The feat of Zina Portnova, a brief summary of which will be described in this article, is not very widely covered on the Internet. There is little information and it repeats all the time. There are no sources that would reveal the multifaceted picture of her heroic deed. Basically, only dry facts are given: she was born in Leningrad in 1926 in a working class family, was a member of the youth underground group Young Avengers, and, during the course of her next mission, she was captured by the Nazis and executed in January 1944.
To understand who this girl was and to imagine what she thought during the ordeal, we turn to the contents of the novel by V.I. Smirnova.
Character
In this story, the author very vividly describes the fate of Zina, a young Komsomol member and pioneer who fought with the Nazi invaders and worthily went a long way, despite numerous difficulties. She never retreated and looked challengingly at new trials. Even in the most difficult times, the girl never took care of herself, but more worried about others. Awareness of one’s duty, steadfastness, a sense of responsibility and a passionate love for the motherland - these are the qualities that determine the feat of Zina Portnova.
Joining the Young Avengers
In June 1941, the parents sent the girl to the village of Zui (Vitebsk region) for school holidays. Just at that time, the Nazis invaded the USSR, and Portnova found herself in occupied territory. She was not going to put up with the current state of affairs and decided to fight the enemy. In 1942, Zina Portnova, whose feat will never be forgotten, joined the Young Avengers organization.
Difficult task
Smirnov’s story filled the dry facts of the girl’s biography with life and made it possible for the reader to mentally be with the pioneer in moments of difficult trials. When Zina got a job in the dining room for Wehrmacht cadets, she received one of the most difficult tasks from the Young Avengers. Portnova was supposed to add poison to the food. After the girl did this, about 100 fascists died. Among them were pilots who were supposed to fly on the bombing of Moscow and Leningrad that day. Thus, the feat of Zina Portnova saved thousands of lives of her compatriots.
Partisans Care
The Germans immediately proceeded to search for the culprit and brought together all the staff of the dining room. Each was offered a plate of poisoned soup. Portnova ate it without talking. The girl was not afraid to be caught, but was very worried about the fate of her younger sister Gali and her cousins, who remained on her dependents after the arrest of Aunt Ira. The fear that the Germans would take them was stronger than the fear of death. Weak and feeling a strong pain in her stomach, the girl thought only about how to bring Galya to a safe place - to the partisans in the forest.
Zina Portnova, whose feat is known all over the world, took her sister by the hand and went into the forest through the marshland. The pain intensified, but she did not stop. Zina knew that she would die, and the bill went to the clock. The main thing for the future Komsomol member was to take her sister to the partisans. They found the girls only at dawn. Portnova was lying unconscious on the ground, and Galya was sitting nearby. Doctors noted acute food poisoning and pneumonia. The fact that the young pioneer survived was a real miracle. In 1943 she was admitted to Komsomol.
New task
After the Nazis shot most of the Young Avengers group, Zina Portnova, whose feat motivated the soldiers of the Soviet army, went with her brother Ilya and Masha Dementieva to reconnaissance in the village of Mostishchi. There, the girl was supposed to meet with a liaison and find out how many Komsomol members were alive, what kind of help they needed. Zina went to the meeting alone, and Ilya and Masha had to cover her and wait in the appointed place.
Arrest
Portnova learned from the liaison the necessary information and went back. Along the way, she met two women, one of whom knew Zina. And the one whom Portnova was unfamiliar asked for the name of the girl. The woman replied that this was Zina, the granddaughter of Yablokova. The policemen passing by knew this name well and detained Portnova, deciding to take her to the village of Obol. Just on the way there, the girl should have been waiting for Masha and Ilya. But when the Nazis pioneered near the agreed place, the comrades did not come to her aid. Only a few years later, when the feat of the pioneer Zina Portnova became public, it turned out that the guys left the observation post for only a few minutes due to the booming sound in the forest. Just at that moment, the Nazis led the girl.
Escape attempt
Zina Portnova, a feat of which is known to all residents of the USSR, was brought to the Gestapo officer for questioning. He looked at the Komsomol with glazed eyes. Then the Gestapo pulled out his gun and laid it on the table. Outside the window, the engine of the car roared, and the fascist turned away from the girl. Zina reacted instantly - she grabbed a gun and shot the enemy in the chest. There was another Gestapo man in the room, frantically trying to get a gun. He was also shot. Having run out of the building, Portnova killed the sentry point blank. Shooting from the chase, the girl went down to the river.
Torture and execution
Soon she was overtaken by a machine gun, the girl was badly wounded in the leg. But she did not stop and continued to shoot back. Zina left the last bullet for herself. When the Germans almost overtook her, the Komsomol member aimed her gun at her chest and pulled the trigger. But there was a misfire. A fascist who ran up knocked out a gun and grabbed a brave Komsomol member.
After the incident, Portnova was taken to Polotsk. Torture continued for a month. The Nazis crushed Zina’s joints, gouged out their eyes and twisted their arms. They also cauterized the girl with hot iron and pushed needles under her nails. The Komsomol did not utter a word and was shot. The unshakable stamina of the girl became another reason that the feat of Zina Portnova, interesting facts about which are given in this article, will always be an example for young people.
Conclusion
The Soviet people learned about the Young Avengers only 15 years after the end of the war. In 1958, the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the country issued a decree awarding orders of the USSR to all members of the underground group Young Avengers.
Time is inexorably running forward, but the feat of Zina Portnova, the brief content of which is described above, will forever live in the hearts of people.