Pyotr Semyonovich Isaev (; better known as Petka (russian: Петька) or Pete; April 20, 1890 – September 5, 1919) was a participant in World War I and the Russian Civil War, assistant to a Red Army commander Vasily Chapayev and

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the communications battalion. Thanks to the vivid image of Petka in the film ''Chapaev'', he became the hero of numerous anecdotes about Petka, Vasily Ivanovich and Anka the Machine-Gunner.

Biography

Pyotr was born on July 20, 1890, in the village of , , Samara Governorate, Russian Empire. He graduated from the . In World War I, he was a senior

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

of the musician team, after being wounded he returned home. In the spring of 1918, he organized a detachment in Korneevka to suppress the anti- Bolshevik uprising, then in the village of Semyonovka he first met with Vasily Chapayev. Soon he became squadron commander at Chapayev, in the fall he was appointed chief of communications of the 1st brigade of the Chapayev division. Together with Chapayev, he transferred to the 2nd Nikolaev division, where he was the commander of the communications battalion, the assistant to the chief of communications.

Versions of death

There are several versions of the circumstances of his death. According to one version, Pyotr died (or shot himself) on September 5, 1919 in a battle during the , where the headquarters of the

25th rifle division The 25th Rifle Division (russian: 25-я стрелковая дивизия) was a rifle division of the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War, formed twice. Formed in 1918, it was a Russian, and later Soviet, Red Army formation f ...

was located. According to the version set forth in

Dmitry Furmanov Dmitriy Andreyevich Furmanov (russian: Дми́трий Андре́евич Фу́рманов; 7 November 1891, Sereda – 15 March 1926, Moscow) was a Russian writer, revolutionary and military officer. Biography He was born to a peasant fam ...

's novel and then reflected in the film of the same name, after the wounded Chapaev was being transported across the river, Pyotr remained on the shore, fired back and then fired the bullet into himself. According to his grandson, in that battle he was mortally wounded and, together with Chapaev, was buried in an unmarked grave. According to another version, Isaev shot himself a year later after the death of Chapayev, unable to bear the loss of a close friend. There is a version that he committed suicide a month after the battle, without finding the body of the deceased commander, or died of wounds at his home after leaving the hospital.

In culture

For the role of Petka in the film

Chapaev Vasily Ivanovich Chapayev or Chapaev (russian: link=no, Василий Иванович Чапаев; 5 September 1919) was a Russian soldier and Red Army commander during the Russian Civil War. Biography Chapayev was born into a poor peasan ...

, was first invited, but ultimately

Leonid Kmit Leonid Aleksandrovich Kmit (born Aleksei Aleksandrovich Kmita; russian: Алексей Александрович Кмита́; 9 March 1908 – 11 March 1982) was a Soviet and Russian actor. In 1931 he graduated from Saint Petersburg State Thea ...

was approved.

Awards

For the capture of a White Army spy, Pyotr was awarded a personalized Browning pistol with the inscription "To Pyotr Isaev for courage from the Ural Chekists" (). Pyotr was also awarded the Order of the Red Banner.

Personal life

He was married to Anna Goldyreva. His grand-niece claims that his wife's name was Fima.

References