40th Anniversary Defense of Leningrad medal awarded to a World War II veteran

Ilya Ilyich Yoffe was born on January 13, 1918 in Kalinkovich (now Kalinkavichy), Belarus, to a Jewish couple, Yudka and Rachel Izraeliwna Schnuker Yoffe. Ilya had an older brother Dr. Gershon Grisha Yoffe, born on March 19, 1913, in Belarus. Before 1918, Belarus was part of the Russian Empire, however much of Belarus was under German occupation in 1918 due to World War I. In March 1920, during the Russo-Polish War, Kalinkovich was occupied by the Polish army. Many Jews were robbed and suffered from violence and 32 Jews were killed in a pogrom. In 1921, the Treaty of Riga ended the Russo-Polish War and divided Belarus between Poland and the Soviet Union. In 1925, the Yoffes moved to Moscow where Ilya attended school until he was 19. He began working at a factory and trained as a locksmith and a fitter. In 1936, Ilya was sent to study communications by the Komsomol (VLKSM), an organization that spread Communist teachings and prepared young people for membership in the Communist Party. In September 1939, following the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, both Germany and Russia invaded and occupied Poland, dividing it between themselves, into western and eastern halves. That same year, Ilya joined the Soviet Army as a private and became a cadet at regimental school. In June 1940, he became the sergeant of his company. In spring 1941, Ilya attended the Kursk political military school in Bryansk and a few months later Germany and its Axis allies invaded the Soviet Union. In February 1942, Ilya was a deputy chief of the political department for the military infantry school in the Vologda region where he passed his military exam. Ilya fought on the First Baltic Front from April to May 1943, where he took part in the defense of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg). In early 1945, he was transferred to the 269th Guard Rifle Regiment of the 88th Guard Rifle Division. From April 1945 until the end of the war, Ilya fought on the First Belorussian Front. His regiment fought in the Battle of Berlin where he participated in street to street combat. Ilya led his men in the capture of three fortified houses in the city which resulted in the apprehension of thirty German prisoners. The Soviet Army encircled the city and Vasily Chuikov, the commander of the 8th Guards Army, accepted the German surrender of Berlin. Ilya’s brother Gershon also fought in the war and was killed in action. By the end of his service, Ilya had reached the rank of Lieutenant. After the conclusion of the war, Ilya moved to Leningrad. He received disabled veteran status as a result of his wartime injuries. In 2000, he was given an honorary promotion to Colonel by decree of the president of the Russian Federation.

The medal was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2003 by Ilya Yoffe.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Ilya Yoffe