Ariane Ramsey

The 1st Panzer Division was replenished with new KV-1 tanks with crews that arrived from Leningrad. Immediately upon arrival, the commander of the 3rd tank company of the 1st tank battalion, senior lieutenant Kolobanov, was summoned to the division commander, General V.I. Volosovo and Kingisepp (through the Tallinn Highway)[14]: "Block them and stand to the death!"

On the same day, a company of Z. G. Kolobanov of five KV-1 tanks advanced towards the advancing enemy. It was important not to miss the German tanks, so each tank was loaded with two armor-piercing shells and a minimum number of high-explosive fragmentation [14]. The crew of Kolobanov's tank[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][9][10] consisted of: the tank commander himself - Senior Lieutenant Zinovy ​​Grigorievich Kolobanov, gun commander Senior Sergeant Andrei Mikhailovich Usov [ 2], senior driver-foreman Nikolai Ivanovich Nikiforov[5], junior driver-mechanic Red Army soldier Nikolai Feoktistovich Rodnikov[sn 3][3][22] and gunner-radio operator senior sergeant Pavel Ivanovich Kiselkov[4][14].

Z.G.Kolobanov

A variant of the reconstruction of the combat scheme of the KV-1 senior lieutenant Z. G. Kolobanov with a German tank column on August 20, 1941 [13] (On a modern map.)

External images

A variant of the reconstruction of the combat scheme of a tank company of the 1st tank regiment of the 1st tank division

According to the research of O. Skvortsov[23], the events of August 19 and 20, 1941 near the state farm (manor) Voiskovitsy in the Krasnogvardeysky now Gatchinsky district of the Leningrad region developed as follows. On August 19, having assessed the likely paths of movement of German troops, Kolobanov sent two tanks to the Luga road, two to the Kingisepp road, and he himself took up a position on the seaside road. The place for a tank ambush was chosen in such a way as to cover two possible directions at once: the enemy could enter the road to Marienburg along the road from Voiskovits, or along the road from Syaskelevo. Therefore, a tank trench for the heavy tank KV-1 No. 864, Senior Lieutenant Kolobanov, was arranged just 300 meters opposite the T-shaped intersection (“Landmark No. 2”) in such a way as to fire “head on” if the tanks go along the first route . On both sides of the road there was a swampy meadow, which made it difficult for German armored vehicles to maneuver.

The next day, August 20 [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [9] [10] 1941, in the afternoon, the crews of Lieutenant M. I. Evdokimenko and Junior Lieutenant I. A. Degtyar was the first to meet the German tank column on the Luga Highway, knocking out five enemy tanks and three armored personnel carriers. Then the Germans undertook aerial reconnaissance, and after it ended to no avail, at about 14:00, German reconnaissance motorcyclists followed along the seaside road to the Voiskovitsy state farm, whom Kolobanov’s crew let through unhindered in order to wait for the approach of the main enemy forces. Then a column appeared, consisting of 22 light tanks[7] (presumably Pz.Kpfw.35(t))[24] of the German 6th Panzer Division[23] (in some sources also called the 1st[25][26] or the 8th [27] tank divisions).

After waiting until the head tank of the column caught up with two birches on the road (“Landmark No. 1”), Kolobanov ordered: “Landmark first, on the head, direct shot under the cross, armor-piercing - fire!”. After the first shots of the gun commander Usov, a former professional artillery instructor, a participant in the war in Poland and Finland, three leading German tanks caught fire, blocking the road. Having knocked them out, Usov transferred the fire to the tail, thereby depriving the enemy of the opportunity to retreat back or towards the Voiskovits, and then to the center of the column (“Landmark No. 2”) (according to other information published in the St. Petersburg Diary newspaper on September 14, 2015 years, three enemy tanks, knocked out by the first shots of Kolobanov's crew, were located respectively in the head, tail and in the middle of the column). On a narrow road, on both sides of which there was a swamp, a crush formed: the cars, continuing to move, bumped into each other, pulled over to the side of the road and fell into the swamp, where, having completely lost their mobility, they could only fire from the towers. Ammunition began to explode in the burning tanks of the enemy. Separate German tankers fired back. 114 shells hit the turret of Kolobanov's tank, but the armor of the KV turret proved to be the best. In an hour of battle, Kolobanov's crew knocked out all 22 tanks in the column. Of the double ammunition load, 98 armor-piercing shells were used up[23][28].

I was at that time at the observation post of the fortified area and heard the cannonade of the battle. Then he left for the place. At the crossroads, a pile of German tanks was on fire. A heroic battle and, perhaps, unprecedented in the history of the war. That's what the Kolobanovites did - they delayed the enemy's offensive in this important direction for a long time. The 8th Panzer Division, which was sent to reinforce the mechanized corps, did not help the Nazis much.

- P.I. Pinchuk, former commander of the 1st Tank Regiment of the 1st Tank Division[27]

According to some testimoniesTo you, together with the command of the tank unit, Pavel Maisky, a “special” correspondent of the Izvestia newspaper, a staff correspondent of the local militia newspaper “On Defense of Leningrad”, came to the battlefield, who allegedly filmed a panorama of burning cars[23].

The fight didn't end there. By order of the divisional commander V.I. Baranov, Kolobanov’s tank occupied the second prepared tank trench in anticipation of a second attack. Apparently, this time it was discovered, and the German Pz.Kpfw.IV fire support tanks began to fire at it from a long distance in order to divert attention to themselves and prevent aimed fire at tanks and motorized infantry, which at that time were breaking through into district of the educational farm and further to Chernovo. In addition, the Germans needed to force the Soviet tankers to leave the position in order to themselves begin to evacuate the wrecked tanks. The tank duel did not bring results to both sides: Kolobanov did not report a single destroyed tank at this stage of the battle, but his tank had its external observation devices broken and the turret jammed. Since it was impossible to turn the jammed turret in order to aim the cannon at the anti-tank guns brought by the Germans during the battle at close range, Kolobanov had to give the command to leave the tank trench and deploy the tank itself[23].

Nevertheless, Kolobanov's crew completed the task, linking up the German fire support tanks Pz.Kpfw.IV, which could not support the advance of the second company of tanks deep into the Soviet defense, where it was destroyed by another KV-1 group under the command of battalion commander I. B Spiller[23]. After the battle on the KV-1, Kolobanov was counted more than a hundred traces of hits (in various sources, the number of dents on the armor is different: 135 [27], 147 or 156 [14]).

As a result, the crew of senior lieutenant Kolobanov knocked out 22 German tanks, and in total his company chalked up 43 enemy tanks (including: the crew of junior lieutenant F. Sergeev - 8; junior lieutenant V. I. Lastochkin - 4; junior lieutenant I A. Degtyar - 4, Lieutenant M. I. Evdokimenko - 5). In addition, the battalion commander Shpiller personally burned two tanks. On the same day, the company was destroyed: one passenger car, an artillery battery, up to two infantry companies and one enemy motorcyclist were taken prisoner[29].

Award sheet Z. G. Kolobanov

Despite the fact that on August 20, no major tank losses were recorded in German documents, this does not refute the number of destroyed tanks declared by the Soviet side. Thus, 14 tanks of the 65th tank battalion of the 6th German tank division, written off as "irretrievable losses" in the period from August 23 to September 4, can be attributed to the results of the battle with Kolobanov's company. In early September, three companies of the 65th tank battalion were consolidated into two mixed companies. The remaining wrecked tanks, apparently, were repaired. On September 7, Major General Erhard Raus (German Erhard Raus) was appointed temporary commander of the division instead of Major General Franz Landgraf. O. Skvortsov suggested that “the change of the division commander was caused by the results of this (Voyskovitsky) battle, and August 19 became such a shameful stain for the 6th German Panzer Division that in all memoirs the events of this day are bypassed”[30].

In September 1941, for this battle, the commander of the 1st tank regiment of the 1st tank division, member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus D. D. Pogodin (the first tanker to receive the Hero of the Soviet Union medal (No. 26), all crew members Z. G Kolobanov were presented to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The commander of the division, Hero of the Soviet Union, General V. I. Baranov, also signed these submissions. However, at the headquarters of the Leningrad Front, Kolobanov's award was reduced by someone to the Order of the Red Banner, and the commander of the gun, Senior Sergeant Usov, to Order of Lenin Award sheets with crossed out in red pencil submissions to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union are now stored in TsAMO RF [31].

February 3, 1942 Kolobanov received the Order of the Red Banner. The crew members were also awarded: gun commander senior sergeant A. M. Usov - the highest order of the USSR, the Order of Lenin [2] [14], the senior mechanic-driver foreman N. I. Nikiforov - the Order of the Red Banner [5], gunner-radio operator senior Sergeant P. I. Kiselkov [4] and junior mechanic-driver of the Red Army N. F. Rodnikov - the Order of the Red Star [13] [32]

Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (Russian: audio speaker iconКлиме́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов​ (help·info), Ukrainian: Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, Klyment Okhrimovyč Vorošylov), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: Клим Вороши́лов, Klim Vorošilov; 4 February 1881[1] – 2 December 1969), was a prominent Soviet military officer and politician during the Stalin era. He was one of the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union, the highest military rank of the Soviet Union, and served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the nominal Soviet head of state, from 1953 to 1960.

Born to a Russian worker's family in modern Ukraine, Voroshilov took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917 as an early member of the Bolsheviks. He served with distinction at the Battle of Tsaritsyn, during which he became a close friend of Stalin. Voroshilov was elected to the Central Committee of the Communist Party in 1921, and in 1925 Stalin appointed him People's Commissar for Military and Navy Affairs (later People's Commissars for Defence). In 1926, he became a full member of the Politburo. In 1935, Voroshilov was named a Marshal of the Soviet Union. He played a central role during the Great Purge, denounced many of his own colleagues and subordinates, and personally signed over a hundred execution lists.

World War II

Voroshilov commanded Soviet troops during the Winter War from November 1939 to January 1940 but, due to poor Soviet planning and Voroshilov's incompetence as a general,[13] the Red Army suffered about 320,000 casualties compared to 70,000 Finnish casualties.[14] When the leadership gathered at Stalin's dacha at Kuntsevo, Stalin shouted at Voroshilov for the losses; Voroshilov replied in kind, blaming the failure on Stalin for eliminating the Red Army's best generals in his purges.[citation needed] Voroshilov followed this retort by smashing a platter of roast suckling pig on the table. Nikita Khrushchev said it was the only time he ever witnessed such an outburst.[15] Voroshilov was nonetheless made the scapegoat for the initial failures in Finland. He was later replaced as Defense Commissar by Semyon Timoshenko. Voroshilov was then made Deputy Premier responsible for cultural matters.[16] Voroshilov initially argued that thousands of Polish army officers captured in September 1939 should be released, but he later signed the order for their execution in the Katyn massacre of 1940.[17]

Between 1941 and 1944, Voroshilov was a member of the State Defense Committee.

After the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, Voroshilov became commander of the short-lived Northwestern Direction (July to August 1941), controlling several fronts. In September 1941 he commanded the Leningrad Front. Working alongside military commander Andrei Zhdanov as German advances threatened to cut off Leningrad, he displayed considerable personal bravery in defiance of heavy shelling at Ivanovskoye; at one point he rallied retreating troops and personally led a counter-attack against German tanks armed only with a pistol.[18] However, the style of counterattack he launched had long since been abandoned by strategists and drew mostly contempt from his military colleagues;[13] he failed to prevent the Germans from surrounding Leningrad and he was dismissed from his post and replaced by Georgy Zhukov on 8 September 1941.[19] Stalin had a political need for popular wartime leaders, however, and Voroshilov remained as an important figurehead.[13]

Kliment Voroshilov with his teacher

At the outbreak of World War II, Voroshilov was held responsible for Soviet failures in Finland during the Winter War and was replaced as Defense Commissar by Semyon Timoshenko. Following the German invasion in June 1941, he was recalled and appointed to the State Defense Committee. Voroshilov failed to stop the German encirclement of Leningrad and was again relieved from his command in September 1941.

After the war, Voroshilov oversaw the establishment of a socialist regime in Hungary. Following Stalin's death in 1953, Voroshilov was appointed Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. His fortunes declined during the rise of Nikita Khrushchev and the Supreme Soviet removed him from power in 1960. Voroshilov died in 1969 at the age of 88.

Early life

Kliment Voroshilov with his teacher Semyon Ryzhkov

Voroshilov was born in the settlement of Verkhnyeye, Bakhmut uyezd, Yekaterinoslav Governorate, Russian Empire (now part of Lysychansk city in Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine), into a railway worker's family of Russian ethnicity.[2] According to the Soviet Major General Petro Grigorenko, Voroshilov himself alluded to the heritage of his birth-country and to the previous family name of Voroshilo.[3] During his school years, Voroshilov became a close friend and almost a member of the family of Semyon Ryzhkov,[4] who later became the second secretary of the First Duma.

Russian Revolution

Voroshilov joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1905. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Voroshilov became a member of the Ukrainian Council of People's Commissars and Commissar for Internal Affairs along with Vasiliy Averin. He was well known for aiding Joseph Stalin in the Revolutionary Military Council, having become closely associated with Stalin during the Red Army's 1918 defense of Tsaritsyn, and one of the Cavalry Army clique.

Voroshilov was active as a commander of the Southern Front during the Russian Civil War and the Polish–Soviet War while with the 1st Cavalry Army. As Political Commissar serving co-equally with Stalin, Voroshilov was responsible for the morale of the 1st Cavalry Army, which was composed chiefly of peasants from southern Russia.[5][6]

Voroshilov headed the Petrograd Police during 1917 and 1918.

World War II

Voroshilov commanded Soviet troops during the Winter War from November 1939 to January 1940 but, due to poor Soviet planning and Voroshilov's incompetence as a general,[13] the Red Army suffered about 320,000 casualties compared to 70,000 Finnish casualties.[14] When the leadership gathered at Stalin's dacha at Kuntsevo, Stalin shouted at Voroshilov for the losses; Voroshilov replied in kind, blaming the failure on Stalin for eliminating the Red Army's best generals in his purges.[citation needed] Voroshilov followed this retort by smashing a platter of roast suckling pig on the table. Nikita Khrushchev said it was the only time he ever witnessed such an outburst.[15] Voroshilov was nonetheless made the scapegoat for the initial failures in Finland. He was later replaced as Defense Commissar by Semyon Timoshenko. Voroshilov was then made Deputy Premier responsible for cultural matters.[16] Voroshilov initially argued that thousands of Polish army officers captured in September 1939 should be released, but he later signed the order for their execution in the Katyn massacre of 1940.[17]

Between 1941 and 1944, Voroshilov was a member of the State Defense Committee.

After the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, Voroshilov became commander of the short-lived Northwestern Direction (July to August 1941), controlling several fronts. In September 1941 he commanded the Leningrad Front. Working alongside military commander Andrei Zhdanov as German advances threatened to cut off Leningrad, he displayed considerable personal bravery in defiance of heavy shelling at Ivanovskoye; at one point he rallied retreating troops and personally led a counter-attack against German tanks armed only with a pistol.[18] However, the style of counterattack he launched had long since been abandoned by strategists and drew mostly contempt from his military colleagues;[13] he failed to prevent the Germans from surrounding Leningrad and he was dismissed from his post and replaced by Georgy Zhukov on 8 September 1941.[19] Stalin had a political need for popular wartime leaders, however, and Voroshilov remained as an important figurehead.[13]

Voroshilov (right) with J.K. Paasikivi in Moscow

Post war

Hungary

Between 1945 and 1947, Voroshilov supervised the establishment of the socialist republic in postwar Hungary.[13] He attributed the poor showing of the Hungarian Communist Party in the October 1945 Budapest municipal elections to the number of minorities in leadership positions, arguing that it was "detrimental to the party that its leaders are not of Hungarian origin".[20]

1952–1953 Soviet leadership

In 1952, Voroshilov was appointed a member of the Presidium of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Stalin's death on 5 March 1953 prompted major changes in the Soviet leadership. On 15 March 1953, Voroshilov was approved as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (i.e., the head of state) with Nikita Khrushchev as First Secretary of the Communist Party and Georgy Malenkov as Premier of the Soviet Union. Voroshilov, Malenkov, and Khrushchev brought about the 26 June 1953 arrest of Lavrenty Beria after Stalin's death.

One of Voroshilov's responsibilities as chairman of the Presidium was to oversee the appeal review of Soviet death row inmates. Analysis by Jeffrey S. Hardy and Yana Skorobogatov describe his role thus:

"Chairman Voroshilov presided over the meetings and clearly had the most influential voice, but split votes were not uncommon and Voroshilov was sometimes outvoted... Throughout his tenure as Presidium chair, he behaved like someone who believed that one should follow established procedure and not act too quickly in matters of life and death."

Hardy and Skorobogatov indicate that Voroshilov frequently exerted his influence on the committee toward leniency, especially in the case of those who expressed repentance in their appeal documents and those convicted of crimes of passion or under the influence of alcohol; he judged those convicted of political crimes or acts with financial motives more harshly. During his tenure, many individuals sentenced to death had their punishments commuted to prison terms of varying lengths. The authors of study observe that his successor, Brezhnev, took a noticeably harder line in appeals cases.

However, the contrast between Voroshilov's relatively magnanimous attitude toward pardon cases in the 1950s with his well-documented participation in the deadly purges of the 1930s (as described above) was noted even at the time by Khrushchev, who asked him, "So when were you acting according to your conscience, then or now?"[21]

Fall from grace

After Khrushchev removed most of the old Bolshevists like Molotov and Malenkov from the party, Voroshilov's career began to fade. On 7 May 1960, the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union granted Voroshilov's request for retirement and elected Leonid Brezhnev chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Council (the head of state). The Central Committee also relieved him of duties as a member of the Party Presidium (as the Politburo had been called since 1952) on 16 July 1960.[citation needed] In October 1961, his political defeat was complete at the 22nd party congress when he was excluded from election to the Central Committee.[citation needed]

Voroshilov (right) with J.K. Paasikivi in Moscow

Following Khrushchev's fall from power, Soviet leader Brezhnev brought Voroshilov out of retirement into a figurehead political post. Voroshilov was again re-elected to the Central Committee in 1966. Voroshilov was awarded a second medal of Hero of the Soviet Union 1968.

Death

Voroshilov's grave at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis in Moscow.

During a winter night in 1969, the 88 year old Voroshilov started to feel unwell. His family proposed to call an ambulance immediately, but he adamantly refused. In the morning he put on his military uniform, and after calling a car, he went to the hospital himself, fully decorated. Voroshilov died on 2 December and was buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis,[22] in one of the twelve individual tombs located between the Lenin Mausoleum and the Kremlin wall.

Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (Russian: audio speaker iconКлиме́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов​ (help·info), Ukrainian: Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, Klyment Okhrimovyč Vorošylov), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: Клим Вороши́лов, Klim Vorošilov; 4 February 1881[1] – 2 December 1969), was a prominent Soviet military officer and politician during the Stalin era. He was one of the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union, the highest military rank of the Soviet Union, and served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the nominal Soviet head of state, from 1953 to 1960.

Born to a Russian worker's family in modern Ukraine, Voroshilov took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917 as an early member of the Bolsheviks. He served with distinction at the Battle of Tsaritsyn, during which he became a close friend of Stalin. Voroshilov was elected to the Central Committee of the Communist Party in 1921, and in 1925 Stalin appointed him People's Commissar for Military and Navy Affairs (later People's Commissars for Defence). In 1926, he became a full member of the Politburo. In 1935, Voroshilov was named a Marshal of the Soviet Union. He played a central role during the Great Purge, denounced many of his own colleagues and subordinates, and personally signed over a hundred execution lists.

The KV-3 leads to the KV-4, and the IS-2-II.IS-2-II.\

After the war, Voroshilov oversaw the establishment of a socialist regime in Hungary. Following Stalin's death in 1953, Voroshilov was appointed Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. His fortunes declined during the rise of Nikita Khrushchev and the Supreme Soviet removed him from power in 1960. Voroshilov died in 1969 at the agage of 88

The Kliment Voroshilov (KV) tanks are a series of Soviet heavy tanks named after the Soviet defence commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov who operated with the Red Army during World War II. The KV tanks were known for their heavy armour protection during the early stages of the war, especially during the first year of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. In certain situations, even a single KV-1 or KV-2 supported by infantry could halt German formations. The German Wehrmacht at that time rarely deployed its tanks against KVs, as their own armament was too poor to deal with the "Russischer Koloss" – "Russian Colossus".[4]

The KV tanks were practically immune to the 3.7 cm KwK 36 and howitzer-like, short-barreled 7.5 cm KwK 37 guns mounted, respectively, on the early Panzer III and Panzer IV tanks fielded by the invading German forces. Until the Germans developed more effective guns, the KV-1 was invulnerable to almost any German weapon except the 8.8 cm Flak gun.[5]

Prior to the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, about 500 of the over 22,000 tanks then in Soviet service were of the KV-1 type. As the war progressed, it became evident that there was little sense in producing the expensive KV tanks, as the T-34 medium tank performed better (or at least equally well) in all practical respects. In fact the only advantage the KV had over the T-34/76 was its larger and roomier three-man turret.[6] Later in the war, the KV series became a base for the development of the IS (Iosif Stalin) series of tanks and self-propelled guns.

KV-1S

In response to criticisms, the lighter KV-1S was developed, with thinner armour and a smaller, lower turret in order to reclaim some speed. The KV-1S had a commander's cupola with all-around vision blocks. It also had a sophisticated planetary transmission that significantly increased the reliability, and allowed use of more efficient regenerative geared steering, unlike the solely clutch and brake steering systems used by the Panzer III, IV and T-34 and previous KV tanks. Its reduced weight allowed it to achieve a top speed of 43.3 km/h. Over 1,300 were built before production ended in August 1943.[15] Although the KV-1S was, according to some, the best of the KV tanks, overcoming its predecessors' problems (at a cost of losing the heavy armor that made the earlier tanks so valuable, making it more of a slow medium tank than a heavy tank), more modern tanks were already in sight.[16] Up-arming the regular turret of the KV-1S with an 85 mm S-31 resulted in the KV-1S-85. This was rejected as it came with the unacceptable loss of a dedicated commander, reducing the turret crew to two (unlike the 3-man turret fitted to the T-34/85).[17] However, the thinning-out of the armour called into question why the tank was being produced at all, when the T-34 could seemingly do everything the KV could do and much more cheaply. The Soviet heavy tank program was close to cancellation in mid-1943.

The appearance of the German Panther tank in the summer of 1943 convinced the Red Army to make a serious upgrade of its tank force for the first time since 1941. Soviet tanks needed bigger guns to take on the growing numbers of Panthers and the few Tigers.

A further modification of the KV-1 heavy tank series developed in the summer of 1942. It passed into Red Army service on August 20, 1942. Compared to its predecessors, KV-1S had several design features which allowed for the tank’s weight to be reduced to 42.3 tons. Also, the KV-1S had increased top speed, maneuverability, and durability. However, the 76-mm ZIS-5 gun remained. This, coupled with reduced and inefficient armoring, made the new vehicle basically equal to the T-34 in terms of battle performance. A total of 1,083 vehicles of this modification were manufactured. This tank was widely used on all fronts of the Great Patriotic War.

The KV-1S has an interesting history in World of Tanks. Starting as the only way to access the IS from the heavy line in 0.7.3, it was then moved down to Tier 5 and replaced by the KV-85 in 0.9.3, only to once again take its place as one of the Tier 6 Soviet heavy tanks in update 1.9, though now without access to the 122 mm gun that once made it infamous. This tank trades in some of the KV-1's armor for improved mobility, allowing it to spearhead assaults and deal quite a bit of damage with either of its top guns.

The KV-1S leads to the IS.

Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (Russian: audio speaker iconКлиме́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов​ (help·info), Ukrainian: Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, Klyment Okhrimovyč Vorošylov), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: Клим Вороши́лов, Klim Vorošilov; 4 February 1881[1] – 2 December 1969), was a prominent Soviet military officer and politician during the Stalin era. He was one of the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union, the highest military rank of the Soviet Union, and served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the nominal Soviet head of state, from 1953 to 1960.

Born to a Russian worker's family in modern Ukraine, Voroshilov took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917 as an early member of the Bolsheviks. He served with distinction at the Battle of Tsaritsyn, during which he became a close friend of Stalin. Voroshilov was elected to the Central Committee of the Communist Party in 1921, and in 1925 Stalin appointed him People's Commissar for Military and Navy Affairs (later People's Commissars for Defence). In 1926, he became a full member of the Politburo. In 1935, Voroshilov was named a Marshal of the Soviet Union. He played a central role during the Great Purge, denounced many of his own colleagues and subordinates, and personally signed over a hundred execution lists.

At the outbreak of World War II, Voroshilov was held responsible for Soviet failures in Finland during the Winter War and was replaced as Defense Commissar by Semyon Timoshenko. Following the German invasion in June 1941, he was recalled and appointed to the State Defense Committee. Voroshilov failed to stop the German encirclement of Leningrad and was again relieved from his command in September 1941.

After the war, Voroshilov oversaw the establishment of a socialist regime in Hungary. Following Stalin's death in 1953, Voroshilov was appointed Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. His fortunes declined during the rise of Nikita Khrushchev and the Supreme Soviet removed him from power in 1960. Voroshilov died in 1969 at the age of 88.

The Kliment Voroshilov (KV) tanks are a series of Soviet heavy tanks named after the Soviet defence commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov who operated with the Red Army during World War II. The KV tanks were known for their heavy armour protection during the early stages of the war, especially during the first year of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. In certain situations, even a single KV-1 or KV-2 supported by infantry could halt German formations. The German Wehrmacht at that time rarely deployed its tanks against KVs, as their own armament was too poor to deal with the "Russischer Koloss" – "Russian Colossus".[4]

The KV tanks were practically immune to the 3.7 cm KwK 36 and howitzer-like, short-barreled 7.5 cm KwK 37 guns mounted, respectively, on the early Panzer III and Panzer IV tanks fielded by the invading German forces. Until the Germans developed more effective guns, the KV-1 was invulnerable to almost any German weapon except the 8.8 cm Flak gun.[5]

Prior to the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, about 500 of the over 22,000 tanks then in Soviet service were of the KV-1 type. As the war progressed, it became evident that there was little sense in producing the expensive KV tanks, as the T-34 medium tank performed better (or at least equally well) in all practical respects. In fact the only advantage the KV had over the T-34/76 was its larger and roomier three-man turret.[6] Later in the war, the KV series became a base for the development of the IS (Iosif Stalin) series of tanks and self-propelled guns.

KV-85

A stopgap upgrade to the KV series was the short-lived KV-85 or Objekt 239. This was a KV-1S with the new turret from the Object 237 (IS-85) still in development, mounting the same 85 mm D-5T gun as the SU-85 and early versions of the T-34-85 (not yet in production at the time). The 85 mm proved capable of penetrating the Tiger I from 1000 m and the demand for it slowed production of the KV-85 tremendously, only 148 were built between August and October 1943.[18] Soviet industry was therefore able to produce a heavy tank as well armed as the Tiger I before the end of 1943. Although the KV-85 was an excellent opponent to the Tigers and Panthers, it was a stopgap and thus was built in small numbers.[15] The complete Object 237 was accepted into service as the IS-85 and was produced in the autumn and winter of 1943-44; they were sent to the front as of October 1943 and production of the IS-85/IS-1 was stopped by the spring of 1944 once the IS-122/IS-2 entered full-scale production.

Description from video game WOT:

A further development of the KV-1S tank. Unlike the previous modification, the KV-85 had enhanced armament. The vehicle was developed in the spring of 1943 at the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant. The tank entered service on August 8, 1943, and was mass produced until September, with a total of 148 vehicles manufactured. The KV-85 was used by the breakthrough armored regiments of the Red Army.

Like its predecessor, the KV-1S, the KV-85 is heavy tank that trades armour for speed and maneuverability. The KV-85 is most deadly on the flanks of its opponents, where it can use either a fast firing 100mm S-34 gun with excellent overall DPM, or the high-alpha 122mm D-2-5T gun capable of taking out half a tier VI heavy's hit points with one hit.

The KV-85 marks the end of its Soviet heavy line.

The creator:

Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (Russian: audio speaker iconКлиме́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов​ (help·info), Ukrainian: Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, Klyment Okhrimovyč Vorošylov), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: Клим Вороши́лов, Klim Vorošilov; 4 February 1881[1] – 2 December 1969), was a prominent Soviet military officer and politician during the Stalin era. He was one of the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union, the highest military rank of the Soviet Union, and served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the nominal Soviet head of state, from 1953 to 1960.

Born to a Russian worker's family in modern Ukraine, Voroshilov took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917 as an early member of the Bolsheviks. He served with distinction at the Battle of Tsaritsyn, during which he became a close friend of Stalin. Voroshilov was elected to the Central Committee of the Communist Party in 1921, and in 1925 Stalin appointed him People's Commissar for Military and Navy Affairs (later People's Commissars for Defence). In 1926, he became a full member of the Politburo. In 1935, Voroshilov was named a Marshal of the Soviet Union. He played a central role during the Great Purge, denounced many of his own colleagues and subordinates, and personally signed over a hundred execution lists.

At the outbreak of World War II, Voroshilov was held responsible for Soviet failures in Finland during the Winter War and was replaced as Defense Commissar by Semyon Timoshenko. Following the German invasion in June 1941, he was recalled and appointed to the State Defense Committee. Voroshilov failed to stop the German encirclement of Leningrad and was again relieved from his command in September 1941.

After the war, Voroshilov oversaw the establishment of a socialist regime in Hungary. Following Stalin's death in 1953, Voroshilov was appointed Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. His fortunes declined during the rise of Nikita Khrushchev and the Supreme Soviet removed him from power in 1960. Voroshilov died in 1969 at the age of 88.