Our hero is mysterious. It is not clear: he was distracted from military service for the sake of scientific research, or temporarily refused to study the properties of metals in order to take part in the military campaign.
The beginning of the 20th century was turbulent. The era of rebels and warriors left for posterity a large number of scientific discoveries and technological innovations. Persons such as our hero have contributed to the progress. His biography could become the basis for the action-packed novel.
Childhood
Volodya was born in 1899 in Nizhny Tagil. His father Joseph Zalessky came to this city from the Kherson province to manage the Vyiska smelter. This descendant of an aristocratic family chose a profession for himself. His parent, a major general, a hero of the defense of Sevastopol, was known as a freethinker. He himself liked to talk about the need to modernize the economy in the empire, so he blessed his children in the civil service, which contributed to the education of the people and the introduction of new methods in the workplace.
The city of Nizhny Tagil, where Vladimir Zalessky was born and raised
The heir to the unusual nobles grew up in a large family, where besides him there were two more daughters and a son. Sometimes uncles and aunts came to visit, who devoted themselves to work in the fields of pedagogy and science. The child was praised for his creativity and academic success, and he himself was convinced that he would become a professor. The boy was keenly interested in everything that adults discussed. He heard from his idols and criticism of the authorities.
Youth
Our hero was educated at the Aleseyev Commercial School in New Russia. This educational institution was opened in 1905. There they taught the exact sciences that were necessary for a teenager who wanted to continue his studies at the university. Having received a diploma in 1917, Vladimir Zalessky went to Moscow to realize his dream. Households were happy that their student was lucky to avoid all kinds of political adventures.
A graduate of the school arrived at the throne in the midst of revolutionary events. Instead of settling with his aunt Olga and starting preparing for the entrance exams, the young man disappeared for days at rallies and political meetings. He was inspired by the ideas of the Bolsheviks and volunteered to join the Red Army. Over the years of the Civil War, the young man more than once showed courage in battle. The high level of knowledge of the Red Army soldier of Zalessky allowed the command to trust this guy to work with equipment that frightened his fellow soldiers.
The labor detachment goes to the front in 1919 (1937). Artist Pavel Sokolov-Skalya
Difficult decision
Vladimir was sure that he should make a military career. In 1920, the guy finished artillery courses and continued to serve in the army. Soon he began to be weighed down by routine. His dad moved to Nizhny Tagil from Moscow. Joseph Zalessky, the Soviet government invited to teach at the Moscow Higher Technical School. At home, the young officer constantly heard talk that he was ruining his talent with the drill.
Moscow Higher Technical School
The result of moralizing conversations was the admission of Volodya to an educational institution where his father was a teacher. The school advertised by the parent met the expectations of the son. In 1928, a young specialist got a place at a scientific institute that was engaged in the development of new engineering technologies. After 2 years, Zalessky Jr. transferred to the Moscow Mining Academy. Here he was able to realize his desire for science, earned the title of professor at the department "Forging-stamping".
To the front
In the summer of 1941, the famous scientist was relaxing with his family in the country. There they brought him a summons from the draft board. Zalessky had the combat experience and military specialty of the artilleryman, he was necessary as a military specialist. He was awarded the rank of major general and sent to units preparing the capital for defense. The first year of the war, the professor served in the ranks of the anti-tank artillery regiment, was among the anti-aircraft gunners who defended the sky over Moscow.
Night fight. Artist Fedor Usypenko
When the threat that the Nazis would occupy the capital of the USSR passed, Vladimir Iosifovich did not want to return to his civilian specialty. In the ranks of the Red Army, he drove the enemy to the West. One of the most difficult battles of the gray-haired general occurred in the Baltic states during the Šiauliai operation. In the fall of 1944, the Nazis were pressed to the sea, and they tried to break through, forming an attack detachment from the Royal Tiger tanks. The guns of Zalessky’s battery for a long time could not cope with the armor of steel monsters, but did not leave their positions, found a weak spot in the enemy’s vehicles and killed them.
