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Alexander VaganovSoviet serviceman, guard major, Hero of the Soviet Union
Date of Birth: 21.12.1914
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Content:
- Early Life and Military Service
- World War II
- Heroic Action in Poland
- Post-War Career and Legacy
- Death and Honors
- - Hero of the Soviet Union (1945)
Early Life and Military Service
Alexander Vasyanovich Vaganov was born on December 8 (21), 1914, into a peasant family in the village of Kiskino, Omsk Province, Russian Empire. After completing the Chulyak seven-year school in 1930, he initially worked as a driver before relocating to Zernograd in 1933.
In 1936, Vaganov was drafted into the Red Army. He trained as a tank driver and served in the Far East. He subsequently completed the courses for junior lieutenants and the Advanced Training Courses for Officers.
World War II
From March 1943 onward, Vaganov fought in the Great Patriotic War. As part of the 68th Guards Tank Regiment, he saw action on the Bryansk, Voronezh, 1st Ukrainian, and 1st Belorussian fronts, participating in the Battle of Kursk and fighting along the banks of the Dnieper, Western Bug, San, Vistula, and Oder rivers. He sustained minor injuries on August 12, 1943, and March 25, 1944, and was wounded in the hand on January 17, 1945.
Heroic Action in Poland
On January 16, 1945, near the town of Nowe Miasto, Poland, Vaganov was assigned the task of leading a raid behind enemy lines and severing their retreat routes. His tank company successfully crossed the Pilica River on a captured bridge, outflanked German defenses, and cut off their escape paths. They captured approximately 200 vehicles loaded with ammunition, disabled 3 assault guns and 9 field pieces, and took around 200 enemy soldiers and officers prisoner.
Post-War Career and Legacy
After retiring from the military in 1945 due to health reasons, Vaganov worked as an administrative director at the Azov-Black Sea Institute of Agricultural Mechanization. He was also actively involved in veteran organizations in Zernograd.
From 1949, Vaganov resided in Kropotkin, Krasnodar Krai. Over the years, he held various managerial positions in the agricultural machinery industry and was a deputy of the Kropotkin City Council from 1950.
Death and Honors
Alexander Vasyanovich Vaganov passed away on May 20 or September 26, 1974, in Kropotkin. He was laid to rest in the city's cemetery.
Vaganov was honored with the following awards for his bravery and service during the war:
- Hero of the Soviet Union (1945)
- Order of Lenin- two Orders of the Red Banner
- Order of Alexander Nevsky
- Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class
- Order of the Red Star
- Jubilee Medal "For Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945"
Vaganov's legacy lives on in the memory of his fellow soldiers and the city of Kropotkin, where he is respected as a courageous hero and a dedicated veteran.
