Russia – Soviet: A fine Western Carpathian Offensive mine-clearing Order of the Patriotic War 2ndClass to Captain G.I. Drozhin, 113thEngineer-Sapper Battalion, 1stGuards Army, 4thUkrainian Front who helped clear 400kg of explosives from a bridge, averting its demolition and allowing the continued advance of the Red Army in the area.
Order of the Patriotic War 2nd Class, type 2, concave ring, reverse numbered 754824
Condition: Nearly extremely fine
Georgy Ivanovich Drozhin was born in the village of Stodolishche, Stodolishchevsky Distritc, Smolensk Oblast on 27th August 1922, serving in the Red Army from August 1941 and later becoming a member of the communist party in 1944.
Drozhin received two other wartime awards for bravery, the first of which was an order of the Red Star by decree of the 1st Belarussian Front on 25th February 1944, the second another Order of the Red Star by decree of the 6th Engineer-Sapper ‘Starokonstantinov’ Order of Suvorov Brighade on 23rd December 1944. His third and final award of the war was this Order of the Patriotic War 2nd Class issued to him by decree of the 1st Guards Army on 8th March 1945 whilst serving as a Captain and Company Commander, 113th Engineer-Sapper ‘Stanislav’ Battalion, 6th Engineer-Sapper ‘Starokonstantinov’ Order of Suvorov Brigade on the back of the following recommendation:
‘Captain Drozhin, leading his unit, displays courage and bravery. On 20.01.1945, in the area of Akurtsan, the retreating enemy mined the roadbed and all detours. Captain Drozhin’s unit, advancing ahead of the infantry and before the arrival of infantry, artillery and transport, ignoring that the enemy was at close range, created a passage, and in the process Captain Drozhin personally cleared mines from a bridge, where there turned out to be more than 400kg of explosives. In so doing, Captain Drozhin averted the demolition of the bridge. For courage and bravery displayed, Captain Drozhin deserves awarding of the Order of the Patriotic War 2nd Class.’
Drozhin would also receive a Medal for the Victory over Germany, the Medal for the 30th Anniversary of the Soviet Army and Navy, a Medal for Combat Merits for 10 years long service and an Order of the Red Star for 15 years long service.
After the war he would be noted as a student at the Moscow Higher Engineer-Mining Officers’ School of the Red Army, while living at Apartment 8, 27 Engels Street, Plywood Combine housing estate, city of Tavda , Sverdlovsk Oblast.