RealGM

magnumt wrote:Damn Cap, jinxing us to victories.

--Mags

She Bought Her Own T-34 Tank And Went On a Rampage After Nazis Killed Her Husband

He was killed by German soldiers just outside Kiev in August 1941. Mariya went berserk. Then she sold everything she had and wrote to Stalin:

My husband was killed in action defending the motherland. I want revenge on the fascist dogs for his death and for the death of Soviet people tortured by the fascist barbarians. For this purpose, I’ve deposited all my personal savings – 50,000 rubles – to the National Bank in order to build a tank. I kindly ask to name the tank ‘Fighting Girlfriend’ and to send me to the frontline as a driver of said tank.

Probably terrified she’d come after him if he refused, Stalin wrote back and said, “Sure!”

The State Defense Committee weren’t as convinced. But they did understand the publicity value she provided, so they got her a T-34 medium tank.

She was then put through a five-month tank training program – unlike male recruits who were given far less time before being sent to the war front (often still unprepared). That done, Mariya was assigned to the 26th Guards Tank Brigade as a driver and mechanic in September 1943 – becoming a laughingstock.

A woman!? In a tank!? Named Fighting Girlfriend!? There was a real war going on with real people dying! This was no time for a publicity stunt!

Clearly, they hadn’t heard about what happens when a woman loses the love of her life – especially when she loses them to Nazis. But her sister knew, because Mariya wrote to her, claiming that, “I’ve had my baptism by fire… Sometimes, I’m so angry I can’t even breathe.”

Everyone else would find out on October 21, 1943, in Smolensk. Located 220 miles west-southwest of the capital at Moscow, the Germans had taken the city in 1941, but could go no further. The Russians took most of it back on September 25, 1943, but were still dealing with German resistance.

Mariya revved up Fighting Girlfriend and charged – taking out several anti-tank guns and machine gun nests before getting hit. Against orders, she jumped out, and despite heavy enemy fire, fixed the damage before jumping back in to fight. The last German defense rings were finally gone, and their route to Moscow was no longer secure.

They called her “mother” after that, but it wasn’t enough. They also promoted her to the rank of Sergeant.

Weeks later on November 17, the Soviets recaptured the town of Novoye Selo in Vitebsk. Mariya attacked German defensive positions till an artillery shell blew out her tank tracks. Under cover fire, she again jumped out to fix her beloved tank, before rejoining her unit.

January 17, 1944, saw her outside the town of Shvedy, still in Vitebsk. Mariya attacked several German trenches, machine-gun nests, and artillery guns, when, you guessed it – her tank was hit by a German anti-tank shell.

As usual, she hopped out to fix the Fighting Girlfriend. She had just done so when her luck ran out. Another anti-tank shell blasted several meters away, showering her with shell fragments – some of which slammed into her head.

Mariya never regained consciousness. She was taken to a hospital near Kiev and lay in a coma for two months before finally rejoining her beloved Ilya on March 15, 1944. By August, they made her a Hero of the Soviet Union.

PeteW wrote:isnt the game at 3PM not noon

PeteW wrote:isnt the game at 3PM not noon

Capn'O wrote:

Nyk_Fatboy wrote:were going to go on a win streak arent we