Konstantin Rokossovsky

Since the end of the Second World War, Konev and Zhukov have received the lion's share of the west's attention regarding the Red Army's Second World War military leaders. However, in a 1999 Russian opinion poll Rokossovsky came in ranked second only to Zhukov in his role assisting the Red Army's drive to victory against Germany. Several former members of the Red Army's top ranks ranked him equally to Zhukov, and one, Marshal Golovanov, ranked him superior to Zhukov. Ironically however, Rokossovsky was not even a Russian.

Rokossovsky was born on December 21, 1896, in Warsaw. He was born to a Polish Father and Belorussian Mother, and until the age of 18 spent his life in Poland, under Russian rule at the time, when he joined the Russian Army in 1914. During the First World War, Rokossovsky served in the cavalry, where among other awards he was honored three separate times with the St. George's Cross - one of Russia's top military decorations, and suffered being twice wounded in combat. By 1936, Rokossovsky had risen to command the 5th Cavalry Corps and he seemed destined for greatness until arrested during the purges on groundless charges questioning his dedication to the party because of his Polish heritage. Rokossovsky was finally released from prison in March 1940 and promoted to Major General in May 1940; later taking command of the 9th Mechanized Corps. By early 1942, Rokossovsky had led numerous armies' in constant combat since the German invasion, and played a  pivotal role in Moscow's defense as commander of the 16th Army. Stalin held Rokossovsky in high regard, and referred to him by his first name, an honor even Zhukov did not receive as Stalin otherwise used "Comrade" to refer to all of his Generals but Rokossovsky and Shaposhnikov.

By the winter of 1941-1942, Rokossovsky was in the forefront of the Soviet war effort, as the Red Army pushed the German army west, and he would remain so throughout the war, playing a leading role in many of the war's most important campaigns and battles - including at Stalingrad, Kursk, the summer 1944 destruction of Germany's Army Group Center and the final battles within the Third Reich.


Picture in Public Domain in Russia