For the Victory Day
My great-grandfather is on this photo. His name is Alexei Vasilyevich Dvoretsky and he was a soldier of the Red Army. He served in the 240th Guards Rifle Regiment of the 74th Guards Rifle Division.
He was born in 1913 in a village called Reimentarovka in Kholmy disctrict of Chernigiv region of Ukraine.
From September 1941 to September 1943 Reimentarovka village was under the German occupation. In September 1943 it was released by the Red Army. There is an obelisk in Honour of the soldier-liberators who died in September 1943 in the battle for Reimentarovka. [1]
On the 27th of August 1941 Alexei Dvoretsky was captured by germans, but in a month he was released. On 19th of August 1943 he joined the Red Army. Due to the list of the former soldiers released from captivity and encirclement who gone through depot #23 in October-November 1943, Alexei Dvoretsky was directed to the 4th penal company on 13.10.1943. [2]
Most of the penal companies were discontinued before 1944 [3] and the next unit where Alexei Dvoretsky served was the 240th Guards Rifle Regiment of the 74th Guards Rifle Division. [4]
On the 7th of February 1945 he got killed during the Vistula–Oder Offensive in Poland. This is how that day was described in the record book of the division:
"07.02.1945 The division storms the blocks of Poznań towards Cytadela fortress
The 74 GRD continued storming the approaches to Cytadela in a night time without weakening the offensive. Covering the right flank of the division, the 226 GR turned the front to the east bank of the river Warta from rkm 52 to the bridge (object 50). The 236 GR cleared the 34th block from the enemies, fought them on their north-west borderland. The 240 GR went to the north borderland of the 77th object; released 3 docks in the 30th block and continued fighting for the total control of it.
During the night more than 130 enemy soldiers and officers were killed, 40 soldiers were captured, a trophy was taken: 18 vehicles, the armoury, the medical supplies depot, the bicycle plant, the hospital with 400 injured enemy soldiers and officers was taken.
This night the division lost 13 men killed and 58 wounded.
At 10:00 on 07.02.45 after a short fire attack, the division continued storming the enemy defenses with two regiments (236 and 240 GR). Overcoming the powerful fire resistance, the units entered the 33rd and 30th blocks and fought a fierce battle for taking their south borderlands.
During this battle day the regiments caused the damage to the enemy: nearly 150 soldiers and officers killed, 12 machine guns destroyed, 4 high-rise buildings equipped for defense were taken.
This day the division lost: 10 men killed, 87 men wounded. The enemy has been fiercely resisting from the east bank of the river Warta in the 33rd and the 30th blocks using pre-made stone fortifications. They used faustpatrones against our tanks and artillery, shot all the streets with a heavy fire of the infantry weapons. In the buildings taken with our forces, they left soldiers in civilian clothes who shot from the attics and high floors behind us".
The record book of the 74th Guards Riffle Division from 01.09.1944 to 20.05.1946
The 74 Guards Riffle Division was a part of the 8th Guards Army. You can check its battle route here.
Alexei Dvoretsky was buried in Poznań (Суtadel cemetery, block 87 m, center, grave #1). [4]
Karakutsa Luca Semyonovich
He is also my great-grandfather. He was a sapper of the 41st Guards Rifle Regiment of the 14th Guards Rifle Division.
He was born in 1912 in Pushkaryovka village of Verkhnedneprovsk district of Dnipropetrovsk region. He joined the Red Army on the 1st of November 1943. Because from August 1941 to October 1943 Dnipropetrovsk region was occupied by the German army. During the occupation Luca Karakutsa worked on construction in town Kamenskoe.
"Bescheinigung
Inhaber dieser Bescheinigung Herr Karakuza L. S. arbeitet als Arbeiter beim Straßenbau des Generalkommissarietes.
Gültig bis 1.10.42
Der Generalkommissar
Dnjepropetrowsk Abt. Straßenbau
Außenstelle Kamenskoje"
On the 7th of January 1944 Luca Karakutsa "cleared the minefield under the enemy fire, that provided an opportunity for the quick movement of our units". He was awarded the medal "For Battle Merit" for that. [5]
"In the offensive 24.04.44 the minefield was found at height 186.6 in Pugachen village. Comrade Karakutsa along with two sappers was given a task to clear the way for our tanks. Regardless the fierce fire that wounded two sappers, comrade Karakutsa cleared the minefield alone and provided a passage for our tanks".
He was awarded the medal "For Courage" for that. [6]
On January of 1945 the 14th Riffle Division, where the sapper Karakutsa served, also took part in the Vistula–Oder Offensive as part of 5th Guards Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front.
"On 12.01.1945 during the long enemy defense towards Stopnitsa, comrade Karakutsa along with a group of sappers sneaked to the enemy defensive structures, made a passage for the infantry and tanks in the minefields and wire entanglement.
While accomplishing the mission, the enemy counterattacked, but three bravehearts led by the private guard Karakutsa defeated the counterattack with gun fire and successfully finished the mission". [7]
For that feat Luca Karakutsa was awarded the Order of the Red Star. [8]
Here is a description of that day in the record book of the division:
"The division units followed the operation instructions #001 (AP 33 GRR in 5:00 12.01.45 1). The 38 GRR made a reconnaissance in force after 15 minutes artillery barrage and at 6:00 took the first enemy trench in Metel area. The enemy has been fiercely resisting. After 2 hours artillery barrage the division units took the offensive moving from the forming-up place with the 41 GRR and the 36 GRR in the first column. The 38 GRR took the offensive from the back. Overcoming the powerful fire resistance, the units broke well-prepared defensive positions and took the borderland chasing the enemy retreating forces.
The 41 GRR continues the offensive towards the height 300.0 approaching Konary.
The 36 GRR took Sulkowice, height 308.5 and continues the offensive on Sulkoshuw.
Acting in the second column between the 41 and 36 GRR, the 38 GRR went to the border, the crossroad 100 m south of Konora, north-west height 308.5.
The enemy keeps fiercely resisting with a separate groups that are supported by artillery and retreats to the west fighting.
The enemy aviation performed aerial reconnaissance.
The losses are not specified.
During the battle the division units took 10 settlements, captured 30 soldiers and officers, among them were the commander of the 575 IR of the 304 ID and a non-commissioned officer. Nearly 150 german soldiers and officers were killed". [9]
You can read the full record book of the division here and take a look at the battle route of the 14th Guards Riffle Division here.
From February to March the 5th Guards Army surrounded the large enemy group in Wroclaw and exterminated the Oppeln enemy group.
"The division units continue the offensive. 12.03.45 at 12:00 they reached the objectives:
The right flank of the 38 GRR was at height 255.4 and the left one was in 50 m south from Warzdorf.
The 36 GRR is in the west groves edge (south-west height 275.3).
The 41 GRR is in the south groves edge (south-west height 275.3).
The enemy keeps stubbornly resisting with a mortar attacks from height 350.2, Streit, Strelb area and with a machine gun fire right beside the front of the division units. The enemy counterattacks with 150-170 infantrymen using armored personnel carrier and heavy mortar fire. During 12.03.45 the enemy performed 3 counterattacks with 200 infantrymen and artillery support against the 36 GRR in Strelb area. All the enemy counterattacks were defeated.
Losses for 11.03.45: 98 men killed, 288 men wounded. The enemy losses are up to 250 soldiers and officers. 3 germans were captured, they belong to the 5th company, 2nd battalion of the 338 IR of the 208 ID". [10]
Published: 1st Ukrainian front. Operation division / Archive: The Central Archives of the Ministry of Defence, archive fund: 236, series: 2673, number of items: 2596, entry #60043712
Marked: Streit, Strelb, Järischau
This day, on the 11th of March 1945 Luca Semyonovich Karakutsa died.
Notice
Your husband, a private Karakutsa Luca Semyonovich, born in Chervonoe village of Verkhnedneprovsk district of Dnipropetrovsk region, died in the battle for the Socialistic Motherland on 11.03.45. He stayed true to his oath having heroism and courage. He is buried in a civil cemetery of Järischau village.
The text is given above
He is buried in a civil cemetery in Järischau village, Wrocław Voivodeship of Świdnica County in Poland. [11] Nowadays Järischau is called Jaroszów. This village is 50-60 km south-west to Wrocław. According to some sources, the warriors from Jaroszów cemetery were reburied in Świdnica memorial. [12]
Actually, this map is a bit inaccurate. At the beginning of March the 14th Guards Rifle Division was in a battle of Wrocław which is close to the western border of Poland (I marked this place with a red arrow).
This is how I, the great-granddaughter of these two brave soldiers of the Red Army, celebrated the Victory Day in 2020. I researched the archives looking for the information about my forefathers. There were no parade this year because of the quarantine and, more likely, there will be no parades in the nearest future. The Victory Day will be renamed to the Reconciliation Day and people will "reconcile" with what their forefathers fought against in the Great Patriotic War.
In the afterword to the German edition of the book "To Children I Give My Heart" (1969), an outstanding Ukrainian pedagogue Vasil Sukhomlinsky warned that seeds of fascism have been planed in many countries and called for fighting against this inhumane evil:
"The fascist beast was born in German lands and it brought the great misery to people. If there was no heroic feat of the Soviet people, if there were no twenty-two million of our Soviet people who died in the bloody battle for humanity freedom, our world would be turned into a giant fascist slaughterhouse, into a hellish furnace same as it was in Majdanek, Oświęcim, Mauthausen and Buchenwald where millions of people were burnt, it would be turned into a bottomless Babi Yar, where thousand of kids were shot. <...>
Sometimes people ask me, how did you manage to write such a lot of works? Yes, there are a lot of them: 310 scientific works including 32 books. Two feelings inspired me and they inspire me still. They are love and hate. Love for the kids and hate for the fascism. <...>
But I know that a poison of fascism can pass even through the tiniest cracks... It is impossible to be a humanist, if you do not hate fascism that has been planted its seeds in West Germany and in other countries. <...>
What does it mean to love people in our difficult hard time? We, pedagogues, must inspire every our pupil with a lofty ideal. The true human is the one who fights for people happiness, who will spare no effort, who is ready to sacrifice own life if it is needed in making the world a place where there is no oppression of man by man, social injustice and arbitrariness. So that a human heart will be locked against the beast forever".