Red Star,1812589,Horse Scout,336th Zhitomir Rifle Division

[Bill Garvy]

Award Card

Order Booklet B 171408

1. Last name: Sirotin
2. Name and patrionymic: Aleksandr Grigorevich
3. Rank: Guards Senior Sergeant
4. Gender: Male
5. Birthyear: 1907
6. Birthplace: Kharkov Oblast, village of Boshznetsovskii
7. Party membership: since 1945
8. Education: elementary
9. Nationality: Ukrainian
10. Time in Red Army: 22.06.1941-9.05.1945
11. Place of service at awarding: Battery First Sergeant – 223rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 336th Rifle Division
12. Place of work at present: (?) - Kharkov Oblast, Boshznetsovskii Region, Kirov Collective Farm
13. Home address: Kharkov Oblast, Boshznetsovskii Region, Kirov Collective Farm

14. Awards:
Designation Serial Number Awarding Organization

Red Star 1.812.589 336th Rifle Division dated 17.02.45

Verified by Boshznetsovskii Regional Military Commissariat Chief of the 3rd Section Senior Lieutenant Vash(?) on 4th July, 1947

[Bill Garvy]

Unit Award Order


SECRET
[trans: stamped “1st Ukrainian Front”] 1st Ukrainian Front, 60th Army, 15th Rifle Corps, 336th Zhitomir Rifle Division Order 013/N dated 17th February, 1945

On behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet USSR, I award the following decorations for exemplary accomplishment of the Command’s missions in the struggle against the German invaders and for having displayed valor and bravery:

Order of the Red Star to:

34. Sergeant Aleksandr Grigorevich Sirotin – Horse Scout, 408th Independent Reconnaissance Company

Signed Commander, 236th Zhitomir Rifle Division, Colonel Grinwald-Mukho and Division Chief of Staff, Lieutenant Colonel Nikitin

[Bill Garvy]

Award Sheet

1. Last name, name, and patrionymic: Sirotin, Aleksandr Grigorevich
2. Rank: Sergeant
3. Duty position: Cavalryman/Scout – 336th Zhitomir Rifle Division
Recommendation for the Order of the Red Star
4. Born: 1907
5. Nationality: Ukrainian
6. Party membership: candidate member since 17th January, 1942 #183361
7. Previous combat: since 1941 on the Kalinin, Central, and 1 Ukrainian Fronts
8. Wounds or shell-shock: shell-shocked 25.11.43 and lightly wounded 13.2.44
9. In Red Army: since May, 1941
10. Inducted by: Boshznetsovskii Regional Military Commissariat, Kharkov Oblast
11. Previous awards: n/a
12. Home of record: [trans: entry intentionally obscured]

Short description of personal combat feat or accomplishment

During the attack on the population area of Duzha* on 18.1.1945 Comrade Sirotin and his squad had the mission to attract the enemy’s attention to permit the platoon to advance to the western edge of the city of Khzhapuv* to cut off the retreating enemy located in the city. The mission was accomplished and ten German prisoners were captured, as well as one enemy firing position and its crew destroyed.

He is deserving of the Order of the Red Star.

Signed Chief of Intelligence, 336th Zhitomir Rifle Division, Captain (?)akhomov on 13th February, 1945

Endorsed Commander, 336th Zhitomir Rifle Division, Colonel Grinvald-Mukho on 14th February, 1945

Awarded the Order of the Red Star by 336th Rifle Division Order 013/N dated 17.3.45, signed Division Chief of Personnel Major Stepanov on 17.2.45

*Geographic place name is an approximation based off of transliterated Russian from German translated into English

[Bill Garvy]

Sergeant Aleksandr Grigorevich Sirotin's Order of the Red Star, #1812589.

[Al-muell]

I think that the city name is actually Khzhanuv, which would fit the city of Chrzanów in Poland that was liberated on 24 January 1945. Can't locate "Duzha/Duzhe"(Duża), but the name also seems Polish, it's possible that it was wrongly re-written from the map - Duża/Duże (large) seems to be the part of a name rather than independant name for a settlement.