Marshal of Armoured Troops who stopped Guderian and led the 1st Guards Tank Army
After being stopped at Mtsensk by Katukov's T-34s, Guderian wrote: 'They [the Russians] have already learned a thing or two.'
Mikhail Katukov was one of the Red Army's finest armor commanders, leading the 1st Guards Tank Army from its formation in 1943 through the capture of Berlin. At Mtsensk in October 1941, his 4th Tank Brigade stopped Guderian's panzer group and became the first Red Army unit awarded Guards status. At Kursk he absorbed the southern armored thrust through dug-in tanks and counterattacks, then spearheaded the Lvov-Sandomierz, Vistula-Oder, and Berlin offensives as the armored fist of the 1st Belorussian Front. After the war he commanded armored forces in Germany and served as Inspector General, becoming Marshal of Armoured Troops in 1959 and twice Hero of the Soviet Union.
Career Timeline
- 1919Enlisted in the Red Army; fought in the Civil War
- 1932Transferred to mechanised forces; staff and command roles
- 1940CO, 20th Tank Division (Lutsk–Dubno battles)
- 1941CO, 4th Tank Brigade → 1st Guards Tank Brigade (Mtsensk–Moscow)
- 1942CO, 1st Tank Corps; then 3rd Mechanised Corps
- 1943CO, 1st Tank Army → 1st Guards Tank Army (Kursk–Berlin)
- 1945CO, 1st Guards Tank Army, GSFG
- 1955Inspector General; Dep. Head, Combat Training, MoD