Konstantin Ivanovich Rakutin (; – 7 October 1941) was a

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

major general who served in

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 ...

. A veteran of the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

and

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921) was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, following World War I and the Russian Revolution. After the collapse ...

, Rakutin became an officer in the Border Troops during the interwar period, rising to chief of staff of the Leningrad Border District in the late 1930s. He was chief of the Baltic Border District when

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

, and was swiftly appointed commander of the 31st Army. Rakutin led the 24th Army in the costly but successful Yelnya Offensive during

, shortly before the

Battle of Moscow The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front during World War II, between October 1941 and January 1942. The Soviet defensive effort frustrated H ...

. During the latter's first days he fell in combat. Rakutin was posthumously awarded the title

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 ...

for his leadership during the offensive in 1990.

Early life and Russian Civil War

Rakutin was born on 3 June 1902 in the village of Novinki, Yakovtsevskoy volost,

Vladimir Governorate Vladimir Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, the Russian Republic and the Russian SFSR, which existed in 1796–1929. History Until 1719 – Vladimirsky Uyezd of the Zamoskovny Krai with ...

. In 1917 he graduated from a

realschule Real school (, ) is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), F ...

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət, t=Lower Newtown; colloquially shortened to Nizhny) is a city and the administrative centre of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast an ...

and worked at the Nizhny Novgorod executive committee as a ledger clerk. He served in the Red Army from July 1919, graduating from the Tambov Infantry Courses for Red Commanders in December of that year. Appointed military commissar of the training school of the 9th Volga Regiment, Rakutin fought in the

on the Eastern Front against the forces of

Alexander Kolchak Admiral Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak (; – 7 February 1920) was a Russian navy officer and polar explorer who led the White movement in the Russian Civil War. As he assumed the title of Supreme Ruler of Russia in 1918, Kolchak headed a mili ...

. During the

he became an assistant company commander in the 473rd Rifle Regiment of the

53rd Rifle Division The 53rd Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army that served from the early 1930s to the immediate postwar period following World War II. Interwar period The 53rd was formed in 1931 as a territorial division; Ivan Boldin became ...

, fighting on the Western Front. Rakutin's unit was forced to retreat into East Prussia with the 4th Army by the Polish counteroffensive of August 1920 and in 1921 he returned to the Soviet Union from an internment camp there. Later that year, Rakutin fought against White and Japanese forces with the People's Revolutionary Army of the

Far Eastern Republic The Far Eastern Republic ( rus, Дальневосточная Республика, Dal'nevostochnaya Respublika, p=dəlʲnʲɪvɐˈstotɕnəjə rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə, links=yes; ), sometimes called the Chita Republic (, ), was a nominally indep ...

, serving as a company commander of the 5th Chita Regiment. In February 1922 he distinguished himself in the storming of Volochayevka.

Interwar period

Rakutin transferred to the OGPU Border Troops after the end of the Russian Civil War in 1922, becoming political officer of the

Amur The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer Manchuria, Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ...

Border Cavalry Squadron. He became commandant of a sector of the

Bikin Bikin () is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located on the river Bikin (a tributary of the Ussuri) southwest of Khabarovsk. Population: 19,000 (1967). History It was founded in 1885 as Bikinskaya and was granted town status in 1938. Adm ...

Border Detachment in 1924 and chief of the border commandant's service in

Nikolayevsk-on-Amur Nikolayevsk-on-Amur () is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia located on the Amur River close to its liman in the Pacific Ocean. Population: 17,815 (2024); History Medieval and early-modern history In the late Middle Ages, the people living al ...

in 1925. Appointed chief of the Separate

Okhotsk Okhotsk ( rus, Охотск, p=ɐˈxotsk) is an urban locality (a work settlement) and the administrative center of Okhotsky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located at the mouth of the Okhota River on the Sea of Okhotsk. Population: ...

Border Commandant's Service and simultaneous deputy chairman of the

Okhotsky District Okhotsky District () is an administrativeResolution #143-pr and municipalLaw #194 district (raion), one of the seventeen in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia. It is located in the north of the krai. The area of the district is . Its administrative center i ...

Executive Committee in 1927, he distinguished himself in the suppression of the

Yakut revolt The Yakut revolt () or the Yakut expedition () was the last episode and final set of military engagements of the Russian Civil War. The hostilities took place between September 1921 and June 1923 and were centered on the Ayano-Maysky Distric ...

that year. After graduating from the Higher Border School of the OGPU in 1931, Rakutin was appointed assistant chief of the training department of the 1st Novo-Peterhof School of Border and Internal Guards of the OGPU. From November 1936 he served as chief of the training department of the 2nd Kharkov School of Border and Internal Guards of the NKVD, and in 1937 graduated from the night school faculty of the

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (), was a military academy of the Soviet and later the Russian Armed Forces ...

. Appointed chief of the 13th

Berezino Byerazino or Berezino is a town on the Berezina River in Minsk Region, Belarus. It is located east of the capital Minsk, and serves as the administrative center of Byerazino District. As of 2025, it has a population of 11,250. History Earl ...

Border Detachment in Belarus in 1937, Rakutin advanced to become chief of staff of the Leningrad Border District in 1939. Appointed chief of staff of the Directorate of NKVD Border Troops of the Leningrad District in September of that year, he served as assistant commander of the forces of the 15th Army for rear protection during 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 ...

. Promoted to

kombrig () is an abbreviation of Commanding officer of the brigade (), and was a military rank in the Soviet Armed Forces of the USSR from 1935 to 1940. It was also the designation to military personnel appointed to command a brigade sized formation (X ...

in February 1940, Rakutin became a major general when the Red Army introduced general officer ranks on 4 June 1940. He was appointed chief of the Baltic Border District in July of that year.

World War II

After the beginning of

in June 1941, Rakutin was appointed commander of the 31st Army of the

Reserve of the Supreme High Command The Reserve of the Supreme High Command (Russian: Резерв Верховного Главнокомандования; also known as the '' Stavka'' Reserve or RVGK () or RGK ( comprises reserve military formations and units; the ''Stavka'' ...

in late June, forming in the

Moscow Military District The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District () is a Military districts of Russia, military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Originally it was a district of the Imperial Russian Army until the Russian Empire's collapse in 191 ...

. This proved brief as he transferred to command the 24th Army of the

Reserve Front The Reserve Front was a major formation of the Red Army during the Second World War. First Formation The Reserve Front describes either of two distinct organizations during the war. The first version was created on July 30, 1941 in a reorganizat ...

in July, leading it in the Battle of Smolensk. The 24th Army conducted near-constant assaults on German defenses at Yelnya from 8 August, but the attacks had to be halted due to heavy losses on 20 August. The Yelnya Offensive resumed on 30 August and on 8 September 1941 the army captured

Yelnya Yelnya () is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. ;Urban localities * Yelnya, Yelninsky District, Smolensk Oblast, a town in Yelninsky District of Smolensk Oblast; administratively incorporated as Yelninskoye Urban Settlement ;Ru ...

. For their actions, five divisions of the army became the first

Guards unit Guards units () were elite units and formations in the Soviet Armed Forces that continue to exist in the Russian Armed Forces and other post-Soviet states. These units were awarded Guards status after distinguishing themselves in wartime service ...

s as the victory was trumpeted in Soviet propaganda. However, the opposing German forces were allowed to retreat, albeit suffering losses that could not be easily replaced. In early October the 24th Army was surrounded in the Vyazma Pocket, created by the

Operation Typhoon The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front during World War II, between October 1941 and January 1942. The Soviet defensive effort frustrated H ...

. During the attempted breakout of the army from the encirclement, Rakutin was killed in action near the village of ,

Smolensk Oblast Smolensk Oblast (), informally also called Smolenshchina (), is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative centre is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Smolensk. As of the 2021 Russ ...

on 7 October. One of the last to see him alive was

Red Army man Red Army man () was the lowest military rank in the Red Army of the Soviet Union from 1918 to 1946. On 30 November 1917, after the October Revolution, the Military Revolutionary Committee cancelled all "officer and class ranks". Henceforth, the ...

A. Suslov of the army headquarters guard battalion, who recalled that Rakutin ordered the burning of the army documents after the failure of the breakout attempt. Rakutin was removed from the rolls of the Red Army in 1943 as missing in action. He was declared dead postwar in 1946, but the location and circumstances of his death remained unknown. His place of death was discovered by members of the Search Movement and in 1996 his remains were reburied at the military cemetery in Snegiri. For his "courage and heroism displayed in the struggle against the German Fascist invaders during the Great Patriotic War," Rakutin was posthumously awarded the title

and the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

on 5 May 1990.

Awards and honors

Rakutin received the following awards and decorations: *

(5 May 1990) *

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 class (1965) *

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star () 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 1930 but its statute was only defined in decree of the Presidium of the ...

(1941) *

Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" The Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" () was a state military commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established on January 24, 1938 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to denote the twentie ...

(1938) * Honorary weapon

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rakutin, Konstantin 1902 births 1940s missing person cases 1941 deaths Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Frunze Military Academy alumni Heroes of the Soviet Union Missing in action of World War II Soviet major generals NKVD officers Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War People of the Polish–Soviet War Soviet military personnel of the Winter War Soviet military personnel killed in World War II Recipients of the Order of Lenin People from Vachsky District People from Muromsky Uyezd Soviet border guards