Russian Women During World War II

Russian women during World War II Made by K. Shtokolova Form – 9C Gymnasium 2, Georgievsk Tutor N. Chistyakova

Russian women during World War II Women played a part in most of the armed forces of the Second World War. In most countries though , women tended to serve mostly in administrative , medical and in auxiliary roles. But in the Soviet Union women fought also in front line roles . Over 800 000 women served in the Soviet armed forces in World War II, mostly as medics and nurses, which is over 3 percent of total personnel. 89 of them eventually received the Soviet Union’s highest award, the Hero of the Soviet Union , they served as pilots, snipers, machine gunners, tank crew members and partisans, as well as in auxiliary roles. Few of these women, however, were promoted to officers.

Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya The story of Zoya Kosmodemyaskaya became popular after Pravda published an article on January 27, 1942. The journalist have heard about Zoya’s execution and was very impressed by young woman’s courage. In Petrischevo, Zoya managed to set fire to houses of German soldiers. One of the homes burned by Zoya was used as a German communications center. After being arrested she was beaten, interrogated and tortured with 200 lashes and her body burned but she refused to give any information. Her last words were: “You hang me now, But I’m not alone . There are two hundred million of us. You can’t hang us all. They will avenge for me.” She was one of the most revered heroines of the Soviet Union.

Lyudmila Pavlichenko Lyudmila Pavlichenko was a Soviet sniper in the Red Army during World War II, credited with 309 confirmed kills, making her the most successful female sniper in history. Lyudmila was nicknamed “Lady Death” due to her incredible ability with a sniper rifle. She served in Red Army during the Siege of Odessa and the Siege of Sevastopol. After she was injured in battle by a mortar shell, she was evacuated to Moscow. After Pavlichenko recovered from injuries she trained other Red Army snipers. In 1942 she toured the United States, Canada and Great Britain. The purpose of that visit was to convince the allies to start a second front against Nazy Germany. In 1943 she was awarded the Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union, as well as the Order of Lenin twice.

Julia Drunina Julia Drunina was a nurse and combat medic during World War II and known for writing lyrics and poetry about women at war. Her works characterized by moral clarity, science intonation and based on her real life experience, including participation in the war as a source of inspiration for the writings. In 1943 Drunina was seriously injured when a shell fragment struck her in the neck several millimeters from her carotid artery. Unaware of the severity of her injury, she simply wrapped her neck in bandages and continued to work. Eventually, she was hospitalized in critical condition and was said to have barely survived.

Lydia Litvyak Lydia Litvyak, also known as Lilya, was a fighter pilot in the Soviet Air Force during World War II. In about two years of operations, she was the first female fighter pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft, the first of two female fighter pilots who have earned the title of fighter ace and the holder of the record for the greatest number of kills by a female fighter pilot . Her last mission was on August,1 1943. She was shot down near Orel during the Battle of Kursk as she attacked a formation of German aircraft. She was only 21 years old.

Natalya Kravtsova Natalya Kravtsova was a flight commander, one of three women’s aviation regiments founded by Marina Raskova. The regiment later came to be known as the “Night Witches” by German targets . By the end of the war she had flown 980 night missions and dropped an estimated 147 tons of bombs on enemy-controlled territory. While a lieutenant, she was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. In October 1945 she became a reserve officer.