Galina Dzhugashvili
Encyclopedia
Galina Yakovlevna "Galya" Dzhugashvili (19 February 1938 – 27 August 2007) was a Russia
n translator of French
. She was the granddaughter of Joseph Stalin
, the daughter of Stalin's eldest son, Yakov Dzhugashvili
. She consistently challenged widely-accepted accounts of her father's internment and death at a Nazi prison camp.
. Her mother was Yulia Meltzer, a well-known Jewish dancer from Odessa
. After meeting Yulia at a reception, Yakov fought with her second husband, Nikolai Bessarab, and arranged her divorce. Bessarab was later arrested by the NKVD
and executed. Yakov became her third husband.
Yakov was a senior lieutenant
in the Soviet
artillery in the Second World War. Historians have traditionally maintained that he was captured by the Germans
in 1941 and died at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp
in 1943 after Stalin declined to exchange him for the captured German general Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus
. Indeed, Stalin regarded Soviet PoWs as traitors, and had Yulia imprisoned in Lubyanka
for two years. The United States Defense Department was in possession of documents which indicated that Yakov Dzhugashvili was shot trying to escape, which were shown to Galina Dzhugashvili in 2003, but which she rejected, claiming that her father was never taken prisoner by the Germans, but rather was killed in battle in 1941. She continuously maintained that any photographs or letters indicating her father was at the prison camp were Nazi propaganda.
She studied philology
at Moscow State University
, and received a doctorate. She was a member of the Russian Writers Union
, and worked all her life as a translator of French
, mainly for the Gorky Institute of World Literature
. She was married to Husein ben Saad, an Algeria
n mathematician living in exile in Moscow
and employed by the United Nations
, but kept her maiden name. They had one son, Selim (b. 1970), who was born severely handicapped.
She died from cancer
at the Burdenko
military hospital in Moscow
, aged 69.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n translator of French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. She was the granddaughter of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
, the daughter of Stalin's eldest son, Yakov Dzhugashvili
Yakov Dzhugashvili
Yakov Iosifovich Dzhugashvili was one of Joseph Stalin's four children . Yakov was the son of Stalin's first wife, Ekaterina Svanidze...
. She consistently challenged widely-accepted accounts of her father's internment and death at a Nazi prison camp.
Biography
Galina Dzhugashvili was born in MoscowMoscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. Her mother was Yulia Meltzer, a well-known Jewish dancer from Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
. After meeting Yulia at a reception, Yakov fought with her second husband, Nikolai Bessarab, and arranged her divorce. Bessarab was later arrested by the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
and executed. Yakov became her third husband.
Yakov was a senior lieutenant
Senior lieutenant
Senior lieutenant is a military grade between a lieutenant and a captain. Sometimes senior lieutenant is called a first lieutenant....
in the Soviet
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
artillery in the Second World War. Historians have traditionally maintained that he was captured by the Germans
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in 1941 and died at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Sachsenhausen or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used primarily for political prisoners from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May, 1945. After World War II, when Oranienburg was in the Soviet Occupation Zone, the structure was used as an NKVD...
in 1943 after Stalin declined to exchange him for the captured German general Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus
Friedrich Paulus
Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Paulus was an officer in the German military from 1910 to 1945. He attained the rank of Generalfeldmarschall during World War II, and is best known for having commanded the Sixth Army's assault on Stalingrad during Operation Blue in 1942...
. Indeed, Stalin regarded Soviet PoWs as traitors, and had Yulia imprisoned in Lubyanka
Lubyanka (KGB)
The Lubyanka is the popular name for the headquarters of the KGB and affiliated prison on Lubyanka Square in Moscow. It is a large building with a facade of yellow brick, designed by Alexander V...
for two years. The United States Defense Department was in possession of documents which indicated that Yakov Dzhugashvili was shot trying to escape, which were shown to Galina Dzhugashvili in 2003, but which she rejected, claiming that her father was never taken prisoner by the Germans, but rather was killed in battle in 1941. She continuously maintained that any photographs or letters indicating her father was at the prison camp were Nazi propaganda.
She studied philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
at Moscow State University
Moscow State University
Lomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...
, and received a doctorate. She was a member of the Russian Writers Union
USSR Union of Writers
The USSR Union of Writers, or Union of Soviet Writers was a creative union of professional writers in the USSR. It was founded in 1932 on the initiative of the Central Committee of the Communist Party after disbanding a number of other writers' organizations: RAPP, Proletkult, and VOAPP.The aim of...
, and worked all her life as a translator of French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, mainly for the Gorky Institute of World Literature
Gorky Institute of World Literature
The Gorky Institute of World Literature is a research institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow.It was founded on 17 September 1932 for the 40th anniversary of M. Gorky`s literary activity.Web-site: http://www.imli.ru/...
. She was married to Husein ben Saad, an Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n mathematician living in exile in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and employed by the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, but kept her maiden name. They had one son, Selim (b. 1970), who was born severely handicapped.
She died from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
at the Burdenko
Nikolai Burdenko
Nikolay Nilovich Burdenko was a Russian and Soviet surgeon, the founder of the Russian neurosurgery. He was Surgeon-General of the Red Army , an academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences , an academician and the first director of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR , a Hero of Socialist...
military hospital in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, aged 69.