Kraynov Stepan Matveyevich (November 14, 1920, selo Bazarnyye Mataki, Spassky Canton, now Alkeyevsky District of Tatarstan — July 20, 2005, Nizhny Novgorod) — Hero of the Soviet Union (1944), Guards Major, tank commander. He spent most of his life in Gorky — Nizhny Novgorod: he studied here before the war, after demobilization worked in the food industry of the Region, and lived in the city until his death.[1][2]

Childhood and Education

In 1923, he moved to Gorky with his mother.[2] According to other sources, the move took place in 1933, following his father's death. The family relocated to stay with Kraynov's maternal uncle.[3][1] He attended School No. 1 and School No. 19 in Avtozavodsky District; School No. 19 now bears the number 126 and is located at Molodezhny Avenue. In 2016, it was added to the list of newly identified cultural heritage sites as the "School where future Heroes of the Soviet Union A. I. Poyushchev, S. M. Kraynov, and Yu. I. Onusaytis studied."[4] He then enrolled in the Gorky Institute of Water Transport Engineers and completed three years of study.[1] In October 1941, he was conscripted into the Red Army and sent to study at the Leningrad Armored Tank School, which had been evacuated to Magnitogorsk (according to another source — the Leningrad Armored Tank Advanced Command Courses).[1][2]

Military Service

He served on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War from May (according to other sources, from July) 1942. In his very first battle, the crew under Kraynov's command knocked out two enemy self-propelled guns; the tank was disabled and the commander was wounded.[1] After recovering, he fought on the Kalinin Front and then in Ukraine. As part of the forces of the Bryansk, Central, Voronezh, and 1st Ukrainian Fronts, he took part in the liberation of Left-Bank Ukraine (1943), the Kyiv offensive and defensive operations (1943), the Zhytomyr–Berdychiv (1943–1944), Lvov–Sandomierz (1944), Berlin, and Prague (1945) operations.[2]

As commander of a tank in the 52nd Guards Tank Brigade (6th Guards Tank Corps, 3rd Guards Tank Army, 1st Ukrainian Front), Guards Junior Lieutenant Kraynov distinguished himself on August 13, 1944, while repelling an enemy counterattack on the Sandomierz bridgehead near the settlement of Mokshe / Mokre (west of Staszów, Poland): the crew destroyed two enemy tanks and a large number of enemy personnel.[1][2] Earlier, commanding a tank from an ambush, the crew had destroyed five attacking Tiger-type tanks.[1] By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated September 23, 1944, Kraynov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.[1][2] From 1946, he held the rank of Major in the reserve. In February 1945, during the closing battles of the war, Kraynov joined the Party.[3][1]

Postwar Life

In 1949, he graduated from the Vologda Dairy Institute.[1] He worked as a process engineer and director of Dalnee Konstantinovo in Nizhny Novgorod Region, then as Gorky (1974–1976) and as an equipment procurement engineer at the Gorky Region Dairy Industry Directorate (1976–1983).[1][2] From 1970 to 2005, he lived at 72 Kovalikhinsky Street.[1]

He was awarded the Orders of Lenin, the Order of the Patriotic War 1st Class, two Orders of the Red Star, and various medals.[1][2] He died on July 20, 2005, and was buried in Nizhny Novgorod. In 2004, Kraynov was awarded the title of Honorary Citizen of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.[5][1]

Legacy

In 2005, a memorial plaque of black granite with an engraved portrait of the Hero was installed on the building at 72 Kovalikhinsky Street.[1] Memorial plaques in honor of Kraynov have also been installed in the Heroes' Park of the selo Bazarnyye Mataki and on the building of the Volga State University of Water Transport in Nizhny Novgorod.[2] A street in the selo Bazarnyye Mataki has been named after him. In 2020, a documentary film was made based on the book by N. V. Tikhonov and S. D. Romanov, "The Fate of a Tank Commander," dedicated to Kraynov (directed by D. Romanov).[2]

Sources

  1. opentextnn.ru — KRAYNOV S.M. (1920–2005) — OPEN TEXT (archive)
  2. tatarica.org — Kraynov Stepan Matveyevich (archive)
  3. lib-avt.ru — Kraynov Stepan Matveyevich — The move to Gorky in 1933 was to stay with Kraynov's maternal uncle. (archive)
  4. opentextnn.ru — Materials of the State Historical and Cultural Expert Review Report for the newly identified cultural heritage site "School where future Heroes of the Soviet Union studied" — School No. 19 of Avtozavodsky… (archive)
  5. Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region — In 2004, Kraynov was awarded the title of "Honorary Citizen of Nizhny Novgorod Region." (archive)