Marshal Zhukov played a major role during World War II, and after his victory over the Third Reich he became the first commander of the Soviet occupation zone in Germany.
Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov died on June 18, 1974. He was the most decorated soldier in the history of the USSR, because he was proclaimed a hero of the Soviet Union four times. Of the Soviet citizens, only Brezhnev was a four-time hero of the Soviet Union, but he was awarded this decoration for his birthday while he was the leader of the USSR, as part of his cult of personality.
Marshal Georgy Zhukov was born in 1896 in Strelkovka, Russia, less than 100 km from Moscow. At the time of Hitler’s attack on the USSR, Zhukov was the head of the Soviet General Staff. He received the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union in January 1943. Zhukov played a major role during World War II, and after his victory over the Third Reich, he became the first commander of the Soviet occupation zone in Germany. By all accounts, Marshal Zhukov was also quite esteemed among Western military commanders.
It is interesting that Marshal Zhukov was one of only 7 people who received the highest Yugoslav military decoration – the Order of Freedom. He even received the decoration of the Grand Cross of the French Legion of Honor. An asteroid is also named after Zhukov. Marshal Zhukov died at the age of 78 in Moscow, at a time when the aforementioned Leonid Brezhnev was the leader of the USSR.
