Vasily Kalenikovich Sopenko, a hero of the Great Patriotic War, was born into a poor family in the village of Zuevtsy, Kamyshensky District, Poltava Region, where he was raised by his parents along with his younger brother and sister. He finished two classes of a village school.
In 1922, Vasily Sopenko joined the Red Army. During his service, he decided to pursue a career in the armed forces. When the Great Patriotic War started, he served in the Perm Red Banner Rifle Division, where he commanded the 94th Osinsky Rifle Regiment. It participated in the battles on the Karelian front.
On October 16, 1943, Vasily Sopenko took command of the 368th Rifle Division, which was organized and sent to the front from Tyumen. The division also fought in the North, defending Soviet Karelia from Finnish and German troops.
For crossing the Svir River in 1944 and liberating Petrozavodsk, the division was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. For capturing the town of Petsamo, the 368th Rifle Division was awarded the honorary title of a Pechenga Division, and its commander Vasily Sopenko received a rare military award — the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class.
After that, the 368th Rifle Red Banner and Pechenga Division fought in the Arctic. The last battles of the division took place in Norway. A monument and an obelisk to the heroes were erected in Tyumen. The garden square near the museum used to be named after the famous division.
On May 1, 1945, on behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Major General Georgy Semyonovich Emelyanenko, a member of the Military Council of the Belomorsky Military District, awarded the division with the Order of the Red Banner, attaching it to the division’s scarlet banner.
In 1947, the division was disbanded. Its victory banner is currently kept in the Central Armed Forces Museum in Moscow, along with the banners of other famous units of the Red Army. After the war, Vasily Sopenko served as a division commander in the Sverdlovsk Military District.
In the 1950s, he donated a number of personal belongings to the museum, including the tunic of a major general. On February 12, 1956, Vasily Sopenko passed away 10 days before his 54th birthday. He was buried at the Donskoy Cemetery in Moscow.
In 1922, Vasily Sopenko joined the Red Army. During his service, he decided to pursue a career in the armed forces. When the Great Patriotic War started, he served in the Perm Red Banner Rifle Division, where he commanded the 94th Osinsky Rifle Regiment. It participated in the battles on the Karelian front.
On October 16, 1943, Vasily Sopenko took command of the 368th Rifle Division, which was organized and sent to the front from Tyumen. The division also fought in the North, defending Soviet Karelia from Finnish and German troops.
For crossing the Svir River in 1944 and liberating Petrozavodsk, the division was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. For capturing the town of Petsamo, the 368th Rifle Division was awarded the honorary title of a Pechenga Division, and its commander Vasily Sopenko received a rare military award — the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class.
After that, the 368th Rifle Red Banner and Pechenga Division fought in the Arctic. The last battles of the division took place in Norway. A monument and an obelisk to the heroes were erected in Tyumen. The garden square near the museum used to be named after the famous division.
On May 1, 1945, on behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Major General Georgy Semyonovich Emelyanenko, a member of the Military Council of the Belomorsky Military District, awarded the division with the Order of the Red Banner, attaching it to the division’s scarlet banner.
In 1947, the division was disbanded. Its victory banner is currently kept in the Central Armed Forces Museum in Moscow, along with the banners of other famous units of the Red Army. After the war, Vasily Sopenko served as a division commander in the Sverdlovsk Military District.
In the 1950s, he donated a number of personal belongings to the museum, including the tunic of a major general. On February 12, 1956, Vasily Sopenko passed away 10 days before his 54th birthday. He was buried at the Donskoy Cemetery in Moscow.
