Pyotr Petrovich Vershigora (first name also Petr) (russian: Пётр Петро́вич Верши́гора) or Petro Petrovych Vershyhora ( uk, Петро Петрович Вершигора) ( – 23 March 1963) was one of the leaders of the

Soviet partisan Soviet partisans were members of resistance movements that fought a guerrilla war against Axis forces during World War II in the Soviet Union, the previously Soviet-occupied territories of interwar Poland in 1941–45 and eastern Finland. The ...

movement in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

and later a writer. Petro Vershigora was born in the village of Severinovca near the

Transnistria Transnistria, officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR), is an unrecognised breakaway state that is internationally recognised as a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester riv ...

n town of Rybnitsa. His parents were ethnic

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

teachers at the local rural school, who died during his childhood. As a young orphan he worked at various jobs, including

shepherd A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' ' herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations ...

miller A miller is a person who operates a Gristmill, mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Mill (grinding), Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surname ...

, and librarian, as well as amateur actor and musician in his native village. In 1927, after completing his conscript military service, he enrolled in the

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrat ...

Fine Arts Academy and upon graduation worked as an actor and stage manager. In 1936 Vershigora completed his studies at cinema school and worked on several documentary films with the

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...

cinematographic company. Following the

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

, he joined the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

. On 23 June 1942 he was air dropped on a

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops ( skirmishe ...

mission in the German-occupied

Oryol Oryol ( rus, Орёл, p=ɐˈrʲɵl, lit. ''eagle''), also transliterated as Orel or Oriol, is a city and the administrative center of Oryol Oblast situated on the Oka River, approximately south-southwest of Moscow. It is part of the Central Fe ...

region with orders to join the underground resistance movement there. Within a few months Vershigora joined the partisan units led by

Sydir Kovpak Sydir Artemovych Kovpak ( uk, Сидір Артемович Ковпак; russian: Си́дор Арте́мьевич Ковпа́к, ), (June 7, 1887December 11, 1967) was one of the partisan leaders of the Soviet partisans in Ukraine during th ...

in northeastern Ukraine. After the death of

Semyon Rudnev Semyon Vasilyevich Rudniev (russian: Семён Васи́льевич Ру́днев; uk, Семе́н Васи́льович Ру́днєв) (February 27, 1899 – August 4, 1943) was one of the leaders of Soviet partisan movement during World ...

in the summer of 1943, he became Kovpak's right-hand man and the head of his scouting and reconnaissance elements. Under his leadership, the 1st Ukrainian Partisan Division raided German-occupied western Belarus and eastern Poland, harassing the German rear. On 3 July 1944 they joined the regular Soviet army that was fighting to expel German forces from Belarus. In August 1944, after three years of fighting, Vershigora was promoted to the rank of

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

. After the war Vershigora taught at the military academy in Moscow and wrote a number of books, including ''Lyudi s chistoi sovestyu'' (People with a Clear Conscience, 1947), his memoirs about the war.

Honours and awards

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

* Two

Orders of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of th ...

* Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 1st class *

Medal "Partisan of the Patriotic War" A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

1st class * Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"

References

War Hero Pyotr Vershigora

''People with a Clear Conscience''
— Pyotr Petrovich Vershigora's Memoirs {{DEFAULTSORT:Vershigora 1905 births 1963 deaths People from Camenca District People from Olgopolsky Uyezd Transnistrian people of Ukrainian descent Soviet major generals Soviet military personnel of World War II Soviet partisans in Ukraine Soviet writers Ukrainian writers Ukrainian people of World War II Stalin Prize winners Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Soviet Union), 1st class Ukrainian anti-fascists