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HISTORY The ''Young Guard'' was established soon after Krasnodon was occupied by Nazi Germany on July 20 1942 . First there were several youth groups, which were later joined into one organization, which was named the ''Young Guard''. One of the first meetings of the organization was held on October 2 of the same year. The organization was lead by the local , Sergei Tyulenin and Ivan Zemnukhov . There were about 100 members of the ''Young Guard'', all young boys and girls - workers, 8th-10th form schoolboys and schoolgirls from Krasnodon and surrounding villages and settlements. Due to the secret nature of the ''Young Guard'', only people well-known to other organization members, and who took the special , Oleg Koshevoy , Vasily Levashov , Lyubov Shevtsova , Viktor Tretyakevich, Ivan Turkenich, Sergei Tyulenin, Ivan Zemnukhov. Activities Among the main activities of the organization were
Members of the organization also annihilated motor vehicles with soldiers, ammunition and fuel of the enemy. Jointly with the '' Communist Party underground of Krasnodon'' the ''Young Guard'' prepared for the anti-fascist armed Rebellion , but a treachery within the organization and the reveal of the organization by the Nazis stopped these preparations. Treachery and execution The Nazis knew about the existence of the underground and tried to reveal it. Finally they succeeded in this, and helped by the treachery within the organization revealed all its members. Massive arrests began on January 5 and lasted until January 11 1943 . Just 11 members managed to outstrip their pursuers. All arrested people were tortured. 71 of them, along with members of the ''Communist Party underground'' (including its head Philipp Lyutikov ), many alive, were finally thrown into the '' Coal Mine Number 5'' (53 meters in depth), on January 15 , January 16 and January 31 1943 . Oleg Koshevoy , Lyubov Shevtsova , Viktor Subbotin, Dmitry Ogurtsov, Sergei Ostapenkov were shot on February 9 1943 in the town park of the town Rovenki . Just five days later, on February 14 1943 Krasnodon was liberated by the Red Army . TRIBUTES On , Oleg Koshevoy , Lyubov Shevtsova , Sergei Tyulenin and Ivan Zemnukhov were awarded the title Hero Of The Soviet Union posthumously, many other members were awarded various orders and medals. Soviet writer Alexander Fadeyev wrote the book ''Molodaya Gvardiya'' ('' The Young Guard ''), in which he depicted all activities of the ''Young Guard''. In Krasnodon the ''Monument to the Members of the Young Guard'' was erected in 1951 - 1954 , the Memorial complex ''Young Guard'' with the museum was built in 1970 and the Monument ''Nepokoryonnye'' (''Unsubdued'' in English) was erected near the ''Coal Mine Number 5'' in 1982 . The new town Molodogvardeysk in Luhansk Oblast of the Ukrainian SSR was named after the ''Young Guard'' in 1961 . Many towns, settlements, streets of Soviet cities were also named after the organization and its members. Russia n inter-regional public organization the ''Young Guard'' was established in Voronezh in 1999 . SCEPTICISM The public-presented story of the group, including the Faddeyev's book, has been questioned during all post-war history. Several researches (both officially-authorized and independent) revealed numerous ambiguities and details mismatching in the versions promoted by the group survivors and the Communist Party. Some survivors and witnesses declared they were pressed to follow the official version until the end of Soviet era. Several alternative versions emerged in late 1990s , the most exotic among them being the story of a Young Guard as Ukrainian Nationalist (not Komsomol) organization. The full true story of the Young Guard remains a mystery. For example, as of 2004 it is not known for sure, who betrayed the ''Young Guard'', although most sources claim, that it was betrayed by either one or two members of the organization. The leadership of the organization was also questioned, as mentioned above. SEE ALSO BIBLIOGRAPHY
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