Elizaveta Ivanovna Chaykina - Hero of the Soviet Union. This title was awarded her posthumously. In the Great Patriotic War, the girl actively fought with the invaders, being in the partisan detachment, and was tortured by the Nazis. But they could not break her by torture and never received the information they sought from Lisa. As a result, the girl was shot.
Lisa's life before the war
Lisa Chaykina was born on August 28, 1918. In the village of Runo, located in the Tver region. At 15, she graduated from high school - received a secondary education. After receiving the certificate, Lisa was appointed to the post of head of the village hut-reading room, located in her native village. This is a kind of analogue of a regular library. Lisa monitored the state of books and handed out books to fellow villagers.
For several years of work, the girl showed herself to be a responsible and conscientious person. As a result, Lisa was appointed a collective farm accountant. Thanks to the humanitarian mindset, the girl was easily given the opportunity to write articles and essays. Therefore, she decided to try herself in journalism. Lisa got a job at the newspaper Leninsky Drummer and regularly published there.
Party activity
After Lisa turned 21, she joined the party and received a party membership card. As a result of vigorous activity, after a while the girl was appointed to the post of secretary of the Penovsky district committee. At the same time, she became a deputy of the district council. In 1941, Lisa Chaykina took courses of Komsomol and party workers, held in the city of Kalinin, which was later renamed Tver.
Lisa - the organizer of the partisan detachment
When the war suddenly broke out, Lisa from the very first days began to take an active part in the construction of the defense. The evacuation of many areas was started, and the Komsomol regional committee instructed the girl to organize a partisan detachment in her native village. Lisa was able to collect 70 fighters of the "invisible front." She herself also became part of the created partisan detachment. Subsequently, many recalled that Lisa was perfectly controlled not only with a rifle, but also with a machine gun. In addition, she demanded the same perfect weapons skills from all the fighters and set a personal example.
Activities of the partisan detachment of Lisa
In October 1941, Soviet troops had to leave the defense of the village of Peno and move to Ostashkov. It was then that Liza's detachment began active partisan activity. The soldiers went into reconnaissance, participated in military operations in many areas of the Kalinin region. Often arranged sabotage. Due to the fact that Liza Chaykina knew the area very well, she stole important documents directly “from under the nose” of the Nazis and sent papers to the Red Army soldiers.
But Lisa's main task was agitation. She spoke at clandestine meetings and distributed leaflets and newspapers to many villages. In her speeches, Lisa reported the latest front-line news and “ignited” people with patriotism and unbending will. People loved her and waited in all villages.
How they betrayed Liza Chaikin
Heroes of the war were not only in the battles at the forefront. Partisan detachments became a real disaster for the Nazis. Indeed, thanks to the fighters of the "invisible front", people learned the latest news. The Germans suffered huge losses as a result of clashes with partisans. A big problem for the Nazis was the leak of information that came to the soldiers of the "invisible front." The last partisans delivered the Red Army, thereby disrupting the enemy many plans.
And Elizaveta Ivanovna Chaykina became so dangerous for the Nazis that they made a real personal “hunt” for the girl. But she always managed to slip away. And yet, despite the thousands of people who loved and protected her, there were traitors. They played a fatal role in the life of the partisan.
November 22, 1941, Lisa was supposed to scout the size of the enemy garrison. The girl decided to spend the night with her friend Marusya Kuporova in the village of Krasnoe Pokatishche. The local groom and his son saw an unfamiliar girl and reported this to the Nazis. The Germans broke into the Marusya hut at night, shot her, her brother and mother, and captured Lisa.
Heroes of the war: feat of Lisa Chaikina
The Germans decided to find out who it is - a stranger captured by them. But since they could not get answers from her, the Nazis gathered all the local residents, hoping that they would talk about her. But the villagers stubbornly remained silent. And only one girl said that it was a Komsomol leader and called her name.
The fascists were delighted that they had always caught the escaping partisan whom they had been “hunting” for so long. Chaikin was sent to the village of Peno, where the Gestapo department was located. The Nazis used the most sophisticated torture to find out the information they needed: how many people were in the partisan detachment, its location, safe houses. But the girl did not betray secrets, despite the hellish torment of pain.
The Nazis shot Lisa on November 23, the 41st. A few minutes before her death, the girl said that she still believes in victory. These words were prophetic.
Liza Chaikina awarded the title "Hero of the Soviet Union"
Despite the fact that after the war everyone who betrayed Lisa was shot, this did not return the life of the girl who gave her for the happiness of other people. She was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin posthumously. After the liberation of the village of Peno from the Nazi occupation, the girl was buried in a mass grave, which is located on one of the main streets of the village. In 1944, a monument to Lisa Chaykina was erected on this site.
The memory of Lisa Chaykina
In memory of the heroic act committed by Elizabeth Chaikin , the Komsomol partisan detachment was named after her in 1942. Next year - a whole squadron of aircraft of the fighter aviation regiment.
The memory of the heroic deed of the girl still lives. Streets in many countries of the CIS and, of course, in Russian cities are named after her. In memory of Lisa received the name of the ship. A poem and a novel are written about the girl.
In Tver, the Museum of Komsomol Glory is named after Lisa. He has been working for over sixty years. In its halls more than 70 compositions are shown. The museum holds regional and national exhibitions. Particular attention is paid to youth creativity. It was for the sake of all this, so that people could live peacefully and create, Lisa Chaykina gave her life. Now her name is immortalized, and every resident of Tver knows about the heroic deed of the girl.
Not everyone could bear the inhuman torture of the Nazis and not give secret information to the enemies. And for a young and fragile girl it was doubly difficult. But she heroically withstood the torment and did not betray her comrades. Lisa is honored in our country, and the memory of her exploits will never fade.