Hazi Ahad oghlu Aslanov (; ; commonly described as Azi Aslanov or A. A. Aslanov,Aleksander A. Maslov, David M. Glantz, ''Fallen Soviet Generals: Soviet General Officers Killed in Battle, 1941-1945'', Routledge, 1998,
p. 251.
/ref> 1910 – 25 January 1945) was an Azerbaijani major-general of the Soviet armoured troops during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was awarded the

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

title twice. The second Hero title was posthumously awarded in 1991, by

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

, at the constant recommendations by

Heydar Aliyev Heydar Alirza oghlu Aliyev (10 May 1923 – 12 December 2003) was an Azerbaijani politician who was a Soviet party boss in the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic from 1969 to 1982, and the third president of Azerbaijan from October 1993 to ...

Early life and prewar service

Listed in military records as an Azerbaijani, Hazi Aslanov was born on 1910, in

Lankaran Lankaran (, ) or Lánkon () is a city in Azerbaijan, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, near the southern border with Iran. As of 2021, the city had a population of 89,300. It is next to, but independent of, Lankaran District. The city forms a disti ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

(now

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

). The son of a brick factory worker, Aslanov received incomplete secondary education. After his father died in 1923, Aslanov took his place at the Lankaran Brick Factory, while completing

Likbez Likbez (, ; a portmanteau of , , meaning "elimination of illiteracy") was a campaign of eradication of illiteracy in Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 1930s. The term was also used for various schools and courses established dur ...

educational courses. Aslanov chose a military career and entered the Transcaucasian Military Preparatory School in

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

as a cadet in October 1924. After graduating from the school, he was transferred to the Borosoglebsk-Leningrad Cavalry School in August 1929 to receive command training. Upon his graduation in June 1931, Aslanov was posted to the

Ukrainian Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exist ...

, where he began active service as a platoon commander in the 15th Cavalry Regiment of the 3rd Cavalry Division, stationed at

Berdichev Berdychiv (, ) is a historic city in Zhytomyr Oblast, northern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Berdychiv Raion within the oblast. It is south of the administrative center of the oblast, Zhytomyr. Its population is approximat ...

. Aslanov's cavalry service proved brief, and in August he was transferred to command a platoon of the 2nd Cavalry Corps's 12th Armored Car Battalion, beginning his career in the Red Army's emerging armored forces. Aslanov was transferred for the second time that year on 12 December to command a platoon in the Vehicle Repair Workshops at

Kharkov Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

. Aslanov was transferred to the Separate Tank Company of the 2nd Caucasian Rifle Division in June 1933, where he commanded a platoon. He later rose to the posts of assistant company commander for equipment and company commander with the divisional Separate Tank Company. Promoted to senior lieutenant in 1936, he was accepted to the Communist Party in 1937.Michael Parrish, Sacrifice of the Generals: Soviet Senior Officer Losses, 1939-1953, Scarecrow Press, 2004,
p. 28.
/ref> In May 1938, Aslanov was appointed chief of the school of the Separate Tank Battalion of the division, which had been renamed the 60th Rifle Division. The tank battalion had been expanded from the pre-existing tank company. Promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in February 1939, his next assignment was as an assistant battalion commander for training and combat units with the 3rd Training Motor Transport Regiment at Kiev. In this role, he took part in the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military conflict by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Second Polish Republic, Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Polan ...

with the forces advancing into western Ukraine and the breakthrough of the Mannerheim Line during the fighting on the

Karelian Isthmus The Karelian Isthmus (; ; ) is the approximately stretch of land situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia, to the north of the River Neva. Its northwestern boundary is a line from the Bay of Vyborg to the we ...

in the

Winter War The Winter War was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peac ...

. In August 1940, he was transferred to command the Motor Transport Battalion of the 10th Motor Rifle Regiment of the Kiev Special Military District's newly formed 10th Tank Division. Aslanov was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in November 1940.Герои ВОВ:Асланов Ази Ахад оглы

Eastern Front

After Germany invaded the Soviet Union, Aslanov commanded the regimental Motor Transport Battalion in the border battles and the Battle of Kiev. In August 1941, he replaced the injured commander of a

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

battalion. In the fierce battles near

Shostka Shostka (, ) is a city in Sumy Oblast, northeastern Ukraine. Shostka serves as the administrative center of Shostka Raion. Population: The city lies on the Shostka River, a tributary of the Desna (river), Desna, from which it gets its name. Sho ...

Bakhmach Bakhmach (, ) is a city located in Nizhyn Raion of Chernihiv Oblast (province), in northern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Bakhmach urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. It has a population of In 2025 the population is 16,30 ...

and

Pyriatyn Pyriatyn (, ) is a city in Poltava Oblast, Ukraine. It served as the administrative center of Pyriatyn Raion until its abolishment in 2020. Population: History At the end of 1941 or beginning 1942, a ghetto guarded by policemen was establishe ...

, his tank commanders fought to the last tank, while Aslanov personally led his battalion in the attack. In one of these battles, Aslanov received two bullet wounds in his right leg and a severe shrapnel wound to the head, but despite these injuries, he continued to fight. When the battalion lost all of its tanks, he was appointed assistant commander of the 10th Motor Rifle Regiment for equipment on 25 August. In this role, he fought in the region of Pyriatyn,

Okhtyrka Okhtyrka (, ; ) is a city in Sumy Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Okhtyrka Raion within the oblast. Okhtyrka was once home to Hussars and Cossacks. It was also in the past a regional seat of the Sloboda Ukraine Imperia ...

Bohodukhiv left Bohodukhiv ( ; ) is a city in Kharkiv Oblast, eastern Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of Bohodukhiv Raion. Bohodukhiv hosts the administration of Bohodukhiv urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Current population: Hist ...

and

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

. With the surviving officers, Aslanov was placed in Southwestern Front reserve of command personnel in late 1941, and in January 1942 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel, placed at the disposal of the Commander of the Armored and Mechanized Forces in Moscow. Aslanov was appointed deputy commander of the 55th Tank Brigade in February, but did not join the unit until May. Through this delay he avoided the destruction of the brigade in the

Battle of the Kerch Peninsula The Battle of the Kerch Peninsula, which commenced with the Soviet Kerch-Feodosia Landing Operation () and ended with the German Operation Bustard Hunt (), was a World War II battle between Erich von Manstein's Nazi Germany, German and Kingdom o ...

. The 55th Tank Brigade was assigned to the 28th Tank Corps and took part in the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad ; see . rus, links=on, Сталинградская битва, r=Stalingradskaya bitva, p=stəlʲɪnˈɡratskəjə ˈbʲitvə. (17 July 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, ...

. The brigade was reorganized as the 55th Separate Tank Regiment in October, reassigned to the

4th Mechanized Corps The 4th Mechanized Corps (Soviet), Mechanized Corps was a formation in the Soviet Red Army during the Second World War. Operation Barbarossa Initially formed in January 1941, it served with the 6th Army (Soviet Union), 6th Army, Kiev Military Di ...

, and Aslanov, by then a lieutenant colonel, appointed its commander. Aslanov led the regiment, in the Soviet counteroffensive at Stalingrad, and was awarded the title

on 22 December. For its performance, his regiment became the 41st Guards Tank Regiment on 26 December, while the corps became the 3rd Guards Mechanized Corps. The regiment was reorganized as the 35th Guards Tank Brigade on 20 April 1943, and Aslanov continued in command. Aslanov led the brigade in the Rostov offensive, the Mius offensive, and the

Battle of the Dnieper The Battle of the Dnieper was a military campaign that took place in 1943 on the Eastern Front of World War II. Being one of the largest operations of the war, it involved almost four million troops at one point and stretched over a front. Ov ...

during 1943. For his performance, Aslanov, by then a colonel, was awarded the

Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky () is an Order (distinction), order of merit of the Russia, Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...

on 15 April and the

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

on 14 November. In December, he was sent to the Academic Courses for the Improvement of Officers at the Military Academy of the Armored and Mechanized Forces for further training. After completing the courses, Aslanov returned to command the 35th Guards Tank Brigade in April 1944, having promoted to major general on 13 March. During the summer of 1944, Aslanov led the brigade in

Operation Bagration Operation Bagration () was the codename for the 1944 Soviet Byelorussian strategic offensive operation (), a military campaign fought between 22 June and 19 August 1944 in Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Byelorussia in the Eastern ...

, during which it forced a crossing of the

Berezina The Berezina or Byarezina (, ; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is . The width of the river is 15–20 m, the maximum is 60 m. The ba ...

on 28 June. With a battalion of submachine gunners and one armored vehicle, Aslanov linked up with fifty Belorussian partisans along a road and penetrated the German rear, taking the town of Pleshchenitsy, opening the road up for the advance of the main forces of the corps. Continuing the offensive, the brigade liberated

Vileyka Vileyka or Vilyeyka is a town in Minsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vileyka District. It is located on the Viliya River, northwest of Minsk. The first historical record dates from 16 November 1460. As of 2025, the ...

on 2 July and Smorgon two days later. For his performance in the operation, Aslanov was awarded a second Order of the Red Banner on 31 July and the

Order of Suvorov The Order of Suvorov () is a military decoration of the Russian Federation named in honor of Russian Generalissimo Prince Alexander Suvorov (1729–1800). History The Order of Suvorov was originally a Soviet Union, Soviet award established on ...

, 2nd class, on 23 July.Subsequently, Aslanov led the brigade in the

Šiauliai offensive The Šiauliai offensive () was an operation of the Soviet forces of the 1st Baltic Front, commanded by General Hovhannes Bagramyan, conducted from 5 July to 29 August 1944, during the Second World War. It was part of the third phase of the Opera ...

, during which it took

Šiauliai Šiauliai ( ; ) is a city in northern Lithuania, the List of cities in Lithuania, country's fourth largest city and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, sixth largest city in the Baltic States, with a population of 112 581 in 202 ...

and forced a crossing of the

Western Dvina The Daugava ( ), also known as the Western Dvina or the Väina River, is a large river rising in the Valdai Hills of Russia that flows through Belarus and Latvia into the Gulf of Riga of the Baltic Sea. The Daugava rises close to the source of t ...

. He continued to command the brigade in the Riga Offensive, the

Memel Offensive Memel, a name derived from the Couronian-Latvian ''memelis, mimelis, mēms'' for "mute, silent", may refer to: *Memel, East Prussia, Germany, now , Lithuania **, (Klaipėda Castle), the in Memel, a castle built in 1252 by Teutonic Knights which w ...

, and the blockade of the

Courland Pocket The Courland Pocket was a Pocket (military), pocket located on the Courland Peninsula in Latvia on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 9 October 1944 to 10 May 1945. Army Group North of the ''Wehrmacht'' were ...

. For his performance Aslanov received a third Order of the Red Banner on 7 January 1945. During the Soviet offensive against the Courland Pocket that began on 23 January, Aslanov's brigade was sent into action on the Pauzeri and Ceļmaļi axis. Finding impassable swamps and minefields along its march route, the brigade conducted a flanking maneuver to the right and reached Katrīnes manor, where it encountered strong German resistance that stalled its advance. At 11:00 on 24 January, Aslanov arrived to the brigade command post at Dižkrogs, where he was soon seriously wounded in the head, neck and chest by a nearby shell explosion during an artillery strike on his command post. He was evacuated to Field Mobile Surgical Hospital No. 4396 at Diždāma, where he died on 25 January. Aslanov's brigade was pulled out of action that day, having lost fifty tanks in two days of fighting. On 27 January, Aslanov was posthumously awarded the

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...

, 1st degree, for his leadership of the brigade.

Awards and honors

Aslanov received his first star in 1943 for his performance at Stalingrad. The second was supposed to be given for the crossing of the

Berezina river The Berezina or Byarezina (, ; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is . The width of the river is 15–20 m, the maximum is 60 m. The ba ...

, under the recommendation of

General of the Army Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

Ivan Chernyakhovsky Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky (; ; – 18 February 1945) was the youngest-ever Soviet General of the army. For his leadership during World War II he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union twice. He died from wounds received outside K� ...

, but he received it posthumously, 46 years later, on 21 June 1991, after a special appeal by Azerbaijani ''

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the i ...

'' to

.War and its Legacy: General Aslanov
/ref> He received the following decorations: Aslanov is commemorated by monuments in Dağüstü Park in

, and

. A memorial tablet with his name is on

Mamayev Kurgan Mamayev Kurgan () is a dominant height overlooking the city of Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad) in Southern Russia. The name in Russian means "tumulus of Mamai". The formation is dominated by a memorial complex commemorating the Battle of Stali ...

and a

stele A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

in the settlement of Oktyabrsky, Volgograd Oblast. The new

Hazi Aslanov Hazi Ahad oghlu Aslanov (; ; commonly described as Azi Aslanov or A. A. Aslanov,Aleksander A. Maslov, David M. Glantz, ''Fallen Soviet Generals: Soviet General Officers Killed in Battle, 1941-1945'', Routledge, 1998, p. 251./ref> 1910 – 25 Ja ...

station of the

Baku Metro Baku Metro () is a rapid transit system serving Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. First opened on 6 November 1967 when Azerbaijan was part of the Soviet Union, its features are typical of former Soviet Union, Soviet systems, including very deep ...

was named after him in 2002. A street in Volgograd is named for him, as well as a tanker and schools in Baku and Volgograd. A

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

Agstafa Agstafa () is a town, municipality (assigned in 1941) and the capital of the Aghstafa District of Azerbaijan. Agstafa district was established in 1939, abolished in 1959 and merged with Gazakh district, and made into an independent district agai ...

region carries his name and his house museum functions in

.Cultural centres in Lankaran

Gallery

File:Aslanov plaque.jpg, Granite memorial plate in memory of Hazi Aslanov on

File:Gold Star Order's order of Hazi Aslanov.jpg, Award sheet for the Order of the Red Star

References

Citations

Bibliography

* ''Герои Советского Союза: Краткий биографический словарь (Heroes of the Soviet Union: A Brief Biographical Dictionary)''. V.1. Moscow: Voenizdat, 1987. * * * * ''Золотые Звезды Азербайджана''. Баку, 1975. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aslanov, Azi 1910 births 1945 deaths People from Lankaran People from Baku Governorate Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Soviet major generals Azerbaijani generals People of the Soviet invasion of Poland Soviet military personnel of the Winter War Soviet military personnel of World War II from Azerbaijan Azerbaijani military personnel killed in action Soviet military personnel killed in World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Alexander Nevsky Recipients of the Medal "For Courage" (Russia) Recipients of the Order of the Red Star