Young Guards was the Soviet underground anti-Nazi Komsomol organization of boys and girls operating during the Great Patriotic War from September 1942 to January 1943 in the town of Krasnodon, Voroshilovgrad Region, Ukrainian SSR.
Young Guards numbered more than one hundred participants. Mass arrests began since January 1, 1943. The execution of the young guards was carried out from the middle of January to February 1943; and the bodies of the Komsomol members were thrown into abandoned coal mines. An obelisk with the names of the deceased young guards was installed in memory of the heroes.
Under a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of September 13, 1943, the young guards Ulyana Gromova, Ivan Zemnukhov, Oleg Koshevoy, Sergei Tyulenin and Lyubov Shevtsova were awarded posthumous titles of Heroes of the Soviet Union. Subsequently, the honorary title of a Hero of the Soviet Union was also awarded to Ivan Turkenich, the commander of the underground organization (posthumously), on May 5, 1990.
The envelope with the original stamp depicts an obelisk erected on the execution site of the young guards in the city of Krasnodon and the emblem of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.
Additionally, JSC Marka has manufactured a special cancellation postmarks for Moscow and Ryazan.
Designer: S. Kapranov; author of emblem: A. Moskovets
Circulation: 1,000,000 copies.
« back