Vasily Alexandrovich Yushkevich (; – 15 March 1951) was a

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

colonel general Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

. Conscripted 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 ...

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 ...

, Povetkin rose from private to second lieutenant during the war. Drafted 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 ...

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 ...

, he served as a battalion and regimental commander. Yushkevich held regimental commands in the 1920s and division and corps commands in the 1930s before a stint as an advisor in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

. He was arrested after returning from Spain due to the

Great Purge The Great Purge or the Great Terror (russian: Большой террор), also known as the Year of '37 (russian: 37-й год, translit=Tridtsat sedmoi god, label=none) and the Yezhovshchina ('period of Nikolay Yezhov, Yezhov'), was General ...

, but reinstated in 1939. At the outbreak of

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 ...

he commanded the 44th Rifle Corps in Belarus. Yushkevich subsequently commanded the 22nd and 31st Armies 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 ...

and the

Battles of Rzhev The Battles of Rzhev (russian: Ржевская битва, Rzhevskaya bitva) were a series of Red Army offensives against the Wehrmacht between January 8, 1942, and March 31, 1943, on the Eastern Front of World War II. The battles took place ...

, and the

3rd Shock Army The 3rd Shock Army (russian: Третья ударная армия) was a field army of the Red Army formed during the Second World War. The "Shock" armies were created with the specific structure to engage and destroy significant enemy forces ...

in the Baltic Offensive. He was relieved of command in August 1944 due to illness and became commander of the rear-area

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 ...

. Postwar, he commanded the

Volga Military District The Volga Military District (PriVO) was a military district of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation that existed from 1918 to 1989 and 1992 to 2001. The district headquarters was located at Kazan, Saratov and Kuibyshev (Samara) at different ...

before retiring in 1950.

Early life, World War I, and Russian Civil War

Yushkevich was born on 28 February 1897 in

Vilna Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional u ...

, the son of a postman. After graduating from a six-grade commercial school, he was drafted into the

during

in March 1915 and became a

junker Junker ( da, Junker, german: Junker, nl, Jonkheer, en, Yunker, no, Junker, sv, Junker ka, იუნკერი (Iunkeri)) is a noble honorific, derived from Middle High German ''Juncherre'', meaning "young nobleman"Duden; Meaning of Junke ...

at the Vilna Military School. At the school, he was promoted to unter-ofitser in July and in September graduated from an accelerated 4-month first level training course with the rank of ''

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 ...

''. Yushkevich was sent to the Southwestern Front, where he served as a junior officer and then temporary company commander of the 7th

Marching Marching refers to the organized, uniformed, steady walking forward in either rhythmic or route-step time; and, typically, it refers to overland movements on foot of military troops and units under field orders. Marching is often performed t ...

Reserve Battalion of the 3rd Marching Reserve Brigade. In March 1916 he was placed at the disposal of the chief of staff of the 7th Army Corps of the 11th Army and seconded to the headquarters of the 34th Infantry Division until July, before being appointed a junior officer in a company of the 133rd Simferopol Infantry Regiment, serving as a platoon leader. Between July and August, he fought in battles on the

Seret River The Seret (Ukrainian: Серéт) is the left tributary of the Dniester that flows through the Ternopil Oblast of Ukraine. It is long and its basin area is .podporuchik ''Podporuchik'' ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, потпоручник, potporučnik, cs, podporučík, pl, podporucznik, russian: подпору́чик, bg, подпоручик, sk, podporučík) is the most Junior officer in some Slavic armed forces, an ...

in September and in October was awarded the

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Ponia ...

, 3rd class with swords and knot. He became a company commander of the regiment in August 1917. Yushkevich was drafted into the

in February 1919 during the

. He fought against the

Armed Forces of South Russia The Armed Forces of South Russia (AFSR or SRAF) () were the unified military forces of the White movement in southern Russia between 1919 and 1920. On 8 January 1919, the Armed Forces of South Russia were formed, incorporating the Volunteer Army ...

and the forces of

Nykyfor Hryhoriv Nykyfor Oleksandrovych Hryhoriv (né Nychypir Servetnyk, 1884 – 27 July 1919) was a Ukrainian paramilitary leader noted for repeatedly switching sides during the Ukrainian Civil War. He was commonly known as "Otaman Hryhoriv." In some historic ...

. In April 1920, he was appointed commander of the 2nd Separate Guard Battalion in

Katerynoslav Dnipro, previously called Dnipropetrovsk from 1926 until May 2016, is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper Rive ...

, and in June became head of a special purpose detachment. From September 1920, Yushkevich served with the 3rd Rifle Division as acting commander of the 25th Rifle Regiment, commander of the divisional separate reserve battalion, and commander of the 25th Rifle Regiment. He led the regiment in fighting against the

Army of Wrangel The Russian Army (russian: Русская армия, Russkaya armiya), commonly known as the Army of Wrangel (russian: Армия Врангеля, Armiya Vrangelya, label=none), was a White Army active in South Russia during the Russian Civil W ...

on the Southern Front. From May 1921 he was head of the flying expeditionary detachment of the division, fighting against the remnants of the

Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine The Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine ( uk, Революційна Повстанська Армія України), also known as the Black Army or as Makhnovtsi ( uk, Махновці), named after their leader Nestor Makhno, was a ...

Interwar period

After the end of the war, Yushkevich continued to serve with the 3rd Rifle Division as assistant commander of the 8th Brigade and later commander of the 21st Rifle Regiment of the 7th Brigade. He commanded the 9th Rifle Regiment from December 1921. After completing the Higher Commanders' Improvement Courses (

KUVNAS The Courses of Improvement for Higher Officers of the Red Army (), also translated as the Course for Perfecting Red Army Command Cadre and commonly known by their Russian acronym KUVNAS, were a training course for senior officers of the Red Army du ...

) at 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 ...

in June 1926, Yushkevich was appointed commander of the 113th Rifle Regiment of the

45th Rifle Division The 45th Rifle Division was a Red Army infantry division formed originally during the Russian Civil War that fought in World War II and then served through the Cold War in the Leningrad Military District. The division was originally formed 16 J ...

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 ...

. He transferred to become assistant commander of the 7th Rifle Division of the same district and graduated from KUVNAS at the Frunze Academy again later that year. Yushkevich taught at the N.G. Tolmachev Military-Political Academy from October 1929. Serving as commander and commissar of the 100th Rifle Division from November 1930, Yushkevich was given the rank of ''

komdiv (russian: комдив) is the abbreviation to Commanding officer of the Division (russian: командир дивизии, komandir divizii; ), and was a military rank in the Soviet Armed Forces of the USSR in the period from 1935 to 1940. It ...

'' in 1935 when the Red Army introduced personal military ranks. After becoming commander and commissar of the

13th Rifle Corps The 13th Rifle Corps () was a rifle corps of the Red Army, first formed in 1922. On October 12, 1922, the Corps began forming in the Turkestan Front. Alexander Todorsky became the corps commander. The corps participated in the suppression of the B ...

in November 1936, he was sent to serve as an advisor to the

Spanish Republican Army The Spanish Republican Army ( es, Ejército de la República Española) was the main branch of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic between 1931 and 1939. It became known as People's Army of the Republic (''Ejército Popular de la Repú ...

during the

, participating in operations on the

Jarama Jarama () is a river in central Spain. It flows north to south, and passes east of Madrid where the El Atazar Dam is built on a tributary, the Lozoya River. It flows into the river Tagus in Aranjuez. The Manzanares is a tributary of the Jarama ...

and in

Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...

Huesca Huesca (; an, Uesca) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almo ...

, and near

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. He was awarded 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, but upon his return from Spain was arrested by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

on 8 August 1938 and imprisoned during the

. Yushkevich was reinstated in the Red Army on 29 November 1939 and placed at the disposal of the Red Army Personnel Directorate. Appointed inspector of the 1st Department of the Directorate of the Chief of Infantry of the Red Army in June 1940, he became head of the 1st Department of the Combat Training Directorate of the Red Army in August. Yushkevich became commander of the 44th Rifle Corps of 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 id ...

in March 1941.

World War II

After the beginning of

, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Yushkevich led the corps in defensive battles as part of the 13th Army of the Western Front, utilizing the fortifications of the Minsk Fortified Region during the

Battle of Białystok–Minsk The Battle of Białystok–Minsk was a German strategic operation conducted by the Wehrmacht's Army Group Centre under Field Marshal Fedor von Bock during the penetration of the Soviet border region in the opening stage of Operation Barbarossa, ...

. In July, the corps fought in the Battle of Smolensk as part of the 19th Army, temporarily recapturing

Yartsevo Yartsevo (russian: Ярцево) is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. ;Urban localities *Yartsevo, Smolensk Oblast, a town in Yartsevsky District of Smolensk Oblast; administratively incorporated as Yartsevskoye Urban Settlement ...

, for which Yushkevich was given the rank of major general on 7 August. From August, he commanded the 22nd Army of the front, fighting in defensive battles in the

Toropets Toropets (russian: Торо́пец) is a town and the administrative center of Toropetsky District in Tver Oblast, Russia, located where the Toropa River enters Lake Solomennoye. Population: History In 1074, when the town was first mentione ...

sector. In October, he was appointed commander of the 31st Army of the

Kalinin Front The Kalinin Front was a major formation of the Red Army active in the Eastern Front of World War II, named for the city of Kalinin. It was formally established by Stavka directive on 17 October 1941 and allocated three armies: 22nd, 29th Army a ...

, which fought in the defense of Kalinin and the Kalinin Offensive during the

. In the Kalinin Offensive, the army and the 29th Army recaptured Kalinin. Yushkevich led the army in the Rzhev–Vyazma Offensive between January and March 1942, and returned to command of the 22nd Army in April 1942, participating in the advance of the front troops in the direction of

Rzhev Rzhev ( rus, Ржев, p=ˈrʐɛf) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Tver Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Staritsa (town), Tver Oblast, Staritsa and from Tver, on the highway and railway connecting Moscow and Riga. It ...

and

Vyazma Vyazma (russian: Вя́зьма) is a town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk, the administrative center of the oblast, and Mozhaysk. Throu ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant general on 21 March 1942. Yushkevich led the army in the Rzhev–Vyazma Offensive in March 1943 and from April in defensive battles along the eastern bank of the

Lovat River The Lovat ( be, Ловаць ''Łovać'', ; russian: река́ Ло́вать) is a river in Vitebsk Oblast of Belarus, Usvyatsky, Velikoluksky, and Loknyansky Districts, as well as of the city of Velikiye Luki, of Pskov Oblast and Kholmsky, ...

in the sectors of Kholm and

Velikiye Luki Velikiye Luki ( rus, Вели́кие Лу́ки, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪjə ˈlukʲɪ; lit. ''great meanders''. Г. П. Смолицкая. "Топонимический словарь Центральной России". "Армада-П ...

as part of the

Northwestern Front The Northwestern Front (Russian: ''Северо-Западный фронт'') was a military formation of the Red Army during the Winter War and World War II. It was operational with the 7th and 13th Armies during the Winter War. It was re-cre ...

(then 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 ...

from 13 October and 2nd Baltic from 20 October). The army fought in the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive during January and February 1944, advancing towards

Idritsa Idritsa (russian: Идрица) is an urban locality (a work settlement) in Sebezhsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located on the Idritsa River, a left tributary of the Velikaya River. Municipally, it is incorporated as Idritsa Urban Settle ...

. Yushkevich was transferred to command the

of the front in April, participating in the Rezhitsa–Dvinsk Offensive, Madona Offensive, and Riga Offensive. In August, due to illness, he was dismissed from command and soon appointed commander of the

Postwar

After the end of the war, Yushkevich, promoted to

on 11 July 1945, continued in command of the Odessa Military District until July 1946, when he transferred to command the

. In April 1950, he was relieved of his post and placed at the disposal of the Soviet

Minister of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

, being retired later that year. He died on 15 March 1951 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 ...

Awards and honors

Yushkevich received the following decorations: *

(2) *

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 ...

(4) *

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 ...

, 1st class *

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 ...

, 1st class *

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 ...

, 3rd class (not worn after 1917)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * 1897 births 1951 deaths Military personnel from Vilnius Soviet colonel generals 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 Kutuzov, 1st class Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery Russian military personnel of World War I Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War Soviet people of the Spanish Civil War Soviet military personnel of World War II {{DEFAULTSORT:Yushkevich, Vasily