Pyotr Vershigora

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Bearded anti-Nazi guerrilla - Pyotr Vershigora

Transnistrian ruble coin depicting Pyotr Vershigora

Pyotr Pyotrovich Vershigora or Petro Vershigora (Ukrainian: Вершигора Петро Петрович Russian: Вершигора Пётр Петрович) (May 5, 1905 - March 23, 1963) - Soviet writer and one of the leaders of Soviet partisan movement in Ukraine, Belarus and Poland.

Petro Vershigora was born in a village of Severinovka near the Transnistrian town of Rybnitsa (Moldova). His parents were ethnic Ukrainian teachers at the local rural school who died during his childhood. As a young orphan he worked various jobs including shepherd, miller, librarian, as well as amateur actor and musician in his native village a nearby Rybnitsa.

In 1927 after completing his conscript military service he enrolled into Odessa Fine Arts Academy (Odessa conservatoire) and upon his graduation worked as an actor and stage-manager.

In 1936 Vershigora completed a cinema school and worked on several documentary movies in Kiev cinematographic company.

Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union Vershigora joined the Red Army. On June 23, 1942 he was air dropped with a reconnaissance mission in German occupied Oryol region and was ordered to join the underground resistance movement there.

Within few months Vershigora joind the partisan units led by Sydir Kovpak in north-east Ukraine. After the death of Semyon Rudnev in the summer of 1943 he became the right-hand of Kovpak and chief of his scouting and reconnaissance elements.

Under the leadership of Vershigora 1st Ukrainian partisan division raided western Belarus and eastern Poland harassing the German rear and on July 3, 1944 joined the regular Soviet army that was fighting to liberate Belarus.

In August of 1944 Vershigora was promoted to the rank of major general and awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union title with Gold Star and Order of Lenin medals.

After the war Pyotr Pyotrovich Vershigora taught at the military academy in Moscow and wrote a number of books including "People with clear conscience" (1947), his memoirs about the war.