Vladimir Ivanovich Zhdanov (; 29 April 1902 – 19 October 1964) was a colonel-general of tank troops in the armed forces of the Soviet Union. He was a major general in the Soviet Red Army during World War II.

Military career

In 1941, Zhdanov became the Assistant Commandant of the Syzransk Tank School. He attended the Military Academy of the General Staff from 1941 to 1942. From 1942 to 1944 he was the Chief of Staff of the

13th Tank Corps In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the Musical note, note thirteen scale degrees from the root (chord), root of a chord (music), chord and also the interval (music), interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is m ...

. He commanded the

4th Guards Mechanized Corps Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

in 1944 and 1945. From 1945 to 1947 he was the Commanding Officer of the 5th Guards Mechanized Division. He then commanded the

6th Guards Mechanized Division Sixth is the ordinal number, ordinal form of the number Six (number), six. * The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution * A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel * The fraction Mus ...

from 1947 to 1949. He attended the Military Academy of the General Staff in 1950 and 1951. He was the Chief of Staff of the

Far Eastern Military District The Far Eastern Military District () was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District. Histo ...

until 1953. From 1951 to 1953 he was also the Assistant Commander in Chief of the Far Eastern Military District. He also served as the Deputy Commander in Chief of the Southern Ural Military District and the Soviet

Central Group of Forces The Central Group of Forces (Russian: Центральная группа войск) was a formation of the Soviet Armed Forces used to incorporate Soviet troops in Central Europe on two occasions: in Austria and Hungary from 1945 to 1955 and tr ...

. He was also the First Assistant Commander in Chief of the

Transbaikal Military District The Transbaikal Military District () was a military district of first the Soviet Armed Forces and then the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed on 17 May 1935 and included the Buryat Republic, Chita Oblast, and Yakutia. Chita was ...

. From 1961 to 1964, he was the Senior Military Adviser to the

East German Army The National People's Army (, ; NVA ) were the armed forces of the German Democratic Republic (DDR) from 1956 until 1990. The NVA was organized into four branches: the (Ground Forces), the (Navy), the (Air Force) and the (Border Troops). Th ...

. In 1964, he was the Commandant of the Military Academy of the Tank Forces in the Soviet Union. He was a recipient of 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 ...

Award.

Belgrade Offensive

He was the commander of the 4th Guards Mechanized Corps in 1944 during the Belgrade Offensive. This unit captured Belgrade on October 20, 1944. He was awarded the medal Order of the People's Hero of Yugoslavia. Two streets were also named after him in Belgrade.

Death

He died on October 19, 1964, when his plane crashed at

Avala Avala ( sr-cyr, Авала, ) is a List of mountains in Serbia, mountain in Serbia, overlooking Belgrade. It is situated in the south-eastern corner of the city and provides a great panoramic view of Belgrade, Vojvodina and Šumadija, as the sur ...

while he was to attend the 20th anniversary of the Soviet liberation of Belgrade on October 20, 1944. Soviet Marshal

Sergey Biryuzov Sergey Semyonovich Biryuzov (; 21 August 1904 – 19 October 1964) was a Marshal of the Soviet Union and Chief of the General Staff. Early life and prewar service Biryuzov was born in Skopin, in the Ryazan Governorate of the Russian Empire, ...

was also killed in the crash.

Legacy

Resavska Street in downtown Belgrade was named after him from 1946 to 1951 and then again from 1965 to 1997. In 2010, an initiative was launched to name a street in the

Novi Beograd New Belgrade (, ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade. It was a Planned community, planned city and now is the central business district of Serbia and South East Europe. Construction began in 1948 in a previously un ...

or New Belgrade section of Belgrade after him. In 2016, the city manager of Belgrade,

Goran Vesić Goran Vesić (; born 18 February 1969) is a Serbian politician who served as the minister of construction, transport and infrastructure from 2022 to 2024. A member of the Serbian Progressive Party, he served as a member of the National Assembly ...

, announced that the Belgrade Assembly or Skupština had accepted the initiative and a street in the New Belgrade section of the city, formerly Pohorska Street, was renamed General Zhdanov Street. Goce Delčev Street was renamed Marshal Tolbukhin Boulevard to commemorate

Fyodor Tolbukhin Fyodor Ivanovich Tolbukhin (; 16 June 1894 – 17 October 1949) was a Soviet Union, Soviet military commander and Marshal of the Soviet Union. He is regarded as one of the finest Soviet generals of World War II. Born into a peasant family i ...

."NAPOKON – ALAL VERA: Ruski maršali ponovo dobijaju ulice u Beogradu!", May 9, 2016, ''Intermagazin''.
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References

Sources

* Biryuzov, Sergei S. ''Sovetskii soldat na balkanakh oviet soldiers in the Balkans'' (In Russian). Moskva: Voenizdat, 1963. * Biryuzov, Sergeĭ Semenovich, and Rade Hamović. ''Beogradska Operacija.'' (In Serbian). Beograd: Vojni istoriski institut Jugoslovenske narodne armije, 1964. * Erickson, John. ''The Road to Berlin: Continuing the History of Stalin’s War with Germany.'' Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1983. pp. 379–390. * Medvedev, Zhores A., and Roy A. Medvedev. ''The Unknown Stalin: His Life, Death and Legacy.'' London: I.B. Tauris, 2003. p. 212-214. * Tolubko, Vladimir F. ''Ot Vidina do Belgrada: istoriko-memuarnyĭ ocherk o boevykh deĭstvii͡akh sovetskikh tankistov v Belgradskoĭ operat͡sii.'' (In Russian). Moscow, 1968. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhdanov, Vladimir 1902 births 1964 deaths Military personnel from Kyiv Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of the People's Hero Russian people of World War II Soviet military personnel of World War II Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Serbia Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Yugoslavia Soviet colonel generals Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 1st class Recipients of the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Kutuzov, 2nd class Soviet military personnel of the Russian Civil War Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1964