Evgenia Bulba

Evgenia Bulba

Veteran - participant of the Second World War
Date of Birth: 25.12.1915
Country: Ukraine

Biography of Evgeniya Bulba

Evgeniya Bulba was a veteran and a participant of World War II. She was born in Odessa, Ukraine, in the neighborhood of Slobodka. Her family lived modestly, with her father working as a dockworker and her mother as a housewife. Evgeniya's husband, Pavel Bulba, worked as an assistant captain on a merchant ship. In 1940, he was taken for retraining at the submarine fleet school, and when the war started, Pavel was sent directly to Murmansk. Evgeniya would only see him again in 1946.

In March 1941, Evgeniya gave birth to their son while living with her husband's family. The war suddenly began for Odessa on June 23, with the city already being bombed. Evgeniya lived near the port, which was a prime target for the Germans, and it was likely why one of the first bombs fell on a neighboring house.

Evgeniya moved to her own family's house, which was further away from the port and therefore safer. The bombings continued, although not always accompanied by bombardments. Shortly after, the Red Army retreated, and the city fell into lawlessness. The Romanians occupied Odessa, and almost immediately, anti-Semitic pogroms began, with gallows erected in the marketplace.

Young people from Odessa were often drawn to participate in the construction of defense lines, but due to recovering from childbirth, Evgeniya was not of interest to the occupiers as a labor force. Throughout this period, she did not come into contact with German forces, only the Romanians. Later, when the Germans were retreating on all fronts, some of them passed through Odessa, but their army was already in a pitiful state.

During the occupation, trade was permitted, and Evgeniya's father-in-law, Nikodim Nikolaevich, provided for the family by selling metal products. The war itself had little direct impact on Evgeniya; it seemed to pass by somehow. There were rumors of partisans hiding in the catacombs, but the center of Odessa remained calm. The Soviet aviation hardly touched the city, except for the beginning and the end of the war.

Odessa was liberated on April 10, 1944. By that time, Evgeniya had moved back to her husband's parents. The Red Army appeared quite presentable, and despite their appearance, the people warmly welcomed the liberating soldiers. They were immediately provided with all available resources, and people willingly donated their food to feed the soldiers.

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