EntranceFeat of a military cook in the who zone. How a cook from Kramatorsk was captured by a fascist tank
This was at the beginning of the war. The German then with huge forces per. Ours were retreating. The fighting was fierce. The battalion in which Corporal Ivan Sereda served as a cook was then fighting in the Baltic states. He fought well. The Nazis were missing many, but our battalion also suffered losses. That day the Germans came especially hard, bringing up tanks and self-propelled guns. There was a threat of encirclement. A messenger came running to the service platoon stationed in the ravine and conveyed the battalion commander’s order to move to combat positions and repel the attack on the left flank. The platoon commander led the soldiers to carry out the combat mission, ordering Ivan to provide security and food for the personnel. Ivan cooks porridge and listens to the distant shooting. I would like to help my comrades, but orders in war are law. Ivan Sereda became completely sad, he began to remember his native places: his parents, the house on the banks of the Amur, school, his long-braided love... And then it was as if something pushed him in the side. He looked around and froze. Three fascist tanks are crawling towards him from the road. And where did they come from? There is no time to think - we must save the good. How to save if there are already two hundred meters left to the front tank? Ivan quickly unharnessed the horses and directed them to the fishing line nearby, while he hid behind the field kitchen - maybe the Krauts wouldn’t notice. Maybe he would have passed the room, and one tank would have rolled straight into the kitchen. He stopped nearby, huge with white crosses. The tankers noticed the kitchen and were delighted. They decided that the Russians had abandoned her. The hatch cover opened and the tanker leaned out. He's such a healthy redhead. He turned his head and laughed triumphantly. Here Ivan could not stand it, where did the fear go. He grabbed an ax that came to hand and jumped onto the tank. As soon as the redhead saw him, he jumped into the hatch and slammed the lid. And Ivan is already knocking on the armor with an ax: “Hyunda hoch, Hansik!” Swoop in guys, surround, destroy the Krauts.” The Germans started shooting, and Ivan, without thinking twice, bent the barrel with an ax - there is no use against a crowbar. And so that the Krauts wouldn’t show off too much, I covered the viewing hole with my robe. He yells: “Hitler is kaput, surround them, guys...” He wields an ax like a sledgehammer against the armor. I don’t know what the Germans thought. As soon as the hatch opens, an old familiar red-haired brute appears with his hands raised. Then Ivan Sereda remembered about the carbine behind his back and instantly pointed it at the fascist. And then the second tanker climbs in, then the third. Ivan yells even louder, commanding the non-existent fighters to “surround” and “keep the Krauts at gunpoint.” And he lined up the prisoners near the kitchen and forced them to tie each other’s hands. When the soldiers of his platoon returned after completing a combat mission and saw a German tank next to the kitchen, captured fascists and Ivan Sereda with a carbine at the ready, they couldn’t believe their eyes. There was laughter to tears! Only the Germans stood dejectedly, not understanding anything. Guard Corporal Ivan Sereda became a Hero Soviet Union, and his ax was kept in the unit as a military relic. In war it’s like this: your chest is covered in crosses or your head is in the bushes.
WITH here Ivan Pavlovich is a cook of the 91st Tank Regiment of the 46th Tank Division of the 21st Mechanized Corps of the North-Western Front, a Red Army soldier.
Born on July 1, 1919 in the village of Aleksandrovka, now the administration of the city of Kramatorsk Donetsk region Ukraine in a peasant family. Lived in the village of Galitsynivka, Maryinsky district, Donetsk region of Ukraine. Ukrainian. Graduated from the Donetsk food training plant.
In the Red Army since 1939. Participant of the Great Patriotic War since June 1941.
Cook of the 91st Tank Regiment (46th Tank Division, 21st Mechanized Corps, Northwestern Front) Red Army soldier Ivan Sereda distinguished himself in August 1941 near the city of Dvinsk (Daugavpils, Latvia). He was preparing lunch in the forest when he heard the roar of the engine of a fascist tank. Armed with a rifle and an ax, he crept up to a stopped Nazi tank, jumped onto the armor and slashed the barrel of the machine gun with all his might with the ax. Following this, he threw a piece of tarpaulin onto the viewing slot and drummed the butt on the armor, loudly ordering the imaginary fighters to prepare grenades for battle. When soldiers from the rifle unit came running to help. There were already 4 enemy tank crews who had surrendered on the ground.
While with a group of soldiers on reconnaissance behind enemy lines, when the Nazis discovered Soviet observers and tried to capture them, Red Army soldier Sereda with a bunch of grenades crawled up to a German tank and blew it up. Then he replaced the killed machine gunner and destroyed over ten fascist motorcyclists with well-aimed fire. The group fought off the advancing Nazis and returned to their unit with trophies and 3 prisoners.
U of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on August 31, 1941, for the exemplary performance of combat missions of the command on the front of the fight against the Nazi invaders and the courage and heroism shown, Red Army soldier Sereda Ivan Pavlovich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. (No. 507).
In 1942, the brave warrior graduated from advanced training courses for command personnel, and in 1944, from the Novocherkassk Cavalry School.
Since 1945, senior lieutenant Sereda I.P. - in reserve. He worked as chairman of the Aleksandrovsky Village Council of the Donetsk region of Ukraine. He died untimely on November 18, 1950 at the age of 32.
He was awarded the Order of Lenin, the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd degree, and medals.
Streets in the city of Daugavpils and in the village of Galitsynovka are named after the Hero. In memory of the glorious son of the Ukrainian people, Ivan Sered, a memorial plaque was installed on the street in the city of Daugavpils and an obelisk in Galitsynivka.
A detailed description of the feat was provided by Kirill Osovik
The heroic feat he accomplished was unprecedented and unique in the history of the Great Patriotic War.
It was hot August 1941. Our troops stubbornly fought off the fierce onslaught of Hitler's hordes in the Dvinsk region of the Latvian SSR. Ivan Sereda was a cook then.
Having settled down with his kitchen in a hollow overgrown with woods, he prepared lunch for the soldiers defending the approaches to the city and listened to the sounds of battle. It seemed to him that the situation on the front line seemed to be “not hot”; after some hour he would be able to feed his friends delicious soup.
I was just daydreaming, and suddenly I heard the roar of an engine not far away. Ivan looked out from behind a bush and couldn’t believe his eyes - a tank with a fascist cross was crawling along a country road. The cook’s heart trembled: “Trouble. The headquarters is almost nearby,” a thought flashed. And after her another, decisive one: - Act. Don’t let the enemy go further!”
Mechanically grabbing a rifle and... an ax, Sereda, running from tree to tree, rushed across the steel colossus. I wanted to shoot, but decided that it was useless. And at that same moment (“Where did the dexterity come from,” he said later) he jumped onto the tank. Then everything happened, obviously, also mechanically. He grabbed a heavy ax from his belt and, swinging it, slashed at the barrel of the machine gun with all his might. Following this, he threw a piece of tarpaulin onto the viewing slot and drummed the butt on the armor.
His blows thundered like shell explosions. Hitler's soldiers were at a loss. The car sputtered.
Hyundai hoh! Kaput! - Sereda shouted and began loudly issuing imaginary commands: - Prepare grenades. Weapon for battle!
Soon the hatch opened and two hands stretched out of it.
Come out, come out! - Sereda commanded, holding his rifle at the ready.
When the soldiers came running to help, four enemy tank crews who had surrendered were already standing on the ground and looking around in fear.
There were a lot of good jokes, joy and cheerful laughter on that difficult day. Sereda managed to become famous for his courage, and he managed to feed his friends a hearty lunch and dinner.
After some time, Ivan had the opportunity to go on reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines with a group of fighters. And there he again showed fearlessness and high military skill. When the Nazis discovered Soviet observers and tried to capture them, Ivan Sereda crawled to a German tank with a bunch of grenades and blew it up. Then he replaced the killed machine gunner and mowed down about ten motorcyclists with well-aimed fire. The group fought off the advancing Nazis and returned to their unit with trophies and three prisoners.
According to the recommendation of the command of the North-Western Front, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated August 31, 1941, I.P. Sereda for his feats of arms was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
From the front, Ivan Pavlovich returned to his native village with the rank of guard senior lieutenant with many orders and medals on his chest. For a long time was chairman of the Alexandrovsky Village Council of Workers' Deputies. In 1950 I.P. Sereda died.
Of course, the incident that occurred at the front in the summer of 1941 can hardly be called a tank duel, since only one tank took part in it, but this incident can safely be called the most unusual battle involving an infantryman. This is not surprising, because soviet soldier single-handedly with an ax he won the battle against a German Pz.38(t) tank, capturing the crew of the enemy vehicle, consisting of four people. The feat of Red Army soldier Ivan Sereda was very widely popularized during the Great Patriotic War; it was even reflected on Soviet propaganda posters of those years. In the future, this led to the fact that many began to believe that the cook and this whole story with the tank, the ax and the captured Nazis was a myth, but the reality of Ivan Sereda and his feat was documented.
Many people are familiar with the classic Russian fairy tale, in which a clever soldier managed to cook porridge from an ax. In this tale, the soldier was able to provide himself with lunch thanks to his ingenuity and an axe. In the story that took place in August 1941, ingenuity and an ax also played a major role and, as in the famous Russian fairy tale, porridge was also present in it.
But let's go back to the very beginning of this amazing story. Its main character was Ivan Pavlovich Sereda. He was born on July 1, 1919 in the village of Aleksandrovka, which is now part of the city of Kramatorsk, into an ordinary family of Ukrainian peasants. At a certain point, his family moved to the village of Galitsinovka, Maryinsky district, Donetsk region. Since childhood, Ivan Sereda loved not only to eat deliciously, but also to cook. It was for this reason that after graduating from school he entered the Donetsk Food College, which he managed to graduate before he was drafted into the army.
He was drafted into the Red Army in November 1939. Thanks to his main profession and love for cooking, he served as a cook in the 91st Tank Regiment of the 46th Tank Division of the 21st Mechanized Corps. With this corps, Red Army soldier Ivan Sereda met the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. This mechanized corps was part of the units of the North-Western Front.
It was the second week of the war, at which time the 21st Mechanized Corps, which at that moment was commanded by Major General Lelyushenko, after an unsuccessful attempt to recapture Dvinsk (Daugavpils) from the Germans, occupied defenses east of the city, putting its units in order and, not allowing 56 Manstein's 1st corps will break through the defensive front and enter the operational space. While the Red Army was fighting difficult and generally unsuccessful battles, Ivan Sereda was also eager to go to the front line, but he was left in the kitchen. Since everyone could shoot a rifle, but few could feed a fighter.
Famous story with the capture of the German tank Pz.38(t) and its crew occurred on June 30, 1941 near Dvinsk. Light tanks Pz.38(t) of German-Czech production could be called one of the best lungs tanks from the beginning of World War II. The Germans gained access to Czechoslovakian equipment, including this tank, as a result of the occupation of Czechoslovakia. This Czech tank was distinguished by a balanced set of characteristics: armor, speed, and weapons. On initial stage war, its 37-mm gun was enough to fight many armored enemy targets. And the engine installed on the tank has a power of 125 hp. allowed a combat vehicle weighing almost 10 tons to reach speeds of up to 48 km/h. By the beginning of June 22, 1941, the Wehrmacht was in service with approximately 600 tanks of this type; they were armed with 5 German tank divisions. One of these divisions - the 8th Panzer - was part of Hoepner's 4th Panzer Group (Army Group North), which operated against formations of the North-Western Front.
It was with a tank from the German 8th Tank Division that Red Army soldier Ivan Sereda, who was working in his kitchen at that time, collided on June 30, 1941. The battalion field kitchen, where Sereda was cooking at that moment, was located in a small forest. It housed the entire economic platoon. Suddenly, a messenger from the battalion commander came running to the position and spoke about a new German attack and the threat of encirclement. He ordered the utility platoon to move to the front line to help hold the front, while it was decided to leave the cook alone in the kitchen. Ivan Sereda had only a carbine and an ax, which seemed to be poor helpers in the fight against a formidable armored vehicle. However, when German tanks appeared at the positions of the utility platoon, he did not become confused and did not run.
Before this, he had already unharnessed all the horses and led them further into the forest. He himself decided to hide behind the field kitchen, deciding that the German tanks would pass by without paying attention to it. One of the tanks actually drove somewhere further, and the second came directly to the field kitchen. In what happened next, big role Psychology played a role. The crew of the German tank, seeing the trophy in the form of a field kitchen and ready-made lunch, became cheerful and relaxed. The head of a German appeared from the tank turret, laughing contentedly and saying something to his comrades who were inside the tank.
It was then that Ivan Sereda was literally seized with rage. He prepared porridge for his soldiers, and not for some fascist tank crews. A moment later, he suddenly jumped out from behind the kitchen with an ax in his hands. The German tankman, seeing that a Russian soldier with an ax was running towards him, quickly dived into the hatch. A machine gun fired from the tank, but Sereda did not fall into its firing zone. With several blows of the ax, the Red Army soldier bent the barrel of the machine gun, after which he used the tarpaulin that the Germans had prudently secured to the armor of their tank. He used the tarpaulin to cover the viewing slots and deprive the German tank crews of their vision. Courage, as you know, takes cities, but here there was only one tank. The cook literally straddled the enemy vehicle and furiously hammered on the hatches with an ax, while giving commands to his non-existent comrades. Stunned by such pressure, the German tank crews, who could not observe what was happening around the tank, were clearly at a loss. They did not know how many Red Army soldiers surrounded the tank, and the furious blows of the ax on the armor did not improve their well-being.
When other Red Army soldiers came running to help, attracted to the kitchen position by the loud noise, four tied up German tankers were already sitting on the ground near the Pz.38(t) tank. Sereda remembered that he also had a carbine only when the Germans began to get out of the tank to surrender. Now they sat tied up, and Sereda held them at gunpoint. According to the commander of the 21st Mechanized Corps, Major General Lelyushenko, with his courageous act, Ivan Sereda demonstrated an exceptional example of heroism.
Having learned about the heroism of the cook, the commander of the reconnaissance unit invited Sereda to become a scout, and literally a few days later he was able to prove his heroism again. While on reconnaissance behind enemy lines, a group of Red Army soldiers attacked the Germans, took three prisoners, captured motorcycles and other trophies, and successfully returned to the location of their troops. In July and August 1941, Ivan Sereda was wounded (the second time - seriously). And on August 31, 1941, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal (No. 507).
He received his award in a solemn ceremony in October 1941, while on the same Northwestern Front. According to the recollections of fellow soldier Sereda V. Bezvitelnov, the cook’s ax was kept in the unit as a valuable military relic. Ivan Sereda went through the entire Great Patriotic War from the first to last day, took part in the defense of Leningrad and Moscow. During the war he became an officer, graduating with the rank of guard senior lieutenant. In this rank in 1945 he was transferred to the reserve. After the war, he worked as chairman of the village council in the village of Aleksandrovka, Donetsk region. Unfortunately, his post-war life was short-lived; he died at the age of 31 on November 18, 1950. Most likely, his battle wounds took their toll.
Presentation of the Gold Star medal to I. P. Sereda, North-Western Front (October 1941)
The hero's memory was immortalized in Daugavpils, where a street was named after him and a memorial plaque was installed. However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the street was renamed and the board was removed. In addition, a street was named after him in the city of Balti (Moldova), as well as in the village of Galitsynivka, Maryinsky district, Donetsk region, and an obelisk was erected to him in the same village.
Information sources:
http://www.warheroes.ru/hero/hero.asp?Hero_id=5612
http://www.aif.ru/society/history/desert_iz_topora_kak_kashevar_sereda_vzyal_v_plen_nemeckiy_tank
http://42.tut.by/447333
http://www.opoccuu.com/s-toporom-protiv-tanka.htm
Ivan Sereda was born on July 1, 1919 into a Ukrainian family that lived in the Donbass village of Aleksandrovka, and later moved to Galitsynivka, located in the same Maryinsky district. Like all his peers, Ivan was strong and dexterous, mastered all skills perfectly rural work, but he chose a slightly unusual profession for himself: he became a student at a food training plant located in Donetsk. In the fall of 1939, the young man received a summons to military service, and continued to use his profession in the army. Ivan met the war as a cook of the 91st tank regiment, which was part of the corps of General Lelyushenko, who fought in the northwestern direction. After the retreat from Dvinsk (Daugavpils), captured by the forces of Manstein’s corps, the tank division, which included Ivan Sereda’s regiment, took up defense east of the city. It was only the ninth day of the war, and the fighting practically did not stop. After news of a new German attack, the tank crews moved towards them, and the cook Sereda remained near his field kitchen. The service platoon soldiers were sent to help the tankers, and Ivan was preparing dinner alone. At this time, German tank units were sent to bypass the defense Soviet troops and planned an attack from the rear. It is difficult to say why the crews of two PzKpfw38(t) tanks (Czech design) decided to follow the forest ravine alone; perhaps they were attracted by the smoke from the field kitchen. Hearing the noise of approaching cars, Sereda took the horses further into the forest, after which he wanted to hide behind the trees himself, but then decided to arm himself with an ax and stay nearby, in the hope that the tanks would still pass by. The first crew, indeed, did not stop moving, but the second went straight to the boiler. At first, it seemed that the Nazis were in for a funny surprise - an almost ready lunch and complete desertion. One of the tankers looked out of the hatch laughing. At this time, Sereda jumped with an ax onto the roof of the tank; in surprise, the German slammed the hatch. A tarpaulin was attached to the top of the tank, with which the cook covered the inspection slots. The crew began firing a machine gun, but it was impossible to hit Sereda, who was on the roof, in this way. Ivan hit the machine gun barrel with the butt of an ax, and the weapon fell silent. The resourceful cook began to knock on the tank's body with an ax and scream loudly, imitating the presence of large number of people. His task was also made easier by the fact that the only weapon inside the tank was the commander’s parabellum, and standard MP40 machine guns were mounted on top of the armor. When the crew was sufficiently deafened by the noise, Sereda, who grabbed a German machine gun (according to other sources, a rifle carbine), waited until the hatch cover opened. At gunpoint, the German tank crews came out one at a time and tied each other up. The noise attracted the attention of soldiers from a nearby rifle unit. Arriving at the scene, the soldiers saw four tied up German tank crews and Sereda, who was holding them at gunpoint. After this event, the commander of the tank regiment appointed another soldier to the position of cook, and placed Corporal Sereda at the disposal of the commander of the reconnaissance unit. The combat situation continued to remain hot, and within a few days Ivan Sereda again had to fight with a tank.
This time he was behind enemy lines, and their reconnaissance group was suddenly attacked by the Germans. Ivan Sereda, armed with RGD33 grenades, managed to get close to a German tank and blow it up. But even after this, the battle continued, the group’s machine gunner was killed, and the brave corporal took his place. With machine-gun fire he managed to hit about ten fascist motorcyclists and put the enemy to flight. The reconnaissance group returned with victory and considerable trophies, including captured motorcycles and three prisoners. For his valor, at the end of August 1941, Ivan Sereda was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, the Order of Lenin and the Golden Star. The awards found him already in the hospital, where he was recovering from a serious injury. The ax of the hero cook remained in the regiment and was preserved as a combat memo. After recovery, Ivan Pavlovich served as commander of a rifle platoon near Leningrad, and during the battles near Moscow he was commander of a rifle company that was part of the 30th Army. In February 1942, Ivan Sereda was seriously wounded. After leaving the hospital and completing his advanced training courses for command personnel, he continued his military service. In 1944, Lieutenant Sereda was again sent to study - this time to the Novocherkassk Cavalry School. After graduation, he was engaged in food and fodder supply of the Eighth Guards Cavalry Regiment, and in the spring of 1945, during the offensive Soviet army, managed in an exemplary manner to organize supplies of food and ammunition in conditions of separation from supply bases. After the war, Ivan Pavlovich was also awarded the Order Patriotic War II degree, as well as medals for participation in the defense of Moscow and Leningrad. After being transferred to the reserve, Senior Lieutenant Sereda returned to his native Aleksandrovka, where he headed the village council. Unfortunately, the consequences of severe wounds made themselves felt - Ivan Pavlovich passed away in the fall of 1950, having lived only 31 years.