Leonid Aleksandrovich Golikov was born on June 17, 1926 in the village of Lukino, Novgorod region, into a working-class family. His school biography “fit” into only seven classes, after which he went to work at plywood factory No. 2 in the village of Parfino.
In the summer of 1941, the village was occupied by the Nazis. The boy saw with his own eyes all the horrors of German domination and therefore, when partisan detachments began to form in 1942 (after liberation), the boy, without hesitation, decided to join them.
However, he was denied this desire, citing his young age - Lena Golikov was 15 years old at that time. It is not known how his biography would have developed further; unexpected help came in the person of the boy’s school teacher, who at that time was already a member of the partisans. Leni’s teacher said that this “student will not let you down” and later turned out to be right.
So, in March 1942, L. Golikov became a scout in the 67th detachment of the Leningrad Partisan Brigade. Later he joined the Komsomol there. In total, his biography includes 27 combat operations, during which the young partisan destroyed 78 enemy officers and soldiers, as well as 14 bridge explosions and 9 enemy vehicles.
A feat accomplished by Lenya Golikov
The most significant feat in his military biography was accomplished on August 13, 1942, near the village of Varnitsa, on the Luga-Pskov highway. While on reconnaissance with his partner Alexander Petrov, Golikov blew up an enemy car. 
As it turned out, Major General of the German Engineering Forces Richard Wirtz was in it; a briefcase with documents found on him was taken to headquarters. Among them were diagrams of minefields, important inspection reports from Wirtz to higher authorities, detailed outlines of several samples of German mines and other documents that were very necessary for the partisan movement.
For his accomplished feat, Lenya Golikov was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and awarded the Gold Star medal. Unfortunately, he did not have time to receive them.
In December 1942, the Germans began a large-scale operation, which also targeted the detachment in which the hero fought. On January 24, 1943, he and more than 20 other people, exhausted by the chase, went to the village of Ostray Luka. Having made sure that there were no Germans in it, we stopped for the night in the three outermost houses. The enemy garrison was not so far away, it was decided not to post sentries so as not to attract unnecessary attention. Among the village residents there was a traitor who informed the village headman in which houses the partisans were hiding.
After some time, Ostraya Luka was surrounded by 150 punitive forces, which included local residents who collaborated with the Nazis and Lithuanian nationalists.
The partisans, taken by surprise, heroically entered the battle; only six of them managed to escape alive from the encirclement. Only on January 31, exhausted and frostbitten (plus two seriously wounded), were they able to reach the regular Soviet troops. They reported about the dead heroes, among whom was the young partisan Lenya Golikov. For his courage and repeated feats, on April 2, 1944, he was posthumously awarded the Title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
At first it was believed that Lenya Golikov did not have an authentic photograph. Therefore, for the image of the hero (for example, for the portrait created by Viktor Fomin in 1958), his sister, Lida, was used. And although a partisan photo was later found, it was the image of his sister that began to decorate his biography and symbolize Lenya Golikov and his exploits for millions of Soviet pioneers.
For Novgorod children, the name of Leni Golikov, who fought against the German invaders during the Great Patriotic War, is well known. The bust of this teenage hero is installed in the center of Veliky Novgorod, in a cozy park near the building of the Administration of the Novgorod Region. Previously, when joining pioneer organizations and the Komsomol, the oath was taken at this monument. Nowadays, lessons of courage and patriotism are held here.
My name is Kristina Mikhailova, for several years now I have been a cadet at the Vympel All-Russian Orthodox Church, a participant in the military-patriotic camps “I have the honor!”, which take place throughout Russia, and I am studying in the 6th grade at school No. 21 in Veliky Novgorod. I want as many children from all over the country as possible to learn about the hero Lena Golikov, so that new generations of people will grow up on his and other examples who can make our country brighter and cleaner, and will never allow invaders in any guise to dispose of our land and our freedom.
I would like to say right away that among the children and teenagers who distinguished themselves during the Great Patriotic War and were subsequently included in the list of pioneer heroes, there were four who were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union - Valya Kotik, Marat Kazei, Zina Portnova and Lenya Golikov. However, Lenya was the first to be nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Pre-war childhood
Lenya Golikov was born into a working-class family living in the Novgorod region, in the village of Lukino, on June 17, 1926. His father was a raftsman, rafting along the Pola River. Lenya was accustomed to work from childhood, fetching water from a well, caring for a cow and sheep. He knew how to straighten a fence and mend his felt boots. Lenka was short, much smaller than his fellow peers, but in strength and agility rarely could anyone compare with him. Work hardening helped him when the war came, when he had to stand up, along with adults, to fight against the invaders. And before the war, he managed to finish seven classes of school and work at a plywood factory.
Lenya Golikov is the first teenager to become a Hero of the Soviet Union
Fifteen-year-old partisan
The area around the village of Lukino came under Nazi occupation, but was recaptured in March 1942. It was then that a brigade was formed from among the fighters of previously operating partisan detachments, as well as young volunteers, which was supposed to go to the enemy rear to continue the fight against the Nazis.
Among the boys and girls who survived the occupation and wanted to fight the enemy was Lenya Golikov, who was not accepted at first.
Lena was 15 at that time, and the commanders who selected the fighters considered that he was too young. They took him thanks to the recommendation of a school teacher, who also joined the partisans, and who assured that “the student will not let him down.”
The student really did not disappoint - as part of the 4th Leningrad Partisan Brigade he took part in 27 combat operations, chalking up several dozen Nazis killed.
Lenya Golikov received his first award, the medal “For Courage,” in July 1942. Everyone who knew Lenya when he was a partisan noted his courage and courage.
One day, returning from reconnaissance, Lenya went to the outskirts of the village, where he discovered five Germans marauding in the apiary. The Nazis were so busy extracting honey and swatting away bees that they put their weapons aside. The scout took advantage of this, destroying three Germans. The remaining two escaped.
One of the most striking operations of Lenya took place on August 13, 1942, when on the Luga-Pskov highway, partisans attacked a car in which German Engineering Troops Major General Richard von Wirtz was located.
The Nazis put up fierce resistance. During the shootout, one of the Germans began to run away towards the forest, but Lenya rushed after him and still “got” the fugitive with the last bullet. As it turned out, it was a general transporting important documents. A description of new types of German mines, inspection reports to higher command and other intelligence data fell into the hands of the partisans.
The documents were forwarded to the Soviet command, and Lenya himself was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. However, first, in November 1942, Lenya Golikov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for this feat.
Lenya Golikov is the first teenager to become a Hero of the Soviet Union
Heroes and traitors
Alas, the partisan biography, like Lenya’s life, was short-lived. The young partisan reconnaissance member was part of the 67th partisan detachment of the 4th Leningrad Partisan Brigade, operating in the territory of the temporarily occupied Novgorod and Pskov regions.
With his direct participation, 2 railway and 12 highway bridges were blown up, 2 food and feed warehouses and 10 vehicles with ammunition were burned. He especially distinguished himself during the defeat of enemy garrisons in the villages of Aprosovo, Sosnitsy, and Sever. Accompanied a convoy with food in 250 carts to besieged Leningrad. In December 1942, the Nazis began a large-scale anti-partisan operation, pursuing the detachment in which Lenya Golikov fought. It was impossible to break away from the enemy.
On January 24, 1943, a group of partisans consisting of just over 20 people reached the village of Ostraya Luka. There were no Germans in the village, and exhausted people stopped to rest in three houses. After some time, the village was surrounded by a punitive detachment of 150 people, composed of local traitors and Lithuanian nationalists. The partisans, who were taken by surprise, nevertheless entered the battle.
Only a few people were able to escape from the encirclement, and later reported to headquarters about the death of the detachment. Lenya Golikov, like most of his comrades, died in battle in Ostray Luka.
Thanks to the testimony of village residents obtained after liberation from occupation, as well as the testimony of surviving partisans, it was established that Lenya Golikov and his comrades were victims of betrayal.
Lenya Golikov is the first teenager to become a Hero of the Soviet Union
Awarded posthumously
The partisans who survived the detachment’s last battle did not forget about their comrades, including Lena.
In March 1944, the head of the Leningrad headquarters of the partisan movement, member of the Military Council of the Leningrad Front, Nikitin, signed a new description for the nomination of Lenya Golikov for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated April 2, 1944, for the exemplary fulfillment of command assignments and the courage and heroism shown in battles with the Nazi invaders, Leonid Aleksandrovich Golikov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously).
He was buried in his homeland - in Lukino in the village cemetery, where a majestic monument was erected on his grave. By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated April 2, 1944, for the exemplary fulfillment of command assignments and the courage and heroism shown in battles with the Nazi invaders, Leonid Aleksandrovich Golikov was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. He was awarded the Order of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner and the medal “For Courage”. Monuments to the hero were erected in Veliky Novgorod, as well as in Moscow on the territory of the All-Russian Exhibition Center. In Veliky Novgorod, one of the streets is named after the Hero of the Soviet Union Lenya Golikov.
Leonid Golikov was only nine days younger than the legendary Komsomol hero from the Young Guard Oleg Koshevoy. Only one photograph of Leni has survived, which made it possible to recreate the image of the young hero on monuments in the future. And for children's books in Soviet times, photographs of his younger sister were used Leads.
The act of Leni Golikov, who acted fearlessly in any difficult situation, was and remains an example for us, and the memory of this patriot of his Motherland should not be forgotten.
Lenya Golikov is the first teenager to become a Hero of the Soviet Union
Kristina MIKHAILOVA
Velikiy Novgorod
school No. 21, 6th grade
Thank you for your help in organizing and conducting the UFSSP competition in the Novgorod region.
Lenya Golikov
Not far from the lake, on the steep bank of the Pola River, stands the village of Lukino, in which the rafter Golikov lived with his wife and three children. Every year, in early spring, Uncle Sasha went rafting, drove large rafts tied from logs along the rivers, and only returned to his village in the fall.
And mother Ekaterina Alekseevna remained at home with the children - two daughters and youngest son Lyonka. From morning until evening she was engaged in housekeeping or worked on a collective farm. And she taught her children to work, the children helped their mother in everything. Lyonka carried water from the well, looked after the cow and sheep. He knew how to straighten a fence and mend his felt boots.
The children went to school across the river to a neighboring village, and in their free time they liked to listen to fairy tales. Mother knew a lot of them and was a master at telling them.
Lenka was short, much smaller than his fellow peers, but in strength and agility rarely could anyone compare with him.
Whether it’s jumping at full speed across a stream, going into the depths of a forest, climbing the tallest tree or swimming across a river - in all these matters Lyonka was inferior to few others.
So Lyonka lived in the open air among the forests, and his native land became more and more dear to him. He lived happily and thought that his free life would always be like this. But then one day, when Lyonka was already a pioneer, a misfortune happened in the Golikov family. My father fell into cold water, caught a cold and became seriously ill. He lay in bed for many months, and when he got up, he could no longer work as a rafter. He called Lyonka, sat him down in front of him and said:
- That's it, Leonid, you need to help your family. I’ve become bad, the illness is completely tormenting me, go to work...
And his father got him a job as an apprentice on a crane that loaded firewood and logs on the river. They were loaded onto river barges and sent somewhere beyond Lake Ilmen. Lenka was interested in everything here: the steam engine, in which the fire was humming, and the steam was escaping in large white clouds, and the mighty crane, which lifted heavy logs like feathers. But Lyonka didn’t have to work for long.
It was Sunday, a warm and sunny day. Everyone was resting, and Lyonka also went with his comrades to the river. Near the ferry, which was transporting people, trucks and carts to the other side, the guys heard the driver of a truck, which had just approached the river, anxiously ask:
-Have you heard about the war?
– What war?
- Hitler attacked us. Just now I heard it on the radio. The Nazis are bombing our cities.
The boys saw how everyone's faces darkened. The guys felt that something terrible had happened. The women were crying, more and more people were gathering around the driver, and everyone was repeating: war, war. Lyonka had a map somewhere in her old textbook. He remembered: the book was in the attic, and the guys went to the Golikovs. Here, in the attic, they bent over the map and saw that Nazi Germany was located far from Lake Ilmen. The guys calmed down a little.
The next day, almost all the men went into the army. Only women, old people, and children remained in the village.
The boys had no time for games now. They spent all their time on the field, replacing adults.
Several weeks have passed since the war began. On a hot August day, the guys were carrying sheaves from the field and talking about the war.
“Hitler is approaching Staraya Russa,” said the white-headed Tolka, laying sheaves on the cart. “The soldiers were driving and they said that there was nothing between Russa and us.
“Well, he shouldn’t be here,” Lyonka answered confidently.
- And if they come, what will you do? – asked the youngest of the guys, Valka, nicknamed Yagoday.
“I’ll do something,” Lyonka answered vaguely.
The boys tied the sheaves on the cart and moved towards the village...
But it turned out that little Valka was right. The fascist troops were approaching closer and closer to the village where Lyonka lived. Not today or tomorrow they could capture Lukino. The villagers were wondering what to do, and decided that the whole village would go into the forest, into the most remote places, where the Nazis would not be able to find them. And so they did.
There was a lot of work in the forest. At first they built huts, but some people had already dug dugouts. Lyonka and her father were also digging a dugout.
As soon as Lyonka had free time, he decided to visit the village. As there?
Lenka ran after the guys, and the three of them went to Lukino. The shooting either died down or started again. They decided that everyone would go their own way and meet in the gardens in front of the village.
Stealthily, listening to the slightest rustle, Lyonka safely reached the river. He walked up the path to his house and carefully looked out from behind the hillock. The village was empty. The sun was hitting his eyes, and Lenka put his palm to the visor of his cap. Not a single person around. But what is it? Soldiers appeared on the road outside the village. Lenka immediately saw that the soldiers were not ours.
"Germans! - he decided. “Here you go!”
The soldiers stood at the edge of the forest and looked at Lukino.
“Here you go!” – Lyonka thought again. “I shouldn’t have fought off the guys.” We must run!..”
A plan matured in his head: while the Nazis were walking along the road, he would go back down to the river and go along the stream into the forest. Otherwise... Lyonka was even scared to imagine that it would be different...
Lyonka took a few steps, and suddenly the mute silence of the autumn day was cut through by the shot of a machine gun. He looked down the road. The Nazis fled to the forest, leaving several dead on the ground. Lyonka could not understand where our machine gunner was shooting from. And then I saw him. He was shooting from a shallow hole. The Germans also opened fire.
Lyonka quietly approached the machine gunner from behind and looked at his worn-out heels and his back, darkened with sweat.
- You’re great! - Lyonka said when the soldier began to reload the machine gun.
The machine gunner shuddered and looked around.
- Damn you! – he exclaimed when he saw the boy in front of him. - What do you want here?
- I’m from here... I wanted to see my village.
The machine gunner fired a burst again and turned to Lyonka.
– What’s your name?
- Lyonka... Uncle, maybe I can help you with something?
- Look, how smart you are. Well, help me. I should have brought some water, my mouth was dry.
- With what, with what? At least scoop it up with a cap...
Lenka went down to the river and plunged his cap into the cool water. By the time he reached the machine gunner, there was very little water left in his cap. The soldier greedily clung to Lyonka’s cap...
“Bring more,” he said.
From the direction of the forest, they began firing mortars along the shore.
“Well, now we need to retreat,” said the machine gunner. “It was ordered to hold the village until noon, but now it’s soon evening.” What is the name of the village?
- Lukino...
- Lukino? At least I’ll know where the battle was held. What is this - blood? Where did you get hooked? Let me bandage it.
Lenka himself only now noticed that his leg was covered in blood. Apparently, it was really hit by a bullet.
The soldier tore his shirt and bandaged Lyonka’s leg.
- That's it... Now let's go. – The soldier shouldered the machine gun. “I also have business with you, Leonid,” said the machine gunner. - The Nazis killed my comrade. More in the morning. So you bury him. It's lying under the bushes over there. His name was Oleg...
When Lyonka met the guys, he told them everything that happened. They decided to bury the murdered man that night.
Dusk had deepened in the forest, the sun had already set when the guys approached the stream. Stealthily, they went out to the edge of the forest and disappeared into the bushes. Lenka walked first, showing the way. The dead man was lying on the grass. Nearby was his machine gun, and there were disks with cartridges lying around.
Soon a mound grew in this place. The guys stood silently. With their bare feet they felt the freshness of the dug earth. Someone sobbed, and the rest couldn’t stand it either. Melting their tears away from each other, the guys bowed their heads even lower.
The guys shouldered a light machine gun and disappeared into the darkness of the forest. Lenka put Oleg’s cap, which he picked up on the ground, on his head.
Early in the morning the guys went to make a cache. They did it according to all the rules. First, they laid out matting and threw earth on it so as not to leave traces. They threw dry branches at the place of the hiding place, and Lyonka said:
- Now not a single word to anyone. Like a military secret.
“We should take an oath to make it stronger.”
Everyone agreed. The guys raised their hands and made a solemn promise to keep the secret. Now they had weapons. Now they could fight their enemies.
As time went. No matter how hidden the villagers who had gone into the forest were, the Nazis still found out where they were. One day, returning to the forest camp, the boys heard from afar that unclear screams, someone’s rough laughter, and the loud crying of women were coming from the forest.
Hitler's soldiers walked among the dugouts with a masterly air. Sticking out of their backpacks were various things that they had managed to loot. Two Germans walked past Lyonka, then one of them looked back, returned and, stamping his feet, began shouting something, pointing at Lyonka’s cap and on his chest, where the pioneer badge was pinned. The second German was a translator. He said:
“Mr. Corporal ordered you to be hanged if you don’t throw away this hat and this badge.”
Before Lyonka had time to come to his senses, the pioneer badge found itself in the hands of a lanky corporal. He threw the badge to the ground and crushed it under his heel. Then he tore off Lyonka’s cap, gave him a painful slap on the cheeks, threw the cap on the ground and began to trample on it, trying to crush the star.
“Next time we’ll hang you,” said the translator.
The Germans went, carrying away the looted things.
Lyonka’s soul was heavy. No, it wasn’t the cap with the star, it wasn’t the pioneer badge that was trampled by this lanky fascist, it seemed to Lyonka as if the Nazi had stepped on his chest with his heel and was pressing so hard that it was impossible to breathe. Lyonka went into the dugout, lay down on the bunk and lay there until the evening.
The forest became more and more unpleasant and colder every day. Tired and cold, my mother came one evening. She said that a German stopped her and told her to go to the village. There, in the hut, he pulled out a pile of dirty laundry from under the bench and ordered it to be washed on the river. The water is icy, your hands are cold, your fingers can’t be straightened...
“I don’t know how I managed to finish washing,” the mother said quietly. “I didn’t have the strength.” And the German gave me a slice of bread for this wash, he was generous.
Lyonka jumped up from the bench, his eyes were burning.
- Throw away this bread, mom!.. I’ll die of hunger, I won’t take a crumb of it into my mouth. I can't do this anymore. We must beat them! Now I’m going to join the partisans...
Father looked sternly at Lyonka:
– What were you thinking, where were you going? You're still young! We must endure, we are now prisoners.
- But I won’t tolerate it, I can’t! - Lyonka left the dugout and, without making out the road, walked into the darkness of the forest.
And Ekaterina Alekseevna, Lyonka’s mother, caught a bad cold after that wash in ice water. She endured it for two days, and on the third she said to Lyonka: “Lyonka, let’s go to Lukino, let’s warm up in our hut, maybe I’ll feel better. I’m afraid alone.”
And Lyonka went to see his mother off.
Soon the Germans drove the inhabitants out of the forest. They had to return to the village again. They now lived closely, with several families in one hut. Winter came, they said that partisans had appeared in the forests, but Lyonka and his comrades never saw them.
One day Only came running and, calling Lyonka aside, said in a whisper:
- I visited the partisans.
- Come on! – Lyonka didn’t believe it.
- Honest pioneer, I’m not lying-
He just said that he went into the forest and met with partisans there. They asked who he was and where he was from. They asked where they could get hay for the horses. I just promised to bring it to them.
A few days later the guys went on a partisan mission. Early in the morning, in four carts, they went to the meadows, where tall haystacks had stood since the summer. Along a remote road, the guys took the hay into the forest - to where Tolka had agreed to meet with the partisans. The pioneers walked slowly behind the carts, looking back every now and then, but there was no one around.
Suddenly the leading horse stopped. The guys didn’t even notice how a man appeared from nowhere and took her by the reins.
– We’ve arrived after all! – he said cheerfully. - I've been following you for a long time.
The partisan put two fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly. They answered him with the same whistle.
- Well, now quickly! Turn into the forest!
There were fires burning in the deep forest, around which the partisans were sitting. A man in a sheepskin coat with a pistol in his belt stood up to meet us.
“We’ll give you guys another sleigh,” he said, “and we’ll leave yours with the hay to make it faster.”
While the horses were being re-harnessed, the detachment commander asked the guys what was going on in the village. Saying goodbye, he said:
- Well, thank you again, but take these leaves with you. Give them to adults, and be careful that the Nazis don’t get wind of them, otherwise they’ll shoot you.
In the leaflets, the partisans called on Soviet people to fight the occupiers, to join detachments, so that the fascists would have no peace day or night...
Soon Lyonka met with his teacher Vasily Grigorievich. He was a partisan and brought Lyonka to his detachment.
Lenka could not come to his senses. He looked around curiously. If only he would be accepted here. Apparently, they are brave and cheerful people. One word: partisans!
Someone suggested taking him into reconnaissance, but Lyonka took it at first as a joke, and then thought maybe they would really take him... No, there’s no point in thinking about that. They will say - I’m too small, I need to grow up. But still he asked the teacher:
– Vasily Grigorievich, can I join the partisans?
- You? – the teacher was surprised. - I really don’t know...
- Take it, Vasily Grigorievich, I won’t let you down!..
- Or maybe it’s true, I remember I was a great guy at school...
From that day on, the pioneer Lenya Golikov was enrolled in the partisan detachment, and a week later the detachment went to other places to fight the Germans. Soon another boy appeared in the detachment - Mityayka. Lenka immediately became friends with Mityayka. They even slept on the same bunks. At first the guys were not given any instructions. They only worked in the kitchen: sawing and chopping wood, peeling potatoes... But one day a mustachioed partisan came into the dugout and said:
- Well, eagles, the commander is calling, there is a task for you.
From that day on, Lyonka and Mityayka began to go on reconnaissance missions. They found out and told the detachment commander where the fascist soldiers were located, where their cannons and machine guns were located.
When the guys went on reconnaissance, they dressed in rags and took old bags. They walked through the villages like beggars, begging for pieces of bread, and they themselves looked with all their eyes, noticing everything: how many soldiers were there, how many cars, guns...
One day they came to a large village and stopped in front of an extreme hut.
“Give me alms for food,” they said in different voices.
A German officer came out of the house. Guys to him:
- Pan, give me a ford... Pan...
The officer didn't even look at the guys.
“He’s so greedy, he doesn’t look,” whispered Mityayka.
“That’s good,” said Lyonka. - So he thinks that we really are beggars.
The reconnaissance was successful. Lyonka and Mityayka learned that new fascist troops had just arrived in the village. The guys even made their way into the officers' mess, where they were given something to eat. When Lyonka had finished everything they were given, he winked slyly at Mityayka - apparently he had come up with something. After rummaging in his pocket, he took out a stub of a pencil and, looking around, quickly wrote something on a paper napkin.
“What are you doing?” Mityayka asked quietly.
- Congratulations to the fascists. Now we need to leave quickly. Read!
On a piece of paper Mityayka read: “Partisan Golikov dined here. Tremble, you bastards!”
The guys put their note under the plate and slipped out of the dining room.
Each time the guys received more and more difficult tasks. Now Lyonka had his own machine gun, which he obtained in battle. As an experienced partisan, he was even taken to blow up enemy trains.
Having crept up to the railway one night, the partisans laid a large mine and began to wait for the train to leave. We waited until almost dawn. Finally we saw platforms loaded with guns and tanks; carriages in which fascist soldiers were sitting. When the locomotive approached the place where the partisans had laid a mine, the group leader, Stepan, commanded Lyonka:
Lyonka pulled the cord. A column of fire shot up under the locomotive, the carriages climbed one on top of the other, and ammunition began to explode.
When the partisans fled from the railway towards the forest, they heard rifle shots behind them.
“The chase has begun,” said Stepan, “now run away.”
The two of them ran. There was very little left to the forest. Suddenly Stepan screamed.
- They wounded me, now I can’t escape... Run alone.
“Let’s leave, Stepan,” Lyonka persuaded him, “they won’t find us in the forest.” Lean on me, let's go...
Stepan walked forward with difficulty. The shots stopped. Stepan almost fell, and Lyonka had difficulty dragging him on himself.
“No, I can’t do it anymore,” said the wounded Stepan and sank to the ground.
Lyonka bandaged him and led the wounded man out again. Stepan was getting worse, he was already losing consciousness and could not move on. Exhausted, Lyonka dragged Stepan to the camp...
For saving a wounded comrade, Lenya Golikov was awarded the medal “For Military Merit.”
The night before, the partisan scouts went on a mission - to the highway about fifteen kilometers from the camp. They lay by the road all night. There were no cars, the road was deserted. What to do? The group commander ordered to retreat. The partisans retreated to the edge of the forest. Lenka lagged behind them a little. He was about to catch up with his people, but, looking back at the road, he saw a car approaching along the highway.
He rushed forward and lay down near the bridge behind a pile of stones.
The car approached the bridge, slowed down, and Lyonka, swinging his hand, threw a grenade at it. There was an explosion. Lyonka saw a Nazi man in a white jacket jump out of the car with a red briefcase and a machine gun.
Lenka fired, but missed. The fascist ran away. Lenka chased after him. The officer looked back and saw a boy running after him. Very small. If they were placed side by side, the boy would barely reach his waist. The officer stopped and fired. The boy fell. The fascist ran on.
But Lyonka was not wounded. He quickly crawled to the side and fired several shots. The officer ran away...
Lyonka was already chasing for a whole kilometer. And the Nazi, firing back, approached the forest. As he walked, he threw off his white jacket and remained in a dark shirt. It became more difficult to aim at him.
Lenka began to lag behind. Now the fascist will hide in the forest, then everything will be lost. There were only a few cartridges left in the machine gun. Then Lyonka threw off his heavy boots and ran barefoot, not ducking under the bullets that the enemy sent at him.
The last cartridge remained in the machine’s disk, and with this last shot Lyonka hit the enemy. He took his machine gun and briefcase and, breathing heavily, went back. On the way, he picked up a white jacket abandoned by a fascist and only then did he see the general’s twisted shoulder straps on it.
“Hey!.. But the bird turns out to be important,” he said out loud.
Lyonka put on the general’s jacket, buttoned it up with all the buttons, rolled up the sleeves that hung below his knees, pulled a cap with gold streaks, which he found in a wrecked car, over his cap, and ran to catch up with his comrades...
Teacher Vasily Grigorievich was already worried and wanted to send a group to look for Lyonka, when he suddenly unexpectedly appeared near the fire. Lyonka came out into the light of the fire in a white general’s jacket with gold shoulder straps. He had two machine guns hanging around his neck – his own and a captured one. He carried a red briefcase under his arm. Lyonka looked so hilarious that loud laughter broke out.
- What do you have? – asked the teacher, pointing to the briefcase.
“I took the German documents from the general,” Lyonka answered.
The teacher took the documents and went with them to the chief of staff of the detachment.
A translator and then a radio operator were urgently called there. The papers turned out to be very important. Then Vasily Grigorievich came out of the headquarters dugout and called Lyonka.
“Well, well done,” he said. – Experienced intelligence officers obtain such documents once every hundred years. Now they will be reported to Moscow about them.
After some time, a radiogram arrived from Moscow, saying that everyone who captured such important documents should be presented with the highest award. In Moscow, of course, they did not know that they were captured by one Lenya Golikov, who was only fourteen years old.
This is how the pioneer Lenya Golikov became a hero of the Soviet Union.
The young pioneer hero died the death of the brave on January 24, 1943 in an unequal battle near the village of Ostray Luka.
At the grave of Lenya Golikov, in the village of Ostraya Luka, Dedovichsky district, fishermen of the Novgorod region erected an obelisk, and on the banks of the Pola River a monument was erected to the young hero.
In June 1960, a monument to Lena Golikov was unveiled in Moscow at VDNKh at the entrance to the Young Naturalists and Technicians pavilion. A monument to the young hero was erected in the city of Novgorod at the expense of the pioneers for the scrap metal they collected,
The name of the brave partisan Lenya Golikov is included in the Book of Honor of the All-Union Pioneer Organization named after. V.I. Lenin.
By decree of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR, one of the ships of the Soviet fleet was named after Lenya Golikov.
Among the children and teenagers who distinguished themselves during the Great Patriotic War and were subsequently included in the list of “pioneer heroes”, there were four awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union - Valya Kotik, Marat Kazei, And .
During the period of perestroika, when the heroes of the Soviet era were subjected to massive “exposure,” these four also suffered in full. Among the numerous claims, there was this one - in fact, the “pioneers” were older than the age attributed to them.
Our dear readers, who managed to get acquainted with, and, could be convinced that the accusations of forgery are unfair - Marat and Valya really were pioneers, and Zina, being a pioneer, began her activities as an underground worker.
With Lenya Golikov the story is different - he was undoubtedly a pioneer, undoubtedly a hero, but he got into the list of pioneer heroes through the efforts of people who clearly “wanted what was best.”
Lenya Golikov was born into a working-class family living in the Novgorod region, in the village of Lukino, on June 17, 1926. Like most young heroes, his pre-war biography is not particularly remarkable - he graduated from seven classes of school, managed to work at a plywood factory.
An important point is that according to the regulations on the pioneer organization, its members at that time could be persons aged 9 to 14 years. On June 17, 1941, Lena Golikov turned 15, that is, he finally left pioneer age a few days before the war.
We’ll talk about how he “became a pioneer” again a little later, but for now let’s talk about how Lenya became a partisan.
The area around the village of Lukino came under Nazi occupation, but was recaptured in March 1942. It was during this period that, in the liberated territory, by decision of the Leningrad headquarters of the partisan movement, a partisan brigade was formed from among the fighters of previously operating partisan detachments, as well as young volunteers, which was supposed to go to the enemy rear to continue the fight against the Nazis.
Among the boys and girls who survived the occupation and wanted to fight the enemy was Lenya Golikov, who was not accepted at first.
Lena was 15 at that time, and the commanders who selected the fighters considered that he was too young. They took him thanks to the recommendation of a school teacher, who also joined the partisans, and who assured that “the student will not let him down.”
The student really did not disappoint - as part of the 4th Leningrad Partisan Brigade he took part in 27 combat operations, chalking up several dozen killed Nazis, 10 destroyed vehicles with ammunition, more than a dozen blown up bridges, etc.
Lenya Golikov received his first award, the medal “For Courage,” in July 1942. Everyone who knew Lenya when he was a partisan noted his courage and courage.
One day, returning from reconnaissance, Lenya went to the outskirts of the village, where he discovered five Germans marauding in the apiary. The Nazis were so busy extracting honey and swatting away bees that they put their weapons aside. The scout took advantage of this, destroying three Germans. The remaining two escaped.
One of the most striking operations of Lenya took place on August 13, 1942, when on the Luga-Pskov highway, partisans attacked a car in which German Engineering Troops Major General Richard von Wirtz was located.
The Nazis put up fierce resistance, but Lenya, having reached the car, and his partner grabbed a suitcase with valuable documents.
It must be said that in classic stories about Lenya Golikov it was often stated that he carried out the attack on the general’s car almost alone. This is wrong. But there is no doubt that the main credit for obtaining the documents belongs to him.
The documents were forwarded to the Soviet command, and Lenya himself was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. However, the documents, apparently, turned out to be not so significant - in November 1942, Lenya was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for this feat.
Heroes and traitors
Alas, the partisan biography, like Lenya’s life, was short-lived. In December 1942, the Nazis began a large-scale anti-partisan operation, pursuing the detachment in which Lenya Golikov fought. It was impossible to break away from the enemy.
On January 24, 1943, a group of partisans consisting of just over 20 people reached the village of Ostraya Luka. There were no Germans in the village, and exhausted people stopped to rest in three houses. After some time, the village was surrounded by a punitive detachment of 150 people, composed of local traitors and Lithuanian nationalists. The partisans, who were taken by surprise, nevertheless entered the battle.
Only a few people were able to escape from the encirclement, and later reported to headquarters about the death of the detachment. Lenya Golikov, like most of his comrades, died in battle in Ostray Luka.
During the war, the NKVD and Soviet counterintelligence agencies conducted a thorough investigation in order to establish the reasons for the death of certain partisan units. This was the case in this case as well.
Thanks to the testimony of village residents obtained after liberation from occupation, as well as the testimony of surviving partisans, it was established that Lenya Golikov and his comrades were victims of betrayal.
A certain Stepanov, a resident of one of the houses where the partisans stayed, reported about them headman Pykhov, who informed about the punitive partisans, whose detachment was in the village of Krutets.
Lenya Golikov. Photo: Public Domain
Pykhov received a generous reward from the Nazis for services rendered. However, during the retreat, the owners did not take the accomplice with them. At the beginning of 1944, he was arrested by Soviet counterintelligence agencies, was convicted as a traitor to the Motherland and executed in April 1944.
The second traitor, Stepanov, who, by the way, was only a year older than Lenya Golikov, showed great resourcefulness - at the beginning of 1944, when it became clear that the war was heading towards the defeat of the Nazis, he joined the partisans, from where he joined the regular Soviet Army. In this capacity, he even managed to earn awards and return home as a hero, but in the fall of 1948, retribution overtook Stepanov - he was arrested and sentenced for treason to 25 years in prison with deprivation of state awards.
How the same age as the hero of “Young Guard” became “younger”
The partisans who survived the detachment’s last battle did not forget about their comrades, including Lena.
In March 1944, the head of the Leningrad headquarters of the partisan movement, member of the Military Council of the Leningrad Front, Nikitin, signed a new description for the nomination of Lenya Golikov for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated April 2, 1944, for the exemplary fulfillment of command assignments and the courage and heroism shown in battles with the Nazi invaders, Leonid Aleksandrovich Golikov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumously).
So, there is and cannot be any doubt about the heroism of Leonid Golikov; his awards are completely fair and deserved.
But how can Leonid Golikov, who, by the way, is only nine days younger than the legendary Komsomol hero from the “Young Guard” Oleg Koshevoy, became the “pioneer hero Lenya Golikov.”
Oddly enough, the first materials about the exploits of Leonid Golikov spoke of him as a Komsomol member.
Everything was changed by the book of the writer Yuri Korolkov “Partisan Lenya Golikov”, published in the early 1950s. The writer, who went through the war as a front-line correspondent, talking about the real exploits of Leonid Golikov, reduced his age by literally a couple of years. And from a 16-year-old heroic Komsomol member a 14-year-old heroic pioneer turned out.
Why this was done is known exactly to the author, who passed away in 1981. Perhaps the writer decided that the feat would look more vivid this way.
Memorial sign at the site of Lenya Golikov's feat. Photo: Public Domain
Sister instead of brother
Perhaps the All-Union Pioneer Organization, where the creation of a collective image of “pioneer heroes” was just beginning, decided that thousands of pioneers awarded orders and medals during the war were not enough, and at least one Hero of the Soviet Union was needed. Let us remember that Marat Kazei, Valya Kotik, Zina Portnova were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union much later, in the late 1950s, and only Lenya Golikov became a Hero back in 1944.
At the same time, everyone who knew the real Leonid Golikov was well aware of the true state of affairs, but believed that such an “inaccuracy” did not fundamentally change anything.
It must be said that to complete the picture, even the appearance of the hero was changed. In the only photo of Leonid in the partisan detachment, Golikov appears as a determined and dashing young man, while in the illustrations that appeared in all the pioneer books about Lena Golikov, he has an absolutely childish expression on his face.
Where did this image come from? As it turned out, his mother did not have any childhood photographs of Leonid, so when he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, reporters dressed up as a “partisan”... his younger sister, Lida. It was the image of Lida Golikova that became “Lenya Golikov” for millions of Soviet pioneers.
It is unlikely that those who created the canonical story of Lenya Golikov pursued any selfish goals. They just wanted the best, they believed that in this form the feat of Leonid Golikov would look brighter. It never occurred to them that at the turn of the 1980s-1990s all these “little things” would turn against the hero himself.
So, having voluntarily taken the path of armed struggle against fascism at the age of 15 and died at 16, Leonid Golikov, according to formal criteria, cannot be considered a “pioneer hero.”
Does this in any way diminish his feat? Of course not.
We just need to learn to accept our heroes as they are without trying to improve them. After all, the feat of the young Komsomol member Leonid Golikov is no worse than the feat of the pioneer Lenya Golikov.
The Great Patriotic War is the bloodiest and most merciless in world history; it took away millions of human lives, including the lives of many young people who bravely defended their Motherland. Golikov Leonid Aleksandrovich is one of the heroes of his country.
This is an ordinary boy, whose childhood was carefree and happy, he was friends with the guys, helped his parents, completed seven classes, after which he worked at a plywood factory. The war caught Lenya at the age of 15, instantly ending all the boy’s youthful dreams.
Young partisan
The village in the Novgorod region where the boy lived was captured by the Nazis and, trying to establish their new order, they began to commit atrocities. Lenya Golikov, whose feat is inscribed in history, did not come to terms with the horrors happening around him and decided to fight against the fascists; After the liberation of the village, he joined a newly formed partisan detachment, where he fought alongside adults. True, at first the guy was not mistaken for his young age; help came from a school teacher who was a member of the partisans. He vouched for the boy, saying that he was a reliable person, would perform well and would not let him down. In March 1942, Lenya became a scout in the Leningrad partisan brigade; a little later he joined the Komsomol there.
Fight against fascists
The Nazis were afraid of the partisans, because they mercilessly destroyed German officers and soldiers, blew up trains, and attacked enemy columns. The enemies saw the elusive partisans everywhere: behind every tree, house, corner, so they tried not to walk alone.
There was even such a case: Lenya Golikov, whose feat became known to young people of different generations, was returning from reconnaissance and saw five Nazis marauding in an apiary. They were so passionate about extracting honey and fighting bees that they threw their weapons on the ground. The young scout took advantage of this, destroying three enemies; two managed to escape.
The boy, who matured early, had many military achievements (27 military operations, 78 enemy officers; several explosions of enemy cars and bridges), but Leni Golikov’s feat was not far off. It was 1942...
Fearless Lenya Golikov: a feat
Highway Luga-Pskov (near the village of Varintsy). 1942 August 13. While with his partner in reconnaissance, Lenya blew up an enemy passenger car, in which, as it turned out, there was Richard von Wirtz, a German major general. The briefcase he had with him contained very important information: reports to higher authorities, diagrams, detailed drawings of some samples of German mines and others data that was of great value to the partisans.
The feat of Leni Golikov, a brief summary of which is described above, was awarded the Gold Star medal and the award of the title, however, posthumously. In the winter of 1942, a detachment of partisans, in which Golikov was a member, was surrounded by Germans, but after fierce battles he was able to break through and change location. Fifty people remained in the ranks, ammunition was running out, the radio was broken, food was running out. Attempts to restore contact with other units were unsuccessful.
In ambush
In January 1943, 27 exhausted partisans, exhausted from the pursuit, occupied the three outermost huts of the village of Ostray Luka. Preliminary reconnaissance did not reveal anything suspicious; the nearest German garrison was quite far away, several kilometers away. No patrols were posted so as not to attract undue attention. However, there was a “kind man” in the village - the owner of one of the houses (a certain Stepanov), who informed the elder Pykhov, and he, in turn, the punishers about what guests came to the village at night.
For this treacherous act, Pykhov received a generous reward from the Germans, but at the beginning of 1944 he was shot like Stepanov - the second traitor, he was only a year older than Leni, in troubled times for himself (when the turn of the war became clear) he showed resourcefulness: he joined the partisans , and from there Stepanov even managed to earn awards and return home almost as a hero, but the hand of justice overtook this traitor to the Motherland. In 1948, he was arrested for treason and sentenced to 25 years in prison, with the deprivation of all awards received.
They are no more
Ostray Luka was surrounded by 50 punishers on this bad January night, among whom were local residents who collaborated with the fascists. The partisans, taken by surprise, had to fight back and urgently retreat back into the forest under the bullets of enemy shells. Only six people managed to escape from the encirclement.
In that unequal battle, almost the entire partisan detachment died, including Lenya Golikov, whose feat remained forever in the memory of his comrades.
Sister instead of brother
Initially, it was believed that the original photograph of Leni Golikov had not survived. Therefore, to reproduce the image of the hero, the image of his sister Lydia was used (for example, for a portrait painted in 1958 by Viktor Fomin). Later, a partisan photo was found, but the familiar face of Lida, who acted as a brother, adorned the biography of Leni Golikov, who became a symbol of courage for Soviet teenagers. After all, the feat accomplished by Lenya Golikov is a vivid example of courage and love for the Motherland.
In April 1944, Leonid Golikov was awarded (posthumously) the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for his heroism and courage in the fight against the fascist invaders.
In everyone's heart
Many publications talk about Leonid Golikov as a pioneer, and he stands on a par with the same fearless young personalities as Marat Kazei, Vitya Korobkov, Valya Kotik, Zina Portnova.
However, during the perestroika period, when the heroes of Soviet times were subjected to “massive revelations,” a claim arose against these children that they could not be pioneers because they were older than the required age. The information was not confirmed: Marat Kazei, Zina Portnova and Vitya Korobkov were indeed pioneers, but with Lenya it turned out a little differently.
He was included in the list of pioneers thanks to the efforts of people who were not indifferent to his fate and, apparently, with the best intentions. The first materials about his heroism speak of Lena as a Komsomol member. The feat of Leni Golikov, a brief summary of which was described by Yuri Korolkov in his book “Partisan Lenya Golikov,” is an example of the behavior of a young man in the days of mortal danger looming over his country.
The writer, who went through the war as a front-line correspondent, reduced the hero’s age by literally a couple of years, turning a 16-year-old boy into a 14-year-old pioneer hero. Perhaps by this the writer wanted to make Leni’s feat more vivid. Although everyone who knew Lenya was aware of the current state of affairs, believing that this inaccuracy did not fundamentally change anything. In any case, the country needed a suitable person for the collective image of the pioneer hero, who would also be a Hero of the Soviet Union. Lenya Golikov suited the image optimally.
His feat is described in all Soviet newspapers, many books have been written about him and similar young heroes. In any case, this is the story of a great country. Therefore, the feat of Leni Golikov, like himself - a man who defended his Motherland - will forever remain in everyone’s heart.
