Mikhail Dratvin (russian: Михаил Иванович Дратвин; 21 November 1897, in Ekimovo 12 December 1953, in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. Dratvin's military career began when he was drafted into the army of the Russian Empire during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He subsequently became an expert in the fields of military intelligence and signals, teaching at a number of Soviet military academies and acting as a senior military advisor to the government of China during the Warlord Era and the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

. He fought in

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 served as a functionary of the

Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (russian: Советская военная администрация в Германии, СВАГ; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; german: Sowjetische Militäradministrat ...

at the conclusion of the war.

Early life

Mikhail Dratvin was born on 21 November 1897, in the village of Ekimovo,

Galichsky District Galichsky District (russian: Га́личский райо́н) is an administrativeLaw #112-4-ZKO and municipalLaw #237-ZKO district (raion), one of the twenty-four in Kostroma Oblast, Russia. It is located in the west of the oblast. The area of ...

, Kostroma Oblast of the Russian Empire. In 1911, he graduated from a vocational school and subsequently worked in a

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

telegraph company. In 1914, he acquired a telegraphist diploma.

Military career

In 1916, he was drafted into the Russian army and fought in

as a functionary of the post–telegraph service. In 1918, he enlisted into the

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 ...

fighting in various campaigns of the

Russian Civil War , date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...

, including the suppression of the

Kronstadt rebellion The Kronstadt rebellion ( rus, Кронштадтское восстание, Kronshtadtskoye vosstaniye) was a 1921 insurrection of Soviet sailors and civilians against the Bolshevik government in the Russian SFSR port city of Kronstadt. Locat ...

. At the conclusion of the war he was transferred into the intelligence branch of the army. Between 1924 and 1926 he acted as a military advisor to the signal corps of the Chinese

National Revolutionary Army The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...

in its struggles during the Warlord Era. In 1931, he graduated from the

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (russian: Военная академия имени М. В. Фрунзе), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (rus ...

. Between 1931 and 1935, he commanded the signal corps of the

Moscow Military District The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The district was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1968. In 2010 it was merged with the Leningrad Military Di ...

. Between 1936 and 1937, he taught at the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union. In August 1937, he was appointed rector of the

Budyonny Military Academy of the Signal Corps The S. M. Budyonny Military Academy of the Signal Corps is a military university in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation, founded in 1919. The academy trains officers for service in the Signal Troops of the Russian Ground Forces. History * ...

. By November he had to leave his post a he was dispatched to China as a military advisor. At the time China was engaged in the

, receiving aid from both Germany and the Soviet Union. The May 1938 departure of

Alexander von Falkenhausen Alexander Ernst Alfred Hermann Freiherr von Falkenhausen (29 October 187831 July 1966) was a German general and military advisor to Chiang Kai-shek. He was an important figure during the Sino-German cooperation to reform the Chinese Army. In 19 ...

mission of advisors marked the beginning of the end for the Sino-German cooperation.

Komkor (russian: комкор) is the abbreviation for Corps commander (russian: командир корпуса, komandir korpusa; ), and was a military rank in the Soviet Armed Forces of the USSR in the period from 1935 to 1940. It was also the d ...

Dratvin thus became the most senior military advisor of

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

, until he was replaced by Aleksandr Cherepanov in the June of the same year. In 1939, Dratvin became the supervisor of 11th special department of the General Staff overseeing the recruitment of advisors for China and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. In December he became a functionary of the People's Defense Commissariat of U.S.S.R. In April 1941, he returned to the Military Academy of the General Staff as a staff member.

World War II

On 10 July 1941, he became the commander of the 275th Rifle Division. The 275th was formed at Novomoskovsk, part of the

Odessa Military District The Odesa Military District (russian: Одесский военный округ, ОВО; , abbreviated ) was a military administrative division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In 1998 most of its territory was transformed into the Southern Operat ...

. Its basic order of battle included the 980th, 982nd, and the 984th Rifle Regiments, as well as the 807th Artillery Regiment. As a result of the German advance, the division was relocated to

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk ( rus, Новоросси́йск, p=nəvərɐˈsʲijsk; ady, ЦIэмэз, translit=Chəməz, p=t͡sʼɜmɜz) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities hono ...

in the

North Caucasus Military District The North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Armed Forces, which became in 2010 the Southern Military District and lately also included the Black Sea Fleet and Caspian Flotilla. It comprised the Republic of Adygeya, ...

while still incomplete around 7 August. In late August it was assigned to the Southern Front's 6th Army. The division fought in the Barvenkovo–Lozovaya Offensive in January 1942, after which it transferred to the 37th Army. On 11 January 1942, Dratvin became the deputy commander of the

37th Army (Soviet Union) The 37th Army was an Army-level formation of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The army was formed twice during the war. The army was part of the Southern Group of Forces in Romania and Bulgaria. First formation The 37th Army first ...

. On 1 September 1943, he was promoted to

. From January until June 1945 he commanded the

47th Rifle Corps The 47th Rifle Corps was a corps of the Red Army of the Soviet Union. It took part in the Great Patriotic War. The corps headquarters was established in the summer of 1939. It took part in the Winter War. By June 1941, the corps was located in B ...

Post war

In June 1945, Dratvin became the deputy of the head of the

. In 1949, he became the head of the foreign relations department of the

Main Intelligence Directorate Main Intelligence Directorate may refer to: * Main Directorate of Intelligence (Ukraine), the military intelligence service of Ukraine * GRU The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, rus, Гла́� ...

. In January 1953, Dratvin became the deputy rector of the Military Diplomatic Academy in Moscow. Dratvin died on 12 December 1953 and was buried at the

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist ...

. Throughout his career he received 4

Orders of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet Union, Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War b ...

, 3

Orders 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 ...

, an

Order of Kutuzov The Order of Kutuzov (russian: орден Кутузова ''orden Kutuzova'') is a military decoration of the Russian Federation named after famous Russian Field Marshal Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov (1745–1813). The Order was established du ...

2nd class, an

Order of Suvorov The Order of Suvorov () is a military decoration of the Russian Federation named in honor of Russian Generalissimo Prince Alexander Suvorov (1729–1800). History The Order of Suvorov was originally a Soviet award established on July 29, 1942 ...

as well as an

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.

Footnotes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dratvin, Mikhail 1897 births 1953 deaths People from Kostroma Oblast Soviet lieutenant generals Frunze Military Academy alumni Russian military personnel of World War I Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War Soviet military personnel of World War II Soviet people of the Second Sino-Japanese War Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Lenin Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery