Mikhail Nikolayevich Zakharov () (5 November 1912 – 19 February 1978) was an officer of the

Soviet Navy The Soviet Navy was the naval warfare Military, uniform service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy made up a large part of the Soviet Union's strategic planning in the event of a conflict with t ...

. He saw action in the

Second World War 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 ...

and rose to the rank of admiral. Born in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, in the

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 ...

in 1912, Zakharov began his naval career in 1930 with service with Coastal Defence Artillery Brigades, before moving into the political branch. He was military commissar at the Pacific Fleet's base at

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 ...

during the

German invasion of the Soviet Union 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 a ...

, and during the war served on the military councils of the Pacific Fleet, the

Volga Military District The Volga Military District (PriVO) was a military district of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation that existed from 1918 to 1989 and 1992 to 2001. The district headquarters was located at Kazan, Saratov and Kuibyshev (Samara) at differen ...

and the

Northern Fleet The Northern Fleet (, ''Severnyy flot'') is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Arctic. According to the Russian ministry of defence: "The Northern Fleet dates its history back to a squadron created in 1733 to protect the terri ...

. He followed this with work as a propagandist and as a senior instructor, and later as inspector of the fleet's political administration. Zakharov served in the political department of the

Black Sea Fleet The Black Sea Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. The Black Sea Fleet, along with other Russian ground and air forces on the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula, are subordin ...

after the war, and in 1956 joined the Pacific Fleet's military council, which he served on for the next 15 years, rising through the ranks to admiral. His last posting was head of the political department of the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. List of naval academies See also

* Military academy {{Authority control Naval academies, Naval lists ...

, which he held until shortly before his retirement in 1977. He had served as deputy to both the

Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union The Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (SSUSSR) was the highest body of state authority of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Based on the principle of unified power, it was the only branch of government in the So ...

and the

Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR The Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR, later the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation, was the supreme government institution of the Russian SFSR from 1938 to 1990; between 1990 and 1993, it was a permanent legislature (parliament), elected ...

during this time. He received a number of awards and honours over his career, and after his death in 1978 a street in

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...

and an ''Udaloy''-class

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

, ''Admiral Zakharov'', were named in his honour.

Early life

Born in

, in the

on 5 November 1912, Zakharov entered the navy in 1930 and from October to December 1930 served as the commander of a company of the Red Navy's 1st Coastal Defence Artillery Brigade. In December 1930 he entered the

Baltic Fleet The Baltic Fleet () is the Naval fleet, fleet of the Russian Navy in the Baltic Sea. Established 18 May 1703, under Tsar Peter the Great as part of the Imperial Russian Navy, the Baltic Fleet is the oldest Russian fleet. In 1918, the fleet w ...

's Machine School, graduating in November 1931 after time spent between May and August 1931 aboard the submarine support ship ''Kommuna''. In November 1931 he became commander of the Baltic Fleet's 1st Division of Coastal Defence Artillery Brigade, and joined the Communist Party in 1932. From January until November 1932 Zakharov was commander of the 3rd Independent Artillery Division, followed by service as political commissar of a company of the Red Navy's 1st Training Battalion of the Far East Naval Forces from November 1932 to August 1933.

Political commissar and the Great Patriotic War

In August 1933 Zakharov became political commissar of the 5th Separate Railway Artillery Division's battery, holding the post until September 1937. In that month he became commander of the guard ship ''Vyuga'', having completed the six-month course for political officers. In June 1938 he became military commissar of the destroyer , and in June 1939 took up the post of head of the political department of the Sovgavan fortified area. Zakharov became military commissar of the Pacific Fleet's base at

in April 1940, holding the position until October 1942. In January 1943 he was on the military council of the Pacific Fleet, followed by the

's military council. In March 1943 he went to the Far North to serve on the

's military council, and then from April to June served as a propagandist for the submarine squadron's political department. Zakharov followed this with a post as senior instructor in the organizational and training department. Arkhangelsk-RoyalSovereign1944

Between October 1943 to September 1944 Zakharov was inspector of the fleet's political administration, and from September 1944 to May 1947 deputy commander for political affairs of the battleship ''Arkhangelsk''. He took the Navy's higher military-political courses in 1947–1948 and then became head of the personnel department of the political department of the

. From May 1950 to May 1953 he was head of the Black Sea Fleet's political department concurrently with his post as deputy for the squadron commander's political affairs. During this period he was promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

, on 3 November 1951. He studied at the K.E. Voroshilov Higher Military Academy between May 1953 and November 1955. In January 1956 he was on the military council of the East Baltic Fleet, followed by the Pacific Fleet's military council from October 1956 to September 1971. He received a promotion to vice admiral on 7 May 1960, and then to admiral on 25 October 1967.

Later life and legacy

Between January and March 1969 Zakharov took a two-month course at the , and after stepping down from the Pacific Fleet's military council in September 1971 he became head of the political department of the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. List of naval academies See also

* Military academy {{Authority control Naval academies, Naval lists ...

. Zakharov was a deputy to the

's sixth and seventh convocations, from 1962 to 1966, and 1966 to 1970 respectively; and deputy to the

's 8th convocation. He stepped down from his naval duties in August 1976 and in February 1977 retired due to ill health. He died in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

on 19 February 1978, and was buried at the

Serafimovskoe Cemetery Serafimovskoe Cemetery () is a historic cemetery in northwestern Saint Petersburg, in Primorsky District, Saint Petersburg, Primorsky District. It was established to meet the need for the growing population in the early twentieth century. The fi ...

. Obituaries appeared in ''Leningradskaya Pravda'' on 21 February; '' Krasnaya Zvezda'' on 22 February; and ''Sovetskii Moryak'' on 24 February 1978. Zakharov received a number of awards and honours during his career. He was awarded 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 ...

in 1955; was twice awarded 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 ...

; held both the first and second classes of 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 ...

; the

Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" The Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" (), also known as the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", was a Soviet Union, Soviet Order (honour), military order awarded in three classes ...

Third Class; and was awarded the

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 ...

three times, including in 1947 and 1963. He was also awarded an honorary weapon in 1972. A street was named after him in

, with a commemorative plaque installed in 1979. The ''Udaloy''-class

''Admiral Zakharov'', launched in 1982, was named in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zakharov, Mikhail 1912 births 1978 deaths Military personnel from Saint Petersburg Soviet admirals Soviet military personnel of World War II Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", 3rd class Burials at Serafimovskoe Cemetery