Hero of the Soviet Union Nikolai Mikhailovich Dmitriev
Nikolai Mikhailovich Dmitriev was born in 1917 in the village of Kumak, Novoorlovsky District, Orenburg Region.
Russian. Member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. After obtaining a secondary specialized education, he moved to Frunze. He worked as the deputy chief accountant at the republican office "Zagotskot." In 1939, he was drafted into the Soviet Army. Private.
He was a gunner of an anti-tank gun.
He participated in the Great Patriotic War starting in June 1941 on the Western Front.
On August 31, 1941, for his heroic act in repelling tank attacks and the bravery and courage displayed during this, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
After recovering in the hospital, N. M. Dmitriev continued to fight until the end of the war, having gone through a glorious combat path.
He then became an officer and continued to serve in the Soviet Army.
After retiring, he lived in the city of Saransk, working at the "Electrovypryamitel" plant. He died in 1981.
HERO OF THE FIRST DAYS OF THE WAR
In September 1939, when the streets, gardens, and parks were dressed in crimson and gold, and the dry leaves rustled underfoot, the collective of the republican office "Zagotskot" bid farewell to their comrade, Komsomol member Nikolai Dmitriev, as he joined the ranks of the Red Army.
Everyone wished Nikolai success in his service. In the eyes of Anna Maksimovna, who stood next to her son, there was anxiety and concern; she discreetly wiped away her tears. After letting his friends speak, she quietly said, "Serve honestly, my son, and return home." Nikolai promised his mother and comrades to be a model in all soldierly matters.
He kept his word. After successfully mastering military skills at the regimental school, he was assigned as a gunner of a 45mm anti-tank gun in the 123rd artillery division of the 1st Proletarian Rifle Division.
Soon, their platoon gained fame as the best. In the autumn of 1940, the artillery crew, which included Dmitriev, defended the honor of the division at All-Army competitions and took first place among anti-tank artillery units. For hitting targets with the first shot, gunner Nikolai Dmitriev was commended by the order of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, awarded the "Excellent of the Red Army" badge and the "For Excellent Artillery Shooting" badge.
Early in the morning on June 22, 1941, the division was put on alert. The units stood in even columns in the square. After receiving the report from the duty officer, the division commander Y. G. Kreizer said:
— Fascist Germany, without presenting any claims, treacherously violating the non-aggression pact, has launched a war against the Soviet Union this morning. Our country has never been an aggressor. The first day of its existence, Soviet power began with the Decree on Peace. Peace on earth is the foundation of our policy.
We were forced to take up arms by the enemies of peace and progress. Our Proletarian Division has been ordered to move to the front tomorrow morning and participate in the battles.
Having completed a nearly seven-hundred-kilometer journey from the capital of the Motherland — Moscow, at noon on June 30, the 1st Proletarian Rifle Division reached the Berezina River near the city of Borisov and immediately found itself in difficult, unfavorable conditions. The defense along the Minsk—Moscow highway had to be established hastily, under artillery fire and bombing. All night they dug trenches and camouflaged the equipment.
The order was brief: "Repel the assault of numerically superior forces of the tank corps. Do not let a single enemy tank through." On the way from Moscow to Borisov, Nikolai learned the harsh alphabet of war, witnessing its tragic face firsthand. With pain in his heart, Nikolai looked at the streams of refugees, the scorched fields and meadows. He thought about the atrocities of the fascists, the merciless destruction of the civilian population. And his heart was filled with anger and burning hatred for the cruel enemy.
Early in the morning, enemy vultures appeared in the sky. One by one, they swooped down on the positions occupied by the division, dropping deadly cargo. As soon as the planes finished bombing, the whistling of shells could be heard. In the brief pauses between the roar of explosions, the artillerymen caught the rumble of enemy tanks. Breaking through the Berezina, the armored vehicles advanced, raising clouds of dust, through which dark figures of machine gunners could be seen.
A few more agonizing minutes of waiting, and the battle would begin. The first blow was taken by the artillerymen, blocking the path of the enemy tanks. Just like all the guns of the division, Dmitriev's gun quickly and accurately sent shells one after another into the moving tank avalanche, under cover of which the infantry advanced. Shells exploded around, lifting the earth in a black whirlwind. Already on the battlefield, more than a dozen damaged enemy tanks had halted their advance, some were on fire.
The armored enemy trembled from the precise strikes of the Soviet artillerymen, and the Hitlerite infantry lay down. And when our tanks emerged and struck the flank, the enemy faltered and retreated to their original positions.
The 1st Proletarian Division repelled the attacks of the elite tank corps for two days. It destroyed dozens of tanks and many Hitlerites. But the enemy's superiority in strength and technology was too great. They found the flanks and began to envelop them. The division switched to positional defense. At night, when the enemy ceased active operations, it retreated, and in the morning fought steadfastly at new lines.
For ten days, the division held back the onslaught of the enemy tank corps, not allowing them to develop a rapid offensive along the Minsk—Moscow highway. During this period, the artillery crew, where Nikolai Dmitriev was the gunner, accounted for five destroyed tanks, several armored personnel carriers, and over 10 destroyed machine gun positions. In those ominous days of '41, the artillery crew was renewed twice.
Only the gunner remained unchanged. During the battle, the situation developed such that the division's command post was almost unprotected, and the breakthrough tanks threatened the command post. The division commander ordered the urgent redeployment of two guns under the command of Lieutenant Khrymov to the disposal of the chief of staff. The chief of staff ordered one gun, which had Dmitriev in the crew, to be placed on the outskirts of the village behind a high fence and to open fire on the lead tank. He placed the second gun to the right of the road, next to our tank, assigning the task: to disable the rear vehicle with the first shot.
On July 10, 1941, several dozen steel monsters with crosses on their armor appeared on the road. Clanking their tracks, occasionally firing and encountering no resistance, they confidently moved towards the division's command post.
"Prepare for battle!" — commanded the gun commander, Sergeant Kondratenko. Quickly adjusting the elevation and traverse mechanisms, Dmitriev aimed the crosshairs of the panorama at the vulnerable spot of the lead vehicle and waited for the next command to pull the trigger.
And suddenly, two shots thundered almost simultaneously from the right, then more and more... The gun and tank that had taken position by the road opened fire. With unexpected and accurate fire, they disabled two tanks and set one on fire.
The sergeant grumbled, "We revealed ourselves too soon. We lacked patience! Now we are the only hope." He was right. The fascist tanks concentrated fire on the neighboring crew and tank, taking them out of action.
The gun of Sergeant Kondratenko, ready for battle, waited... Somewhere nearby a shell exploded, and fragments rattled against the shield. With a quiet groan, the sergeant fell to the ground. Dmitriev rushed to the commander, who was trying to get up, caught him under the arms, and began to retrieve a bandage.
— Back! Immediately to the gun! — the commander ordered authoritatively. And then quietly added: — Don't bandage me. Kolya, take command. Don't let the tanks through.
Nikolai rushed to the gun, but it did not open fire. The tanks were getting closer and closer, but the well-camouflaged gun was not seen by the enemy, who fired randomly. Smoke from a previously set ablaze tank drifted across the field, occasionally obscuring the vehicles coming from behind.
This circumstance prompted Nikolai to increase the smoke screen to allow the tanks to get as close as possible. At his command, the crew members set fire to an old shed located a few meters away from them...
With each passing second, the distance between the lead tank and the gun noticeably decreased. But Nikolai did not hurry. He waited for the moment to strike and kept the approaching tank in the crosshairs of his sight. 700, 600, 500 meters... And at that moment, the second tank sharply turned to bypass the obstacle and exposed its flank.
Nikolai instantly turned the gun's barrel and sent shells one after another. The tank jerked and, grinding, froze in place... Another moment, the bolt clicked, and Nikolai caught the track of the front tank in his crosshairs. A shot rang out. The left track, arching like a snake, slid off the roller. The tank sharply turned right and froze in place.
Another hit, and smoke poured from the enemy vehicle, and a few seconds later it exploded. The damaged tanks blocked the path for others.
During the battle, the crew perished, and Dmitriev was left alone. He loaded, aimed the gun, and fired. Already several fragments had pierced Nikolai's body, blood flowed from his hands and face. He wiped his eyes, loaded another shell, and at that moment the shock wave from an exploding shell threw him aside. One more second or two, and the steel tracks would crush the gun and break through to the command post.
Overcoming excruciating pain, gathering his last strength, Nikolai crawled to the gun. One of the tanks, seemingly directing its gun barrel straight at the gun, confidently advanced. Two shots thundered almost simultaneously.
The enemy gunner missed, the shell whistled over the shield. But Nikolai did not miss. The tank dipped into the ground, stopped, and burst into flames. The same fate befell another armored vehicle. The others, to Nikolai's joy and surprise, turned back. Our tanks appeared on the right flank. Everything else was engulfed in fog...
At the approaches to the command post, the brave gunner destroyed four fascist tanks and several armored personnel carriers with infantry.
Nikolai Dmitriev woke up in a field hospital. Seventeen fragments were removed by surgeons from the body of the brave gunner of the 45mm gun, who performed a feat on the 19th day of the war.
For his displayed courage, bravery, and heroism in battles on the Minsk—Moscow highway, the Kyrgyzstani warrior Nikolai Mikhailovich Dmitriev was awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on August 31, 1941. He was the first Kyrgyzstani to be honored with this high award from the Motherland.
The young, strong body quickly coped with the wounds. Returning to his division, Nikolai Dmitriev again took to the gun, destroying tanks, firing positions, and enemy personnel. Holding back the superior enemy, the division retreated to Tula.
The wounds received in the August battles of '41 made themselves felt. For treatment, Dmitriev was sent to the Ryazan military hospital. Then, already as a commander of a mortar crew, he again participated in battles. In May 1943, he became a communist.
Receiving the Order of Lenin and the "Gold Star" medal from Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin, before departing for studies at the 3rd Leningrad Artillery School, which was then located in Kostroma, Dmitriev went on a short leave to Frunze to see his family. He was warmly welcomed by the collective where he had worked for five years before joining the army. His relatives were infinitely happy to see him. Well, he fulfilled his mother's instructions.
Having graduated from the military school in April 1945, Major Dmitriev served in the ranks of the Soviet Army until the end of 1960. After retiring due to length of service and health reasons, Nikolai Mikhailovich worked at the Saransk plant "Electrovypryamitel" as the deputy head of the financial and sales department, and as a technology engineer.
The hero warrior did not cease his labor and social activities for a single day. He was awarded the title of "Shock Worker of Communist Labor," received many certificates of honor, badges, and was elected a deputy of the city Council of People's Deputies. Leading the Saransk section of the Soviet War Veterans Committee and the plant's veterans council, he conducted extensive public work: he spoke in military units, at factories, schools, igniting the flame of memory, helping the younger generation understand and feel the heroic past and the greatness of our days.
V. SUR