Marshal Georgy Zhukov of Russia (1896-1974)
The military commander in Russia named Georgy Zhukov was one of the most important military leaders of World War II. He enlisted in the military at the age of 19, served in World War I, and fought for the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War. He was born in 1896 to a farmer and a shoemaker. Zhukov battled the Japanese in the Mongolian-Manchurian frontier from 1937 until 1939. He won amazing battles and was named a Soviet Union Hero. Zhukov was made Red Army chief of general staff and elevated to general in 1941, just before Germany attacked the Soviet Union.
After successfully defending Moscow, Zhukov planned a counterattack that drove the Germans between 60 and 150 kilometers away from the capital. Later, he contributed to the creation of the Operation Uranus plans, which involved Stalingrad's encirclement of the German 6th Army. The strategy completely worked and helped reverse the tide of the conflict. The siege on Leningrad was eventually lifted when Zhukov assisted in the victory of the Kursk War.
After defeating the Germans at Seelow Heights and surrounding and destroying them in Berlin to put an end to the war, Georgy Zhukov led the Soviet push westward. After becoming a member of the Presidium, he retired in 1957. He was able to predict the advantages and disadvantages of battlegrounds, drew maps based on topography studies, and used them to determine the optimum combat positions. Unquestionably, Zhukov was a gifted commander who used his creativity and logistical expertise to save the Soviet Union and destroy Nazi Germany.
