Semyon Ilyich Bogdanov (russian: Семён Ильи́ч Богда́нов; – 12 March 1960) 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, ...

Marshal of tank forces, and twice

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 ...

. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, he was deputy commander of the 5th Army (1941–1942), commander of the 6th Mechanized Corps (1942–1943), and later commander of the 2nd Tank Army, which transformed into the

2nd Guards Tank Army The 2nd Guards Tank Army () was a large military formation of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, now part of the Russian Ground Forces of the Russian Federation. The army was originally formed in early 1943 as the 2nd Tank Army. It was the ...

in November 1944. Units under Semyon Bogdanov's command took part in the

Battle of Moscow The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front during World War II. It took place between September 1941 and January ...

, in the Korsun-Shevchenkovsky, Uman-Botoshany, Belarusian, Vistula-Oder,

East Pomeranian East Pomeranian (''Ostpommersch'') is an East Low German dialect that is either moribund or used to be spoken in what was roughly Pomerania (now northwestern Poland; previously part of Germany until the end of World War II) and today is also sp ...

and Berlin operations. His 2nd Guards Tank Army was the first Soviet Army to enter Berlin during combat operations.

Early life, World War I, and Russian Civil War

Bogdanov was born to a peasant family on 10 September 1894 in Nikolo-Khlavitsky volost of

Kholmsky Uyezd Kholmsky (masculine), Kholmskaya (feminine), or Kholmskoye (neuter) may refer to: * Kholmskaya (or ''Kholmsky''), a rural locality (a ''stanitsa'') in Krasnodar Krai, Russia * Kholmsky District, several districts in Russia * Daniil Kholmsky (died ...

Pskov Governorate Pskov Governorate (russian: link=no, Псковская губерния, ''Pskovskaya guberniya'') was an administrative division (a '' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and Russian SFSR, which existed from 1772 until 1777 and from 1796 until ...

. He worked at the Putilov Factory in

Petrograd 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 ...

and as a mechanic at the Vickers Factory in

Reval Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ''m ...

. 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 ...

Bogdanov was mobilized into the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

on 13 January 1915 and volunteered to be sent to the reserve aeronautical battalion of the 1st Aviation Park of the Northern Front, and in 1916 completed driving courses at the park. In the same year he was sent the study at the Northern Front School of Ensigns (''

praporshchik ( rus, Пра́порщик, 3=ˈprapərɕːɪk, ) is a rank used by the Russian Armed Forces and a number of former communist states. The rank is a non-commissioned officer's and is equivalent to in navies. It is usually equivalent to Warrant ...

''s) in

Gatchina The town of Gatchina ( rus, Га́тчина, , ˈɡatːɕɪnə, links=y) serves as the administrative center of the Gatchinsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies south-south-west of St. Petersburg, along the E95 highway which ...

and upon graduation in May 1917 Bogdanov was appointed a platoon commander in the 2nd Reserve Infantry Regiment at Fredrikshamn in Finland. As a platoon commander of a Russian and Finnish detachment, selected from the regiment, he fought in the suppression of a White uprising at

Kuopio Kuopio (, ) is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia. It has a population of , which makes it the most populous municipality in Finland. Along with Joensuu, Kuopio is one of the major urban, economic, and cult ...

. After being demobilized in February 1918, Bogdanov became commander of a platoon guarding the Nikolayevskaya Railroad. During 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 ...

, Bogdanov joined 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 ...

at Petrograd in June 1918. He was appointed a platoon commander in the 4th Kostroma Regiment, and from April 1919 commanded a company of the 2nd Reserve Regiment. From January 1920 he served as a company and battalion commander of the 502nd Rifle Regiment of the 56th Rifle Division, fighting in the

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (Polish–Bolshevik War, Polish–Soviet War, Polish–Russian War 1919–1921) * russian: Советско-польская война (''Sovetsko-polskaya voyna'', Soviet-Polish War), Польский фронт (' ...

in battles in

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Viciebsk (russian: Витебск, ; be, Ві́цебск, ; , ''Vitebsk'', lt, Vitebskas, pl, Witebsk), is a city in Belarus. The capital of the Vitebsk Region, it has 366,299 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-largest ci ...

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

, and

Vilna Governorate The Vilna Governorate (1795–1915; also known as Lithuania-Vilnius Governorate from 1801 until 1840; russian: Виленская губерния, ''Vilenskaya guberniya'', lt, Vilniaus gubernija, pl, gubernia wileńska) or Government of V ...

s. For his "exceptional courage in battle," Bogdanov was awarded the

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

. He returned to the 2nd Reserve Regiment to command a platoon in October 1920 and in January 1921 transferred to command a company at the 40th Kostroma Infantry Courses for Command Personnel. Between 10 May and 20 July, he participated in the suppression of the

Tambov Rebellion The Tambov Rebellion of 1920–1921 was one of the largest and best-organized peasant rebellions challenging the Bolshevik government during the Russian Civil War. The uprising took place in the territories of the modern Tambov Oblast and part ...

as a company and battalion commander and acting chief of the course.

Interwar period

After graduating in October 1923 from the one-year Higher Military-Pedagogical School in Moscow, Bogdanov became a company commander at the 14th Poltava Infantry School for Command Personnel. Transferred to the 135th Rifle Regiment of the 45th Rifle Division of the

Ukrainian Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

in September 1925, Bogdanov served as a battalion commander, assistant regimental commander for supply units, and assistant regimental commander for personnel. Upon completion of the

Vystrel course The Vystrel course () was the popular name for an officer training course of the Soviet Armed Forces, later part of the Russian Armed Forces, located in Solnechnogorsk. The training course had a one year curriculum to train battalion and regiment le ...

in October 1930, he was appointed commander of the 134th Regiment of the division, which was converted into the 134th Mechanized Brigade in May 1934 when the division became the 45th Mechanized Corps. Transferred to the Military Academy of Mechanization and Motorization in October 1935 to serve as commander of the school training mechanized regiment, Bogdanov graduated from Courses of Improvement for Commanding Personnel at the school in 1936, and in January 1937 became commander of the 9th Mechanized Brigade. He was under investigation between 1 May 1938 and 27 October 1939, sentenced to two years of imprisonment for "negligence." However, Bogdanov was quickly released under an amnesty and reinstated into the Red Army. After being at the disposal of the Personnel Directorate, he was appointed chief of the infantry of the 29th Motorized Division in March 1940. Bogdanov became commander of the 32nd Separate Light Tank Brigade in November 1940, and continued in command of 30th Tank Division of the 14th Mechanized Corps, stationed in Belarus with the

Western Special Military District Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that i ...

, formed from the brigade in March 1941.

World War II

After

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

began on 22 June, Bogdanov led the division as part of the 4th Army of the Western Front in fighting against the German 2nd Panzer Group in the

Brest Brest may refer to: Places *Brest, Belarus **Brest Region **Brest Airport **Brest Fortress * Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria * Břest, Czech Republic *Brest, France ** Arrondissement of Brest **Brest Bretagne Airport ** Château de Brest *Br ...

sector, attempting to limit the German advance to the line of the

Berezina River The Berezina or Biarezina ( be, Бярэ́зіна; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is 613 km. The width of the river is 15-20 m, the ...

. During the

, he commanded the

Mozhaysk MozhayskAlternative transliterations include ''Mozhaisk'', ''Mozhajsk'', ''Mozhaĭsk'', and ''Možajsk''. ( rus, Можа́йск, p=mɐˈʐajsk) is a town and the administrative center of Mozhaysky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located to th ...

Fortified Region of the Mozhaysk Defense Line from October 1941, then was deputy commander of the 5th Army for tank forces, and between March and May 1942 served in the latter position with the 10th Army. In May, he was appointed commander of the 12th Tank Corps, forming in 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 ...

. After the completion of its formation, the corps became part of the 3rd Tank Army of the Western Front. In November, Bogdanov became commander of the 6th Mechanized Corps, which as part of the

2nd Guards Army The 2nd Guards Army was a field army of the Soviet Union's Red Army that fought in World War II, most notably at Stalingrad. History The 2nd Guards Army was formed according to the order of the Staff of the Supreme High Command (Stavka) from Oc ...

fought in the Kotelnikovo Offensive. For its actions, the corps was converted into the 5th Guards Mechanized Corps in January 1943 and awarded the

Zimovniki Zimovniki (russian: Зимовники) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, rural locality (a ''posyolok'') in Zimovnikovsky District of Rostov Oblast, Russia. Population: It is also the administrative center of Zimovnikovsky District. ...

honorific. Bogdanov transferred to command the 9th Tank Corps in March 1943. As part of the 13th Army of the

Central Front The Central Front was a major formation of the Red Army during the Second World War formed on July 24, 1941. The Central Front describes either of two distinct organizations during the war. The first entity existed for just a month during th ...

, the corps fought in the

Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk was a major World War II Eastern Front engagement between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in the southwestern USSR during late summer 1943; it ultimately became the largest tank battle in history. ...

. From September, Bogdanov commanded the

2nd Tank Army The 2nd Guards Tank Army () was a large military formation of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army, now part of the Russian Ground Forces of the Russian Federation. The army was originally formed in early 1943 as the 2nd Tank Army. It was the ...

, which became the 2nd Guards Tank Army on 20 November 1944. In January 1944, the army fought in the repulse of the German counterattack towards

Vinnytsia Vinnytsia ( ; uk, Вінниця, ; yi, װיניצע) is a city in west-central Ukraine, located on the banks of the Southern Bug. It is the administrative center of Vinnytsia Oblast and the largest city in the historic region of Podillia. A ...

as part of the

1st Ukrainian Front The 1st Ukrainian Front (Russian: Пéрвый Украи́нский фронт), previously the Voronezh Front (Russian: Воронежский Фронт) was a major formation of the Soviet Army during World War II, being equivalent to a ...

, then in the Korsun–Shevchenkovsky Offensive, the Uman–Botoșani Offensive, the

Lublin–Brest Offensive The Lublin–Brest Offensive (russian: Люблин‐Брестская наступательная операция, 18 July – 2 August 1944) was a part of the Operation Bagration strategic offensive by the Soviet Red Army to clear the Nazi ...

, the Vistula–Oder Offensive, the East Pomeranian Offensive, and the

Berlin Offensive The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major Offensive (military), offensives of the European theatre of World War II. ...

. In the Uman–Botoșani Offensive, the army and the 27th Army formed the mobile group of the front and broke through Axis defenses north Uman. Together with the 29th Tank Corps of the

5th Guards Tank Army The 5th Guards Tank Army (Russian: 5-я гварде́йская та́нковая а́рмия) was a Soviet Guards armored formation which fought in many notable actions during World War II. The army was formed in February 1943. Until the aft ...

and the

73rd Rifle Corps 73rd may refer to: *73rd (Perthshire) Regiment of Foot also known as MacLeod's Highlanders after its founder John Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod *73rd Academy Awards honored the best films of 2000 and was held on March 25, 2001 *73rd Carnatic Infantry, an ...

of the 52nd Army they captured Uman. Despite difficulties caused by the spring thaw, the army pursued the Axis forces and advanced 240 km, crossing the

Southern Bug , ''Pivdennyi Buh'' , name_etymology = , image = Sunset S Bug Vinnitsa 2007 G1.jpg , image_size = 270 , image_caption = Southern Bug River in the vicinity of Vinnytsia, Ukraine , map = PietinisBug ...

Dniester The Dniester, ; rus, Дне́стр, links=1, Dnéstr, ˈdⁿʲestr; ro, Nistru; grc, Τύρᾱς, Tyrās, ; la, Tyrās, la, Danaster, label=none, ) ( ,) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and th ...

, and

Prut The Prut (also spelled in English as Pruth; , uk, Прут) is a long river in Eastern Europe. It is a left tributary of the Danube. In part of its course it forms Romania's border with Moldova and Ukraine. Characteristics The Prut originates ...

and reaching the approaches to Jassy by the end of the operation. For his leadership of the army, Bogdanov was awarded the title

on 11 March 1944. He received the title a second time on 4 June 1945 for his command of the army in the Vistula–Oder Offensive, the crossing of the

Neisse The Lusatian Neisse (german: Lausitzer Neiße; pl, Nysa Łużycka; cs, Lužická Nisa; Upper Sorbian: ''Łužiska Nysa''; Lower Sorbian: ''Łužyska Nysa''), or Western Neisse, is a river in northern Central Europe.Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows thr ...

, and advance to the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

coast. On 1 June 1945 he was promoted to Marshal of Tank Forces.

Postwar

After the end of the war, Bogdanov continued in command of the 2nd Guards Tank Army, and in May 1947 became commander of the Armored and Mechanized Forces of the

Group of Soviet Forces in Germany The Western Group of Forces (WGF),. previously known as the Group of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany (GSOFG). and the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany (GSFG),. were the troops of the Soviet Army in East Germany. The Group of Soviet Occupati ...

. In August 1948, he became first deputy commander of the Armored and Mechanized Forces of the Soviet Army, rising to command the latter in November. On 28 April 1953 he became commander of the 7th Mechanized Army of the

Belorussian Military District , image = Soviet Union Belorussian Military District.svg , image_size = 300px , caption = The territory of the Byelorussian Military District in 1991. , dates = 28 November 1918 – 6 May 1992 , country = (1918–1920) (1920–1991) (1922� ...

, then in May 1954 chief of the Military Academy of the Armored Forces. On 21 May 1956 Bogdanov retired due to health reasons, dying in Moscow on 12 March 1960.

Awards and honors

Bogdanov was a recipient of the following awards and decorations: ;Soviet Union ;Foreign Awards

References

Citations

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bogdanov, Semyon 1894 births 1960 deaths Military personnel from Saint Petersburg People from Sankt-Peterburgsky Uyezd Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union candidate members Second convocation members of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union Third convocation members of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union Fourth convocation members of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union Soviet Marshals of Tank Troops Russian military personnel of World War I Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War Soviet military personnel of the Polish–Soviet War Soviet military personnel of World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 1st class Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Grunwald, 2nd class Knights of the Virtuti Militari