 |
Vasiliy GorbanSoviet tank officer, lieutenant general, Hero of the Soviet Union
Date of Birth: 12.03.1918
|
Content:
- Vasily Moiseyevich Gorban: A Distinguished Soviet Tank Commander
- Pre-War Service
- Great Patriotic War
- Feat at Tallinn
- Post-War Service
- Death and Honors
- - Two Orders of Lenin
Vasily Moiseyevich Gorban: A Distinguished Soviet Tank Commander
Early Life and Military EducationVasily Moiseyevich Gorban was born on March 12, 1918, in the village of Fedoseyevka (now the Kuvandik district of the Orenburg region) into a large peasant family. After graduating from the Orsk Pedagogical College, he worked as a harvester operator in the Akzharsky state farm in the Dombarovsky district.
In October 1937, Gorban was drafted into the Red Army for compulsory military service and served at the artillery range of the Volga Military District. In June 1938, he successfully applied to a military academy and graduated from the Saratov Armored School in 1939.
Pre-War Service
Upon graduating, Gorban was assigned to the 9th Army's armored forces and participated in the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939-1940. From March 1940, he commanded a tank platoon in the 59th Tank Regiment of the 59th Motorized Division and later joined the 5th Tank Division in August 1940.
Great Patriotic War
On the first day of the Great Patriotic War, Gorban engaged in combat on the Northwestern Front. He fought in the Baltic Strategic Defensive Operation, including the Battle of Alytus on June 22-23, 1941, and the Battle of Raseiniai. Despite the heavy losses faced by his division, he survived these fierce battles.
From August 1941, Gorban served as the commander of a tank company in the 42nd Separate Tank Battalion of the 8th Army on the Northern Front. Later, he held various leadership positions in tank units, including being the deputy commander of a tank battalion in the 222nd Tank Brigade.
Feat at Tallinn
Gorban's most notable achievement occurred during the Tallinn Offensive, part of the Baltic Strategic Offensive Operation. From September 17 to 22, 1944, he led the advance detachment of a mobile tank group in the breakthrough of enemy defenses southwest of Tartu. His detachment played a pivotal role in capturing strategic locations and liberating Tallinn.
On September 18, Gorban's tank was attacked and set ablaze. Despite the imminent danger, he escaped and bravely climbed into another tank, engaging enemy forces and destroying two self-propelled guns. On September 20, he led his detachment through a blazing barricade and pursued a German convoy, successfully destroying approximately 150 armored vehicles and seizing enemy equipment.
Post-War Service
After the war, Gorban continued his service in the Soviet Army. He held various command positions in mechanized brigades and divisions, as well as serving as chief of staff for the 20th Tank Division. He also attended and graduated from the Military Academy of the Armored and Mechanized Troops of the Soviet Army named after I. V. Stalin in 1951 and the Voroshilov Higher Military Academy in 1956.
Gorban served in various high-ranking positions, including commander of the 31st Tank Division in the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany (GSFG), first deputy commander of the 5th Guards Tank Army in the Belarusian Military District, and commander of the 3rd General Army in the GSFG.
From November 1974, he served as an assistant to the representative of the Commander-in-Chief of the Joint Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact member states in the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic.
Death and Honors
Vasily Moiseyevich Gorban passed away on May 9, 1977, in Moscow after a severe illness. He was buried in the Preobrazhensky Cemetery.
Gorban's distinguished service was recognized with numerous awards, including:
- Two Orders of Lenin
- Two Orders of the Red Banner- Order of Suvorov, 3rd class
- Order of Alexander Nevsky
- Two Orders of the Patriotic War, 1st class
- Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class
- Two Orders of the Red Star
- Medal "For the Defense of Leningrad"
- Medal "For the Liberation of Prague"
- Combat Order "For Merit to the People and the Fatherland" (GDR)
