As you know, people make history. Not every one of us has been given any meaningful contribution to the development of science, technology, sports, culture and other spheres of life. However, there are individuals whose life paths should be considered in detail and in detail. And one of these heroes of our time is Vasily Margelov.
Milestones in the life of the commander
The father of the Airborne Forces was born on December 27, 1908. Vasily Margelov is a native of Ukraine, because his hometown is the current Dnepropetrovsk (at that time Yekaterinoslav). He came from a simple working-class family. Vasily's father was a metallurgist. In addition to the future commander, the family had three more sons and one daughter. They lived, of course, rather poorly. The head of the family was forced to work in the foundry for days on end. All children were active au pair. Vasily Margelov from a very early age he was accustomed to work and went to work early. His first profession was tanning, and a little later, working in a mine, where he pushed coal-filled trolleys. In 1921, a young man graduated from a parish school. And in 1923 he became a member of the Komsomol.
In 1925 he received a distribution to Belarus as a forester. He reacted to this work extremely responsibly, daily examining the many-kilometer area of the earth, both in winter and in summer. Thanks to his zeal and dedication in his area, poaching has completely disappeared.
The 1927th year was marked for the youth by the election to the post of chairman of the working committee of the timber industry enterprise. He is also approved by the head of the tax commission and a candidate for party membership.
The beginning of military service
In the ranks of the Red Army Vasily Margelov was called up in 1928. He was enrolled in the United Belarusian Military School, located in Minsk. At the beginning, the young fighter was trained in a group of snipers, and already starting from the second year he became the foreman of a machine gun company. In April 1931 he graduated with honors.
Career
In 1931, Margelov was appointed platoon commander of the regimental school. And at the beginning of 1933 he returned to his native educational institution also to the post of commander of the platoon.
The commander of the machine gunners company, Margelov Vasily Filippovich, whose biography is saturated with various key dates, becomes in May 1936.
Since January 25, 1938, he has been the head of all intelligence of the Eighth Rifle Division named after the Dzerzhinsky Special Military District of Belarus.
First war
Short biography of Margelov Vasily Filippovich tells us that he was a member of the Union war with Finland. During this armed conflict, the legendary battalion reconnaissance ski battalion was able to personally capture the Swedish officers of the General Staff.
March 21, 1940 he was awarded the military rank of "major".
At the end of the war, Margelov became assistant commander of the 596th regiment on the combat front.
War with Germany
Just three days before the start of World War II, Margelov Vasily Filippovich (biography it says that his real name Markelov) receives a new army appointment. He becomes the commander of the regiment of the first motorized rifle division, based in Berezovka.
With the start of hostilities against the Nazis, a Soviet officer is appointed to the post of commander of the first special ski regiment of the KBF sailors.
In general, Margelov went through the whole war, having risen to the rank of major general. Under his leadership there were regiments, divisions. His fighters fought on various fronts, and he established himself as an experienced, energetic, fearless and demanding commander, able to show courage in critical situations by personal example.
A brief biography of Margelov Vasily Filippovich tells us that the whole life of this person was full of trials. He had eight injuries, of which two were very serious.
Contribution to the development of the Airborne Forces
After completing the courses of the General Staff Military Academy in 1948, Margelov was appointed commander of the 76th Guards Airborne Division, which was located in Pskov. In the same year, for the first time in his life, he jumps from an airplane with a parachute.
Six years later, Vasily Filippovich received in his leadership all the airborne troops. At first, this large army unit consisted of light infantry infantry. But Vasily Margelov, whose biography is replete with rationalization proposals, did a tremendous job of modernizing the troops, transferring them to a fundamentally new level both technically and tactically. Thanks to him, the paratroopers received the most modern weapons and means of landing. Margelov proved that fighters can operate even in the deepest rear of the enemy, land on the ground at any time of the day or night, while almost instantly switching to active combat operations after landing. This knowledge and skills allowed Bate (the general had such a nickname) to defend his dissertation and write a number of scientific works.
Attitude towards soldiers
Margelov was famous for the fact that he was always very respectful of ordinary fighters. History has preserved many quotes from the military general. So, he always claimed that victory was forged by ordinary people, and not by generals. The paratroopers loved their commander, since he did not shy away from coming to their barracks, canteen or hospital. In addition, Margelov sought to encourage soldiers.
By the way, an amazing fact in our time. Vasily Filippovich made his last parachute jump at the age of sixty-five. In total, in his life he jumped more than sixty times. Here is one of his sayings: "He who has never left a plane in his life, from where cities and villages seem like toys, who has never experienced joy and fear of free fall, whistling in his ears, a stream of wind beating in his chest, he never will understand the honor and pride of the paratrooper ... "
Government Recognition
During his career, Margelov experienced not only ups, but also downs. Even the USSR Minister of Defense, Marshal Grechko, once said in a private conversation that it was a mistake to demote Vasily Filippovich. But justice still triumphed. And on October 25, 1967, Markelov was awarded the rank of army general.
Personal life
The first wife of Margelov Vasily Filippovich is Maria. She became his legal wife in 1930. And a year later their son Gennady was born.
Not all the sons of Vasily Margelov, of whom there are five, followed in the footsteps of his father. But not one of them disgraced him. In particular, the son of Margelov Vasily Filippovich Alexander was an officer in the Airborne Forces, and in 1996 became a Hero of Russia. And in 2003, already retired, together with his brother Vitaly wrote a book about his dad.
Hero Awards
General Margelov during his life has been awarded a great many awards, which are extremely difficult to list. Among them are not only the regalia of the USSR, but foreign orders and medals. The highest title with which he was awarded is, of course, the Hero of the Soviet Union.
In addition, Vasily Filippovich was erected monuments in his native Dnepropetrovsk, as well as in Omsk, Tula, Ryazan, St. Petersburg, Ulyanovsk and other cities and villages.
To date, the defense department of the Russian Federation has a medal "Army General Margelov."
In February 2010, a bust of the general was put in Kherson as an eternal tribute to his memory. Also on the house in which he lived for twenty years in the capital of the Union, a memorial plaque was hung these days.
The date of death of the illustrious military is March 4, 1990. They betrayed him to the Novodevichy cemetery, which is located in Moscow.