Rubén Ruiz Ibárruri
Encyclopedia
Rubén Ruíz Ibárruri was the son of Spanish communist leader Dolores Ibárruri
and a posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union
.
While still a child, Ibárruri took part in political activities. When he was thirteen, he distributed illegal communist leaflets and had to evade the police. At 1935, after his mother was imprisoned, he and Amaya were sent to the Soviet Union. Rubén resided in Moscow
with the Bolshevik leader Panteleimon Lepeshinsky and his wife, biologist Olga Lepeshinskaya
. He took up an apprenticeship in the Joseph Stalin 1st State Factory for Automobiles
.
, the sixteen-year-old Ibárruri approached the Spanish Embassy in Moscow under a pseudonym and - after lying about his age - volunteered to fight on the Republican side. He joined a mountain infantry unit in Major Juan Modesto
's corps. When General Alexander Rodimtsev
met him at August 1937, he already held the rank of a corporal. After participating in the Battle of the Ebro
, he was promoted to sergeant.
At February 1939, Ibárruri crossed the Pyrenees
into France, with the remnants of the defeated Republican Popular Army, and was interned in the Argelès-sur-Mer concentration camp
. He managed to escape and reach the Soviet Embassy in Paris, from where he returned to Moscow at April, reuniting with his mother and his sister.
Ibárruri attempted to enroll into the Stalingrad Military Flight School, but was rejected on medical grounds. He then entered the Moscow All-Russian Central Executive Committee
Military Academy. After graduation, Second Lieutenant Ibárruri was stationed in the machine-gun platoon of the Moscow 1st Proletarian Division's 175th Company.
. Ibárruri's platoon covered the retreat of the regiment across the river. He was severely wounded during the battle, and evacuated to the rear. At September 1941, President Mikhail Kalinin
had personally awarded him the Order of the Red Banner
.
After recovering, Lieutenant Ibárruri joined the 35th Guards Rifle Division, which was formed from the 8th Airborne Corps at August 1942, as the commander of the 100th Machine Gun Company. The division was consigned to the 62nd Army
, which defended Stalingrad
. When arriving in the area, the division was rushed to the village of Samofalovka, 30 kilometers north-west of Stalingrad, to halt the advance of the German army toward the Volga. By the night of 23 August 1942, only a part of the 35th reached the area. Ibárruri's battalion, commanded by Captain A.A. Stolyarov, was deployed in the Kotluban train station and immediately attacked by German forces. Stolyarov was killed in the fight, and Ibárruri replaced him, leading the soldiers while the rest of the division arrived. In the morning, he was hit by a bullet in the abdomen and sent to a field hospital in Srednyaya Akhtuba
- a town on the other side of the Volga, 20 kilometers east of Stalingrad. He died from his wound at 3 September 1942.
At 2 November 1948, his remains were re-buried in the Square of Fallen Heroes, on the Mamayev Kurgan
. On 22 August 1956, he was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union
. The asteroid 2423 Ibarruri
was named in his honor at 1972.
Dolores Ibárruri
Isidora Dolores Ibárruri Gómez , known more famously as "La Pasionaria" was a Spanish Republican leader of the Spanish Civil War and communist politician of Basque origin...
and a posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union
Hero of the Soviet Union
The title Hero of the Soviet Union was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society.-Overview:...
.
Early life
Rubén was the sole male offspring of Julián Ruiz Gabiña and his wife, the future politician Dolores Ibárruri. Among their six children, he and his sister Amaya were the only ones to reach maturity; four of his siblings died at their infancy.While still a child, Ibárruri took part in political activities. When he was thirteen, he distributed illegal communist leaflets and had to evade the police. At 1935, after his mother was imprisoned, he and Amaya were sent to the Soviet Union. Rubén resided 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...
with the Bolshevik leader Panteleimon Lepeshinsky and his wife, biologist Olga Lepeshinskaya
Olga Lepeshinskaya (biologist)
Olga Borisovna Lepeshinskaya born as Protopopova , was a Soviet biologist, a personal protegée of Vladimir Lenin, later Joseph Stalin, Trofim Lysenko and Alexander Oparin. She rejected genetics and was an advocate of spontaneous generation of life from inanimate matter.-Biography:Lepeshinskaya...
. He took up an apprenticeship in the Joseph Stalin 1st State Factory for Automobiles
ZIL
ZIL and similar may refer to:*Zil, a village in the Tabasaran rayon of Dagestan, Russia*Zil stands for Zulfikar Industries Pvt. Ltd. Pakistan, a Chemical factory in Pakistan producting soaps and related chemical products since 1976...
.
Spanish Civil War
After the outbreak of the Spanish Civil WarSpanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, the sixteen-year-old Ibárruri approached the Spanish Embassy in Moscow under a pseudonym and - after lying about his age - volunteered to fight on the Republican side. He joined a mountain infantry unit in Major Juan Modesto
Juan Modesto
Juan Modesto Guilloto León was a Republican army officer during the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:He originally worked at a sawmill before joining the Spanish Army...
's corps. When General Alexander Rodimtsev
Alexander Rodimtsev
Aleksandr Ilich Rodimtsev was a Colonel-General in the Soviet Red Army during World War II and twice won the Hero of the Soviet Union award .Rodimtsev joined the Red Army in the 1920s...
met him at August 1937, he already held the rank of a corporal. After participating in the Battle of the Ebro
Battle of the Ebro
The Battle of the Ebro was the longest and bloodiest battle of the Spanish Civil War...
, he was promoted to sergeant.
At February 1939, Ibárruri crossed the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
into France, with the remnants of the defeated Republican Popular Army, and was interned in the Argelès-sur-Mer concentration camp
Camp de concentration d'Argelès-sur-Mer
The Camp de concentration d'Argelès-sur-Mer was a concentration camp established in February 1939 on the territory of the French commune of Argelès-sur-Mer for members of the retirada. The retirada was the retreat of the remains of the Spanish Republican Popular Army after their defeat in the...
. He managed to escape and reach the Soviet Embassy in Paris, from where he returned to Moscow at April, reuniting with his mother and his sister.
Ibárruri attempted to enroll into the Stalingrad Military Flight School, but was rejected on medical grounds. He then entered the Moscow All-Russian Central Executive Committee
All-Russian Central Executive Committee
All-Russian Central Executive Committee , was the highest legislative, administrative, and revising body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. Although the All-Russian Congress of Soviets had supreme authority, in periods between its sessions its powers were passed to VTsIK...
Military Academy. After graduation, Second Lieutenant Ibárruri was stationed in the machine-gun platoon of the Moscow 1st Proletarian Division's 175th Company.
World War II
At early July 1941, soon after the Germany invaded the Soviet Union, the 1st Division confronted the enemy in the town of Barysaw, near the Berezina RiverBerezina River
The Berezina is a river in Belarus and a tributary of the Dnieper River.The Berezina Preserve by the river is in the UNESCO list of Biosphere Preserves.-Historical significance:...
. Ibárruri's platoon covered the retreat of the regiment across the river. He was severely wounded during the battle, and evacuated to the rear. At September 1941, President Mikhail Kalinin
Mikhail Kalinin
Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin , known familiarly by Soviet citizens as "Kalinych," was a Bolshevik revolutionary and the nominal head of state of Russia and later of the Soviet Union, from 1919 to 1946...
had personally awarded him the Order of the Red Banner
Order of the Red Banner
The Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
.
After recovering, Lieutenant Ibárruri joined the 35th Guards Rifle Division, which was formed from the 8th Airborne Corps at August 1942, as the commander of the 100th Machine Gun Company. The division was consigned to the 62nd Army
62nd Army (Soviet Union)
The 62nd Order of Lenin Army was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during the Second World War. Formed as the 7th Reserve Army as part of the Stavka Reserve in May 1942, the formation was designated as the 62nd Rifle Army the following month...
, which defended Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...
. When arriving in the area, the division was rushed to the village of Samofalovka, 30 kilometers north-west of Stalingrad, to halt the advance of the German army toward the Volga. By the night of 23 August 1942, only a part of the 35th reached the area. Ibárruri's battalion, commanded by Captain A.A. Stolyarov, was deployed in the Kotluban train station and immediately attacked by German forces. Stolyarov was killed in the fight, and Ibárruri replaced him, leading the soldiers while the rest of the division arrived. In the morning, he was hit by a bullet in the abdomen and sent to a field hospital in Srednyaya Akhtuba
Srednyaya Akhtuba
Srednyaya Akhtuba is an urban locality and the administrative center of Sredneakhtubinsky District of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. Population:...
- a town on the other side of the Volga, 20 kilometers east of Stalingrad. He died from his wound at 3 September 1942.
At 2 November 1948, his remains were re-buried in the Square of Fallen Heroes, on the Mamayev Kurgan
Mamayev Kurgan
Mamayev Kurgan is a dominant height overlooking the city of Volgograd in Southern Russia. The name in Russian means "tumulus of Mamai"....
. On 22 August 1956, he was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union
Hero of the Soviet Union
The title Hero of the Soviet Union was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society.-Overview:...
. The asteroid 2423 Ibarruri
2423 Ibarruri
2423 Ibarruri is a Mars-crossing asteroid discovered on July 14, 1972 by Zhuravleva, L. at Nauchnyj. It was named after Rubén Ruiz Ibárruri.- External links :*...
was named in his honor at 1972.
External links
- Rubén Ruíz Ibárruri on the Heroes of the USSR's official website.
- Rubén Ruíz Ibárruri on Spanish-language Russia TodayRussia TodayRussia Today may refer to:* Russia Today, an English language 24-hour television news channel from Russia. It was launched in 2005 and is not related to an online news service of the similar name operated by EIN News...
.