In Soviet and Russian historiography, the words "Vlasov" and "Vlasovites" are associated only with betrayal and treason, going over to the side of the enemy, and nothing else. In the political life of Ukraine recently, I had to endow the corrupt Party of Regions with the symbol of "political Vlasov" as a symbol of betrayal in politics.
Such contemptuous symbolism came from the name of Andrei Vlasov, a general of the Red Army in the first months of the war, who, being surrounded in 1942, surrendered and went over to the side of the Germans. The transition of the commander of the 2nd shock army Vlasov to the Germans, of course, was one of the most unpleasant episodes of the war for our country. There were other officers who became traitors, but Vlasov was the most senior and most famous. Naturally, it is interesting what kind of person this general was, how he stood out from the top commanding staff of the Red Army and what made him take the path of betrayal.
Career officer of the red army
Vlasov, the future career officer of the Red Army, was born into a poor peasant family in the Nizhny Novgorod region, with difficulty he managed to enter the seminary, where his studies were interrupted by the revolution. In 1918 he entered to study as an agronomist, in 1919 he was mobilized into the Red Army. After the commanding courses, he commanded a platoon, a company, from 1929 after completing the "Shot" courses he commanded a battalion, and acted as chief of staff of the regiment. Member of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, since 1933 in leading positions at the headquarters of the Leningrad Military District, member of the District Tribunal. Student of the Frunze Military Academy from 1935, commander of the 215th Infantry Regiment of the 72nd Division from 1937, commander of this division from 1938. From October 1938 he was seconded to China to work in a group of military advisers, from May to November 1939 the chief military adviser in China …
Upon returning from China, he inspected the 99th Infantry Division, in his report noted that the division commander was intensively studying the experience of the Wehrmacht, he was soon arrested, and Vlasov in January 1940 was appointed commander of the 99th Infantry Division, which was stationed in the Przemysl area.
Under the command of Vlasov, the division was recognized as the best in the Kiev military district, he achieved a high level of tactical training of personnel and strict compliance with statutory norms. For his successes, Vlasov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, the Red Star wrote about him as a capable commander who cares about his subordinates. According to the results of military exercises in September 1940, with the participation of Marshal Timoshenko, the division was awarded the Red Banner, and the Marshal named it the best in the Red Army. In the first days of the war, the 99th division, already without Vlasov, was among the few who offered the enemy organized and staunch resistance.
As can be seen from his track record, he went all the way from platoon commander to division commander, proved himself to be a sensible commander and enjoyed authority with his subordinates and command.
Commander of the 4th mechanized corps in battles on the Lviv ledge
In January 1941, Vlasov was appointed commander of the 4th mechanized corps of the Kiev military district. A month later, he was awarded the Order of Lenin, apparently for China. The corps was stationed in Lvov and was part of the 6th Army of the Kiev District, which was transformed into the South-Western Front at the beginning of the war.
Of all the mechanized corps of the Red Army, the 4th mechanized corps was one of the strongest and most equipped formations, it was constantly replenished with military equipment, including the latest. The corps included the 8th Panzer Division. 32nd Panzer Division, 81st Motorized Division, a motorcycle regiment, two artillery regiments, an aviation squadron, engineering support units.
The corps was located in the most important operational direction on the Lviv ledge, which is deeply wedged to the west. The command attached particular importance to the manning of the corps and the combat training of personnel.
At the beginning of the war, the corps had 33,734 personnel, 892 tanks (T-34 -313, KV-1 - 101, BT-7 - 290, T-26- 103, T-28 - 75, T-40 - 10), 198 armored vehicles, 2918 cars, 1050 motorcycles, 134 guns. 152 mortars. Only the newest T-34 and KV-1 tanks in the corps were more than 400, in terms of equipment and strength, the corps was an impressive force.
By order of the commander of the 6th Army, Muzychenko, the corps was put on alert on June 20 in accordance with the border cover plan. On alarm, the 8th Panzer and 81st Motorized Divisions were withdrawn from the camps, and the 32nd Panzer Division was moved to the Yavoriv highway at 2 am on June 22. The corps met the beginning of the war prepared and put on alert.
By order of the Chief of the General Staff Zhukov, on June 23, the 4th mechanized corps, together with the 15th mechanized corps, were to launch a counterattack on the German troops in the direction of Lublin.
But the counterattack turned out to be unsuccessful, since the orders to the corps came from Zhukov without coordination with the actions of the commander of the 6th Army Muzychenko, often contradicted each other and the actions of the corps were directed in diverging directions and lacked a single control.
Corps units were used in isolation from the main forces and made long marches of 75-100 km per day, leading to equipment breakdowns and the use of motor resources, the corps lost more equipment from malfunctions than from enemy fire. Orders from the higher command were often canceled and new ones were received related to redeployment to other areas.
There was also the withdrawal of motorized rifle units from the 4th mechanized corps by the higher command, which negatively affected the results of combat operations of tank units forced to operate without the support of infantry, and often artillery.
Parts of the corps suffered losses from attacks by units of Ukrainian nationalists from the UPA, clashes with these units broke out on the streets of Lviv and the surrounding area, so on June 24 the commander of the 81st division disappeared without a trace along with his headquarters.
General Vlasov tried to rectify as best he could the situation created by the conflicting orders of the command. Corps units in the first battles with the enemy, despite the difficult situation, showed skill and resilience.
Despite the successful actions of individual units and subunits, the 4th and 15th mechanized corps did not inflict significant damage on the enemy. By the end of the day, the formations of the German 1st Panzer Group had captured Radzekhov and Berestechko.
Zhukov ordered on June 24 to withdraw the 8th Panzer Division from the corps, it was transferred to the subordination of the 15th Mechanized Corps for a tank strike near Brody, and it was never returned to the corps.
On the approaches to Lvov, the German 68th Infantry Division acted against the corps, which suffered significant losses and was withdrawn to the reserve. The corps provided the defense of Lvov and successfully held it, but due to the deep penetration of the enemy in the Kiev direction, on June 27, an order was given to withdraw and on June 29, Lviv was abandoned. Units of the 32nd Panzer Division covered the withdrawal of troops and suffered heavy losses.
Corps units withdrew to Berdichev, the 6th Army rolled back to the east, stubborn battles for Chudnov began on July 8, the 81st division, despite its small numbers, fought fierce battles with the enemy and held positions until July 10 and retreated on orders.
The 4th mechanized corps covered the withdrawal of the 6th army until July 12, and in the area of the city of Priluki it was withdrawn for reorganization. A consolidated detachment of 5 tanks and an infantry battalion was formed from the units of the 32nd Panzer Division, which was subordinated to the 16th mechanized corps and defeated in the "Uman Cauldron" as part of the 6th Army.
The remnants of the 4th mechanized corps were concentrated in the Priluk area; on July 15, 68 tanks remained in it (T-34 - 39, KV-1 - 6, BT-7 - 23). By the directive of the Headquarters, the corps was disbanded, equipment and personnel were transferred to the formation of other formations.
In the first weeks of fighting, the 4th mechanized corps under the command of Vlasov showed itself to be a well-trained and combat-ready unit, capable of successfully solving the assigned tasks. The actions of the corps to cover the withdrawal of the troops of the 6th Army were included in the post-war tactics textbooks, as an example of the competent organization of defensive battles for tank units
Command of the 37th Army in the defense of Kiev
By mid-July, the Germans broke through the defenses of the Soviet troops, captured Berdichev, Zhitomir and by July 11 reached the approaches to Kiev. For the defense of Kiev, the 37th Army was formed from units and formations of the Kiev fortified area and the reserves of the Headquarters, the commander of which was appointed on July 23 Vlasov, as he showed himself well in defensive battles near Lvov.
The 37th Army included the 3rd Airborne Corps, eight poorly manned rifle divisions and a number of artillery and other formations from the remnants of the defeated formations of the Kiev fortified area. The army was poorly staffed and not well-armed, but Vlasov managed to collect the defeated units into a cohesive army, which successfully opposed the well-armed and trained units of the Wehrmacht.
Vlasov demanded from his subordinate commanders:
“Not to scatter our forces and resources on a wide front, but to strive to beat the enemy on a narrow front with the whole mass of artillery fire, mortars and manpower. To strive to bypass the fortified settlements of the enemy - in no case to hit him in the forehead, but to hit where he does not expect."
The army took up defenses west of Kiev and, despite powerful blows from superior enemy forces, coped with the task and did not allow the Germans to take Kiev with a head-on attack.
On July 30, the troops of the 6th Army of the Wehrmacht struck at the junction of the Kiev fortified area and the 26th Army and forced the Soviet troops to retreat, while the 1st Panzer Group was advancing, bypassing Kiev from the south. On August 10, the Germans broke into the southwestern suburbs of Kiev, but the troops of the 37th Army put up fierce resistance and forced them to retreat. The German command reported that the offensive on Kiev had stopped. Moreover, the 37th Army managed to organize a counterattack, threw the enemy back and by August 16, in general, had restored its original position. Throughout August and September, the Germans, suffering serious losses, were forced to keep 13 divisions and 4 brigades in the Kiev region, not daring to storm the city.
Vlasov prevented the surrender of Kiev in August, from a relatively small number of troops in the army, he gave the units maximum mobility. From one sector of the front to another, they were transferred with the help of specially formed transport convoys, trains and urban transport, trams delivered reserves and ammunition almost to the front line.
Khrushchev later noted:
“Vlasov put together his army from the units retreating and escaped from the German encirclement and in practice proved that we made the right choice. He always calmly kept under fire, provided a firm and reasonable leadership of the defense of Kiev."
The enemy could not break the resistance of the troops defending Kiev, he took possession of it only by making a deep outflanking and encircling most of the forces of the entire South-Western Front to the east. On September 15, the tank wedges of the Germans joined up behind the Dnieper in the Lokhvitsy area and four armies (5th, 21st, 26th, 37th) were in the cauldron.
Encircled, the Military Council of the 37th Army telegraphed on September 17 to Headquarters:
“The 37th Army is in operational encirclement. On the western coast, the defense of the Kiev fortified region on September 16 this year, as a result of the enemy's offensive south of Fastov, was broken, the reserve was exhausted, the battle continues … During the twenty-day battles, the units are few in number, very tired, in need of rest and large fresh reinforcements. There is no connection with neighbors. Front intermittently. The eastern coast cannot be held without strong reserves … I ask for instructions."
On September 19, the headquarters ordered the 37th Army to leave Kiev and leave the encirclement in the direction of Yagotin - Piryatin. Having received the order, the army on the night of September 19 began to withdraw from positions in Kiev and, after stubborn battles, left the city.
Together with the troops of the South-Western Front, the 37th Army was surrounded, more than 600 thousand Soviet soldiers and officers were killed or taken prisoner, the front commander Kirponos shot himself, only a small scattered part of the 37th Army's troops without heavy weapons and transport broke through in separate groups from the encirclement and united with the Soviet troops. Vlasov with part of the army after long wanderings in the encirclement on November 1 went to Kursk held by Soviet troops and immediately ended up in the hospital. By order of the Headquarters, the 37th Army was disbanded on September 25.
Commanding the 37th Army, Vlasov proved to be a capable military leader, competently organized the defense of Kiev and for almost two months kept it from attacks by superior Wehrmacht forces, left the city by order of the Headquarters and left the encirclement with the remnants of the army.
Command of the 20th Army in the battle for Moscow
In November 1941, a difficult situation developed near Moscow. The headquarters decided to form another army and transfer it to the subordination of the Western Front. Based on the directive of the Headquarters of November 29, the 20th Army was formed on the basis of the operational group of Colonel Lizyukov. Vlasov was personally invited to a reception with Stalin and on November 30 was appointed commander of the army. Colonel Sandalov was appointed chief of staff of the army, before that chief of staff of the Bryansk front and one of the best staff officers in the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War.
Sandalov described in his memoirs how, before his appointment, he was invited by the Chief of the General Staff Shaposhnikov and said that General Vlasov, one of the commanders of the Southwestern Front, who had recently come out of the encirclement, had been appointed to command the army, but he was ill and in the near future Sandalov would have to do without him …
The 20th Army included the 331st and 352nd Infantry Divisions, the 28th, 35th and 64th Infantry Brigades, the 134th and 135th separate tank battalions, artillery and other units. In total, the army had 38,239 fighters and commanders, the army was well equipped with tanks, artillery, mortars and small arms.
As part of the troops on the right flank of the Western Front, the 20th Army took part in the Moscow battle. Three stages of the participation of the 20th Army in the counteroffensive near Moscow can be distinguished: from December 5-8 to December 21 - the beginning of the offensive and the liberation of Volokolamsk, from December 21 to January 10, 1942 - preparation of a breakthrough of the enemy's fortified front at the turn of the Lama River and from January 10 - breaking through the enemy's line on the Lama River, pursuing the enemy and reaching the area northeast of Gzhatsk by the end of January.
During the counteroffensive in early December, Krasnaya Polyana was the key to the entire army operation, with the capture of which conditions were created for the defeat of the enemy's Solnechnogorsk grouping. Parts of the 20th army all day 7 and the night of December 8 fought fierce battles with the enemy for Krasnaya Polyana and, despite the stubborn resistance of the enemy, by the morning of December 8 Krasnaya Polyana was taken and this opened the way to Volokolamsk
On December 13, the Sovinformburo announced that the German offensive near Moscow had been repelled. The message was published in the central newspapers Pravda and Izvestia, which contained photographs of the most distinguished commanders, including Vlasov. On December 14, he gives an interview to BBC correspondents, which spoke of the high level of confidence in Vlasov on the part of Stalin.
For the battles near Moscow, Vlasov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner on January 24, 1942 and promoted to lieutenant general, besides, on February 11, he was awarded a personal audience with Stalin, which lasted more than an hour.
After the successes near Moscow and enthusiastic responses to him from Stalin, Vlasov is called nothing but the "savior of Moscow", leaflets about the victory near Moscow with portraits of Vlasov are distributed in the cities, he becomes one of the most popular Soviet military leaders. WWII history specialist John Erickson called Vlasov "one of Stalin's favorite commanders." There is a version that after the appointment of Vlasov as deputy commander of the Volkhov Front at Headquarters, a decision was made to award him the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and the next rank of colonel-general, and Stalin seemed to have signed a decree, but this is not confirmed by documents.
Also does not confirm the direct participation of Vlasov in the command of the 20th army at the beginning of the counteroffensive, the chief of staff of the army Sandalov, who, in a letter to Marshal Zakharov in 1964, when many participants in the battle for Moscow were still alive, described how Vlasov commanded the army.
Before the liberation of Volokolamsk, Vlasov essentially did not command the army, declared himself sick and lived in a hotel in Moscow, and then he was transported from one army command post to another under the protection of a doctor and an adjutant. Sandalov sent all documents for signature to Vlasov through his adjutant, and he returned them signed without a single correction. For the first time, staff officers saw Vlasov only on December 19, when Volokolamsk was taken. The operations of the army were led by Sandalov and the deputy commander of the army, Colonel Lizyukov, all telephone conversations with Zhukov and Shaposhnikov were conducted only by Sandalov. The title "Major General" was awarded to Sandalov on December 27 immediately after the liberation of Volokolamsk and in the award list for his submission to the Order of the Red Banner, it is indicated "for the development and organization of military operations in the battles for Krasnaya Polyana, Solnechnogorsk and Volokolamsk", which confirms him command and control of the troops of the 20th Army in December 1941.
If this is so, then Stalin undeservedly extolled the successes of Vlasov and the high command of the Red Army could not but know this, but no one dared to object to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
Be that as it may, at the initial stage of the war, Vlasov showed himself as a talented commander of the corps and armies, the troops entrusted to him successfully carried out the tasks assigned to them and no one could have guessed how his last appointment as commander of the 2nd Shock Army would end. The heroic pages of his biography near Moscow ended and the biography of a traitor who went over to the side of the enemy began.
