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🗓 On September 13, 1943, the leaders of the Young Guards underground organisation were posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. They were Julyana Gromova, Ivan Zemnukhov, Oleg Koshevoy, Sergey Tyulenin & Lyubov Shevtsova.
⚔️ During the Great Patriotic War, the members of the Young Guards selflessly fought against the Nazi invaders in the city of Krasnodon, Donbass. They staged subversions, spread anti-fascist leaflets, destroyed the Nazis’ vehicles & took part in saving Soviet soldiers from captivity. Overall, more than a hundred young men & women joined the organisation.
🕯 Captured by the Nazis, the members of the Young Guards were subjected to brutal torture but refused to collaborate with the enemy & gave up their lives for the freedom of the Motherland. They were buried in a fraternal grave in the centre of Krasnodon on March 1, 1943.
🙏 The feat of the young underground fighters will forever remain in the memory of generations to come.
#FacesOfVictory
⚔️ During the Great Patriotic War, the members of the Young Guards selflessly fought against the Nazi invaders in the city of Krasnodon, Donbass. They staged subversions, spread anti-fascist leaflets, destroyed the Nazis’ vehicles & took part in saving Soviet soldiers from captivity. Overall, more than a hundred young men & women joined the organisation.
🕯 Captured by the Nazis, the members of the Young Guards were subjected to brutal torture but refused to collaborate with the enemy & gave up their lives for the freedom of the Motherland. They were buried in a fraternal grave in the centre of Krasnodon on March 1, 1943.
🙏 The feat of the young underground fighters will forever remain in the memory of generations to come.
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ Today marks 1️⃣4️⃣0️⃣ years since the birth of Soviet Marshal Boris #Shaposhnikov.
▶️ Dedicated his life to ensuring the safety of his country;
▶️ Was one of the creators of the Red Army;
▶️ The mastermind of the Soviet counter-offensive during the Battle of Moscow.
#FacesOfVictory
▶️ Dedicated his life to ensuring the safety of his country;
▶️ Was one of the creators of the Red Army;
▶️ The mastermind of the Soviet counter-offensive during the Battle of Moscow.
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ On this day in 1945, over 400 Soviet prisoners of war daringly escaped from #Mauthausen concentration camp in Upper Austria. This rebellion was among the biggest in World War II history.
The largest groups of prisoners at the camp were citizens of the USSR, Poland and Hungary. Soviet POWs who were earlier suspected of resistance activities, were held under the most unbearable conditions in Block 20. The prisoners were beaten, often to death, for the slightest infraction.
On the night of February 3, 1945, 419 prisoners of “Death Block” made an escape. All local units of the SA, the Wehrmacht, the Gendarmerie as well as groups of volunteers joined in their hunt. Overall, 300 escapees were caught and only 57 of them were returned alive to the camp where they were subsequently brutally tortured to death.
Former Mauthausen prisoner Nikolai Parshin wrote after the war, “The prisoners of Death Block stood up against their henchmen and escaped from the hell on earth the Nazis had made. They died with honour as warriors should. And they are not gone, they are heroes that will remain eternally alive. The memory of them will live on in our hearts forever.”
🕯 The total number of prisoners in Mauthausen was 335,000 of which 122,000 were either executed or worked, tortured or starved to death. Over 32,000 of the dead were citizens of our country.
Among those who were savagely tortured to death by the Nazis was Lieutenant General Dmitry Karbyshev. The Nazis did their worst to get him to become a collaborator, as he was an outstanding commander and an unrivalled expert in fortifications, but they failed. Dmitry Karbyhev was 64 when he died.
#Victory77 #WeRemember #FacesOfVictory
The largest groups of prisoners at the camp were citizens of the USSR, Poland and Hungary. Soviet POWs who were earlier suspected of resistance activities, were held under the most unbearable conditions in Block 20. The prisoners were beaten, often to death, for the slightest infraction.
On the night of February 3, 1945, 419 prisoners of “Death Block” made an escape. All local units of the SA, the Wehrmacht, the Gendarmerie as well as groups of volunteers joined in their hunt. Overall, 300 escapees were caught and only 57 of them were returned alive to the camp where they were subsequently brutally tortured to death.
Former Mauthausen prisoner Nikolai Parshin wrote after the war, “The prisoners of Death Block stood up against their henchmen and escaped from the hell on earth the Nazis had made. They died with honour as warriors should. And they are not gone, they are heroes that will remain eternally alive. The memory of them will live on in our hearts forever.”
🕯 The total number of prisoners in Mauthausen was 335,000 of which 122,000 were either executed or worked, tortured or starved to death. Over 32,000 of the dead were citizens of our country.
Among those who were savagely tortured to death by the Nazis was Lieutenant General Dmitry Karbyshev. The Nazis did their worst to get him to become a collaborator, as he was an outstanding commander and an unrivalled expert in fortifications, but they failed. Dmitry Karbyhev was 64 when he died.
#Victory77 #WeRemember #FacesOfVictory
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📝 On February 18 in 1945 Ivan Danilovich Chernyakhovsky, outstanding Soviet general and commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front during the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), perished, long before his time.
🎖🎖 Two times Hero of the Soviet Union, the youngest ever general in the history of the Red Army, Chernyakhovsky contributed greatly to the liberation of Voronezh and Kursk from the Nazi invaders.
⚔️ At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he was at command of the 28th Tank Division and the 18th Tank Corps in the Baltic region, which blunted the attacks of the enemy near Siauliai (Lithuania).
In 1944 at the age of 37 Chernyakhovsky was awarded two "Gold Stars" for bravery and liberation of Vitebsk, Minsk and Vilnius.
🕯 On February 23, 1945, Ivan Chernyakhovsky was supposed to receive the Marshal's rank but died from a wound received in shelling mere days before.
Chernyakhovsky hugely contributed to the liberation of Lithuania and Poland from the Nazis, yet these countries decided to forget the hero, take steps to tarnish his memory. A monument at the place of his death in Penzno (Poland) was removed by local authorities in 2015.
#FacesOfVictory #WeRemember
🎖🎖 Two times Hero of the Soviet Union, the youngest ever general in the history of the Red Army, Chernyakhovsky contributed greatly to the liberation of Voronezh and Kursk from the Nazi invaders.
⚔️ At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he was at command of the 28th Tank Division and the 18th Tank Corps in the Baltic region, which blunted the attacks of the enemy near Siauliai (Lithuania).
In 1944 at the age of 37 Chernyakhovsky was awarded two "Gold Stars" for bravery and liberation of Vitebsk, Minsk and Vilnius.
🕯 On February 23, 1945, Ivan Chernyakhovsky was supposed to receive the Marshal's rank but died from a wound received in shelling mere days before.
Chernyakhovsky hugely contributed to the liberation of Lithuania and Poland from the Nazis, yet these countries decided to forget the hero, take steps to tarnish his memory. A monument at the place of his death in Penzno (Poland) was removed by local authorities in 2015.
#FacesOfVictory #WeRemember
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🕯 Doctor of Military Science, Lieutenant General of the Red Army Dmitry Karbyshev was brutally murdered by the Nazis in the Mauthausen concentration camp in the early hours of February 18, 1945.
Dmitry Karbyshev was a military professional who fought in the Russo-Japanese War and the First World War. He served in the Red Army from 1918 and was considered to be one of the best military engineers. During the Winter War against Finland, he played an important role in the operation to break through the Mannerheim Line.
During the Great Patriotic War, he was wounded and taken prisoner by the Nazis while he was unconscious. Dmitry Karbyshev was imprisoned in many concentration camps during his time in captivity, including Majdanek, Auschwitz, Flossenbürg, Hammelburg, Sachsenhausen and Mauthausen.
☝️ The Nazis tried to persuade the Soviet general to cooperate. According to some data, originally the Germans wanted to place Karbyshev in command of the Russian Liberation Army. He was brought to Berlin in late 1942, where Chief of the Supreme Command of the German Armed Forces Wilhelm Keitel personally tried to entice Dmitry Karbyshev to side with Nazi Germany, but the Soviet officer remained steadfast: “I do not trade my conscience and my Motherland!”
While he was a prisoner of war, the Soviet officer organised anti-Nazi resistance groups, thus continuing the fight against the enemy. In early 1944 Karbyshev was sent to the Mauthausen concentration camp, where he was tortured and brutally murdered. The Nazis poured cold water on him in the freezing cold until he turned into an ice pillar. The concentration camp survivors, who witnessed Karbyshev’s death, said his last words were: “Stay strong, comrades! Think of the Motherland and courage will not leave you!”
🎖 The steadfast Soviet commander, whose feat went down in history, was posthumously awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union for his courage and heroism.
#FacesOfVictory
Dmitry Karbyshev was a military professional who fought in the Russo-Japanese War and the First World War. He served in the Red Army from 1918 and was considered to be one of the best military engineers. During the Winter War against Finland, he played an important role in the operation to break through the Mannerheim Line.
During the Great Patriotic War, he was wounded and taken prisoner by the Nazis while he was unconscious. Dmitry Karbyshev was imprisoned in many concentration camps during his time in captivity, including Majdanek, Auschwitz, Flossenbürg, Hammelburg, Sachsenhausen and Mauthausen.
☝️ The Nazis tried to persuade the Soviet general to cooperate. According to some data, originally the Germans wanted to place Karbyshev in command of the Russian Liberation Army. He was brought to Berlin in late 1942, where Chief of the Supreme Command of the German Armed Forces Wilhelm Keitel personally tried to entice Dmitry Karbyshev to side with Nazi Germany, but the Soviet officer remained steadfast: “I do not trade my conscience and my Motherland!”
While he was a prisoner of war, the Soviet officer organised anti-Nazi resistance groups, thus continuing the fight against the enemy. In early 1944 Karbyshev was sent to the Mauthausen concentration camp, where he was tortured and brutally murdered. The Nazis poured cold water on him in the freezing cold until he turned into an ice pillar. The concentration camp survivors, who witnessed Karbyshev’s death, said his last words were: “Stay strong, comrades! Think of the Motherland and courage will not leave you!”
🎖 The steadfast Soviet commander, whose feat went down in history, was posthumously awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union for his courage and heroism.
#FacesOfVictory
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✈️ #OnThisDay in 1941, Viktor Talalikhin became one of the first pilots in the history of Great Patriotic War to perform an aerial ramming at night. In the early hours of August 7, he flew his Polikarpov I-16 aircraft straight into the tail of a Nazi Heinkel He-111 bomber that was escaping pursuit.
This happened in the first weeks of the war, when the young Soviet fighter pilot was defending the sky over the south-west of Moscow. The German aircraft was shot down, and the wounded Talalikhin miraculously managed to parachute out of the aircraft and remained unharmed. On August 8 he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
At the time of his feat, Talalikhin was only 22 years old. Unfortunately, he did not live to see the end of the war: in the autumn of 1941 he fell in an unequal battle with the Nazis in the vicinity of Podolsk.
During the heavy fighting in the summer of 1941 Talalikhin's selfless feat inspired millions. In total, Soviet pilots rammed more than 600 enemy aircraft during the Great Patriotic War.
#FacesOfVictory
This happened in the first weeks of the war, when the young Soviet fighter pilot was defending the sky over the south-west of Moscow. The German aircraft was shot down, and the wounded Talalikhin miraculously managed to parachute out of the aircraft and remained unharmed. On August 8 he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
At the time of his feat, Talalikhin was only 22 years old. Unfortunately, he did not live to see the end of the war: in the autumn of 1941 he fell in an unequal battle with the Nazis in the vicinity of Podolsk.
During the heavy fighting in the summer of 1941 Talalikhin's selfless feat inspired millions. In total, Soviet pilots rammed more than 600 enemy aircraft during the Great Patriotic War.
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ On August 14, 1942, outstanding Soviet snipers Natalia Kovshova and Maria Polivanova died heroically during a ferocious battle against the Nazis near Sutoki, a village in the Novgorod Region.
The two formed their legendary tandem immediately after the Great Patriotic War broke out. Working in the aircraft manufacturing sector, both dreamed of entering a university. They volunteered for the front, even though they had an exemption and could have left Moscow as evacuees.
⚔️ Natalia and Maria took part in building defence lines in Moscow’s suburbs. In the meantime, they worked on creating a sniper unit. The two killed dozens of Nazi troops. By the spring of 1942, they had gained much battle experience, and were also training new recruits.
Forced out of their strongholds north of the Robya River on August 14, the Nazi invaders sought to recover lost ground by launching one fierce counterattack after another. The 528th Rifle Regiment sniper unit was sent to counter the adversary, and Natalia Kovshova and Maria Polivanova were part of it. They were successfully repelling the enemy attack but the Nazis manages to bring in reinforcement.
The Germans killed almost the entire unit, including its commander, during one of their attacks. This is when Natalia stepped forward to take command of the unit, and decided to wage the battle until the bitter end. Then came the moment when only Kovshova and Polivanova were able to resist the enemy. The two women fired back at the Germans until they ran out of bullets. They decided to let the enemy approach them and then used grenades to blow themselves up along with the Nazi soldiers. Natalia and Maria were just 21 and 19 years old, respectively.
🎖 On February 14, 1943, the two posthumously received Hero of the Soviet Union titles.
#FacesOfVictory
The two formed their legendary tandem immediately after the Great Patriotic War broke out. Working in the aircraft manufacturing sector, both dreamed of entering a university. They volunteered for the front, even though they had an exemption and could have left Moscow as evacuees.
⚔️ Natalia and Maria took part in building defence lines in Moscow’s suburbs. In the meantime, they worked on creating a sniper unit. The two killed dozens of Nazi troops. By the spring of 1942, they had gained much battle experience, and were also training new recruits.
Forced out of their strongholds north of the Robya River on August 14, the Nazi invaders sought to recover lost ground by launching one fierce counterattack after another. The 528th Rifle Regiment sniper unit was sent to counter the adversary, and Natalia Kovshova and Maria Polivanova were part of it. They were successfully repelling the enemy attack but the Nazis manages to bring in reinforcement.
The Germans killed almost the entire unit, including its commander, during one of their attacks. This is when Natalia stepped forward to take command of the unit, and decided to wage the battle until the bitter end. Then came the moment when only Kovshova and Polivanova were able to resist the enemy. The two women fired back at the Germans until they ran out of bullets. They decided to let the enemy approach them and then used grenades to blow themselves up along with the Nazi soldiers. Natalia and Maria were just 21 and 19 years old, respectively.
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ #OTD in 1921, legendary Soviet fighter pilot Lidiya Litvyak was born. She went down in history under the call sign «White Lily». According to legend, this flower was painted on her aircraft.
Since childhood, Lidiya had dreamed of conquering the sky. Already at the age of 14, she enrolled in an aeroclub, and at 15, she made her first solo flight. After graduating from the aviation school, the 19-year-old herself prepared cadets for flights.
⚔️ After the start of the Great Patriotic War, Litvyak enrolled in the women’s 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, where she piloted the Yakovlev Yak-1 fighter.
In September, Lidiya participated in the fierce battles over Stalingrad. Due to her successes in the sky, Litvyak was transferred to the 9th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, the «regiment of aces». After the successful counter-offensive at Stalingrad in 1943, Lydiya Litvyak was sent to fight in the skies over Donbass.
🕯 On August 1, 1943, during the defence of Donbass, Litvyak engaged in an air battle with several Messerschmitts, which were superior to the Yak-1 in speed and manoeuvrability. The radio operators intercepted alarming reports from the pilots in the sky: «Lily has been shot down!». The crash site of the Litvyak fighter could not be found for decades. At the time of her last combat mission, she was only 21 years old.
The «White Lily» carried out 168 combat sorties and destroyed 16 enemy aircraft (12 solo and four shared victories). She became the most effective female pilot of World War II.
Read in full
#FacesOfVictory
Since childhood, Lidiya had dreamed of conquering the sky. Already at the age of 14, she enrolled in an aeroclub, and at 15, she made her first solo flight. After graduating from the aviation school, the 19-year-old herself prepared cadets for flights.
⚔️ After the start of the Great Patriotic War, Litvyak enrolled in the women’s 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, where she piloted the Yakovlev Yak-1 fighter.
In September, Lidiya participated in the fierce battles over Stalingrad. Due to her successes in the sky, Litvyak was transferred to the 9th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, the «regiment of aces». After the successful counter-offensive at Stalingrad in 1943, Lydiya Litvyak was sent to fight in the skies over Donbass.
🕯 On August 1, 1943, during the defence of Donbass, Litvyak engaged in an air battle with several Messerschmitts, which were superior to the Yak-1 in speed and manoeuvrability. The radio operators intercepted alarming reports from the pilots in the sky: «Lily has been shot down!». The crash site of the Litvyak fighter could not be found for decades. At the time of her last combat mission, she was only 21 years old.
The «White Lily» carried out 168 combat sorties and destroyed 16 enemy aircraft (12 solo and four shared victories). She became the most effective female pilot of World War II.
Read in full
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ On August 20, 1941, the crew of a KV-1 tank under the command of Senior Lieutenant Zinovy Kolobanov took out 22 Nazi tanks in one battle.
The legendary encounter occurred near Krasnogvardeisk (Gatchina), where commander of the heavy tank company Kolobanov had been ordered to hold back the advance of German troops towards Leningrad.
⚔️ Kolobanov and his unit took up well-prepared defence positions and set up an ambush. When the enemy’s hardware reached the site, the senior lieutenant’s crew took out the first and last vehicles with precise strikes. The German column was stranded on a narrow road and could not escape from the armour-piercing shells of the Soviet tank.
Thanks to the tactical genius, Kolobanov’s company of five tanks destroyed 43 enemy tanks and armoured vehicles on that day and left the battle site without any losses only after they had run out of munitions. The senior lieutenants’ KV-1 tank had 156 hit marks on its armour but none of the shells pierced it.
☝️ Kolobanov and his subordinates’ feat is unparalleled. The battle near Krasnogvardeisk became one of the most successful tank battles in world history. The actions of the senior lieutenant significantly slowed down the advance of the Nazis towards Leningrad.
#FacesOfVictory
The legendary encounter occurred near Krasnogvardeisk (Gatchina), where commander of the heavy tank company Kolobanov had been ordered to hold back the advance of German troops towards Leningrad.
⚔️ Kolobanov and his unit took up well-prepared defence positions and set up an ambush. When the enemy’s hardware reached the site, the senior lieutenant’s crew took out the first and last vehicles with precise strikes. The German column was stranded on a narrow road and could not escape from the armour-piercing shells of the Soviet tank.
Thanks to the tactical genius, Kolobanov’s company of five tanks destroyed 43 enemy tanks and armoured vehicles on that day and left the battle site without any losses only after they had run out of munitions. The senior lieutenants’ KV-1 tank had 156 hit marks on its armour but none of the shells pierced it.
☝️ Kolobanov and his subordinates’ feat is unparalleled. The battle near Krasnogvardeisk became one of the most successful tank battles in world history. The actions of the senior lieutenant significantly slowed down the advance of the Nazis towards Leningrad.
#FacesOfVictory
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⭐️ #OTD in 1895, outstanding Marshal, twice Hero of the Soviet Union Alexander Vasilevsky was born. During the most difficult years of the Great Patriotic War, he headed the General Staff of the Red Army, formulating and coordinating the most important Soviet strategic operations.
A theological seminary graduate, Alexander Vasilevsky had dreamed of becoming an agronomist in his younger years, but World War I disrupted his plans.
The young officer deployed to the front where he quickly became a Staff Captain, a rank similar to Captain in the Soviet and Russian Armed Forces. Vasilevsky then realised that he would pursue a military career for the rest of his life.
Major General Vasilevsky was serving with the General Staff when the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 started. He came to head the General Staff some time later. As a member of the General Headquarters and its representative, he deployed to fronts where the challenges were greatest.
Vasilevsky’s military talents were manifested vividly during the Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943). He co-authored the plan for a counteroffensive and directly supervised operations to repel a counterstrike by the Wehrmacht’s Hoth Army Group that tried to relieve the 6th German Army, commanded by Friedrich von Paulus, in and around Stalingrad.
Later, Vasilevsky coordinated operations of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts during the Battle of Kursk, planned and conducted operations to liberate Donbass, the Ukrainian west bank of the Dnieper River, and Crimea.
In February-April 1945, Vasilevsky commanded the 3rd Belarusian Front whose units stormed and seized Konigsberg. In June-August 1945, he commanded Soviet forces in the Far East and contributed to the defeat of Japan’s powerful Kwantung Army in just 24 days.
After the war, Vasilevsky headed the Ministry of the Soviet Armed Forces and actively promoted the national veterans’ movement. An urn with his ashes is currently interred in the necropolis that is part of the Kremlin Wall.
#FacesOfVictory
A theological seminary graduate, Alexander Vasilevsky had dreamed of becoming an agronomist in his younger years, but World War I disrupted his plans.
The young officer deployed to the front where he quickly became a Staff Captain, a rank similar to Captain in the Soviet and Russian Armed Forces. Vasilevsky then realised that he would pursue a military career for the rest of his life.
Major General Vasilevsky was serving with the General Staff when the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 started. He came to head the General Staff some time later. As a member of the General Headquarters and its representative, he deployed to fronts where the challenges were greatest.
Vasilevsky’s military talents were manifested vividly during the Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943). He co-authored the plan for a counteroffensive and directly supervised operations to repel a counterstrike by the Wehrmacht’s Hoth Army Group that tried to relieve the 6th German Army, commanded by Friedrich von Paulus, in and around Stalingrad.
Later, Vasilevsky coordinated operations of the Voronezh and Steppe fronts during the Battle of Kursk, planned and conducted operations to liberate Donbass, the Ukrainian west bank of the Dnieper River, and Crimea.
In February-April 1945, Vasilevsky commanded the 3rd Belarusian Front whose units stormed and seized Konigsberg. In June-August 1945, he commanded Soviet forces in the Far East and contributed to the defeat of Japan’s powerful Kwantung Army in just 24 days.
After the war, Vasilevsky headed the Ministry of the Soviet Armed Forces and actively promoted the national veterans’ movement. An urn with his ashes is currently interred in the necropolis that is part of the Kremlin Wall.
#FacesOfVictory
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🎖 #OTD in 1908, Dmitry Ustinov was born – the legendary People’s Commissar of Armaments during the Great Patriotic War & World War II – it was he who ensured that the Soviet military industrial complex was evacuated during the first months of the war, and surpassed the Axis potential, contributing greatly to the Victory over Nazism.
He gained this high post at the age of only 32, having risen from a fitter to People’s Commissar of Armaments. He was appointed to that post on June 9, 1941, less than two weeks before Nazi Germany’s treacherous attack on the Soviet Union. The first few months of the war were especially difficult. Ustinov worked 20 hours a day to evacuate defence plants from the endangered areas and to launch military production in besieged Moscow and Leningrad.
📈 The young commissar was assigned a vital and seemingly insurmountable task – to prevail over the German military machine, which the whole of Europe was supplying with weapons. Ustinov worked selflessly to attain that goal. During the war, the Soviet Union produced nearly twice as many weapons as Germany and the countries it occupied.
Ustinov greatly contributed to the production of artillery guns and rifles and to the challenging scientific and technological task of creating new armaments. During his term in office, the manufacturing of artillery guns increased fivefold and of rifles, by 22 times.
After the war, Ustinov was appointed Minister of the Defence Industry of the USSR contributing immensely to strengthening the defence capabilities of our country. In 1976, he received the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
🕯 Dmitry Ustinov died in 1984 and was the last person whose ashes were interred in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.
#FacesOfVictory
He gained this high post at the age of only 32, having risen from a fitter to People’s Commissar of Armaments. He was appointed to that post on June 9, 1941, less than two weeks before Nazi Germany’s treacherous attack on the Soviet Union. The first few months of the war were especially difficult. Ustinov worked 20 hours a day to evacuate defence plants from the endangered areas and to launch military production in besieged Moscow and Leningrad.
📈 The young commissar was assigned a vital and seemingly insurmountable task – to prevail over the German military machine, which the whole of Europe was supplying with weapons. Ustinov worked selflessly to attain that goal. During the war, the Soviet Union produced nearly twice as many weapons as Germany and the countries it occupied.
Ustinov greatly contributed to the production of artillery guns and rifles and to the challenging scientific and technological task of creating new armaments. During his term in office, the manufacturing of artillery guns increased fivefold and of rifles, by 22 times.
After the war, Ustinov was appointed Minister of the Defence Industry of the USSR contributing immensely to strengthening the defence capabilities of our country. In 1976, he received the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
🕯 Dmitry Ustinov died in 1984 and was the last person whose ashes were interred in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.
#FacesOfVictory
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✈️ Legendary Soviet fighter ace Yekaterina Budanova was born on December 7, 1916. She went down in history as the second top-scoring WWII female fighter pilot, with 266 combat missions and 11 enemy aircraft shot down.
When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union, she volunteered for the Red Army in October 1941 and later trained in Saratov where Budanova completely mastered Yakovlev Yak-1 fighters.
Katya scored her first air victory in October 1942. At that time, she engaged eight Junkers Ju-88 bombers and downed one of them. Risking her life every day, she defended the skies over Stalingrad, fought near Rostov-on-Don and helped liberate Donbass.
In July 1943, while covering the withdrawal of the Soviet fighters, her plane was damaged in a dogfight, and she was mortally wounded. Nevertheless, the heroic pilot managed to land the fighter in a last-ditch effort.
🎖 In 1993, she was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Russia.
#FacesOfVictory
When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union, she volunteered for the Red Army in October 1941 and later trained in Saratov where Budanova completely mastered Yakovlev Yak-1 fighters.
Katya scored her first air victory in October 1942. At that time, she engaged eight Junkers Ju-88 bombers and downed one of them. Risking her life every day, she defended the skies over Stalingrad, fought near Rostov-on-Don and helped liberate Donbass.
In July 1943, while covering the withdrawal of the Soviet fighters, her plane was damaged in a dogfight, and she was mortally wounded. Nevertheless, the heroic pilot managed to land the fighter in a last-ditch effort.
🎖 In 1993, she was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Russia.
#FacesOfVictory
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🕯 #OnThisDay, in 1941, Dmitry Lavrinenko, the most successful tank operator of the Red Army in the Great Patriotic War, was killed on the approaches to Volokolamsk. During two and a half months of ferocious fighting, he took part in 28 battles, destroying 52 Nazi tanks, a result no other Red Army soldier was able to surpass.
Lavrinenko took part in the Battle of Moscow and provided support to the famous Panfilov Division. He demonstrated great skill in driving a T-34 tank, the ability to manoeuvre between the clumsy German machines, and the capacity to make unconventional decisions during the battle for the capital.
The 27-year-old hero was killed in December 1941 by a bomb fragment when liberating the village of Goryuny during the counteroffensive near Moscow. Before his death, he destroyed an enemy heavy tank, the 52nd tank on his kill score.
🎖 Posthumously awarded with the Hero of the Soviet Union title.
#FacesOfVictory
Lavrinenko took part in the Battle of Moscow and provided support to the famous Panfilov Division. He demonstrated great skill in driving a T-34 tank, the ability to manoeuvre between the clumsy German machines, and the capacity to make unconventional decisions during the battle for the capital.
The 27-year-old hero was killed in December 1941 by a bomb fragment when liberating the village of Goryuny during the counteroffensive near Moscow. Before his death, he destroyed an enemy heavy tank, the 52nd tank on his kill score.
🎖 Posthumously awarded with the Hero of the Soviet Union title.
#FacesOfVictory