Nikolai Fyodorovich Vatutin

Order of the Red Banner Order of Suvorov 1st class

Vatutin was born in Chepuhino village in Voronezh Governorate , into a peasant family of Russian ethnicity. Commissioned in 1920 to the Red Army, he fought against the Ukrainian peasant partisans of Nestor Makhno. The following year, he became a member of the Communist party, and served diligently in junior command positions. Starting in 1926, he spent the next decade alternating service with studies in the elite Frunze Military Academy and the General Staff Academy. The 19371938 purge of Red Army commanders opened the road to promotion in 1938, he received the rank of Komdiv, and was appointed Chief of Staff of the important Kiev Special Military District. Throughout this period, Vatutin combined military service with intensive Party activities.

Source: Wikipedia