Oleg Artemov

Archpriest

Unit: Archpriest of the Russian Orthodox Church; Naval Officer; Terek Cossack; Military Priest

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Died near the village of Zhuravlevka, Belgorod Region, during shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the Smerch rocket launcher, making him the first military priest to die in the line of duty since the fall of the Soviet Union.

Cargo ID: #786

English Name: Oleg Vladislavovich Artemov

Russian Name: Артемов Олег Владиславович

Date of Birth: February 25, 1957 (age: 66 years)

Place of Birth: Kislovodsk, Stavropol Krai, Russia

Education: Astrakhan Maritime School (degree in Radio Engineering)

Awards: Order of Courage (ph.), Order of Friendship, Under Investigation; Badge "For a Long March" (Surface Ships), Badge "For a Long March" (Submarines); Badge "Graduation from a Technical School"

Oleg was a real "sea wolf" who loved the sea for its unpredictability and masculine character. Friends say that the sea itself chose him. As a child, he was very fond of technology, he saw himself as a tractor driver. But for the company with a friend who raved about the sea, he went to enter the Astrakhan Maritime School. Surprisingly, then his friend remained in the coastal service, and Oleg Vladislavovich got into the crew.
Fate threw him to the Far East. He served in the Pacific Fleet, where he was assigned to the naval school. Having received a radio engineering education, becoming a midshipman, at the age of 21 he was appointed commander of an auxiliary small ship that served submarines.
In 1984, the priest decided to become a "land" man. He went to the reserve, returned to his homeland in the Stavropol Territory. When hostilities began in the Caucasus, Cossack roots made themselves felt. Oleg Vladislavovich registered in the Cossack unit as a simple Cossack. He participated in the Chechen war, reached the chieftain in the Terek army.

In 1998 he was ordained a deacon, a year later - a priest. For eleven years he was the rector of the church in the Stavropol region, served as chairman of the "military" department of the deanery in Georgievsk, Stavropol Territory.
But soon, in 2010, the sea attracted him again. The priest ended up in Kamchatka. He was appointed assistant commander of the division of strategic nuclear submarines. He became a divisional priest. He made 15 trips to the sea on submarines, passed four long-term autonomous.

In 2014, he took retraining courses for military clergy in Moscow and was invited to serve in St. Petersburg, where he became an assistant to the head of the Military Academy of Logistics for working with religious cadets. Then he served as a ship's priest on the ship "Admiral Vladimirsky", which made a round-the-world trip under the flag of the Russian Navy.
In November 2020, Archpriest Oleg began to serve in the Church of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious in Novaya Ladoga. At the same time, he served as deputy commander of the anti-aircraft missile brigade for work with military personnel.