Ivan Timofeyevich Mokrousov (; 4 August 1919 – November 1972) was a

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

soldier during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

. Mokrousov was awarded the title

and the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

for his actions during the Chernigov-Pripyat Offensive in September 1943.

Early life

Ivan Mokrousov was born on 4 August 1919 in Rakhmanivka village in Kerensky Uyezd of the Penza Governorate to a peasant family of Russian ethnicity. Mokrousov graduated from elementary school and worked on the tractor farm. In October 1939,Order No. 29 of the 19th Rifle Corps, 65th Army 31 Oct 1943, available online a
pamyat-naroda.ru
/ref> he was in the Red Army.

World War II

Mokrousov was in combat from the beginning of the war on 22 June 1941. In 1943, he joined the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union "Hymn of the Bolshevik Party" , headquarters = 4 Staraya Square, Moscow , general_secretary = Vladimir Lenin (first) Mikhail Gorbachev (last) , founded = , banned = , founder = Vladimir Lenin , newspaper ...

. By September, he was a private in the machine gun company of the 114th Guards Rifle Regiment in the

37th Guards Rifle Division The 37th Guards Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army which fought during World War II. The division was formed on 2 August 1942 from the 1st Airborne Corps in Lyubertsy, near Moscow. Its most famous action was the defense of the ...

. On the night of 12 September, during the Chernigov-Pripyat Offensive, Mokrousov crossed the

Desna River The Desna (russian: Десна́; uk, Десна) is a river in Russia and Ukraine, a major left-tributary of the Dnieper. Its name means "right hand" in the Old East Slavic language. It has a length of , and its drainage basin covers .

near Novhorod-Siverskyi. He reportedly took the lead in his company and threw grenades into the German trenches. Despite being wounded, he reportedly stayed on the front line, helping to repulse counterattacks. He was awarded the

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War (russian: Орден Отечественной войны, Orden Otechestvennoy voiny) is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisan ...

1st class on 31 October for his actions on the night of 12 September. On 15 January 1944, Mokrousov was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin for his actions during the battle on the Desna. By April 1945, he was a sergeant in the 221st Guards Rifle Regiment of the 77th Guards Rifle Division. He distinguished himself in two separate actions on 19 and 22 April, for which he was awarded the

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

on 30 June.Order No. 104 77th Guards Rifle Division, 30 Jun 1945, available online a
pamyat-naroda.ru
/ref>

Postwar

After the end of World War II, Mokrousov was demobilized. He worked as a mechanic on the Sukhovsky state farm in the Proletarsky District of Rostov Oblast. He died in November 1972 and was buried on the Sukhoi farm in the same district.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mokrousov, Ivan 1919 births 1972 deaths People from Penza Oblast People from Kerensky Uyezd Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Soviet military personnel of World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin