List of female Heroes of the Soviet Union explained

This is a list of female Heroes of the Soviet Union; of the 12,777 people awarded the title, 95 were women, 49 of whom were posthumous recipients of the title.

Recipients

Soviet military personnel

Name	Unit	Rank	Date of award	Notes	References
Валентина Гризодубова	Flight "Rodina"	Colonel		Pilot-in-Command	^[1]
Полина Осипенко	Flight "Rodina"	Major		Co-pilot	^[2]
Марина Раскова	Flight "Rodina"	Major		Navigator	^[3]
Екатерина Зеленко	135th Light Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant	*	Killed in action in unclear circumstances on 12 September 1941.	^[4]
Раиса Аронова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[5]
Вера Белик	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Lieutenant	*	Killed in action on 25 August 1944 after shot down by German fighter.	^[6]
Татьяна Макарова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Lieutenant	*	Killed in action on 25 August 1944 after shot down by German fighter.
Марина Чечнева	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[7]
Руфина Гашева	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[8]
Ольга Санфирова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Captain	*	Killed in action on 13 December 1944 after stepping on landmine when evacuating downed aircraft.
Полина Гельман	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[9]
Антонина Худякова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[10]
Лариса Литвинова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Captain			^[11]
Наталья Меклин	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[12]
Евдокия Никулина	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[13]
Евдокия Носаль	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Junior Lieutenant	*	Killed in action on 23 April 1943 when hit in the head by a piece of shrapnel from anti-aircraft fire.	^[14]
Зоя Парфёнова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[15]
Евдокия Пасько	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[16]
Надежда Попова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Captain			^[17]
Нина Распопова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[18]
Евгения Руднева	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant	*	Killed in action on 9 April 1944 after plane was shot down from anti-aircraft warfare.	^[19]
Екатерина Рябова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[20]
Ирина Себрова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[21]
Мария Смирнова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[22]
Магуба Сыртланова	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[23]
Нина Ульяненко	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Lieutenant			^[24]
Евгения Жигуленко	46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment	Major			^[25]
Мария Долина	125th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment	Major			^[26]
Галина Джунковская	125th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment	Major			^[27]
Надежда Федутенко	125th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment	Major			^[28]
Клавдия Фомичёва	125th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment	Lieutenant Colonel			^[29]
Антонина Зубкова	125th Guards Dive Bomber Regiment	Captain			^[30]
Лидия Литвяк	73rd Guards Fighter Regiment	Senior Lieutenant	*	Presumably killed in action on 1 August 1943 after crash; some think she may have survived and been a POW.	^[31]
Тамара Константинова	566th Attack Aviation Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[32]
Анна Егорова	805th Ground Attack Air Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[33]
Татьяна Барамзина	252nd Rifle Regiment	Corporal	*	Captured, tortured, and executed with an anti-tank rifle on 5 July 1944 after running out of ammunition while trying to protect trenches of wounded soldiers.	^[34]
Елена Стемпковская	216th Rifle Regiment	Junior Sergeant	*	Killed in action on 26 June 1942. Some accounts state that she was captured and tortured while others say she was killed in battle.	^[35]
Маншук Маметова	21st Guards Rifle Division	Senior Sergeant	*	Killed in action defending strategic bridgehead on 15 October 1943.	^[36]
Нина Онилова	54th Rifle Regiment	Senior Sergeant	*	Died of wounds on 8 March 1942	^[37]
Мария Батракова	463rd Rifle Regiment	Junior Lieutenant			^[38]
Анна Никандрова	426th Rifle Regiment	Senior Lieutenant	*	Killed in action while trying to take out machine-gun bunker on 23 June 1944.	^[39]
Татьяна Костырина	691st Rifle Regiment	Junior Sergeant	*	Killed in action on 22 November 1942.	^[40]
Наталья Ковшова	528th Rifle Regiment	Private	*	Killed in action after detonating grenades when fully surrounded by German troops on 14 August 1942.	^[41]
Мария Поливанова	528th Rifle Regiment	Private	*	Killed in action after detonating grenades when fully surrounded by German troops on 14 August 1942.
Алия Молдагулова	54th Independent Rifle Brigade	Corporal	*	Died of wounds on 14 January 1944 after shot in hand-to-hand combat	^[42]
Людмила Павличенко	25th Rifle Division	Major			^[43]
Ирина Левченко	41st Tank Brigade	Lieutenant Colonel			^[44]
Мария Октябрьская	26th Guards Tank Brigade	Senior Sergeant	*	Died of wounds after remaining in coma for two months after head injury on 15 March 1944.	^[45]
Мария Байда	514th Rifle Regiment	Senior Sergeant			^[46]
Мария Боровиченко	32nd Guards Artillery Regiment	Sergeant	*	Killed in action on 4 July 1943 after using body as human shield to protect colleague.	^[47]
Валерия Гнаровская	907th Rifle Regiment	Senior Medical NCO	*	Killed in action on 23 September 1943 after throwing self under tank with bag of grenades to protect hospital tent.	^[48]
Вера Кащеева	120th Rifle Regiment	Senior Lieutenant			^[49]
Ксения Константинова	730th Rifle Regiment	Senior Medical NCO	*	Captured, tortured and executed on 1 October 1943 after running out of ammunition while trying to protect injured soldiers.	^[50]
Людмила Кравец	63rd Guards Rifle Regiment	Senior Sergeant			^[51]
Зинаида Маресева	214th Guards Rifle Regiment	Senior Sergeant	*	Died of wounds on 6 August 1943 after using body as human shield to defend wounded soldiers from mortar attack.	^[52]
Федора Пушина	520th Rifle Regiment	Lieutenant	*	Died of wounds on 6 November 1943 shortly after rescuing numerous soldiers from burning hospital.	^[53]
Зинаида Самсонова	667th Rifle Regiment	Senior Sergeant	*	Killed in action on 27 January 1944 after shot by German sniper while attempting to rescue wounded soldier.	^[54]
Мария Щербаченко	835th Rifle Regiment	Senior NCO			^[55]
Мария Шкарлетова	170th Guards Rifle Regiment	Senior NCO			^[56]
Зинаида Туснолобова-Марченко	849th Rifle Regiment	Senior Medical NCO			^[57]
Екатерина Михайлова-Дёмина	369th Independent Naval Infantry Battalion	Chief Petty Officer			^[58]
Галина Петрова	386th Independent Naval Infantry Battalion	Chief Petty Officer		Killed in action less than a month later on 4 December 1943.	^[59]
Мария Цуканова	355th Independent Guards Naval Infantry Battalion	Corporal	*	Killed in action on 14 August 1945.	^[60]
Нина Гнилицкая	383rd Rifle Division	Private	*	Killed in action on 10 December 1941.	^[61]

Soviet partisans

Name	Date of award	Notes	References
Елизавета Чайкина	*	Captured and executed on 22 November 1941	^[62]
Елена Колесова	*	Killed in action on 11 September 1942	^[63]
Зоя Космодемьянская	*	Captured and executed on 29 November 1941	^[64]
Татьяна Мариненко	*	Captured and executed on 2 February 1942	^[65]
Анна Масловская			^[66]
Мария Мельникайте	*	Captured and executed on 13 July 1943	^[67]
Антонина Петрова	*	Killed herself to avoid capture on 4 November 1941	^[68]
Лариса Ратушная	*	Murdered by a traitor in her unit on 18 March 1944	^[69]
Валентина Сафронова	*	Tortured to death by the Gestapo on 1 May 1943	^[70]
Леэн Кульман	*	Captured and executed on 6 March 1943	^[71]
Анна Лисицына	*	Killed in action on 3 August 1942	^[72]
Мария Мелентьева	*	Captured and executed in 1943
Анна Морозова	*	Killed in action in December 1944	^[73]
Анастасия Бисениек	*	Captured and executed in October 1943	^[74]
Дарья Дьяченко	*	Captured and executed on 2 April 1944	^[75]
Ульяна Громова	*	Captured and executed on 16 January 1943	^[76]
Любовь Шевцова	*	Captured and executed on 9 February 1943
Вера Хоружая	*	Captured and executed on 4 December 1942	^[77]
Мария Кисляк	*	Captured and executed on 18 June 1943	^[78]
Елена Мазаник			^[79]
Мария Осипова
Надежда Троян
Клавдия Назарова	*	Captured and executed on 12 December 1942	^[80]
Зинаида Портнова	*	Captured and executed in January 1944	^[81]
Нина Соснина	*	Killed in action on 31 August 1943	^[82]
Елена Убийвовк	*	Captured and executed on 26 May 1942	^[83]
Надежда Волкова	*	Killed in action on 26 November 1942	^[84]
Ефросинья Зенькова			^[85]

Soviet cosmonauts

Name	Mission	Date of award	Notes	References
Валентина Терешкова	Vostok 6		First woman in space	^[86]
Светлана Савицкая	Soyuz T-7 and Soyuz T-12		First woman to make a spacewalk

Foreign military personnel

References

Cottam, Kazimiera J. Women in War and Resistance: Selected Biographies of Soviet Women Soldiers. Newburyport, Mass.: Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Company, 1998. .

Notes and References

Cottam, Women in War, 3–10.
Cottam, Women in War, 11–15.
Cottam, Women in War, 16–27.
Cottam, Women in War, 28–32.
Cottam, Women in War, 33–36.
Cottam, Women in War, 37–41.
Cottam, Women in War, 42–46.
Cottam, Women in War, 47–50.
Cottam, Women in War, 51–54.
Cottam, Women in War, 55–56.
Cottam, Women in War, 57–59.
Cottam, Women in War, 60–62.
Cottam, Women in War, 63–65.
Cottam, Women in War, 66–69.
Cottam, Women in War, 70–73.
Cottam, Women in War, 74–76.
Cottam, Women in War, 77–80.
Cottam, Women in War, 81–83.
Cottam, Women in War, 84–89.
Cottam, Women in War, 90–95.
Cottam, Women in War, 96–100.
Cottam, Women in War, 101–104.
Cottam, Women in War, 105–107.
Cottam, Women in War, 108–110.
Cottam, Women in War, 111–114.
Cottam, Women in War, 115–118.
Cottam, Women in War, 119–121.
Cottam, Women in War, 122–124.
Cottam, Women in War, 125–127.
Cottam, Women in War, 128–131.
Cottam, Women in War, 132–138.
Cottam, Women in War, 139–141.
Cottam, Women in War, 142–150.
Cottam, Women in War, 151–153.
Cottam, Women in War, 154–157.
Cottam, Women in War, 158–161.
Cottam, Women in War, 162–167.
Cottam, Women in War, 168–170.
Cottam, Women in War, 171–172.
Cottam, Women in War, 173–174.
Cottam, Women in War, 175–179.
Cottam, Women in War, 180–183.
Cottam, Women in War, 184–188.
Cottam, Women in War, 189–192.
Cottam, Women in War, 193–196.
Cottam, Women in War, 197–200.
Cottam, Women in War, 201–203.
Cottam, Women in War, 204–206.
Cottam, Women in War, 207–208.
Cottam, Women in War, 209–211.
Cottam, Women in War, 212–213.
Cottam, Women in War, 214–215.
Cottam, Women in War, 216–217.
Cottam, Women in War, 218–222.
Cottam, Women in War, 223–224.
Cottam, Women in War, 225–227.
Cottam, Women in War, 228–231.
Cottam, Women in War, 233–236.
Cottam, Women in War, 237–239.
Cottam, Women in War, 240–242.
Cottam, Women in War, 244–247.
Cottam, Women in War, 248–252.
Cottam, Women in War, 253–259.
Cottam, Women in War, 260–264.
Cottam, Women in War, 265–268.
Cottam, Women in War, 269–271.
Cottam, Women in War, 272–275.
Cottam, Women in War, 276–279.
Cottam, Women in War, 280–283.
Cottam, Women in War, 284–288.
Cottam, Women in War, 289–291.
Cottam, Women in War, 292–295.
Cottam, Women in War, 296–299.
Cottam, Women in War, 300–302.
Cottam, Women in War, 303–304.
Cottam, Women in War, 305–311.
Cottam, Women in War, 312–316.
Cottam, Women in War, 317–319.
Cottam, Women in War, 320–325.
Cottam, Women in War, 326–329.
Cottam, Women in War, 330–332.
Cottam, Women in War, 333–338.
Cottam, Women in War, 339–342.
Cottam, Women in War, 343–345.
Cottam, Women in War, 346–349.
Cottam, Women in War, xx.