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Andrey KravchenkoTwice Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel General of Tank Forces
Date of Birth: 18.11.1899
Country:  Ukraine |
Content:
Biography of Andrey Kravchenko
Andrey Grigorievich Kravchenko was born on November 18, 1899, in the village of Sulimin, Yahotyn district, Kiev region, Ukraine. He was a twice Hero of the Soviet Union and a Lieutenant General of the tank troops.
Early Life and Military Career
Kravchenko began his military service in 1918 and graduated from the Poltava Military Infantry School in 1923. He went on to study at the M.V. Frunze Military Academy in 1928 and completed academic courses at the Higher Military Academy in 1949.
During the Russian Civil War and the military intervention in Russia from 1917 to 1922, Kravchenko fought as a private against the White Guard. After the war, he commanded infantry units and served as the chief of staff of a rifle regiment. In 1928, he became a tactics instructor at the Leningrad Armored Courses for the improvement of command personnel.
From 1935, Kravchenko served in the Saratov Tank School, and in May 1939, he became the chief of staff of a rifle division, later a motorized rifle division. He participated in the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939-1940 while serving as the chief of staff of the 173rd Rifle Division. From June 1940 to February 1941, he was the chief of staff of the 16th Tank Division.
World War II
When the Great Patriotic War, also known as World War II, began, Kravchenko led the 18th Mechanized Corps. He fought on the Western, Bryansk, Stalingrad, Voronezh, and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Ukrainian Fronts. In September 1941, he successfully commanded the 31st Separate Tank Brigade, which participated in the Battle of Moscow. From January to March 1942, he commanded the armored and mechanized troops of the 61st Army.
In March 1942, Kravchenko assumed command of the 1st Tank Corps and later commanded the 2nd Corps. From September 1942 to January 1944, he led the 4th Tank Corps. In the counteroffensive near Stalingrad, the 4th Tank Corps, under Kravchenko's command, joined forces with the 4th Mechanized Corps of the Stalingrad Front on November 23, 1942, thus closing the encirclement ring around the enemy forces near Stalingrad.
Kravchenko's tank corps showed high combat activity in battles near Kastornaya (January 1943), at the Battle of Prokhorovka on the Kursk Bulge in July, during the Battle of the Dnieper from August to December, and in the defeat of the enemy group in Right-Bank Ukraine in December 1943. His skillful leadership and personal bravery earned him the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Later Career and Awards
From January 1944 until the end of the war, Kravchenko commanded the 6th (later 6th Guards) Tank Army. His army achieved success in the Korsun-Shevchenkovsky and Jassy-Kishinev offensive operations in 1944, as well as in the operations to liberate Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Austria. In the summer of 1945, his army was relocated to the Far Eastern Republic and became part of the Transbaikal Front, participating in the Khingan-Mukden operation of 1945.
Throughout these operations, Kravchenko demonstrated his skills as a proficient organizer of rapid and maneuverable tank army actions. He skillfully led the 6th Guards Tank Army in the challenging conditions of the Carpathians, Transylvanian and Eastern Alps, and later in the Greater Khingan Mountains in the Far East, for which he was awarded a second Gold Star medal.
After the war, Kravchenko continued to command the 6th Guards Tank Army. From June 1947, he served as the commander of the Armored and Mechanized Forces of the Trans-Baikal and Primorsky Military Districts. From January 1954 to October 1955, he was the assistant commander of the Far Eastern Military District for tank armament.
Kravchenko was also a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 2nd convocation. He was decorated with two Orders of Lenin, four Orders of the Red Banner, two Orders of Suvorov 1st class, Orders of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 1st class, Suvorov 2nd class, Kutuzov 2nd class, and various medals, as well as foreign orders.
