Ivan Stepanovich Konev was born on December 16, 1897, in the village of Lodeyno, Nikolsky district of Vologda province, now part of the Podosinskoe district in Kirov region, into a peasant family. He was of Russian nationality. In 1906, he graduated from the church-parish school in the village of Yakovlevskaya Gora, and in 1912, from the Nikolopushenskoe zemstvo school in the village of Shchotkino. From the age of 15, he worked seasonal jobs at timber exchanges in Podosinskoe and Arkhangelsk, serving as a timekeeper in timber rafting.

In May 1916, Konev was drafted into the Russian Imperial Army, where he completed a training artillery unit and served in a reserve heavy artillery brigade. In 1917, he participated in World War I on the Southwestern Front as part of the 2nd Separate Heavy Artillery Division. In November 1917, his brigade was disarmed, and Konev returned to Russia, where he was demobilized in December.

In 1918, Konev joined the Bolshevik party and was appointed district military commissioner in Nikolsk, Vologda province. He became the chairman of the Nikolsk district committee of the RCP and formed a district detachment of the Red Guard. In July 1918, he participated in suppressing the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries' uprising in Moscow.

After persistent requests, Konev was enlisted in the Red Army in 1918. He fought on the Eastern Front against the armies of Kolchak and Semyonov, as well as Japanese interventionists. In 1919, he became the commissioner of armored train No. 102 'Grozny', and later the commissioner of the 5th Rifle Brigade and the 2nd Verkhneudinsk Rifle Division. In 1921, he participated in suppressing the Kronstadt uprising.

After the Civil War, Konev held various command positions in the Red Army. In 1935, he was promoted to the rank of divisional commander. In 1938, he commanded the 57th Special Corps in Mongolia, and then the 2nd Separate Red Banner Army. In 1940, Konev became the commander of the Transbaikal Military District, and in 1941, the North Caucasian Military District.

During the Great Patriotic War, Konev commanded the 19th Army, participating in the Battle of Smolensk and the Dukhovshchina operation. In September 1941, he became the commander of the Western Front but suffered defeat in the Vyazma catastrophe. However, with Zhukov's support, Konev was appointed commander of the Kalinin Front, where he participated in the Battle of Moscow and the Rzhev battle.

In 1943, Konev commanded the Steppe Front, achieving success in the Battle of Kursk and the Battle of the Dnieper. In 1944, he conducted successful operations in Ukraine and Romania, for which he was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. In 1945, his troops participated in the Vistula-Oder, Berlin, and Prague operations.

After the war, Konev held high military and political positions and participated in suppressing the Hungarian uprising of 1956. In 1965, he attended Winston Churchill's funeral. Ivan Stepanovich Konev passed away on May 21, 1973, and was buried on Red Square by the Kremlin wall.