastopol and Stalingrad. Distinguished by the ability to break through heavily fortified enemy lines. In view of this, the 5th Army, as a rule, was used to solve precisely such tasks.

Moskalenko Kirill Semenovich (1902-1985) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From 1942 he commanded the 38th, 1st Tank, 1st Guards and 40th armies. He was distinguished by his great ability to organize anti-tank defense and the combat use of artillery.

Pukhov Nikolai Pavlovich (1895-1958) - Colonel General. In 1942-1945. commanded the 13th Army. He loved infantry, knew how to take care of it, possessed a high art of combat use of infantry in cooperation with other branches of the military. It was on the basis of the experience of the actions of his army that K. Simonov wrote the famous story "Infantry".

Chistyakov Ivan Mikhailovich (1900-1979) - Colonel General. In 1942-1945. commanded the 21st (6th Guards) and 25th armies. He was distinguished by his special thoroughness in the preparation of hostilities and the skillful buildup of forces during the offensive.

Gorbatov Alexander Vasilyevich (1891-1973) - army general. From June 1943 - Commander of the 3rd Army. Possessed high culture in communication with subordinates and command and control of troops. He achieved results not by pressing on them, but by creating conditions for their successful actions by effective application artillery, aviation and other fire weapons.

Kuznetsov Vasily Ivanovich (1894-1964) - Colonel General. During the war years he commanded the 3rd, 21st, 58th, 1st shock, 63rd, 1st Guards armies, deputy commander of the 1st Baltic Front, since 1945 - commander of the 3rd shock army. One of the greatest masters of the preparation and conduct of combined arms combat and operations.

Korovnikov Ivan Terentyevich (1902-1976) - Colonel General. From 1942 to 1945 - Commander of the 59th Army. In the Novgorod-Luga and other operations, he showed great skill in maneuvering troops in difficult conditions of wooded and swampy terrain.

Trofimenko Sergey Georgievich (1899-1953) - Colonel General. From the beginning of the war, he commanded the Medvezhyegorsk operational group of troops of the Karelian Front, from March 1942 - the 32nd, 7th, 27th armies. He showed the ability to successfully solve complex problems in difficult terrain with relatively limited forces.

Khozin Mikhail Semenovich (1896-1979) - Colonel General. During the war he commanded the 54th Army of the Leningrad Front, the 33rd and 20th armies, in 1943-1944. - a special group of troops of the North-Western Front, then he was deputy commander of the Western Front.

Efremov Mikhail Grigorievich (1897-1942) - lieutenant general. Commander of the 21st and 10th Armies, in August 1941 - Central Front, Deputy Commander of the Bryansk Front, Commander of the 33rd Army. Having been surrounded during the Vyazemsky operation, he died heroically in battle in April 1942.

Luchinsky Alexander Alexandrovich (1900-1990) - army general. Since 1944 - commander of the 28th and 36th armies. He especially distinguished himself in the Belorussian and Manchurian operations.

Ludnikov Ivan Ilyich (1902-1976) - Colonel General. During the war he commanded a rifle division, a corps, in 1942 he was one of the heroic defenders of Stalingrad. Since May 1944 - commander of the 39th Army, which participated in the Belarusian and Manchurian operations.

Boldin Ivan Vasilyevich (1892-1965) - Colonel General. From the beginning of the war he commanded an operational group, then the 50th Army, at the end of the war - deputy commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front.

Kurochkin Pavel Alekseevich (1900-1989) - army general. During the war years - commander of the 20th, 43rd, 11th and 34th armies, commander and deputy commander of the North-Western Front, deputy commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, from February 1944 - commander of the 2nd Belorussian Front, 60th Army (since April 1944). He had a well-established methodology for command and control of troops.

Galitsky Kuzma Nikitovich (1897-1973) - army general. Since 1942 - commander of the 3rd shock and 11th guards armies. He was distinguished by great perseverance in the fulfillment of the assigned tasks.

Zhadov Alexey Semenovich (1901-1977) - army general. From 1942 he commanded the 66th (5th Guards) Army. He stood out among the commanders for his ability to conduct highly maneuverable combat operations.

Glagolev Vasily Vasilyevich (1896-1947) - Colonel General. He commanded the 9th, 46th, 31st, in 1945 - the 9th Guards Armies. He distinguished himself in the Battle of Kursk, the Battle of the Caucasus, during the crossing of the Dnieper, the liberation of Austria and Czechoslovakia.

Tsvetaev Vyacheslav Dmitrievich (1893-1950) - Colonel General. Commander of the 10th reserve (since 1942 - 5th shock) army, deputy commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, commander of the 6th and 33rd armies. One of the major connoisseurs and masters of combined arms combat.

Kolpakchi Vladimir Yakovlevich (1899-1961) - army general. He commanded the 18th, 62nd, 30th, 63rd, 69th armies. He acted most successfully in the Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations.

Pliev Issa Alexandrovich (1903-1979) - army general. During the war years - commander of the guards cavalry divisions, corps, commander of cavalry mechanized groups. He especially distinguished himself by bold and daring actions in the Manchurian strategic operation.

Fedyuninsky Ivan Ivanovich (1900-1977) - army general. During the war years - commander of the troops of the 32nd and 42nd armies, the Leningrad Front, the 54th and 5th armies, deputy commander of the Volkhov and Bryansk fronts, commander of the troops of the 11th and 2nd shock armies. He was distinguished by his steadfastness in the defense and decisive, skillful actions in breaking through the defense.

Belov Pavel Alekseevich (1897-1962) - Colonel General. Commanded the 61st Army. He distinguished himself by decisive maneuvering actions during the Belorussian, Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations.

Shumilov Mikhail Stepanovich (1895-1975) - Colonel General. From August 1942 until the end of the war, he commanded the 64th Army (from 1943 - the 7th Guards), which, together with the 62nd Army, heroically defended Stalingrad.

Berzarin Nikolai Erastovich (1904-1945) - Colonel General. Commander of the 27th, 34th armies, deputy commander of the 61st, 20th armies, commander of the 39th and 5th shock armies. He especially distinguished himself by skillful and decisive actions in the Berlin operation.

Sharokhin Mikhail Nikolaevich (1898-1974) - Colonel General. Since the beginning of the war - Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Chief of Staff of the 3rd shock army, the North-Western and Volkhov fronts. From 1943 he commanded the 37th and 57th armies.

Galanin Ivan Vasilyevich (1899-1958) - lieutenant general. During the war he commanded the 12th, 59th, 24th, 70th, 53rd, 4th Guards armies. He was distinguished by the ability to work smoothly, in the most difficult conditions of the situation, patiently and diligently fulfill his duties in command and control of troops.

Grishin Ivan Tikhonovich (1901-1951) - Colonel General. Division commander, chief of staff of the army, since 1943 - commander of the 49th army. Distinguished by skillful actions in the East Pomeranian operation.

Kazakov Mikhail Ilyich (1901-1979) - army general. During the war - chief of staff of the 53rd Separate Army, Bryansk and Voronezh fronts, from February 1943 - commander of the 69th army, deputy front commander, in 1944-1945. - Commander of the 10th Guards Army.

Shafranov Petr Grigorievich (1901-1972) - Colonel General. Commander of a division, corps, since 1944 - commander of the 5th and 31st armies. He stood out for his ability to find time and opportunity in a combat situation for systematic exercises and exercises with the headquarters, subordinate commanders and troops.

6. Commanders of tank armies

Katukov Mikhail Efimovich (1900-1976) - marshal of the armored forces. One of the founders of the Tank Guard was the commander of the 1st Guards Tank Brigade, 1st Guards Tank Corps. Since 1943 - Commander of the 1st Tank Army (since 1944 - Guards). One of the prominent masters of driving tank troops.

Bogdanov Semyon Ilyich (1894-1960) - Marshal of the armored forces. Since 1943 he commanded the 2nd (since 1944 - Guards) tank army. Distinguished by bold decisive actions in the operational depth.

Rybalko Pavel Semenovich (1894-1948) - marshal of the armored forces. From July 1942 he commanded the 5th, 3rd and 3rd Guards Tank Armies. He was distinguished by calmness, well-thought-out and prepared actions.

Lelyushenko Dmitry Danilovich (1901-1987) - army general. From October 1941 he commanded the 5th, 30th, 1st, 3rd Guards, 4th Tank (since 1945 - Guards) armies. The most experienced commander, in all types of hostilities, was distinguished by prudence and thoroughness of the decisions made.

Rotmistrov Pavel Alekseevich (1901-1982) - chief marshal of the armored forces. He commanded a tank brigade, a corps, distinguished himself in the Stalingrad operation. Since 1943, he commanded the 5th Guards Tank Army, successfully operated in the Battle of Kursk, showed himself weaker in the Belarusian operation. Since 1944 - Deputy Commander of the armored and mechanized troops of the Soviet Army.

Kravchenko Andrei Grigoryevich (1899-1963) - Colonel General of the Tank Forces. Since 1944 - commander of the 6th Guards Tank Army. He especially distinguished himself and showed an example of highly maneuverable, swift actions during the Manchurian strategic operation.

7. Commanders of the air armies

Rudenko Sergei Ignatievich (1904-1990) - Marshal of Aviation, commander of the 16th Air Army since 1942. Along with the skillful command of the air army, he paid great attention to training combined arms commanders in the combat use of aviation.

Krasovsky Stepan Akimovich (1897-1983) - Air Marshal. During the war years - the commander of the Air Force of the 56th Army, the Bryansk and South-Western Fronts, the 2nd and 17th Air Armies. He was distinguished by the ability to especially thoughtfully and carefully organize the interaction between the branches of aviation and the ground forces.

Vershinin Konstantin Andreevich (1900-1973) - Air Chief Marshal. During the war - Commander of the Air Force of the Southern, Transcaucasian Fronts and the 4th Air Army. Along with effective action in support of the troops of the front, he paid special attention to combating enemy aircraft and gaining air supremacy.

Sudets Vladimir Alexandrovich (1904-1981) - Air Marshal. Commander of the Air Force of the 51st Army, Air Force of the Military District, since March 1943 - of the 17th Air Army. He was distinguished by the ability to carry out active preemptive actions against enemy aircraft by massive use of his aircraft.

Golovanov Alexander Evgenievich (1904-1975) - Air Chief Marshal. From 1942 he commanded long-range aviation, from 1944 - the 18th air army. He did a lot for the creation and development of long-range bomber aviation, but artificially isolated it from the actions of the Air Force.

Khryukin Timofey Timofeevich (1910-1953) - Colonel-General of Aviation. He commanded the Air Force of the Karelian, Southwestern fronts, the 8th and 1st air armies.

8. Artillery commanders

Kazakov Vasily Ivanovich (1898-1968) - Marshal of Artillery. During the war he was the chief of artillery of the 16th Army. Bryansk, Donskoy, commander of artillery of the Central, Belorussian and 1st Belorussian fronts. One of the masters of the highest class in organizing an artillery offensive.

Nedelin Mitrofan Ivanovich (1902-1960) - Chief Marshal of Artillery. During the war - chief of artillery of the 37th and 56th armies, commander of the 5th artillery corps, commander of the artillery of the Southwestern and 3rd Ukrainian fronts. He skillfully maneuvered artillery and achieved its massive use.

Odintsov Georgy Fedotovich (1900-1972) - Marshal of Artillery. Since the beginning of the war - chief of staff and chief of artillery of the army. From May 1942 - commander of the artillery of the Leningrad Front. One of the largest specialists in organizing the fight against enemy artillery.

II. GENERAL LEADERS AND LEADERS OF THE ALLIED ARMIES

USA

Eisenhower Dwight David (1890-1969) - American statesman and military figure, army general. Commanding US troops in Europe since 1942, supreme commander Allied Expeditionary Force in Western Europe in 1943-1945

MacArthur Douglas (1880-1964) - army general. Commander of the US Armed Forces in the Far East in 1941-1942, since 1942 - commander of the allied forces in the southwestern part Pacific Ocean. Supervised a number of large landing operations.

Marshall George Catlett (1880-1959) - army general. Chief of Staff of the US Army in 1939-1945, one of the main authors of the military-strategic plans of the US and Great Britain in World War II.

Lehi William (1875-1959) - admiral of the fleet. Chairman of the Committee of Chiefs of Staff, at the same time - Chief of Staff under the Supreme Commander of the US Armed Forces in 1942-1945.

Halsey William (1882-1959) - admiral of the fleet. He commanded the 3rd Fleet, led the American forces in the battles for the Solomon Islands in 1943.

Patton George Smith, Jr. (1885-1945) - general. Since 1942, he commanded an operational group of troops in North Africa, in 1944-1945. - 7th and 3rd American armies in Europe, skillfully used tank troops.

Bradley Omar Nelson (1893-1981) - army general. Commander of the 12th Army Group of the Allied Forces in Europe in 1942-1945. Distinguished by swift and decisive action.

King Ernest (1878-1956) - admiral of the fleet. Commander-in-Chief of the US Navy, Chief of Naval Operations in 1942-1945.

Nimitz Chester (1885-1966) - admiral. Commander of the US Armed Forces in the Central Pacific in 1942-1945.

Arnold Henry (1886-1950) - army general. In 1942-1945. - Chief of Staff of the United States Army Air Forces.

Clark Mark (1896-1984) - general. Commander of the 5th American Army in Italy in 1943-1945. He became famous for the landing operation in the Salerno region (Operation Avalanche).

Spaats Karl (1891-1974) - general. Commander of the US Strategic Air Forces in Europe. He led strategic aviation operations during the air attack on Germany.

Limay Curtis (1906-1974) - general. Commander of the 20th American Army in the Far East. Developed tactics for the destruction of cities in Japan.

Stillwell Joseph (1883-1946) - general. Deputy Supreme Commander of the United States Armed Forces South-East Asia. He commanded US troops in the Sino-Burmese-Indonesian theater of operations from 1942-1944.

Great Britain

Montgomery Bernard Low (1887-1976) - Field Marshal. From July 1942 - Commander of the 8th British Army in Africa. During the Normandy operation he commanded an army group. In 1945 - Commander-in-Chief of the British occupation forces in Germany. He was distinguished by great courage and independence of action.

Brooke Alan Francis (1883-1963) - Field Marshal. He commanded the British army corps in France, in 1940-1941. metropolitan troops. In 1941-1946. - Chief of the Imperial General Staff.

Alexander Harold (1891-1969) - Field Marshal. In 1941-1942. commander of the British troops in Burma. In 1943, he commanded the 18th Army Group in Tunisia and the 15th Allied Army Group, which landed on about. Sicily and Italy. From December 1944 - Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations.

Andrew Cunningham (1883-1963) - admiral. Commander of the British Fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean in 1940-1941.

Harris Arthur Travers (1892-1984) - Air Marshal. Commander of the bomber aviation, which carried out the "air attack" on Germany in 1942-1945.

Tedder Arthur (1890-1967) - Air Chief Marshal. Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Armed Forces in Europe D. Eisenhower for aviation during the "second front" in Western Europe in 1944-1945.

Wavell Archibald (1883-1950) - Field Marshal. Commander of the British troops East Africa in 1940-1941 In 1942-1945. - Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in Southeast Asia.

Auchinleck Claude (1884-1947) - Field Marshal. Commander of the British troops in Africa in 1941-1942. He prepared the El Alamein operation, which was carried out by B. Montgomery, who replaced him.

Mountbatten Louis (1900-1979) - English admiral of the fleet. Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in Southeast Asia in 1943-1946.

France

De Tassigny Jean de Latre (1889-1952) - Marshal of France. From September 1943 - Commander-in-Chief of the "Fighting France", from June 1944 - Commander of the 1st French Army.

Juin Alphonse (1888-1967) - Marshal of France. Since 1942 - commander of the "Fighting France" in Tunisia. In 1944-1945. - commander of the French expeditionary force in Italy.

China

Zhu De (1886-1976) - Marshal of the People's Republic of China. During the Chinese People's National Liberation War of 1937-1945. commanded the 8th army, operating in the Border (Special) region and the liberated regions of North China. Since 1945 - Commander-in-Chief of the People's Liberation Army of China.

Peng Dehuai (1898-1974) - Marshal of the People's Republic of China. In 1937-1945. - Deputy Commander of the 8th Army of the PLA.

Chen Yi is the commander of the New 4th Army of the PLA, operating in the liberated areas of Central China.

Yang Jingyu - Commander of the 1st Corps of the United Army, which operated against the Japanese invaders in Northeast China.

Liu Bochen is the commander of the PLA formation.

Poland

Zhymersky Michal (pseudonym - Role) (1890-1989) - Marshal of Poland. During the Nazi occupation of Poland, he participated in the resistance movement. From January 1944 - Commander-in-Chief of the People's Army, from July 1944 - the Polish Army. Awarded with the Soviet order "Victory".

Berling Sigmund (1896-1980) - Armor General of the Polish Army. In 1943, he was the organizer on the territory of the USSR of the 1st Polish Infantry Division named after. T. Kosciuszko, in 1944 - commander of the 1st Army of the Polish Army, which participated in battles with the Nazi army.

Poplavsky Stanislav Gilyarovich (1902-1973) - army general (in the Soviet Armed Forces). During the war years in the Soviet army - commander of a regiment, division, corps. Since 1944 in the Polish Army - commander of the 2nd and 1st armies. He was distinguished by great insight, the ability to foresee the development of the situation and impose the will of the enemy.

Swierczewski Karol (1897-1947) - General of the Polish Army. One of the organizers of the Polish Army. During the Great Patriotic War - commander of a rifle division, since 1943 - deputy commander of the 1st Polish Corps, 1st Army, since September 1944 - commander of the 2nd Army of the Polish Army, which participated in the liberation of western Polish lands and Czechoslovakia.

Czechoslovakia

Svoboda Ludwik (1895-1979) - statesman and military leader of the Czechoslovak Republic, army general. One of the initiators of the creation of Czechoslovak units on the territory of the USSR, since 1943 - the commander of a battalion, brigade, 1st Army Corps, who fought against the Nazi troops together with the Soviet army.

Mongolian People's Republic

Choibalsan Khorlogiyin (1895-1952) - Marshal of the MPR. As the commander-in-chief of the MNRA throughout the Second World War, together with the Soviet troops in the Far East, he participated in the containment of Japanese aggression. He commanded the Mongolian troops during the Manchurian strategic operation in 1945.

III. THE MOST PROMINENT COMMANDERS, NAVEL COMMANDERS AND GENERAL LEADERS OF THE ENEMY'S ARMIES

Germany

Rundstedt Karl Rudolf (1875-1953) - Field Marshal General. During World War II, he commanded Army Group South and Army Group A during the attack on Poland and France. He headed the Army Group "South" on the Soviet-German front (until November 1941). From 1942 to July 1944 and from September 1944 - Commander-in-Chief of the German Forces in the West.

Manstein Erich von Lewinsky (1887-1973) - Field Marshal General. In the French campaign of 1940 he commanded a corps, on the Soviet-German front - a corps, an army, in 1942-1944. - Army groups "Don" and "South". Distinguished by the skillful conduct of an offensive operation in the Crimea.

Keitel Wilhelm (1882-1946) - Field Marshal General. In 1938-1945. - Chief of Staff of the Supreme High Command of the Armed Forces.

Kleist Ewald (1881-1954) - Field Marshal General. During World War II, he commanded a tank corps and a tank group operating against Poland, France, and Yugoslavia. On the Soviet-German front, he commanded a tank group (army), in 1942-1944. - Army Group A.

Guderian Heinz Wilhelm (1888-1954) - Colonel General. During World War II he commanded a tank corps, a group and an army. In December 1941, after the defeat near Moscow, he was removed from his post. In 1944-1945. - Chief of the General Staff of the Ground Forces. Author of works on the use of tank troops.

Rommel Erwin (1891-1944) - Field Marshal General. In 1941-1943. commanded the German Expeditionary Force in North Africa, Army Group B in Northern Italy, in 1943-1944 - Army Group "B" in France.

Doenitz Karl (1891-1980) - Grand Admiral. Commanding submarine fleet(1936-1943), Commander-in-Chief of the Navy of Nazi Germany (1943-1945). At the beginning of May 1945 - Reich Chancellor and Supreme Commander.

Kesselring Albert (1885-1960) - Field Marshal General. During World War II, he commanded air fleets operating against Poland, Holland, France, and England. At the beginning of the war with the USSR, he commanded the 2nd air fleet. From December 1941 - Commander-in-Chief of the Nazi troops of the South-West (Mediterranean-Italy), in 1945 - the troops of the West (West Germany).

Finland

Mannerheim Carl Gustav Emil (1867-1951) - military and statesman Finland, marshal. Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Army in the wars against the USSR in 1939-1940. and 1941-1944 He was distinguished by the ability to create heavily fortified defensive lines and stubbornly defend them.

Japan

Yamamoto Isoroku (1884-1943) - admiral. During the Second World War - Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Navy.

Yamada Otozo (1881-1965) - general. Since 1939 - Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Expeditionary Forces in Central China. Since 1944 - Commander of the Kwantung Army.

The work on reviewing the list of prominent figures, commanders and military leaders of the Second World War and determining their approximate rating was attended by: Marshal of the Soviet Union V.G. Kulikov, Marshal of the Soviet Union S.L. Sokolov, General of the Army V. I. Varennikov, doctor of the military and doctor historical sciences Army General M.A. Gareev (head of the research group), General of the Army V.L. Govorov, Army General I.M. Tretyak, Marshal of the armored forces O.A. Losik, Admiral of the Fleet I.M. Captain, Marshal of Artillery V.M. Mikhalkin, Doctor of Military Sciences, Colonel General V.V. Korobushin, Colonel General V.I. Verevkin-Rakhalsky, Lieutenant General V.S. Ryabov, Doctor of Military Sciences Major General V. G. Rog, Major General A.V. Kirilin, Doctor of Historical Sciences G.A. Kumanev, Doctor of Historical Sciences A.S. Orlov, Doctor of Historical Sciences O.A. Rzheshevsky, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Colonel Yu.V. Rubtsov, Colonel V.A. Semidetko.

IN previous material http://maxpark.com/community/5325/content/3133921 ​​extracts from the ranking of the best Soviet army commanders during the Great Patriotic War were published.
In this material, it is proposed to familiarize yourself with the rating of military leaders of the strategic and operational-strategic level of the Red Army, as well as the armies of the allies of the USSR in World War II and their main enemy - Nazi Germany and its allies.

1. Commanders and commanders of the strategic and operational-strategic level of the USSR.


Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich (1896-1974)- Marshal of the Soviet Union, Deputy Supreme Commander of the USSR Armed Forces, member of the Supreme Command Headquarters. He commanded the troops of the Reserve, Leningrad, Western, 1st Belorussian fronts, coordinated the actions of a number of fronts, made a great contribution to achieving victory in the battle of Moscow, in the Battle of Stalingrad, Kursk, in the Belorussian, Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations.
Vasilevsky Alexander Mikhailovich (1895-1977)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. Chief of the General Staff in 1942-1945, member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. He coordinated the actions of a number of fronts in strategic operations, in 1945 he was commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front and commander-in-chief of Soviet troops in the Far East.
Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich (1896-1968)- Marshal of the Soviet Union, Marshal of Poland. He commanded the Bryansk, Don, Central, Belorussian, 1st and 2nd Belorussian fronts.
Konev Ivan Stepanovich(1897-1973 ) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. He commanded the troops of the Western, Kalinin, Northwestern, Steppe, 2nd and 1st Ukrainian fronts.
Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich (1898-1967)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. Since October 1942 - Deputy Commander of the Voronezh Front, Commander of the 2nd Guards Army, Southern, Southwestern, 3rd and 2nd Ukrainian, Transbaikal Fronts.
Govorov Leonid Alexandrovich (1897-1955) - Marshal of the Soviet Union. From June 1942 he commanded the troops of the Leningrad Front, in February-March 1945 he simultaneously coordinated the actions of the 2nd and 3rd Baltic fronts.
Antonov Alexey Innokent'evich (1896-1962)- army General. Since 1942 - First Deputy Chief, Chief (since February 1945) of the General Staff, member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command.
Timoshenko Semyon Konstantinovich (1895-1970)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. During the Great Patriotic War - People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, member of the Headquarters of the All-Russian Supreme Command, commander-in-chief of the Western, South-Western directions, from July 1942 he commanded the Stalingrad and North-Western fronts. Since 1943 - the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the fronts.
Tolbukhin Fedor Ivanovich (1894-1949)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. At the beginning of the war - chief of staff of the district (front). Since 1942 - Deputy Commander of the Stalingrad Military District, Commander of the 57th and 68th Armies, the Southern, 4th and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts.
Meretskov Kirill Afanasyevich (1897-1968)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. Since the beginning of the war - the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command on the Volkhov and Karelian fronts, commanded the 7th and 4th armies. From December 1941 - commander of the Volkhov, Karelian and 1st Far Eastern fronts. He especially distinguished himself during the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army in 1945.
Shaposhnikov Boris Mikhailovich (1882-1945)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. Member of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, Chief of the General Staff in the most difficult period of defensive operations in 1941. He made an important contribution to the organization of the defense of Moscow and the transition of the Red Army to the counteroffensive. From May 1942 - Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, head of the Military Academy of the General Staff.
Chernyakhovsky Ivan Danilovich (1906-1945)- army General. He commanded a tank corps, the 60th Army, from April 1944 - the 3rd Belorussian Front. Mortally wounded in February 1945.
Vatutin Nikolay Fedorovich (1901-1944)- army General. Since June 1941 - Chief of Staff of the North-Western Front, First Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Commander of the Voronezh, South-Western and 1st Ukrainian Fronts. He showed the highest military art in the Battle of Kursk, when crossing the river. Dnieper and the liberation of Kyiv, in the Korsun-Shevchenko operation. Mortally wounded in action in February 1944.
Bagramyan Ivan Khristoforovich (1897-1982)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. Chief of Staff of the Southwestern Front, then at the same time the headquarters of the troops of the Southwestern direction, commander of the 16th (11th Guards) Army. From 1943 he commanded the troops of the 1st Baltic and 3rd Belorussian fronts.
Eremenko Andrei Ivanovich (1892-1970)- Marshal of the Soviet Union. He commanded the Bryansk Front, the 4th Shock Army, the South-Eastern, Stalingrad, Southern, Kalinin, 1st Baltic Fronts, the Separate Primorsky Army, the 2nd Baltic and 4th Ukrainian Fronts. Particularly distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad.
Petrov Ivan Efimovich (1896-1958)- army General. From May 1943 - Commander of the North Caucasian Front, 33rd Army, 2nd Belorussian and 4th Ukrainian Fronts, Chief of Staff of the 1st Ukrainian Front.

II. GENERAL LEADERS AND LEADERS OF THE ALLIED ARMIES OF THE USA

Eisenhower Dwight David (1890-1969)- American statesman and military figure, army general. Commander of American Forces in Europe from 1942, Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Western Europe from 1943-1945.
MacArthur Douglas (1880-1964)- army General. Commander of the US armed forces in the Far East in 1941-1942, since 1942 - commander of the allied forces in the southwestern part of the Pacific Ocean.
Marshall George Catlett (1880-1959) - General of the Army. Chief of Staff of the US Army in 1939-1945, one of the main authors of the military-strategic plans of the US and Great Britain in World War II.
Lehi William (1875-1959)- Admiral of the Fleet. Chairman of the Committee of Chiefs of Staff, at the same time - Chief of Staff under the Supreme Commander of the US Armed Forces in 1942-1945.
Halsey William (1882-1959)- Admiral of the Fleet. He commanded the 3rd Fleet, led the American forces in the battles for the Solomon Islands in 1943.
Patton George Smith Jr. (1885-1945)- general. Since 1942, he commanded an operational group of troops in North Africa, in 1944-1945. - 7th and 3rd American armies in Europe, skillfully used tank troops.
Bradley Omar Nelson (1893-1981)- army General. Commander of the 12th Army Group of the Allied Forces in Europe in 1942-1945.
King Ernest (1878-1956)- Admiral of the Fleet. Commander-in-Chief of the US Navy, Chief of Naval Operations in 1942-1945.
Nimitz Chester (1885-1966) - admiral. Commander of the US Armed Forces in the Central Pacific from 1942-1945.
Arnold Henry (1886-1950)- army General. In 1942-1945. - Chief of Staff of the United States Army Air Forces.
Clark Mark (1896-1984) - general. Commander of the 5th American Army in Italy in 1943-1945. He became famous for the landing operation in the Salerno region (Operation Avalanche).
Spaats Karl (1891-1974)- general. Commander of the US Strategic Air Forces in Europe. He led strategic aviation operations during the air attack on Germany.

Great Britain

Montgomery Bernard Low (1887-1976)- field marshal. From July 1942 - Commander of the 8th British Army in Africa. During the Normandy operation he commanded an army group. In 1945 - Commander-in-Chief of the British occupation forces in Germany.
Brooke Alan Francis (1883-1963)- field marshal. He commanded the British army corps in France, in 1940-1941. metropolitan troops. In 1941-1946. - Chief of the Imperial General Staff.
Alexander Harold (1891- 1969)- field marshal. In 1941-1942. commander of the British troops in Burma. In 1943, he commanded the 18th Army Group in Tunisia and the 15th Allied Army Group, which landed on about. Sicily and Italy. From December 1944 - Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations.
Andrew Cunningham (1883-1963)- Admiral. Commander of the British Fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean in 1940-1941.
Harris Arthur Travers (1892-1984)- Air Marshal. Commander of the bomber aviation, which carried out the "air attack" on Germany in 1942-1945.
Tedder Arthur (1890-1967)- Air Chief Marshal Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Armed Forces in Europe Eisenhower for Aviation during the second front in Western Europe in 1944-1945.
Wavell Archibald (1883-1950)- field marshal. Commander of the British troops in East Africa in 1940-1941. In 1942-1945. - Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in Southeast Asia.
France

De Tassigny Jean de Latre (1889-1952)- Marshal of France. From September 1943 - Commander-in-Chief of the "Fighting France", from June 1944 - Commander of the 1st French Army.
Juin Alphonse (1888-1967)- Marshal of France. Since 1942 - commander of the "Fighting France" in Tunisia. In 1944-1945. - commander of the French expeditionary force in Italy.

III. THE MOST PROMINENT COMMANDERS, NAVEL COMMANDERS OF THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR (ON THE ENEMY'S SIDE)
Germany
Rundstedt Karl Rudolf (1875-1953)- Field Marshal General. During World War II, he commanded Army Group South and Army Group A during the attack on Poland and France. He headed the Army Group "South" on the Soviet-German front (until November 1941). From 1942 to July 1944 and from September 1944 - Commander-in-Chief of the German Forces in the West.
Manstein Erich von Lewinsky (1887-1973)- Field Marshal General. In the French campaign of 1940 he commanded a corps, on the Soviet-German front - a corps, an army, in 1942-1944. - Army Group "Don" and "South".
Keitel Wilhelm (1882-1946) - Field Marshal General. In 1938-1945. - Chief of Staff of the Supreme High Command of the Armed Forces.
Kleist Ewald (1881-1954)- Field Marshal General. During World War II, he commanded a tank corps and a tank group operating against Poland, France, and Yugoslavia. On the Soviet-German front, he commanded a tank group (army), in 1942-1944. - Army Group A.

Guderian Heinz Wilhelm (1888-1954)- Colonel General. During World War II he commanded a tank corps, a group and an army. In December 1941, after the defeat near Moscow, he was removed from his post. In 1944-1945. - Chief of the General Staff of the Ground Forces.

Rommel Erwin (1891-1944)- Field Marshal General. In 1941-1943. commanded the German Expeditionary Force in North Africa, Army Group B in Northern Italy, in 1943-1944. - Army Group "B" in France.
Doenitz Karl (1891-1980)- Grand Admiral. Commander of the submarine fleet (1936-1943), commander-in-chief of the Nazi German Navy (1943-1945). At the beginning of May 1945 - Reich Chancellor and Supreme Commander.
Keselring Albert (1885- 1960)- Field Marshal General. He commanded air fleets operating against Poland, Holland, France, and England. At the beginning of the war with the USSR, he commanded the 2nd air fleet. From December 1941 - Commander-in-Chief of the Nazi troops of the South-West (Mediterranean - Italy), in 1945 - the troops of the West (West Germany).
Finland

Mannerheim Carl Gustav Emil (1867-1951)- military and statesman of Finland, marshal. Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Army in the wars against the USSR in 1939-1940. and 1941-1944
Japan

Yamamoto Isoroku (1884-1943)- Admiral. During the Second World War - Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Navy. He carried out the operation to defeat the American fleet at Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

They sent hundreds of thousands of soldiers to their deaths, burned divisions like matches, and swept away cities like bees. These are the best commanders of World War II.

Second World War lasted 2193 days, 80% of the world's population participated in it, the total losses reached 66 million people. The parties fired rockets at London, demolished Dresden with bombs, burned Warsaw and inflicted nuclear strikes in Japanese cities. The greatest military leaders in the greatest conflict in human history led the operations.

1. Marshal of the Fleet Isoroku Yamamoto

He was noted back in the Battle of Tsushima, where he lost two fingers and earned the nickname "80 coins" (geishas were paid 10 for a manicure of each finger). He studied at Harvard, objected to the war with the United States because of the vulnerability of sea routes to deliver raw materials and food to Japan. It turned out to be right - the country was ending the war with a wild shortage of fuel, vegetable beds in cities and bamboo stakes, which were distributed to civilians to repel the landing marines USA.

In December 1941, under pressure from the government's "war party", Yamamoto developed an ambitious war plan. He planned the famous raid on Pearl Harbor, where 7 American battleships were put out of action and two hundred aircraft were destroyed. Yamamoto's headquarters carried out the defeat of the air cover of the Philippines and the capture of the islands, and also sank the British Force Z.

Yamamoto demanded that a decisive battle be imposed on the United States as soon as possible, rather than stretching forces from India to Australia. But in 1942, the Americans broke the Japanese cipher, changed the course of the battle at Midway Atoll, drowned 4 aircraft carriers, and intercepted data on the movement of Yamamoto himself. The admiral's plane was shot down over the Solomon Islands on April 18, 1943. The body was found in the jungle, it was clutching the hilt of the sword.

On December 10, 1941, in the South China Sea, Japanese aircraft were able to destroy intact aircraft for the first time in history. battleships: battleship Prince of Wales and cruiser Repulse.

The decisive battle of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, in which the squadron of Admiral Rozhdestvensky was defeated.

Isoroku Yamamoto. Dzherelo: National Parliamentary Library of Japan / ndl.go.jp Isoroku Yamamoto. Dzherelo: National Parliamentary Library of Japan / ndl.go.jp Isoroku Yamamoto. Dzherelo: National Diet Library of Japan / ndl.go.jp

2. Field Marshal Erich von Manstein

Prussian officer in the fifth generation. In the First World War he fought in Serbia and near Verdun, was seriously wounded in Poland. Then there was staff work, management of a cavalry division and service in the General Staff. He received several orders, including the "Iron Crosses" of both degrees. Re-Manstein will be awarded them in World War II for operations in Poland and a breakthrough to the Ardennes. Under his leadership, in May 1940, a group of French troops was surrounded and the British Expeditionary Force was withdrawn from the war.

Manstein was especially noted for Eastern Front. Already on the fifth day of the war, he captured the strategic bridge across the Dvina and broke into the operational space to Leningrad. Participated in the destruction Soviet army in the area of ​​​​the Demyansk pocket, defeated the Crimean front and in July 1942 captured Sevastopol. The hardest for the Wehrmacht in the winter of 1942-1943, Manstein tried to pull the encircled from Stalingrad, before reaching 8-9 kilometers. He successfully acted in the third battle for Kharkov, where the Red Army lost up to 100 thousand people. He held the defense on the Dnieper and broke through from the encirclement near Korsun, where he violated Hitler's order not to leave positions and saved half of the group.

After the defeat of Germany, he spent 3 years in prison for "disregard for the lives of the civilian population." He took part in the formation of the German army. He died in his bed in 1973.

Erikh von Manstein, born in 1938 Dzherelo: Federal Archive of Nimechchin / Wikipedia Erich von Manstein, 21 March 1942. Dzherelo: Federal Archives of Nimechchin / Wikipedia

3.

He commanded a company in the First World War, was awarded in the Civil War. But Vasilevsky's star rose in the winter of 1941-1942. Being acting Chief of the Soviet General Staff, he developed a counteroffensive near Moscow. A year later, he was one of the drafters of the encirclement plan for Paulus's army in Stalingrad.

In the key battle of the war, near Kursk, together with Zhukov, he coordinated the actions of two fronts. He was one of the authors of the artillery preparation for the dense formations of the German troops, who had already left the defense for the counteroffensive with access to Kharkov and Donetsk. He liberated Donbass, Right-bank Ukraine, Odessa and Crimea. He led the capture of Koenigsberg, and this operation was included in the textbooks. He was awarded two Orders of Victory (two each from Zhukov and Stalin). He fought with Japan and forced the Kwantung Army to surrender, for which he received " golden star» Hero of the Soviet Union.

After the war, he was the Minister of Defense of the USSR and a deputy of the Supreme Council, wrote books. Died at 82.

Marshal Oleksandr Vasilevsky. Dzherelo: diletant.media Marshal Oleksandr Vasilevsky. Dzherelo: defendingrussia.ru Vasilevsky accepts the surrender of Major General Alphonse Gitter. Vitebsk, Cherry 28, 1944 Jerelo: Wikipedia

4. Army General Dwight Eisenhower

During the First World War he was an instructor and did not get to the front. In 1942, he was transferred from staff work to lead the American contingent in Britain. It was first noted in Africa, where, after the first failures, it was able to clear the north of Tunisia from the Germans and Italians. In 1943, he directed the Allied landings in Sicily.

The crowning achievement of the military career of the future US president was the largest landing in history: during Operation Overlord, 2 million soldiers landed in Normandy. Having achieved success there, the Allied troops liberated Paris and reached the borders of Germany. At this time, Eisenhower was already in charge of all operations on the front from the North Sea to the Mediterranean. He crossed the Rhine, occupied the industrial region of the Ruhr, liberated Hamburg, met with Soviet troops on the Elbe.

After the war, he taught at Columbia University and led NATO troops. Won the presidential race in 1951 and stayed in the White House for both terms. He died after a fourth heart attack in 1969.

General Dwight Eisenhower ordered the paratroopers in England: "Absolute victory and nothing more." 6 chernya 1944 Photo: Library of Congress General Dwight Eisenhower at the time of the military parade, 1945. Photo: Library of Congress