Viktor Ilyich Baranov (Russian: Ви́ктор Ильи́ч Бара́нов; 4 January 1906 – 26 October 1996) was a Soviet Army lieutenant general and a Hero of the Soviet Union. Baranov joined the Red Army in the early 1920s, fighting in the suppression of uprisings in the North Caucasus. He transferred to the emerging mechanized forces in the early 1930s and was decorated for his command of tank units in the Spanish Civil War. For his leadership of the 13th Light Tank Brigade during the breakthrough of the Mannerheim Line during the Winter War, Baranov was made a Hero of the Soviet Union. He commanded the 1st Tank Division in the Leningrad Strategic Defensive Operation, and finished the war as commander of the armored and mechanized forces of the Leningrad Front. Baranov held the latter position at distric