Order of the Red Star, #3761541

[Bill Garvy]

Awarded April 30th, 1975 to Colonel Gersamiya as either a catch-up award or for wounds.

[Bill Garvy]

Colonel Gersamiya's Red Star Order Book. . .

Please note the beautiful handwriting in this book as well as his book for his Order of the Great Patriotic War in 1st class (1985) to follow. . .

What is his full name?

[Bill Garvy]

Colonel Gersamiya's OGPW in 1st Class, 1985 Jubilee issue. . .

[Bill Garvy]

And finally, completing this great group, is Colonel Gersamiya's Order Book for his OGPW in 1st Class. Again, please note the beautiful handwriting!

[Bill Garvy]

Received additional documents and research regarding this award and the awardee. . .

Record card

Certificate nr. 237113

1. Last name: Gersamia
2. First name and patronymic: Otar Valeryanovich
3. Military rank: Guards Corporal
4. Sex: Male
5. Year of birth: 1922
6. Place of birth: City of Tbilisi, Georgian SSR
7. Party membership (since which year): Member of the Communist Party since 1942
8. Education: Secondary
9. Nationality: Georgian
10. Since which year in the Red Army: 1940
11. Place of service (name of the unit) and duty position at the time of the awarding: Gunner in the 28th Guards Novgorod Mortar Regiment
12. Current place of service and duty position: Bookkeeper at the Tbilisi Fruit and Vegetables Market
13. Home address of the awardee: 5 Chelyuskintsy [crew members of the SS Chelyuskin, AdV] Street, city of Tbilisi

14: Record of all awards presented:

Names of the orders and medals Their numbers Numbers of the documents Ground of awarding
Combat Merits Medal 857150 Temporary certificate nr. B-058889 Order of the 28th Guards Novgorod Mortar Regiment nr. 05/N of April 7, 1944

Bravery Medal 1928050 Temporary certificate nr. Ye-828336 Order of the 28th Guards Novgorod Mortar Regiment nr. 08/N of May 23, 1945

Signature of the awardee: [signed]

I confirm the correctness of the data and the signature of the awardee:

Military commissar of the Stalin Raion, city of Tbilisi
Lieutenant Colonel of Quartermaster Service [signed] /Bibunia/
February 4, 1947

[Bill Garvy]

Order

Of the 28th Guards Novgorod Mortar Regiment

Leningrad Front – Nr. 05/N – April 7, 1944

On behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, I award:

[…]

2. The Combat Merits Medal to:

[…]

5. Laboratory worker in the regiment’s ordnance battery Guards Corporal Otar Valeryanovich Gersamia for his self-sacrificing activities in supplying ammunition. During the preparation period prior to the operation to break through the enemy defenses near the village of Vesna, comrade Gersamia under enemy artillery fire and aerial bombardment delivered 380 M-13 and M-20 rounds on the battalions’ firing positions.

Born in 1922, Georgian, in the Red Army since May 10, 1940, member of the Communist Party since December 1942, served with the Southwestern Front from June 1941 to November 1941 and with the Volkhov and Leningrad Front since March 10, 1942, wounded, not decorated, drafted by the Stalin Raion, city of Tbilisi.
Home address: ______________

Commander of the 28th Guards Novgorod Mortar Regiment
Guards Lieutenant Colonel [signed] /Yegorov/

[Bill Garvy]

Service record card

1. Last name, first name and patronymic: Gersamia, Otari Valerianovich
2. Born on: February 16, 1922
3. Nationality: Georgian
4. Knowledge of foreign languages and level: No
5. Place of birth (according to the current administrative division): Tbilisi, Georgian SSR
6. Social situation and profession (until call-up for Armed Forces): Serviceman from a family of serviceman - Pedagog
7. Party affiliation
Member of the Communist Party since: 1942
Party membership booklet nr.: 4989180
Candidate-member of the Communist Party since:
Member of the Komsomol since:
Not a party member:
Membership of other parties: No
Party penalties and changes in party affiliation: No
8. Education (note the exact name of the educational institution, when graduated, period of education and number of classes or courses for unfinished education):
General and special: Philosophical Faculty of the Tbilisi State University in 1952
Military: VVP at Military Department of the university in 1951
Political: No

9. Conferment of military ranks By whose order Order nr. Date
Lieutenant Ministry of the Armed Forces of the USSR 02980 July 11, 1952

10. Service at the front in the Patriotic War (when, where and for how long): Southwestern, Volkhov, Leningrad, 1st, 2nd and 3rd Baltic Front
11. Participation in the Civil War, the war against the Fins and other combat actions for the defense of the USSR prior to the Patriotic War (where, from when to when, day, month, and year): No
12. Wounds and contusions (when, where and nature of the wound): Severely wounded in his right leg in August 1941 with the Southwestern Front
13. Biographical certificate nr. BA-42899, date of issue: October 18, 1952, military commissariat of the Stalin Raion, Tbilisi

14. When (month and year) called up for the Armed Forces, from where (name and location of kolkhoz etc.) and by which military commissariat: From October 1940 to December 1946, military commissariat of the Stalin Raion, Tbilisi

15. Service in the Armed Forces:

Name of duty position Place of service (unit, institution, formation, army, front or district, fleet or flotilla) By whose order Order nr. Day, month and year
Student Kaspian Higher Naval School Oct 1940
Scout 6th Rifle Regiment Apr 1941
Data computer 30th Reserve Rifle Regiment Sep 1941
Data computer 28th Guards Mortar Regiment Dec 1941
Mortar gunner 34th Guards Mortar Brigade Sep 1946
Transfered to the reserve in accordance with a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR

Military commissar
Colonel [signed] /Bibunia/

Chief of the _____
Major [signed] /Aleksemov/ Dec 25, 1946



Last name, first name and patronymic: Gersamia, Otari Valerianovich
16. Awards and award dates: Bravery Medal in 1943, Combat Merits Medal in 1944, Medal for the Victory over Germany in 1945
17. Stays abroad (when, where and for how long): No
18. Service in the old army, last duty position and rank: No
19. Service in the White Army or other foreign armies (only note service in foreign armies when the officer wasn’t serving in the Soviet Army at the same time): No
20. Has he been in captivity or surrounded, when, where and for how long (only note escapes not with a unit): No
21. Has he been convicted, when and by which courts, what for and for how long, has the conviction been retracted (note periods with punishment units as part of the sentence): No
22. Registration numbers:
23. Registered where: Military commissariat of the Stalin Raion, Tbilisi, Transcaucasian Military District
24. Personnel category: commanding officers, reserve of the 1st category
25. Branch of arms: , military specialty nr. 1
26. State of health: Fit for military service
27. Attended trainings:
28. Place of service and duty position (or nature of activities outside military service): Temporarily doesn’t work
29. Family situation and address (note last name, first name and patronymic, wife’s year of birth, children’s names and years of birth, father’s and mother’s name and patronymic if the officer is a bachelor, address of the officer’s family if living apart, address of the reserve officer himself): Bachelor, 5 Chelyuskintsy Street
30. Special remarks: Military ID nr. BA-42899, issued by the military commissariat of the Stalin Raion, city of Tbilisi, October 18, 1952

[Bill Garvy]

The very young and dashing Corporal, later a Colonel. . .

No research for this Red Star, but I was informed it was probably awarded for wounds received. It was further hypothesized his continued service may have been in the MVD or perhaps the KGB, for which, alas, the records are not available. Regardless, this is a wonderful group. I will post the citation for his Bravery Medal, #1928050, very soon. . .

My thanks to Auke for all this additional information!

[Greenhorn]

Bill

That's a nice grouping you have there, sir. I absolutely love the KGB possibility...Excellent! Thanks for sharing.

Green