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Auction: 23112 - Orders, Decorations and Medals - e-Auction
Lot: 1051

A Stalingrad Veteran's Medal for Bravery awarded to Lieutenant-Colonel Petr Nikolaevich Prikhno, Chief of Staff of 63rd Rifle Division, 31st Army, formerly the 8th Motorised Rifle N.K.V.D. Division, for his role in the initial defence of the Serafimovich bridgehead, a crucial area to the north of Stalingrad which formed one of the launch areas for the counter-attack which would surround the German Sixth Army in November 1942. A much-decorated officer, Prikhno would later receive an Order of the Red Banner for his role in Operation Uranus - the Stalingrad counterattack - two orders of the Patriotic War 1st Class - one of which was for the storming and capture of Konigsberg in April 1945 - as well as two further orders of the Red Banner, and an Order of Lenin for long service

Russia, Soviet Union, Medal for Bravery, reverse numbered 108416, 1st type medal, subsequently converted for wear on a 2nd type suspender due to post-1943 field regulations, slight damage to red enamel lettering but overall good very fine

Petr Nikolaevich Prikhno was born in Cherkassy District in the Kiev Region in 1906 and would join the Red Army in 1924; he subsequently became a Party Member in 1928.

Prikhno saw frontline service in the Patriotic War from 22 June 1941 and would go on to be heavily involved in the celebrated Defence of Stalingrad. This Medal for Bravery was awarded to him on 19 October 1942 whilst serving as Lieutenant-Colonel and Chief-of-Staff of the 63rd Rifle Division, 31st Army - formerly the 8th Motorised Rifle N.K.V.D. Division - for the following act:

‘Comrade Prikhno has been the first Chief of Staff of 8th Motorised Rifle NKVD Division, and later Chief of Staff of 63rd Rifle Division. He has been efficient in organising the respective headquarters functions. In all the combat operations, he ensured efficient and continuous combat governance of the troops and proper combat documentation. In the situations near Bobrovsky and Serafimovich, when the enemy imposed direct threat to the division headquarters, Comrade Prikhno personally organised the headquarters personnel to man the defensive perimeter. As the result of this effort, the enemy thrust was repelled and all the personal and vehicles were safely relocated and evaded the enemy, even though it was done under heavy enemy fire. He is a disciplined and reliable officer. He is devoted to the cause of the Lenin-Stalin party and the Socialist Motherland. He enjoys the well deserved respect of the troops.’

He would go on to receive a number of other awards during the course of his service - the first of these would be an Order of the Red Banner on 4 February 1943; the Russian archives suggest this was for the opening days of the Stalingrad counter-attack from 19-24 November 1942, where units broke out of the Serafimovich bridgehead that he had defended and formed part of the northern pincer that met at Kalach-on-Don on 24 November and surrounded the German Sixth Army in the city.

He would then be awarded an Order of the Red Banner (3 November 1944) for 20 years long service and an Order of the Patriotic War 1st Class on 22 November 1944 for fighting as part of the 1st Baltic Front in Latvia.

In April 1945 he would take part in the storming of Konigsberg, being awarded another Order of the Patriotic War by decree of the 3rd Belorussian Front on 22 April 1945 for his role in the fighting.

He would later receive an Order of Lenin on 11 November 1951 for 25 years long service and then a third Order of Red Banner on 26 October 1955 for 30 years long service.

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Estimate
£140 to £180

Starting price
£100