Yakov Fedotovich Pavlov
Pavlov in 1947
Native name	Яков Федотович Павлов
Born	(1917-10-17)17 October 1917 Krestovaya, Russian Republic
Died	28 September 1981(1981-09-28) (aged 63) Novgorod, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Allegiance	Soviet Union
Service years	1938–1946
Rank	Starshina
Unit	13th Guards Rifle Division
Conflicts	World War II Battle of Stalingrad
Awards	Hero of the Soviet Union Order of Lenin Order of the October Revolution Orders of the Red Star Numerous other medals
Other work	Three-time Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR

Yakov Fedotovich Pavlov (Russian: Я́ков Федо́тович Па́влов; 17 October 1917 – 28 September 1981) was a Soviet Red Army soldier who became a Hero of the Soviet Union for his role in defending the eponymous "Pavlov's House" during the Battle of Stalingrad.^[1]

Early life

Pavlov was born in 1917 to a peasant family in the small village of Krestovaya in northwestern Russia (present-day Novgorod Oblast).^{[citation needed]}

Military career

Pavlov joined the Red Army in 1938.^{[citation needed]} During World War II, he fought on the Southwestern, Stalingrad, 3rd Ukrainian and 2nd Belorussian fronts.^{[citation needed]} Pavlov was a commander of a machine-gun unit, an artilleryman, and a commander of a reconnaissance unit with the rank of senior sergeant.^{[citation needed]}

During the Battle of Stalingrad, on the night of 27 September 1942, Pavlov's platoon recaptured a four-story residential building from the German Army, and defended it against continual attack by the Germans until relieved by advancing Soviet forces two months later. Vasily Chuikov, commanding general of the Soviet forces in Stalingrad, claimed that the Germans lost more men trying to take Pavlov's House than they did taking Paris.^[2][3][4]

Post-war life

The building and its defense went down in history as "Pavlov's House" (Дом Павлова).^[5] For his actions in Stalingrad, he was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union, the Order of Lenin, the Order of the October Revolution, two Orders of the Red Star and numerous other medals. Post-war, he joined the Communist Party. He was elected three times as Deputy to the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic.

Death

Pavlov died on 28 September 1981, most likely due to injuries he received during his military career, and was buried in Novgorod.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pavlov's House.