Alexander Ilyich Rodimtsev

Alexander Rodimzew on a Soviet envelope (1978)

Alexander Ilyich Rodimzew ( Russian Александр Ильич Родимцев ; * 23 February ^July / 8 March 1905 ^greg. In Sharlyk , Orenburg Governorate , Russian Empire ; † April 13, 1977 in Moscow ) was a Colonel General of the Red Army in World War II and twice Hero of the Soviet Union .

From 1936 to 1937 he fought on the side of the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War and was honored for his service there for the first time as a Hero of the Soviet Union. In 1939 he graduated from the Frunze Military Academy and took part in the 1940 Winter War against Finland.

At the beginning of the war against Germany he was the commander of a brigade and fought, among other things, in the Battle of Kiev . In November 1941 he received command of the 87th Rifle Division, which was renamed the 13th Guards Rifle Division (GSD) a little later .

During the Battle of Stalingrad it was thanks to his strategic skill and readiness for action that the German advance was stopped at the height of the Tsaritza Gully and the Mamayev Hill . The intervention of the 13th GSD stabilized the defensive positions and averted a defeat of the 62nd Army in Stalingrad.

In 1943 Rodimzew became the commander of the 32nd Guards Rifle Corps and fought against German tank units in the Battle of Kursk . In 1945 he was named Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time. He was also three times bearer of the Order of Lenin and four times the Order of the Red Banner .

After the war Rodimzew served as deputy commander of various military districts and in the meantime as a military attaché in Albania .

Rodimzew died on April 13, 1977 and was buried in Moscow's Novodevichy Cemetery.

Quote

Rodimzew, when asked by Chuikov how he assessed the situation in Stalingrad on September 15, 1942:

“ I am a communist and will not leave Stalingrad. "

Individual evidence

↑ Wassili Iwanowitsch Tschuikow : The battle of the century. 3. Edition. Military Publishing House of the GDR, Berlin (East) 1988, ISBN 3-327-00637-7 , p. 124.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Rodimzew, Alexander Ilyich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Родимцев, Александр Ильич (Russian); Rodimtsev, Aleksandr Ilich (English)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	soviet colonel general
DATE OF BIRTH	March 8, 1905
PLACE OF BIRTH	Scharlyk , Orenburg Governorate , Russian Empire
DATE OF DEATH	April 13, 1977
Place of death	Moscow

[1] Wassili Iwanowitsch Tschuikow : The battle of the century. 3. Edition. Military Publishing House of the GDR, Berlin (East) 1988, ISBN 3-327-00637-7 , p. 124.