Vasily Zaytsev

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Vasily Grigoryevich Zaytsev
AllegianceSoviet Union
Years of service1942 — 1943
RankCaptain
Battles/warsGreat Patriotic War
AwardsHero of the Soviet Union
Order of Lenin
Order of the Red Banner
Order of the Patriotic War, 1st Class
Medal for the Defence of Stalingrad
Medal For the Victory Over Germany

Captain Vasily Grigoryevich Zaytsev [1] (23 March 1915 – 15 December 1991) was a Soviet sniper during World War II.

He is particularly notable for his activities between 10 November and 17 December 1942, during the Battle of Stalingrad. He killed 225 soldiers and officers of the Wehrmacht and other Axis armies, including 11 enemy snipers.[2] Before the 10th November, he had already killed 32 Axis soldiers with the standard Mosin-Nagant rifle.[2] Between October 1942 and January 1943, Zaytsev had made 242 verified kills,[3] but the real number may be much higher;[4] some argue it might have been as many as 400.[5] His military rank at the time was Junior Lieutenant.

  • A film called Enemy At The Gates is based on his achievements during WWII.

References[change | change source]

  1. Russian: Васи́лий Григо́рьевич За́йцев, pronounced [vʌˈsʲilʲɪj grʲɪˈgorʲjevʲɪtɕ ˈzajtsɨf]
  2. 2.0 2.1 (in Russian)Biography at the website on Heroes of the Soviet Union and Russia
  3. "About Vassili Zaitsev". Archived from the original on 2007-07-20. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
  4. Top WW2 Snipers
  5. World War II Snipers

Books[change | change source]

  • Zaytsev,Vasily (1956) "Notes of a Sniper:For us There is no Land Beyond the Volga" Vladivostok:Moscow/2826 Press Inc.
  • Beevor, Antony (1998). Stalingrad. Penguin Books Ltd.: London. ISBN 0-14-100131-3.
  • Robbins, David L. (2000). War of the Rats. Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-58135-X.
  • (1989). The Reader's Digest Illustrated History of World War II. Reader's Digest Association Limited.: London. ISBN 0-89577-333-3

Other websites[change | change source]