Mikhail Linnik

Mikhail Nikiforovich Linnik (Russian: Михаил Никифорович Линник; 25 October 1916 – 21 December 2007) was a Soviet Army captain and Hero of the Soviet Union. Linnik was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin for his actions during the Lublin–Brest Offensive in September 1944.

Early life Linnik was born on 25 October 1916 in Odessa in a Ukrainian worker's family. He lived in the Makarikha village and attended his local village school. In 1938, he graduated from the Znamianka Agricultural College. He then worked as an agronomist at the Krasny Partizan collective farm in Akimovka village in the Donetsk Oblast. In 1938, he was drafted into the Red Army.

During the advance near Pukhavichy in July, the battalion was nearly cut off from the rest of the regiment during a German battalion-sized counterattack. When the German troops attacked, Linnik led his company forward and reportedly scattered the German battalion. Linnik himself reportedly killed 20 Germans. The counterattack was repulsed, enabling the regiment to continue pursuit. On 4 September, retreating German troops entrenched at the Narew. Linnik as part of his unit crossed the Narew at Różan and joined the battle for the expansion of the bridgehead. The German troops launched a determined offensive supported by tanks and artillery, attempting to drive the Soviet troops back into the river. Linnik's battalion commander was wounded and Linnik took command. The battalion reportedly repulsed German attacks, and eventually forced the German troops to retreat. Linnik was himself wounded but reportedly did not leave the battlefield. For his actions, Linnik was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin on 24 March 1945. Linnik died on 21 December 2007 and was buried in Znamianka.