During the Second World War, the Red Army was by no means the only army in which penal units existed. And even more so, the Red Army did not become the only army in the history of mankind that used such formations. During the years of Perestroika and the "dashing 90s" many myths were formed around the penalty box, the main purpose of which was to discredit the Soviet state system in every way. However, today we will focus mainly on what happened to the penalty box after the end of the war.
Formally, penal units in the Red Army appeared after the famous order No. 227 "Not a step back" dated July 28, 1942. Although, in reality, the first units of penalties were created on the Leningrad Front a few days before the publication of the order of the headquarters. Penalty companies were created for the guilty soldiers and sergeants who committed criminal and military crimes in the course of their service. Units advising on armament and equipment for conventional line infantry units. Penalty battalions were created for officers - formations that corresponded in armament and equipment to the guards rifle units.
For all the years of the war, 428 thousand soldiers of the Red Army passed through penal companies and penal battalions, which is 1.5% of the total number of Red Army soldiers for all years of the Great Patriotic War. They were sentenced to penalties for crimes for which, under normal conditions, according to the laws of the USSR, a prison or camp term, or even capital punishment, was prescribed. Nevertheless, the command decided not to scatter valuable military personnel, but to use them for their intended purpose in more difficult conditions. Penalties were indeed thrown into the most difficult tasks, but contrary to popular myth, they were never treated as "cannon fodder". Do not forget that in most cases it was not “white and fluffy” citizens who got into the penalty boxes, but people guilty of murdering comrades, alarmism, violation of discipline, etc.
At the same time, the penalties were given the opportunity to return to the linear units and remove their convictions due to the length of service of the sentence, injury or as a result of a feat. So, among the Soviet penalty box there are many Heroes of the Soviet Union, including posthumous ones. The dead penalty boxers in wartime were buried in the same way as most other Red Army soldiers - in mass graves. After the war, stone monuments and memorial plaques appeared in these places on which it was directly indicated that here rest "those who died the death of the brave" (attention was focused on this) fighters of such and such a penal company or battalion. In the infantry, penalties received 1 month of service for a crime with a punishment of up to 5 years, 2 months for crimes that were punished for 5-8 years and 3 months for crimes with a punishment of 10 years imprisonment.
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It is quite obvious that not all penalty boxers managed to “atone with blood” for their sins at the time of the end of the war. What happened to them, after all, the hostilities in Europe are over? In fact, everything is extremely simple. The fact is that on July 7, 1945, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued a decree “Amnesty in connection with the victory over Nazi Germany». And on July 18, 1945, an explanatory order of the USSR People's Commissariat of Defense was issued, which confirmed that the amnesty, announced by the Supreme Council, fully applies to the remaining fighters of penalty units. As a result, the soldiers were first able to return to their line units, and then went home. The convictions from all the penalties that fell under the July 1945 amnesty were cleared.
Continuing the topic, read about what feats during the Great Patriotic War were committed by Soviet penalties.
A source: https://novate.ru/blogs/280821/60330/
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