Penal Units in the Red Army

Alex Statiev

Europe-Asia Studies, 2010, vol. 62, issue 5, 721-747

Abstract: This article compares German and Soviet ideas behind raising penal units on the Eastern Front during World War II and their employment in combat, but focuses on Soviet practice. In an attempt to tighten discipline in the Red Army, Stalin adopted the basic draconian measures used by Leon Trotsky, his most bitter rival, during the Civil War of 1918–1922 but he considerably intensified the scale and scope of repressions thus elevating the brutality on the Eastern Front to new heights. U strafnikov odin zakon, odin konets: Koli, rubi fashistskogo brodyagu! I esli ne poimaesh v grud’ svinets, Medal’ na grud’ poimaesh ‘Za otvagu’. [Penal soldiers know only one law: Kill the fascist bastard! And if you remain alive, You will get a medal ‘For Valour’.] (Vladimir Vysotsky, Shtrafnye batal'ony[Penal Battalions])

Date: 2010
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DOI: 10.1080/09668136.2010.481384

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