Russian child soldiers?

[Rikupsoni]

Hello

I've seen statements like "The Soviet Union's armed forces used child soldiers in large numbers during the war.", which I believed to be true but some claim those are "neo-nazistic" claims.

There is this (classic?) image atleast: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e ... oldier.jpg



Is it just propaganda or reality? If you could provide sources that would be excellent.

[KACKO]

If I remember correctly, 1.czechoslovak brigade in USSR shortly before or after battle of Kyjev had 1 Russian child in ranks. He was found somwhere on ther route of advance starving, without shoes and in bad cloth. So he was dressed in czechoslovak uniform cut to his side, get medical help and was fed. After that he was helping in rear areas of brigade.
That's What I remember from books about czechoslovak units in USSR
Source: Karel Richter: Pres krvave reky, Ludvik Svoboda: Z Buzuluku do Prahy (From Buzuluk to Prag)

So maybe in other cases situation was same, units find abandoned, starved child so thay took him with them and fed, dressed - took care of. Maybe some of them were fighting too. I know there were cases of teenagers giving to czechoslovak drafting commision in USSR higher age just to be drafted.

Anyway did you see movie Cross of Iron? Steiner got there little Russian friend too.

[Kim Sung]

The Red Army 3rd Ukrainian Front soldiers marching on a street of Belgrade

Did the small boy soldier on this photo survive the war and see his parents again?????

Photographed on October 20, 1944

Image Source: 赤軍興亡史 (The Rise and Fall of the Red Army)

[Kim Sung]

Anyway did you see movie Cross of Iron? Steiner got there little Russian friend too.

Yes, it was a very impressive role.

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[Yuri]

During time GPW the unique phenomenon - adoption by military unit of homeless children has was extended (that is children at which enemies have killed parents and as all grandmothers and grandfathers).
As a rule, one of regiments (naval crew) took on education of one homeless child.
Such children named - The a regiment's son.
There is very popular book among the Russian readers of military correspondent V.Kataev - «The a regiment's son». In this books the history of life of one of boys of military years - fourteen-year Vanja Solncev is told. On this books the art film with the same name is taken off - «The a regiment's son».

On a photo you see such children - The a regiment's sons


Russian soldiers did not kill grandfathers and grandmothers of children of the enemies, therefore in units of opponents of Red Army was not "the a regiment's son".
And Germans, Finns, Romanians, Italians, Hungarians, Spaniards, Croatia, and other, being on territory of Russia (USSR) did not shun such business (enemies have killed all of 7,5 million peace Soviet citizens).

[Befehl227]

I don´t belive that there were a "large number" of soviet childsoldiers! But what I would like to now is: Did the Germans treat them like "normal" soldiers?



[The photo is from my private collection]

[Alex Yeliseenko]

The red army did not use children on a front line. It is delirium. There were cases when children were in guerrilla groups. But so was both in France, and in Italy. The present crime was made by nazis. In Berlin in 1945 of teenagers forced with Faustpatron to go on tanks. Chances to survive at them almost was not.

Alex.

Best regards from Siberia!

[Janne]

FWIW Ï've seen a few Soviet movies, but I've never even read of the movie Yuri referred to. The film that is immediately brought to my mind by the subject is of course Andrei Tarkovsky's "Ivanovo Detstvo" ("Ivan's Childhood", "No Return").

I'd agree that the boys we see in the photographs are more mascots than fighting soldiers. I wouldn't imagine that travelling with a regiment or a division would in any circumstances be entirely safe even in the supply column and it certainly wouldn't have been the right place for any child - but it's a big difference to what we nowadays mean with child soldiers.

But what kind of role were these - how many, few? - boys given in wartime propaganda?
How were they portrayed?

What about regular soldiers under formal draft/volunteer age? FWIW the Finns took on a few occasions sixteen-year-olds according to their papers, both in 1941 and in 1944. I believe these were rare cases. but how did they happen?

(OTOH there was an artillery battery manned by underage boys in the Finnish Army in 1941, although it was soon disbanded. In 1944 there were underage boys serving in AAA crews in Helsinki. Last but not least, there had been cases of underage boys who were fighting with their hometown company.)


Janne

[Dmitry]

FWIW Ï've seen a few Soviet movies, but I've never even read of the movie Yuri referred to.

It is "Syn Polka" (Son of the Regiment), excellent and classical (in Russia) b/w movie
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039005/

One can download the movie from emule - Syn.polka.(rus).avi or buy it via e-shop http://www.ozon.ru/context/detail/id/2801694/ (In Russain)

The author of the novel is Valentin Katayev
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentin_Katayev

I've found a synopsis of the novel here - http://www.sovlit.com/sonofregiment/ (It has the same drawings I had in my book when I was in my boyhood).
Edit: Hmm... Interesting... Apparently my book was censored. It had no mention of Stalin...

Some Soviet units adopted orphans they found on their way and took care of them, dresed them in uniform, plied them with food and so on, otherwise they could die by hunger in the war-torn country. The photo with child with gun can be just staged. Child could ask to photogaph him in a brave appearance.

[Kim Sung]

I've found a synopsis of the novel here - http://www.sovlit.com/sonofregiment

Very impressive story and drawings, thanks!

I'm very interested in Russian child soldier stories as my avatar shows.

Here's the text of 'Regiment's Son' (СЫН ПОЛКА)

http://www.lib.ru/PROZA/KATAEW/synpolka.txt

This part is the most impressive.

Ваня смотрел на него, знал наверное, что это капитан Енакиев, но не верил, не мог верить, что это был он. Нет, это был совсем другой человек -неподвижный, непонятный, страшный, а главное - чужой, как и все, что было в эту минуту в мире вокруг мальчика.

Vanya looked at it and knew that this is probably captain Enakiev, but he did not believe, no he could not believe that this was captain Enakiev. No, this was entirely another person - fixed, incomprehensible, terrible, and most of all - stranger as everything which was in the world around the boy at this minute.

[Christian W.]

The red army did not use children on a front line

I beg to differ.



Source: http://www.aeronautics.ru

There are at least three children in this picture, all dressed and equipped for combat.

And...Finns...being on territory of Russia (USSR) did not shun such business (enemies have killed all of 7,5 million peace Soviet citizens

Please, do tell how many Soviet civilians the Finnish executed?

[edited by moderator]

[Dmitry]

There are at least three children in this picture, all dressed and equipped for combat.

The two from the left look young indeed. In 1941 the military age was dropped down to 18 year and in 1944 17 year old also were drafted into the army. 17 year old could look childish. Seems the boy with bag in the center of picture serves as a postman. He was most likely one of regiment's sons.

[Victor]

Christian W., in the future please do not forget to mention the source of the images you post.

[Christian W.]

(delete)

[Kim Sung]

There are at least three children in this picture, all dressed and equipped for combat.

The two from the left look young indeed. In 1941 the military age was dropped down to 18 year and in 1944 17 year old also were drafted into the army. 17 year old could look childish. Seems the boy with bag in the center of picture serves as a postman. He was most likely one of regiment's sons.

I agree with Dmitry. The two from the left seem to have reached the military age. The boy in the center looks very young, but the fact that he is equipped with weapons doesn't mean that Russians used him in combats. Even a postman has to protect himself from a possible enemy attack.