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Yuriy PolyanskiyMember of the underground organization 'Young Guard'.
Date of Birth: 20.03.1924
Country:  Ukraine |
Content:
Biography of Yuri Polyansky
Yuri Polyansky was born on March 20, 1924, in the village of Limovka in the Kolpnyansky district of the Oryol region, in a peasant family. A year later, the Polyanskys moved to the Donbass region, specifically to the village of Lotikovo in the Slavyanoserbsky district. Yuri's father started working in a mine, and in 1930, his mother Pelageya Yegorovna passed away, leaving behind nine young children.
From a young age, Yuri was accustomed to hard work and discipline. In their large but close-knit family, the children supported and helped each other, assisting their father with household chores. In 1932, Yuri started first grade in Lotikovo. After completing primary school, he was taken in by his sister Zinaida and moved to the city of Lisichansk, where he continued his education. In his free time, he enjoyed reading and devoted much attention to his niece, aiding his sister. It was in Lisichansk in 1939 that Yuri joined the Komsomol, the youth wing of the Communist Party. He grew up physically strong and always maintained a fit physique. His comrades respected him for his honesty. Yuri excelled academically, played the mandolin, and had a passion for fishing. After completing eight grades, he returned to Lotikovo to live with his father and continued his studies in the ninth grade.
As the frontline approached the Voroshilovgrad region, Yuri's father, F.F. Polyansky, along with his children, moved to the settlement of Krasnodon. Yuri completed the tenth grade at Secondary School No. 22 in Krasnodon just before the occupation.
Joining the Underground Organization "Young Guard"
In October 1942, Yuri Polyansky joined the underground Komsomol organization called "Young Guard." To avoid forced labor in Nazi Germany, he and Nikolai Sumsky found employment at Mine No. 17. Under the guidance of the leaders of the underground group in Krasnodon, Nikolai Sumsky, Antonina Eliseenko, and Vladimir Zhdanov, Yuri conducted propaganda and agitation among the workers and sabotaged the activities of the fascist authorities to improve coal production. Yuri Polyansky actively participated in collecting a radio receiver, which was later installed in Nikolai Sumsky's apartment. The young underground members in the settlement listened to news bulletins from the Soviet Information Bureau, wrote and distributed leaflets. Yuri played an integral role in every combat operation carried out by the group.
Arrest and Death
On January 13, 1943, Yuri Fedotovich Polyansky was arrested and, the next day, he and his comrades were taken to the police station in Krasnodon, where they were subjected to severe torture before being thrown into the shaft of Mine No. 5. He was buried in a mass grave for the members of the Young Guard in the center of Krasnodon.
