The article describes the exploits of the most famous heroes of the Great Patriotic War. Their childhood is shown teenage years, joining the Red Army and fighting the enemy.

During the Great Patriotic War there was a high growth of patriotism and morale Soviet citizens. Soldiers at the front and civilians in the rear spared no effort to fight the enemy. The slogan “Everything for the front! Everything for victory!”, proclaimed at the beginning of the war, fully reflected the national mood. People were ready to make any sacrifices for the sake of victory. A large number of volunteers joined the ranks of the Red Army and militia units, residents of the occupied territories fought a guerrilla war.

Total Hero title Soviet Union More than 11 thousand people received it. Most famous stories their exploits were included in school textbooks, and many works of art were dedicated to them.

The slogan “Everything for the front! Everything for victory!

Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub

Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was born in 1920 in the Sumy region. After graduating from high school in 1934, Ivan Kozhedub studied at the Chemical Technology College in Shostki. Free time devoted himself to classes at the local flying club. In 1940, Kozhedub was called up to military service and entered the Chuguev Military Aviation School. Then he stayed there to work as an instructor.

In the first months of the war, the aviation school where Kozhedub worked was evacuated to the rear. Therefore, the pilot began his combat career in November 1942. He repeatedly submitted reports with the goal of getting to the front, and in the end his wish came true.

In the first battle, Kozhedub failed to show his brilliant fighting qualities. His plane was damaged in a battle with the enemy, and then mistakenly was fired upon by Soviet anti-aircraft gunners. The pilot managed to land despite the fact that his La-5 was beyond repair in the future.

The future hero shot down the first bomber during the 40th combat mission near Kursk. The next day he again inflicted damage on the enemy, and a few days later he won a battle with two German fighters.

By the beginning of February 1944, Ivan Kozhedub had 146 combat missions and 20 downed enemy aircraft. For his military services, he was awarded the first Gold Star of the Hero. The pilot became a hero twice in August 1944.

In one of the battles over the territory occupied by the Germans, Kozhedub’s fighter was damaged. The plane's engine stalled. In order not to fall into the hands of the enemy, the pilot decided to throw his plane at a significant strategic enemy site in order to inflict maximum damage on the Nazis with his death. But at the very last moment the car’s engine suddenly started working and Kozhedub was able to return to base.

In February 1945, Kozhedub and his wingman entered into battle with a group of FW-190 fighters. They managed to shoot down 5 enemy planes out of 13. A few more days later, the list of trophies of the heroic pilot was replenished with the Me-262 fighter.

The last battle of the famous pilot, in which he shot down 2 FW-190s, took place over Berlin in April 1945. The hero was awarded the Third Gold Star after the end of the Great Patriotic War.

In total, Ivan Kozhedub made more than 300 combat missions and shot down more than 60 enemy aircraft. He was an excellent shot and hit enemy aircraft from a distance of about 300 m, rarely getting involved in close combat. During all the years of the war, the enemy never managed to shoot down Kozhedub’s plane.

After the end of the war, the heroic pilot continued to serve in aviation. He became one of the most famous military men of the USSR and made a brilliant career.

Ivan Kozhedub

Dmitry Ovcharenko was born into a peasant family in the Kharkov region. His father was a village carpenter and young age taught his son how to use an axe.

Dmitry's school education was limited to 5 classes. After graduation, he began working on a collective farm. In 1939, Ovcharenko was drafted into the Red Army. From the very beginning of hostilities he was on the front line. After being wounded, Dmitry was temporarily released from service in the machine gun company and performed the duties of a wagon driver.

Delivery of ammunition to the front was associated with significant risk. July 13, 14941 Dmitry Ovcharenko was carrying cartridges to his company. Near the small settlement of Arctic Fox, he was surrounded by an enemy detachment. But Dmitry Ovcharenko was not afraid. When the Germans took his rifle, he remembered the ax that he always carried with him. The enemies began to inspect the cargo folded in the cart, and the Soviet soldier grabbed an ax, which he always carried with him, and killed the officer commanding the group. Then he threw grenades at the enemy. 21 soldiers were killed, the rest fled. Dmitry caught up and killed another officer. The third German officer managed to escape. After everything that happened brave fighter successfully delivered ammunition to the front line.

Dmitry Ovcharenko continued his military service as a machine gunner. His commander noted the soldier’s courage and determination, which served as an example for other Red Army soldiers. The heroic deed of Dmitry Ovcharenko was also highly appreciated by the higher command - on November 9, 1941, the machine gunner received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Dmitry Ovcharenko continued to fight on the front line until the beginning of 1945 and died during the liberation of Hungary.

Talalikhin Viktor Vasilievich was born in the village of Teplovka, Saratov region on September 18, 1918 in a peasant family. Even in his youth, Victor became interested in aviation - in the town where his family lived there was an aviation school, and the teenager often looked at the cadets marching through the streets.

In 1933, the Talalikhin family moved to the capital. Victor graduated from college, then found a job at a meat processing plant. Viktor Talalikhin devoted his free time to classes at the flying club. He wanted to be no worse than his older brothers, who had already linked their destinies with aviation.

In 1937, Viktor Talalikhin entered the Borisoglebsk Aviation School. After completing his studies, he continued his military service. The young pilot took part in Finnish war, where he showed himself to be a seasoned and at the same time brave fighter.

From the beginning of the Second World War, the pilots were faced with the task of defending Moscow from German shells. By this time Talalikhin was already acting as squadron commander. He was demanding and strict with his subordinates, but at the same time he delved into the problems of the pilots and knew how to convey to them the significance of each of his orders.

On the night of August 7, Viktor Talalikhin made another combat mission. A fierce battle broke out not far from the village of Kuznechiki near Moscow. The Soviet pilot was wounded and decided to shoot down the enemy plane by throwing his fighter at it. Talalikhin was lucky - after using the ram he survived. The next day he was awarded the Gold Hero Star.

Having recovered from his wounds, the young pilot returned to duty. The hero died on October 27, 1941 in a battle in the sky above the village of Kamenka. Soviet fighters covered the movement of ground troops. A fight ensued with the German Messers. Talalikhin emerged victorious from two battles with enemy aircraft. But at the end of the battle, the pilot was seriously wounded and lost control of the fighter.

Victor Talalikhin for a long time was considered the first Soviet pilot to use night ram. Only years after the war it became known that other pilots had used a similar technique, but this fact in no way detracts from Talalikhin’s feat. During the war years he had many followers - more than 600 pilots did not spare their lives for the sake of victory.

Alexander Matrosov was born on February 5, 1924 in Ukraine in the city of Yekaterinoslav. The future hero was orphaned early and was raised in an orphanage. When the war began, Alexander, while still a minor, tried several times to volunteer for the front. And in the fall of 1942, his wish came true. After training at the infantry school, Matrosov, like other recruits, was sent to the front line.

At the end of February 1943, during the liberation of the Pskov region, the unit carried out a combat mission - to capture an enemy fortified point located in the area of ​​the village of Chernushki. The Red Army soldiers went on the offensive under the cover of the forest. But as soon as they reached the edge, the Germans began firing at Soviet soldiers with machine guns. Many soldiers were immediately put out of action.

An assault group was sent into battle to suppress enemy machine guns. German firing points were bunker fortifications built of wood and earthen powder. The Red Army soldiers managed to destroy two of them relatively quickly, but the third machine gun, despite everything, continued to hinder the Soviet advance.

In order to destroy the enemy machine gun, the Sailors and Ogurtsov fighters headed to the bunker. But Ogurtsov was wounded and Matrosov had to act alone. He threw grenades at the German fortifications. The machine gun fell silent for a moment, and then began firing again. Alexander instantly made a decision - he rushed to the embrasure and covered it with his body.

On June 19, Alexander Matrosov posthumously became a Hero of the Soviet Union. During the war, the number of Red Army soldiers who covered enemy guns exceeded 500 people.

Feat of 28 Panfilovites

Autumn 1941 troops Hitler's Germany launched a large-scale offensive against Moscow. In some areas they managed to get almost close to the capital of the USSR. All available reserve troops and militia units were sent to defend the capital.

The 316th Infantry Division, formed in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, took part in the battles. The command of the unit was exercised by Major General I.V. Panfilov, after whom the division’s fighters began to be called “Panfilov’s men.”

I. V. Panfilov

On November 16, the enemy launched an attack. German tanks stormed Soviet positions in the area of ​​the Dubosekovo crossing, where the 1075th Infantry Regiment was stationed. The main blow was taken by the soldiers of the 2nd battalion of the regiment.

According to the wartime version, 28 Red Army soldiers under the leadership of political instructor V. Klochkov were organized into a special group of tank destroyers. For 4 hours they fought an unequal battle with the enemy. Armed with anti-tank rifles and Molotov cocktails, Panfilov's men destroyed 18 German tanks and they themselves died. The total losses of the 1075th regiment were more than 1,000 people. In total, the regiment destroyed 22 enemy tanks and up to 1,200 German soldiers.

The enemy managed to win the battle of Volokolamsk, but the battle took much longer than the German commanders allotted for it. Soviet military leaders were able to use this time to regroup troops and create a new barrier on the way to Moscow. Subsequently, the Germans were unable to continue the offensive, and in December 1941. Soviet troops launched a counterattack that finally drove the enemy away from the capital.

After the battle, the unit commander compiled a list of the soldiers who took part in the battle. Subsequently, they were nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. But the regiment commander made several inaccuracies. Because of his mistake, the names of soldiers who were previously killed or wounded and who could not participate in the battle were included in the list. Perhaps several names have been forgotten.

After the end of the war, an investigation was carried out, during which it turned out that 5 fighters out of 28 Panfilov’s men did not actually die, and one of them was captured and collaborated with the Nazis, for which he was convicted. But official version For a long time, the event was the only one widespread in the USSR. Modern historians believe that the number of soldiers holding the defense was not 28 and that in fact completely different Red Army soldiers could have taken part in the battle.

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya was born in 1923 in the village of Osinovye Gai, Tambov region. Her family later moved to Moscow. Zoya was an emotional and enthusiastic girl; even in her youth she dreamed of a feat.

After the start of the war, Zoya, like many Komsomol members, voluntarily joined the partisan detachment. After a short training, a group of saboteurs was thrown behind enemy lines. There Zoya completed her first task - she was entrusted with mining roads near Volokolamsk, a regional center occupied by the Germans.

Then the partisans received a new order - to set fire to villages and individual houses where the invaders were staying. The lack of opportunity to spend the night under a roof in winter conditions should, in the opinion of the command, weaken the Germans.

On the night of November 27, a group consisting of Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya and two other fighters carried out a mission in the village of Petrishchevo. At the same time, one of the group members, Vasily Klubkov, was careless and fell into the hands of the Germans. Zoya was then captured. She was noticed and handed over to the Germans by Sviridov, the owner of the house that Zoya tried to set on fire. The peasant who betrayed the partisan later collaborated with the Germans and, after their retreat, was tried and sentenced to death.

The Germans brutally tortured Zoya, trying to get information from her about her connections with the partisans. She categorically refused to give any names, and called herself Tanya in honor of Tatyana Solomakha, a Komsomol member who died during the fight against the White Guards in the Kuban. According to the testimony of local residents, Zoya was beaten and kept half-naked in the cold. Two peasant women, whose houses were damaged by fire, took part in the abuse of her.

The next day Zoya was hanged. Before her execution, she behaved very courageously and called on the local population to fight the invaders, and the German soldiers to surrender. The Nazis mocked the girl’s body for a long time. Another month passed before they allowed the locals to bury Zoya. After the liberation of the Moscow region, the ashes of the partisan were transferred to Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya became the first woman to receive the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Her feat was included in Soviet history textbooks. More than one generation of Soviet citizens was brought up by her example.

Feats of heroes of the Great Patriotic War

CHEREPANOV SERGEY MIKHAILOVICH (1916-1944) - Hero Soviet Union. Born on July 16, 1916 in the Vologda region. Lived and worked in the village. Novy Bor, Ust-Tsilemsky district of the Komi Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. He volunteered for the front in August 1942. He took part in battles on the Volkhov and Leningrad fronts.

January 24, 1944 squad leader of the 1249th rifle regiment 377th Infantry Division (59th Army, Leningrad Front) Cherepanov S.M. was the first to break into the village of Poddubye (Novgorod region) and destroy an enemy machine gun with a grenade. He was wounded in the chest, but did not leave the battlefield. After several counterattacks by the Nazis, Sergeant Cherepanov was left alone - his comrades were killed. With accurate fire from a machine gun, he continued to destroy the invaders pressing from all sides. And when the cartridges ran out, he blew himself up and the enemies around him with his last grenade. This happened on January 24, 1944. S. M. Cherepanov was buried in the village. Poddubye, Novgorod region.

By Decree of the Presidium Supreme Council USSR on October 5, 1944, Sergeant S. M. Cherepanov (posthumously) was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

In the village A bust of the Hero was installed in Novy Bor; one of the streets of the village was named after him.

CHERKASOV ALEXEY IVANOVICH (1914-1980) - Hero of the Soviet Union. Born in Moscow into a working-class family, he was raised in an orphanage. He graduated from a factory school and worked as a turner. Before the war, he came to the Komi Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic on a Komsomol ticket for the construction of the North-Pechora railway. He worked as a track worker at the Kozhva railway station. In 1942Kozhvinsky district military registration and enlistment office (now Pechora city) was drafted into the Red Army and became a military sapper.

On the front of the Great Patriotic War since February 1943, he built crossings, cleared passages in minefields for tanks, artillery, and infantry near Voronezh, in Battle of Kursk, in battles for Ukraine, in Hungary, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Austria. Commanding a section of the 392nd Engineer Battalion (232nd Rifle Division, Voronezh Front), Senior Sergeant Cherkasov showed heroism during the crossing of the Dnieper near Vyshgorod (Kiev region). He was one of the first in the battalion at the beginning of October 1943, at night, under enemy fire, to transport his squad by boat across the Dnieper and firmly entrenched himself on the right bank of the river. By diverting enemy fire, he contributed to the successful start of crossing the river. He acted boldly at the crossing itself, promptly repairing the watercraft, thereby ensuring the consolidation of units on the right bank bridgehead.

On January 10, 1944, Senior Sergeant A.I. Cherkasov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. Awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree, and medals.

After demobilization in 1945, he lived in the mining town of Gorskoye (Donbass). He worked in coal mines and led a mining team. Died 08/07/1980 Buried in the city of Gorskoye.

BABIKOV MAKAR ANDREEVICH - Hero of the Soviet Union. Born in 1921 in the village. Ust-Tsilma Komi Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in a peasant family. Russian. Studied in Ust-Tsilemskaya high school, Worked as a teacher primary classes, then in the district committee of the Komsomol. Since 1939 he served in the Northern Navy. Communist.

Participated in the Great Patriotic War from the beginning to the end of hostilities. He acted bravely in all combat and reconnaissance campaigns of the special reconnaissance detachment of the Northern Fleet behind enemy lines. In 1943, commanding a platoon in reconnaissance, he destroyed a convoy of an enemy anti-aircraft regiment, captured prisoners and provided the command with important information. He smashed the garrisons on the shores of the Barents Sea. At Cape Krestovy he captured an artillery battery and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy in manpower.

In August 1945, he actively participated in the war with imperialist Japan as part of a separate reconnaissance detachment of the Pacific Fleet, commanding a platoon of paratroopers in operations to capture the South Korean ports of Yuki, Racine and others. He distinguished himself by heroism in the operation to capture the city of Seishin. Having landed from torpedo boats, the paratroopers quickly rushed into the city. Babikov's platoon captured a railway and highway bridge across the river in battle, destroying more than 50 soldiers and 6 vehicles. The paratroopers held out for more than 18 hours, repelling continuous enemy attacks. Babikov acted fearlessly in other battles to hold Seisin until the main landing forces arrived. On September 14, 1945, M. A. Babikov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. He was awarded two Orders of the Red Banner, the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree, the Red Star, the Badge of Honor and medals.

In 1946, Chief Petty Officer M. A. Babikov was transferred to the reserve. He graduated from the Higher Party School under the CPSU Central Committee, worked in Komsomol, party, Soviet work, and in the KGB. Lives in Moscow, retired colonel, pensioner

SHEVELEV ANTON ANTONOVICH (1918-1981) - Hero of the Soviet Union. Born in the village of Neivo-Shaitanovka, Alapaevsky district, Sverdlovsk region, in the family of a peasant otkhodnik. His childhood was spent in his father’s homeland in the village. Mordino, Kortkeros district, Komi ASSR.Graduated from the Bataysk Civil Air Fleet School.

On the fronts of the Great Patriotic War since 1942 - in the 455th (30th Guards) aviation regiment of long-range bomber aviation. By October 1944, Guard Captain Shevelev made 222 combat missions to bombard enemy lines, 103 times participated in the bombing of large enemy targets on instructions from the command of the Volkhov, Leningrad, Kalinin, 1st, 2nd, 3rd Belorussian Fronts.

On March 16, 1943, Shevelev’s plane, which took off on a mission, was attacked by an enemy fighter. The plane received 30 holes and became difficult to control. The radio operator and gunner were wounded. However, A. A. Shevelev, showing exceptional courage, reached the goal and successfully completed the task, masterfully landed the plane on one wheel at his airfield, saving the plane and the lives of the crew members.

On November 5, 1944, Captain A. A. Shevelev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. Awarded two orders of the Red Banner of War, the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree, and medals.

In May 1945, after being seriously wounded by the guard, Major A. A. Shevelev was demobilized. After the war, he graduated in absentia from the Ural Forestry Institute and postgraduate studies. Candidate of Agricultural Sciences, Associate Professor, worked as a university teacher, died on May 10, 1981, buried in Sverdlovsk.

GAVRILOV IVAN SAMSONOVICH (1913-1944) - Hero of the Soviet Union. Member of the CPSU(b) since 1939. Born in the village. Makeevka (now a city in the Donetsk region) in the family of a miner. Russian. Graduated from a mining school. Worked in the mines in Donbass,Spitsbergen, Karaganda.

In June 1942, among the volunteer miners from Karaganda, he came to the North to develop the Pechora coal basin. He worked in Vorkuta as an assistant section manager at mine No. 1/2, then as a section manager at mine No. 4.

Drafted into the Red Army in March 1943 by the Kozhvinsky district military registration and enlistment office. He fought since April 1943 as part of the 1318th Infantry Regiment of the 163rd Romensk-Kyiv Division. In October 1943, commander I. S. Gavrilov and the soldiers of his squad were among the first to cross, secretly from the enemy, to the right bank of the Dnieper in the Zhukovka area (the southern outskirts of Kiev). With a sudden rush, they knocked out the Nazis from their positions and, diverting the fire to themselves, helped other units successfully cross the Dnieper.

For skillful command of a squad in battle, for repelling five counterattacks of superior enemy forces and for the courage and heroism displayed, I. S. Gavrilov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on October 29, 1943, with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. He was awarded the medal "For Courage". In one of the battles, I. S. Gavrilov was seriously wounded and died on January 2, 1944 in a front-line hospital. Buried in the village. Stavische, Kyiv region.

The war demanded courage from people, and heroism was massive. 5 impressive battle stories in which you can appreciate the resilience and courage of the heroes of the Second World War.

On July 13, 1941, in battles near the city of Balti, while delivering ammunition to his company near the town of Arctic Fox, the riding machine gun company of the 389th Infantry Regiment of the 176th Infantry Division of the 9th Army of the Southern Front, Red Army soldier D. R. Ovcharenko was surrounded by a detachment of soldiers and enemy officers numbering 50 people. At the same time, the enemy managed to take possession of his rifle. However, D. R. Ovcharenko was not taken aback and, grabbing an ax from the cart, cut off the head of the officer who was interrogating him, threw 3 grenades at the enemy soldiers, destroying 21 soldiers. The rest fled in panic. He then caught up with the second officer and also cut off his head. The third officer managed to escape. After which he collected documents and maps from the dead and arrived at the company along with the cargo. (A copy of the document confirming Ovcharenko’s feat is on wikipedia.org)

Unfortunately, the hero did not live to see the Victory. In the battles for the liberation of Hungary in the area of ​​the Sheregeyesh station, the machine gunner of the 3rd Tank Brigade, Private D. R. Ovcharenko, was seriously wounded. He died in hospital from his wounds on January 28, 1945. Awarded the Order of Lenin.

Under the pressure of the 4th tank division Heinz Guderian, commanded by von Langerman, units of the 13th Army retreated, and with them the Sirotinin regiment. On July 17, 1941, the battery commander decided to leave one gun with a two-man crew and 60 rounds of ammunition at the bridge over the Dobrost River at the 476th kilometer of the Moscow-Warsaw highway to cover the retreat with the task of delaying the tank column. One of the crew numbers was the battalion commander himself; Nikolai Sirotinin volunteered second.

The gun was camouflaged on a hill in thick rye; the position allowed a good view of the highway and bridge. When a column of German armored vehicles appeared at dawn, Nikolai with the first shot knocked out the lead tank that had reached the bridge, and with the second - the armored personnel carrier that trailed the column, thereby creating a traffic jam. The battery commander was wounded and, since the combat mission was completed, stepped aside Soviet positions. However, Sirotinin refused to retreat, since the gun still had significant amount unspent shells.

The Germans attempted to clear the jam by dragging the damaged tank from the bridge with two other tanks, but they were also hit. An armored vehicle that tried to ford the river got stuck in a swampy bank, where it was destroyed. For a long time the Germans were unable to determine the location of the well-camouflaged gun; they believed that a whole battery was fighting them. The battle lasted two and a half hours, during which time 11 tanks, 6 armored vehicles, 57 soldiers and officers were destroyed.

By the time Nikolai's position was discovered, he had only three shells left. When asked to surrender, Sirotinin refused and fired from his carbine to the last.

Awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree (posthumously). N.V. Sirotinin was never nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. According to relatives, a photograph was needed to complete the documents, but the only photograph the relatives had was lost during the evacuation.

“July 7, 1941. Sokolnichi, near Krichev. In the evening, an unknown Russian soldier was buried. He stood alone at the cannon, shot at a column of tanks and infantry for a long time, and died. Everyone was surprised at his courage... Oberst said before his grave that if all the Fuhrer’s soldiers fought like this Russian, they would conquer the whole world. They fired rifle volleys three times...” From the diary of Chief Lieutenant of the 4th Panzer Division Friedrich Hoenfeld

One of the beautiful legends from the Second World War tells about a Red Army soldier named Vataman from such an assault unit, who in 1944 hand-to-hand combat killed 10 Nazi soldiers with a faulty cartridge. According to one version - 10, according to another - 9, according to the third - 8, according to the fourth - 13 in total. Be that as it may, in the article “Engineer Assault Units of the RVGK” I. Mshchansky talks about 10 Nazis.

Of course, like any legend, the Vataman phenomenon has critics who claim that the Faustpatron is too heavy to fight effectively, and the warhead would simply fall off from the blows. There are several thoughts in the discussion on WarHistory that seem rational.

The first is that in hand-to-hand combat the fighter used the Faust cartridge after firing it. That is, in fact, I only used a pipe that weighs several kg. The Panzerfaust launch tube has a diameter of 15 cm and a length of 1 m, and the projectile weighs 3 kg. For hand-to-hand combat it is quite a suitable weapon.

And for a photograph after the battle, he picked up an entire Faust cartridge. In addition, dr_guillotin also notes that the grenade in the pipe is held by a pin by the ears - so it will not fall out in hand-to-hand combat. In general, faust cartridges were stored separately from fuses. They were inserted shortly before use, and without a fuse you can even throw it from the third floor...

The second thought is that the whole event did not happen in one fell swoop, as in action films, where they scatter a bunch of enemies at once, but sequentially throughout the battle. After all, the fighter Vataman fought “half of Europe”, and his opponents, urgently mobilized into the militia, only took up arms a few days ago. And in the stupor of the first battle, they were not very formidable opponents.

But in any case, it's impressive combat history. And Vataman himself looks like a real epic hero - his wide palms reveal him to be a natural strongman. In my opinion, this case can also, in principle, be classified as “one at the gun”... In the end, the Faustpatron is, although not a cannon, but a small anti-tank weapon.

Yes, by the way, I can add that although the name of the daredevil remains unknown, the surname of our hero speaks of his Moldavian roots.

Here we will talk not so much about an individual person, but about a team - the crew of the KV-1 tank, led by senior lieutenant Zinovy ​​Grigorievich Kolobanov. In addition to the commander, the crew included driver-mechanic foreman N. Nikiforov, gun commander senior sergeant A. Usov, radio operator-machine gunner senior sergeant P. Kiselnikov and junior driver-mechanic Red Army soldier N. Rodnikov.

So, this heroic crew, in just three hours of battle, on August 19, 1941, destroyed as many as 22 enemy tanks! This is an absolute record for the entire Great Patriotic War, and subsequent wars. No one was able to destroy 22 tanks in three hours. After the “debriefing” it turned out that the battle was carried out in accordance with all the then accepted rules of military art.

The tankers acted very smartly: on a tank column passing along the nearest road, they shot the “head” and “tail”, after which they began to methodically, like in a shooting range, shoot the stuck “iron beasts” of the enemy. Let us note that the tank of our heroes received 135 hits from German shells. At the same time, the tank continued the battle, and nothing in its design failed.

The crew of the KV-1, senior lieutenant Z. Kolobanov (center) at their combat vehicle. August 1941 (CMVS)

On October 16, 1943, the battalion in which Manshuk Mametova served received an order to repel an enemy counterattack. As soon as the Nazis tried to repel the attack, Senior Sergeant Mametova’s machine gun started working. The Nazis rolled back, leaving hundreds of corpses. Several fierce attacks of the Nazis had already been drowned out at the foot of the hill. Suddenly the girl noticed that two neighboring machine guns had fallen silent - the machine gunners had been killed. Then Manshuk, quickly crawling from one firing point to another, began to fire at the advancing enemies from three machine guns.

The enemy transferred mortar fire to the position of the resourceful girl. A nearby explosion of a heavy mine knocked over the machine gun behind which Manshuk lay. Wounded in the head, the machine gunner lost consciousness for some time, but the triumphant cries of the approaching Nazis forced her to wake up. Instantly moving to a nearby machine gun, Manshuk lashed out with a shower of lead at the chains of the fascist warriors. And again the enemy’s attack failed. This ensured the successful advancement of our units, but the girl from distant Urda remained lying on the hillside. Her fingers froze on the Maxima trigger.

On March 1, 1944, by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, senior sergeant Manshuk Zhiengalievna Mametova was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

Eternal glory to the heroes who fell in battles for the freedom and independence of our Motherland...

This material is dedicated to the heroes of our time. Real, not fictitious citizens of our country. Those people who do not film incidents on their smartphones, but are the first to rush to help the victims. Not out of vocation or professional duty, but out of a personal sense of patriotism, responsibility, conscience and understanding that this is right.

In the great past of Russia - Rus', Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, there were many heroes who glorified the state throughout the world, and did not disgrace the name and honor of its citizen. And we honor their enormous contributions. Every day, brick by brick, building a new, strong country, regaining lost patriotism, pride and recently forgotten heroes.

We should all remember that in modern history of our country, in the 21st century, many worthy feats and heroic deeds have already been accomplished! Actions that deserve your attention.

Read the stories of the exploits of “ordinary” residents of our Motherland, take an example and be proud!

Russia is coming back.

In May 2012, for saving a nine-year-old child, a twelve-year-old boy, Danil Sadykov, was awarded the Order of Courage in Tatarstan. Unfortunately, his father, also a Hero of Russia, received the Order of Courage for him.

At the beginning of May 2012, Small child fell into a fountain, the water in which suddenly turned out to be under high voltage. There were a lot of people around, everyone shouted, calling for help, but did nothing. Only Danil made the decision. It is obvious that his father, who received the title of hero after worthy service in the Chechen Republic, raised his son correctly. Courage is in the Sadykovs’ blood. As investigators later found out, the water was energized at 380 volts. Danil Sadykov managed to pull the victim onto the side of the fountain, but by that time he himself received a severe electric shock. For the heroism and dedication shown in saving a person in extreme conditions 12-year-old Danil, a resident of Naberezhnye Chelny, was awarded the Order of Courage, unfortunately posthumously.

The commander of the communications battalion, Sergei Solnechnikov, died on March 28, 2012 during an exercise near Belogorsk in the Amur Region.

During the grenade throwing exercise, an emergency situation occurred - a grenade, after being thrown by a conscript, hit the parapet. Solnechnikov jumped up to the private, pushed him aside and covered the grenade with his body, saving not only him, but also many people around. Awarded the title of Hero of Russia.

In the winter of 2012, in the village of Komsomolsky, Pavlovsk district Altai Territory children were playing on the street near the store. One of them, a 9-year-old boy, fell into a sewer well with ice water, which was not visible due to large snowdrifts. If it weren’t for the help of 17-year-old teenager Alexander Grebe, who accidentally saw what happened and jumped after the victim into ice water, the boy could have become another victim of adult negligence.

On a Sunday in March 2013, two-year-old Vasya was walking near his house under the supervision of his ten-year-old sister. At this time, Sergeant Major Denis Stepanov went to see his friend on business and, waiting for him behind the fence, watched the child’s pranks with a smile. Hearing the sound of snow sliding off the slate, the fireman instantly rushed to the baby and, jerking him aside, took the blow of the snowball and ice.

Twenty-two-year-old Alexander Skvortsov from Bryansk unexpectedly became a hero of his city two years ago: he pulled seven children and their mother out of a burning house.


In 2013, Alexander was visiting eldest daughter neighboring family, 15-year-old Katya. The head of the family went to work early in the morning, everyone was asleep at home, and he locked the door. In the next room, a mother of many children was busy with the kids, the youngest of whom was only three years old, when Sasha smelled smoke.

First of all, everyone logically rushed to the door, but it turned out to be locked, and the second key lay in the parents’ bedroom, which had already been cut off by fire.

“I was confused, first of all I started counting the children,” says Natalya, mother. “I couldn’t call the fire department or anything, even though I had the phone in my hands.”
However, the guy was not at a loss: he tried to open the window, but it was tightly sealed for the winter. With a few blows from the stool, Sasha knocked out the frame, helped Katya get out and handed the rest of the children what they were wearing into her arms. I dropped my mom off last.

“When I started to climb out, the gas suddenly exploded,” says Sasha. – My hair and face were singed. But he’s alive, the children are safe, and that’s the main thing. I don’t need gratitude.”

The youngest citizen of Russia to become a holder of the Order of Courage in our country is Evgeniy Tabakov.


Tabakov’s wife was only seven years old when the bell rang in the Tabakovs’ apartment. Only Zhenya and his twelve-year-old sister Yana were at home.

The girl opened the door without being at all wary - the caller introduced himself as a postman, and since it was extremely rare for strangers to appear in the closed city (the military town of Norilsk - 9), Yana let the man in.

The stranger grabbed her, put a knife to her throat and began to demand money. The girl struggled and cried, the robber ordered her younger brother to look for money, and at that time he began to undress Yana. But the boy could not leave his sister so easily. He went into the kitchen, took a knife and stabbed the criminal in the lower back with a running start. The rapist fell from pain and released Yana. But it was impossible to deal with the repeat offender with childish hands. The criminal got up, attacked Zhenya and stabbed him several times. Later, experts counted eight puncture wounds on the boy’s body that were incompatible with life. At this time, my sister knocked on the neighbors and asked them to call the police. Hearing the noise, the rapist tried to escape.

However, the bleeding wound of the little defender that left a mark and the loss of blood did their job. The repeat offender was immediately captured, and the sister, thanks to the heroic act of the boy, remained safe and healthy. The feat of a seven-year-old boy is the act of a person with an established life position. The act of a real Russian soldier who will do everything to protect his family and his home.

GENERALIZATION
It’s not uncommon to hear conditional liberals blinded by the West or voluntarily blindfolded, dogmatic Advisors declare that all the best is in the West and this is not in Russia, and all the heroes lived in the past, therefore our Russia is not their Motherland...

Let's leave the ignorant in their ignorance, and turn our attention to modern heroes. Little ones and adults, ordinary passers-by and professionals. Let's pay attention - and let's take an example from them, let's stop remaining indifferent to our own country and our citizens.

The hero commits an action. This is an act that not everyone, perhaps even a few, would dare to do. Sometimes such valiant people are awarded with medals, orders, and if they do without any signs, then with human memory and inescapable gratitude.

Your attention, and knowledge of your heroes, the understanding that you should be no worse - is the best tribute to the memory of such people and their valiant and most worthy deeds.

During the battles, child heroes of the Great Patriotic War were not spared own lives and walked with the same courage and bravery as grown men. Their fate was not limited to exploits on the battlefield - they worked in the rear, promoted communism in the occupied territories, helped supply troops and much more.

There is an opinion that the victory over the Germans is the merit of grown men and women, but this is not entirely true. The child heroes of the Great Patriotic War made no less contribution to the victory over the regime of the Third Reich and their names should not be forgotten either.

The young pioneer heroes of the Great Patriotic War also acted bravely, because they understood that not only their own lives were at stake, but also the fate of the entire state.

The article will talk about child heroes of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), more precisely about seven brave boys who received the right to be called heroes of the USSR.

The stories of child heroes of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 are a valuable source of data for historians, even if the children did not take part in bloody battles with weapons in their hands. Below, in addition, you can see photos of the pioneer heroes of the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945 and learn about their brave deeds during the fighting.

All stories about child heroes of the Great Patriotic War contain only verified information; their full names and the full names of their loved ones have not changed. However, some data may not correspond to the truth (for example, exact dates death, birth), since documentary evidence was lost during the conflict.

Probably the most child hero of the Great Patriotic War is Valentin Aleksandrovich Kotik. The future brave man and patriot was born on February 11, 1930 in a small settlement called Khmelevka, in the Shepetovsky district of the Khmelnitsky region and studied at the Russian-language secondary school No. 4 of the same town. Being an eleven-year-old boy who only had to study in the sixth grade and learn about life, from the first hours of the confrontation he decided for himself that he would fight the invaders.

When the autumn of 1941 came, Kotik, together with his close comrades, carefully organized an ambush for the police of the city of Shepetivka. In the course of a well-thought-out operation, the boy managed to eliminate the head of the police by throwing a live grenade under his car.

Around the beginning of 1942, the little saboteur joined a detachment of Soviet partisans who fought deep behind enemy lines during the war. Initially, young Valya was not sent into battle - he was assigned to work as a signalman - a rather important position. However, the young fighter insisted on his participation in battles against the Nazi occupiers, invaders and murderers.

In August 1943, the young patriot was accepted, having shown extraordinary initiative, into a large and active underground group named after Ustim Karmelyuk under the leadership of Lieutenant Ivan Muzalev. Throughout 1943, he regularly took part in battles, during which he received a bullet more than once, but even despite this he returned to the front line again, not sparing his life. Valya was not shy about any work, and therefore also often went on reconnaissance missions in his underground organization.

The young fighter accomplished one famous feat in October 1943. Quite by accident, Kotik discovered a well-hidden telephone cable, which was located shallow underground and was extremely important for the Germans. This telephone cable provided communication between the headquarters of the Supreme Commander (Adolf Hitler) and occupied Warsaw. This played an important role in the liberation of the Polish capital, since the fascist headquarters had no connection with the high command. In the same year, Kotik helped to blow up an enemy warehouse with ammunition for weapons, and also destroyed six railway trains with the equipment necessary for the Germans, and in which the people of Kiev were hijacked, mining them and blowing them up without remorse.

At the end of October of the same year, the little patriot of the USSR Valya Kotik accomplished another feat. Being part of a partisan group, Valya stood on patrol and noticed how enemy soldiers surrounded his group. The cat was not at a loss and first of all killed the enemy officer who commanded the punitive operation, and then raised the alarm. Thanks to such a courageous act of this brave pioneer, the partisans managed to react to the encirclement and were able to fight off the enemy, avoiding huge losses in their ranks.

Unfortunately, in the battle for the city of Izyaslav in mid-February of the following year, Valya was mortally wounded by a shot from a German rifle. The pioneer hero died from his wound the next morning at the age of just 14 years.

The young warrior was forever laid to rest in his hometown. Despite the significance of Vali Kotik’s exploits, his merits were noticed only thirteen years later, when the boy was awarded the title of “Hero of the Soviet Union,” but posthumously. In addition, Valya was also awarded the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner and the Order of the Patriotic War. Monuments were erected not only in the hero’s native village, but throughout the entire territory of the USSR. Streets, orphanages, and so on were named after him.

Petr Sergeevich Klypa is one of those who can easily be called a rather controversial personality, who, being a hero Brest Fortress and possessing the “Order of the Patriotic War,” he was also known as a criminal.

The future defender of the Brest Fortress was born at the end of September 1926 in Russian city Bryansk. The boy spent his childhood practically without a father. He was a railway worker and died early - the boy was raised only by his mother.

In 1939, Peter was taken into the army by his older brother, Nikolai Klypa, who at that time had already achieved the rank of lieutenant of the spacecraft, and under his command was the musical platoon of the 333rd regiment of the 6th rifle division. The young fighter became a student of this platoon.

After the Red Army captured the territory of Poland, he, together with the 6th Infantry Division, was sent to the area of ​​​​the city of Brest-Litovsk. The barracks of his regiment were located close to the famous Brest Fortress. On June 22, Pyotr Klypa woke up in the barracks just as the Germans began to bomb the fortress and the surrounding barracks. The soldiers of the 333rd Infantry Regiment, despite the panic, were able to give an organized rebuff to the first attack of the German infantry, and young Peter also actively participated in this battle.

From the first day, he, together with his friend Kolya Novikov, began to go on reconnaissance missions around the dilapidated and surrounded fortress and carry out orders from their commanders. On June 23, during the next reconnaissance, young soldiers managed to discover a whole warehouse of ammunition that was not destroyed by explosions - this ammunition greatly helped the defenders of the fortress. For many more days, Soviet soldiers repelled enemy attacks using this find.

When senior lieutenant Alexander Potapov became commander of 333-poka, he appointed the young and energetic Peter as his liaison. He did a lot of useful things. One day he brought to the medical unit a large supply of bandages and medicines that were urgently needed by the wounded. Every day Peter also brought water to the soldiers, which was sorely lacking for the defenders of the fortress.

By the end of the month, the situation of the Red Army soldiers in the fortress became catastrophically difficult. To save the lives of innocent people, the soldiers sent children, old people and women into captivity to the Germans, giving them a chance to survive. The young intelligence officer was also offered to surrender, but he refused, deciding to continue participating in battles against the Germans.

In early July, the defenders of the fortress almost ran out of ammunition, water and food. Then it was decided with all our might to make a breakthrough. It ended in complete failure for the Red Army soldiers - the Germans killed most of the soldiers and took the rest half prisoner. Only a few managed to survive and break through the encirclement. One of them was Peter Klypa.

However, after a couple of days of grueling pursuit, the Nazis captured him and the other survivors and took them prisoner. Until 1945, Peter worked in Germany as a farm laborer for a fairly wealthy German farmer. He was freed by the troops of the United States of America, after which he returned to the ranks of the Red Army. After demobilization, Petya became a bandit and robber. He even had murder on his hands. He served a significant part of his life in prison, after which he returned to normal life and started a family and two children. Pyotr Klypa died in 1983 at the age of 57. His early death was caused by a serious illness - cancer.

Among the child heroes of the Great Patriotic War (WWII), the young partisan fighter Vilor Chekmak deserves special attention. The boy was born at the end of December 1925 in glorious city sailors Simferopol. Vilor had Greek roots. His father, a hero of many conflicts with the participation of the USSR, died during the defense of the capital of the USSR in 1941.

Vilor was an excellent student at school, experienced extraordinary love and had artistic talent - he drew beautifully. When he grew up, he dreamed of painting expensive paintings, but the events of bloody June 1941 crossed out his dreams once and for all.

In August 1941, Vilor could no longer sit back while others shed blood for him. And then, taking his beloved shepherd dog, he went to the partisan detachment. The boy was a real defender of the Fatherland. His mother dissuaded him from joining an underground group, since the guy had a congenital heart defect, but he still decided to save his homeland. Like many other boys his age, Vilor began serving in the intelligence service.

He served in the ranks of the partisan detachment for only a couple of months, but before his death he accomplished a real feat. On November 10, 1941, he was on duty, covering his brothers. The Germans began to surround the partisan detachment and Vilor was the first to notice their approach. The guy risked everything and fired a rocket launcher to warn his brothers about the enemy, but with the same act he attracted the attention of an entire squad of Nazis. Realizing that he could no longer escape, he decided to cover the retreat of his brothers in arms, and therefore opened fire on the Germans. The boy fought until the last shot, but then did not give up. He, like a real hero, rushed at the enemy with explosives, blowing up himself and the Germans.

For his achievements, he received the medal “For Military Merit” and the medal “For the Defense of Sevastopol.”

Medal "For the Defense of Sevastopol".

Among the famous child heroes of the Great Patriotic War, it is also worth highlighting Arkady Nakolaevich Kamanin, who was born in early November 1928 in the family of the famous Soviet military leader and General of the Red Army Air Force Nikolai Kamanin. It is noteworthy that his father was one of the first citizens of the USSR to receive the highest title in the state, Hero of the Soviet Union.

Arkady spent his childhood on Far East, but then moved to Moscow, where he lived for a short time. Being the son of a military pilot, Arkady was able to fly airplanes as a child. In the summer, the young hero always worked at the airfield, and also briefly worked at a factory for the production of aircraft for various purposes as a mechanic. When hostilities began against the Third Reich, the boy moved to the city of Tashkent, where his father was sent.

In 1943, Arkady Kamanin became one of the youngest military pilots in history, and the youngest pilot of the Great Patriotic War. Together with his father he went to the Karelian front. He was enlisted in the 5th Guards Attack Air Corps. At first he worked as a mechanic - far from the most prestigious job on board an aircraft. But very soon he was appointed navigator-observer and flight mechanic on the plane to establish communications between individual units called U-2. This plane had dual controls, and Arkasha himself flew the plane more than once. Already in July 1943, the young patriot was flying without any help - completely on his own.

At the age of 14, Arkady officially became a pilot and was enlisted in the 423rd A separate squadron communications. Since June 1943, the hero fought against the enemies of the state as part of the 1st Ukrainian Front. Since the victorious autumn of 1944, it became part of the 2nd Ukrainian Front.

Arkady took more part in communication tasks. He flew behind the front line more than once to help the partisans establish communications. At the age of 15, the guy was awarded the Order of the Red Star. He received this award for assisting the Soviet pilot of an Il-2 attack aircraft, who crashed on the so-called no man's land. If the young patriot had not intervened, Polito would have died. Then Arkady received another Order of the Red Star, and then the Order of the Red Banner. Thanks to his successful actions in the sky, the Red Army was able to plant a red flag in occupied Budapest and Vienna.

After defeating the enemy, Arkady went to continue his studies at high school, where he quickly caught up with the program. However, the guy was killed by meningitis, from which he died at the age of 18.

Lenya Golikov is a well-known occupier killer, partisan and pioneer, who for his exploits and extraordinary devotion to the Fatherland, as well as dedication, earned the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, as well as the Medal “Partisan of the Patriotic War, 1st degree.” In addition, his homeland awarded him the Order of Lenin.

Lenya Golikov was born in a small village in the Parfinsky district, in the Novgorod region. Her parents were ordinary workers, and the boy could have had the same calm fate. At the time of the outbreak of hostilities, Lenya had completed seven classes and was already working at a local plywood factory. He began to actively participate in hostilities only in 1942, when the enemies of the state had already captured Ukraine and went to Russia.

In mid-August of the second year of the confrontation, being at that moment a young but already quite experienced intelligence officer of the 4th Leningrad Underground Brigade, he threw a combat grenade under an enemy vehicle. In that car sat a German major general from the engineering forces, Richard von Wirtz. Previously, it was believed that Lenya decisively eliminated the German military leader, but he was able to miraculously survive, albeit seriously injured. In 1945, American troops captured this general. However, on that day, Golikov managed to steal the general’s documents, which contained information about new enemy mines that could cause significant harm to the Red Army. For this achievement, he was nominated for the highest title in the country, “Hero of the Soviet Union.”

In the period from 1942 to 1943, Lena Golikov managed to kill almost 80 German soldiers, blew up 12 highway bridges and 2 more railway bridges. Destroyed a couple of food warehouses important for the Nazis and blew up 10 vehicles with ammunition for the German army.

On January 24, 1943, Leni’s detachment found itself in battle with superior enemy forces. Lenya Golikov died in a battle near a small settlement called Ostray Luka, in the Pskov region, from an enemy bullet. His brothers in arms also died with him. Like many others, he was awarded the title of “Hero of the Soviet Union” posthumously.

One of the heroes of the children of the Great Patriotic War was also a boy named Vladimir Dubinin, who actively acted against the enemy in the Crimea.

The future partisan was born in Kerch on August 29, 1927. Since childhood, the boy was extremely brave and stubborn, and therefore from the first days of hostilities against the Reich he wanted to defend his homeland. It was thanks to his persistence that he ended up in a partisan detachment that operated near Kerch.

Volodya, as a member of a partisan detachment, conducted reconnaissance operations together with his close comrades and brothers in arms. The boy delivered extremely important information and information about the location of enemy units, the number of Wehrmacht fighters, which helped the partisans prepare their combat offensive operations. In December 1941, during the next reconnaissance, Volodya Dubinin provided comprehensive information about the enemy, which made it possible for the partisans to completely defeat the Nazi punitive detachment. Volodya was not afraid to participate in battles - at first he simply brought ammunition under heavy fire, and then stood in the place of a seriously wounded soldier.

Volodya had the trick of leading his enemies by the nose - he “helped” the Nazis find the partisans, but in fact led them into an ambush. The boy successfully completed all the tasks of the partisan detachment. After the successful liberation of the city of Kerch during the Kerch-Feodosia landing operation 1941-1942 the young partisan joined the sapper detachment. On January 4, 1942, while clearing one of the mines, Volodya died along with a Soviet sapper from a mine explosion. For his services, the pioneer hero received the posthumous award of the Order of the Red Banner.

Sasha Borodulin was born on the day of a famous holiday, namely March 8, 1926 in a hero city called Leningrad. His family was rather poor. Sasha also had two sisters, one older than the hero, and the second is younger. The boy did not live long in Leningrad - his family moved to the Republic of Karelia, and then returned to the Leningrad region - to small village Novelty, which was located 70 kilometers from Leningrad. In this village the hero went to school. There he was elected chairman of the pioneer squad, which the boy dreamed of for a long time.

Sasha was fifteen years old when the fighting began. The hero graduated from 7th grade and became a member of the Komsomol. In the early autumn of 1941, the boy walked along at will into a partisan detachment. At first he conducted exclusively reconnaissance activities for the partisan unit, but soon took up arms.

At the end of the autumn of 1941, he proved himself in the battle for the Chasha railway station in the ranks of a partisan detachment under the command of the famous partisan leader Ivan Boloznev. For his bravery in the winter of 1941, Alexander was awarded another very honorable Order of the Red Banner in the country.

Over the next months, Vanya repeatedly showed courage, went on reconnaissance missions and fought on the battlefield. On July 7, 1942, the young hero and partisan died. This happened near the village of Oredezh, in Leningrad region. Sasha remained to cover the retreat of his comrades. He sacrificed his life to allow his brothers in arms to escape. After his death, the young partisan was twice awarded the same Order of the Red Banner.

The names listed above are far from all the heroes of the Great Patriotic War. The children performed many feats that should not be forgotten.

A boy named Marat Kazei accomplished no less than other child heroes of the Great Patriotic War. Despite the fact that his family was out of favor with the government, Marat still remained a patriot. At the beginning of the war, Marat and his mother Anna hid partisans at home. Even when arrests of the local population began in order to find those who were sheltering the partisans, his family did not hand over theirs to the Germans.

Afterwards he himself joined the ranks of the partisan detachment. Marat was actively eager to fight. He accomplished his first feat in January 1943. When the next firefight took place, he was easily wounded, but he still raised his comrades and led them into battle. Being surrounded, the detachment under his command broke through the ring and was able to avoid death. For this feat the guy received the medal “For Courage”. Later he was also given the medal “Partisan of the Patriotic War”, 2nd class.

Marat died along with his commander during a battle in May 1944. When the cartridges ran out, the hero threw one grenade at the enemies, and blew up the second one to avoid being captured by the enemy.

However, not only photos and names of boys pioneer heroes of the Great Patriotic War now decorate the streets of large cities and textbooks. There were also young girls among them. It is worth mentioning the bright but sadly cut short life of the Soviet partisan Zina Portnova.

After the war began in the summer of forty-one, a thirteen-year-old girl found herself in occupied territory and was forced to work in a canteen for German officers. Even then, she worked underground and, on the orders of the partisans, poisoned about a hundred Nazi officers. The fascist garrison in the city began to catch the girl, but she managed to escape, after which she joined the partisan detachment.

At the end of the summer of 1943, during another mission in which she participated as a scout, the Germans captured a young partisan. One of the local residents confirmed that it was Zina who poisoned the officers. They began to brutally torture the girl in order to find out information about the partisan detachment. However, the girl did not say a word. Once she managed to escape, she grabbed a pistol and killed three more Germans. She tried to escape, but was captured again. Afterwards she was tortured for a very long time, practically depriving the girl of any desire to live. Zina still didn’t say a word, after which she was shot on the morning of January 10, 1944.

For her services, the seventeen-year-old girl received the title of Hero of the USSR posthumously.

These stories, stories about child heroes of the Great Patriotic War should never be forgotten, but on the contrary, they will always be in the memory of posterity. It is worth remembering them at least once a year - on the day of the Great Victory.