Kuzma Nikolayevich Derevyanko ( uk, Кузьма Миколайович Дерев'янко, russian: Кузьма́ Никола́евич Деревя́нко; ; November 14 (O.S. 1), 1904 – December 30, 1954) was a Ukrainian Lieutenant General in the Soviet Army.

Life

Derevyanko was born on November 14, 1904, in the village of

Kosenivka Kosenivka, in Ukraine, is the site of an ancient mega-settlement belonging to the Cucuteni–Trypillia culture dating to 3200–2700 BC. The settlement was very large for the time, covering an area of . This proto-city is just one of 2,440 ...

Umansky Uyezd Umansky Uyezd (''Уманский уезд'') was one of the subdivisions of the Kiev Governorate of the Russian Empire. It was situated in the southern part of the governorate. Its administrative centre was Uman. Demographics At the time of the ...

, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire (now Ukraine). Derevyanko (at the time Chief of Staff of the 35th Army) was the representative of the Soviet Union at the ceremonial signing of the written agreement that established the armistice ending the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

and with it World War II. The Soviet delegation joined other Allied representatives on the battleship '' USS Missouri'' which was anchored in Tokyo Bay. Together, the waiting Allies silently acknowledged the representatives of the Japanese Emperor and the representative of the Imperial Japanese Army, who were the last to arrive. The proceedings began when

General MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

stepped before a single microphone. The 23-minute surrender ceremony was broadcast worldwide. Derevyanko signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender at precisely 9:17 a.m. in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945.Broom, Jack
"Memories on Board Battleship,"
''Seattle Times.'' May 21, 1998. He served as Soviet representative at MacArthur's headquarters during the US occupation of Japan. He died on December 30, 1954, and was buried at

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist ...

. In 2007, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine.

Award

He was awarded: * Hero of Ukraine *Two Orders of Lenin *Two

Orders of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet Union, Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War b ...

Order of Suvorov 1st class Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

* Order of Kutuzov 1st class * Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky *

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" The Medal "For the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" (russian: Медаль «За победу над Германией в Великой Отечественной войне 1941—1945 гг.») was a military de ...

Medal "For the Victory over Japan" The Medal "For the Victory over Japan" (russian: Медаль «За победу над Японией») was a campaign medal of the Soviet Union established on September 30, 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet ...

Medal "For the Capture of Budapest" The Medal "For the Capture of Budapest" (russian: Медаль «За взятие Будапешта») was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union established on 9 June 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR ...

Medal "For the Capture of Vienna" The Medal "For the Capture of Vienna" (russian: Медаль «За взятие Вены») was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union established on June 9, 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to satisfy ...

* Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" * Jubilee Medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy"

Notes

References

*Mooney, James L. (1976)
''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.''
Washington, D.C.: United States Navy. {{DEFAULTSORT:Derevyanko, Kuzma 1904 births 1954 deaths People from Cherkasy Oblast People from Umansky Uyezd Soviet lieutenant generals GRU officers Frunze Military Academy alumni Soviet military personnel of the Winter War Soviet military personnel of World War II Ukrainian people of World War II Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Kutuzov, 1st class Recipients of the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Soviet Union), 1st class Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Kutuzov, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Gold Star (Ukraine) Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery