Russia – Soviet: Medal for Bravery awarded to Red Army Soldier Prokhor Vasilevich Koptyaev, Telephonist, 20th Staff Battery, Headquarters of the Commander of Artillery, 7th Army for the rapid repair of communications under enemy fire and his excellent watch over the telephone.
Medal for Bravery, type 2, reverse numbered 1277348
Condition: most of the red enamel lettering still present, Good Very Fine
Prokhor Vasilevich Koptyaev was born in 1907 and joined the Red Army on 25th October 1941, later serving on the frontlines from 21st July 1944 at Lodeynoye Pole.
This award of the Medal for Bravery was awarded in the field by means of a temporary award certificate and it is unclear if he won any other awards, although no previous decorations are mentioned on the citation sheet.
Awarded as a Telephonist, 20th Staff Battery, Headquarters of the Commander of Army Artillery the citation reads:
‘Comrade Koptyaev has been with the battery since June 1942. He has proven himself an exceptionally conscientious soldier-signalman. On 21st June 1944, the day of an Army artillery offensive, he was lineman for the line between the Commander’s HQ and the 37th Rifle Corps. Thanks to his excellent watch over the telephone and rapid repair of communications under enemy fire, that axis functioned flawlessly for the course of the battle. He is devoted to the Party of Lenin and Stalin and to the Socialist Motherland.’
Note: the discrepancy in dates are not uncommon in Soviet paperwork where individuals move from one unit to the other without records being forwarded on in the chaos of combat.
