Stepan Neustroev
Encyclopedia
Stepan Andreevich Neustroev (Russian
: Степан Андреевич Неустроев; 12 August 1922, Talitsa, Sverdlovsk Oblast
, Soviet Union
– 26 February 1998, Sevastopol
, Ukraine
) was a Soviet officer, commander of the 1st Battalion in the 756th Regiment of the 150th Rifle Division. His unit stormed the Reichstag.
Neustroev worked in the local mine as a mechanic from a young age. At June 1941, shortly before the war with Germany
, he was conscripted and sent to the Cherkasy
Infantry School. Lieutenant Neustroev was dispatched to the front on November, joining the 166th Infantry Division. He was severely wounded in a battle near Gzhatsk. He was wounded again on August 1942 and spent several months in hospital. At April 1943, Captain Neustroev was appointed commander of the 1st Battalion in the 756th Regiment, a post he held to the end of the war. The Battalion took part in the fighting for Belarus, Poland
and the Baltics.
On 22 April 1945, the Battalion reached Berlin. On 30 April at noon, Neustroev's men stormed the Reichstag, breaking through the main entrance and clearing the building. The following day, roughly at 03:00, his deputy for political affairs, Lieutenant Alexei Berest
, together with two scouts - Mikhail Yegorov and Meliton Kantaria
- raised the Victory Banner
atop the Reichstag, next to Wilhelm I's statue.
On 8 May 1946, Neustroev was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union
(Medal no. 6971). He retired from the army at 1953, holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. From 1957 to 1962 he served in the Internal troops
, holding his old rank. He was stationed at Novouralsk
.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Степан Андреевич Неустроев; 12 August 1922, Talitsa, Sverdlovsk Oblast
Talitsa, Sverdlovsk Oblast
Talitsa is a town and the administrative center of Talitsky District of Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Pyshma River , near the Yekaterinburg–Tyumen segment of Trans-Siberian Railway, east of Yekaterinburg. The actual railroad station is located in the settlement of...
, Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
– 26 February 1998, Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
) was a Soviet officer, commander of the 1st Battalion in the 756th Regiment of the 150th Rifle Division. His unit stormed the Reichstag.
Neustroev worked in the local mine as a mechanic from a young age. At June 1941, shortly before the war with Germany
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
, he was conscripted and sent to the Cherkasy
Cherkasy
Cherkasy or Cherkassy , is a city in central Ukraine. It is the capital of the Cherkasy Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Cherkasky Raion within the oblast...
Infantry School. Lieutenant Neustroev was dispatched to the front on November, joining the 166th Infantry Division. He was severely wounded in a battle near Gzhatsk. He was wounded again on August 1942 and spent several months in hospital. At April 1943, Captain Neustroev was appointed commander of the 1st Battalion in the 756th Regiment, a post he held to the end of the war. The Battalion took part in the fighting for Belarus, Poland
Vistula-Oder Offensive
The Vistula–Oder Offensive was a successful Red Army operation on the Eastern Front in the European Theatre of World War II; it took place between 12 January and 2 February 1945...
and the Baltics.
On 22 April 1945, the Battalion reached Berlin. On 30 April at noon, Neustroev's men stormed the Reichstag, breaking through the main entrance and clearing the building. The following day, roughly at 03:00, his deputy for political affairs, Lieutenant Alexei Berest
Alexei Berest
Oleksi Prokopovich Berest was a Soviet political officer and one of the three Red Army soldiers who hoisted the Victory Banner.-Early life:Born to an impoverished...
, together with two scouts - Mikhail Yegorov and Meliton Kantaria
Meliton Kantaria
Meliton Varlamovich Kantaria or Kantariya , Hero of the Soviet Union , was a Georgian sergeant of the Soviet Army credited to have together with M. A...
- raised the Victory Banner
Victory Banner
The Soviet Banner of Victory is the banner raised by the Red Army soldiers on the Reichstag building in Berlin, on April 30, 1945. It was raised by three Soviet soldiers: Alexei Berest, Mikhail Yegorov, and Meliton Kantaria, from Ukraine, Russia, and Georgia respectively.The Victory Banner, made...
atop the Reichstag, next to Wilhelm I's statue.
On 8 May 1946, Neustroev was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union
Hero of the Soviet Union
The title Hero of the Soviet Union was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society.-Overview:...
(Medal no. 6971). He retired from the army at 1953, holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. From 1957 to 1962 he served in the Internal troops
Internal Troops
The Internal Troops, full name Internal Troops of the Ministry for Internal Affairs ; alternatively translated as "Interior " is a paramilitary gendarmerie-like force in the now-defunct Soviet Union and its successor countries, particularly, in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia and Azerbaijan...
, holding his old rank. He was stationed at Novouralsk
Novouralsk
Novouralsk is a closed town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia. Population: The town, formerly known as Sverdlovsk-44, is situated on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, about north of Yekaterinburg...
.