Born on July 8, 1918, in the village of Chapushka, Balashovsky district, Saratov Governorate (now the Arkadaksky District of the Saratov Oblast).[2]
He graduated from the 6 classes of the Arkadak secondary school.[3] He worked as a laborer at an oil refinery, as a mechanic and a hammerer at an agricultural school.[4]
In 1938 he was drafted into the armed forces, served in naval aviation in the Pacific Fleet.[5][1]
In October 1941, with a group of sailors, he arrived at the front, where he took part in battles as part of the 2nd Guards Army.[2]
In mid-December 1942, the 98th division blocked the path of the advancing tank army of Field Marshal von Manstein.[2] The regiment, in which Ilya Kaplunov served, held the defense near the Verkhnekumsky farm. On December 18, in the area of height 137.2, the guards repulsed four enemy attacks with heavy losses for him. In the afternoon, the Nazis, on a narrow sector of the front, brought into battle their last reserve - the 17th Panzer Division and the 65th Panzer Battalion.
All the soldiers of the company were killed in the battle, Kaplunov was left alone against five tanks. With two shots, he knocked out two enemy PzKpfw III tanks. Then he destroyed two other tanks that were trying to go around the position on the left. The fifth tank ran into the Kaplunov trench, when it drove on, the sailor threw a grenade at the engine compartment, destroying the tank. Soon four more tanks drove out from behind the ravine. Kaplunov knocked out three of them, however, he himself received two severe wounds: in the leg and in the arm. Seriously wounded and bleeding, Kaplunov also knocked out the ninth tank.[1] According to other sources, Kaplunov knocked out five tanks with fire from anti-tank rifles and grenades, after which his left leg was torn off. Kaplunov, while bleeding, knocked out three more tanks, but his left arm was torn off. Kaplunov knocked out another ninth tank with grenades.[6][4] Kaplunov was picked up by paramedics[2] and the next day, December 20, 1942, he died in the hospital without regaining consciousness.[4] A few days later, a bloody battle near the Aksai and Esaulovsky rivers ended in victory for the Soviet troops.
By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of October 26, 1943, for the destruction of 9 enemy tanks in the battle near the Verkhnekumsky farm and the valor and courage shown at the same time, Kaplunov Ilya Makarovich was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.[1] Kaplunov's body was buried in a mass grave near the Nizhnekumsky farm in the Oktyabrsky district of the Volgograd Oblast.[1]
Memory
Memorial plate on the Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd with inscription: "Eternal glory to the Hero of the Soviet Union, Guards Private Kaplunov Ilya Makarovich"
At the beginning of 1943, the Komsomol members of the Arkadak region raised money for the construction of the tank named «Ilya Kaplunov». The tank was handed over to Major V. M. Muravlev, a tanker from Saratov, who led him from the banks of the Volga to Berlin.[6][4]
Streets in Vladivostok, the Romanovka-2 garrison (Primorsky Territory), Volgograd, Arkadak and in the village of Oktyabrsky are named after Ilya Kaplunov.[6] His name is carved on the monument to the heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad in Volgograd.
By order of the troops of the Southern Front dated May 13, 1943, Ilya Kaplunov was forever enrolled in the lists of the 260th Guards Rifle Regiment of the 86th Guards Rifle Division. Until the end of the 1980s, the regiment was stationed in the city of Florești and was part of the 86th Guards Motorized Rifle Division of the 14th Guards Army of the Odessa Military District.[2]
The bust was installed on the alley of Heroes in front of the headquarters of the 7060th air base of the naval aviation of the Pacific Fleet (military unit 69262) in the Yelizovo garrison of the Kamchatka Krai.
The bust was installed in the garrison Romanovka-2 (Pristan) Primorsky Krai
In 1961, a sculpture of Kaplunov with an anti-tank rifle in his hands was installed over the mass grave where Kaplunov was buried.[6]
Герои Советского Союза: Краткий биографический словарь / Пред. ред. коллегии И. Н. Шкадов. — М.: Воениздат, 1987. — Т. 1 /Абаев — Любичев/. — 911 с. — 100 000 экз. — ISBN отс., Рег. No. в РКП 87-95382
Зачислен навечно: биографический справочник / А. Д. Зайцев, И. И. Рощин, В. Н. Соловьёв. — Кн. 1: Абросимов-Ляпота. — М.: Политиздат, 1990. — 382 с. — 100 000 экз.
Related Research Articles
Karakoz Abdaliev (Russian: Каракозы Абдалиев was a Soviet soldier who was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union posthumously in 1943 for his actions during the Battle of the Dnieper. He was reported to have killed 72 German soldiers and destroyed two tanks.
Raisa Yermolayevna Aronova was a Soviet Polikarpov Po-2 navigator and pilot of the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, later renamed 46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment during World War II. She received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on 15 May 1946 for completing 914 night bombing missions against Axis forces.
Oleg Ioilevich Kokushkin was a Red Army lieutenant colonel and posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union. Kokushkin joined the Red Army in 1931 and became a political commissar. Kokushkin fought in the Battle of Kiev (1941), the Battle of Moscow, and the Battle of Stalingrad. In November 1942 he was sent to the "Vystrel" courses and after completing the course became commander of the 3rd Guards Airborne Division's 8th Guards Airborne Regiment. Kokushkin led the regiment in the Battle of Kursk, Operation Kutuzov and the Chernigov-Pripyat Offensive. He was killed in action when a German bomb struck his command post. Kokushkin was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for his leadership of the regiment.
Alexander Andreyevich Kolesov was a Soviet officer and Hero of the Soviet Union. Kolesov was awarded the title for his actions during the Battle of the Dnieper. Due to the wounds he suffered during the fighting, Kolesov was not able to hold another combat post during the war. However, he returned to the Army postwar and eventually retired as a colonel. He later worked as a quality controller within the Soviet military equipment procurement organization.
Aleksandr Petrovich Yunev was a Red Army senior lieutenant and Hero of the Soviet Union.Yunev was awarded the title for his actions in Operation Spring Awakening for his part in repulsing numerous German attacks. Postwar, Yunev continued to serve in the army and died in 1952 as a result of his war wounds.
Mikhail Denisenko was a Red Army Major general and Hero of the Soviet Union. He fought in World War II with the Soviet airborne, leading the 36th Guards Rifle Division and 12th Guards Airborne Division. Postwar, Denisenko commanded the 103rd Guards Airborne Division, before his death in 1949 in a parachute accident.
Sergey Andreyevich Mostovoy was a Red Army man and Hero of the Soviet Union. Mostovoy was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin for his actions during the Vistula–Oder Offensive.
Vasily Andreyevich Lomakin was a Red Army colonel and posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union. Lomakin led the 195th Tank Brigade at the Battle of Kursk and in Operation Kutuzov. He was killed in action during Operation Kutuzov.
Dmitry Ivanovich Rodin was a Red Army junior lieutenant and Hero of the Soviet Union. Rodin was awarded the title for his leadership of a platoon during the Lublin–Brest Offensive, during which he was seriously wounded for the sixth time. As a result of this, Rodin spent the rest of the war in the hospital and was discharged in April 1945. Postwar, he worked as an engineer in the Ministry of Railways design and research institute.
Ilya Ananevich Kaverin was a Red Army senior sergeant and Hero of the Soviet Union. Kaverin was awarded the title for reportedly resisting German troops from his burned-out tank during the Battle of Kiev in 1943. He reportedly killed 30 German soldiers. After the war Kaverin was demobilized and returned to his native Astara.
Museyib Baghir oglu Baghirov was an Azerbaijani Red Army captain and a Hero of the Soviet Union. Baghirov was awarded the title on 22 February 1944 for his actions during the Battle of the Dnieper, in which his platoon reportedly killed up to 250 German soldiers and destroyed three tanks. Postwar, Baghirov was demobilized and worked in the oil industry.
Mehdi Nadir oglu Guliyev was an Azerbaijani Internal Troops lieutenant colonel and a Hero of the Soviet Union. Guliyev was awarded the title on 17 November 1943 for his actions in the Battle of the Caucasus and the Kerch–Eltigen Operation. During the battle to break through the Blue Line, Guliyev was reported to have repulsed twelve German counterattacks and killed 167 German soldiers with his machine gun. During the Taman Offensive he reportedly destroyed two German machine guns with grenades. In the Kerch–Eltigen Operation, Guliyev reportedly killed about 100 German soldiers with his machine gun. Postwar, Guliyev served in the Internal Troops, reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Vera Sergeyevna Kashcheyeva was a medic in the 120th Rifle Regiment who was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union in 1944 for her actions in the Dnieper crossing.
Zinaida Ivanovna Mareseva was a Senior Sergeant in the 214th Guards Rifle Regiment of the 73rd Guards Rifle Division during World War II. For her actions in battle she was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 22 February 1944.
Ivan Mikhailovich Chistyakov was a Soviet Army colonel general and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
Sergey Antonovich Bobruk was a Belarusian Soviet Army lieutenant general and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
Karp Vasilyevich Sviridov was a Soviet Army lieutenant general and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
Dmitry Gavrilovich Sukhovarov was a Soviet Army colonel and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
Ivan Yefimovich Buslayev was a Soviet Army major general and a Hero of the Soviet Union.
Arkady Lvovich Kaplunov (Russian: Арка́дий Льво́вич Каплуно́в; - Guard Colonel, Hero of the Soviet Union, deputy political commander of the 54th Guards Tank Brigade, 7th Guards Tank Corps, 3rd Guards Tank Army, Voronezh Front.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Soviet Union 
