Matvey Kuzmich Kuzmin ( rus, Матве́й Кузьми́ч Кузьми́н, p=mɐˈtvʲej kʊˈzmʲin; 3 August 1858 – 14 February 1942) was a Russian peasant who was killed 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 ...

. He was posthumously the oldest person to be named a

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 ...

on May 8, 1965 based on his age at death.

Early life

Kuzmin was born in 1858 in the village of Kurakino, in the

Velikoluksky District Velikoluksky District () is an administrativeLaw #833-oz and municipalLaw #419-oz district (raion), one of the administrative divisions of Pskov Oblast, twenty-four in Pskov Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southeast of the oblast and borders w ...

(then

Uezd An uezd (also spelled uyezd or uiezd; rus, уе́зд ( pre-1918: уѣздъ), p=ʊˈjest), or povit in a Ukrainian context () was a type of administrative subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, the ...

) of

Pskov Oblast Pskov Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the west of the country. Its administrative center is the Classification of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Pskov. As of the Russian Census ...

. He was a self-employed farmer who declined the offer to join a

kolkhoz A kolkhoz ( rus, колхо́з, a=ru-kolkhoz.ogg, p=kɐlˈxos) was a form of collective farm in the Soviet Union. Kolkhozes existed along with state farms or sovkhoz. These were the two components of the socialized farm sector that began to eme ...

Boris Polevoy. The most memorable: history of my reportings (Полевой Б. Н. «Самые памятные: Истории моих репортажей». — М.: Мол. гвардия, 1980, стр. 173—179)
From military diaries of Boris Polevoy
or collective farm. He lived with his grandson and continued to hunt and fish on the territory of the kolkhoz "Rassvet" (, 'Dawn'). He was nicknamed "Biriuk" (lone wolf).

Malkino Heights

Kuzmin's home region was occupied by the forces of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

in World War II. In February 1942, he helped house a German battalion in the village of Kurakino. The German unit was ordered to pierce the Soviet defense in the area of

Velikiye Luki Velikiye Luki ( rus, Вели́кие Лу́ки, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪjə ˈlukʲɪ; lit. ''great meanders''. Г. П. Смолицкая. "Топонимический словарь Центральной России". "Армада-� ...

by advancing into the rear of the Soviet troops dug in at Malkino Heights. On February 13, 1942, the German commander asked the 83-year-old Kuzmin to guide his men and offered Kuzmin

money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: m ...

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

kerosene Kerosene, or paraffin, is a combustibility, combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in Aviation fuel, aviation as well as households. Its name derives from the Greek (''kērós'') meaning " ...

, and a Sauer & Sohn hunting rifle. Kuzmin agreed, but on learning of the proposed route, sent his grandson Vasilij to Pershino (6 km from Kurakino) to warn the Soviet troops and to propose an

ambush An ambush is a surprise attack carried out by people lying in wait in a concealed position. The concealed position itself or the concealed person(s) may also be called an "". Ambushes as a basic military tactics, fighting tactic of soldi ...

near the village of Malkino. During the night, Kuzmin guided the German units through straining paths, leading them to the outskirts of Malkino at dawn. There the village defenders and the 2nd battalion of 31st Cadet Rifle Brigade of the Kalinin Front attacked. The German battalion came under

heavy machine gun A heavy machine gun (HMG) is significantly larger than light, medium or general-purpose machine guns. HMGs are typically too heavy to be man-portable (carried by one person) and require mounting onto a weapons platform to be operably stable or ...

fire and suffered losses of about 50 killed and 20 captured. Among the chaos, a German officer had realized what had happened and turned his pistol towards Kuzmin and shot him twice. Kuzmin died during the skirmish. Three days later Kuzmin was buried with military honors. Subsequently he was reburied at the military

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...

Legacy

Kuzmin's death became known through an article in ''

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...

'', by Boris Polevoy. Polevoy was a military correspondent in that area and attended Kuzmin's funeral. In 1948 Polevoy wrote the children's story ''The Last Day of Matvey Kuzmin'',All School Program in Literature - 3rd Grade (in Russian
The Last Day of Matvey Kuzmin
/ref> which is still included in Russian school readings for third grade. Kuzmin's self-sacrifice, which was compared with that of Ivan Susanin, earned him the posthumous honour of being named a

. Throughout the Soviet Union, streets were named in his honour. A Soviet

naval trawler Naval trawlers are vessels built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes; they were widely used during the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. Some, known in the Royal Navy as "Admiralty trawlers ...

was also named for him. In 1943 a statue to him was raised in a

Moscow Metro The Moscow Metro) is a rapid transit system in the Moscow Oblast of Russia. It serves the capital city of Moscow and the neighbouring cities of Krasnogorsk, Moscow Oblast, Krasnogorsk, Reutov, Lyubertsy, and Kotelniki. Opened in 1935 with one l ...

station Izmailovsky Park, now Partizanskaya, which was designed by the Soviet sculptor Matvey Manizer.

References

External links

В День всех влюбленных погиб псковский Иван Сусанин - - www.Museum.ru -
at www.museum.ru
Ships and Shipping Companies Database – WORLD SHIPPING REGISTER – Index
at www.e-ships.net
Moscow Metro / Lines & Stations / Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line / Partizanskaya
at engl.mosmetro.ru {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuzmin, Matvey 1858 births 1942 deaths People from Velikoluksky District People from Velikoluksky Uyezd Russian people of World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Soviet civilians killed in World War II People from the Russian Empire Historical journalism

Early life

Malkino Heights

Legacy

See also

References

External links