Ivan Vasilyevich Panfilov was a Soviet general and a posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union, known for his command of the 316th Rifle Division during the defense of Moscow at the Second World War.
Panfilov was born to a clerks family in Petrovsk. After the death of his mother in 1904, the child was forced to quit school and started working in a local shop when he was twelve years old. His father died in 1912.
Source: Wikipedia