Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Semyonovich Reshetnik
Ivan Semyonovich Reshetnik was born in 1924 in the village of Novo-Troitskoye, Pakhta-Aral district of the South Kazakhstan region, in a peasant family. He was Ukrainian. A Komsomol member. He moved with his parents to the village of Leninskoye in the Uzgen district of the Osh region. In August 1942, he was drafted into the Soviet Army. He served as a junior lieutenant and commander of a machine gun platoon.
He participated in the Great Patriotic War starting in June 1943, fighting on the Voronezh Front. He particularly distinguished himself in battles during the crossing of the Dnieper River.
On October 23, 1943, for his courage and heroism displayed in battles for the right bank of the Dnieper, Ivan Semyonovich Reshetnik was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In subsequent battles, he was awarded the Order of the Red Star and several medals.
After the war, the brave warrior continued to serve in the ranks of the Soviet Army. He passed away in 1968.
THE MACHINE GUN WAS UNSTOPPABLE...
The assignment was not easy. A group of infantry was tasked with capturing the enemy trench. The commander of the machine gun platoon, Ivan Reshetnik, who led the group, carefully studied the approaches to the trench. The rugged terrain—hills and ravines—provided a favorable opportunity for delivering a surprise attack. Waiting for darkness, the soldiers moved forward silently. Several men were left nearby in reserve, in a ravine.
The others, having stealthily approached the trench, rushed into battle. Privates Gorlenko, Gopanyuk, Shevchenko, and others struck down the confused, unsuspecting fascist soldiers with fire and the butt of their rifles. Seizing the moment, Ivan Reshetnik cut the telephone wires. The soldiers in reserve came to help.
The Germans put up desperate resistance. But the attack was unstoppable. In a matter of minutes, the brave soldiers destroyed more than 50 enemy soldiers. A green rocket soared into the sky. By this signal, the main forces began their advance. As a result of long and fierce battles, the Ukrainian city of Bila Tserkva was captured.
This is just one episode in the combat biography of Ivan Reshetnik, junior lieutenant and commander of the machine gun platoon of the 3rd rifle battalion of the 309th Pyriatyn Rifle Division.
Ivan volunteered for the front in 1942, just after turning 18. He grew up in a simple peasant family.
His father, Semyon Mikhailovich, was a participant in the Civil War, fighting against the Basmachi in Central Asia. Once the fighting ended, he remained there and settled in the village of Leninskoye in the Uzgen district. Ivan studied well in school, earning good and excellent marks.
He was involved in sports, passing the standards for the GTO badge and "Voroshilov Marksman." Considering these qualities of the conscript, the Osh city military enlistment office sent him to infantry school.
Every day for the cadets was filled to the brim. Marches, classes on gymnastic equipment, shooting at the training ground. Future officers were taught to act tactically competently on the battlefield, to shoot accurately with all types of weapons, and to master hand-to-hand combat techniques. The training was conducted on an accelerated program, and after just four months, together with other graduates, Ivan Reshetnik was awarded the rank of junior lieutenant and sent to the front. He began his service in the 309th rifle division, with which his entire path through the roads of the Great Patriotic War was intertwined.
There was no time for the new commander of the machine gun platoon and his entrusted soldiers to get to know each other. After defeating the fascists at Stalingrad, the Soviet troops continued their offensive. The division, where Reshetnik began his service, was part of the 20th Army and fought for the liberation of the northeastern part of Ukraine. A particularly fierce battle unfolded for the capture of the city of Pyriatyn. The fascists set themselves the task of holding this major railway junction at all costs. For several days, bloody battles raged.
Reshetnik's platoon was stationed at the most difficult sections and was one of the first to burst into the city streets. For capturing Pyriatyn, Ivan Reshetnik received his first combat award—the Order of the Red Star. The 309th rifle division was named Pyriatyn.
Continuing the offensive, the 309th approached the Dnieper River in fierce battles. In mid-September, the 3rd rifle battalion, in which Reshetnik served, reached the river and occupied the village of Andryushi located on its left bank.
Soon reinforcements arrived. On September 23, all units of the division were positioned at the starting lines by the Dnieper.
The enemy had prepared thoroughly and in advance for defense on the right bank. On the path of the Soviet units preparing for the offensive were three lines of trenches, anti-tank minefields, and numerous barbed wire obstacles.
On the night of September 24, the main units of our troops, advancing to the Dnieper along a wide front, began to cross the river simultaneously at many points in the area of Loyev—Zaporizhzhia. The officers and soldiers did not wait for the arrival of pontoons and other ferrying means. They used rafts hastily constructed from logs and boards, empty iron barrels, gates and doors from houses, tarpaulins stuffed with straw and hay—in short, everything that allowed the soldiers to stay afloat. The most daring were selected for the leading assault groups, mainly communists and Komsomol members.
Reshetnik's platoon was one of the first to begin the crossing. In the night sky, rockets flared up, machine guns rattled, and the explosions of shells echoed loudly. One of the boats carrying Reshetnik's platoon capsized from an explosion. The soldiers, keeping it afloat, continued the crossing. The closer they got to the shore, the heavier the fire became. Clouds of fine, dust-like water splashes formed in the air above the raging river. When they were almost to the shore, another boat capsized, and several people were wounded. With their last strength, helping each other and supporting their machine guns above the water, the men paddled to the shore. Finally, their feet touched the bottom.
Immediately behind the narrow 2-meter strip of shore began a grove.
The water was behind them, a surge—and Reshetnik's platoon was under the shade of the trees.
There were no losses during the crossing, except for the wounded; the platoon secured the bridgehead in full strength.
Now it was essential to hold it until the main forces arrived. A fierce struggle for the bridgehead began. In the darkness, the fascists fired at the grove at random, but with dawn, a hail of fire fell upon the platoon's positions.
Against our two dozen soldiers, the fascists threw two infantry companies. Reshetnik skillfully positioned his soldiers, and as soon as the line of Germans approached close enough, the machine guns opened fire in unison.
The first attack of the fascists faltered, followed by a second, then a third. Each time, accurate machine gun fire forced the enemy soldiers to retreat. The platoon fought steadfastly. The number of wounded increased, but everyone who could hold a weapon remained in the fight. The attempts of the vastly superior German forces to reclaim the bridgehead were in vain.
The fire did not cease for a second. With minimal losses, Reshetnik's platoon destroyed more than 100 fascist soldiers and officers in an unequal battle. For almost a day, until the main forces arrived, the soldiers held the bridgehead on the right bank of the Dnieper.
In a rapid attacking surge, the 309th division captured the right bank villages of Balik and Shchuchinka. The platoon commander was constantly in the hottest spots of the battle, inspiring his soldiers by his own example. When the machine gun crew was taken out, Reshetnik himself opened fire on the enemy. He destroyed more than 30 Germans in that battle.
For crossing the Dnieper, for the courage and heroism displayed during the crossing and in battles at the right bank bridgehead, the entire machine gun platoon was nominated for awards from the Motherland, and Ivan Semyonovich Reshetnik was awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
In moments of calm between battles, Ivan often recalled his mother's words as she sent him off to the front: "Serve well, son. Everyone in our family fought bravely, including your father. Military duty is a sacred duty; fulfill it honorably.
And Reshetnik fulfilled his mother's heartfelt instruction as his soldier's conscience and military oath dictated. Upon receiving a letter from home, he would immediately write back: "Hello, dear ones! I am doing fine. Alive and healthy. We are driving the fascist filth from our land!" And at the end, he often added: "I write briefly; there is no time. We need to prepare for the offensive."
And again—bloody battles, military roads, victories, dangers, the bitterness of losing friends. The Soviet troops marched westward with wide strides, not giving the enemy a chance to consolidate at prepared positions. Soon, the soldiers of the 309th Pyriatyn Rifle Division, having crossed the State Border of the USSR, fought on the territory of Central Europe.
In one of the battles, a fragment of a fascist shell severely wounded Ivan Reshetnik. He spent several months in hospitals, and his health condition did not allow him to return to the front. Yet, the Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Semyonovich Reshetnik did not exchange his military uniform for civilian clothes. He served in the Armed Forces for a long time. Only with a sharp deterioration in health did he retire in 1966 with the rank of major. And two years later, Reshetnik passed away.
His homeland in the village of Leninskoye in the Uzgen district remembers the glorious fellow countryman. A museum of military glory has been established in the local boarding school. One of the museum's displays is dedicated to the Hero. The children carefully preserve photographs of Reshetnik, his documents, and personal belongings donated to the museum by Ivan Semyonovich's relatives. This museum has existed for 16 years and is known far beyond the borders of the Uzgen district. Of course, the children did not think about fame when they created it.
They wanted to reflect their search work, which became more and more successful year by year. The history teacher of the boarding school, A. Kholopova, the organizer of the museum, talks about the search work and exhibits. She particularly emphasizes that the stands, showcases, and layouts—in short, all the museum's design—were made by the children themselves. One can only admire the craftsmanship and skill with which many models, for example, were made.
The museum has three halls—one is dedicated to Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, the second to the history of the village, and the third to the Great Patriotic War. More than a hundred residents of Leninskoye went to the front in 1942, all fought bravely and steadfastly, but not everyone lived to see the bright holiday of Victory. Photographs of fellow countrymen who fought during the Great Patriotic War are displayed in the museum. But with particular pride, the students mention the name of Ivan Reshetnik—Hero of the Soviet Union.
Here, in the museum, lessons of courage are held, and children are accepted into the pioneers and Komsomol. Rarely does a day go by without an excursion. Veterans, teachers, and students from other schools in the district and region come. And as a rule, the impressions of the museum are the best. One book for recording feedback was not enough; they recently started a second one.
The guides in the museum are the children themselves. With unchanging excitement in their voices, they tell about the feats of Ivan Reshetnik.
V. KRYGIN