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"Victory Parade: Stories and Faces"
A large close-knit family of Antonina Yevtushenko from Brest cherishes the invaluable family heirloom: their grandfather’s handwritten book “The Life Path of Georgy Koblov”. Veteran of the Great Patriotic War, Guards Major Georgy Koblov penned more than a hundred pages to tell his life story. The veteran narrated the military operations, described the heroic feats and his combat comrades. But in the center of this story is not death and loss, but life, happiness, courage, friendship and true love – everything that the war could not take away from him.
‘Soldiers marched so hard they lost boot plates and even soles’
‘Soldiers marched so hard they lost boot plates and even soles’
In his autobiography Georgy Koblov barely recalls the events of June 1945. At that time, all his thoughts were about his wife and daughter. He was looking forward to seeing them throughout the long Great Patriotic War. But whenever the Koblov family gathered around the big table after the war, the veteran often talked about the first Victory Parade and his participation in it. His daughters listened carefully to the father, so that they could tell everything to their children and grandchildren.
“According to my father, the training was meticulous,” his daughter Tamara said. “The training was very tiring, they trained from dusk till dawn. But no one complained, everyone without exception felt great responsibility. My father often repeated: ‘We marched not only for ourselves, but also for all those who did not live to see the Victory”. On the day of the Parade, they marched so hard they lost boot plates and even soles.”
The veteran also often recalled the joy on the faces of Muscovites at the sight of the victorious soldiers.
In fact, my grandfather didn't like to talk about the war, never boasted about his heroic deeds, although he had something to tell,” said Antonina Yevtushenko, granddaughter of the veteran. “If he did talk about the 1940s, it was the stories about his fellow soldiers. This was a unique generation of people who were ready to die to save their comrade. Grandfather cherished the memory of his fellow soldiers, especially those who did not live to see the Victory. And he always repeated that this memory must be carried through generations.
The war of the reconnaissance man Koblov
Georgy Koblov came from a family of Orenburg Cossacks. He was born in the village of Linevka, Sol-Iletsky District, Orenburg Oblast, in 1912.
“In 1918, my great-grandfather Fyodor Ovchinnikov died, and the following year my great-grandmother succumbed to typhus. Six of their children suddenly became orphans. The eldest was ten, the youngest was only one year old. The children were taken in by relatives and neighbors. My grandfather and his sister were adopted by the Koblov family,” said Antonina Yevtushenko. “The father of the family, Aleksandr Koblov, was a party activist, so it was not surprising that my grandfather followed in his footsteps and was the first to join the Pioneers and later a rural unit of Komsomol. In 1933, he voluntarily joined the army, and after completing his service, he decided to stay there.”
The war broke out when the Red Army soldier was serving in the town of Supraśl near Białystok. At dawn on 22 June, the 4th Motorcycle Regiment, in which Junior Lieutenant Koblov was a commander of a reconnaissance platoon, was raised on alert. The regiment's intelligence chief, Senior Lieutenant Cherny, told them about Germany's attack. “He demanded that the reconnaissance platoon be ready to carry out a combat mission at any moment. And I was the only one in the platoon who had weapons - a pistol with only one cartridge. The intelligence chief ordered me to immediately acquire weapons and ammunition. On the way to the warehouse, I wanted to check on my wife and tell her what to do, since she was alone with a little baby. But I was unable to do so, because while I was receiving the weapons, German planes started bombing the place where the regiment was stationed. They hit the fuel and lubricants warehouse, causing a huge explosion and a terrible fire. So I did not get to see my wife. Upon arrival at the assembly point, the command was given: “Reconnaissance, forward!” The weapons and ammunition had to be handed out on the go,” recalled Georgy Koblov.
The regiment moved towards the enemy. Our troops engaged in a battle and held off the enemy until the main forces arrived. They won that battle, but the situation was getting worse. In subsequent battles, the 4th Motorcycle Regiment acted as part of the 6th Mechanized Corps.
“The platoon got surrounded near Slonim. While crossing the Shchara River my grandfather got a shrapnel wound to his leg. It took 28 days to get out of the encirclement, and all the time the soldiers carried their commander on a stretcher through forests and swamps,” Antonina Yevtushenko said.
In December 1941 Georgy Koblov was appointed commander of a motorcycle platoon of a separate reconnaissance company. Thus, he became a reconnaissance man in the tank forces.
“Soon the 7th Tank Brigade was redeployed near Kharkov, in the area of Balakleya. Here, during the battle, he got concussed when the tank blew up on a mine. The doctors healed him back to health again,” the granddaughter said. “After the bloody battles near Kharkov, the rest of the brigade was taken to Voroshilovgrad for re-formation. Three brigades were reformed into one - the 5th Guards Tank Brigade. My grandfather was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and was appointed commander of a reconnaissance platoon.
The platoon under the leadership of Georgy Koblov gathered valuable intelligence many times. The agents often went on important missions and each time they brought back a prisoner, important enemy documents and weapons.
Georgy Koblov’s platoon liberated Donbass, fought in the Caucasus. Georgy Koblov received the Order of the Red Star for these battles. He participated in the battles for Armavir, Malgobek, Ardon, Alagir, Novorossiysk, Taman. In his book, the war veteran described many combat episodes in which he participated with his comrades. One of the most memorable was the battle in the town of Mukachevo.
“The reconnaissance group had a task to capture the bridge across the Latoritsa and hold it until the main forces approached. Near the settlement of Svalyava the group faced an obstacle - an anti-tank ditch. Attempts to find a way around did not yield results. Not far from the ditch stood a house of a roadmaster with some outbuildings. The owner spoke Russian poorly but understood the situation and suggested dismantling his shed to construct a crossing. Leaving a lighthouse on the river bank to assist the main forces in crossing, the reconnaissance group broke into the town and engaged in battle,” the veteran wrote. During that fight, the group destroyed an enemy artillery unit, suppressed two firing points, and discovered an anti-tank ambush.Fierce battles unfolded in Germany.
On the way to Berlin, the Soviet troops had to cross the Oder River. Before the attack, the reconnaissance group was assigned to identify a weak point in the enemy's defenses, break through it, advance to the town of Strumień, capture the bridge and hold it until the brigade's main forces arrived. During that battle, the group destroyed an anti-tank gun and two machine guns, captured the bridge and cleared it of mines. The enemy garrison abandoned the town in panic, but Georgy Koblov continued pursuing the enemy.In March 1945, infantry and tank units broke through German defenses and captured the town of Racibórz.
During those battles, Georgy Koblov was wounded again. While recovering in the hospital, the brigade headquarters received an order to send the Guards of Major Koblov to study at the Stalin Academy of the WPRA Mechanization and Motorization Program (renamed after Malinovsky only in 1967). On 26 April 1945, Georgy Koblov arrived in Moscow, where he celebrated the long-awaited Victory.
Georgy Koblov was awarded the Order of the Red Star, the Order of the Patriotic War First Class, two Orders of the Patriotic War Second Class, Medal for Bravery, Medal for Excellence in Military Service, Medal for the Defense of the Caucasus and Medal for the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.
Yulia GAVRILENKO,
7 Days newspaper
Photos courtesy of Georgy Koblov's family
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