Sandalov, Leonid Mikhailovich

Born Mar. 28 (Apr. 10), 1900, in the city of Vichuga, now in Ivanovo Oblast. Soviet military commander, colonel general (1944). Member of the CPSU from 1925. Son of a worker.

Sandalov joined the Red Army in 1919. He graduated from training courses for the command staff in 1920. He was a platoon commander in the Civil War of 1918–20. He graduated from the Kiev Combined Military School in 1926, from the M. V. Frunze Military Academy in 1934, and from the Military Academy of the General Staff in 1938. Sandalov served in the Great Patriotic War as chief of staff of the Fourth Army of the Western Front (June-July 1941), chief of staff of the Central Front (August 1941), deputy chief of staff and chief of staff of the Briansk Front (September-November 1941), chief of staff of the Twentieth Army of the Western Front (December 1941-September 1942), chief of staff of the Briansk Front (September 1942-October 1943), chief of staff of the Second Baltic Front (October 1943-March 1945), and chief of staff of the Fourth Ukrainian Front (from April 1945).

After the war, Sandalov served as chief of staff of the Ciscar-pathian Military District in 1945–46, deputy chief of the Main Headquarters of the Ground Forces in 1946–47, and simultaneously chief of staff and first deputy commander of the forces of the Moscow Military District from 1947 to 1953. He served at the disposal of the minister of defense of the USSR from 1953 to 1955 and went into the reserve in 1955 for reasons of health. Sandalov was awarded three Orders of Lenin, four Orders of the Red Banner, the Order of Suvorov First Class, the Order of Kutuzov First Class, the Order of the Red Star, various medals, and three foreign orders.